I. VAMA MARGA Foundations Of The Left-Hand Path - staticfly.net
I. VAMA MARGA Foundations Of The Left-Hand Path - staticfly.net
I. VAMA MARGA Foundations Of The Left-Hand Path - staticfly.net
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Awakening through sexual ecstasy to god-like consciousness, the adept<br />
experiences the divine as manifested in the physical body, rather than bowing<br />
to the external deities of traditional religion.<br />
One Tantra makes clear that the male practitioner of the secret rite of<br />
the five things, in sexually exalting his mudra as the living incarnation of the<br />
dark goddess, should see in her no<br />
s a being than Bhairaivi, the awesome force of destruction that annihilates<br />
all obstacles, the cruel Mother Kali: "He who sees wine, fish, meat, woman<br />
should salute the Bhairavi Devi and say: 'Om! Salutation to the beloved of<br />
Shiva, the remover of all obstacles, Salutation to thee the giver of boons,<br />
adorned with a garland of severed heads, stained with streams of blood. <strong>The</strong>e<br />
I salute for the destruction of all obstacles and the well being of Kaula Cara."<br />
(<strong>The</strong> Kaula Cara, or Way of the Clan is, synonymous with the left-hand path<br />
as an initiatory school of knowledge in general.)<br />
Within <strong>The</strong> Temple<br />
Once fully aroused, the partners now lay down together, again with the<br />
female shakti situated to the left of the male. He breathes through the<br />
pingala, or right-flowing channel of the body's air passages, and slowly<br />
pe<strong>net</strong>rates her yoni. Having previously performed the outer veneration of the<br />
yoni, the adept has now gained passage into that consecrated place, the seat<br />
of maya from which all comes into being. <strong>The</strong> act of one body physically<br />
entering another is a liminal act – the crossing of a threshold which<br />
consciously opens a sacred space in which the rite can be celebrated. <strong>The</strong><br />
two temples of the nine gates are linked.<br />
<strong>The</strong> pace of intercourse in left-hand path rites is customarily long<br />
and drawn out, not the agitated rush to orgasm that so often epitomizes<br />
Western sex. This is not only true in left-handed Tantra but is an integral<br />
aspect of India's approach to sensuality, which has long made an art of erotic<br />
pleasure. As has already been stressed, the adept's aim is not the quick relief<br />
from sexual tension ordinarily sought by the pashu but the buildup of that<br />
tension to almost unbearable levels – and then the surpassing of normal<br />
sexuality altogether. Indeed, this concentration of desire into an applicable<br />
force of consciousness transformation is sometimes achieved by deliberately<br />
104<br />
sleeping naked in the same bed as the shakti for many nights before<br />
proceeding to even the slightest touch. This creates a palpable bioelectrical<br />
charge of desire between the two consorts that greatly magnifies the<br />
effectiveness of the eventual consummation.<br />
Tantra classifies even visual contact with one's consort as a form of<br />
erotic expression. One traditional preparation for the secret rite includes<br />
gazing silently into the eyes of the contrasexual alter ego before advancing<br />
to a single caress. This unwavering glance is sustained for a much longer<br />
period than human animals are accustomed to maintaining, allowing for<br />
another break with the body's natural conditioning. Recent studies conducted<br />
in Germany have shown that merely looking at the photograph of a sexually<br />
desirable person of the opposite sex releases a attention-sharpening cocainelike<br />
agent in the part of the brain that recognizes "reward" stimuli. At least<br />
some of the remarkable psychic results caused by deliberate prolongation of<br />
the left-hand path sexual rite must be rooted in similar changes in brain<br />
chemistry. Technology will eventually determine the neurological reality of<br />
what transpires in the brains of a couple celebrating the union of Shiva and<br />
Shakti, knowledge which will make the methods of the left-hand path more<br />
precise.<br />
Through a veritable science of subtle glances, caresses, and postures<br />
designed to maximize the erotic experience to the level of divine ecstasy<br />
enjoyed by Shiva and Shakti themselves, the couple transcend sex within<br />
time. <strong>The</strong> intonation of mantras, controlled breathing techniques, systematic<br />
stimulation of the senses, and the preparatory meditation has already created