I recently attended a sexual yoga class in Berkeley, California. This class was co-hosted by Dame Products, an organization devoted to female empowerment. Alexandra Fine, the company’s co-founder, spoke at the end of the class about creating a space for women to come together and connect with their bodies. I was blown away by her passion for the practice and her message to empower women. She also shared her experiences of experimenting with sexual yoga and how she feels it has benefited her own relationships.
Taoism
The practice of sexual meditation, or qigong, is a form of spiritual cultivation that refines the body’s ability to release deep blockages. When practiced properly, these methods create a direct channel to spirit and the potential of the human being. Taoism, or the Way of the Tao, is one of the world’s great religions. Westerners were introduced to it through ancient literary texts. The Book of Zhuangzi and Tao Te Ching have been studied extensively by academics.
Both Taoism and Tantra use principles of life energy to promote sexual health. Taoist and Tantric practices involve utilizing energy centers to build and conserve sexual energy. The purported benefits of joining sexual energies between two partners are the highest pleasure and the attainment of spiritual enlightenment. Intimate connections are considered a potent internal milieu that promote optimal health and well-being. Taoist sexual practices may include guided visualizations and experiential exercises.
Tibetan Buddhism
The ancient Buddhist practice of partnered sexual yoga is known as Karmamudra, the Path of Skillful Means. It utilizes powerful meditation techniques to transform ordinary pleasure and orgasm into spiritual transformation. The author, Dr Nida Chenagtsang, draws from her background in Tibetan medicine and tantric studies to dispel common misconceptions about Tibetan Tantra. Her book addresses these misconceptions and gives readers an understanding of this practice that is both accessible and transformative.
The Sixth Dalai Lama was widely considered to be one of the greatest practitioners of tantric sexual practices, and is remembered as a great tantric practitioner. Other high-ranking Tibetan lamas were also known for their sexuality, including Zhepai Dorje and the tenth Dalai Lama. The Sixth Dalai Lama practiced sexual yoga, and even renouncing his vows of celibacy to live as a tantric practitioner.
Hatha yoga
If you’re looking to improve your sex life, you’ll want to try Hatha yoga for sexual yoga. This ancient practice was originally part of the Tantric tradition of India, where followers aimed to combine the male and female aspects of cosmic life. In some cases, this meant group sex and the worship of prostitutes. The practice has been shown to improve sexual life and mood, and is often considered an auspicious practice for couples.
Hatha yoga has several poses for improving libido, including sarvangasana, which strengthens the abdominal muscles and improves erection quality. Sarvangasana requires holding the entire body upright with the shoulders. This yoga pose improves erection quality in men after 12 weeks of practice. It also improves the function of the reproductive system. In men suffering from mild erectile dysfunction, certain hatha yoga asanas can help libido. Those with erectile dysfunction should try garudasana or uttanpadasana.
Tantric yoga
Tantric sexual yoga is a practice that challenges the usual expectations of sex. The practice frustrates the usual goals of procreation and recreational sex. Historically, tantric sexual yoga became domesticated in Tibet, where female Buddhist khandroma were usually married and became the mothers of the yogis’ children. This is a form of time management in a religious tradition, and the practices must be considered within the context of lifelong orientations and daily, monthly, and yearly schedules.
In tantric practice, the experience of bliss is combined with meditation on emptiness. Tantrics understand the philosophy of emptiness, which states that all phenomena are devoid of permanent independent selfhood and intrinsic identity. Because of this, the world is not able to provide the ultimate bliss that the tantrics seek. To achieve this, the tantric partner applies this insight to the experience of bliss, which in turn deconstructs it.