What is tantra?
What people think it is
What you can discover
Tantra is not a technique but Love, it’s not a technique but Prayer, it’s not head oriented but a Relaxation into the Heart.
Tantra is not like Yoga, as it does not suggest any asanas to learn. Tantra transcends all this and teaches a life of affirmation–accept life, embrace life–from the lowest rung of the ladder to the highest rung of the ladder–from sex to super-consciousness.
All the tantra treatises are dialogues between Shiva and Devi. Devi questions and Shiva answers. It is not a dialogue between a teacher and a disciple, it is a dialogue between two lovers. The deeper teachings cannot be given unless there is love between the two, they must become deep lovers.
Below Shiva is depicted as half man, half woman. So Devi is not just a consort, she is Shiva’s other half.
Ardhanarishvara represents the synthesis of masculine and feminine energies of the universe
There are two types of language: logical language and love language. There are basic differences between the two. Tantra is written in love language.
Tantra
Sanskrit has many meanings for the same word, so there are different interpretations.
Tantra means realizing oneself as an enlightened being.
The word tantra is derived from two words, tattva and mantra. Tattva means the science of cosmic principles, while mantra refers to the science of mystic sound and vibrations. Tantra*, therefore, is the application of cosmic sciences with a view of attaining spiritual ascendancy.
Tantra is said to be derived from words ‘tanoti’, meaning to expand, and ‘trayati’ meaning liberation.
Another definition of the word Tantra is “web” or “to weave.” Tantra is an interweaving of the energies of many levels of consciousness from the mundane, to the most profound.
“Tantra” also signifies scripture that contains Tantric spiritual teachings/techniques.
Tantric elements
Chakras & Symbols
A chakra means 'wheel' and is an area in the body connected with life energy. There are seven chakras in the body - each is an interface for the flow of life energy and are connected by nodes of psychic energy called chakra. The non-physical; psychological, emotional, mind is called the subtle body. This subtle body is energy, while the physical body is mass. The body and the mind mutually affect each other.
All meditation and yoga systems seek to balance out the energy of the chakras by purifying the lower energies and guiding them upwards.
Energies
In order for us to become fully self-realized and in harmony with our physical and spiritual nature our denser lower energies need to be harmonized with the lighter energies of the upper centers. This is to say our survival and base tendencies have to be raised to incorporate a heart-felt spiritual focus expressed in all areas of our being. Knowledge of our more subtle energy system empowers us to maintain balance and harmony on the physical, mental and spiritual level.
Deities & rituals
Deities may be worshipped 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. Deities are not "believed in" as external spirits to be worshiped. Rather, they are archetypes representing the tantric practitioner's own deepest nature (also called deity-yoga).
The divine love is expressed through worship (Sringara and Bhakti).
Mantra
Mantra means finding your inner sound, your inner rhythm, your inner vibration. Once you have found your Mantra, it is of tremendous help: just one utterance of the Mantra and you are in a totally different world. That becomes the key, the passage, because once uttering that Mantra, you fall into your natural vibe.
Yantra
A certain figure which can create a certain state in you. If you look at it, it is bound to create a certain state within you. But anything can become a yantra, to see the melting of the exterior with the interior realm.
Mudras
A form of non-verbal communication that refers to symbolic gestures imbued with varied spiritual meanings and are typically expressed with the hands and fingers and sometimes with the whole body. Mudras enable the practitioner to experience a connection with the Buddha being invoked.