The tantra viewpoint on sex has always been at odds with the aggressively marketed religions of the world. There is good reason for this. The fact is that most religions of the world require their followers to subdue their natural desires. Ancient tantra advocates awareness and acceptance of one’s desires, and the fulfilling of those desires in a spiritual and wholesome manner.
As a tantra teacher, I will readily admit that the prohibitive stance that the world’s religions take can have some benefits. For instance, the Catholic Christian faith considers gluttony a sin. We all know the dangers of overeating. It also advocates single-partner sex, which is definitely advisable in a day and age where AIDS has become a serious problem.
Here are clear instances where religion can do some good by wielding the ‘fear the wrath of God’ stick. But unfortunately, it does not end there.
The ‘fear of God’ is not based on awareness of the natural consequences of over-indulgence. As the term itself implies, it is based on fear. This fear is induced in order to elicit unquestioning obedience to the ‘Laws of God’, which human priesthoods enforce without being too sure themselves from where these laws actually originated.
Tantra advocates understanding of the human condition, and the balanced fulfilment of natural desires. There are no laws or rules. Everything is based on knowledge and scientific facts.
In any case, sex and sexuality have always been subject to a lot of religious sanctions and dogma. There are various reasons for this. One is that most religions of the world are male-dominated, and sexual insecurity is a real issue for almost all men to some degree or the other.
For instance, the fact that man is capable of only one orgasm within a certain period of time while women are capable of multiple orgasms has been the source of a lot of performance anxiety. Throughout the ages, men have feared the woman’s sexuality because they feel they cannot match it. No matter how much we appear to have evolved as a race, it is a fact that man still bases his innate sense of self on his ability to perform sexually.
The fear of woman’s sexuality has been so great that certain countries have been practicing female circumcision. Though they cite various religious justifications for this, the fact is that this practice is nothing but a means for man to re-establish his pre-eminence at the top of the gender heap.
If woman cannot experience sexual pleasure, she will never know if her man matches the ‘standard’ of virility or not. It is way for man to relieve himself of his chronic sexual performance anxiety.
In tantra, human sexuality is examined closely and understood in all its manifestations. There is no right or wrong, virtuous or sinful, good or bad. There is simply acceptance of the truth of human sexuality.
If you are a victim of religious misconceptions about sex, you are an unfulfilled, insecure and fearful person. Ancient tantra is a spiritual path that lets you shed your fear and inhibitions, understand and accept your natural desires and meet them in a natural, fulfilling manner.
