Tantra & Sex
TANTRA, SEXUALITY, AND SPIRITUALITY
In some Tantric practices, a spiritual aspirant, or Tantrika, is instructed to take a woman as a partner for their spiritual work. Women from various social backgrounds, may be chosen for this purpose.
These practices typically occur in private, and involve different techniques related to engaging in intimate activities. However, these acts are not seen as mere sexual indulgence, but as offerings to the Divine.
The Tantrika is told to worship the woman, offering her flowers, and other symbols of respect and admiration. He is encouraged to touch and kiss her, but the techniques come with specific instructions that meant to connect the practitioner with divine energy by transforming the sexual energy to awareness. The tantrika must perform these actions without lust or attachment. Tantra teaches that if performed with desire, such actions lead to suffering, but when done with respect and devotion, they bring spiritual growth.
Tantra also teaches that women are manifestations of the Divine Mother, deserving of respect and honor. The Tantrika is advised to honor any woman he encounters, mentally embracing her and acknowledging her as a goddess. The practice of Tantric activities with women is not about lust but about recognizing the sacred in all aspects of life.
Some Tantric texts claim that the spiritual union between the awakened kundalini energy of 2 partners is the fastest way towards experience of oneness and self-realization.
In the end, Tantric sexuality is about transcending the physical act and transforming it into a spiritual experiance, a path to higher consciousness and divine connection.
TANTRA
Sexual acts are energetic acts intended to synchronize different energetic structures (e.g., our bodies). Sex, sexuality, and sexual acts are an expression of the true nature of all temporary energetic structures synchronizing with each other.
Sexual acts are not separate from life. They are life itself. Sexual acts performed solely with the goal of releasing energy will not bring satisfaction and will not provide the person with the experience of their true nature, namely pleasure (read synchronization) and unity.
Our need to surrender to pleasure and unity can never be fulfilled by sexual acts as most people know them. Our physical and emotional health depends on the ability to experience orgasm. There is a significant difference between climax (orgasm) — a partial release of energy through the genitals — and an orgasm.
An orgasm is a spontaneous, reflective, and pleasurable experience of energy distribution and synchronization in our body and/or between bodies. The beginning phase of this process is vibrations in your body. The energy in your body is recalibrated. An orgasm is independent and not connected to the genitals. Achieving an energetic orgasm expands the sensory field and enhances the experience of flowing life energy.
Through sexual acts, most people experience physical penetration but no energetic penetration. They do not mix their energies, meaning it is “ordinary” sex without energetic synchronization, only energetic release. This explains the feelings of loneliness and frustration most people feel about their sex lives.
Sex is about physical penetration; Kundalini Tantra is the science of energetic synchronization within and around the human being. Kundalini Tantra is a methodical, structured technique that teaches a person to synchronize with their own physical structure and all the surrounding appearances on a physical, mental, and emotional level.
In the context of Tantra, the usual definition of sex is irrelevant. What is generally understood as sex has, in some countries, led to a society of hypocrites. It has driven thousands of young people to psychological care centers. If you long for something but are programmed to think that this desire is bad, it results in all kinds of guilt complexes. For this reason, yogis have tried to direct sexual impulses in the right direction. Tantra does not interfere with sexual life and is free of judgment. Sex is not seen as spiritual, but also not as non-spiritual. When you practice ‘left-hand Tantra’ and master certain techniques, your sexual life becomes spiritual.
Neo-Tantra refers to the Western interpretation of traditional Tantra. Some proponents of Neo-Tantra refer to ancient traditional texts and principles; many others use Tantra as a blanket term for ‘sacred sexuality’ and may engage in unorthodox practices.
Many people are drawn to Neo-Tantrism because it promises sexual excitement or fulfillment while cloaking pure lust and emotional need-satisfaction. Examples of Tantra abuse can be found throughout the history of Tantra practice. Lustful ‘gurus’ and ‘Tantra practitioners’ seize the opportunity to promote their peculiar ceremonies and philosophies under the name of Tantra, all to satisfy their sexual needs.
The science of Tantra has two main paths:
Vama Marga and Dakshina Marga
Vama Marga is the left-hand path, which combines tantric practice with sex to explosively awaken the dormant energy centers.
Dakshina Marga is the right-hand path of practicing Tantra without sexual activities. Historically, Dakshina Marga was the most followed path due to barriers in sexual life. Today, these barriers are quickly being broken, and Vama Marga, which uses sexual life for spiritual development, is the most followed path in Tantra around the world.
Union of Man and Woman
According to Tantra, sexual life has a threefold purpose. The Tantra practitioner distances themselves from judgments about sex. They use it as an element of awareness in their spiritual practice.
Often, the transformative experience of sexual energy is lost before anyone can dive into it. Through certain techniques, this experience can be a continuous one, even throughout the day. This awakens the dormant parts of the brain, which then become active and stay active.
The benefit of Vama Marga is that the awakening of Kundalini is possible through sexual interaction between man and woman. The concept behind this follows the same principles as the process of nuclear fusion as described in modern physics. Man and woman represent positive and negative energy. On a mental level, they represent time and space. Normally, these two forces are opposites. During sexual interaction, they move from their polar positions (extremes) to the center. When they meet at the nucleus or central point, an explosion occurs.
The natural union that takes place between man and woman is seen as the explosion of the energy centers. In every aspect of life, the union of positive and negative poles is the origin of creation (or creation). At the same time, this union is responsible for enlightenment: a glimpse of a higher experience is caught. This subject is thoroughly discussed in all ancient texts on Tantra.
Shiva and Shakti
The process of guiding energy to higher energy centers is more important than the energy waves created during the union. Everyone knows how to awaken this sexual energy, but only a few people know how to direct it to the higher centers. Very few people have a full and positive understanding of this natural event that almost everyone experiences. The elements brought together in this process of union are known as Shiva and Shakti. Shiva stands for Purusha or consciousness, and Shakti stands for Prakriti or energy.
Shakti is present in different forms throughout creation. Shakti encompasses both material and spiritual energy. When the energy moves outward, it is material energy, and when directed upward, it is spiritual energy. Therefore, the union of man and woman, when performed in the right way, has a particularly positive effect on the development of spiritual consciousness and plays a significant role in the awakening of Kundalini.