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Tantra Yoga Practice

December 18, 2014 by Olivia

Yoga is a holistic expression that employs physical, mental, and spiritual practices or disciplines.

Yogis practice hoping to attain an enhanced state of living and a state of permanent peace. The term yoga can be derived from either of two roots, yujir yoga (to yoke) or yuj samādhau (to concentrate).

According to Yoga-Yajnavalkya, Yoga is the union of the individual psyche with the transcendental self. There are many styles of yoga, each with distinct protocol and traditions. Tantra yoga is a specific style of meditation and ritual. Its goal is to awaken our ability to see and experience awe in each moment, inviting more and more divine in the mundane. The universe we experience is the concrete manifestation of the divine energy that creates and maintains it: Tantric practice seeks to contact and channel that energy within the human microcosm by means of ritual in order to achieve creativity and freedom.

Tantra comes from the words Tanoti (to expand, stretch, extend) and Trayoti (to liberate or free). Thus, tantra is the practice of expanding one’s awareness to everything and liberating one’s existence beyond the material and into the spiritual.

“The science and practice of Tantra has been likened to honey (madhu), in that it reveals the sweetness that is life in this world, as well as within spiritual unfolding.” -KATIE SILCOX

In Tantra yoga, Shakti (the Divine Feminine absolute) is focal. The Mother Goddess is seen in all things, as she is primordial. As she births us, nurtures us and ushers us home, she reminds us through stories and practices that we are all creative in nature, that energy assumes many forms and that we are divinity in human form. Shakta Tantra Yoga is the exploring of the Divine through self discovery and liberation of the individual.

I am passionate about pursuing my Shakta Tantra Yoga practice, and I share this energy with seekers in service. My personal spiritual sadhana (practice) seamlessly fuses white and red tantra. Each day, I engage in a sequence of asanas (postures), pranayama (breathwork), dhyana (meditation) and dharmic study in an effort to purify my mind/ body and align my energy with higher consciousness. I have a clean diet and I receive body energy work almost daily. I live and work in a sanctuary. My life is spiritually oriented and rooted in temple culture, therefore, both I and my services have a tantric vibration. The energy cultivated in my practice flavours our interactions.

Naturally, a good teacher practices what they preach- so my sanctuary services are geared towards orienting seekers as to how they may incorporate the revolutionary transformational lifestyle practices that I have learned over my years of practice. My custom sanctuary services link yogic practices (including asana, pranayama, visualization, bandha, energy work, mudras, mantras, puja, subtle anatomy, meditation, bhakti and more) into a single, methodical, personalized and deeply enriching ceremony that acts, in the moment, as an expression of our truest self.

Our sexual energy can be a catalyst

December 18, 2014 by Olivia

Our sexual energy can ~

Heal our body & mind.
Promote the release of sexual trauma or difficulties, whether it be from abuse or giving birth… impotence, premature ejaculation, fear of sexual commitment, relationships & intimacy.
Grounds us within our body, igniting self-love & respect.
Awakens us to our true self & highest potential.
Allows enlightenment to be realized, for it happens within this human skin not as escapism to another dimension.
Supports us in feeling safe in our own skin & lives while surrendering to life’s natural flow.
Encourages sex to be a whole body & loving experience without goals or agendas of the mind.
Enrich our relationship with our true self.
Deeply connect us with another.
Allow our senses to awaken, living a sensual life.
Give us immense pleasure & satisfaction in life.
Release a creative force that weaves in & out of our daily lives.
Unleash our potential as a spiritual being.
Expand our consciousness.
Bring a sense of presence in our life.
Reveal a way of seeing life without the illusions of the mind…
Allow bliss to permeate into each moment of life.
Unite our feminine & masculine energies, our sexuality & spirituality, promoting wholeness within.

Tantric Breath work

December 17, 2014 by Olivia

It is thought by many cultures that the process of breathing is the essence of being. A rhythmic process of expansion and contraction, breathing is one example of the consistent polarity we see in nature such as night and day, wake and sleep, seasonal growth and decay and ultimately life and death. In yoga, the breath is known as prana, or universal energy that can be used to find a balance between body and mind, conscious and unconscious, and the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous system.

Unlike other bodily functions, the breath is easily used to communicate between these systems, which gives us an excellent tool to help facilitate positive change. It is the only function that we do both voluntarily and involuntarily. Breathing can be trained for both positive and negative influences on health.

The breath may be quick and shallow; it may be rough or smooth; subtle and refined; monitored or restricted and tense; it may be deep and relaxed, steady, calm and peaceful; or loose and free. As we become more aware of our breath, we become more aware of our state of mind.

To breathe Tantrically is the way we are biologically wired to breathe. If you watch a baby, they breathe deeply into their bellies. When they breathe in the belly goes out, then when they exhale, their bellies go in. Hardly anyone is able to maintain this sort of breathing without some sort of training… Most people have had enough emotional trauma by the age of three or four to be breathing incorrectly. When someone has pain or fear, the first thing they do is hold their breath. Then the flight or fight response kicks in and they breathe high in the chest. Over time, the body starts breathing like this all the time because of habit and a continual feedback loop of stress.

When you breathe deeply and correctly, you automatically stimulate the parasympathetic nervous system and your whole body gets to experience health and ease. Blood pressure drops, muscles relax, lungs work fully, the mind relaxes.

Conscious breathing not only provides a solid foundation for all the other kinds of breathing work, but it is also, in itself, transformational. It helps us cultivate inner stillness and presence. It also helps us be present without judgment or analysis.

Through becoming aware of how we actually breathe from moment to moment, through sensing and feeling how our breath shapes and is shaped by our emotions, our attitudes, and our inner and outer tensions, we liberate the wisdom of our body and brain to bring about subtle beneficial changes without any ego manipulation on our part.

Tantric Meditation

December 17, 2014 by Olivia

Meditation has been practiced since antiquity as a component of numerous religious traditions. The positive effects are astounding and certainly deserve your contemplation and consideration. Research has scientifically proven that meditation is a safe and simple way to balance your physical, emotional, and mental state and more and more doctors are encouraging patients to practice meditation to cure many stress-related illnesses.

One of the goals of meditation is the “mindful state,” which is an awareness of objects, mind-states, and physical states but not attachment to them. This “mindful state” is one which recognizes distractions and attachments, and acknowledges them, in order to achieve awareness of one’s true nature. While a person in meditation does not dwell on possible objects of consciousness, he/she is yet mindful of them – a different sort of awareness without attachment.

Meditation is the key to your subtle (i.e. your aura) energy body. When you meditate, you do for the subtle body the same thing you do to your physical body when practicing bodybuilding… you increase the beneficial energies, you expand the limits of your consciousness. But unlike the physical body which is limited in size, the energy body is not limited at all – you can make it expand until it is infinite.

Tantra meditation techniques are designed to encourage and speed up the process of connecting the kundalini from top to bottom and to balance the vibrant male and female energies. When we feel these complementary energies balanced within, we feel like a whole and complete person, without the compulsory idea that we need another person to make us feel complete.

Tao

December 17, 2014 by Olivia

The basis of all Taoist thinking is that Qi (Energy) is a part of everything that exists. Its central principle is that all of life is part of an inseparable whole, an interconnected unity which arises from a deep, mysterious, and essentially unexplainable source.

As an inseparable part of the Tao, human beings can gain understanding and become attuned to the natural laws of the universe through inner meditation and outer observation. Aligning ourselves with these principles allows life to be lived in harmony with the Tao. Indeed our way of life becomes the Way, a full expression of the Tao.

These natural laws are illustrated by the well-known symbol of the Yin and Yang. It represents the balance of opposites in the universe. When they are equally present, all is calm. When one is outweighed by the other, there is confusion and disarray. The two swirling shapes inside the symbol give the impression of change- the only constant factor in the universe.

The most traditional view is that Yin represents aspects of the feminine: being soft, cool, calm, introspective, and healing while Yang represents the masculine: being hard, hot, energetic, moving, and sometimes aggressive. Yin is also represented as night and Yang as day.

The Yin and Yang apply to sex as well. In the Taoist view of sexuality, the body is revered and sex is wholeheartedly encouraged. Taoist sex is not just about pleasing the man. Taoists believe that a man can only increase and nourish his own vitality by stimulating and pleasing a woman into orgasm. The female’s orgasm activates and strengthens her life force, which in turn has a nurturing and balancing effect on the life force of the male. The primary purpose behind Taoist lovemaking is this transformation of sexual energy into healing energy and vitality, resulting in better health and longevity.

Similar to Tantra, Taoism has many facets, sexuality being only one aspect. Taoists do not merely teach exercises to enhance the pleasure of partnership. They also encourage self-mastery and self-awareness. They clearly teach the importance of drawing in the sexual energy and experience, rather than focusing on sexual organs and external stimuli. Any focus on the sexual organs is used only to introduce the practitioner to more advanced concepts. Taoism also puts an emphasis on self-control and moderation. Complete abstinence is considered as equally dangerous as an excessive sexual indulgence.

Tantra Wisdom

December 17, 2014 by Olivia

Tantra has been called by many- The Path of Acceptance, mainly because it doesn’t exclude, criticize or condemn anything from the realm of experience. In fact it believes that you are perfect just the way you are. It asserts that there is no sin except for the forgetting of ones true nature.

Tantra gives you unconditional freedom, whatsoever you are and whatsoever you can be. Tantra puts no boundaries on you. It does not define you; it simply gives you total freedom. The understanding is that when you are totally free, then everything is possible.

Tantra is nothing more than a tool to help the individual remember. Its nothing more than a set of techniques to help you connect the physical and mystical planes. It is never concerned with the question why, while consistently asking the question how.

The very scientific teachings of Vigyan Bhairav Tantra stays away from philosophic “Why” talk altogether. It presents students with a manual of 112 “How” techniques, each one with the potential to unlock the door to their authentic selves.

Among these very powerful tools are techniques centered around sexual intimacy, which is why Tantra is also called The Path of Love. Sex is one of the most powerful and creative human energies. Without sex, no species on this planet could survive. As such, sexual energy plays an integral role in healing and balancing our holy trinity of mind, body and soul.

Tantra says that sexual desire is built into the very fiber of our beings and should not be denied, but rather expressed in healthy ways. Denial in any form is a form of resistance and whatever one resists, persists. If this persistence goes on long enough it may turn into repression, that if not expressed, can result in blocked energy and bad health.

Tantra uses the 5 senses along with meditation, breathing, visualizing, mantra and many other elements to help the individual achieve supreme spiritual liberation.

The word Tantra comes from two Sanskrit words, Tanoi and Trayati. Tanoi meaning to expand and Trayati with two meanings – to weave together and also to liberate. So it can be said that Tantra is the expansion of mind, body and soul and the weaving together of Universal Truths, resulting in bliss, liberation and finally enlightenment.

Sacred Sexual Healing Arts

December 17, 2014 by Olivia

Our method is a fusion of Sacred Sexual Healing Arts, Taoism, Tantra, Buddhism and other teachings

You can find the roots of Sacred Sexuality in the ancient cultures around the world. Being it an Egyptian priestess or a Tantric Goddess divided by time and place there were all there to initiate, teach and give the knowledge to the next generation. The process for becoming sexually and spiritually whole, so that we can reclaim our power, expand our container and experience more pleasure was important all trough the ages.All true religions in their pure, original forms considered sex to be sacred. We conceived trough a sexual act and our true nature includes sexuality. So God created sex and mankind corrupted it. See the old scriptures here or here or in many other sources…

Once the sensual and the sacred are integrated, intentions are set, presents and awareness are there every sexual act become healing. Sexual act not necessary involve sexuality like we learned in the west. It is not about the intercourse… it can be a hold, touch, hug or even just being present with one-other. It is about creating a space where you feel safe, where the present and intentions are aligned to open you up. To face the issues around sexuality and to move trough them with present. When the wounds of the feminine and masculine aspect are healed we step into a realm of higher consciousness. The Sacred Sexual Healing is first effect your body/mind/spirit harmony. ” But as you go deeper into practices you discover the truth of the individual body temple is a microcosm of the collective consciousness. As we heal our own shallow breathing patterns, we’ll stop polluting the air. As we heal our unhealthy eating habits, we’ll stop consuming and wasting non renewable resources on the planet. As we heal our emotional wounding, the world’s waters will run clear again. As we heal our sexual wounds, all beings may be happy and all beings may be free.” (source)

There are many wonderful books that outline the history of sacred sex, ancient Tantric scriptures and sexual Shamanic practices.

What Happens During A Tantric Massage?

December 1, 2014 by Olivia

An Authentic Tantric Therapist worships the whole of the body, mind & soul… using gentle caress, her feminine intuition, pure loving intention & the lightest of fingertip touches ~ consciously building up sexual arousal, allowing it to flow through to the parts of the body that hunger for it the most.
A tantric massage usually finishes, depending on the needs & progress of each individual with a yoni or Lingham massage which fires the kundalini to move up through the body, thus creating moments of awakening ~ a blissful whole body orgasm.
Unlike the erotic tantric massage shared between lovers or offered by erotic masseurs, a tantric therapist although igniting the flames of pleasure & passion within, does not use masturbation techniques on the Lingham or yoni. The techniques are purely for massaging these areas & creating new senses of arousal.
The individual is then left to rest for a while in the warm glow of his/her own ecstasy.