Thursday's Tantra: Another Side Of Tantra

I know most people’s concept of Tantra is about it being all sweet and light. That's because it is. And while this is the comfortable, "acceptable" part of Tantra, this is not my experience of the whole of it. I call Tantra "the Path of Life." It's about being with all of life and being present in the now whether in sex or drinking tea or working on a project or riding a bike. It's about making every act, every second of our lives Sacred no matter that we do or where we go.

Tantra is about the inner union of opposites to return to the One. It is exemplified in Tantric Sexual Union, where the polarities of our dualisitic world, male and female, yin and yang, join and remind us of our forgotten Union with the Divine.

For me, the deeper meaning of Tantra is about the “light” and the "dark” and how they are both part of existence no matter how much we want to run from the uncomfortableness one aspect may bring. We, as humans give the dark/the denied, meaning overlaid with our perceptions and emotions. In Tantra, the dark is as much a part of creation, and therefore sacred, as the light, with the secret that binds being unconditional love.

We, in the West concentrate on the light. We want to be happy, we hate the hard parts of life, try to avoid pain, both inner and outer. But often Tantric Trainings and exercises are designed to bring up the dark, the taboo, the hidden, the judged. Tantra is about integration/acceptance/ reunion with that which we vehemently deny and run from within ourselves to keep our egos safe and acceptable to society and our Inner Judge. Tantra invites us to embrace our demons rather than run from them. When we do, we release the hold they have on us and bring us closer to enlightenment.

As a quick way to cover lots of territory I will offer a few examples here to illustrate this:

-The Masters and Devi’s often lived in cremation grounds. We in the West cannot understand the repulsion and taboos this confronted in the societies in which these people lived.

-One of the highest Tantric rituals is called "Maithuna" and used to include consumption of five of the most culturally forbidden foods/drinks along with ritualized sexual union. Sometimes the devotees in an extreme sect of Tantra called "Aghora" will engage in necrophilia to overcome this most repulsive taboo, therefor freeing themselves from ego constraints.

-One of my Teachers was instructed to serve a man who she (and everyone else) considered disgusting: homeless, filthy dirty, sores, terrible teeth and breath. This man hated women and berated them. She was instructed to go to him and serve him in any way (even sexually) he wanted and to see and revere him as the embodiment of God he is.

-Very very short essence version of a favorite Tantric story: There is an ashram with acolytes yearning for position of head devotee with the guru who is due to arrive the next day. All is made ready and all are given instructions and prohibitions to make sure all was perfect for the arrival of their Master. There is a young girl who lives there. Late at night, when all are asleep, she goes up to the alter and takes a huge dump on it. The next day, the whole ashram is appalled and in a tizzy when the guru shows up and sees it. They apologize and are terrified of his reaction. He calls for the person who is responsible. The little girl goes up with her head held high and looks the Guru straight in the eye. He bends down, Blesses her and says she is the new head devotee because she, alone, gets it.

Tantra is a Path of paradox, of Coyote/Trickster energy. Nothing is as it seems, all rules are to be broken, because the world’s judgments and rules are only jokes and illusions which hold us back from enlightenment. It’s about meditations where you envision sweet pretty young blue virgins visiting to cleanse you...and using their nails to lovingly rip your body open and pull out your entrails in all their bloody gore to do so. All during this bloody adventure, they look deep into your eyes with love.*

Tantra is about embracing death and destruction of ourselves. Every life ends in a death. Every relationship ends in tragedy: either the couple breaks up or someone dies, leaving the other to grieve. And yet...we still move forward, still participate, still open our hearts to another and to Life.

The dark side of Tantra is automatically called forth every time we look into our Lover’s eyes with pure adoration because every time strong energy is felt, its opposite is also brought forth. The brighter the light, the darker the shadow. There have been tons of instances that I've been directly involved with (personally, with clients or at workshops) where after intense healing love is experienced, people will put up huge walls of protection and bring forth their demon energy (anger, fear driven rage) as the balance. There is a need to protect the vulnerability that lies beneath that huge opening. Whenever people do deep work in a session, I warn them to watch for this potential bubbling and churning which may lead to pushing away love. It can manifest in tricksy ways and be painful for all parties concerned, but if we watch for it and understand it we can meet it with Love and assist it's expression for healing, rather than pushing it down again.

Tantra isn't just about sex. But as sex is a part of life, it can include sex. Tantric sexuality takes many forms, but the primary message is that whether doing a Heart Salutation with Soul Gazing or ritualized BDSM, it's all part of the One. Life is Sacred. We enter the sacredness of life in its expression in sex when we become present and make it so. It's our intent and presence that brings in Spirit no matter what form it takes.

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Don't forget to visit Greenwoman's post on Thursday's Tantra. It's a great post on the importance of practicing this stuff to integrate it into your life. It's not about reading a book then doing it once and thinking that you are now a master. The exercises here and in books are presented in the order they are to train you. Think of it like a sport or learning a new dance.

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*This is just part of the meditation. I would not suggest doing it as it's part of an esoteric meditation/journey and should be facilitated by a Teacher. I just presented part of it here to illustrate a point.

Art:

Yabyum by Ben Wright
Dakini from here

Kali from here

Shivashakti from here

Dakini from here