The Colors of Tantra
Many of us these days are highly intrigued by the prospect of Tantra. Many, understanding it to be “divine sex”, while a few of us know another side to it as “Sex Magick”. Even fewer of us know multiple sides to it, understanding it to be an entirely internalized practice. Why so many different kinds of tantra? Here is the breakdown of the four colors of tantra — -White, Pink, Red, and Black.
White tantra is entirely internalized, mental, psychological and focuses on the goal to becoming at one with pleasure itself. It is the highest tantra. Once one accomplishes this high tantra, the sexual magick of red tantra can be fully enjoyed at its excellence and perfection. Red tantra is not something that a public guru normally offers, as it is considered impure, however the Rajneesh Osho was very successful at sharing this form of tantra among his followers who were not uncommonly from troubled disproportionately conservative family backgrounds.
He supported their rebellion against a guilty religious Western mentality that encouraged sexual neuroticism including ideas that the body is an impure thing. In White Tantra, we are working on the purification and refinement of the heart so that we may be in perpetual love, even when in the presence of hateful people and evil activities. We become stronger internally than the external world and thus become a transcendental being, similar to Buddha or Christ.
Many do not feel "ready" for such purity, as they are in the throes of shame, depression, jealousy, pride, anxiety, and anger---these things that proceed from ignorance and ego attachment are the common thread that binds all of mankind to one another. This is the jihad (spiritual battle) all humans on earth are in together, yet our confusion on what to fight causes us to find enmity in others... We are failing to separate the true identity from these ignorant qualities we witness arising in one another---this is due to us being yet to recognize the root of our own sufferings as one and the same as others. Therefore, we commonly wish to overcome these shame filled ideas of sex and rightfully so. We desire to be free of shame.
Therefore it is normal that people seek to just have a sex magick experience without mastering themselves first, in hopes that the sex magick will enhance their personal powers or level of conscousness. It is normal to just go for the pleasure where ever one may find it and justify it as empowerment or even (erroneously) express from a place of limited insight on how sexual liberation is the only empowerment.
Those of us who wish to achieve self realization and transcendence, are naturally more inclined to understand how all beings are ultimately worthy of Supreme Self Realization (enlightenment), and recognize that the state of the world is rather spiritually depressed and in need of people to become supremely awakened in order to raise to a greater standard. We are working for our own excellence-- not only to be better than others, but to be brilliant examples of inspiration for others to awaken into truth over ego-based fabrications. When we are inclined toward both White and Pink tantra, we are ready to aim even higher than the status quo. Some of us are able to fully see and understand that qualities being broadly celebrated even in the spiritual world are coming from a place of compromised integrity and often find themselves saying something to the effect of "We can do better than this.".
In Pink tantra, we find a spiritual way to rebel against the normal world, through the loving acceptance of physical desires without shame.
Pink tantra is a blending of both spiritual aspects and the sensual means. For instance, one may be engaging with a partner by gazing into one another's eyes. The couple may work together to overcome neuroses and wildly degraded obsessions about touch, pleasure, and love, so that they may enjoy playful, loving, gentle, nonsexual stimulation, touching, and massage. Such rituals can be enjoyed in Pink Tantra. Pink Tantra is still "Rated G" and when practiced with respect, truth, and honor, the practitioners have a very low likelihood of suffering any ill effects.
Red tantra is the most common tantra due to its highly sexual nature and how it placates to spiritual egoism. Its sensual allure makes it almost irresistible for tantra teachers to not offer, and it is said "carnality rules" everyone loves a good orgasm, a good rub, and some gratification, however this tantra practice can come with its pitfalls of pregnancy if the male is not yet accomplished with any sexual sublimation practices such as conserving seed, with techniques like the Taoist "deer" practice and microcosmic orbit (which makes us stronger in our innate will than the downward current of apana to stop the flow of semen, or the overwhelming desire for genital stimulation). While pregnancy is not "bad" in itself, it is destructive to go about it with the unbridled freedom that red tantra often encourages, which includes taking multiple partners. This practice is deemed by ethical gurus to be destructive to deepening committed loving and sincere relationships and hurtful to our communities over all.
Finally, Black Tantra revolves around intensely esoteric and private practices of working with Tamasic (heavy, dark) energies of the material plane, to suit what ever intentions that the practitioner may possess. The use of alcohol, meat, feces, and human corpses is not uncommon. It can also be combined with sex in any way. It is considered black magick for all practical purposes, as it is utilizing the siddhis (human super powers) to affect change and even manipulate the energy of others, including curses and energy vampirism.
So how did all these different Tantras come about? Stay tuned for a followup article on the history of Tantra!