{"id":1042,"date":"2016-01-06T12:27:15","date_gmt":"2016-01-06T02:27:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.femplay.com.au\/blog\/?p=1042"},"modified":"2016-01-06T12:29:23","modified_gmt":"2016-01-06T02:29:23","slug":"taoism-tantra-union-sex-spirituality","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.femplay.com.au\/blog\/taoism-tantra-union-sex-spirituality\/","title":{"rendered":"Taoism and Tantra: The Union of Sex and Spirituality"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Ying<\/a>Ancient Chinese and Indian civilisations had uniquely progressive views on sex and sexuality, viewing it as more than just a means to procreation or free-thinking exploration. Instead, they connected it with a much deeper level of spirituality \u2013 in Chinese culture it was directly linked to the religious tradition of Taoism, and in India it was integrated into the Hindu tradition of Tantra (Carroll 2015).Both traditions still hold these same views today. Taoism views sexuality as a unification of the yin and yang; the masculine and feminine, in harmony with the universe (Reid 1989); and Tantra regards sex as a mystical and cosmic experience of leaving your body and merging with the Divine (Sannyasin Tantra 2005).<\/p>\n

Sexual acts and exercises are performed by Taoist and Tantric practitioners as spiritual practices, thought to channel the divine energy through the participants and bring them not just pleasure and satisfaction, but also good health, longevity, heightened awareness and cosmic experiences (Tantric Philosophy n.d.). They practice certain positions and use toys like Ben Wa balls and Jade eggs to exercise control and direct their flow of energies (Yoni Exercises n.d.).<\/p>\n

Sex and Taoism<\/b><\/p>\n

\"taoism\"<\/a>The central goal of Taoists is to live in harmony with the Tao, which represents the interdependence of all things, united in the universe. It is made up of the two main principles of yin and yang; yin representing the feminine, receptive and passive, and yang representing the masculine, assertive and active (Carroll 2015).<\/p>\n

Sexuality for Chinese Taoists is about unifying the yin and yang. Taoist texts emphasise techniques that balance and harmonise the sexual relations between the man and the woman (Reid 1989), and provide a sense of wholeness and satisfaction for both partners (Wile\u2019s \u201cArt of the Bedchamber\u201d \u2013 Chinese Sexology 2005).<\/p>\n

They approach sex with kindness, generosity and self-sacrifice, and incorporate methods of ejaculation control (to allow the woman \u2013 who is generally slower at reaching orgasm \u2013 to enjoy her full pleasure), regular sex (to continue joining their essences and sexual energies, which they believe have a positive impact on their health), and practicing certain positions that are believed to prevent and cure illness (Reid 1989).<\/p>\n

For ancient Chinese Taoists, sexual devices and toys for increasing\"dorcel<\/a> pleasure were common \u2013 \u00a0including many that can still be found today. Penis rings were used to maintain erections, Ben Wa balls were inserted into the vagina and brought pleasure to both partners as they bounced against each other during sex, and bells were fixed under the head of the penis to increase its size (Carroll 2015).<\/p>\n

Sex and Tantra\"tantra\"<\/a><\/b><\/p>\n

Tantra is seen as a path to enlightenment, with the view that sexual energy is the greatest and most transformational source of energy in the universe. It values regular intercourse, and reaching orgasm is a cosmic experience that allows both partners to access an ecstatic state of being (Sannyasin Tantra 2005).<\/p>\n

The most well-known Hindu Tantric text, the Kama Sutra, instructs men and women to practice sex positions and techniques that prolong the pleasures of sex and heighten their sensory awareness (Tantric Philosophy n.d.), and can even be a much deeper source of strength, power and magic (Carroll 2015).<\/p>\n

With the goal of using sexual energy to merge with their partners and together become one with the Divine, the Kama Sutra describes the art of prolonging intercourse without reaching orgasm and instead, preserving the state of climax with regular \u2018dry orgasms\u2019. By incorporating techniques like breathing control, meditation, postures and certain finger pressures, Tantra focuses on sustaining mutual enjoyment and the cosmic experience of the union (Tantric Philosophy n.d.).<\/p>\n

Hindu Tantric practitioners actively promote Yoni (vagina) exercises \"luna<\/a>like Kegels and Pilates, and toys such as Ben Wa balls and Jade eggs, to strengthen the vaginal muscles, increase pleasure during sex and improve sexual health (Yoni Exercises n.d.).<\/p>\n

Better Sex, Better Health and Greater Spiritual Intimacy<\/b><\/p>\n

Approaching sex as a spiritual, intimate act can greatly increase the pleasure and satisfaction for both partners, as well as have beneficial impacts on your health and wellbeing.<\/p>\n

Tantric practitioners in particular incorporate into sex an understanding of how life-energy moves throughout our body as humans, and they hold that exercises with Ben Wa balls or Jade eggs can improve your core physical and sexual strength, resulting in greater enjoyment and deeper, more intimately connected orgasms (Drouin n.d.). These toys can be found quite easily, and it may even be worth giving them a go for yourself!<\/p>\n

While Tantric and Taoist sexual practices may not be for everyone, \"sexual<\/a>the focus of these traditions on mutual enjoyment, generosity and paying attention to your partner easily translate to every woman and man who actively enjoys sex, sensuality and intimacy. Try bringing elements of these ancient, deep-rooted traditions into your own relationships and see if it has an impact on the way you experience sex today.<\/p>\n

References<\/b><\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Carroll, J 2015, Sensuality Now: Embracing Diversity, <\/i>Cengage Learning, Boston.<\/li>\n
  2. Drouin, J n.d., The Power Wind Exercise for Tantrikas. <\/i>Available from: <http:\/\/authentictantra.com\/the-power-wind-exercise-for-tantrikas\/<\/a>>. [5 January 2016].<\/li>\n
  3. Reid, D 1989, The Tao of Health, Sex and Longevity, <\/i>Simon and Schuster, New York.<\/li>\n
  4. Sannyasin Tantra, <\/i>2005. Available from: <http:\/\/www.reuniting.info\/wisdom\/sunnyasin_tantra_osho<\/a>>. [5 January 2016].<\/li>\n
  5. Tantric Philosophy, <\/i>n.d. Available from: <http:\/\/www.whitelotuseast.com\/<\/a>Tantra>. [5 January 2016].<\/li>\n
  6. Wile\u2019s \u201cArt of the Bedchamber\u201d \u2013 Chinese Sexology, <\/i>2005. Available from: <http:\/\/www.reuniting.info\/wisdom\/taoism_chinese_sexology_wile<\/a>>. [5 January 2016].<\/li>\n
  7. Yoni Exercises, <\/i>n.d. Available from: <http:\/\/www.whitelotuseast.com\/YoniExercises.htm<\/a>>. [5 January 2016].<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Ancient Chinese and Indian civilisations had uniquely progressive views on sex and sexuality, viewing it as more than just a means to procreation or free-thinking exploration. Instead, they connected it with a much deeper level of spirituality \u2013 in Chinese culture it was directly linked to the religious tradition of Taoism, and in India it … Continue reading Taoism and Tantra: The Union of Sex and Spirituality<\/span> →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1,4],"tags":[126,187,234,8,369,85,296,370,371,367,366,368],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.femplay.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1042"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.femplay.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.femplay.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.femplay.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.femplay.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1042"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.femplay.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1042\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1049,"href":"https:\/\/www.femplay.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1042\/revisions\/1049"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.femplay.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1042"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.femplay.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1042"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.femplay.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1042"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}