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Tantra Massage
Swaye
Moderator, Swaye's Wigwam Posts: 41,511 
in Tug Tavern
Anyone ever been to Europe and gotten one? Is it a happy ending type thing, or full on get down gorilla sex type thing?
I'm asking for a friend.
I'm asking for a friend.
Comments
Hope this helps.
What the fuck does Tantra even mean?
#tinfoil
Tantra
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
For Tantric Buddhism, see Vajrayana. For the texts classified as Tantras, see Tantras.
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Tantra[note 1] is the name given by scholars to a style of meditation and ritual which arose in India no later than the 5th century AD.[1] The earliest documented use of the word "Tantra" is in the Rigveda (X.71.9).[2] Tantra has influenced the Hindu, Bön, Buddhist, and Jain traditions and silk road transmission of Buddhism that spread Buddhism to East and Southeast Asia.[3]
Contents [hide]
1 Definitions
1.1 Traditional
1.2 Scholastic
1.3 Western
2 History
2.1 Golden Age of Hinduism
2.2 Late classical period
2.3 Spread of Tantra
2.4 Chronological use of term
3 Practices
3.1 Goal
3.2 Tantric path
3.3 Classification
3.4 Mantra, yantra, nyasa
3.5 Identification with deities
3.5.1 Visualisation
3.5.2 Classes of devotees
3.6 Vanamarga (secret ritual)
3.7 Sexual rites
3.7.1 Origins
3.7.2 Religious aims
4 Doctrines
4.1 The world is real
4.2 Evolution and involution
5 Scripture
6 Influence on Asian religions
6.1 Hinduism
6.1.1 Vedic tradition
6.1.2 Shaiva Tantra
6.1.3 Yoga
6.2 Buddhist Tantra
7 Western views
7.1 John Woodroffe
7.2 Further development
7.3 Modern world
8 See also
9 Notes
10 References
11 Sources
11.1 Published
11.2 Web
12 Further reading
13 External links
Definitions[edit]
Several inconsistent definitions of Tantra exist.
Traditional[edit]
The Tantric tradition offers two definitions of tantra. The first comes from the Kāmikā-tantra:
Because it elaborates (tan) copious and profound matters, especially relating to the principles of reality (tattva) and sacred mantras, and because it provides liberation (tra), it is called a tantra.[4]
The second comes from the 10th-century Tantric scholar Rāmakaṇṭha, who belonged to the dualist school Śaiva Siddhānta:
A tantra is a divinely revealed body of teachings, explaining what is necessary and what is a hindrance in the practice of the worship of God; and also describing the specialized initiation and purification ceremonies that are the necessary prerequisites of Tantric practice.[5]
Prabhat Ranjan Sarkar[note 2] describes a tantric individual and a tantric cult:
A person who, irrespective of caste, creed or religion, aspires for spiritual expansion or does something concrete, is a Tantric. Tantra in itself is neither a religion nor an "ism". Tantra is a fundamental spiritual science. So wherever there is any spiritual practice it should be taken for granted that it stands on the Tantric cult."[6]
Scholastic[edit]
Modern scholars have defined Tantra; David Gordon White of the University of California offers the following:
Tantra is that Asian body of beliefs and practices which, working from the principle that the universe we experience is nothing other than the concrete manifestation of the divine energy of the godhead that creates and maintains that universe, seeks to ritually appropriate and channel that energy, within the human microcosm, in creative and emancipatory ways.[7]
Anthony Tribe, a scholar of Buddhist Tantra, offers a list of features:[8]
Centrality of ritual, especially the worship of deities
Centrality of mantras
Visualisation of and identification with a deity
Need for initiation, esotericism and secrecy
Importance of a teacher (guru, ācārya)
Ritual use of maṇḍalas
Transgressive or antinomian acts
Revaluation of the body
Revaluation of the status and role of women
Analogical thinking (including microcosmic or macrocosmic correlation)
Revaluation of negative mental states
Western[edit]
Robert Brown[citation needed] notes that the term "tantrism" is a construct of Western scholarship, not a concept from the religious system itself. Tāntrikas (practitioners of Tantra) did not attempt to define Tantra as a whole; instead, the Tantric dimension of each South Asian religion had its own name:
Tantric Shaivism was known to its practitioners as the Mantramārga.
Shaktism is practically synonymous and parallel with Tantra, known to its native practitioners as "Kula marga" or "Kaula".
Tantric Buddhism has the indigenous name of the Vajrayana.
Tantric Vaishnavism was known as the Pancharatra.
"Tantra" denotes teachings and practices found in the scriptures known as tantras or āgamas; Āgamic is a synonymous adjective.
History[edit]
Golden Age of Hinduism[edit]
Tantrism originated in the early centuries of the common era, developing into a fully articulated tradition by the end of the Gupta period. This was the "Golden Age of Hinduism"[9] (ca. 320–650 AD[9]), which flourished from the Gupta Empire[10] (320 to 550 AD) to the fall of the Harsha Empire[10] (606 to 647 AD). During this period power was centralised, trade increased, legal procedures standardised and literacy grew.[10] Mahayana Buddhism flourished, but the orthodox Brahmana culture began its rejuvenation with the patronage of the Gupta Dynasty.[11] The position of the Brahmans was reinforced,[10] and the first Hindu temples emerged during the late Gupta period.[10]
Late classical period[edit]
See also: Late classical age and Medieval Hinduism
After the end of the Gupta Empire and the collapse of the Harsha Empire, power was decentralised in India. Several larger kingdoms emerged, with "countless vassal states".[12][note 3] The kingdoms were ruled by a feudal system, with smaller kingdoms dependent on protection from larger ones. "The great king was remote, was exalted and deified."[13] This was reflected in the Tantric mandala, which could depict the king at its centre.[14]
The disintegration of central power led to religious regionalism and rivalry.[15][note 4] Local cults and languages developed, and the influence of "Brahmanic ritualistic Hinduism"[15] diminished.[15] Rural devotional movements arose with Shaivism, Vaisnavism, Bhakti and Tantra,[15] although "sectarian groupings were only at the beginning of their development."[15] Religious movements competed for recognition from local lords.[15] Buddhism lost its stature, and began to disappear from India.[15]
During this period Vedanta changed, incorporating the Buddhist emphases on consciousness and the working of the mind.[17] Buddhism, supported by the ancient Indian urban civilisation, lost influence to the traditional religions rooted in the countryside;[18] in Bengal, Buddhists were persecuted. However, it was also incorporated into Hinduism when Gaudapada reinterpreted the Upanishads in the light of Buddhist philosophy.[17] This also marked a shift from Atman and Brahman as a "living substance"[19] to "maya-vada".[note 5] where Atman and Brahman are seen as "pure knowledge-consciousness".[20] According to Scheepers, it is this "maya-vada" view which dominates Indian thought.[18]
Spread of Tantra[edit]
Tantric movements led to the formation of a number of Hindu and Buddhist esoteric schools. It has influenced the Hindu, Bön, Buddhist and Jain religious traditions and spread with Buddhism to East and Southeast Asia.[3]
Chronological use of term[edit]
A survey of the literature yields a variety of uses for "tantra":
Appearance of term "Tantra" in scriptures[21]
Period Scripture or author Meaning
1700–1100 BC Ṛgveda X, 71.9 Loom (or weaving device)[2]
1700-? Sāmaveda, Tandya Brahmana Essence (or "main part", perhaps denoting the quintessence of the Sastras)[2]
1200-900 Atharvaveda X, 7.42 Loom (or weaving device)[2]
1400-1000 Yajurveda, Taittiriya Brahmana 11.5.5.3 Loom (or weaving device)[2]
600-500 Pāṇini on Aṣṭādhyāyī Tissue obtained from the frame (tantraka, derived from tantra)
600-300 Śatapatha Brāhmaṇa Essence (or main part; see above)[2]
350-283 BC Chanakya[22] on Arthaśāstra Strategy
300 AD Īśvarakṛṣṇa author of Sānkhya Kārikā (kārikā 70) Doctrine (identifies Sankhya as a tantra)[23]
320 Viṣṇu Purāṇa Practices and rituals (śakti, Viṣṇu and Durgā cults with the use of wine and meat)[24]
320-400 Poet Kālidāsa on Abhijñānaśākuntalam Deep understanding or mastery of a topic[25]
423 Gangdhar stone inscription in Rajasthan[26] Daily practices and rituals of Tantric cult (Tantrobhuta)[27]
500-600 Chinese Buddhist canon (Vol. 18–21: Tantra (Vajrayāna) or Tantric Buddhism[28] Set of doctrines or practices for obtaining spiritual enlightenment (including iconography of the body with cakras, nāḍīs and mantras)
600 Kāmikāgama or Kāmikā-tantra Extensive knowledge of principles of reality (tattva and mantra)[29] and bearer of liberation[30]
606–647 Sanskrit scholar and poet Bāṇabhaṭṭa (in Harṣacarita[31] and in Kādambari), in Bhāsa's Cārudatta and in Śūdraka's Mṛcchakatika Set of practices and rituals, with mandalas and yantras for propitiation of goddesses or Matrikas [27][32]
788–820 philosopher Śankara System of thought, or set of doctrines and practices[33]
950–1000 Bhaṭṭa Rāmakaṇṭha (philosopher)[34] Divinely-revealed set of doctrines or practices concerning spiritual worship[35]
975–1025 Philosopher Abhinavagupta in his Tantrāloka Set of doctrines or practices, teachings or Śaiva doctrine
1150–1200 Jayaratha, Abhinavagupta's commentator on Tantrāloka Set of doctrines or practices, teachings or Śaiva doctrine (as in Tantrāloka)
1690–1785 Bhāskararāya (philiosopher) System of thought or set of doctrines or practices'[36]
Practices[edit]
Rather than one coherent system, Tantra is an accumulation of practices and ideas. Because of the wide range of communities covered by the term, it is problematic to describe tantric practices definitively.
Goal[edit]
Tantric ritual seeks to access the supra-mundane through the mundane, identifying the microcosm with the macrocosm.[37] The Tantric aim is to sublimate (rather than negate) reality.[38] The Tantric practitioner seeks to use prana (energy flowing through the universe, including one's body) to attain goals which may be spiritual, material or both.[39]
Tantric path[edit]
For Tibetan Buddhist ideas, see Anuttarayoga Tantra.
Long training is generally required to master Tantric methods. Pupils are typically initiated by a guru.
A number of techniques are used as aids for meditation and achieving spiritual power:
Yoga, including breathing techniques and postures (asana), is employed to subject the body to the control of the will.
Mudras, or gestures
Mantras: Syllables, words and phrases
Mandalas
Yantras: Symbolic diagrams of forces at work in the universe
Identification with deities
The process of sublimation consists of three phases:
Purification
Elevation
"Reaffirmation of identity in pure consciousness"[38]
Classification[edit]
Avalon contrasts "ordinary" [40] and "secret ritual[s]".[41] Methods employed by Dakshinachara (right-hand path) interpretations of Tantra differ from methods used in the pursuit of the Vamachara (left-hand path).
Mantra, yantra, nyasa[edit]
The words mantram, tantram and yantram are rooted linguistically and phonologically in ancient Indian traditions. Mantram denotes the chant, or "knowledge." Tantram denotes philosophy, or ritual actions. Yantram denotes the means by which a person is expected to lead their life.[citation needed]
The mantra and yantra are instruments to invoke specific Hindu deities such as Shiva, Shakti, or Kali. Similarly, puja may involve focusing on a yantra or mandala associated with a deity.[42]
Each mantra is associated with a specific Nyasa. Nyasa involves touching various parts of the body at specific parts of the mantra, thought to invoke the deity in the body. There are several types of Nyasas; the most important are Kara Nyasa and Anga Nyasa.[citation needed]
Identification with deities[edit]
Tantra, as a development of early Hindu-Vedic thought, embraced the Hindu gods and goddesses (especially Shiva and Shakti) and the Advaita philosophy that each represents an aspect of the ultimate Para Brahman or Adi Parashakti. These deities may be worshiped with flowers, incense and other offerings (such as singing and dancing). Tantric practices form the foundation of the ritual temple dance of the devadasis, and are preserved in the Melattur style of Bharatanatyam by Mangudi Dorairaja Iyer.[citation needed]
Visualisation[edit]
The deities are internalised as attributes of Ishta devata meditations, with practitioners visualizing themselves as the deity or experiencing the darshan (vision) of the deity. During meditation the initiate identifies with any of the Hindu gods and goddesses, visualising and internalising them in a process similar to sexual courtship and consummation.[43] The Tantrika practitioner may use visualizations of deities, identifying with a deity to the degree that the aspirant "becomes" the Ishta-deva (or meditational deity).[44]
Classes of devotees[edit]
In Hindu Tantra, uniting the deity and the devotee uses meditation and ritual practices. These practices are divided among three classes of devotees: the animal, heroic, and the divine. In the divine devotee, the rituals are internal. The divine devotee is the only one who can attain the object of the rituals (awakening energy).[45]
Vanamarga (secret ritual)[edit]
The secret ritual prompted Heinrich Zimmer's praise of Tantra's world-affirming attitude:
In the Tantra, the manner of approach is not that of Nay but of Yea... the world attitude is affirmative... Man must approach through and by means of nature, not by rejection of nature.[46]
Arthur Avalon states that the Panchatattva,[note 6] Chakrapuja and Panchamakara involve:
Worship with the Pañcatattva generally takes place in a Cakra or circle composed of men and women... sitting in a circle, the Shakti (or female practitioner) being on the Sadhaka's (male practitioner's) left. Hence it is called Cakrapuja. ...There are various kinds of Cakra – productive, it is said, of differing fruits for the participator therein.[41][48]
Hope this helps.
But thanks.