Chapter 1 Tantric Philosophical Roots

Tantra is freedom. Freedom from all mental constructs, freedom from all mental games, freedom from all structures, freedom from all other places. Tantra is the place of being, Tantra is liberation. Tantra is not religion in the ordinary sense. Religion is also a mental game; religion gives you a fixed pattern. A Christian has a fixed pattern, a Hindu does too, and similarly, Islam gives you a fixed way, a set of precepts. Tantra is far removed from all precepts. It is not based on the opposition of "yes" and "no," "sacred" and "secular." Tantra says there is no duality. If there is duality, then you cannot put them together. No matter how you try, they remain two; no matter how you put them together, they are still two, the struggle will continue, duality will persist. If the world and divinity are "two," they cannot be united; if they are not inherently "two," but only appear to be so, then they can become "one." If your body and soul are "two," they cannot be united. If you and God are "two," union is impossible; you will always be "two." Tantra says there is no duality; that duality is merely an appearance. So why encourage this appearance? Tantra says, why encourage this appearance of duality? Dissolve it immediately! Become "one"! By accepting, not resisting, you become "one."

For Tantra, everything is sacred; nothing is unsacred. From the perspective of a non-religious person, everything is unsacred; from the perspective of a so-called religious person, some things are sacred, and some are not; but for Tantra, everything is sacred. Everything is divine; everything is sacred! This seems to be the most profound and correct view. If there were a single cell, or even a single atom, that is unsacred, then the entire world would become unsacred. For how could that unsacred atom exist in a sacred world? How could it? Its existence must be supported by everything. For something to exist, it must be supported by everything. If an unsacred element is supported by all sacred elements, then what is the difference between them? Therefore, the conclusion can only be: either the world is unconditionally and completely sacred, or it is unsacred; there is no middle ground.

This is a profound, non-dualistic perspective, although it is not actually a "viewpoint," because any viewpoint inherently contains duality. Tantra does not oppose anything, therefore it is not a viewpoint; it is a perceived unity, an experienced unity. Tantra merely creates a space for it to happen; it is not even an invitation, not a waiting, it simply creates a space. When this space is ready, the whole will flow in. This is the Tao of Lao Tzu, the Dharma of Buddha; it arises within you. It is not anything you do; it simply happens to you. When there are no precepts, when there is no coercive order, a completely different order arises from within you.

This constitutes a holistic perspective, one of its greatest insights being: no man is merely a man, and no woman is merely a woman. Every man is both man and woman, and likewise, every woman is both woman and man. Within Adam resides Eve, and within Eve resides Adam. In reality, no one is merely Adam, and no one is merely Eve: we are "Adam-Eve." This is one of the greatest insights. Today, psychoanalysis recognizes this, calling it "androgyny." But at least five thousand years ago, Tantra recognized and discussed this point. It is one of the greatest discoveries in the world; understanding this allows you to move inward. You cannot move inward any other way. Why does a man fall in love with a woman? — Because he carries a feminine image within him; otherwise, he would not fall in love. So, why are you captivated by a particular woman? There are thousands upon thousands of women in the world, so why does a particular woman suddenly become so crucial to you, as if all other women have vanished, leaving only her in the world? Why? Is a particular man attractive to you? Why does a resonance suddenly arise at first sight? Tantra says: You carry within you the image of a woman, or the image of a man. Every man always carries within him a woman, and every woman always carries within her a man. When someone external matches your inner image, you fall in love—that is the meaning of love. You may not understand, and you might just shrug and say, "It happened." But there's a subtle mechanism at play. Why does it only happen with a particular woman? Why not someone else? Your inner image unconsciously aligns with it.

An external woman is merely a means to an end. Something happens to match your inner image, and you feel, "This is my woman," or "This is my man": this feeling is what we call love. But an external woman won't always be satisfying. Because no external woman will perfectly match your inner woman. This reality isn't the fundamental solution. Perhaps she matches a little—there's a requirement, an attraction—but sooner or later it will become unsuitable. Soon you'll find a thousand and one things that make you no longer like this woman. It will take some time to discover these things. First, you'll be infatuated. First, there will be many similarities. But gradually you'll see a thousand and one things—the trivialities of life—that don't fit; you're a stranger, a different person. It's you, you still love her, but the love is no longer infatuated. The romantic gaze has vanished. Similarly, she will find that some of the things that attracted her to you are no longer attractive. That's why every husband tries to change his wife, and every wife tries to change her husband. Why do they keep trying to do this? Why? Why does a wife constantly try to change her husband? She fell in love with this man, and soon she begins to try to change him. Now she's beginning to realize their differences, and she wants to end them. She wants to take something away from this man so that he can be a man who perfectly matches her ideals. The husband tries the same thing—but not as hard, not as arduous as the woman's efforts, because the husband gets bored quickly—the woman hopes it will last longer. The woman thinks, "Today or tomorrow or the day after—someday I will change him…". It may take twenty or twenty-five years to realize this fact, and you can't change anything. By fifty, the woman has passed her menopause, and so has the man. They have become truly old, and they will gradually become aware that nothing has changed. They have tried hard; they have tried many methods.

An external man will never match the internal man, just as an external woman will never be exactly the same as the internal woman. That is why love can bring both joy and pain. Love can bring both happiness and unhappiness. And unhappiness far outweighs happiness.

From this holistic perspective, there is no gap between the world and Nirvana (liberation). The external can never satisfy; you must turn inward. You must discover the woman within you and the man within you. You will have to engage in intercourse within yourself. It is a great sacrifice. When Adam and Eve merged into one another, completely and utterly united, man became woman, and woman became man; all separation vanished. This is the absolute, eternal encounter. This is what Hinduism calls "satchitananda," the Kingdom of God spoken of by Jesus. You have reached the other shore, the transcendent place, which Buddha called Nirvana. When division disappears, you become the bridge of connection—and then all things become the bridge of connection. This sounds absurd, but it must be stated: the individual is the whole. When you become the individual, suddenly you see yourself as that whole. Until this moment, you have always thought of yourself as separate from existence; now you no longer think so.