The first thing that comes to most people’s mind when they hear the word “tantra” is sex. The mysterious spiritually-connected image of Tantric Sex is as legendary as it is aspirational.

If you have any spiritual practices, particularly Hatha Yoga and some lines of Buddhism, you might not be thinking of the sex, you might be thinking of something more along the lines of awareness, mindfulness and consciousness.

In a way, both are not inaccurate.

HARNESSING ENERGY AND EXPLORING OUR UNIVERSE

Tantra means “warp” or “web”, and it’s a system of beliefs and practices that began in India in the 5th century. The word “warp” in this sense is as you’d apply it to the weaving of cloth or carpet. Everything in the universe is interwoven and interconnected, and Tantra is a holistic approach to life and spirituality. The world, which we perceive with our five senses, is an essential part of our spirit or consciousness, and vice-versa.

What that means is that everything is part of our spiritual journey and evolution: food, music, the people we surround ourself with, the moon and stars and of course our physical body and sexual experiences.

Without getting too far-out and hippy on you, imagine your body as a reflection of your universe, and also a container for hidden and very powerful energy. Tantra teaches that by understanding and correctly using our body, we can not only live healthy long lives but can also unlock the mysteries of the universe.

It’s study based on these beliefs that has led to our understanding of chakras (energy points) and nadis (energy channels) in the body. It’s the basis for yoga’s asanas (physical postures) and pranayama (energy control through breathing). It’s also this understanding of the body as a manifestation of shakti (energy) that explains the connection between Tantra and sexuality.

Sexual energy is incredibly powerful. In Tantra, energy flows through you, your whole body is alive with it, it’s your life-force, and energy and spirit are two sides of the same coin. So, exploring physical energies is intricately tied up with exploring spirituality. It’s all interconnected.

HOW DOES TANTRA WORK WITH BDSM?

An early Tantric text, the Vijñāna Bhairava Tantra includes 112 meditation techniques as examples. They can be poetic, such as:

Lie down as dead.
Enraged in wrath, stay so.
Or stare without moving an eyelash.
Or suck something and become the sucking.

And there are some that seem to almost fit a BDSM context immediately, such as:

Pierce some part of your nectar filled form with a pin,
and gently enter the piercing
and attain to the inner purity.

The point is not that these techniques need to be mastered. A meditation technique is a tool, the objective of all meditation is to come closer to connecting with your spirit. The message in Tantra is to find the tools that work for you.

In terms of intimacy (which, for the purposes of this, let’s imagine as a BDSM scene), it repositions what we do as exploration of our energy, and therefore ourselves. Anything and everything is a valid option, because everything can be used as a tool for spiritual realisation. The sexual, the sensual, the kinky, the painful, the frightening and the intense – they can all be transformed into spiritual practice.

And it doesn’t matter whether these things are familiar to us or new experiences. You can keep going deeper and deeper into a familiar connection, and there will always be new depths to explore. Or, you can seek things you’ve never experienced before and immerse yourself in new energy pathways. Both can be transformative.

BDSM offers a huge array of possibility for exploring ourselves, through our five senses and through our connection with our partner and the universe, and it can be a wonderful spiritual practice. That’s what Tantra teaches. That it’s all a potential tool, and what really matters is our consciousness.

FURTHER READING

• Deviance & Desire – The Relationship Between BDSM and Ancient Tantra
• A Submissive’s Initiative – Tantra and BDSM… Wait, What?
• Tantric Kindness – Tantric Sex and Tantric BDSM
• Personal Life Media – Transcendental BDSM: The Tantra of Dominance & Submission (podcast)
• Arcane Advice – The Tantric Advantage of BDSM
• Elephant Journal – Tantra & Open Relationships: Is There a Connection?