Note: For the complete lessons, with additions, see the AYP Easy Lessons for Ecstatic Living Books.

Lesson 17 - Q&A – Reclaiming the body-soul connection

From: Yogani
Date: Fri Mar 12, 2004 7:55am

New Members: It is recommended you read from the beginning of this tantra yoga archive, as previous lessons are prerequisite to this one. The first lesson is, "What is tantra yoga?"

Q: Hello, I have a question, I have been baffled by it for a while. Why is it that the idea of the reduction of the self to a material object in sex is appealing? Sometimes I feel that sexual energies would be better transmitted if my mind did not have a part in them, just my body and soul. Perhaps I think my mind would just be a deterent and that pure and intention will comes from the soul. I know this is somewhat of an odd question and maybe I'm the only one who feels this way. Any clarification on this thought would be helpful.

A: It is a good question. You have pinpointed a feeling that many have, I think. The question itself is an opening. That is how bhakti (desire for truth) works.

It is a question of self-awareness, and where that is manifesting. The mind will go where self seems to be. It is determined by the amount of obstruction lodged in our nervous system. If our main identity is with the body, the mind will tend to indulge in that experience. With sex it can be very strong because it is the peak of externalized sensory experience. The mind being identified like this is the essence of sense attachment and lust.

The senses are not "bad" because of this relationship of mind with body. Making that judgment is like shooting the messenger. If we undertake meditation and other practices that purify and open the nervous system, the sense of self gradually expands inside to silent pure bliss consciousness. The senses also expand gradually inward to more enjoyable levels of ecstatic experience. Then the mind finds something more than the physical body to be fascinated with -- pure bliss consciousness which is the mind's essential nature, and also refinement of sensory experience to levels of divine ecstasy. So, the mind is naturally drawn to an expanding reality within, and a more stable and satisfying sense of self.

It is not a matter of shutting off or excluding the mind. It is about expanding the experience of self and senses inward, and mind will go there. Indeed, the mind is a primary vehicle for cultivating that. The mind has the inherent ability to go to stillness, and this is what we capitalize on when we go systematically inward in daily meditation.

So, we don't want to shut off the mind. We want to expand it to embrace more and more peace and enjoyment inside. Then we expand beyond narrow attachments to external sensory experiences of the body, and all that. The mind becomes a bridge between the body and the soul. The heart is opened by this process, so divine love emerges, which expands our sense of self beyond our body. Then we see our lover, and everyone, as an expression of our self. We come to live and love for the other.

All of this has a profound effect on sexual relations, producing the effect you describe -- body and soul merged as one. Everyone longs for this in sex, and in all of life. It is our natural state. We instinctively want to reclaim it. And we can.

The guru is in you.

Note:  For detailed instructions on the methods of tantra in relation to the broad scope of yoga practices and the enlightenment process, see the AYP Tantra book.

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