Sacred Union: The Art of Tantric Sex
By Karl Wolfe • Jul 21st, 2001 • Category: In the News, Sex and CultureHow would you like your lovemaking to last for six, eight, even ten hours at a time? How about having explosive, earth-shattering orgasms — or many orgasms in a single session? Self-pleasuring that brings you delirious pleasure as well as great spiritual peace? These things are all possible, say practitioners of the world’s only ancient spiritual system that teaches its students to seek union with the divine through mind-blowing sex.
Tantric sex tempts both men and women with its promises of physical pleasure and deeper romantic intimacy between lovers. Boasting articles in national magazines such as Playboy and celebrity practitioners such as Sting, the increased popularity of Tantra is bringing out a kind of sex-positive spirituality for the 21st Century. The ancient practice is perfect for the modern couple seeking greater intimacy and a more intense sexual connection — or for the single person looking to profoundly increase his or her erotic understanding and pleasure.
“Tantra is a way of getting back to a true sacred union between male and female energy,” says Susan Pence, a Bay Area sex educator and longtime Tantra devotee. “Where that comes through is in breathing, and in energy work.” Pence says that in Tantra, the “energy work” takes the form of learned techniques to increase concentration, focus, intention, and awareness of the physical body. The related breath work involves centering one’s attention with certain breathing rhythms — in techniques similar to those used in meditation or in such physical practices as Hatha Yoga.
Many Tantric practices and exercises can be done alone, and then integrated with partnered sex if and when the time comes. The center of Tantric practice is the openness to pleasure and intimacy and, therefore, the union with the divine.
The best place for a potential Tantra practitioner to start is with a book, class, or audiotape. The increasing popularity of Tantra means that classes are readily available in almost any metropolitan area. If the idea of learning about intense spiritual and sexual topics in a room full of others makes you uncomfortable, some Tantra teachers offer women-only classes or, for a greater expense, individual tutoring. Books like Ecstasy Through Tantra by John Mumford and Carl Weschcke or Tantra: The Art of Conscious Loving by Charles and Caroline Muir also offer an excellent and economical introduction to the practice for those to whom classes don’t appeal. (Editor’s Note: You can order either of those books at 1-800-BUY-VIBE.) And finally, a number of excellent videotapes and audiotapes are available. These can be particularly helpful because they support guided meditations. These meditations can be the first step toward an intense personal connection both with your own sexuality and that of your partner.
“For me,” says Pence, “The difference between Tantric sex and other kinds of lovemaking is the difference between having a raw sexual experience and having a sexual experience infused with profound intimacy. It’s about my openness to the pleasure of my own body at the same time I’m increasing the intimacy with my lover.
“What this means in practice is that a simple act like a kiss, or looking into each other’s eyes, has a huge emotional charge. In Tantra, each of those simple acts also takes on a physical counterpart, so I get a deep physical reaction to something as simple as a caress. It’s much more phenomenal than simple penis and vagina intercourse.”
“Don’t get me wrong,” Pence laughs. “Penis and vagina intercourse is great!”
But with Tantra, “just sex” becomes sex and so much more. It’s about a kind of sacred union, and sexual pleasure is both part of the greater goal — and the path to getting there. Whether you’re interested in sex as part of a spiritual quest or just for the intense experience of ecstatic sexuality, studying tantric sex can profoundly expand your sexual horizons and bring you closer to your sexual self than ever before.
Karl Wolfe >> Karl Wolfe is a San Francisco sex educator and activist who seeks union with the divine through ecstatic sexuality.
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