The Vijñāna-bhairava-tantra (VBT, sometimes spelled in a Hindicised way as Vigyan Bhairav Tantra) is a Shaiva Tantra, of the Kaula Trika tradition of Kashmir Shaivism
Singh notes that it is difficult to establish an exact date for the text, and it could have been written at some time from the 7th to the 8th century CE
It is also called the Śiva-jñāna-upaniṣad by Abhinavagupta
The VBT is framed as a discourse between Bhairava (the “tremendous one”, or “the terrifying”) and the goddess Bhairavi in 163 Sanskrit anuṣṭubh stanzas
It briefly presents around 112 Tantric meditation methods (yuktis) or centering techniques (dhāraṇās) in very compressed form
These practices are supposed to lead to the recognition of the true nature of Reality, the “tremendous” or “awesome” consciousness (i
e
vijñāna-bhairava)
These include several variants of breath awareness, concentration on various centers in the body, non-dual awareness, mantra practice, visualizations and contemplations which make use of the senses
A prerequisite to success in any of the practices is a clear understanding of which method is most suitable to the practitioner