page_title: Tripura Rahasya
section_title: Textual History and Structure
hierarchical_section_title: Tripura Rahasya / Textual History and Structure
caption_attribution_description: English: Dattatreya, the incarnation of the thrimoorthis, Brahma, Mahavishnu and Maheswar (Shiva). Printed at Ravi Varma Press, Malavli near Lonavala, Maharashtra. മലയാളം: ബ്രഹ്മാവ്, വിഷ്ണു, ശിവൻ എന്നീ ത്രിമൂർത്തികളുടെ അവതാരമായ ദത്താത്രേയൻ. രവി വർമ്മ പ്രസിൽ നിന്നും പ്രസിദ്ധീകരിച്ച ചിത്രം.
context_page_description: The Tripura Rahasya meaning The Mystery beyond the Trinity, is an ancient literary work in Sanskrit believed to have been narrated by Dattatreya to Parashurama. It is an ancient prime text which is one of the treatises on Advaita school of classical Indian Metaphysics.
context_section_description: Tripurā means "three cities" or "the trinity." Rahasya means "secret" or "mystery." In a sense there is no secret to be revealed. It is only due to lack of wisdom that humans don't experience their true nature. Therefore, mystery would be a more appropriate translation. Thus, Tripura Rahasya means the Mystery beyond the Trinity. The three cities or states of consciousness are waking (Jāgṛat), dreaming (Svapna) and deep sleep (Suṣupti). The underlying consciousness in them all is called Sri Tripura, the Mother Goddess Chandika.
  The Tripura Rahasya expounds the teachings of the supreme spiritual truth. The highest truth was first taught by Lord Shiva to Lord Vishnu. Lord Vishnu incarnated on earth as Sri Dattatreya, Lord of the Avadhutas, who taught this to Parasurama, who later taught it to Haritāyana.
  The Tripura Rahasya is a dialogue between Lord Dattatreya and Parasurama. It is also called the Haritāyana Samhitā after its author Haritāyana, son of Harita.
  It is said to consist of 12,000 slokas in three sections - the Jñāna Khaṇḍa (Section on Supreme Wisdom), the Mahātamya Khaṇḍa (Section on the Greatness of Sri Devi), and the Caryā Khaṇḍa (Section on Conduct). Of these the first consists of 6,687 slokas; the second of 2,163 slokas; and the third is untraceable.
caption: Dattatreya
exif: {"Image Software": "Picasa 3.0", "Image ExifOffset": "50", "EXIF ExifImageWidth": "946", "EXIF ExifImageLength": "1237", "EXIF ExifVersion": "0210", "Interoperability InteroperabilityIndex": "", "Interoperability InteroperabilityVersion": "[48, 49, 48, 48]", "EXIF InteroperabilityOffset": "150", "EXIF ImageUniqueID": "ff3156c101b747f9de3fbdd57f9c977e"}