by Shailendra Sharma (Author)
Discovered in Kashmir, Shiva Sutras have a distinguished place among the spiritual scriptures of Sanatana dharma. About 250 years ago, there lived in Kashmir a Brahmin Shiva devotee named Vasugupta. He once had a dream in which he was directed by Lord Shiva himself to find a cave on the Shankara hill. He was told that inside it he would find a huge rock, on turning which he would receive the spiritual knowledge bestowed by Shiva himself. He was directed to absorb it and spread it in the society. The very next day Vasugupta went to the said place with a few others. There he beheld the same cave and the same rock. On turning the rock he found 77 sutras carved on it. These same sutras have reached us through the blessings of the great Shiva devotee Vasugupta. These sutras are in three parts- 1. Shambhavopaya, 2. Shaktopaya, and 3. Anvopaya. Lord Shiva, the Adiguru of all the disciplines, has given these indicators in the form of sutras out of compassion for such devotees who are ambitious to know the secrets of creation by becoming self realized through an ardent practice of yoga; for those who would be able to understand and experience these truths in their lives.