Siddhanta means doctrine, and Shikhamani means crest-jewel. Siddhanta Shikhamani is said to be the crest-jewel of all the doctrines. It is considered to be one of the scriptures, if not the main scripture, of the Veerashaivas, the main scripture being the Shunya Sampadane. Siddhanta Shikhamani is said to be the foremost authority on the religion and philosophy of Veerashaivism. The primitive traits of Veerashaivism in the Vedas and the Upanishads find a complete and comprehensive exposition in Siddhanta Shikhamani. It is a teaching of the doctrine of 101 sthalas/stages. It harmonizes the concepts of duality and non-duality (oneness). The original was composed in Sanskrit by Shri Shivayogi Shivacharya. It has been edited with introduction, translation and notes in English by Dr. M. Sivakumara Swamy, M. A., Ph. D., and published in 2007 by Shaiva Bharati Shodha Pratisthan, Jangamwadi Math, Varanasi-221 001, India. Almost all of what is in this concise composition of the present book is taken from Dr. Sivakumara Swamy’s reference book.
