Everything you’ve heard about Tantra is … true

Tantra is a cosmology and esoteric tradition that encompasses every aspect of life including medicine, science, astrology, philosophy, challenging taboos and spiritual practices. This is why you will find Tantric schools and groups that will cover quite different applications of Tantra; sometimes highly controversial aspects (including challenging personal, cultural and social taboos) and often the information and practices made available may be contradictory. The philosophy of Tantra is literally to embrace everything without judgment and to acknowledge the divine in everything.

It is the spiritual experience of knowing what is within

“That which is above is the same as that which is below. And that which is below is the same as that which is above, for the performance of miracles of the One Thing.”

Hermes Trismegistus, Emerald Tablet

What is the common thread? Tantra is the study of the universe and how it’s woven together. It’s the study of what it means to be a human being with a body, mind and spirit in a vast universe. ‘As above so below’ refers to the idea that the microcosm of man is a reflection of the macrocosm of God/the whole. According to Tantra,we all contain the blue print of God/the whole. Everything in the universe is connected and in relationship, because fundamentally there is no separation. In Tantra this relationship is referred to as resonance. In other words, we resonate or vibrate like a radio frequency with everything around. We are always in relationship to what occurs in our life. The Tantric practitioner uses this understanding of no separation between us and the divine to create change in their own inner world and in the larger world at hand.

Tantra has everything and nothing to do with sex

The word Tantra in Sanskrit means ‘weave together’, ‘loom’ and ‘practices’. Tantra is not a religion, it is an esoteric wisdom and spiritual practice in which we accept and use the nature of the mind, body, senses, sexuality and feelings to help us evolve spiritually. In this practice, we strive for emotions to be expressed appropriately and authentically. In Tantric practices, you are the instrument of the divine. Any part of you can be transfigured by tapping into the divine energy. The sexual drive in us is very powerful and in some practices of Tantra is looked upon as a literal gateway to the heavens and enlightenment. In a Tantric relationship, sex is sacred and our sexual nature is fully embraced.

There are three primary applications of Tantra: 1) White Tantra (non-sexual practices and rituals only), 2) Red Tantra (includes sexual rituals and practices) and 3) Black Tantra (similar to black magic practices). Regardless of which school of thought you study and practice, you are always in a relationship to creation and you have the ability to turn poison into nectar, to remove the veil that separates you and me, and be the director the web of energy that is within and around you.

Tantra is about breaking down boundaries

The goal in Tantra (and same can be said of the esoteric tradition of Yoga) is expansion, liberation and self realisation. In order to achieve this advancement, Tantra looks at the limitations that keep us either locked in our bodies (instinctual part of us) or in our mind (intellect) and lay out practices that will help us unite the 3 parts that make us human, the body, mind and spirit. Ultimately, Tantra is about breaking down the boundaries that keep us imprisoned in our humanity and disconnects us from our Divine nature. Tantra is always about our connection to the divine from within us. Some times you have to ‘shock’ your system through the Tantric rituals by doing something you wouldn’t normally do, for instance eat meat when you are a vegetarian. Through the practices you expand who you are and become more of who you truly are (obtain self realisation) by breaking down the parts of you that don’t bring you peace and liberation.