The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions (406 page)

 
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Binding of Isaac
:

see
‘AKEDA
.

 
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(Skt., ‘drop’ or ‘particle’). A complex term of varied though related meanings in Hinduism and especially in
Tantrism
.
1
In a general sense it is the expression of the highest consciousness (
samvid
) as
akti
which is subtle, eternal, and pervades the whole universe, yet is also the centre of creation.
2
More specifically in
ivism
and
aktism
, bindu is a technical term for the material cause of pure creation (see
KASHMIR
AIVISM
). It is contrasted with
m
y
, the material cause of impure creation, though both must be regarded as two aspects of one reality which interpenetrate each other.
3
Bindu is equated with the
anusv
ra
, the nasalized vowel in Sanskrit (
) represented in devan
gar
as a dot with the letter. It has great symbolic significance in
mantra
as the absolute contracted to a point, the pure potential out of which the universe emanates and to which it returns.
4
Cosmic evolution (the macrocosm) is located within the body (the microcosm) in Tantrism. Thus bindu is located between the eyebrows as a drop which is the object of meditation. It is sometimes identified with
Ku
alin