Buddhism

===Tantric texts===
{{Main|Tantras (Buddhism)}}During the [[Gupta Empire]], a new class of Buddhist sacred literature began to develop, which are called the [[Tantras (Buddhism)|Tantras]].<ref>Wayman, Alex  (2008). ''The Buddhist Tantras: Light on Indo-Tibetan Esotericism.'' Routledge. p. 23.</ref> By the 8th century, the tantric tradition was very influential in India and beyond. Besides drawing on a [[Mahāyāna]] Buddhist framework, these texts also borrowed deities and material from other Indian religious traditions, such as the [[Śaiva]] and [[Pancharatra]] traditions, local god/goddess cults, and local spirit worship (such as [[yaksha]] or [[nāga]] spirits).<ref>Sørensen, Henrik H; Payne, Richard K; Orzech, Charles D. (ed.) (2010). ''Esoteric Buddhism and the Tantras,'' ''in East Asia''. Handbook of Oriental Studies. p. 20.</ref><ref>Grey, David B.; Tantra and the Tantric Traditions of Hinduism and Buddhism</ref>

Some features of these texts include the widespread use of mantras, meditation on the [[Lung (Tibetan Buddhism)#Subtle Body|subtle body]], worship of [[fierce deities]], and [[antinomian]] and [[wikt:transgressive|transgressive]] practices such as ingesting [[Alcohol (drug)|alcohol]] and performing sexual rituals.{{sfnp|Williams|Tribe|Wynne|2012|loc=chapter 7}}<ref>{{cite book |last=Wallis |first=Christopher |date=2016 |title=The Tantric Age: A Comparison Of Shaiva And Buddhist Tantra}}{{full citation needed|date=October 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last=Dalton |first=J. |title=A Crisis of Doxography: How Tibetans Organized Tantra During the 8th–12th Centuries |journal=Journal of the International Association of Buddhist Studies |volume=28 |issue=1 |date=2005 |pages=115–181}}</ref>