Tantra

[Kath]

Call me old fashioned, but shouldn't there be something about tantra in a section called Left Hand Path?


Tantra dates back as far as 5-7000 years, and vamachara tantra is the origin of the term 'left hand path'. The earliest known texts specificly defined as tantrik are somewhat less ancientl, but the principals were not new when recorded.

Some unique characteristics in vamachara include the rejection of asceticism, the eating of meat and alchohol or marijuana, self identification with deity, focus on feminine deities which bring light and dark in equal portions, union of masculine & feminine, use of sex to further expand apon the goals of yoga, visualization of sexual union with deity, union of spiritual & physical aspects rather than seperation, etc. All of these directed towards the aim of enlightenment.

Tantra literally means 'weave' and seems more focused on embracing of a complex whole than on simplifying and seperating.


Kath

[Naomi]

Yes Kath, I agree, Tantra is wonderful, but as for old-fashioned, you may be pleased to discover that there are quite a few topics both on tantric deities and tantric arts in the Eastern Forums section:

http://forums.abrahadabra.com/forumdisplay.php?f=49

I am glad to see someone else interested in this subject, it is one of my favorites and has been very rewarding throughout the years.

I don't use right and left hand terminology very often, so I don't know - does tantra belong to one path or the other fully?

Either way I am thrilled to know you are a practitioner and look forward to discussing this further. I gravitate towards Saivism and Tibetan Chod practice mostly, though all of the body of research done by Asia is endlessly fascinating and much too vast to take in at once.

[Kain]

Good point Kath...the term 'Left Hand Path' itself has roots partially to the vamachara path of Tantra. As NaomiChan indicated though there is already a number of topics on Tantra to be found in the Eastern Tradition forum...the term "Left Hand Path" itself has been used in a wider spectrum of various contexts in recent years and by different groups of people. It is this wider definition that we are using in this immediate format.

I'd be quite interested to read more on your approach concerning vamachara Tantra. I am a quite dedicated Tantric practitioner myself in fact, although personally tending more towards dakshinachara and Tibetan Tantra...
I don't use right and left hand terminology very often, so I don't know - does tantra belong to one path or the other fully?Not really, Indian Tantra seems to have evolved in both directions, although dakshinachara schools were historically more numerous I think. Essentially, both approaches have a firm bearing on the term though, and even then, it is important to remember that even within the Tantric spectrum, a person essentially adapts according to his own tamperament...

Kain

[m1thr0s]

Just to clarify...

Abrahadabra itself, as discussed throughout this site, is principally a tantric methodology. While it has applications ceremonially or ritually (most tantric disciplines do), it is first & foremost a tantric discipline aimed at exploring and mastering the Body of Light...

Mutational Alchemy, Trigrammal Field Theory. Magickal Mirror Working, and nearly all the terms you will find associated to Abrahadabra on this site are all outlining a tantric technology rooted in Abrahadabra and aimed at The StarBody system it reveals.

m1thr0s

[Luke Saint]

Tantra is not to be discussed, only practiced. Peace.

[Naomi]

Ok let me get right on that....

[m1thr0s]

Tantra is not to be discussed, only practiced.Discussion itself is a form of tantra (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tantra) to those with the will to make it so...ever hear of Jnana Yoga?

There is a big difference, however, between productive discussion and idle debate...

m1thr0s

[Luke Saint]

Discussion itself is a form of tantra (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tantra) to those with the will to make it so...ever hear of Jnana Yoga?


Very interesting. I've not heard of Jnana Yoga, or if I did it was by a different name. Seeing as how my curiosity is at a furious peak at the moment the topic shall not evade my acquaintance for very long. Thank you m1thr0s. Peace.