Are You Scared of Tantra?
We wouldn’t blame you if you are because we, too, were scared before we experienced it. The concept most people have in the West is that Tantra is entirely sexually based. However, Classical Indian Tantra is about recognizing our true nature as Awareness and Energy and seeing the Divine in everything, including ourselves. We’d both had extensive experience with Classical Tantra, studying the philosophy and practicing meditation techniques, before we decided to check out Neo-Tantra (aka Western Tantra). We’d been avoiding it because we thought it was a bunch of people having sex in a room together and weren’t interested in that. But after talking with our friends who are SkyDancing® Tantra teachers, we decided to try it out and we are so happy we did! SkyDancing Tantra is a path of intimacy with oneself and with others. It has shown us how to open our hearts, expand our minds and more effectively channel our life-force energies.
What We love about SkyDancing Tantra:
SkyDancing Tantra is a blend of classical Tantric wisdom and modern practices based in Classical Tantra and Western psychology. The intention is to enhance the flow of energy in the body and to experience greater Awareness through practices such as breathing, visualization, touch, meditation and movement.
These practices can help to heal our relationship with ourselves and with others.
And while working with sexual energy may be incorporated, it is not the main focus. Sexual energy is important to address because it is an essential aspect of being human. Leaving it out would be excluding part of our essential nature and Tantra emphasizes full inclusion of all of who we are, including our sexuality as well as shadow aspects like fears and limitations. With this, the charge of the taboos we have around sexuality and other “unacceptable” parts of ourselves can be transformed. We certainly have noticed this for ourselves and have found it very healing.
One thing we love about SkyDancing Tantra is that many of the practices are shared with another person. So in addition to sitting alone on our meditation cushions and doing asana alone on our yoga mats, which we fully appreciate and plan to continue, we’re now also practicing using meditative and energy techniques while in close contact with one another.
The SkyDancing Tantra path also includes these aspects:
Maintaining full integrity; saying Yes to Life; going with the flow vs. resisting what is happening; connecting spirituality with sexuality; recognizing our ecstatic nature and joy of being; taking full responsibility for one’s experiences; expressing one’s desires; affirming individual autonomy; feeling before acting, and much more.
So what might an introductory Tantra workshop look like?
Here’s a brief sampling: You may be invited to do some free-form dancing to fun music, exploring your body, your inner sensations or emotions. You may be invited to make eye-contact with others or to keep your gaze within. There may be practices which help you to identify and respect your boundaries for physical proximity or touch either using words or hand signals. There may be silent meditations or breathing practices where you learn to work with your life-force energy to enhance vitality or create inner stability. There may be some chanting or basic touching exercise, honoring both peoples’ boundaries through clear communication. All practitioners are invited to practice at their own comfort level and are also welcome to simply watch if they prefer.
Hopefully this short article dispels some of the fears and myths that people have about Tantra. We are very excited to share Tantra because it has enhanced our own relationship immensely and we feel passionate about helping both singles and couples to create deeper intimacy and connections in their relationships with themselves and others. At this point, we are offering many beginner practices that are very accessible to most people wanting to foster intimacy and deeper connections in their lives. We think these practices and this path are truly life-changing and we can’t wait to share them with you!
Robyn Smith and Patrick Harestad have completed all 5-modules of the SkyDancing Coach and Teacher Training.
They teach what they call The Yoga of Relationships through private coaching, Tantra workshops and Robyn’s relationship workshops in Arcata, around the Northwest, and online. They are both certified Anusara Yoga instructors and teach through Inner Freedom Yoga in Arcata. Patrick also offers Structural Integration bodywork and Robyn also offers body-centered coaching and online groups through her website at ConsciousThrivingRelationships.com. They have been happily enjoying and enhancing their relationship for over 17 years.
