I imagine that 50
shades is actually a modest estimation. This is increasingly true in this
modern age, especially now that Tantra is becoming so popular here in the West.
Tantra has been around for thousands of years and continues to evolve as Eastern
philosophy meets Western psychology. Allow me to guide you toward the shade of Tantra that suits you. I will describe 5 paths
of Tantra. Each path is represented by a
color. Within these five tantric paths, there are easily 10 variations or shades
of interpretation available, which would give you the proverbial 50 shades of
Tantra.
White Tantra is used to describe a spiritual path of
Tantra which incorporates meditation, breath work, sounds and postures. Although all of the major chakras or energy
centers are recognized in this practice, it is the upper two chakras; the third
eye and the crown chakra, which seem to get all the conscious attention. These are the energy centers that connect with
our intuition and spirituality. In this
culture we tend to equate Tantra with great sex. However, the white path
doesn’t really focus on the physical act of sex at all! White Tantra is
primarily a solo practice between you and spirit. Although this is a solo practice, White Tantra
does acknowledge relationships as having merit. The various people who come
into our lives are said to provide us with a mirror to help us learn and grow.
Personally, I
define Tantra as more of a philosophy than a religion. However, I recognize
that there are some people who practice Tantra religiously. Some forms of
Tantra have become so intertwined with the beliefs of a specific religion such
as; Hinduism, Taoism, or Buddhism that it is difficult to sort out where the
religion ends and the Tantra begins. Within
the practice of White Tantra, sexual energy is often re-directed or channeled
towards spiritual transformation, creative endeavors, healing, expanded
awareness, and what some might refer to as enlightenment. Sexual activity is not strictly “forbidden” by
most of the White Tantra practices; however, quite often followers of White
Tantra are influenced by religious teaching that value chastity, sexual
abstinence or celibacy.
If you are an individual
who is seeking a journey of spiritual enlightenment or a deeper connection with
God or spirit, then perhaps white Tantra is for you. Kundalini yoga is a
popular practice in this culture that is often categorized as White Tantra. However, if your reason for exploring tantra
is primarily in hopes of learning new ways to improve your sex life, you may be
disappointed.
Red Tantra is a path of Tantra best known for bringing us Tantric Sex. Red Tantra
is primarily a practice that you do with your partner. The union between you
and your beloved is seen as a form of god and goddess worship that creates not
only a bond with your partner but a bridge or connection to the divine god and
goddess. You and your partner embody the god and goddess, and when you come
together to make love using Tantric Rituals, you join body, heart, mind and
spirit. All of the chakras or energy centers of the body are involved in the
connection. The intention is to create a piece of heaven on Earth that
transcends the physical act of sex. By incorporating Tantric practice into your
love life, you can reach not only higher levels of pleasure and connection, but
a higher spiritual vibration as well.
My understanding
is that in India, Red Tantra was originally a highly advanced spiritual
practice that was only taught to those who had achieved a level of mastery of
the White Path of Tantra. Today there are secular forms of Red Tantra in the
West that do not require followers to achieve any mastery. The focus of this
more secular form of Tantra is primarily on exploring bliss, ecstasy, and all the
pleasurable sensations you can achieve during love making. Tantric Sex is now something
that couples may explore, with or without the original spiritual intent.
Red Tantra is
known for luxurious love making sessions that last for hours, ideally leading
to multiple, full-body orgasms… with or without an ejaculation. The more secular forms of Red Tantra focus on
erotic and romantic love, activating mostly the lower chakras; the primal, sexual
and sensual energies of the root and sacral chakras. However, without the
spiritual component to the practice, the upper chakras do not receive as much
attention. The sacred forms of Red Tantra lead to a sense of euphoric oneness
not only with your partner, but with the universe and God. The more secular
forms of Red Tantra encourage couples to spend lots of time making love and exploring
heightened levels of pleasure. However, this secular practice lacks the
experience of spiritual love, and the universal connection that is the point of
the sacred practice of Red Tantra.
Pink Tantra refers to a heart centered path of tantra that blends many of the
elements of White Tantra (generally without the tendency to embrace a life of
celibacy) with some aspects of Red Tantra (without the need for a full time
Tantric Partner to practice with.) Within the path of Pink Tantra, all of the
chakras are acknowledged. However, there seems to be an emphasis on the
importance of the heart; opening the heart chakra and healing the heart.
Compassion, acceptance and forgiveness for others and for our self are central themes
to this practice. Pink Tantra teaches us to cultivate love without attachment,
ownership or expectation. With Pink Tantra love is seen as the impetus for healing
and transformation.
Pink Tantra is a
great path to follow if you are currently single, struggling with your current
relationship, or for those who adopt a more open love style such as
polyamory. Pink Tantra provides
techniques and practices to help you heal from past heartaches, to improve your
overall feeling of an emotionally balanced life and to connect with your true
self. Pink Tantra recognizes the
importance of polarity between masculine and feminine energy. Practicing Pink
Tantra will often result in you attracting a good potential mate who complements
and resonates with your energy. If you
are already in a love relationship, this practice will ideally deepen and
strengthen your partnership. If your
relationship was struggling, you may experience a rekindling of an emotional
and passionate connection with your partner. However, this practice encourages
personal wholeness. Sometimes this practice will enable someone to leave a
partner who is abusive, or otherwise keeping them from being an authentic
expression of their true self.
Black Tantra is a path of tantra that incorporates magic
and is clouded in mystery. Sometimes Black Tantra is referred to as Dark Tantra.
Some have compared this path of Tantra to the black magic of voodoo. Black
Tantrikas are often feared in India. I suspect that there is a lot of misconception
of this path because it is not practiced openly. The teachings are
intentionally well guarded to protect it from being misused by those with less
than pure intentions. Black Tantra has
not been widely or openly practiced in the US. One aspect of Black Tantra that
has made an impression on our Western consciousness is Sex Magic, which is a
little like practicing “The Secret” with the powerful addition of using sexual
energy to manifest your intentions.
Integrity and discretion are extremely important to the successful
practice of Black Tantra. Generally speaking, it is extremely difficult to find
anyone willing to teach you the most powerful techniques of Black Tantra without
undergoing a vigorous screening and initiation process. Here in the US, as well as many parts of
Europe, we tend to be very skeptical of anything magical, mystical or anything
that cannot be explained by our current understanding of science. If this magical
Tantra is what you are seeking, it is possible to find it if you persevere, and
are willing to follow the protocols of your teacher, but it tends to be a lot
harder to find than the other types of Tantra, and unfortunately easily
confused with an entirely different form of Tantra with a similar name that I
will describe next.
Dark
Tantra is sometimes mistakenly called Black Tantra by those who
are not aware that the term Black Tantra has already been taken. This alternative
meaning refers to a fusion of a Tantric
Sex and BDSM. I believe this path has
emerged in very recent times. My
understanding is that "Dark Tantra" was "invented" here in
Western culture, I believe by people who really had a very limited or perhaps
no understanding of the original meaning of Dark or Black Tantra. Basically
Dark Tantra seems to be a secular sexual practice that doesn't have much to do
with the spiritual practices of Tantra. I have heard some argue that there is a
spiritual aspect to this Dark Tantra. I can imagine that this could be true for
some individuals who are on a path of exploring their "shadow" or
seeking to sink deeper into trust and surrender, but based on conversations I
have had with people who claim to be exploring Dark Tantra, I believe that it
is more often practiced as a form of self expression and sexual exploration
than for the purpose of spiritual enlightenment.
My Tantric Path is an eclectic one. However, when it comes to what I teach it appears to fit most closely into the category of Pink
Tantra. I do use some aspects of White Tantra, such as meditation and breath-work.
I also introduce the teachings of Red Tantra, particularly to the
couples who come to see me. However, most of my clients are either single or
married to partners who do not support or participate in their practice of Tantra.
This limits my ability to teach Red Tantra as it was intended. I am familiar
with the concepts of sex magic, and have taught some workshops about how to use
sex magic to manifest our desires; however, I do not consider myself to be an
authority on the subject of Black Tantra.
I incorporate some aspects of "sensation play" into my sessions; however, I would not characterize what I do as Dark Tantra either. I am in charge of the session as the goddess (healer and teacher) and expect to be treated with reverence; however, I am not a Dominatrix by any stretch of the imagination. I fully support people's right to choose a life style such as BDSM if that is what they are into, or to experiment with whatever aspects of BDSM appeals to them as a form of self expression or to spice up their love life. However, it is not really my personal hot button or mission to teach this Dark Path of Tantra.
I incorporate some aspects of "sensation play" into my sessions; however, I would not characterize what I do as Dark Tantra either. I am in charge of the session as the goddess (healer and teacher) and expect to be treated with reverence; however, I am not a Dominatrix by any stretch of the imagination. I fully support people's right to choose a life style such as BDSM if that is what they are into, or to experiment with whatever aspects of BDSM appeals to them as a form of self expression or to spice up their love life. However, it is not really my personal hot button or mission to teach this Dark Path of Tantra.
My modalities of
choice are love and light which resonates well with the heart centered practice
of Pink Tantra. If you would like to speak with me about incorporating Tantra
into your life, either via a verbal life coaching session or a hands on healing Tantra
session, please take a look at my website and contact me ASAP.
Well done, Jeanetta! Informative and interesting!
ReplyDeleteThank you. I am glad you enjoyed this article.
Delete