Svecchācāra (IAST; Sanskrit: स्वेच्छाचार) is an important concept in the Nath Sampradaya.International Nath Order Wiki (August 2009). Svecchachara. Source: (accessed: Thursday March 11, 2010)स्वेच्छाचार (svecchacara) - Meaning in English. Source: 'Svecchācāra' means: acting as one likes, arbitrariness, acting without restraint.The Magickal Union of East and West । Retrieved 8 July 2014.Source: (accessed: Thursday March 11, 2010) The word appears to be a combination of three Sanskrit words: sva (self), iccha (will), and cāra (deportment), essentially adding up to "behaving as one desires" or "in accordance with one's will (iccha)".Autobiography and the Psychological Study of Religious Lives । Retrieved 2008.

John Woodroffe (1951: p. 440) associates it with notions of antinomianism and that it is evident in the Upanishads and Tantras: "Lastly, the doctrine that the illuminated knower of Brahman (Brahmajnani) is above both good (Dharma) and evil (Adharma) should be noted. Such a one is a Svechacari whose way is Svechacara or "do as you will". Similar doctrine and practices in Europe are there called Antinomianism. The doctrine is not peculiar to the Tantras. It is to be found in the Upanishads, and is in fact a very commonly held doctrine in India."Woodroffe, John George (1951). Shakti and Shâkta: essays and addresses on the Shâkta Tantrashâstra. Forgotten Books. , 9781606201459. Source: (accessed: Thursday March 11, 2010), p.440

Woodroffe (1951: pp. 440–441) also goes on to state that: "In Svecchacara there is theoretical freedom, but it is not consciously availed of to do what is known to be wrong without fall and pollution."Woodroffe, John George (1951). Shakti and Shâkta: essays and addresses on the Shâkta Tantrashâstra. Forgotten Books. , 9781606201459. Source: (accessed: Thursday March 11, 2010), pp.440-441

This term is employed in the closure of the Avadhuta Upanishad.Source: (accessed: 1 January 2007) Publisher: Yuga Nirman Yojana Page Number 177

The term 'svecchācāra' also appears nine times in the Mahanirvana Tantra first translated into the English from Sanskrit by Woodroffe (1913).Source: Sir John Woodroffe (1913): Introduction to Tantra Shastra Publisher: academia.edu

See also True Will

Notes