Introduction to Tantra: The Transformation of Desire Read Free Page A

him too weak to think and meditate clearly.
     
    At this point he decided to give up this inflexible approach and follow a path more suitable to true spiritual development. The traditional accounts of his life relate that he broke his prolonged fast with a meal of milk-rice offered by a woman named Sujata. The effect this food had on his body and mind was extraordinary; it filled him with strength, clarity, and bliss. This sudden resurgence of mental and physical energy increased not only his determination but also his ability to gain the full enlightenment that was his goal. The fact that he then went on to achieve complete liberation after only one night’s meditation under the Tree of Enlightenment clearly shows that the time was ripe for him to abandon his previous ascetic practices. From a tantric point of view, these events show that the path of utilizing pleasure and desire is far more profound and effective than the path of rigid self-denial.
     
    Later, after Buddha had become well-known as a highly realized teacher capable of guiding all different types of people to fulfillment, a king requested to be shown a path of spiritual development suitable for someone with important social obligations. “As a king I have the responsibility of taking care of my subjects,” he explained, “and it would be wrong for me to abandon them.
    I cannot do as you did: give everything away, go into the jungle and follow the ascetic life. What I need is a way of using the royal life itself as a path to spiritual fulfillment. Therefore, if you have a method for transforming my everyday actions as a king into a spiritual path, please teach it to me.” Buddha replied that he did, in fact, have such a method: the practice of tantra. “With this method you can continue to discharge your responsibilities,” he explained, “and need not give up any of your royal pleasures.” He told the king that he could, in fact, enjoy himself as much as possible and still be progressing toward enlightenment.
     
    The teaching that Buddha gave the king was the Kalachakra (Cycle of Time) Tantra, and the lineages of this and many other tantric teachings have remained unbroken and powerful up to the present day. Countless Indians and Tibetans have achieved full enlightenment by following these methods and there is absolutely no reason why Westerners cannot benefit in the same way.
     
    FOLLOWI NG TH E P ATH TODAY
     
    Tantra is particularly well-suited to the Western mentality; being the quickest of all paths it should appeal strongly to the West’s love of instant results.
    Furthermore, the path of tantra is essentially one of transformation and the principle of transformation of energy—on a material level at least—is well understood in the West. Finally, while the great explosion of desirous energy in this century is considered to be a serious obstacle to most spiritual paths, it is actually helpful for the practice of tantra where desire is the fuel propelling us to our highest destination. Perhaps only a path like tantra, with its emphasis on direct experience rather than blind acceptance, can rouse us out of our self-destructive patterns and give us the opportunity to fulfill ourselves completely.
     
    However, if we are to derive real value from this path we have to be clear about certain important points. First of all, our motivation for practicing tantra must be as pure as possible. This point will be discussed at greater length later (see Chapter 6); for now it is enough to say that there is absolutely no way for us to reap the immeasurable benefits of tantra if our motivation is centered on our own welfare alone. The only type of person for whom tantra can work is someone who is primarily concerned with benefiting others and sees the tantric path as the quickest and most powerful way of accomplishing this altruistic aim.
     
    Secondly, we must have the patience and self-discipline to engage in the practices in a well-ordered manner. To