The Roots Of Tantra

Among the many spiritual traditions born and developed in India, Tantra has been the most difficult to define. Almost everything about it its major characteristics, its sources, its relationships to other religions, even its practices are debated among sc

A leading yoga researcher offers a clear and lively introduction to the history, philosophy, and practice of the Tantric spiritual tradition Tantra—often associated with Kundalini Yoga—is a fundamental dimension of Hinduism, emphasizing the cultivation of “divine power” (shakti) as a path to infinite bliss. Tantra has been widely misunderstood in the West, however, where its practices are often confused with eroticism and licentious morality. Tantra: The Path of Ecstasy dispels many common misconceptions, providing an accessible introduction to the history, philosophy, and practice of this extraordinary spiritual tradition. The Tantric teachings are geared toward the attainment of enlightenment as well as spiritual power and are present not only in Hinduism but also Jainism and Vajrayana Buddhism. In this book, Georg Feuerstein offers readers a clear understanding of authentic Tantra, as well as appropriate guidance for spiritual practice and the attainment of higher consciousness.

Yoga, tantra and other forms of Asian meditation are practised in modernized forms throughout the world today, but most introductions to Hinduism or Buddhism tell only part of the story of how they developed. This book is an interpretation of the history of Indic religions up to around 1200 CE, with particular focus on the development of yogic and tantric traditions. It assesses how much we really know about this period, and asks what sense we can make of the evolution of yogic and tantric practices, which were to become such central and important features of the Indic religious scene. Its originality lies in seeking to understand these traditions in terms of the total social and religious context of South Asian society during this period, including the religious practices of the general population with their close engagement with family, gender, economic life and other pragmatic concerns.

Making Sense of Tantric Buddhism fundamentally rethinks the nature of the transgressive theories and practices of the Buddhist Tantric traditions, challenging the notion that the Tantras were “marginal” or primitive and situating them instead—both ideologically and institutionally—within larger trends in mainstream Buddhist and Indian culture. Critically surveying prior scholarship, Wedemeyer exposes the fallacies of attributing Tantric transgression to either the passions of lusty monks, primitive tribal rites, or slavish imitation of Saiva traditions. Through comparative analysis of modern historical narratives—that depict Tantrism as a degenerate form of Buddhism, a primal religious undercurrent, or medieval ritualism—he likewise demonstrates these to be stock patterns in the European historical imagination. Through close analysis of primary sources, Wedemeyer reveals the lived world of Tantric Buddhism as largely continuous with the Indian religious mainstream and deploys contemporary methods of semiotic and structural analysis to make sense of its seemingly repellent and immoral injunctions. Innovative, semiological readings of the influential Guhyasamaja Tantra underscore the text’s overriding concern with purity, pollution, and transcendent insight—issues shared by all Indic religions—and a large-scale, quantitative study of Tantric literature shows its radical antinomianism to be a highly managed ritual observance restricted to a sacerdotal elite. These insights into Tantric scripture and ritual clarify the continuities between South Asian Tantrism and broader currents in Indian religion, illustrating how thoroughly these “radical” communities were integrated into the intellectual, institutional, and social structures of South Asian Buddhism.

This book takes readers on a fascinating journey to the very heart of Tantra: its key teachings, foundational lineages, and transformative practices. Since the West's discovery of Tantra 100 years ago, there has been considerable fascination, speculation, and more than a little misinformation about this spiritual movement. Now, for the first time in the English language, Tantra Illuminated presents an accessible introduction to this sacred tradition that began 1,500 years ago, in the far north of India. The book uses translations from primary Sanskrit sources, offers a profound look at spiritual practice, and reveals Tantra's rich history and powerful teachings.

PREFACE The Tibetan medical system, more popularly known as Sowa Rigpa (Knowledge of Healing), is undoubtedly as old as Tibetan civilization itself. The earliest inhabitants of Tibet were confronted with a host of difficulties due to the way they had to live during those ancient times. The only means of sustenance and survival was to rely on the various natural resources around them. These early people gradually learned the uses and medical efficacy of natural resources. The inherent discernment of these early people led them to discover natural remedies for various healthrelated problems. Their innate urge to overcome physical discomfort, combined with their curiosity about the world around them, made them create some effective natural remedies for many common illnesses. Drinking and sprinkling cold water against fever, compressing cold stone on an inflamed swelling, using heated oil to stop bleeding, drinking hot water for indigestion, eating boiled foods rather than eating them raw - these insights1 and many others have proven their effectiveness and have continued to be of use even to this day. The development of the Tibetan science of healing is based on the wisdom of such ancient medical practices. The application of a medical remedy against poisoning2 as pronounced by Tsiblha Karma Yolde to the first king of Tibet Nyatri Tsenpo (circa 300 B.C.) clearly demonstrates that the early inhabitants of Tibet had knowledge of the therapeutic value of herbs and minerals even during that time. Medical knowledge continued to be passed on by means of various oral traditions and has kept alive the knowledge of numerous remedies over many centuries. Before Buddhism and the present Tibetan script were introduced to Tibet, the Bon religious and cultural traditions flourished in the region of Shang Shung in southwestern Tibet. The legendary Bon master and cultural founder Tonpa Shenrab Miwoche was born in Purang, Tibet, at the time of the Lord Buddha. The Bon master authored many important medical literatures such as Sojay Kyi Do Ghu, Sorig Chegyud Daser, Sojay Nadbum Nagpo3, Sojay Manbum Karp4, Sothab Chedbum Trawo5, and Tsawa Thukbum Khangon6 and he established the foundation for the development of the Bon medical tradition. His eldest son, Chebu Trishey, learned the art of medicine from his father and later became a very important figure in the development of the Bon medical system. At that time, Bon religion and culture were at their height and shamanistic ways of healing were very popular throughout Tibet. They undoubtedly influenced the existing Tibetan medical knowledge and practices. The Gyueshi (Four Tantras) which is the fundamental text of Tibetan medicine, contains mantras and the names of some medicinal substances, compounds, and diseases in the original Bon language. This is a clear indication of the influence of Bon on Tibetan medicine. We can therefore assume that there was knowledge and practices of medicine before the reign of King Lha Thothori Nyentsen and before the introduction of the present Tibetan script during the 7th century.

For those who wonder what relation actual Tantric practices bear to the "Tantric sex" currently being marketed so successfully in the West, David Gordon White has a simple answer: there is none. Sweeping away centuries of misunderstandings and misrepresentations, White returns to original texts, images, and ritual practices to reconstruct the history of South Asian Tantra from the medieval period to the present day. Kiss of the Yogini focuses on what White identifies as the sole truly distinctive feature of South Asian Tantra: sexualized ritual practices, especially as expressed in the medieval Kaula rites. Such practices centered on the exchange of powerful, transformative sexual fluids between male practitioners and wild female bird and animal spirits known as Yoginis. It was only by "drinking" the sexual fluids of the Yoginis that men could enter the family of the supreme godhead and thereby obtain supernatural powers and transform themselves into gods. By focusing on sexual rituals, White resituates South Asian Tantra, in its precolonial form, at the center of religious, social, and political life, arguing that Tantra was the mainstream, and that in many ways it continues to influence contemporary Hinduism, even if reformist misunderstandings relegate it to a marginal position. Kiss of the Yogini contains White's own translations from over a dozen Tantras that have never before been translated into any European language. It will prove to be the definitive work for persons seeking to understand Tantra and the crucial role it has played in South Asian history, society, culture, and religion.

A captivating study of the ancient Indian movement that has influenced and intrigued the world for more than a millennium. The Tantras, a set of sacred manuscripts that emerged in India from around the sixth century CE, detail rituals for attracting spiritual, worldly, and supernatural power. These rituals, which focus on the power of fierce gods and goddesses and center around yoga, self-deification, sexual rites, and the consumption of intoxicants, became an integral part of the meditations and philosophical practices of Tantric Hinduism and Buddhism. This book examines the philosophies, core beliefs, and artistic expressions of Tantra, and its impact on religious, cultural, and political landscapes across the globe. In tracing the history of the movement, author Imma Ramos reveals Tantra’s origins and continued relevance in India, as well as its redefinition as it was adopted by Western popular culture during the 1960s. Tantra: enlightenment to revolution accompanies a major exhibition at the British Museum, and is illustrated extensively with masterpieces of sculpture, painting, print, and ritual objects from India, Nepal, Tibet, China, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States, dating as far back as the eighth century CE.