Vajradhara
One of Many
Tantra, pt 1.
Namaste all,
without further ado:
Tantra
Tantra means thread in Sanskrit, specifically the warp thread that dresses the loom and gives support to the fabric formed by the moving shuttle or, in a rug, the individual knots. Without it, there can be no cloth. It can also refer to the cord used for stringing beads to make a necklace, a rosary, mala, or garland. Tantric or more rarely, tantrik, is the adjective.
The word "tantra" refers to an "oral practice tradition," where there is a direct link from teacher to student. It is important to understand that a tantric connection is more than a lineage association, or an affiliation to a tradition. To belong to a certain tantric lineage means that the skills themselves are learned, practiced, mastered, and handed on with a special kind of permission.
Esoteric
Tantrism refers to an esoteric system in which exercises, practices and rituals are handed down directly from teacher to student by word of mouth, though often with the aid of teaching materials in the form of pamphlets and pictures. Such a manual can also be called a tantra. Any tantra is usually part of a system that was discovered, developed, or established, to explain, teach and initiate people into a radically different way of looking at, and acting in, the world.
The esoteric, concealed, or secret part, is often misunderstood as a reference to the intentional concealment of ancient practices. And it is true that some of these tried and true techniques sometimes rely heavily on symbolic or "twilight" language.
Also, there is little doubt that some teachers wanted to keep certain things from their competitors, and that there were times and political situations during which it was not wise to meet privately in small groups for any reason.
However, the word "esoteric" in relation to tantric information, systems, and practices, has more to so with the fact that they operate at a subconscious or subliminal level -- below the threshold of everyday awareness. Without proper explanation and careful guidance, an impatient and unprepared person could really get into trouble with some of these methods.
Attention was drawn to tantrism when some sexual aspects of it became known in the West. Unfortunately, and not surprisingly, this has led to a great deal of confusion on the subject. People incorrectly tend to assume that "tantric" means something like, "about dynamic sexual technique."
Yoga
In pre-tractor agricultural societies, draft animals could only work together if they were kept in unison by means of a yoke. The English word is derived from the Sanskrit yug from which we get the familiar yoga. But yoga originally just meant "yoke," the set of hoops that could be attached to a long shaft or tied to a set of reins controlled by a person. In fact, yoga is a way of referring to a tantric tradition.
In tantrism, the student and teacher are yoked or linked by the teachings, and by obligations and responsibilities. The individual is linked to past masters. The aspects of the teaching are linked: word with action, thought and sound, visualization and gesture, etc. Not least, the outer actions and words link to the practitioner's psychology and other characteristics and inclinations.
The connotation of the word "yoga" is "discipline" in the sense of training to learn a technique. In the ancient Indian worldview, there was little division between mental, physical and spiritual aspirations. If a person wanted to be a better fighter, they had to learn to be a better thinker and concentrator, too. And they also had to consider why they wanted to achieve their physical goals, and what use that might be in the long run. So, in yoga, the various aspects of the person are yoked to accomplish a task or a goal.
Student and teacher are yoked in a special relationship of confidence and trust. Students of the same teacher, school or lineage may consider themselves to be yoked together, too.
In the West, that comprehensive kind of training is fairly new. For example, visualization as a means of obtaining improved results in sports has only been used for about a generation. In India and later, in Tibet and in China too, the body-mind connection has been understood and practiced for thousands of years.
There are various types of yoga, any and all of which may form part of a tantric system. However the physical exercises of Hatha yoga are only the most widely known aspect of yoga. Hatha yoga works primarily with muscle flexibility, breathing and concentration to improve the health of the physical body and to relieve stress. Kriya yoga uses visualization, gesture and ritual worship. Karma yoga works on, and through, the perfection of the tasks of daily life.
Namaste all,
without further ado:
Tantra
Tantra means thread in Sanskrit, specifically the warp thread that dresses the loom and gives support to the fabric formed by the moving shuttle or, in a rug, the individual knots. Without it, there can be no cloth. It can also refer to the cord used for stringing beads to make a necklace, a rosary, mala, or garland. Tantric or more rarely, tantrik, is the adjective.
The word "tantra" refers to an "oral practice tradition," where there is a direct link from teacher to student. It is important to understand that a tantric connection is more than a lineage association, or an affiliation to a tradition. To belong to a certain tantric lineage means that the skills themselves are learned, practiced, mastered, and handed on with a special kind of permission.
Esoteric
Tantrism refers to an esoteric system in which exercises, practices and rituals are handed down directly from teacher to student by word of mouth, though often with the aid of teaching materials in the form of pamphlets and pictures. Such a manual can also be called a tantra. Any tantra is usually part of a system that was discovered, developed, or established, to explain, teach and initiate people into a radically different way of looking at, and acting in, the world.
The esoteric, concealed, or secret part, is often misunderstood as a reference to the intentional concealment of ancient practices. And it is true that some of these tried and true techniques sometimes rely heavily on symbolic or "twilight" language.
Also, there is little doubt that some teachers wanted to keep certain things from their competitors, and that there were times and political situations during which it was not wise to meet privately in small groups for any reason.
However, the word "esoteric" in relation to tantric information, systems, and practices, has more to so with the fact that they operate at a subconscious or subliminal level -- below the threshold of everyday awareness. Without proper explanation and careful guidance, an impatient and unprepared person could really get into trouble with some of these methods.
Attention was drawn to tantrism when some sexual aspects of it became known in the West. Unfortunately, and not surprisingly, this has led to a great deal of confusion on the subject. People incorrectly tend to assume that "tantric" means something like, "about dynamic sexual technique."
Yoga
In pre-tractor agricultural societies, draft animals could only work together if they were kept in unison by means of a yoke. The English word is derived from the Sanskrit yug from which we get the familiar yoga. But yoga originally just meant "yoke," the set of hoops that could be attached to a long shaft or tied to a set of reins controlled by a person. In fact, yoga is a way of referring to a tantric tradition.
In tantrism, the student and teacher are yoked or linked by the teachings, and by obligations and responsibilities. The individual is linked to past masters. The aspects of the teaching are linked: word with action, thought and sound, visualization and gesture, etc. Not least, the outer actions and words link to the practitioner's psychology and other characteristics and inclinations.
The connotation of the word "yoga" is "discipline" in the sense of training to learn a technique. In the ancient Indian worldview, there was little division between mental, physical and spiritual aspirations. If a person wanted to be a better fighter, they had to learn to be a better thinker and concentrator, too. And they also had to consider why they wanted to achieve their physical goals, and what use that might be in the long run. So, in yoga, the various aspects of the person are yoked to accomplish a task or a goal.
Student and teacher are yoked in a special relationship of confidence and trust. Students of the same teacher, school or lineage may consider themselves to be yoked together, too.
In the West, that comprehensive kind of training is fairly new. For example, visualization as a means of obtaining improved results in sports has only been used for about a generation. In India and later, in Tibet and in China too, the body-mind connection has been understood and practiced for thousands of years.
There are various types of yoga, any and all of which may form part of a tantric system. However the physical exercises of Hatha yoga are only the most widely known aspect of yoga. Hatha yoga works primarily with muscle flexibility, breathing and concentration to improve the health of the physical body and to relieve stress. Kriya yoga uses visualization, gesture and ritual worship. Karma yoga works on, and through, the perfection of the tasks of daily life.
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