The Secret World Of Tantric Hatha Yoga

Secret worlds: tantric hatha yoga

Most people are familiar with classical yoga, also known as modern yoga.

But what does yoga have to do with Tantra? Isn’t Tantra all about tea light candles and spicing up your sex life?

In fact, no. Candles and sex feature highly on the path of red tantra. Red tantra is about deepening the connection between two people using sexual intimacy and connection. Tantric hatha yoga is more akin to white tantra – the pursuit of mental clarity and inner harmony.

This post will go through how tantric hatha yoga differs from traditional modern yoga. We’ll find out about the various benefits from the practice and how you can feel confident and empowered.

What is hatha yoga?

The word “yoga” literally translates as “yoke” – that thing that joins the necks of the oxen together when they pull a cart.

Akin with yoga philosophy, the word yoga is a metaphor for “union” – the joining together of two opposite things. “Hatha” is made up of two Sanskrit words. “Ha” (the sun), representing movement and heat, and “tha” (the moon), representing healing and coolness.

“Hatha yoga is an ancient science, devoted to bringing the body into a state of balance, where it is possible to act in a state of complete calm.”

What makes yoga tantric?

So what actually is tantra?

The Tantric tradition is thousands of years old. In contrast with ascetic spirituality, Tantric spirituality views the entire Universe as a manifestation of the Divine. Therefore, any spiritual practice which uses the physical body is a Tantric practice. Hatha yoga and tantra go together like bread and jam. All yoga asana (postures) can be traced back to Tantric roots.

The connection between the physical practice of yoga asana and spiritual practice was obscured when yoga asana came to the West.

Westerners are generally familiar with yoga as a means to stretch the body and move some prana in a yoga class. They don’t realize that it can be a vehicle for reaching altered states of consciousness.

What is tantric hatha yoga?

Tantra-inspired hatha yoga is a hatha yoga practice which has returned to its roots. It is a combination of hatha and tantra yoga. Both exist as separate disciplines. Tantric hatha yoga is a result of their merging and the practitioner’s search for higher states of consciousness.

Any tantric hatha yoga teacher will tell you that the aim is not to become super-flexible. Nor is it to work out. The aim is to still the chattering of the everyday mind. This will bring awareness to more subtle levels of consciousness.

How tantric hatha yoga differs

If you are familiar with Western forms of yoga, the first difference you will notice with Tantric hatha yoga is the focus on mental concentration. In this way, tantric hatha yoga is similar to raja yoga.

Asana are more for the purpose of meditation than for physical exercise. Each is held for several minutes to allow time for the mind to settle and the effects to be felt.

In tantric hatha yoga, a mudra is often used with each or some asana. Mantra use and chanting is also a key feature of tantric hatha yoga.

“The mind is usually focused on a particular place in the body.

What are the benefits of hatha yoga?

The physical level

Although Tantric hatha yoga is not focused on increasing flexibility or strength, it can be a common side benefit.

Certain asana affect the mobility of joints, extend the reach of tendons, and build muscular strength. There are also many asanas which require balance in various positions. The inverted postures like headstand and shoulder stand also have many health benefits.

Participants report an increase in core strength, balance, and flexibility. Annoying aches and pains reduce, the quality of sleep improves, relaxation/recovery becomes easier.

The energetic level

The effect of Tantric hatha yoga is to increase the overall energy level, as the body operates more efficiently.

When Tantric hatha yoga refers to “energy”, it is not so much of a phenomenon. The body has a detectable electrical field. This field changes based on heart rate, blood flow, hormones, and many other biological functions.

The practice of hatha yoga directly affects this. Simply focusing the mind on a particular part of the body directly increases blood flow to that area. Practices which compress and then release an area stimulate the flow of lymph fluid. Twisting the neck stimulates the thyroid gland, the source of many important hormones.

The emotional level

Our emotions are more closely tied in with our physiology than many of us realize. Many Tantric hatha yoga postures encourage opening the chest and pulling back the shoulders. This is a well-known antidote to depression and creates a feeling of confidence and empowerment that stays with you.

Breathing practices, known as “pranayama” (control of the energy) also feature highly. These have an immediate, powerful and noticeable impact on our emotional states. Such breathing practices can also stimulate the release of kundalini energy.

“Other practices move energy from lower centres, where it may create lower emotions. Higher centres empower confidence, gratitude, and unconditional love.”

The mental level

It is easy to see how the modern world, with its encouragement of inertia and poor posture, sets people up for low emotional states. These low emotional states contribute to confusion, indecisiveness, poor memory, and inaccurate self-image.

Traditional tantra tells us that these practices affect the mind directly. They sharpen mental acuity and improve memory and focus. The continual practice of mental concentration develops the mental “muscle” over time. This allows you to develop the capacity for deeper concentration. Other practices allow you to expand your awareness to aspects of your thinking that were previously subconscious, and therefore invisible to you.

Some benefits gained from the mental level of tantric hatha yoga include:

• Alertness
• Sharpness
• Clarity
• Concentration
• Better memory

Note that the above are common denominators of both hatha and tantra yoga.

The spiritual level

Both hatha yoga and tantra will alter you on a spiritual level. The word “Spiritual”, in this sense, refers to your individual experience of the different states of consciousness that are available to us as human beings. This includes states which have been referred to as “awakening”, “enlightenment”, “Christ consciousness”, “samadhi”, and “nirvana”.

“Practicing Tantric Hatha Yoga can increase your access to states of acceptance, detachment, gratitude, unconditional love, purity, appreciation of beauty, and non-judgemental observation.”

How to get started with tantra yoga

Because Tantric hatha yoga has a spiritual and mental focus, the flexibility of your body is not important. Tantric yoga leaves physical yoga to the ashtanga yogis and power yogis.

We encourage Tantric hatha yoga participants to use support and attempt easier versions of the asanas. With proper mental concentration, many of the beneficial effects of the asana can be felt. Even when your body is not able to achieve the full version of an asana.

You can start practicing these 10 essential tantra yoga poses for cultivating strong male sexuality at home.

Tantric hatha yoga can be practiced by anyone from the youngest child to the oldest great-grandparent. It is particularly beneficial for people whose health doesn’t allow them to undertake more vigorous forms of exercise.

It’s easy to get started in Tantric hatha yoga – there are no prerequisites. Simply join a class, do the practice, and observe the effects on your body, mind, and emotions. If you find it valuable, keep going. You may have just started a lifetime journey of fascinating discoveries!

Do you want to learn how to master tantric energies and feel it rushing through your body like an electric current? Watch my free training to begin your journey. Most of my clients feel a vibration running up the spine and buzzing in their hands and brains after practicing my methods.

If you enjoyed this article, then you’ll likely also love reading:

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• How To Experience A Tantric Full Body Energy Orgasm

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