Traditional/classic Tantra is a spiritual practice intended to balance the four elements in our life – earth, water, fire, and air – through the fifth element akasha. Akasha is the element from which the other four arise.
In its fundamental form, classic Tantra is a complete and balanced form of Yoga. Just as akasha includes the other four elements, classic Tantra contains within it the essence of the first four Yoga disciplines – Karma, Raja, Jnana, and Bhakti Yoga.
What Is Classic Tantra Yoga?
Classic Tantra Yoga accepts human nature as it is and then elevates it rather than avoiding/denying human nature and desires. It is life-affirming and does not consider sex impure or physical intercourse disgusting. Rather, the body is considered a temple and a vehicle for enlightenment.
Classic Tantra teaches each individual to balance the four aims (purusharthas) of life, as opposed to denying them or becoming addicted to them. Tantra’s root philosophy and fundamental principle are around these four aims:
- Kama (fulfillment of desire)
- Artha (prosperity)
- Dharma (spiritual and moral duty)
- Moksha (liberation)
These are not only interrelated but also, ultimately, one.
Why Do You Need Classic Tantra?
Tantric practices focus on understanding the four purposes in life and balancing them. Without balancing these aspects, we cannot truly live a fulfilled and balanced life. Also, without the aim of liberation, self-realization, and a deeper spiritual meaning, all sexual practices are merely physical and force humans to just replace one addiction (like alcohol/drugs) with another (sex).
Classic Tantra For Couples
Classic Tantra benefits couples because it works and transforms at a personal, individual level. By practicing a tantric lifestyle, couples can find balance, harmony, and fulfillment within themselves instead of demanding/expecting it out of a partner. Such expectations usually lead to guilt, resentment, and ultimately depression, which break the harmony of a domestic alliance. In contrast, Neo-Tantra is based on New Age spirituality and focuses on fixing a couple’s sexual relationship.
Finding A Reliable Tantra Practitioner
Good, knowledgeable practitioners themselves live a balanced and disciplined life and genuinely seek to heal their students. They can diminish all fears and help find a purpose and balance in life by introducing you to your own Shakti and its potential.
A Tantra sex practitioner follows New Age spirituality and is likely from a sexually repressed religious background. During some time in their adult life, these practitioners would’ve realized that nothing about sexuality is as sinful or shameful as religious conditioning preaches. However, it is hard to get out of the mindset conditioned in childhood. Such individuals might just be sex educators or massage therapists working under the pretense of exotic Eastern philosophy/religious beliefs.
Sex education is a topic that needs to be taught to the common population. But limiting tantric teachings to sex education is disrespectful and ignorant.
All About Tantra Workshops
There are different types of workshops including red, green, purple, black, white, or sacred sex-based Neo-Tantra sex education workshops. These might just be sex education in a nutshell.
Generally, Tantra workshops first introduce the fundamental philosophy of classic Tantra along with the basics of self-empowerment and techniques to access an individual’s powers. The participants are then shown how to balance the four aims and live with the balance created by tantric practices. The purpose is to help the seekers live a balanced life while neither chasing nor denying the pleasures and passions of life.
In a classic Tantra workshop, participants learn and experience firsthand how their own pre-existing programming forces their interpretation of everything around them. The students learn to overcome this programming and go through eye-opening, spiritual experiences, which connect them further to their body’s natural wisdom. These experiences will introduce them to the possibilities of living a transformed, inspired, and powerful life instead of a shallow one chasing/avoiding the simpler pleasures in life.
How To Find The Right Workshop
While there are many sacred sex- or sexual benefit-related workshops in the name of Tantra, few teach the true meaning and potential of our sexual energy. Go for a workshop or practitioner who uses the actual teachings of Tantra, its origin, and its meaningful practices.
Do not choose this lifestyle if all you’re looking for is to fix any sexual inadequacy. Consult specialized sex therapists for such cases. The path of Tantra will not work if you come with a closed mind and are not able to completely get out of your religious clutches. Go with an open mind and respect for the culture and you’ll find an extremely fulfilling, enjoyable, and spiritual way of living.
