Expanding Orgasmic Response
While the evidence suggests that the earliest Tantric sex rituals were developed for the purpose of obtaining power through spirit possession—something that might not be considered “spiritual” by some—it is clear that by the seventh or eighth century CE, the focus had shifted. According to the Vijnanabhairava Tantra: “At the time of sexual intercourse with a woman, absorption into her is brought about by excitement, and the delight that ensues at orgasm betokens the delight of Brahman. This delight is in reality that of one’s own self.”45
A puritanical commentator, writing in the eighteenth century, suggested that this passage is intended symbolically and that the delight of orgasm is but a poor substitute for the “delight of Brahman.” The commentator goes on to minimize the role of the partner, since the light resides within the self, and to assert that anyone who takes this text as advocating sexual pleasure is a fool. This type of commentary frequently accompanies references to sex in Tantric texts. Sometimes it is intended to obscure the explicitness of the message, and sometimes it is done in an effort to harmonize Tantric ideas with more conservative aspects of Hindu thought.
Whether or not the commentator on the Vijnanabhairava is correct, the passage points to something very significant. Thirteen centuries ago, Tantric practitioners understood that orgasm is a gateway to mystical states. As we understand the text, sex is one of many valid ways to reach these states.
According to the Yoga Sutras (the foundational Yogic text, attributed to Patanjali, and composed or compiled somewhere between the sixth and first centuries BCE), “Yoga is the cessation of the fluctuations of the mind-stuff,” as Dr. Mumford translates it.46 In orgasm, mental activity subsides, the ego may dissolve, and it’s possible to feel a sense of merger, yoga, or union with one’s beloved or even with the universe. This is how we understand the phrase “betokens the delight of Brahman.” For this reason, Tantric practitioners, both ancient and modern, have developed a variety of methods for expanding, intensifying, and redefining orgasm, thus prolonging that mystical state so that it can last for more than a few seconds. Some of these are simple to learn; others take some practice; most are not very time-consuming, and all of them can transform your sexual life.
The popular belief that Tantric sex means extended lovemaking that goes on for hours and hours is inaccurate, but it isn’t entirely wrong. Prolonging arousal is important, since it is one of the keys to transforming the fleeting mystical state we all can experience at the moment of orgasm into something that is more profound and enduring. The purpose is not stamina for its own sake. Prolonged sexual encounters can be delightful but not if you’re watching the clock or damping down your arousal so that you can last. We’ve also discovered, through our own explorations, that it is possible to get to this mystical place even during somewhat shorter lovemaking sessions.
In a 1989 lecture, Dr. Mumford observed: “If you are talking about the sexual experience for a human being, you are talking about shifts in the human nervous system.”47 This observation was informed by his experience in traditional Tantra and his knowledge of Western science; however, Western science is just starting to catch up with what Tantric practitioners have understood for centuries, at least in general terms.
The development of advanced brain-imaging technology has made it possible to study the way the brain and nervous system function during sexual arousal and orgasm, although the data are incomplete and sometimes conflicting. At least one study suggests that there is decreased activity in the amygdala during penile stimulation.48 This part of the brain plays an important role in triggering fear and anxiety, but it also reacts to appetitive stimuli. To complicate matters, other studies show amygdala activation at orgasm. Brain scans have also shown a deactivation of the left prefrontal cortex during a partner-stimulated clitoral orgasm. This part of the brain is “best known for its involvement in moral reasoning and social judgment,” and the researchers suggested that the deactivation of this region “implies the absence of moral judgment and self-referential thought”—in other words, the cessation of the fluctuations (or at least many of the fluctuations) of the mindstuff.49
Just about everyone agrees that orgasms are pretty good. In Tantra, orgasms—and, perhaps more importantly, the whole process leading up to them—are recognized not just as good but also as being replete with transcendent potential. Although Tantric practice is not goal-oriented and we don’t recommend focusing on “achieving” orgasms, they do open us up to mystical experiences, and our everyday orgasms are only the beginning. There are many ways to enrich and enhance orgasm and make it not only something that is felt in the body, but an experience that touches the mind and spirit as well. Once we abandon the idea that orgasm is something that only takes place in the genitals, we can have access to a whole new world of possibilities.