The highest of all possible human goals is the attainment of complete enlightenment, an ultimate state of peace in which all obstacles obscuring the mind have been removed and all good qualities such as wisdom, compassion, and skilful means have been fully developed. However, we cannot reach this ultimate goal merely by waiting for it; we need to use the appropriate methods to take us there. Tantra is a method, a technique or a path of worship through the use of various materials and natural substances in specified forms, under set rules and regulations. |
Tantra appears to offer both spiritual and worldly success to a superlative degree. It covers not only internal yogic experiences of chakras, lokas and deities, but also has many important healing practices for body and mind. Most notably, it offers special means of heightening sexual pleasure, |  |
| making money, gaining recognition and defeating one’s enemies – with Tantric methods available for achieving all human desires. Tantra is the use of natural power for attainment of health, wealth, happiness, and spirituality. It can also be used to gain protection against enemies, get victory in war/ law suits, or help in hypnosis, where the other person’s mind is controlled for his/ her own benefit. |
Tantra can be performed by a person from any religion or belief, since it is only a means, and hence, can be used to pray to the Deity/ God in which one has more faith. Tantra is not a religion or a cult, and it is definitely not magic, mysticism or ‘Jadoo Toona’, as it is often misunderstood.
In India, usually Tantrics are portrayed as great magicians with special powers to overcome difficulties and fulfil our desires, using gems, mantras, yantras and pujas to get the Gods on our side and remove negative forces and bad karmas that get in the way of our happiness. Some Tantric gurus are considered to be so powerful that their touch or glance alone can grant whatever we wish. Naturally, this ‘Tantric guru’ image can be easily exploited. This magical form of Tantra makes for entertaining stories and good novels, giving it an additional glamour and grounds for exaggeration.
This fascination with Tantra is nothing new in human cultures. Tantra is another version of the same old attraction to magic, the occult and ritual that we find to some degree in all cultures and was very prominent in the ancient world everywhere. Ancient Vedic rituals, much like modern Tantric rituals, can similarly be employed for all the goals of human life from kama or enjoyment, to victory in battle, to moksha or liberation.
Looking to God – whether in the formless sense, or in the form of various Gods and Goddesses, or saints and gurus – to fulfil our human desires is one of the first and most common ways of human religious seeking. Tantra provides one of the most elaborate ways of doing this and recognizes its value as a first step in getting people onto the spiritual path. |
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