David Gordon White while cautioning us about attempting a rigorous definition of what for centuries has defied such attempts, offers the following working definition
In its Indian forms, tantra can be summarized as a family of voluntary rituals modeled on those of the Vedas, together with their attendant texts and lineages. These rituals typically involve the visualization of a deity, offerings (real or visualized), and the chanting of his or her Mantra. These practices are usually said to require permission from a qualified teacher or Guru who belongs to a legitimate guruparampara or teacher-student lineage. Thus tantra shares some similarities with Yoga. (See the "Yoga" entry for a fuller discussion of their relationship.)
Common variations include visualizing the deity in the act of sexual union with a consort; visualizing oneself as the deity; and/or "transgressive" acts such as token consumption of meat or alcohol. Occasionally ritualized sex may be undertaken in imitation of the divine model. This accounts for tantra's mixed reputation, and its reception in the West primarily as a collection of sexual practices.
Tantra evolved into a number of orders (sampradaya) and diverged into so-called "left-hand tantra" (vaama marg), in which sexual yoga and other antinomian practices occurred, and "right-hand tantra", in which such practices were merely visualised. Both groups, but in particular the left-hand tantrists, opposed many features of orthodox Hindu culture, particularly the Caste system and Patriarchy. Despite this, Tantra was accepted by some high-caste Hindus, most notably the Rajput princes. Hindu tantra even briefly enabled a yogic/sufi synthesis among some Indian Muslims. Nowadays Tantra has a large, though not always well-informed, following worldwide.
Buddhist and Hindu Tantra, though having many similarities from the outside, do have some clear distinctions. Scholars are unable to determine whether the Hindu or the Buddhist version of Tantra appeared first in history. Buddhist Tantra is always part of the Mahayana school of Buddhism, which has as main aim to help all sentient beings becoming free from problems (Dukkha), in order to achieve this aim, one should try to achieve Buddhahood oneself, in order to be the most profound teacher for others.
Some distinguish between two "paths" in Hindu Tantra: dakshinachara (also known as samayachara), the "Right-Hand Path", and vamachara, the "Left-Hand Path". The terms Left-Hand Path and Right-Hand Path have been adopted by Western occultists.
According to another popular view, Hindu Tantra is classified as either red (rajas or heat, fire, restlessness, anger), black (tamas or darkness, ignorance, stagnation) or white (sattva pure, moderate, divine). These correspond to three Hindu conceptions of the qualities of existence (the three gunas) first posited in Samkhya.
Some tantric aspirants simply feel the union is accomplished internally and with spiritual entities of various kinds. For this reason, almost all tantric writing has a gross, higher and subtle meaning. This tripartite system of understanding readily obscures the true purport of many passages for those without the necessary background or deeper understandings so crucial to tantra. Thus, a 'union' could mean the actual act of Sexual intercourse, ritual uniting of concepts through chanting and sacrifice, or realisation of one's true self in the cosmic joining of the divine principles of Shiva and Shakti in Para Shiva.
According to John Woodroffe, one of the foremost Western scholars on Tantra, and translator of its greatest works (including the Mahanirvana Tantra):
While Hinduism is typically viewed as being Vedic, the Tantras are not considered part of the orthodox Hindu/Vedic scriptures. They are said to run alongside each other, The Vedas of orthodox Hinduism on one side and the Agamas of Tantra on the other. However, the practices, mantras and ideas of the Atharva Veda are markedly different from those of the prior three and show signs of powerful non-Aryan influence. Indeed, the Atharva Veda is cited by many Tantra texts as a source of great knowledge. it is notable that throughout the Tantras, such as the Mahanirvana Tantra, they align themselves as being natural progressions of the Vedas. Tantra exists for spiritual seekers in the age of Kaliyuga, when Vedic practices no longer apply to the current state of morality and Tantra is the most direct means to realization. Thus, aside from Vajrayana Buddhism, much of Tantric thought is Hindu Tantra, most notably those that council worship of Lord Shiva and the Divine Mother, Kali.
A tantra typically takes the form of a dialogue between the Hindu gods Shiva and Shakti/Parvati, being that Shiva is known in Hinduism as being 'Yogiraj' or 'Yogeshwara,' 'The King of Yoga' or 'God of Yoga' and that his consort is known to be his perfect feminine equal. Each explains to the other a particular group of techniques or philosophies for attaining moksha (liberation/ enlightenment), or for attaining a certain practical result. (Agamas are Shiva to Shakti, and Nigamas are Shakti to Shiva.)
This extract from the beginning of the Yoni Tantra (translated by Mike Magee) gives an idea of the style.
Mahadeva (Shiva) said:
Within Vajrayana Buddhist circles, sexual tantra is apparently rare but not unknown, even among theoretically celibate monks. June Campbell's book "Traveller in Space" tells the story of her recruitment as a tantric consort by Kalu Rinpoche, who also strongly urged her silence. Vajrayana principles might justify the resulting violation of his monastic vows with an appeal to the bodhisattva principle, on the theory (which is by no means universally accepted) that even a monk ought to have sex if that will help him attain enlightenment sooner. Nevertheless, a more typical example of Tibetan tantra would be the chanting of the well-known mantra of Avalokiteshvara Aum Mani Padme Hum.
Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh later known as Osho, used tantra in combination with breathing technique, bioenergetic, yoga and massage in some of his groups, his students continued this concept and developed it. The most successful and well known is Margot Anand.
Mantra and Yantra: As in all of Hindu and Buddhist yogas, mantras plays an important part in Tantra, not only for focusing the mind, often through the conduit of specific Hindu gods like Shiva, Ma Kali (mother Kali, another form of Shakti) and even Ganesh, the elephant-headed god of wisdom (refer to the Ganesha Upanishad). Similarly, puja will often involve concentrating on a yantra or Mandala.
Identification with deities: Tantra, being a development of early Hindu-Vedic thought, embraced the Hindu gods and goddesses, especially Shiva and Shakti, along the Advaita (nondualist Vedic) philosophy that each represents an aspect of the ultimate Para Shiva, or Brahman. These deities may be worshiped externally (with flowers, incense etc.) but, more importantly, are used as objects of Meditation, where the practitioner imagines him- or herself to be experiencing the Darshan or 'vision' of the deity in question. The ancient Devadasi tradition of sacred temple-dance, seen in the contemporary Bharata Natyam is the example of such meditation in movement. The divine love is expressed in Sringara and Bhakti.
| Tantric chakras |
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| Sahasrara Ajna Vishuddha Anahata Manipura Swadhisthana Muladhara Bindu |
Concentration on the body: Tantrikas generally see the body as a microcosm; thus in the Kaulajnana-nirnaya, for example, the practitioner meditates on the Head as the Moon, the heart as the sun and the genitals as Fire. Many groups hold that the body contains a series of energy centres (Chakra - "wheel"), which may be associated with elements, planets or occult powers (Siddhi). The phenomenon of Kundalini, a flow of energy through the chakras, is controversial; most writers see it as essential to Tantra, while others regard it as unimportant or as an abreaction. As it is, kundalini is nothing but the flow of the central sushumna nadi, a spiritual current, that, when moving, opens chakras, and is fundamental to the siddhi concept that forms a part of all tantra, including Hatha yoga.
Tantra and sex: As stated before, actual sexual intercourse is not a part of every form of tantric practice, but it is the definitive feature of left-hand Tantra. Contrary to popular belief, "Tantric sex" is not always slow and sustained, and may end in orgasm. For example, the Yoni Tantra states: "there should be vigorous copulation". However, all tantra states that there were certain groups of personalities who were not fit for certain practices. Tantra was personality specific and insisted that those with pashu-bhava (animal disposition), which are people of dishonest, promiscuous, greedy or violent natures who ate meat and indulged in intoxication, would only incur bad karma by following Tantric paths without the aid of a Guru who could instruct them on the correct path.
In Buddhist tantra, actual ejaculation is very much a taboo, as the main goal of the sexual practice is to use the sexual energy towards achieving full enlightenment, rather than ordinary pleasure.
Taboo-breaking: Sexual intercourse, preferably with a low-caste partner, was one method by which traditional left-hand practice forced practitioners to confront their conditioned responses. Others include the eating of meat (particularly beef and pork) and drinking of alcohol. Fear has also been used as a method to break down conditioning; rites would often take place in a cremation ground amidst decomposing corpses. This, of course, also falls under the prerequisite of the practitioner's nature, in such cases demanding a vir- (heroic) or even devya- (godlike) -bhava (disposition of purity, suppression of pride, respect to parents and guru and often celibacy).
In the Kaula and Vamachara schools of tantra the Panchamakara (i.e. "five things") the five taboos ritually/sacramentally broken in order to free the practitioner from binding convention:
The "sacramental" or ritual breaking was only for the "heroic"/vira- practitioner, not the "godly"/divya- or "beastly"/pashu- levels. The "beastly" would misunderstand and get caught up in the literal act while the "godly" will have already progressed beyond and not need the literal act to understand the inner meaning.
There are tantric schools that substitute innocuous items for the taboo substances and acts, claiming that literal interpretations of the Panchamakara miss the real inner truth of the rite.
In traditional pockets of Tantric practice in India, such as in Assam near the venerated Hindu temple of Kali, Kammakha, in parts of West Bengal, in Siddhanta temples of South India, and in Kasmiri Shiva temples up north, Tantra has retained its true form. Its variance in practice is seen, where many tantrics are known to frequent cremation grounds in attempts to transcend their worldly attachment to life, and others are assuredly performing still more arcane acts. But what is common to them all is the intense secrecy in which their secrets are kept and the almost godlike reverence paid to the Guru, who is seen as the pinnacle of Tantra. It would be safe to say that every single Hindu Tantra Yogin in India is a Shiva and/or Shakti worshipper, and the more wide-spread practices to which all Hindus commit themselves, like pooja and worship through devotion, are maintained while more occult yogic practices involving sacred rites continue. Tibet too has a very strong Buddhist Tantric background which continues, albeit many have been transplanted to monasteries in India, and claims to be a right-hand path, in contrast to the more varied Hindu counterparts (that include both left and right-hand practices).
Tibetan Tantra or Vajrayana, on the other hand, flourishes in America and other countries in a relatively pure and genuine, if somewhat attenuated form, under the guidance of many Tibetan teachers of the first generation to escape from Tibet or the next generation. There are hundreds of Tibetan Buddhist centers outside Tibet and India, primarily in the Americas and Europe, but also in eastern countries such as Malaysia, Taiwan, Russia and others. Practices in these centers, with Tibetan gurus or those trained directly by them, emphasize the true Mahayana ideal of rapidly gaining the enlightenment that characterizes a Buddha entirely for the purpose of relieving the suffering of others. This is claimed to be the Bodhisattva ideal of Mahayana Buddhism represented historically and mythologically by Avaloketishvara, Tara and others, as well as today in the person of the Dalai Lama and other Tibetan teachers. In the Tantric or Vajrayana aspects of this system, harnessing the energies of the body, emotions and mind, including, joy, wrath and sexual energy, is not an end in itself but a potent means to the ultimate goal of realizing the true nature of reality, Emptiness or Shunyata, thus attaining complete spiritual enlightenment and relief from the endless dissatisfaction of life, and using the power thus gained exclusively to help others do so as well.
Modern Tantra may be divided into practices based on Hinduism and Buddhism, Indian and Tibetan, traditions. The form of Hindu Tantra popularly practiced In America is said by Hindu Tantra traditionalists to represent a mutilated and extremely narrow-minded, sensationalist approach encompassing only a misguided thinking about "sacred sexuality," with little reference to its true practice. Traditional Tantrists say their practise involves much more than mere wizardy or sexual titillation: like the rest of Yoga (Hindu), it requires self-analysis and conquering of material ignorance, often through the body, but always through a pure outlook of the mind. 'Real Tantra' is about transforming one's sexual energy into spiritual progress, and has nothing to do with 'sex just for fun'. Those without a guru or lacking in discipline of the mind and body are unfit. It is telling that a Tantrica in West Bengal, a devotee of the Hindu goddess Kali, once said that "those most fit for Tantra almost never take it up, and those least fit pursue it with zeal."
| Yogas: | Agni Yoga - Anahata Yoga - Anusara Yoga - Arhatic Yoga - Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga (Ashtanga Yoga) - Bikram Yoga - Hatha yoga - Integral yoga - Iyengar Yoga - Kriya yoga - Kundalini yoga - Natya Yoga - Sahaja Yoga - Siddha Yoga - Six yogas of Naropa (Tumo) - Surat Shabd Yoga - Viniyoga - Yoga in Daily Life - Yoga Nidra |
| Texts: | Hatha Yoga Pradipika - Yoga Sutra |
| Hinduism paths: | Bhakti yoga - Karma Yoga - Jnana Yoga - Raja Yoga (Ashtanga Yoga) |
| Raja Yoga limbs: | Yama - Niyama - Asana - Pranayama - Pratyahara - Dharana - Dhyana - Samadhi |
| Lists: | Yoga schools and their gurus - Hatha yoga postures |
| Related topics: | Ayurveda - Chakra - Tantra - Vedanta |