Sandhabhasa

The mysteries of the various world religions make use of a hidden esoteric symbolism, which can also be found in magic, spiritual alchemy and in tantra. 

The symbolism used and the special iconography consisted of, among other things

• geometric shapes like triangles and five stars
• multi-dimensional forms such as mountains(consciousness) and cities (mostly = chakras)
• Persons with the meaning of higher forces or aspects of higher bodies (Adam Kadmon, Adityas, Jivatma etc.)
• Weapons like Ayudhapurusha or club as symbols of strength
• Images with allegorical symbolism (e.g. in spiritual alchemy) such as tree and 'sea of samsara'
• Mystical animals like (Vahanas) Numerology -
• The esoteric number symbolism or number mysticism, for example, had the 3 as the number of the trinity (triad) and the theological virtues. The 4 served as the number of the world, etc.
• Thangkas with a background of a certain sadhana

== Sandhyabhasa ==

'O Sariputra, The Sandhabhasya of the Tathagatas is very difficult '(Saddharmapundarika or Lotus Sutra (Bib. Budh., 1912).

The '' Sandhyabhasa '' ('language of light and darkness') is a twilight language that has traditionally been uses to veil the transmission of esoteric teachings.  The twilight language served once to code the knowledge as well as to increase the intuition of the pupils.

The initiates were anxious to protect the teachings from immature students and from the practitioners of the black path. An allegorical secret symbolism was therefore common not only in Tantric Shivaism but also in the Puranas and in the Vedas.

The word gaṇḍa in the Gandavyuha - Sutra  also means 'a language with double meaning'.

The Mahayana and the tantric buddhism (Vajrayana)  use their specific  symbolism.

The Hevajra Tantra teaches that there is a secret language and the great convention of the Yoginis, which can not be unraveled by the Shravakas and others.

Thai bhikkhu Buddhadasa had explored the importance of the symbolic language in the Pali Canon  in a number of lectures and publications.

Matsyendranath and Daripada from the Natha Pantha also wrote their poems in the ''Sandhya bhasa'' symbol language.

In spiritual alchemy, a pictoral symbolism was a means of spreading also because of church and authority.

Some teachers of Sufism used the Balaibalan language (translated as: language made alive) after execution of some masters.

Correspondingly texts were consciously esoteric, symbolic and full of allusions.

There have been other reasons for such a secret language. If it would have been written openly, selfish man would have tampered with the script to such an extent that nobody could decipher its meaning after a few centuries. However, since it was written in pictures, selfish man did not understand its content and thus it was preserved until today and for everyone through the millennial who was knowledgeable about the true Cabala and other esoteric systems.

== Literature ==

• The Twilight Language: Explorations in Buddhist Meditation and Symbolism, Roderick Bucknell - Martin Stuart-Fox, 1986, ISBN-13: 978-0312825409 ISBN-10: 0312825404
• Nordstrom, Lou (January 1989). "The Twilight Language: Explorations in Buddhist Meditation and Symbolism by Roderick S. Bucknell; Martin Stuart-Fox". Philosophy East and West. 39 (1): 104–106.
• The Literary Heritage of Sonepur , Nayak, Pabitra Mohan (2006), Orissa Review , May 2006, S. 72–79
•  Dakini's Warm Breath: The Feminine Principle in Tibetan Buddhism, Judith Simmer-Brown, Boston, Massachusetts: Shambhala Publications, 2002 , ISBN 978-1-57062-920-4
• Bucknell, Roderick; Stuart-Fox, Martin (1986). The Twilight Language: Explorations in Buddhist Meditation and Symbolism. London: Curzon Press. ISBN 0-312-82540-4.
• Nayak, Pabitra Mohan (2006) - Orissa Review , May 2006, S. 72–79
• INTENTION AND SUGGESTION IN THE ABHIDHARMAKOŚA: SANDHĀBHĀṢĀ REVISITED , MICHAEL M. BROIDO, Journal of Indian Philosophy , Vol. 13, No. 4 (DECEMBER 1985), Springer, pg. 327-381
•  Connotative Semiotics in Mahayoga Tantra - Ritual and Scripture, Christian K. Wedemeyer
• Sri Aurobindo : Secret of the veda - the inner symbolism

== Weblinks ==

• Spiritwiki.de : Esoterische Symbolik
• Indianetzone : Tantric language