Nishkala, Niṣkala, Niṣkalā, Nitkala: 22 definitions
Introduction:
Nishkala means something in Hinduism, Sanskrit, Marathi. If you want to know the exact meaning, history, etymology or English translation of this term then check out the descriptions on this page. Add your comment or reference to a book if you want to contribute to this summary article.
The Sanskrit terms Niṣkala and Niṣkalā can be transliterated into English as Niskala or Nishkala, using the IAST transliteration scheme (?).
In Hinduism
Shilpashastra (iconography)
Source: Wisdom Library: Elements of Hindu IconograpyNiṣkalā (निष्कला):—In this state all created beings merge their bodies, which they had obtained for the purpose of the enjoyment of actions of the pure and impure kinds, in the primeval cause, and therein suppress all activities. In the niṣkalā state the Supreme Being has no beginning, no limit or boundary and is pervvading everywhere, is indestructible, incomparable, extremely subtle and supreme, and is unknowable by any mode of proof.
Shilpashastra (शिल्पशास्त्र, śilpaśāstra) represents the ancient Indian science (shastra) of creative arts (shilpa) such as sculpture, iconography and painting. Closely related to Vastushastra (architecture), they often share the same literature.
Shaivism (Shaiva philosophy)
Source: Wisdom Library: Kubjikāmata-tantraNiṣkalā (निष्कला):—Second of the eight Mātṛs born from the body of Ātmī, according to the Kubjikāmata-tantra. These eight sub-manifestations (mātṛ) symbolize the different kinds of souls, as well as the impurities by which these souls are bound (except for Niṣkala or Śiva). They are presided over by the Bhairava Caṇḍa and his consort Brāhmī. Ātmī is the second of the Eight Mahāmātṛs, residing within the Mātṛcakra (third of the five cakras) and represents the ātman.
Source: Archaeological Survey of India: Śaiva monuments at Paṭṭadakal (śaivism)Niṣkala (निष्कल, “formless”).—According to the Vidyeśvarasaṃhitā of the Śivapurāṇa:—“Śiva alone is glorified as Niṣkala (nameless and formless) since He is identical with supreme Brahman. He is also Sakala as he has an embodied form. He is both Sakala and Niṣkala. It is in his Niṣkala aspect that the Liṅga is appropriate”. The text continues further: “Since He has the Sakala and Niṣkala aspects He is worshipped both in the form of Liṅga and in the embodied form by the people and is called the highest Brahman. Other deities, not being Brahman, have no Niṣkala aspect anywhere.” So according to the Śivapurāṇa a Liṅga installed in the sanctum is a representation of niṣkala, formless aspect of Śiva.
Source: Shodhganga: Iconographical representations of ŚivaNiṣkala (निष्कल).—Śivatattva represents his Niṣkala form. It is identical with him. Śiva is eternal (nitya) higher than the highest (parātpara), omnipresent, omniscient, omnipotent, pure, uncomparable (anaupamya), the cause of the cause (kāraṇa-kāraṇa). For the benefit of the world Śiva conceives a spontaneous idea, which results in the manifestation of Śakti from his one- thousandth part. Then comes Parā, Ādi, Icchā and Kriyāśakti, each succeeding from the 1/1000 part of the preceeding one. All these Śaktis are Niṣkala. This is Śivasṛṣṭi.
Source: Brill: Śaivism and the Tantric TraditionsNiṣkala (निष्कल) [=Niṣkalatā?] refers to the “Formless”, according to the Īśvarapratyabhijñāvimarśinī (KSTS vol. 65, 331).—Accordingly, “The state of turyātīta taught [above] with reference to that [blossoming of insight] is simply the [further] extension of the realization of the state called turya. But that state of turyātīta was taught there as a state of awareness in which Void etc. remain [as objective knowables], but is separated [from them]. This is the state referred to as ‘the pure Self,’ ‘the Formless,’ (niṣkalatā) and ‘pure Consciousness’ in the Saiddhāntika scriptures. It is taught with reference to those who know the Deity solely as [being] all-transcendent; so [Utpaladeva] indicates [in his Vivṛti]”.
Source: SOAS University of London: Protective Rites in the Netra TantraNiṣkala (निष्कल) refers to “without parts” and is used to describe Viṣṇu, according to the Netratantra of Kṣemarāja: a Śaiva text from the 9th century in which Śiva (Bhairava) teaches Pārvatī topics such as metaphysics, cosmology, and soteriology.—Accordingly, [verse 13.1-9, while describing the appearance and worship of Viṣṇu]—“Or, [the Mantrin] worships a very handsome, eight-armed, yellow Deva. [...] He remembers [Viṣṇu’s] many forms. Thus, he thinks [of him] with a collection of many faces, many weapons and [many] arms [i.e., the cosmic Viṣṇu], reclining, taking a wife, joined with Lakṣmī, alone, [as] Narasiṃha, Varāha, or Vāmana, Kapila, or an honorable man, unadorned, or even without parts (niṣkala—cāvyaktaḥ vāpi niṣkalaḥ). [...]”.
Shaiva (शैव, śaiva) or Shaivism (śaivism) represents a tradition of Hinduism worshiping Shiva as the supreme being. Closely related to Shaktism, Shaiva literature includes a range of scriptures, including Tantras, while the root of this tradition may be traced back to the ancient Vedas.
Purana and Itihasa (epic history)
Source: archive.org: Shiva Purana - English TranslationNiṣkala (निष्कल) and Sakala both refer to epithets of Śiva, as explained in the Śivapurāṇa 1.5.—Accordingly, “Śiva alone is glorified as Niṣkala (nameless and formless) since He is identical with supreme Brahman. He is also Sakala as He has an embodied form. He is both Sakala and Niṣkala. It is in his Niṣkala aspect that the liṅga is appropriate. In the Sakala aspect the worship of his embodied form is appropriate. Since He has the Sakala and Niṣkala aspects He is worshipped both in the phallic and in the embodied form by the people and is called the highest Brahman. Other deities, not being Brahman, have no Niṣkala aspect anywhere”.
The Purana (पुराण, purāṇas) refers to Sanskrit literature preserving ancient India’s vast cultural history, including historical legends, religious ceremonies, various arts and sciences. The eighteen mahapuranas total over 400,000 shlokas (metrical couplets) and date to at least several centuries BCE.
Kavya (poetry)
Source: archive.org: Naisadhacarita of SriharsaNiṣkala (निष्कल) refers to “inarticulate” (a musical term), and is mentioned in the Naiṣadha-carita 21.126.
Kavya (काव्य, kavya) refers to Sanskrit poetry, a popular ancient Indian tradition of literature. There have been many Sanskrit poets over the ages, hailing from ancient India and beyond. This topic includes mahakavya, or ‘epic poetry’ and natya, or ‘dramatic poetry’.
Shaktism (Shakta philosophy)
Source: Google Books: Manthanabhairavatantram1) Niṣkalā (निष्कला) refers to “she who is without parts”, according to the commentary on the Ṣaṭsāhasrasaṃhitā, an expansion of the Kubjikāmatatantra: the earliest popular and most authoritative Tantra of the Kubjikā cult.—The Ṣaṭsāhasrasaṃhitā stresses that the fifth sacred seat [i.e., Mātaṅga] is unmanifest and hence pervasive. Present in the other seats, it has no specific location of its own. The aspect the goddess assumes here is her undifferentiated form ‘without parts’ (niṣkalā). The Kubjikāmatatantra says that it is the source of the universe. As the universal, primal cause is commonly considered to be the ‘unmanifest’, the two sources implicitly agree.
2) Niṣkala (निष्कल) refers to one of the eight Bhairavas (bhairavāṣṭaka) associated with Oṃkārapīṭha (also called Oḍḍiyāna, Ādipīṭha or Uḍapīṭha), according to the Manthānabhairavatantra, a vast sprawling work that belongs to a corpus of Tantric texts concerned with the worship of the goddess Kubjikā.—[...] The eight Bhairavas (bhairavāṣṭaka): Niṣkala, Asitāṅga, Saṃvarta, Ānandabhairava, Niṣtaraṅga, Karāla, Amogha, Khecara.
Shakta (शाक्त, śākta) or Shaktism (śāktism) represents a tradition of Hinduism where the Goddess (Devi) is revered and worshipped. Shakta literature includes a range of scriptures, including various Agamas and Tantras, although its roots may be traced back to the Vedas.
Yoga (school of philosophy)
Source: ORA: Amanaska (king of all yogas): A Critical Edition and Annotated Translation by Jason Birch1) Niṣkala (निष्कल) refers to “that which has no aspects”, and is used to describe Samādhi and Paratattva (highest reality), according to the Amanaska Yoga treatise which deals absorption, yogic powers and liberation.—The Amanaska referred to (or qualified) Samādhi with several terms, which are all negative; [e.g., it has no aspects (niṣkala);] [...] The fact that such terminology is found in the Amanaska indicates that descriptions of Śiva and the void-like meditative states in Mantramargic Śaivism, were the basis of the descriptions of Samādhi and Paratattva (the highest reality) in this treatise. The Amanaska Yoga was consistent with the Pātañjala Yogaśāstra’s definition of Yoga, yet it described Samādhi in terms different to those of Pātañjalayoga; such as Niṣkala—“that which has no aspects”.
2) Niṣkalā (निष्कला) refers to an “aspectless” (state), according to the Brahmayāmala-tantra (or Picumata), an early 6th century Śaiva text consisting of twelve-thousand verses.—Accordingly, while describing meditation (dhyāna) and samādhi: “[...] Therefore, [the Yogin] should perform meditation on the region in his heart, the navel, †[...]† [and] Bindu, [then] withdraw his mind into Śakti. In that way, an absorption [arises] in that no-mind, aspectless (niṣkalā) and highest state. He meditates in [that no-mind] state until impartiality [arises] in regard to the object of meditation. O goddess, when his [higher] faculty of discernment has become impartial to all the Tattvas, it is here called samādhi, distinguished by absorption in those [Tattvas]”.
Yoga is originally considered a branch of Hindu philosophy (astika), but both ancient and modern Yoga combine the physical, mental and spiritual. Yoga teaches various physical techniques also known as āsanas (postures), used for various purposes (eg., meditation, contemplation, relaxation).
General definition (in Hinduism)
Source: archive.org: A History of Indian PhilosophyAccording to the Vatula-tantra, Śiva is called niṣkala when all His kalās, that is parts or organs or functions, are concentrated in a unity within Him. In further defining the nature of niṣkalatva, the author says that when the pure and impure elements that contribute to experience are collected together and merged in the original cause, and remain there as the budding cause of all powers that are to develop the universe, we have the niṣkala stage. The commentator supports this idea by quotations from many texts.
Languages of India and abroad
Marathi-English dictionary
Source: DDSA: The Molesworth Marathi and English Dictionaryniṣkaḷa (निष्कळ).—a unc Destitute of kaḷā, wanting lustre, splendor, sprightliness, freshness, vigor.
Marathi is an Indo-European language having over 70 million native speakers people in (predominantly) Maharashtra India. Marathi, like many other Indo-Aryan languages, evolved from early forms of Prakrit, which itself is a subset of Sanskrit, one of the most ancient languages of the world.
Sanskrit dictionary
Source: DDSA: The practical Sanskrit-English dictionaryNiṣkala (निष्कल).—a. inarticulate (a musical term); N.21.126.
Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Shabda-Sagara Sanskrit-English DictionaryNiṣkala (निष्कल).—mfn.
(-laḥ-lā-laṃ) 1. Waned, diminished. 2. Impotent, seedless, barren. m.
(-laḥ) 1. Pudendum muliebre. 2. A name of Bramha. 3. A fancied personification of Bramha, for religious cere monies. f. (-lā or -lī) A woman past child bearing, in whom menstruation has ceased. E. nir gone, lost, kala a part &c.
Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Benfey Sanskrit-English DictionaryNiṣkalā (निष्कला).—adj., f. lā, 1. undivided, Mahābhārata 13, 1044. 2. maimed, infirm, Mahābhārata 3, 13851. Sa-kala, adj. f. lā, 1. whole, [Vikramorvaśī, (ed. Bollensen.)] [distich] 95. 2. all, [Pañcatantra] 53, 21; 55, 12.
Niṣkalā is a Sanskrit compound consisting of the terms nis and kalā (कला).
Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Cappeller Sanskrit-English DictionaryNiṣkala (निष्कल).—[adjective] without parts, undivided; maimed, impotent, barren.
Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Monier-Williams Sanskrit-English Dictionary1) Niṣkala (निष्कल):—[=niṣ-kala] [from niṣ > niḥ] mfn. without parts, undivided, [Upaniṣad; Mahābhārata] etc.
2) [v.s. ...] waned, diminished, decayed, infirm, [Mahābhārata; Daśakumāra-carita]
3) [v.s. ...] seedless, impotent, [cf. Lexicographers, esp. such as amarasiṃha, halāyudha, hemacandra, etc.]
4) [v.s. ...] m. an old man, [Horace H. Wilson]
5) [v.s. ...] Name of Śiva, [Śivagītā, ascribed to the padma-purāṇa]
6) [v.s. ...] a receptacle, [cf. Lexicographers, esp. such as amarasiṃha, halāyudha, hemacandra, etc.]
7) [v.s. ...] pudendum muliebre, [cf. Lexicographers, esp. such as amarasiṃha, halāyudha, hemacandra, etc.]
8) [v.s. ...] f(ā or ī). ([gana] gaurādi) a woman past childbearing or menstruation, [cf. Lexicographers, esp. such as amarasiṃha, halāyudha, hemacandra, etc.]
Source: Cologne Digital Sanskrit Dictionaries: Yates Sanskrit-English DictionaryNiṣkala (निष्कल):—[ni-ṣkala] (laḥ-lā-laṃ) a. Waned; impotent; full, without parts (God). m. Pudendum muliebre; Brahmā. f. A woman past child-bearing.
Source: DDSA: Paia-sadda-mahannavo; a comprehensive Prakrit Hindi dictionary (S)Niṣkala (निष्कल) in the Sanskrit language is related to the Prakrit word: Ṇikkala.
[Sanskrit to German]
Sanskrit, also spelled संस्कृतम् (saṃskṛtam), is an ancient language of India commonly seen as the grandmother of the Indo-European language family (even English!). Closely allied with Prakrit and Pali, Sanskrit is more exhaustive in both grammar and terms and has the most extensive collection of literature in the world, greatly surpassing its sister-languages Greek and Latin.
Kannada-English dictionary
Source: Alar: Kannada-English corpusNiṣkala (ನಿಷ್ಕಲ):—[adjective] complete; whole; perfect.
--- OR ---
Niṣkala (ನಿಷ್ಕಲ):—
1) [noun] the Absolute Being; the God.
2) [noun] that which has lost its strength and has become weak.
3) [noun] a producing very subtle sound on vīṇe, the Indian lute.
4) [noun] (mus.) one of the quarter-tones of ಸ(ಷಡ್ಜ [shadja]), the first note (corresponding to C in Western system).
--- OR ---
Niṣkaḷa (ನಿಷ್ಕಳ):—[adjective] = ನಿಷ್ಕಲ [nishkala]1.
--- OR ---
Niṣkaḷa (ನಿಷ್ಕಳ):—[noun] = ನಿಷ್ಕಲ [nishkala]2.
Kannada is a Dravidian language (as opposed to the Indo-European language family) mainly spoken in the southwestern region of India.
See also (Relevant definitions)
Partial matches: Nish, Kala, Ni.
Starts with: Nishkala-Shiva, Nishkalabhava, Nishkalabindu, Nishkaladhyatma, Nishkalaji, Nishkalajitana, Nishkalaka, Nishkalamka, Nishkalamkini, Nishkalamudra, Nishkalana, Nishkalank, Nishkalanka, Nishkalankam, Nishkalankatirtha, Nishkalanki Avatara, Nishkalashraya, Nishkalata, Nishkalatatva, Nishkalatva.
Ends with: Paranishkala, Sakalaniṣkala.
Full-text (+177): Nishkalatva, Shakala, Shivatattva, Shiva, Nitkalacivam, Tattva, Sakalaniṣkala, Nishphala, Nishkale, Aspectless, Nikkala, Narmara, Gandha, Aruvuruvam, Atmi, Aruvam, Indivisible, Ajnabhushita, Kriyadipta, Icchadipta.
Relevant text
Search found 42 books and stories containing Nishkala, Ni-shkala, Ni-ṣkala, Ni-skala, Nis-kala, Nis-kalā, Niṣ-kala, Nish-kala, Niṣkaḷa, Niskala, Niṣkala, Niṣkalā, Nitkala, Niṭkala; (plurals include: Nishkalas, shkalas, ṣkalas, skalas, kalas, kalās, Niṣkaḷas, Niskalas, Niṣkalas, Niṣkalās, Nitkalas, Niṭkalas). You can also click to the full overview containing English textual excerpts. Below are direct links for the most relevant articles:
Sivaprakasam (Study in Bondage and Liberation) (by N. Veerappan)
Interpretations of the Mahavakyas by Shri Shankara < [Chapter 5 - Concept of Advatia]
Thirty minor Upanishads (by K. Narayanasvami Aiyar)
Rudra-Shiva concept (Study) (by Maumita Bhattacharjee)
4. Forms of Śiva and his different activities < [Chapter 5 - Rudra-Śiva in the Purāṇic Literature]
The Linga Purana (by J. L. Shastri)
Chapter 28 - Mental Worship of Śiva (śivārcana-tattva) < [Section 1 - Uttarabhāga]
Chapter 75 - Monism of Śiva (śivādvaita) < [Section 1 - Uttarabhāga]
Chapter 74 - Description of Śiva Liṅgas < [Section 1 - Uttarabhāga]
Vivekachudamani (by Shankara)
The Shiva Purana (by J. L. Shastri)
Chapter 5 - The greatness of the phallic emblem (liṅga) of Śiva < [Section 1 - Vidyeśvara-saṃhitā]
Chapter 35 - The delusion of Viṣṇu and Brahmā (2) < [Section 7.2 - Vāyavīya-saṃhitā (2)]
Chapter 31 - Instruction in perfect wisdom < [Section 7.1 - Vāyavīya-saṃhitā (1)]
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