Of these...

Of these, ten are of the Sivabheda division and are considered dualistic: 1) Kamika, 2) Yogaja, 3) Chintya, 4)Karana, 5) Ajita, 6) Dipta, 7) Sukshma, 8) Sahasraka, 9) Amshumat and 10)Suprabheda.

There are 18 in the Rudrabheda group, classed as dual-nondual: 11) Vijaya, 12) Nihshvasa, 13) Svayambhuva, 14) Anala, 15) Vira (Bhadra), 16) Raurava, 17) Makuta, 18) Vimala, 19) Chandrajnana (or Chandrahasa), 20) Mukhabimba (or Bimba), 21) Prodgita (or Udgita), 22)Lalita, 23) Siddha, 24) Santana, 25) Sarvokta (Narasimha), 26) Parameshvara, 27) Kirana and 28) Vatula (or Parahita). Rishi Tirumular, in his Tirumantiram, refers to 28 Agamas and mentions nine by name.

Eight of these--Karana, Kamika, Vira, Chintya, Vatula, Vimala, Suprabheda and Makuta--are in the above list of 28 furnished by the French Institute of Indology, Pondicherry. The ninth, Kalottara, is presently regarded as an Upagama, or secondary text, of Vatula. The Kamika is the Agama most widely followed in Tamil Saiva temples, because of the availability of Aghorasiva's manual-commentary (paddhati) on it. Vira Saivites especially refer to the Vatula and Vira Agamas.

The Saiva Agama scriptures, above all else, are the connecting strand through all the schools of Saivism. The Agamas themselves express that they are entirely consistent with the teachings of the Veda, that they contain the essence of the Veda, and must be studied with the same high degree of devotion. See: Agamas, Vedas. Saiva: (Sanskrit) "Auspicious." Of or relating to Saivism or its adherents, of whom there are about 400 million in the world today. Same as Saivite. See: Saivism.

Saiva Siddhanta: (Sanskrit) "Final conclusions of Saivism." The most widespread and influential Saivite school today, predominant especially among the Tamil people in Sri Lanka and South India. It is the formalized theology of the divine revelations contained in the twenty-eight Saiva Agamas.

The first known guru of the Shuddha ("pure") Saiva Siddhanta tradition was Maharishi Nandinatha of Kashmir (ca bce 250), recorded in Panini's book of grammar as the teacher of rishis Patanjali, Vyaghrapada and Vasishtha. Other sacred scriptures include the Tirumantiram and the voluminous collection of devotional hymns, the Tirumurai, and the masterpiece on ethics and statecraft, the Tirukural.