Tantra is such a vast, ancient, and mysterious subject that it�s difficult to find any two people who can completely agree on what it is. Happily, you do not have to spend the rest of your life studying the history and many philosophies of Tantra to receive its many benefits and pleasures. Nor will you need to go out and buy a lot of expensive stuff or change your wardrobe or learn to speak Sanskrit.

Tantra is a Sanskrit word that means �loom� or �weaving.� Tantra can also mean �a continuous process,� �the carrying out of a ceremony,� a system, a theory, a doctrine, a technology, or a section of a book. As such, the word Tantra can simply refer to a treatise on any subject at all. So you�ll often see it used in the titles of books that have nothing to do with the kind of Tantra we�re talking about.

Even when we use the word Tantra to refer to the spiritual practice that embraces sex, we�re likely to find many different opinions and interpretations of that as well. Countless Tantric texts were lost during the numerous times that Tantra was driven underground over the centuries. Many other teachings were never committed to writing at all. They were transmitted by word of mouth � from guru to disciple, often conditionally upon the disciple�s promise of compete secrecy.

No one knows exactly when Tantra began. Many scholars believe the seeds of Tantra were planted in shamanic, matriarchal societies three to five thousand years ago. The Tantra from which the modern form of Tantra that we�ll be exploring is descended began in sixth-century India during a period of cultural wealth, renewal, and intellectual advancement. Buddhism, Jainism, and the various Vedic traditions we now call Hinduism were the dominant religions in India at the time, and they were all segregated by gender and caste. Tantra appealed to the burgeoning middle class that was unwelcome in these religions precisely because of gender and caste. In this sense, Tantra was a personal spiritual pursuit that functioned as a sort of sociopolitical revolt. Unlike the established religions of the day, Tantra provided the spiritual seeker with a direct relationship to a guru/teacher, powerful rituals, an absence (and sometimes a deliberate flaunting) of traditional religious and cultural rules, acceptance of people of most castes and genders, direct participation with � or embodiment of � the divine, and a belief that the sensual experiences of the body were an effective and legitimate path to enlightenment. In addition, Tantra held the fundamental belief that enlightenment was possible in one�s current lifetime, without the need for reincarnation.

Today, Tantra is most often thought of in the context of sex. Historically, the role of sex in Tantric practice appears only occasionally and quite briefly in original texts. There were many different Tantric sects, and only some practiced the days-long maithuna ritual featuring sexual intercourse, drugs, and forbidden foods. More important than ceremonial intercourse with highly initiated partners (dakinis, or �vessels of divine energy�) were the intensive ritual programs involving ecstatic meditations, chanting of mantras, complex yogic postures, mental visions (yantras), and eventually gaining the ability to practice divine intercourse with oneself.

Ritual sex � whether acted out or visualized in meditations � was a physical embodiment of the Tantric view of the creation of the world: Shiva (the god of pure consciousness) joining in sexual love with Shakti (the goddess of pure power and energy) gives birth to the world. I love this image � it is the most erotic beginning-of-the-world story I have ever heard. But its implications are far greater than that. Tantra views life itself as an ongoing process of creation, an ongoing marriage of consciousness and energy at every level of existence. The very essence of Tantra is contained in a few words � an excerpt from the Vishvasara Tantra:

What is Here is Elsewhere.

It is no surprise that one of the most popular recreational drugs is named for � and induces feelings described as � ecstasy. Humans crave ecstasy. We go to impossible lengths to achieve it, and we�ll settle for almost any available substitute. This is one of the reasons sex � even bad sex � is so popular.

Ecstasy (also referred to as bliss or ecstatic bliss) is a peak experience. Peak experiences expand our possibilities. They give us permission and encouragement to reach higher and receive more. They give us a taste of our own physical power and put us in touch with our higher metaphysical power. Wilhelm Reich, in The Function of the Orgasm, even wrote that ecstasy in the form of total orgasm was medically necessary to the health and well-being of the human body.

Sex is not the only way to experience ecstasy, but it is certainly one of the most easily available. Sex can give you a moment of bliss � a taste of the

Once you get a big enough bite of that great cosmic orgasm � in whatever way it shows up for you � you realize that sex is not the only way to have bliss. You can then find bliss in everyday, ordinary aspects of life. Osho, the visionary (and controversial) spiritual teacher, explains how sex brings us to bliss:

Because of three basic elements in sex, you come to a blissful moment. Those three are, first: timelessness. You transcend time completely. There is no time. You forget time completely; time ceases for you. Not that time ceases, it ceases for you; you are not in it. There is no past, no future. This very moment, here and now, the whole existence is concentrated. This moment becomes the only real moment�

Secondly: in sex, for the first time, you lose your ego, you become egoless�.You are not, neither is the other. You and your beloved are both lost into something else. A new reality evolves, a new unit comes into existence in which the old two are lost � completely lost�

And thirdly: for the first time, in sex you are natural. The unreal is lost, the facade, the face is lost; the society, the culture, the civilization is lost. You are a part of nature � as trees are, animals are, stars are�.You are in a greater something � the cosmos, the Tao�.You are just floating, you are taken by the current.

��Osho, The Book of Secrets

Sounds peaceful, doesn�t it? It doesn�t even sound like ecstasy, at least not the way we usually use the word. Ecstasy is like orgasm in that we tend to have a rather narrow definition of what the experience is �supposed� to feel like. We tend to focus on the intensely euphoric while ignoring the subtler aspects. Ecstasy is not simply the big bang of an outrageous orgasm. Ecstasy usually accompanies the afterglow of an orgasm when boundaries dissolve � when the answers to the really important questions come sailing through � when we�re deeply in ourselves and aware and simultaneously outside ourselves and not ourselves. We�ve become part of All That Is.

Pleasure, like pain, belongs to the nervous system. A sensation registers in the body as pleasant or very pleasant, painful or very painful. And sometimes, to some people, the painful is very pleasant. Whatever your interpretation, pleasure is a physical experience. The sensations of pain and pleasure are created in the body and belong to the body.

Ecstasy is bodiless. It is experienced as overwhelming delight and/or inspiration. It can be a rapturous passionate feeling or a mental transport to a place of well-being, peace, or visions. It is a sense of supreme happiness, freedom, and/or transformation felt in and by the soul. Ecstatic bliss is the joy experienced by the soul when it reconnects to Sacred Unity, to God/dess, to All That Is. Ecstatic bliss, in its purest Tantric definition, is not a feeling or a sensation. It�s a metaphysical experience that occurs when all feelings, thoughts, and sensations are eclipsed by boundaryless beingness in a vast ocean of energy where everything is connected to everything else.

You can have a whole lot of extraordinary pleasure without ecstasy. It�s also possible to have ecstasy without physical pleasure. But more often than not, pleasure and ecstasy have a pretty close relationship. In fact, sexual pleasure is one of the most universally available routes to ecstasy. But what makes some sex so mundane and other sex so ecstatic? Sometimes when you go into sexual pleasure totally and without any expectations, you stumble upon ecstasy. It simply happens. Is there a way to find it on a more regular basis? Yes. But before we try to find the road to ecstasy, let�s look back at some of the paths on which we haven�t found it so that we can avoid these dead ends in the future.

Most of us live and work in a world built upon the pursuit and eventual attainment of order, logic, and success. We spend our days trying to do more to get more and have more. We are constantly working, studying, thinking, and planning. We have (supposedly) never been more efficient or more able to accomplish so many things simultaneously.

And we have never been more in touch. We have mobile devices packed with apps for every conceivable form of communication, and new ones are being developed even as you read this. Our devices come preprogrammed with alerts that bombard us with news every few moments. It seems we can be reached absolutely anywhere, anytime, and by anyone.

And yet something is missing. For all our running and grasping and striving, despite all the information instantly available to us, there�s something we can�t quite find, a connection we just haven�t made, something we just haven�t figured out yet. We know sort of what it feels like. We get a taste of it when we�re right in the center of the swirling vortex of a project on deadline. We feel invincible. It�s as if we have a dozen arms and three brains. We can accomplish six things at once while planning three more. We may be sleep deprived and we may not have eaten since god knows when, but that only makes us sharper. We are in the �zone��it�s all happening and it�s all happening right. We feel high and connected and powerful. That is a heck of a pleasurable buzz, but it�s not ecstasy. That�s adrenaline.

An adrenaline rush is that energy rush we can get when we are working hard, doing several things at once, and not eating much. It�s a feeling of power, of being �on the edge,� of everything being sharp and intense. Adrenaline is a hormone that also acts as a neurotransmitter, a chemical messenger used by neurons to communicate with each other and with other types of cells. It is released from your adrenal glands in relative proportion to the level of �danger� your brain perceives. Adrenaline � along with other stress hormones that accompany its release � produces arousal effects ranging from excitement to anxiety to fear, depending on the level of stimulation. The sensation you feel in an adrenaline rush is caused by the release of three chemical compounds: (1) sugar from your liver and muscles, (2) the feel-good neurotransmitter dopamine, and (3) internally created opiates called endorphins. The release of these three makes you feel alert, energetic, and euphoric. An adrenaline rush is an almost drug-like high. And unfortunately, it�s just as addictive.

This stress-induced euphoria is nothing other than our prehistoric �fight-or-flight� response to extreme danger. It was meant to provide us with extra energy to get out of a life-threatening situation � it was not designed to help us make a deadline! When we live from one adrenaline rush to another, we eventually exhaust our adrenal glands and burn out. Burnout is about as far from ecstasy as you can get.

When we see the word ecstasy today, it�s more likely to appear on the homepage of an X-rated porn site than in the title of a book about spirituality or healing. Not that I have anything against X-rated video. In fact, I enjoy many genres of porn. But the thrill it provides is not true ecstasy. Neither are the highs we get from food, drugs, alcohol, shopping, X-treme sports, violent entertainment, action/adventure movies, fast cars, or thrill rides at theme parks. Obviously, in moderation, any and all of these can be simply good fun. But as a culture, we consume far too much of this faux ecstasy. Vast amounts of advertising dollars are spent on getting us to buy more and more of these cheap substitutes. Like junk food, the more we consume, the more we want. For lack of quality, we crave quantity.

Our lives are so busy, it often seems much easier to pick up a quick ecstasy substitute than to find the time to enjoy real, gourmet ecstasy. But our beings crave real ecstasy just like our bodies crave real, nutritious food. We can only survive for so long on junk food, and on faux ecstasy, before the lack of the real thing results in illness, lethargy, and depression.

But how do we introduce real ecstasy into our already overloaded lives? The answers are simpler than you may think:

Stay in the present moment.

Don�t try so hard.

Stay in the present moment.

Drop your expectations and your judgments.

Stay in the present moment.

Surrender.

Stay in the present moment.

Be more conscious.

Stay in the present moment.

Learn how to do all of this in sex�

�in the present moment.

Sex, whether Tantric or not, involves touch. Lots of touch. Traditional sex guides usually discuss which body part to touch, when to touch it, and how fast to touch it. This is great, as far as it goes. But in Tantra, we want to go a step further. We want to become the touch. To do that, we need to find the narrow realm of touch that lies between too much pressure and too little. When you touch the body, you want to touch deeply enough that the body pushes back just a little. If a muscle becomes rigid under your touch, you�ve gone too far. If the muscle feels flaccid, you haven�t gone far enough.

This is the essence of conscious touch. It was named the Resilient Edge of Resistance by my endlessly inventive teaching partner, Chester Mainard. If the concept of the Resilient Edge of Resistance sounds complicated or vague, think about all the times you�ve been touched. What does it feel like when someone�s touch is too tentative? It may feel like an annoying tickle, or � if they are using the tips of their fingers � it may feel like poking. Either way, it feels just plain icky. At the other end of the spectrum, some people�s touch is way too intense. Have you ever received a massage by someone with a really heavy touch? Your muscles tense and contract as if trying to push their hands away. You get more and more tense as they try to force your muscles to relax. It is painful and not at all relaxing. Then there�s the touch that is just right. It feels safe and supportive and present. It�s neither too hard nor too soft. It lulls you into a place of deep comfort and surrender. You�re awake and aware, but completely peaceful and relaxed at the same time. You want it to go on forever. The person touching you has found your Resilient Edge of Resistance.

Place your hand on your lower arm very lightly. Don�t apply any pressure. Notice what this feels like. Now massage your arm, applying increasingly more pressure. Stop at the point where the massage becomes painful. Notice what this feels like. Now lighten your touch until you find the point at which your arm yields to your touch but does not shrink away from it. You might find it with a massage stroke using your fingers, or just by holding your arm.

I�ve always thought a good illustration of the edge of resistance is the tummy touch on the Pillsbury doughboy in those old television commercials. When the doughboy is touched on his tummy, he absorbs the touch (the finger makes a little dimple on his tummy); then his doughy tummy springs right back, and the doughboy giggles. That�s the Resilient Edge of Resistance.

This same dynamic applies to all parts of our being: physical, emotional, and psychic. When we have too much mental stress in our lives, we shut down, overwhelmed; yet when there is too little stress, we have no energy, no motivation. On the psychic level, the Resilient Edge of Resistance translates into �sufficiently supported to take a risk.� Without risk, there is no growth or energy; however, without support, risk becomes recklessness. In the territory between, we can grow, thrive, and find pleasure. We function optimally at the Resilient Edge of Resistance.

The Resilient Edge of Resistance shifts constantly. When pressure is applied to the edge of resistance � whether that pressure is breath, touch, or tension � you expand a bit. This creates a new edge of resistance. Yoga postures are a good example of this. If you are seated on the floor and bend over to try to touch your forehead to your legs, it may at first seem impossible. Then, with each breath, you relax into the stretch a little bit more. You don�t force it, you just open up a bit more with each breath. Before you know it, your nose is a lot closer to your legs than you ever thought possible. By staying at the Resilient Edge of Resistance, you are able to go much deeper into the pose than if you had not gone to the edge, or if you had pushed past the edge into pain. The Resilient Edge of Resistance is the place where you feel safe enough to surrender and go deeper.

Sex that is too soft is vapid; sex that is too hard is assaulting. We want to learn to dance on the Resilient Edge of Resistance because that�s where the real pleasure is. When we reach that level of pleasure, gateways open to even more profound discoveries and connections.

Most people touch the way they like to be touched, which may not be how someone else likes to be touched at all. For example, you may go all melty and shivery when someone lightly runs their fingernails along the inside of your thighs. Quite naturally, you�ll want your partner to feel as yummy as you do, so you�ll touch them the same way. However, they may find that light, feathery touch ticklish and annoying. So how do you learn to recognize the Resilient Edge of Resistance? Your hands and your intuition will guide you, but your best guide is the person you are touching. Ask your partner to tell you when a touch is too hard or too light. When you get feedback, you can easily make an adjustment, and your hands will memorize it. With practice, your hands will know what the Resilient Edge of Resistance feels like on more and more places on the body, and your touch will become as perfect as that of the lady whose fingertip poked the tummy of the Pillsbury doughboy.

Here are a few exercises to help you write the Resilient Edge of Resistance into your muscle memory:

Hug someone. Find a connection that is neither too smothering nor too wimpy.

Set the temperature of your bath or shower water to the point where any hotter would be too hot and any colder would be too cold.

Give yourself a massage with body cream. Go slowly and find the Resilient Edge of Resistance on your legs, your arms, your belly, and your breasts/chest.

Give and receive a hand massage.

Get a massage. Explain the concept of the Resilient Edge of Resistance to your masseuse. With their agreement, give feedback to keep the masseuse�s touch at your edge.

Give a massage. Ask the receiver to give you feedback to keep your touch at their Resilient Edge of Resistance.

Practice by petting a cat or a dog. Pets give great feedback. If they stick around and beg for more, you�ve found their Resilient Edge of Resistance.

Find the Resilient Edge of Resistance in stillness. Stillness is extremely powerful. Put your hands on someone so that you can feel both resilience and resistance. Embrace them with your hands.

Although the Resilient Edge of Resistance is a concept most easily applied to touch, all of your relating with a lover (including yourself) can take place in the lovely realm between too much pressure and too little. Let me give you an example. Several years ago, I met my adorable and adoring partner, Kate, at a most intense time in my life. I was breaking up with one lover, involved with two others in a three-way, long-distance relationship, and packing up my New York City home to move to Australia. Not a day went by that I wasn�t saying goodbye to someone or something that had been a hugely important part of my life. The stress was high as an elephant�s eye, and I was starting to crack under the pressure and grief and drama of it all.

One afternoon, Kate and I started to make love. She was touching me lightly and lovingly, and it should have been wonderful, but it wasn�t. I couldn�t stand it � I wanted to punch her. Of course, it wasn�t her fault. I usually loved a light, elegant touch. After all, I was the queen of ostrich feather caresses and silky, sensuous massages. But today it just wasn�t working for me at all. Kate, both a very experienced S/M player and a very intuitive lover, said, �Do you think you might like something a little harder?�

�Definitely.�

She began by thudding my back with a padded nightstick. It felt so good. I breathed and groaned and yelled out weeks of built-up pain and frustration. When I turned over, I felt a tight pain in my solar plexus as though some malevolent force had grabbed hold of all my power and was holding it hostage. Kate took a sharp, pointed talon (a long steel claw that extends from a ring worn on the finger to an inch beyond the fingertip) and started running it down my stomach. She started relatively lightly, as the talon was quite sharp. I kept asking her to press harder and harder. With each stroke I was opening up a bit more. Kate stayed right with me. She listened to me, gave me what I asked for, and, most important, made me feel safe. I knew she was focused only on me and that she had the technique to use the talon safely. I knew she would not do anything that would actually injure me, no matter how much I asked. I breathed and yelled and cried, and finally, as the talon nearly sliced me open, I felt my solar plexus burst open, releasing all the evil, black, psychic gunk I had been holding there. I cried and cried and then I laughed and laughed. I felt so high, so light, and so me again.

That was meeting the Resilient Edge of Resistance � psychically, emotionally, and physically. So, think about your own life: where you live, what you do for work, what your home life is like, and so forth. If you live in a sweet little cottage beside a lake in the woods, work at a fulfilling but low-pressure job, and have lots of time for family and friends and nature, your Resilient Edge of Resistance will be at a very different place at the end of a day than that of a person who works in a cubicle in a corporate office tower in midtown New York at a high-pressure job that frequently keeps them at their desk till 9 p.m. The person in New York is more likely to want and need a harder touch in order to crack through the armor they have built up to protect their hearts and other soft tender parts. Whether you generally like a hard touch or a soft touch, whether you like black leather or floaty sarongs, even if you change your sexual style on a daily basis, you can�t go wrong if you simply find your Resilient Edge of Resistance.

Perhaps you�re beginning to think, Good grief, if I have to meditate and then practice new ways to breathe and touch, when will I ever have time for sex? There�s just not enough time! I understand completely. I often fall into the there�s-never-enough-time trap, especially when I�ve got twice as many things to do as I have hours in which to do them. Time itself feels like a rare and precious resource that�s always just about to run dry. I also feel guilty about the time I �waste� when I sleep an extra hour. And I also fantasize about all the things I could accomplish if only there were a couple more hours in the day. It seems we�re all either falling behind or racing to catch up.

However, this does not have to be just one more self-help book you skim through and then leave on the shelf because you never had enough time to try any of the things you read. Tantra can be learned and practiced in the time you actually have.

But first, you need to understand that you do have some time. Time is not a fixed, inflexible commodity. If it were, each day would seem exactly the same length as the one before. We know that isn�t the case � some days feel endless while others zip by in an instant. Time is malleable. Time is part of us; it belongs to us; it�s something we have power to control. There is a good reason why we feel so powerless over time: we give so much of it away to everything and everyone else that there simply isn�t much left for ourselves. Consistently putting the things we �should� do and �must� do ahead of the things we �could� do and �want to� do is exhausting, depleting, depressing, and completely libido-dampening.

The media is full of reports of people in committed relationships who enjoy sex but aren�t having any. This is not the same old story of men who want more sex than their wives. Now, people of all genders are complaining that they or their partners simply aren�t interested in sex. People often say their dearth of sexual activity is because they just don�t have time. But is that the truth? Is it really time that we are lacking?

The statement �I don�t have the time for sex� usually has little to do with time or sex. More often, it means �I�m tired,� or �I really need to work,� or �I�d really rather work.� It can mean �I want to spend more time with the children� or �I have spent way, way too much time with the children.� It often means �I need some time completely to myself � away from everything and everyone. I have nothing left to give.� Our desire for sex (especially for partner sex) can be depleted by, among other things, anxiety, depression, antidepressants, lack of work, overwork, or even an obsession with our children. It�s not that we don�t have the time for sex, it�s just that other things seem more important, necessary, or enjoyable than sex. Ironically, sex could be just the thing to alleviate the depression, exhaustion, anxiety, and obsession.

Instead of saying that we want more time for sex, I think we�d be more truthful saying that we want better time � time with no looming concerns or commitments. Many of us neither need nor want vast expanses of free time. Vast, empty periods of time can be daunting, especially when filled with long silences as we try to express our craving for a certain style of sex or for the kind of intimacy we experience through sex. One of the most effective tricks we use to avoid sex or intimacy is the excuse �I just don�t have time right now. Let�s talk about it later.�

How do we solve this time/sex/intimacy conundrum? We start small. We select small amounts of time and the kinds of sexual activities that can be exciting and satisfying in a short period of time. Please, don�t wait until there�s time for a five-hour Tantric ritual. You may never find those five hours. Don�t even wait until you are �in the mood.� There are sexy things you can do that will increase your desire. You can start practicing Tantra in whatever mood you are in. You only need twenty minutes.

Twenty minutes? What can you do with twenty minutes? Plenty.

It was a twenty-minute lap dancing session with that cowboy that resulted in my mind-blowing flight through the cosmos.

Even if you�re feeling too tired for sex, twenty minutes of selfloving can put you into a lovely, deep, peaceful sleep.

In twenty minutes, you can easily give yourself an energy orgasm that will leave you emotionally and physically refreshed.

Both the Exhilaration Meditation and the Cathartic Meditation can be accomplished in twenty minutes.

Stop thinking in hours, days, and weekends, and start thinking twenty minutes. A week of juicy, twenty-minute conscious quickies once a day will add up to two and one-half hours of sex per week. By the way, if your partner does not want to participate in your conscious quickies, that�s okay. There are plenty of techniques that you can practice alone. Remember, you are doing conscious quickies for you. You�re not trying to trick or trap your partner(s) into doing anything they really don�t want to do. However, you may find that your partner(s) are increasingly likely to join you if you are consistent and dedicated to your daily twenty minutes.

Think of sex as an art, like music or painting. Becoming accomplished in any art takes regular practice. Any music teacher will tell you that twenty minutes of practice every day is more effective than two and a half hours once a week. Why? Because the body is an instrument that responds well to steady, consistent repetition. Whether you want your body to dance a solo, play a sonata, or be capable of multiple full-body orgasms, you need the kind of practice that�s going to get you results. Unconsciously jerking off to a porn site certainly will not hurt you, but it won�t improve your technique or increase your capacity for more pleasure, either. The kind of practice I�m talking about is conscious practice. No matter how scattered your thoughts or how busy your life, you certainly can keep your attention focused on an erotic exercise for twenty minutes.

And when you are looking forward to sex and erotic pleasure, please remember that sex does not always have to be mind-blowing. It can be quiet and soft and comforting. It can be sad or angry or scary. Let go of any expectations or goals you may have regarding what you will �achieve� in your conscious quickies. Release your performance anxiety, don�t try to be perfect, learn to improvise, and experiment a little, even when you are not in the mood. Use your conscious quickies to tune your erotic instrument.

The exercises in this book are designed to help you increase your awareness, your energy, and your capacity for pleasure. They will help you return to your natural state as a human being�as opposed to the human doing you may have become. Many, if not most, of the exercises can be done as conscious quickies: twenty-minute erotic adventures that you can have alone or with others. When you have more time, you�ll be able to weave your favorite exercises together into your own yummy ritual.

A word of caution: we�ve all been told a thousand times that to achieve a happier, more pleasure-filled life, we must begin by putting ourselves first. Well, that may be true, but with the pressures of work, family, school, children, parents, and partners, it can be difficult to find ourselves on our own priority list. Just think of your conscious quickies as twenty magical minutes that nourish you and still leave you with twenty-three hours and forty minutes to handle everything else. After you�ve spent twenty deeply conscious minutes pleasing yourself, the rest will be easier to handle.

Did you remember to breathe during these sexercises?

Put It All Together

Over and over again in Tantra, we will be using a combination of breath, PC squeezes, movement, awareness, and imagination to build and circulate sexual energy. Let�s use the Wave to practice combining these elements. It�s easier than you might think.

Put on some music you�d like to move to. Make sure it�s something that makes you want to move your hips.

Stand with your feet hip-distance apart. Bend your knees slightly.

Breathe. Let your mouth fall open slightly. Relax your jaw and face, open the back of your throat. Inhale through your mouth, gently but fully. Exhale with a gentle little sigh�ahh.

Begin the Wave. Start gently, and let it build.

Add a PC squeeze to each wave. You decide where it goes in your wave. There is no right or wrong place to add it.

Put your awareness in your genitals. Each time you squeeze your PC muscle, imagine sexual energy being released from your genitals and carried up the front of your body by your breath. At the top of your wave, your sexual energy moves over the top of your head and down your back to your genitals again. Keep yourself wrapped in a cocoon of sexual energy. (Some people feel the wave of energy move up their back and down their front. That�s perfectly fine.)

Keep breathing, keep the Wave going, and keep the PC squeezes going. Let it be sexy.

Now, instead of �doing� the breath, the Wave, and the PC squeezes, let them all �do� you. Let the energy you�ve built move you in any way it wants to. Just go with it and have fun!

Now that you know the basic ways in which sexual energy moves in the body, let�s put this knowledge to good use. Let�s have some orgasms.

I was listening to my local National Public Radio station; an interview was in progress with a sociologist who had written a new book. The big problem in society today, she claimed, was that we had gotten sex all wrong. Sex was not about pleasure, it was about reproduction and producing children. What was the biggest single mistake we had all made? We were all putting too much emphasis on orgasm.

Too much emphasis on orgasm? Orgasm a mistake? Orgasm a problem? In all my years of sex, I have heard orgasm called a lot of things � but a problem? Lack of orgasm � I have certainly heard that described as a problem, but could there really be such a thing as too much orgasm? Not at all! In fact, I think we should spend a whole lot more time focused on orgasm. Why? Because orgasm is a profoundly important physical and spiritual experience. Orgasm is the body�s best natural therapy for relieving stress and tension; it is a naturally revitalizing and healing experience. Orgasm is our own personal little taste of the Great Cosmic Orgasm that connects us to All That Is. How could this possibly be a problem?

As a society, we�ve barely begun to explore orgasm, much less to understand how spiritually profound orgasm can be, and how many magical ways we can use it for our healing and happiness, and the health and happiness of others.

Which of the following do you think is the most accurate definition of orgasm?

A sexual climax attained by stimulation of the genitals and other erogenous zones

A release of accumulated tension and energy

A release of tension and expansion of energy flowing through the body/mind and connecting us to spirit

Okay, it�s a trick question � the correct answer is all of the above. But which kind of orgasm would you like to experience on a regular basis?

The purely physical, most limited definition of orgasm � answer A � has been our social and medical model. Orgasm is seldom observed outside the realm of sex and sexual activity, and then generally only within the realm of partner sex. Ninety-nine percent of the mass-market magazine articles on how to have a better orgasm are working within this definition. The most commonly experienced orgasm could be called the volcanic orgasm. It�s got a quick buildup and a rapid release, followed by a cooling down. The physical sensation is centered in your genitals and lower abdomen. It feels really good, though it�s generally quite brief. After this kind of orgasm, you feel relaxed and possibly also sleepy. In all fairness to the misled sociologist on NPR, this may be the only kind of orgasm she has ever experienced. And that would be a problem.

Definition B, the kind of orgasm we experience when we suddenly release stored-up tension and energy, is in many ways similar to the volcanic orgasm, with a major exception � it does not feel as localized. It is still a genital orgasm, but afterward you feel as though the tension has been drained out of your arms and legs. Your hands and fingers may tingle. Your chest feels more open, and you can breathe more easily and deeply. The relaxation is profound and satisfying. You may drop off to sleep. Better than orgasm type A � but wait, there�s more!

The kind of orgasm that combines the release of tension and energy with the added plus of a spiritual connection to All That Is may (or may not) begin with the genitals. The orgasmic energy starts in the very center of your being, then flows out to the limits of your body and beyond. You may feel boundaryless, as if you can�t tell where you end and everything else begins. You may feel as if you are in a sort of alternate universe where everything is beautiful, quiet, and peacefully connected. Your orgasm is happening everywhere and nowhere, and it may go on and on. Afterward you may feel energized, or you may feel peaceful and blissed-out. Anyone who has ever experienced this kind of orgasm would never label it problematic!

This kind of orgasm is not limited to sex, and it�s certainly not limited to the genitals. When we expand our definition of orgasm, we are presented with a vast number of orgasmic experiences. Think about those unstoppable laugh attacks that take you over in waves of rolling silliness. They usually start with one funny line or sight gag, and roll on and on until everything and anything is funny and you�re laughing so hard that your diaphragm is spasming and you�re gasping for breath. It feels like you�ve lost all control of your laughter � the laugh is laughing you. How do you feel after one of these gigglegasms?

Now, remember a time you got angry � when you just lost it � a time when you let all your rage fly. The more anger you released, the more poured out. You screamed and swore and pounded and yelled so loudly that your throat was sore afterward. Remember how you felt after that angergasm?

How about tears? Can you remember a time when you started crying and couldn�t stop? You sobbed so deeply that you thought you were going to cry your guts out. Do you remember how that crygasm felt? Was it healing? Good, even? Was it similar to how you felt after a gigglegasm? An angergasm?

Gigglegasms, angergasms, and crygasms all leave us feeling cleansed and energized. Emotiongasms are �total� experiences; you allow your body to express its emotions without trying to stifle them. This is how we behaved when we were young children, before we were socialized to behave more �acceptably.� Emotiongasms are a liberation from tight bondage. In fact, as we try to �suck it up� and �tough our way through� life, our bodies produce bands of stress that leave us wrapped as tightly as a rubber band. In densely populated urban and suburban culture, we are especially prone to stuffing our emotions. There just isn�t enough physical and psychic space to allow big, intense emotions without trespassing all over the psychic space of others.

Angergasms, crygasms, and gigglegasms may appear to be the spontaneous result of a powerful emotion we are feeling at the moment. But emotion is not the only source of an emotiongasm. Allow me to get technical for a moment, please.

The physiological ingredients of an emotiongasm are the same as a genital orgasm. A buildup of life force or sexual energy is brought about by a combination of breath, movement, sound, and muscular contractions and is followed by a release. This buildup and subsequent orgasmic release of life/sex energy doesn�t necessarily depend on genital stimulation. Emotiongasms don�t even depend on any particular emotion. In the course of a single breath and energy orgasm session (such as a Breath Energygasm or a Clench and Hold, which we will practice in chapter 10, Breath and Energy Orgasms), you could even have a gigglegasm, followed by a crygasm, followed by an angergasm, followed by another gigglegasm.

Not all energy orgasms are earth-shattering emotional catharses. Some of my favorite orgasms are tiny, fairy-like blissgasms. These are the little bites of bliss that start at your tailbone and wiggle their way up your spine until they explode like little sparklers in your brain. They usually happen when you are very quiet, perhaps just sitting looking out upon the ocean waves or at a sunset. But not always.

One particularly delightful blissgasm snuck up on me one stunningly beautiful morning in Sydney, Australia. I was out for a stroll in the city, breathing in the clean, cool air, feeling the intense, hot sun on my skin, and being so grateful to be alive and in that beautiful city on that beautiful day. I�ve always subscribed to the theory that if you make love to the universe, the universe will make love to you, so I began using several of my favorite Tantric techniques to circulate sexual energy between me and Sydney. Nothing I was doing was obvious to anyone on the street; I�m sure I appeared to be nothing more than a smiling, happier-than-usual woman on her way to the post office. I had no big expectation of any particular climax as a result of my lovemaking with the city of Sydney. I most surely had no expectation of any particular physical sensation. But before I knew it, a little blissgasm shivered up my spine, followed by an actual clitoral orgasm that washed up the front of my body. These two waves crashed together in my head. I was so amazed, I had to stop and lean against a wall � I�d had a walking orgasm!

So, which was better, the blissgasm or the clitgasm? Is an energy orgasm better than a genital orgasm? No, they are simply different. But is an energy orgasm combined with a genital orgasm better than either one separately? You bet!

It may be hard to believe that a good cry or laugh can be an orgasm. It may be even harder to believe that you can have an orgasm simply walking down the street. But it is important that we accept these ecstatic states as a kind of orgasm. When we limit the possibilities of our orgasms, we limit our energy, which can limit all our possibilities.

All too often, women tell me that they have never had an orgasm. Understandably, they often have feelings of deep shame, grief, failure, and anger. Before we talk about how she might become orgasmic, I always ask a woman if she has experienced any gigglegasms, crygasms, or angergasms. Invariably she will say that she has, even if only as a child. There are no inorgasmic women; there are simply some women who have not yet experienced a genital orgasm. The moment an �inorgasmic� woman realizes that she is capable of orgasm � that she in fact has already had orgasms � she can open up to the possibilities of more, expanded genital orgasms.

I often ask workshop participants, �What would make your orgasms better?� The most popular answer is this: �I know there is something more out there and I would like to be able to let go and find it.� I have heard this from women, men, and many creative beings who are neither or both. People of vastly varied sexual experience all seem to know that there is something more. Whether your �something more� orgasm is a bigger, better physical orgasm, or you�re longing for a rendezvous with your higher power, your desire for �something more� is your first step to finding it.

Braingasms

Did you know that people who have no feeling at all below the waist � people with spinal cord injuries, for example � can still have orgasms? It�s true. My friend Alison Partridge, a paraplegic sex therapist in Adelaide, Australia, has physical sensations only in her hands and arms, breasts (one has less feeling than the other), neck, and head. Yet, when her clitoris is stimulated, she can have an orgasm. Where does she feel her orgasm to be located? Well, sometimes she orgasms in her nipples, sometimes inside her head. She reports that there is a distinct difference between nipple orgasms and the ones inside her head, but that both are wonderful. She has even discovered that by changing positions during sex she can have multiple orgasms. Alison�s experience illuminates the presence of numerous neural pathways by which orgasmic energy can travel through the body to the brain. The more I study orgasm, the more convinced I am that orgasm �happens� primarily in the brain and that the intensely pleasurable feeling in our genitals � the kind that usually accompanies most of our orgasms � is only one of the many pleasures possible with orgasm.

Before I move on to energetic techniques to expand your orgasmic possibilities, I want to give you some nuts-and-bolts tips on good old-fashioned physical orgasms. According to the principles of Taoism, yang energy builds quickly and dissipates quickly; yin energy builds slowly and dissipates slowly. Traditionally, it has been thought that men are more yang and women are more yin. However, today there are many trans people who are neither one gender nor another. Yin and yang can no longer be assigned according to the shape of one�s genitals, or one�s gender identity. However, yin and yang can be closely aligned with the hormones that predominate in the body. People with testosterone-based bodies (whether they were born male or take testosterone as a supplement) tend to be more yang. People with estrogen-based bodies (whether they were born female or take estrogen as a supplement) are typically more yin.

The most common questions I hear from people on their way to those �something more� orgasms are these:

From people with estrogen-based bodies: How do I have an orgasm? How do I have an orgasm more easily?

From people with testosterone-based bodies: How can I delay orgasm? Can I really orgasm without ejaculating? And if I don�t ejaculate, can I really have multiple orgasms?

Given the role of hormones, it makes perfect sense that people with estrogen-based bodies would want to heat up more quickly, and people with testosterone-based bodies might wish to cool down. Each of us is intuitively searching for balance. Whether you identify with (or your desires lean toward) the yin or the yang, when you strive for a balance of the two, you can create the orgasmic experience you desire.

For purposes of the following instruction only, I will presume that people with estrogen-based bodies have a vulva, clitoris, and vagina, and I will occasionally refer to them as women. I will also presume that people with testosterone-based bodies have a penis and testicles, and I will occasionally refer to them as men. I am well aware that this is not the case for everyone. I trust that if you are clever enough to create your own gender, you are certainly creative enough to adapt these tips for your own magnificently unique body.

The most effective tip I have for you is, practice, practice, practice. The best tip to find your orgasm is to look for it on a regular basis � by yourself. When you are alone, you can give yourself permission to take as long as you like and try anything you like. There is no one, surefire way to orgasm, but with practice and patience, you will develop a collection of techniques, toys, and fantasies that work for you. Here are some techniques to help you on your path.

RELAX. Take a bath. Wrap your legs up around the faucet and let the water rush onto your clitoris. Or use a detachable showerhead and adjust the spray to the most pleasurable pressure and speed. If you have access to a hot tub, position yourself over one of the jets.

LOOK AND EXPLORE. Lie back and relax. Play some sexy music. Caress yourself all over; get into the mood. Use a mirror and your fingers to explore your vulva and clitoris. Find out where your sensitive spots are. Apply a water-based lube and try a variety of strokes. Concentrate primarily, but not entirely, on your clitoris.

THINK SEXY THOUGHTS. Get creative and get explicit. Political correctness has no place here. Your fantasy may have a detailed plotline or may just be a series of erotic images. Challenge yourself to create something new and hotter than before. Or, watch an erotic video or read an erotic story.

BREATHE AND ROCK. As you breathe, rock your pelvis as though you are fucking (or being fucked by) someone. Don�t hold your breath! No matter what, keep breathing. You may feel that you�ll �lose� the orgasm when you breathe, but you won�t; you�ll just build up more and more sexual energy, which will create a better orgasm.

VIBRATE. I have never understood how some women can tell me that they are desperate to have an orgasm, yet they don�t want to use a vibrator. Good goddess, that�s like saying you want to visit the moon but don�t want to use a rocket to get there. Buy a vibrator! Using a vibrator will not desensitize your clitoris. If that were true, mine would be absolutely numb by now. If you use your vibrator for several minutes and then go back to using your fingers, you may not feel enough stimulation to bring yourself to orgasm with your fingers � but hey, that�s not a problem unless the electricity fails. Of the many kinds of vibrators on the market, I prefer electric ones, particularly the Magic Wand Rechargeable.

PRESS, RELEASE, PRESS, RELEASE. The key to orgasm for most people is a steady, repeated motion. However, varying the pressure on the clitoris is more effective than hard pressure alone. Pretend your clit is a doorbell: press, release, press, release. Try this with long, slow presses and releases, and then short, fast ones.

ADD PENETRATION. A dildo may dramatically increase your orgasmic ability by providing a feeling of fullness in the vagina and by stimulating your urethral sponge. For extra fun, place your vibrator on the end of the dildo.

If you get tired and nothing seems to be working, change your breathing or your fantasy, or take a short break. You�ll shake off the numbness and feel a fresh surge of energy.

Continue the stimulation when you feel the beginnings of an orgasm. Lighten up during the first extremely sensitive moment, but keep the stimulation going to enjoy all the possible aftershocks.

Is there such a thing as a G-spot orgasm? Well, yes and no. There is no specific anatomical structure called a G-spot. However, there is a urethral sponge. The urethral sponge is a cylindrical tube of tissue that surrounds the urethra. It sits above the vagina (i.e., toward the front of the body) and can be stimulated through the roof of the vagina. It�s analogous to the male prostate, as it is formed in utero from the same tissue that becomes the prostate gland.

Technically, the entire urethral sponge is the G-spot. It�s made of erectile tissue, which becomes engorged when stimulated. In this aroused state, you can feel both its length (2 to 3 inches) and its ridged or ribbed texture. The urethral sponge is most easily found by inserting a finger (palm up) into the vagina and making a �come here� gesture toward the front wall.

The tissue of the urethral sponge is not a separate orgasm generator distinct from the clitoris, but rather, part of a network that includes all three parts of the clitoris (head, shaft, and legs). Women can get aroused from stimulation of any of these areas, although, in general, the most arousal and best orgasms happen when all these areas are stimulated.

The G-Spot

Some women love having their urethral sponges stimulated; others feel it is too intense unless and/or until others parts of the erectile network are thoroughly stimulated first. Approach this area gently. It tends to hold any sexual trauma that a woman has experienced; intense feelings and even pain can be triggered if is handled too roughly. Some women ejaculate when their urethral sponge is stimulated; others may ejaculate when their clitoris is stimulated. Many women do not ejaculate, although, with practice, many can and do ejaculate copiously and blissfully.

Orgasm and ejaculation are two different physical processes. The Taoists knew this three thousand years ago, but we in the West are only now beginning to acknowledge the difference. Those clever Taoists discovered that if you can delay or withhold your ejaculation, you can experience multiple orgasms. In addition, according to Taoist sexuality (which began as a branch of Chinese medicine), men can live longer and increase their vitality by avoiding the exhaustion and loss of energy that follow ejaculation. According to the Tao, the body will use the energy it saves by not having to replenish sperm to nourish the mind, body, and spirit. Different Tantric and Taoist traditions place varying levels of importance on ejaculation control. For our purposes, ejaculation control is a useful practice because it provides a wider range of orgasmic choices.

Most men equate orgasm with ejaculation, so it can be difficult to imagine the two separated. Ejaculation is simply a reflex, a muscle spasm triggered by orgasm. Orgasm happens just before ejaculation. In fact, men are capable of multiple orgasms. And why shouldn�t they be? I�ve done years of work with men, women, and those who are something else entirely, and it�s obvious to me that people of all genders are physically and sexually more alike than they are different. We are all earthlings whose penises and scrotums and vulvas and vaginas came from exactly the same type of fetal tissue (see illustration on this page). This is why, in addition to penises and vulvas, we also have a wide spectrum of intersex genitals, which medical science is finally (albeit slowly) coming to accept as �normal.� You can read more about Tantra for trans and gender-nonconforming people in chapter 20.

Practice these techniques alone, at first. Then you can share them with a partner who can help you. Give yourself at least twenty minutes. Masturbate almost to the point of orgasm. As you approach orgasm, notice what is happening in your body. What muscles are you tensing? How are you breathing? What are you doing that is speeding up ejaculation? Now, just as you are on the verge of orgasm:

Stop stroking or thrusting your penis for ten to twenty seconds. Go totally limp, completely soft inside. During this moment of relaxation, take your focus off your genitals. Direct it to the top of your head or your third eye. You�ll feel your orgasmic energy remain in motion, even though the muscles of your genitals are not.

Breathe in and hold your breath for several moments, until the urge to ejaculate subsides. Remember, the more you breathe, the more you feel. In this case, you want to decrease sensation. If this doesn�t work, try a fast, shallow breath like the Breath of Fire (see chapter 5).

Contract and hold the PC muscle. This is similar to the PC squeeze exercise (see �PC Squeezes� in chapter 8). You�ll have to practice to find exactly the right timing for this. The PC muscle surrounds your prostate. By learning to squeeze your prostate while it is contracting involuntarily, you can stop ejaculation just before the point of no return.

Find your perineum � the area between your anus and your testicles. While contracting your PC muscle, press a finger into this point, up to your first knuckle. This may sound strange, but it works.

Place two fingers on the underside of your penis, place your thumb on top, and squeeze.

Holding your penis in one hand, press down on the tip with your thumb.

Holding your penis between two fingers and your thumb, squeeze at the base.

Lie on your back. Gravity will draw blood away from your erection. (If you are already on your back, lift your hips.)

Pull your scrotal sac down and away from your body. (Your testicles pull up close to the body when you are about to ejaculate.)

Relaxation is the key to voluntary ejaculation. This is easier to learn in passive, receptive mode, so when you�re with your lover, lie back and let her/him/them get on top. Let your lover be the surfer and you the surfboard. Relax, breathe, and slow down.

Remember, sexual energy will flow wherever you put your attention. If you keep all your focus on your groin � even if you are focusing on stopping your penis from ejaculating � this is where the energy will flow, and you will ejaculate. When you focus on circulating sexual energy throughout your entire body, you will be able to enjoy orgasmic feelings in other parts of your body, such as your chest, belly, or head. You may even have whole-body orgasms. WHAT ABOUT P-SPOT ORGASMS?

The prostate gland is located behind the pubic bone and just below the bladder, near the internal root of the penis. The prostate corresponds to the urethral sponge in women and, it is particularly well situated to produce deep, intensely pleasurable sensations, including orgasm.

You cannot massage the prostate directly. It can only be accessed through the anus, which is filled with millions of delicately sensitive nerve endings. (In postoperative transgender women, the prostate can also be accessed through the back wall of the surgically constructed vagina.) The prostate itself is highly sensitive to pressure. Pressing, rubbing, or stroking the gland through the rectal wall can produce sublime and profound orgasms, especially if the receiver is highly aroused.

You can massage the prostate by inserting a gloved, lubed finger two to three inches into the rectum and stroking toward the front of the body. Gloves are recommended to protect the delicate anal membranes from sharp fingernails and rough skin. You can also use a dildo or an insertable vibrator, although a finger is the best way to find the prostate. You�ll feel it as a walnut-sized bulge, although it may be larger in men over forty. As with the urethral sponge, a man might find prostate massage irritating if he is not already aroused. And, also like the urethral sponge, the prostate can hold strong emotional feelings. Start slowly and let the receiver set the pace.

Whatever your favorite path to orgasm, please remember: there is no right way or wrong way to have an orgasm. Orgasms vary in intensity, duration, and location, but there is simply no such thing as a bad orgasm! As you practice Tantra, you�ll be practicing new ways of moving sexual energy through your body. And as you do, you will probably discover new and expanded varieties of orgasms.

Where�s That Orgasm?

Funny but true: If you have sexually expressive neighbors, thin walls, and a taste for voyeurism, you�ll have a fun time playing �Where�s that orgasm?� You can tell where someone�s sexual energy is by paying attention to the pitch of the sounds they�re making. For instance, Meg Ryan in When Harry Met Sally seemed to be having an orgasm somewhere between a heartgasm and a throatgasm.

Knowing how to locate orgasmic energy, besides being a fun parlor game, is very useful when you�re with a partner. If your partner is making very low sounds, you could play with their nipples, gently kiss their neck, or vibrate the top of their head to coax the energy upward. If your partner isn�t making any kind of sound, encourage them to do so!

One surefire way to have bigger, better, more intense orgasms is to open up your throat chakra and make some noise. Have you ever seen Meg Ryan�s luncheonette demonstration of how to fake an orgasm in the film When Harry Met Sally? She puts down her sandwich and begins to moan, starting with a low ooo, and then a slightly higher ohh. As she gets more and more �turned on,� the pitch of her voice rises. �Ahh, yes, ahh, yes,� she begs. At the peak of her faux orgasm, she lets go with a high-pitched �YESSSSSS!!!!!� It�s quite a good example of how erotic energy flows up the body on waves of sound.

In addition to pitch, each chakra has a corresponding syllable (or syllables, depending on the yogic tradition you follow). For building erotic energy, I have found these to be the most effective:

First and second (root and sex) chakras: a very low ooo (as in goose)

Third (solar plexus) chakra: a somewhat higher pitched ohh (as in open)

Fourth (heart) chakra: a somewhat higher pitched ahh (as in art)

Fifth (throat) chakra: a somewhat higher pitch aay (as in play)

Sixth and seventh (third eye and crown) chakras: a very high pitched eee (as in peep)

These sounds energize your body and start your chakras spinning. I often do the following exercise at the end of a busy workday to give me the energy to enjoy a fun evening. You can do this alone or facing a partner.

Chakra Sounds

Sit or stand comfortably and keep your spine straight.

Start with a very low ooo. Feel the sound vibrate deep in your genitals and lower abdomen.

Raise the pitch a little and let ohh vibrate your solar plexus. Stay with it. Change pitches slightly until you can actually feel the vibration in your solar plexus.

Sing or chant a somewhat higher-pitched ahh. Let your shoulders relax and feel your chest expand. You�ll know it�s the right pitch when you feel the maximum vibration or expansion around your heart.

Next, sing or chant aay. Make sure you�ve raised the pitch from the previous chakra. Keep adjusting the pitch until you find the one that gives you the best vibration in your throat.

Last, sing or chant eee at the highest pitch you can comfortably reach. Let it vibrate the top of your head!

Energy will follow sound. You are moving sexual energy up your body with each higher-pitched sound you make. If you feel too much energy accumulating around your head, then make lower, more guttural sounds to pull it back down. I like to alternate between genital (first chakra), heart (fourth chakra), and third eye (sixth chakra) sounds. Not only do the sounds build and distribute sexual energy, but they also release tension or pent-up emotions that might prevent the energy from moving freely through those chakras.

As an experiment, my friend Annie Sprinkle and I decided to see if we could have an orgasm by simply making sounds. We sat facing each other in a nice warm bath and began making sexy sounds as we gazed into each other�s eyes. We warmed up with low, grunty sounds, moved on to breathy, throaty sounds, and then moved to high-pitched, �oh-my-god-I�m-coming� sounds. We faked it until we felt it. As my sexual energy started to build, I became less aware of the sounds I was making and more aware of what I was hearing. At first, of course, I heard the sounds Annie was making and the splashing of the bathwater. Then those sounds faded into the background, and I was acutely aware of honking taxicabs and other city street sounds. This was odd, since I was usually unaware of those sounds while in Annie�s apartment, fourteen floors up from the street. All the apartment windows were closed, yet it was as if I were surrounded by a city full of sounds. I was no longer �doing� sounds, sounds were �doing� me. I floated into some vast space that certainly wasn�t Annie�s apartment. I heard the beginning of a hum. It was deeply soothing and comforting and drew me toward it. The hum grew louder and louder until it filled me inside and out. It was heavenly. It wasn�t until years later that I read that Annie and I had stumbled onto what yogis and mystics call the Universal Hum.

I have no idea how long I stayed inside the hum. I know I happily could have stayed there forever, but eventually I started to come back to Annie and the bathtub. Had we achieved our goal of using sounds to have an orgasm? We called it a blissgasm. Whatever it was, it was mind-blowing.

Once our understanding and awareness of something has expanded, it stays expanded. We can�t shrink our consciousness by unthinking the thoughts that caused it to grow. Now that you are aware of the totality of possibilities of orgasm, there is no going back to your old, more limited view. So let�s keep going. Dive with me into the next chapter of infinite ecstatic possibilities: breath and energy orgasms.

When I decided I wanted to wear a permanent symbol of my commitment to my Tantric path, I knew I had to go to my friend Pat. When Pat Sinatra tattoos you, it�s an erotic healing experience. The tattoo we created was a woman standing on a coiled cobra holding a thousand-petaled lotus. Despite Pat�s advice that tattooing over bone was some fresh new kind of hell, I resisted all her attempts to place the tattoo on the muscle above my ankle bone. I insisted it had to go directly on my ankle. Pat began inking the tattoo. She was right. Tattooing over bone was a bitch. As she did all the fine-needled black work � the outline and the bottom of the snake � I tried to find a way to breathe to help me cope with the pain. Pat works fast, and before long, I�d found a breath and she�d finished the outline. Now for the colors � Pat worked in one color ink at a time, and we agreed that I would breathe in the meaning of the chakra that corresponded to whatever color she�d be using. We began with red, the root chakra. It was right on the ankle bone and it felt like hammered fire. I began breathing a variation of the Circular Breath I regularly used to circulate sexual energy. Gradually, the pain started to go away! I started feeling quite floaty and I began to giggle. The giggle became a laugh. A huge ball of energy rolled up my leg, up my abdomen, and burst out of my heart in an explosion of joy. It was a spontaneous release of all the tension that had been accumulating in my ankle. �Okay, that�s the first chakra,� Pat said, finishing the red.

�Was it good for you?� I giggled. �That was amazing. I wonder if I can do that again?�

�Let�s try,� she grinned. �Here comes orange for the second chakra.�

I kept breathing. To my astonishment, every chakra color Pat tattooed produced another energy orgasm. Some of them felt like they were centered in the chakra we were focusing on; others did not. Some were quiet; some were screamgasms. They were all fabulous! Other people enjoyed them, too. When another tattoo artist finished with her client, the two of them joined us, playing music and breathing with me. It was one totally incredible ritual and one miraculous afternoon. I was stoned on the energy until late that night, when I fell into a most blissfully peaceful sleep.

As a child, my biggest thrill was doing whatever it was that people said I could not do. If someone told me that I couldn�t take my bicycle apart and put it back together again, I�d have it in pieces in the driveway within the next hour and back together again by lunchtime. So, when someone told me it�s not possible to have a real orgasm just by breathing, I wanted to prove otherwise. Never has proving something been so enjoyable!

Breath and energy orgasms have given me hours of profound healing and insight as well as some of the most fun I�ve ever had. They give me gigglegasms, angergasms, crygasms, and blissgasms. They clean out old emotional gunk and make me feel rested and new. They make me feel centered, expansive, and powerful. I have used them to stop smoking, to heal the pain of loss, to grieve the deaths of loved ones, and to visualize new career paths. I have taught them to friends with spinal cord injuries and women who have had clitorectomies to help them recover their orgasms. I have shared them as gender-free orgasms with my trans and gender-nonconforming friends to help them have orgasms without triggering gender dysphoria. I have breathed my way to orgasm as physical prayer and as a group alternative to a round of martinis at a boring cocktail party. I have done breath and energy orgasms alone, with partners, and in groups. The possibilities are endless.

There are many ways to have an energy orgasm. Some people can do it just by thinking sexy thoughts � literally �thinking off.� But the majority of folks who enjoy energy orgasms use some combination of breath, imagination, and movement to reach an ecstatic state. Over decades of practicing and teaching breath and energy orgasms, I have found and refined two basic techniques that are easy to learn and delightfully orgasmic.

The Breath Energygasm is based upon a technique I first learned as the Firebreath Orgasm, so named by Harley Swiftdeer, but variations of the technique are found in all sexually knowledgeable and sex-positive cultures of the past, such as the Tantrists and Taoists, as well as in the modern therapy work of Wilhelm Reich, Alexander Lowen, and Stanislav Graf. This technique can be a deeply healing and enlightening sexual meditation, producing waves of tingly sexual pleasure that surge through every part of the body. You may experience profound relaxation and powerful insights about your life or life in general. You may feel reborn. You will almost certainly discover a deeply meaningful thread running through breath, emotion, energy, and pleasure.

Keep these pointers in mind before you begin the Breath Energygasm. You may want to practice with a friend who can read the instructions to you; or you can record the instructions and play them back.

The Breath Energygasm can be done as a conscious quickie in about twenty minutes. However, the first few times you try it, you may want to allow more time.

Drop your expectations � the good ones and the bad ones. If you are thinking that this will never work for you, or that it will be the most profound experience you�ve ever had, you�re setting yourself up for disappointment. Keep your mind focused on your breath and on what you are feeling in the present moment, not what might happen in the future.

People respond differently to breath and energy orgasm techniques, and it may take a while for you to feel the �orgasm� part. For example, I was swept away in waves of pleasure the first time I did the Breath Energygasm, but it took months of practice to feel the bliss of another technique, called the Clench and Hold (discussed later in this chapter). My friend Annie�s experience was exactly the reverse. Be patient with yourself.

The Breath Energygasm is a powerful process. It can produce feelings of great intensity, including feelings of anger or sadness. This is completely normal. If it happens, just keep breathing through any unpleasant feelings that come up. These are not feelings you have to sit in and process for months before you get to the pleasure. They are simply emotions that come up to be cleared out. Allow them, but do not get lost in them. Keep your intention on pleasure. Think of the negative feelings as small clouds in an endless blue sky of pleasure, and simply watch them pass by.

You may feel a pleasant tingling sensation in your hands, face, or feet. This yummy tingling may spread throughout your whole body. Occasionally, the tingling may intensify into a tight, cramping feeling, typically in your hands or lips. This is not dangerous, although it can feel a bit weird. Slow your breathing down and try to relax. The cramping will pass. The cramping is thought to be the result of stress or tension in combination with the presence of increased oxygen in the body. I think of it as the conflict that results when the body tries to hang on to tension at the same time the breath tries to release it. The more breathwork you do, the less likely you�ll experience cramping.

The Breath Energygasm is a chakra-based meditation. You will be breathing into each chakra. As you do so, you may want to meditate on the color or affirmations appropriate to each chakra. This can be very healing and will help you keep your focus.

You�ll be breathing energy up your body in circles. When the energy reaches your upper chakras, it will start to do you instead of you doing it. Simply enjoy it, and keep breathing!

The Breath Energygasm

Lie comfortably on your back with your knees up and your feet flat on the floor. Keep your spine straight. Don�t use a pillow.

Relax your jaw. Yawn. Keep the back of your throat open.

Breathe in and out through your mouth. If you�re not comfortable with that much mouth breathing, feel free to breathe in through your nose and exhale through your mouth. How you breathe is less important than that you take in as much air as possible with as little tension as possible.

Think of your breath as a circle, with no pause between the inhale and the exhale. Don�t force the exhale.

As you inhale, let your belly fill up like a balloon. As you exhale, flatten your lower back to the ground. This rocking motion helps move sexual energy.

Add PC squeezes (see the �PC Squeezes� exercise in chapter 8). Most people like to squeeze on the exhale, but do what feels right for you.

Now use your mind and your breath to pull energy into your perineum (the area between your genitals and your anus � aka the root chakra). Remember, energy easily follows thought. You do not have to push and pull the energy; all you have to do is focus on the chakra you are breathing into, and the breath will follow. You may find it helpful to place your hands on the chakra into which you are breathing.

Now inhale your energy up to the sex center (lower belly, at the second chakra).

First chakra to second chakra

Exhale, circulating the energy back down to the perineum. Continue until your sex center feels charged up, lit up, bigger, or more alive. Fake it till you feel it � use your imagination to see, feel, hear, or taste the energy. Trust yourself; you�ll know when it is charged. You will feel that you�re ready to move on or as if the energy is moving up by itself.

Second chakra to third chakra

Now breathe energy from your sex center (second chakra) into your solar plexus, at the third chakra. It�s located below your diaphragm and above your belly button. Keep rocking and squeezing your PC muscle. Continue until this area is well charged up.

Keep breathing! By now you may (or may not) be feeling some of the physical or emotional effects of the Breath Energygasm.

Third chakra to fourth chakra

The next breath circle is from your solar plexus (third chakra) to your heart center (fourth chakra). Imagine the energy filling your heart and then flowing down your arms and into your hands.

Fourth chakra to fifth chakra

The next circle is from your heart center (fourth chakra) to your throat (fifth chakra). By the time the energy reaches your throat, you�ll probably want to make some sounds. If sighs or sounds haven�t happened naturally yet, it�s important to vocalize them at this point. It will help the energy move up.

Fifth chakra to sixth chakra

By now, the energy may or may not be moving up the chakras on its own. If it is, just keep breathing the connected breath; you can stop visualizing the circles. If the energy is not yet moving on its own, your next circle is from your throat (fifth chakra) to the third eye (the middle of your forehead � the sixth chakra). Roll your eyes up (closed) as though you can see out of the top of your head; it will help the energy rise.

Sixth chakra to seventh chakra

Follow with the smaller circle between the third eye (sixth chakra) and the crown (seventh chakra).

Remember, by the time you reach these higher circles, the energy will most likely be flowing on its own. Just keep breathing and you will feel yourself moving rapidly into an orgasmic state.

If at any point in the process you feel that you have lost the plot and aren�t feeling anything, don�t get discouraged and don�t think you�re doing something wrong. Energy levels may rise and fall. Just return to the level where the energy seems to have settled and start again from there. Or go all the way back to the root chakra and pull energy from there directly into whichever higher chakra you�re trying to energize.

Stay focused on your breath circles by using your hands to touch the chakras you�re breathing into. Or move your hands in small circles, as if lifting the energy up with each inhalation.

Raise the pitch of your voice on your exhalations as you move the energy up each chakra. This is particularly true as you circulate energy through the higher chakras.

Remember, do not be alarmed if you experience lightheadedness; dizziness; or tingling sensations, spasms, or constrictions in your hands and feet. These effects are only temporary. Take slow, deep breaths. The symptoms should pass in a short time. If you experience these symptoms, it may mean you are trying too hard. Ease up!

The Clench and Hold is a Taoist technique I first learned from Joseph Kramer at his Friday evening �Breathe and Dance until You Come� parties (he called them Tantric Group Rebirths) in New York in the late 1980s. It took a lot of practice for me to feel the power of this process, and it was worth it. The Clench and Hold is my favorite breath orgasm technique. I like to practice it not only as an exercise by itself but also with partners and while having sex. I have explored numerous variations of it, but its essence remains the same.

The way the Clench and Hold works is quite simple: you breathe. Your body relaxes and becomes charged with energy. Then you constrict most of the muscles in your body. Finally, you let go and do nothing. What happens? You never know. You may have a catharsis, or you may see visions. You may tingle all over, or you may feel deeply quiet and peaceful. You may have insights, or you may feel as if you are making love to some form of deity. You may feel as if you have achieved an ecstatic death.

Why the Clench and Hold works is open to interpretation. The Taoist opinion is that when you build lots of energy through breath and movement and then suddenly stop and constrict your muscles, there is nowhere for all that energy to go but up through your central energy channel (the Inner Flute) and out the top of your head (in a process known as the Ejection of Consciousness) � hence, the feeling of blasting off that many people experience. However, I think of the blast-off as more of a blast inward or an injection of consciousness.

For years, I subscribed to the notion that there was something more spiritually �pure� about the upper chakras, and I tried endlessly to blast out of my body into some higher, more esoteric realm. Once, as I was enjoying the afterglow of a particularly powerful Clench and Hold, I felt myself blasting inward. I realized that true higher wisdom was inside me, not out in some other realm. It was a vacuum drawing insight inward � an injection of consciousness.

The Clench and Hold

Before you actually start this breath orgasm, please read through the instructions and then rehearse the individual steps to help your body learn the process.

First, we�ll charge the body with breath.

Sit comfortably on the floor.

Relax your jaw.

Yawn. Keep the back of your throat open.

Breathe using the Heart Breath (see �The Heart Breath� in chapter 5). Breathe in through your mouth using as little effort as possible. Take in as much air as you can with the least possible effort.

Let go. Let the exhale simply fall out. Let it fall out with a sigh. This relaxed little sound will show that you aren�t pushing the breath out.

Keep your eyes open. Focus on a point somewhere in the room. You want to stay present with your breath and not nod off.

Keep breathing. If you want, you can gently rock back and forth with the breath. You can add PC squeezes. Make it erotic. Let it feel good. Just remember to stay with the breath.

Set a timer. Breathe for ten minutes � or twenty or thirty! The more you breathe, the more you charge up the body.

When you�re ready to do the Clench and Hold, take thirty or so fuller, faster breaths to really charge up.

Lie back on the floor.

Take a full, deep breath. Fill up your lungs from bottom to top. Then let it all go without forcing your breath out.

Take another full, deep breath, and let it go, gently and fully.

Take a third deep breath. Fill up with as much air as you can hold�and�hold that breath!

Now here�s the important part: as you�re holding in your third deep breath, clench every muscle in your body, especially your abdominal muscles, your butt muscles, and your PC muscle. It won�t matter much if your hands or your feet aren�t clenched, but if your abs, butt, and PC muscle aren�t clenched, the Clench and Hold won�t be as effective. There are a number of ways to do this clench.

a)�Lying on your back, you�ll want to make sure that you don�t put undue stress on your neck or lower back when you tense up, so take a moment and rehearse how you are going to clench before you start breathing. One good way to create the tension you�re looking for is to press down into the floor. Try it.

b)�Press down into the floor with your hands, shoulders, head, butt, legs, and feet.

c)�Alternatively, extend your body as far as it can go, and reach for opposite walls with your feet and hands.

d)�Or, pull in toward the center of your body as hard as you can � first clench your abs, and then pull the rest of your body in toward your abs.

e)�However you do it, make sure you don�t bring your knees up toward your stomach. This releases your abdominal muscles, and that�s exactly what you don�t want to do!

Keep clenching for about fifteen seconds, and then let go.

Now, here�s the hardest part of the Clench and Hold for most people: have no expectations. Don�t try to make anything happen. You have given yourself a huge gift of openness and energy. Just be.

Breath and energy orgasms are mind-blowing in every sense of the word. They shatter our preconceived notions of how sex, pleasure, and bodies work. This is a good thing. Nothing remarkable was ever discovered without a mind or two being blown. Breath and energy orgasms may seem magical to you, but once you accept that one can (or has) happened to you, all sorts of other �magical� moments may reveal themselves � not only sexually, but in other areas of your life as well. Use your capacity for magical thinking: What else might my body be capable of doing that I hadn�t considered? How many other sexual/spiritual possibilities might be out there waiting to delight me? Read on. In the next chapter, you�ll see how solo Tantra is a perfect way to discover these new possibilities.

Most of us live in or grew up in a culture that places a heavy emphasis on the importance of monogamous coupledom. The romantic myth, in all its impossible glory, remains the model relationship most of us have sought at one time or another. We looked for that one knight in shining armor (or damsel in distress) to sweep us off our feet, meet all our physical and emotional needs, and fuck us into the bliss of our dreams for the rest of our lives. We may know intellectually or even logically that this mythical notion of romantic pairing is impossible to achieve; yet we still think of it as the model for the ideal relationship. So we try to come as close to achieving it as we can.

If you are a longtime subscriber to the romantic myth, you may have a hard time believing that there is any value or fun in solo Tantra. You may be preoccupied with the thought that you still haven�t found anyone with whom to practice real Tantra (that is, Tantra with a partner). Even if you have a sexual partner (or several), solo Tantra will introduce you to new aspects of your sexuality. It will give you the time and space to practice focusing on your own sexual energy and desires.

I have always loved solo Tantra. I have used it to discover and fall in love with myself. I have used it as creative inspiration, sexual meditation, sexual prayer, and a way of getting in touch with myself before connecting with others. For me, the essence of solo Tantra is the heart-genital connection. When I was first exploring solo Tantra, I ran across a simple exercise in a wonderful little book called Masturbation, Tantra and Self Love, by Margo Woods. With one hand, I masturbated using a vibrator (or my hand, dildo, or whatever). I placed the other hand on my heart. Just before I was about to orgasm, I stopped masturbating and breathed the orgasmic energy into my heart. I did this two more times before I finally let myself orgasm. I still practice this technique regularly. A wave of sexual energy rolls into my heart, flooding it with love and compassion.

Bringing sexual energy up to the heart can be effective and rewarding in a variety of situations, and it can produce some unexpectedly profound experiences.

My late friend and favorite piercer, Raelyn Gallina, was someone I was always able to count on for a piercing with serious spiritual content. On one of her annual visits to New York from her home in San Francisco, I scheduled an appointment for a piercing. I decided on a clit hood piercing ritual that would deepen the connection between my heart and my clit.

I sat on a chair with my knees apart and my feet flat on the floor. I grounded myself like a tree with huge long roots that reached all the way into the center of the earth. �Say �Now� when you�re ready,� Raelyn said. I was doing the Heart Breath and focusing all my attention on my heart chakra. �Now,� I said. Suddenly, a huge, hot ball of energy shot up the front of my body, exploded out of my heart, and melted as it flooded down my chest and arms. Then a huge, white-violet firecracker of energy burst in slow motion on top of and in front of my head. I had no awareness of my clit, but every other part of my body was tingling. My mind suddenly expanded; it felt as though all the molecules in my body and mind had taken three giant steps away from each other. I was a permeable membrane through which everything and everyone could pass. I felt love for and connection with everything. I was going through an overwhelmingly beautiful expression of the highest heart energy: compassion for all beings.

That�s what the right genital piercing performed by the right piercer at the right time can do. However, if genital piercings do not appeal to you as a tool for sexual, spiritual, and emotional advancement, that�s fine. What meditations or practices might you use to connect your sexuality with your heart?

It is said with good reason that the eyes are the gateway to the soul. In Tantra, we spend a lot of time gazing into the eyes of another person. This can be challenging. Eye gazing takes us to a level of intimacy we rarely experience; it tends to make us very uncomfortable. We may feel exposed, put on the spot, and even silly. We may feel the urge to look away, or we might start to giggle. Eye gazing is a trust exercise of the highest order. Regular practice of this exercise will make eye gazing easier.

Gazing into Your Own Eyes

Hold a hand mirror in one hand, and place your other hand on your heart.

Look into the mirror, and look into your own nondominant eye. (If you are right-handed, your left eye is your nondominant eye; if you are left-handed, it�s your right eye.)

Breathe.

As you gaze into your own eye, have an intimate dialogue with yourself. Try to speak it out loud. If that makes you feel too uncomfortable, say it silently. As you become more comfortable with this kind of intimacy, it will become easier to speak. Try using the following as a guideline for your dialogue. Just complete these statements with as much truth and love as you can.

a)�I love you for�

b)�I forgive you for�

c)�If I really loved you, I would�

d)�Because I really love you, I will�

If this sounds too New-Agey to be true, I empathize. I once thought that way. But I realized that if I couldn�t have this simple dialogue with myself, I was kidding myself into thinking I could have real intimacy with someone else. Intimacy had always been a dangerous game for me. As I was growing up, I couldn�t be open and honest with my parents. When I did try to be clear and truthful about who I was, what I did, and what I thought or felt, I was either punished or yelled at. I�d learned that being intimate with someone was the equivalent of shooting myself in the foot. It took me a long time and a lot of work to open up and trust the people I love and who love me. Mirror work like this eye gazing exercise was one of my most powerful tools in that process.

Intimacy is love expressed with trust, courage, attentiveness, and honesty. I�ll bet you can find at least one of these qualities inside yourself � perhaps all four. Dive right in. Practice open-eyed orgasms. Masturbate while looking into a mirror and look into your own eyes as you orgasm. As you come, tell yourself how beautiful you are and how much you love yourself.

The primary bioelectric circuit along which life/sex energy runs in your body is called the Microcosmic Orbit. Blockages to the free flow of life/sex energy accumulate along the Microcosmic Orbit as a result of the pressures and strains of modern life, such as stressful work, poor diet, shallow breathing, poor posture, and lack of exercise. Blocked energy can be manifested as fatigue, illness, and a weak immune system. When you consciously circulate energy around the Microcosmic Orbit, you begin to clear these blockages, and you can enjoy a sexier, more energized, and ecstatic life.

The Microcosmic Orbit

Stand or sit comfortably with your feet flat on the floor and your spine straight.

Place your awareness at your perineum. Breathe in, drawing energy up and around to your tailbone. Then draw that energy up through your spine and neck, over the top of your head, and finally down your forehead to the roof of your mouth.

Place the tip of your tongue on the roof of your mouth. This connects the back and front channels.

Exhale, letting the energy trickle down the front of your body, over your genitals, and back to your perineum.

Repeat. This time, make it sexier. As you inhale, use a PC squeeze or two to pump the energy up your spine. Imagine that you are wrapping yourself in an egg-shaped cocoon of your own erotic energy. Feel that egg of energy. Give it a color, a texture, a sound, a smell, and a taste.

With regular practice, the Microcosmic Orbit will enter into your muscle memory and you won�t have to think so hard to keep the orbit going. Then you can add masturbation. Practice circulating your own erotic energy until it becomes as natural, easy, and common as breathing.

This is a simple and effective way to wake up all your chakras and energize your entire body. I learned this from Betty Dodson, in her Bodysex workshop.

Starting at the first chakra, hold an electric vibrator to your body at all seven chakra points: the perineum, the lower abdomen, the solar plexus, the heart, the throat, the third eye (forehead), and the crown (top of the head). When you are vibrating over bone or a sensitive area � that is, the four upper chakras � place your hand between the vibrator and your body to make the vibration less intense. When you get to the top of your head, vibrate your way back down again if you like.

Masturbation is a great activity to accompany a chakra meditation. As you vibrate your chakras, notice which chakras are more (or less) sensitive than the rest. You can masturbate with the intention of soothing or bringing healing to these chakras. You can also dedicate or send your orgasm to that chakra and, in the afterglow, ask if there is something you need to know from that chakra to bring your body, emotions, or life into balance.

Which of the following would be most likely to turn you on?

Watching a lover do a tantalizing striptease

Hearing a lover say sexy things to you

Being stroked seductively

If you picked watching the striptease, you are most likely a visual person. If you chose having sexy little somethings whispered into your ear, you are probably auditory. And if being stroked slowly and seductively does it for you, you are most likely kinesthetic.

Each of us has a sense through which we prefer to take in and process the information we receive from the world around us. Some people process information in pictures and images, others in sounds. Still others perceive sensuality chiefly through physical sensations. For example, if three people with different sensual preferences went shopping for a new television, one person�s choice would be most influenced by what the television looked like (visual); another would be more impressed by the features as described by the salesperson (auditory); and the third shopper would only buy after being able to play with the remote control (kinesthetic).

The preference we use when we process information is likely to be our sensual preference as well. Knowing which sense you prefer makes giving yourself pleasure more intense and rewarding. It also makes relating to lovers so much simpler! For example, let�s assume Jamie is a visual person. Her partner, Taylor, is kinesthetic and comes home anticipating a cuddly, sexy evening. Taylor cuddles up behind Jamie, who is working at the computer. Taylor strokes Jamie�s hair and kisses her on the neck. Jamie is not seduced. In fact, Jamie finally bursts out with, �Not now. Can�t you see I�m working? All you ever want is sex.� Presuming Jamie and Taylor have a loving relationship and that Taylor is really not a sex maniac, what might have happened here? Taylor, being kinesthetic, approached Jamie the way Taylor would like to be approached � with touch. If Taylor had instead presented Jamie, who is visual, with a beautiful handmade card and some flowers, Jamie�s reaction might have been much warmer. On the other hand, if Jamie had approached Taylor with the card and flowers instead of touch, Jamie might have gotten a similarly unenthusiastic response.

Knowing which sense you and your partner prefer simply makes giving and receiving more conscious. It�s like knowing your partner�s favorite color. Given the choice, wouldn�t you buy pink flowers instead of yellow if you knew your partner preferred pink? And given the choice, wouldn�t you rather receive the kind of erotic attention that really turns you on? Here�s an exercise designed to help you pinpoint your primary sensual preference.

Try to imagine or recall each of the following items: SIGHT

Visualize the largest drinking glass in your kitchen cupboard.

Recall the interior of the last car you rode in.

See your favorite flower in bloom.

Visualize the spots on a leopard.

Which of your friends wears the brightest-colored clothes?

See your favorite actor on a movie screen wearing a very revealing bathing suit. SOUND

Hear a dog barking in the distance.

Hear a car alarm right outside your door.

Recall the voice of your favorite grade-school teacher.

Listen to a familiar melody.

Hear rustling leaves in the trees over your head.

Listen to water falling into a metal pail. TOUCH

Feel the rim of a cup of hot tea on your lips.

Pull on a wet bathing suit.

Stroke a long haired cat.

Jump into a pile of leaves.

Leap into a warm pool.

Hold a handful of glass marbles. SMELL

Recall the fragrance of your mother�s perfume.

Smell leaves burning.

Smell coffee brewing.

Recall the aroma of your school lunch room.

Smell a wet dog.

Inhale the scent of a rose. TASTE

Suck on a lemon.

Taste a strawberry.

Taste burnt toast.

Taste a mouthful of salt water.

Taste hot salsa.

Recall the taste of a rubber band.

So, which set of sensory memories or imaginings came most quickly and easily to you? Which set(s) took longer to imagine or seemed vague? Which sets of sensory memories triggered the most emotional or physical responses in you? The category that comes most easily and is most specific for you is your primary sensory preference.

You may have noticed that another category came in a close second. It is equally useful to make note of your secondary sensory preference. Often this secondary sense will call your attention to something, and then your primary sense will take over. For instance, I am primarily kinesthetic, and secondarily visual. If I am shopping, my eye may spot a pretty colored sweater, but then I�ll have to go over and touch it. Although the color may draw me to the sweater, I will decide whether to buy it based on how it feels. Going back to our previous example with Jamie and Taylor, if Jamie were visual/kinesthetic, Taylor�s approach (cuddling up behind her) would have worked, especially if the stroking and kisses were followed by a beautiful card and flowers.

How do you discover other people�s preferences? You can hand them a copy of our little quiz here, or, if that�s not possible or appropriate, you can simply listen to how they talk. We all give clues to our preferences in the particular words and phrases we use � for example, �I get the picture,� �I hear what you�re saying,� or �That feels right.�

A Science of Senses

If the science and practice of all this sensory work fascinates you, you may want to delve more deeply into Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP). NLP deals with the way we filter, through our five senses, our experiences of the outside world, and how we use those same senses (both intentionally and unintentionally) to achieve the results we desire. NLP was developed in the mid-1970s by John Grinder, a professor at UC Santa Cruz, and Richard Bandler, a graduate student. NLP was based on the work of Virginia Satir, a family therapist; Fritz Perls, founder of Gestalt therapy; Gregory Bateson, anthropologist; and Milton Erickson, hypnotist. It began as an exploration of the relationship between neurology, linguistics, and observable patterns (�programs�) of behavior; hence the name Neuro-Linguistic Programming.

Here are some phrases people use based on their sensory preferences:

It was so close I could taste it.

I see what you mean.

Show me.

In my mind�s eye�

That smells pretty fishy.

Perhaps I can shed some light on this.

It just leaves a bad taste in my mouth.

I hear you.

I just feel it�s gonna happen that way.

I can see it now!

It feels like the right thing to do.

That�s a tasty outfit you�re wearing!

Sounds right to me.

I can smell success.

If you listen carefully to how someone phrases their thought processes, you will be able to discern their sensory preferences. This works not only with lovers, but also with coworkers and friends. It can make all your relationships easier, more rewarding, and even more productive. When Annie Sprinkle and I realized that she was visual/kinesthetic and I was kinesthetic/visual, we had a much easier time setting up our group Tantra rituals. We used to argue about which was more important: how our temple looked or how comfortable it was. When we realized why we were arguing, we simply set up two teams of helpers: one to beautify the space and one to make it clean and comfy. It worked like a charm! We had much more sumptuous temples and no arguments.

When you plan your solo Tantra with your sensory preferences in mind, you can focus on your biggest turn-ons and then expand your repertoire to include new sensations. When you know your sensual preferences, you�ll find it easier to answer when a partner asks what you enjoy. And when you know the preferences of your lovers, you can give them what they enjoy without the self-torture that comes with wondering if you�ve guessed right.

A solo Tantra ritual is a great rehearsal space for any props or activities you might want to try but don�t want to try out on a partner the first time. Solo playtime is perfect for trying blindfolds, nipple clamps, anal toys, fetish videos, exotic lube, or a rubber outfit. You may find that you have a preference for certain toys in your solo rituals that you have no interest in using when you�re having sex with a partner. That�s just fine.

Use your mirror, or if you prefer, your video camera. Many years before people had cameras on their phones, I asked workshop participants to bring whatever accessory they wanted to use in an erotic ritual. One woman brought a huge video camera and everyone else at the workshop immediately wanted their erotic ritual videotaped! Practice Tantra in front of your camera; then watch the video to improve your technique. You will absolutely thrill your inner exhibitionist.

I�d like you to invite yourself out on a real date. Open your calendar and mark out an evening just for yourself. Don�t even consider the possibility of canceling it. No matter how busy we might be with work or other responsibilities, when we meet a wonderful new someone, we suddenly have lots of time to spend with them. Make this date with yourself that kind of date.

Here are some suggestions:

Plan your date in advance, or be more spontaneous.

Dress up and take yourself out to a lovely restaurant, and then to an exhibit of erotic photographs or a sexy show.

Go to a sex shop and pick out a new toy and a new kind of lube.

Go home and make yourself a delicious dessert, and then treat yourself to a luxurious erotic bath with fragrant bath oils.

Try the Breath Energygasm or the Clench and Hold.

Whatever you choose, turn off your phone, the computer, and the television.

Light candles.

Fill the room with your favorite scent.

Arrange everything you might want or need so that it�s within easy reach.

Take your time.

Be sure to allow your plans to change if your mood changes, but don�t ever stand yourself up by canceling your date!

Keep in mind your sensory preferences. If a book of erotic stories doesn�t turn you on, try a self-massage with scented oil. If the bedroom isn�t turning you on, try the bathroom or the kitchen.

Whatever you choose, remember to breathe consciously. Focusing on your breath will quiet your mind and bring your attention back to your body.

Honor whatever feelings come up as you make love to yourself. Perhaps your orgasm may turn into a crygasm or an angergasm or a gigglegasm. Allow yourself to have whatever experience your body wants to have, and know that it is perfect for you this evening.

If you aren�t feeling sexual, honor that. You might just want to cuddle up in bed with that book you�ve never given yourself the time to read. The purpose of this date is for you to give yourself what you really want and need. Enjoy yourself.

Medibation

Medibation is what Annie Sprinkle calls the practice of using masturbation as a meditation. When I need a spiritual practice to empty my cluttered mind and renew my tired body, I can always count on medibation.

I approach medibation the same way I approach any meditation. I focus on my breathing and on the sensations in my body. I do not let my mind drift off into fantasies. (I sometimes hold in my mind�s eye a vision of something or someone to whom I would like to dedicate some sexual energy. I�ll talk more about this in chapter 24, Sex Magic.) I try not to expect any specific insight, nor do I try to achieve anything more than being completely present in the moment.

Medibation strengthens your ability to stay present and alert, and it connects your sex with your spirit. Great medibators are usually great Tantric lovers because they have learned to see the divine in themselves and thus can see the divine in their beloved.

I encourage you to medibate daily.

Contrary to 1950s sex education films, masturbation is not something we are meant to outgrow. Masturbation is something that is meant to evolve. Our selfloving changes and grows over our lifetime. Each of us has our own intensely personal and individual sexual evolution. We pass through all sorts of phases and flavors of eroticism on our journey. Some phases may be daring and dramatic; some may be subtly profound. Something that makes you incredibly hot this year may not even catch your attention five years from now. What seems gross or scary now may be your biggest passion in a decade. Wherever you are in your erotic evolution, you can create solo sexual rituals that will support you and reward you.

This isn�t the end of solo Tantra; it is, in fact, only the beginning. Much in the following chapters can be adapted wholly or in part for solo play. Many of the partner exercises can be done by yourself, with a mirror. The erotic massage strokes will turn you on whether the hand touching you is yours or your partner�s. Solo rituals have all the same erotic components and potential ecstasy as rituals for two or more. Whatever your path, your most reliable, faithful, and understanding partner will always be yourself.

Doing Tantra with your partner may differ from your old style of lovemaking. At times, you may feel closer to your partner than you ever thought possible. During postures involving conscious breath, eye gazing, and movement, you may feel as though you have never met this being before. Your partner�s face may seem to change. You will be more aware of the moments of merging with your partner, as well as the moments you are completely separate. This a good and natural thing. Sometimes partner sex is about the connection between you; at other times you each need to go within and focus on your own experience.

At the moment of orgasm, each of you momentarily enters a realm wherein you are not only not connected to your partner, but you may not even have a sense of yourself as a separate, independent being. You may feel like pure electrical current or a thundering wave, crashing and dissolving on the shore. Your orgasm is your own experience � it is only happening to you � even though the evidence of it may be highly enjoyable for your partner to watch. You will learn to cherish your time in that solo yet connected experience as much as you�ll adore the afterglow of your lovemaking, which will provide all the time and space you need for reconnecting with your partner.

Preparation for this kind of deliciously intense dance goes far beyond any typical notion of foreplay. It begins with the creation of a safe, nurturing, sensual space that will support you in opening to your inner self and to your partner. In each subsequent stage of your ritual, you will be stepping incrementally deeper into the shared mystery of sexually induced altered consciousness. You�ll want your environment to enhance your experience.

We therefore begin our Tantric ritual by preparing our space. I call my Tantric ritual space �Barbara�s Theatre of Sexual and Spiritual Delights� because theatre encourages a variety of environments and performances.

Your Tantric stage is a lot more than your bed. It is at least a room and may be your entire home or, in the case of group rituals, a large rented space. How do you make your lovemaking space a sacred space? You use the same elements you�d use to create a performance space: scenery, lighting, sound, costumes, and props. Now, before you slam this book shut in frustration, breathe. This does not have to be as time-consuming as it sounds. Nor does it have to cost a lot of money. In fact, the preparation can be a lot of fun. Let me show you what I mean.

First, think like a set designer. What is the scene you are trying to create? Is it a Hindu temple? A magic cave? A vampire�s lair? Another planet? Be creative! You do not have to go out and have a set built, but keeping an image in mind will make it easier and more fun to choose the elements you�ll use to create your space.

Second, think about which design elements matter the most to you. Comfort? Visual beauty? Beautiful sounds? Great food? Yummy smells? You may not have time to create all of these as fully as you like, so pick what matters most to you and your partner(s). When I set up for a group ritual, my first priorities are comfort and music, so I enlist the help of other set designers and temple builders who feel passionately about decorations and food. That way everyone gets what they want most.

Choose a room to be your primary ritual space. Do not automatically choose the bedroom. You won�t be using the bed much (if at all) during Tantra, so if your living situation permits, be more creative. You can do ecstatic Tantra in just about every room of the house. Some of my favorite rituals have made use of multiple rooms, starting with a sensuous bath in the bathroom, followed by an erotic massage in the living room, culminating with a play piercing in the parlor. What if you have only one room? No problem. I practiced Tantra for years in a tiny studio apartment. Almost all of the exercises, positions, and practices can be adapted for small spaces.

The first step to creating an ideal lovemaking space is simple but critical: clean up! Tidy your space. Get rid of clutter and dirt. A cluttered space is psychically disturbing. If you can�t clear out all the clutter, at least cover it with a pretty cloth. Cover the computer, too! In Tantra, a computer screen is not a sex toy.

Place a futon, yoga mat, or some pillows or cushions on the floor. The floor is a much better Tantric space than a bed. A nice, soft mattress may feel wonderful after your ritual, but it�s not conducive to staying present and awake. Besides, the floor is safer. No matter how wild you get, you can�t fall off the floor. But staying present and awake doesn�t mean being uncomfortable. Make sure the room temperature is right, the cushions are comfy, and you can easily change position anytime you start to feel stiff or cramped.

Purify with Sage

Clean up psychically, as well. Burn some sage. This Native American purification technique � also known as smudging � really works. The smoke from burning sage has antiseptic properties that help purify the air as it dispels stale, negative energy from people and places. I smudge myself and my space whenever I want to change consciousness, or whenever one phase of a project is over and a new one is about to begin.

You can buy a smudge stick (a cylindrical packet of dried sage wrapped with string) in a metaphysical bookshop, or you can pick up some dried sage leaves at the grocery store. If you�re using a smudge stick, simply light it. It is tightly wrapped to produce smoke, but little (if any) flame. If you�re using loose sage, burn it in a metal bowl. After you light it, the flame will usually go out pretty quickly � or it can be gently blown out. With your hand or a feather, wave the smoke into the air, around yourself and around the room. Take the time to enjoy this; it is so relaxing.

Decorate. Make the space pretty. Use brightly colored cloths, flowers, pretty cushions � anything that looks and feels sensuous. I�ve seen spaces decorated with jewelry, photos, art, crystals, plants, flowers, straw, ferns, fur, garlands, holiday twinkle lights, feathers, toys, leather, tinsel, and mirrors.

Turn off the electric lights. Get back to basics: candles, candles, and more candles. Candles flicker like stars, and their light makes everyone look beautiful and feel special. I prefer the large votive candles � the ones in glass containers. They are much safer than naked candles. In the throes of ecstasy, you won�t be thinking about whether your candles are behaving properly. One especially blissed-out Tantrika friend of mine burned down her temple one evening when an unprotected candle made contact with a flowing decorative cloth. In Tantra, we do try to include as much of the four elements of nature � air, fire, water, and earth � as we can; but trust me, there is such a thing as too much fire energy.

Music is one of the most important parts of my Tantric rituals. Tantra does not limit you to soft, instrumental, New Age, or classical choices. I often use intense, rhythmic African drumming and Aboriginal didgeridoo, as well as schmaltzy, beautiful, heart-opening music. The keys to choosing your music are rhythm and flow. Does the music make you want to move? Good! How does it make you move? Is the music energy building, or is it relaxing? Does the music open your heart and relax your shoulders? Does it make you want to move your hips? Hard, soft, fast, and slow sounds all have a place in your ritual, as well as sounds that transport you to another realm. Try space music or recordings of thunderstorms or raging oceans. Create several playlists so that you can change your music as you change your mood.

Do not choose violent music in your rituals. You know the kind I mean. It�s not just gansta rap and death metal; it�s any music that feels violent or has violent lyrics. Tantra does not have many hard-and-fast rules, so I expect you to really pay attention to the few I insist on. Tantra is designed to open up all your energy centers and allow love and consciousness to flow through you. The energy of violent music and lyrics is psychically and physically depleting, and you just do not want that much violence and negativity around you when you are in such an open state. If you want a strong, fast beat, there are plenty of healthier choices available, such as Babatunde Olatunji�s Drums of Passion series. In addition, be mindful of music with lyrics. Make sure the lyrics are loving and positive and affirming, not doom-and-gloom. I generally use music without lyrics, or music with chanting or lyrics in a language I do not understand.

Am I saying that you should never listen to death metal or gangsta rap? Of course not. Just please don�t play it in Tantric ritual spaces.

Think like a theatrical costume designer. In the theatre, a costume not only has to look beautiful, but it also has to be practical. Can you breathe deeply in it? Can you move and dance in it? Can you sit comfortably? Does it come off easily? Not surprisingly, Tantra favors sarongs and other loose, flowing costumes rather than tightly laced corsets. However, the style of your costume can be as kinky as you like, as long as it does not inhibit your ability to build sexual energy with breath and movement. When it comes to looking and feeling sexy, try to think outside the box. If you always wear lingerie, try a sarong. If you always dress like a goddess, try a touch of slut. Happily, a number of designers of latex and leather clothing are now embracing comfort and mobility, so you can be a kinky Tantrika if you like. Just make sure you can breathe and move freely!

Which props to use (and whether to use them at all) is a matter of personal taste. In my rituals, I always include both hard and soft sex toys, as well as a generous selection of dildos and vibrators. As we will see, it does not matter so much which toys you use, but rather how consciously you use them.

Traditionally, Tantric toys and tantalizers have tended to be softer � for example, feathers, fur, satin, chocolate, fruit, whipped cream, essential oils, and massage oils. But there is plenty of room for toys that produce more intense sensations, such as floggers and needles. Toys are not the focus of Tantra, they are tools � just like breath, movement, imagination, sound, and PC squeezes. Props may be sorted according to the type of sensation they produce. Your choice of props answers the question �What do I want to feel right now?� or �Which sensation will open me up so I can feel more?�

Talons are sharp, pointed metal claws that fit over the tips of your fingers. They can be used for a wide range of sensations, from tickling and stroking to deep scratching and clawing.

Clothespins aren�t as innocent as they look. The longer you leave them on the skin, the more they hurt when they come off.

A ball massager is a rubber ball mounted on a flexible metal or plastic handle.

A flogger is a whip with multiple wide, flat tails.

The Tingler is a copper-fingered head massager designed to stimulate the nerves and acupressure points of the scalp.

A violet wand is an electrical unit that produces an arc of static electricity. It produces a purely surface sensation.

A TENS (transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulator) unit is a device that sends an actual surge of electricity deeper into the muscles.

Licorice whips are two- to three-foot-long strings of candy that make edible bondage ropes.

On this page is a table of props, divided into groups based on the type of sensations they provide, from subtle to severe, and graded from mild to wild.

Do you see what I mean about a range of sensations? Don�t worry if you have never heard of some of these items or would never consider using them erotically. The point of identifying all these possibilities is not to get you to go out and buy a lot of props; nor am I asking you to experiment with props that can be dangerous if you don�t know exactly how to play with them. But if any of the �wilder� items listed in the table sound like fun to you, read chapter 21 now, and by all means check out these toys in a good BDSM reference book (see the Resources section in this book) or online. Then seek out proper instruction from an experienced player before you use them. The �milder� props, like the Tingler and the ball massager, can be easily found online.

Start thinking about what kinds of sensations you are most fond of and what degrees of intensity you might enjoy. And guess what � you have dozens of unexplored sensation-creating devices in every room of your house at this very moment.

To give yourself an idea of what�s available, try this: Go into your kitchen and select six cooking utensils at random. Invent a way to use each one as a sex toy. (Please don�t write me with any suggestions for the food processor or toaster oven. I don�t want to know.) What sensation � or range of sensations � can you produce with each item?

The fun doesn�t stop with utensils. Try this exercise with food: Have you ever sculpted yourself a veggie dildo? Carrots work very well. So do zucchinis and other squash. Pick a vegetable that�s close to the size and shape you prefer, and perfect it a bit with a knife. (Caution: some vegetables can get a bit unstable if carved too drastically.) Be creative!

SPECIAL EFFECTS

One Tantric tradition I have always loved is the inclusion of the four elements of nature � air, fire, water, and earth � in each ritual. Those of us in urban environments are nature-starved. The act of collecting and acknowledging the four elements is soothing to the soul. Be sure to include at least one item representing each element. Some items contain more than one element, making your job even easier.

AIR. Make sure your space is properly ventilated. Open a window. Even if it is cold outside, you can still open the window a crack. You�ll be doing a lot of breathing. When you get lightheaded, it should be because your consciousness has been altered by erotic energy � not by lack of oxygen! Seriously, lack of fresh air will cause you to space out and lose focus on yourself and your partner(s).

FIRE. You don�t have to have a fireplace. Candles will do very nicely. Just use sensible safety precautions. Burning incense is also nice, and it brings in an earth element as well.

WATER. You�ll want water for drinking and bathing. You might also like earth water (fruit juice), air water (sparkling mineral water), earth-fire water (wine), or my favorite, combining all the elements in one: earth-air-fire water (champagne). Just be careful of the fire waters. A few sips build fire (sexual) energy, but a few glasses drain it away completely.

EARTH. The most popular earth element for a Tantric ritual is food. There are unlimited ways to be sexy with food. When you plan the food for your ritual, choose food that is both sexy and nourishing for you. Many people like fruit. It�s sweet and tasty, and satisfies your thirst. However, some people, myself included, just can�t handle that much sugar. I need to have a bit of cheese or some other kind of protein along with it. What food does your body need in high-energy situations? (Whenever I ask this question in workshops, the nearly unanimous answer is invariably, �Chocolate!�)

Other earth elements that help make a great ritual are flowers; natural or sculpted objects of wood or stone; crystals; and scents such as amber, musk, sandalwood, ylang-ylang, and patchouli. You can use essential oils and an aromatherapy burner, or light sticks or cones of incense.

SAFE SEX, SAFER SEX, AND RISK-AWARE SEX

It has always been my desire to build an ecstatic sexual practice that could include safer sex � and that�s what originally led me to Tantra. Preparation and consciousness are necessary for both safer sex and Tantric sex. Condoms and gloves will in no way diminish your sexual enjoyment because Tantra focuses on charging the entire body � not just the genitals � with sexual energy, making your entire body a pulsing, tingling, vibrating sex organ. Before I talk about how to set up for safer sex, let me first take a closer look at why safer sex is so important.

When the AIDS epidemic exploded in the early to mid-1980s, anyone who was sexually active faced the very real possibility of contracting a deadly illness. AIDS was considered 100 percent fatal at that time, and the only way we could be sexual and be sure that we weren�t going to get AIDS was to (1) have sex only with ourselves; (2) have sex with a person we were 100 percent certain had an HIV-negative status; or (3) follow the strictest safe-sex guidelines to the letter.

Even tears and saliva were considered possible transmitters of the virus. Over time, we learned that there is not enough HIV present in tears and saliva to transmit the virus, and we adjusted safer-sex guidelines accordingly. But now that people are not dying of AIDS by the hundreds every day � in this country � many people have gotten more casual about safer-sex practices. This is a big mistake, as there are numerous other sexually transmitted infections (STIs) that can be prevented by safer sex.

The term safe sex implies that condoms and other safe-sex protocols are going to keep you completely safe from HIV and all other STIs. In the 1990s, we all had to acknowledge that this was not the case. Having sex with someone (then as now) always presents some risk of catching or passing on an STI. We began using the term safer sex. In the safer-sex model, we learned how to take precautions to bring the risk of contracting an STI down to a manageable level. This worked for decades and continues to work to make sex safer. But now, a new concept has recently emerged: risk-aware sex.

Risk-aware sex incorporates safer sex, but rather than focusing solely on reducing risk, the risk-aware model empowers you to make intelligent decisions about the amount of risk you are personally willing to take. This means you are responsible for educating yourself about STIs � how they are transmitted, what symptoms they cause, and how they can be treated.

STIs are caused by bacteria (such as chlamydia, chancroid, gonorrhea, and syphilis); fungi (such as candidiasis); parasites (such as crab lice and scabies); protozoa (such as trichomoniasis); and viruses (such as CMV, viral hepatitis B and C, herpes simplex 1 and 2, HIV, and HPV). Of all these causes of STIs, the viruses may seem the most harmful and likely to be lifelong, but it�s not that simple. For example, bacteria that have become resistant to antibiotics are far more problematic than, say, herpes. Another risk variable is that the virulence and prevalence of each STI ebbs and flows with time and location. So you have to do mindful risk research to make informed decisions about which safer-sex protocols you wish to follow.

The risk-aware model asks you to think of safer sex as a spectrum: some behaviors are riskier than others. So which sexual activities do you find the most pleasurable? With those in mind, take into account the risks involved with each and whether or not any of those will worry you later. Lastly, take a good look at how you can lower the risks while increasing your pleasure. Do all this before you engage in any intimate behavior.

The bottom line is that safe sex, safer sex, and risk-aware sex (for the sake of simplicity, we�ll call it all safer sex) all involve sexual activity with no exchange of bodily fluids. Bodily fluids include ejaculate (male or female), blood (including menstrual blood), vaginal secretions, urine, feces, and discharges from sores caused by sexually transmitted infections. �No exchange� means that none of the bodily fluids of one partner ever gets into the vagina, penis, anus, mouth, eyes, nose, or open skin wounds of another.

You may be thinking that safer sex is something you just don�t have to worry about. Perhaps you have been with the same partner for years. Or perhaps your only sex partner is yourself right now. Safer-sex protocol is necessary when either you or your partner have any sexually transmitted infection (STI), including � and this is important to keep in mind � when you aren�t sure. Unless you are in a strictly monogamous relationship with someone whose HIV/STI status you are certain of, you need to know about and practice safer sex.

As you go further into Tantra and Tantric sex, you may find that you want to explore something or someone new. This will present the need to make a new decision about safer sex. The time to make safer-sex decisions is before you take your clothes off. Lastly, you � and everyone for that matter � should have a basic safer-sex supply kit within easy reach. You don�t need a lot of stuff to play safely. The following few essential basics will do.

CONDOMS

Use latex condoms for all intercourse � vaginal or anal. (If you�re allergic to latex, several reputable companies make latex-free versions using polyisoprene, which is a natural rubber.) They help protect against gonorrhea, syphilis, chlamydia, herpes, hepatitis B, and AIDS. To be effective, condoms should be put on during foreplay, before there is any preejaculatory fluid. After intercourse, withdraw the penis while it is still hard, and remove the condom carefully. It�s important to grasp the base of the condom during withdrawal so that the condom doesn�t slip off.

Use condoms on your sex toys, if you share them. They work on dildos, anal plugs, and vibrators. Use a new condom for each partner who uses the toy. Never reuse a condom.

For oral sex, use a nonlubricated or flavored condom. (A word of warning: condoms lubricated with Nonoxynol-9 taste terrible!) You can also cut a condom lengthwise, open it up, and place it over the anus or vulva for oral-anal sex (rimming) or oral-vaginal sex (cunnilingus).

Remember: While practicing safer sex dramatically reduces the risk of contracting or passing on the most serious sexually transmitted ailments, it does not completely eliminate the risk for every possible condition. LUBE

Use plenty of water-based lube on the outside of the condom for comfort and mutual pleasure, and to keep the condom from tearing during sex. Some men find that more sensation is transmitted to them if they put a small amount of water- or silicone-based lube inside the tip of their condom before putting it on. Use only water- or silicone-based lubricants on condoms. Oil-based lubricants, such as Vaseline, Crisco, almond oil, and hand lotions, weaken latex and make condoms break.

GLOVES

Do you need to wear gloves before you touch someone�s pussy, ass, or cock? Here�s how you tell: cut a lemon in half and rub it all over your hands and fingers. (Vinegar works as well as lemons.) If you feel any stinging, you have breaks in your skin that could let germs enter or exit your bloodstream. Glove up! You can buy either latex, nitrile, or vinyl gloves at a drugstore or medical supply store. If you want to do anal play (including fisting) with an oil-based lube (which some people prefer), be sure to get vinyl or nitrile gloves, which are not compromised by oil the way latex is.

I know the idea of wearing gloves during sex can seem weird. But I swear they can be sexy. I know women who get wet just hearing the snap of a latex glove. Try all three types of gloves: vinyl, nitrile, and latex. Many people have a strong preference for the feel of one over the other.

PLASTIC WRAP

Plain old plastic food wrap is the best barrier for rimming and cunnilingus. You can roll out a piece of plastic wrap large enough to cover both the vulva and the anus. It�s much easier to hang on to than a cut-open condom, and it�s a lot thinner than a dental dam. Spread some lube on your partner�s side of the plastic wrap for increased sensation. Just make sure that the plastic wrap doesn�t touch the anus and then the vulva. Germs passed from anus to vagina can cause a nasty infection.

Some people do prefer dental dams for oral sex, but I find them too thick and too hard to hold on to. It�s easy to drop a dam when it gets slippery, and then you may not be able to tell which side has been against the body.

SPECIAL SITUATIONS

The following situations present special issues relating to safer sex.

ORAL SEX. Some people feel that safer-sex barriers are not as necessary for oral sex as they are for vaginal and anal sex. I disagree. Yes, it�s clear that the risk of transmitting HIV is much lower for unprotected oral sex than for unprotected anal or vaginal intercourse. But this is not true for transmission of herpes, gonorrhea, syphilis, and chlamydia. And the risk of transmitting all these STIs is greater if you have any open sores in your mouth. I�m prone to chewing the inside of my lip when I�m worried, and my periodontist is none too thrilled about my gums, so I�m not going to go down on someone without a barrier.

THE INTERNAL (AKA FEMALE) CONDOM. The internal condom is a plastic sheath that women can insert into their vaginas for use in protection against HIV and STIs. The internal condom can be inserted up to eight hours before sex, has rings at both ends to hold it in place, and can be lubricated with oil-based lubricants, which stay wet longer than the water-based variety. This kind of condom also works well for anal sex. It�s stronger than external condoms and covers a larger area. If you�re not familiar with the internal condom, there are many free videos online that will show you how to use one.

WATER SPORTS. It�s safe to urinate on skin without open cuts or sores. Use the lemon/vinegar test. Urine that enters the mouth, vagina, or rectum is not safe. It could spread HIV or hepatitis B.

BLOOD SPORTS. Serious aficionados of piercings, cuttings, or any kind of blood sports know that the lighting has to be bright, the instruments sterile, and the protocol impeccable to keep everyone safe. Any of these more arcane pleasure techniques, done incorrectly, could result in permanent injury or transmission of serious disease. You�ll need to learn both the techniques and the hygienic protocol from an experienced person. Merely seeing it done once or twice at a play party is not enough! Ask an experienced player to teach you how to do things safely and with maximum pleasure.

TROUBLESHOOTING. What happens when something goes wrong � if the condom breaks, or you realize you forgot to put on your gloves after your hand is inside your lover? Don�t freak, just fix it. Your first step in getting back on the safer-sex track is washing up. Wash your hands, your toys, your genitals, and whatever you can with soap and water. If that�s not appropriate (for instance, if you got some cum in your eyes), just wash with lots of water.

What if a condom fails during vaginal or anal intercourse? If it is still inside the vagina or anus, immediately remove the condom. The receptive partner shouldn�t douche; that might increase the likelihood of infection. Urinate, then wash your genitals with soap and water. Both partners may wish to get tested for STIs. If you have been exposed to HIV, ask for postexposure prophylaxis (PEP), a �morning after� treatment for HIV that may prevent infection.

Tantric sex can be completely safe sex. You can combine energy sex with masturbation and have a mind-, body-, and spirit-altering experience without the risk of exchanging a single bodily fluid. If you are practicing safer sex, plan it in advance. Make it part of your preparation. Then practice it as slowly and consciously as you would any other element of your ritual.

This chapter is intended to make you aware of all the possible elements in your environment that can enhance (or detract from) your erotic pleasure. Use this chapter as a reference guide, not as a ritual setup bible. You do not have to do everything I have suggested in each section. You do, however, want to set up an attractive, safe, clean space that invites your senses to open up and take in more colors, smells, feelings, sounds, and tastes. Not only will the resulting environment enhance your pleasure, but the act of setting up your ritual stage will prepare your mind for the pleasure to come.

Now that you have prepared your space, it is time to prepare you for your Tantric ritual. This preparation need not take the better part of a day. You may not have hours to devote to cleaning and decorating your space prior to a long, luxurious process of bathing, meditating, and dressing ceremoniously. What�s important is that you make a tangible transition between your everyday life and your erotic life. You need to complete this transition before trying to connect with your partner(s). If time constraints force a choice between preparing your space and preparing yourself, put the emphasis on yourself. Quickly tidy up the ritual space. Light some candles and a stick of incense. Gather safer-sex supplies and any sensual delights you plan to use. Then spend your time on you.

First, empty yourself of physical, mental, and psychic gunk � the kind we all accumulate as we go through our daily lives. Relax your tensed body, calm your racing mind, and reconnect with your spirit. In other words, love yourself before making love. Here are some tips for how to do this:

CLEANSE YOURSELF. Take a bath or a shower. Make sure the water is not too hot, and don�t stay too long � a long, hot bath will drain too much fire energy and leave you too relaxed. Burn some sage in a metal bowl and bathe yourself in the smoke to cleanse your psychic body and auric field.

CLEAR OUT EMOTIONAL GUNK. Scream underwater or into a pillow. Throw a few karate chops, chopping away anything you�re angry about or preoccupied with. Do the Exhilaration Meditation or Cathartic Meditation (see chapter 5), or an abbreviated version of one of them. You could even do just one section of either. Shaking for just five or ten minutes will help clear out the cobwebs and help you be more present.

CHANGE YOUR OUTFIT. Follow the advice of my enlightened drag queen sisters and drag king brothers: �Change your clothes, change your consciousness.� Change into something � whether it�s a silk sarong or a rubber cat suit � that tells your body it�s time to feel sexy.

After you have prepared yourself to meet your partner (who has similarly prepared), it�s time to warm up together to ready each other for sex. Here are some exercises and techniques to help you wake up your body and ignite your erotic energy. One of the easiest and nicest ways to start is with a great hug.

Grounding Hug

First you will give the hug, then you will receive it.

Stand with your feet hip-distance apart and your knees slightly bent. Breathe using the Bottom Breath (see chapter 5), bringing your awareness to your root chakra. Imagine that your legs are huge, strong tree roots anchoring you deep into the earth.

Now embrace your partner. Place one hand on their lower back, and the other on their upper/middle back. Breathe your belly into their belly. As you hug, imagine that you are grounding your partner in the earth, rooting them the way you are rooted.

Continue to breathe together, feeling your partner letting go and relaxing. You will actually feel your partner�s center of gravity move down into their pelvis and legs.

Switch positions; now it�s your turn to receive. Receive the grounding hug with as much consciousness as you gave it.

Partner Shake

If you and your partner don�t feel like doing the shaking portion of the Exhilaration Meditation by yourselves, you can always shake each other. It works out the kinks and it has just the right silliness quotient.

Vibrate your partner, starting at the top of their head and working your way down their body. The vibrations don�t have to be hard, but they should be fairly rapid. Go gently on the head; be more vigorous on the arms, hands, buttocks, and legs.

Switch places; it�s your turn to receive.

Elephant Massage

Your partner (the elephant) stands with feet hip-distance apart, bending forward from the waist, arms hanging down like an elephant�s trunk. Elephant masseur/masseuse, you can stand behind your elephant or in front � whichever is more comfortable for you.

Now give your partner an elephant massage. How do you massage an elephant? Any way the elephant wants, of course! But I�d suggest you concentrate on those tense elephant shoulders and tight elephant spine. Elephant, you can sway your trunk back and forth if you like and make appreciative elephant sounds when your masseur gets it just right.

As you complete your massage, step directly behind and very close to your elephant. Let them roll up, vertebra by vertebra, leaning against you, until their head is leaning back on your shoulder. After a few moments, help them stand on their own. (If your elephant is considerably taller than you are, the elephant can still lean back against you, even if their head can�t rest on your shoulder.)

Now, elephant masseur, it�s your turn to be the elephant.

Activate the Microcosmic Orbit

Your partner stands with feet hip-distance apart. Placing their awareness at their perineum, they breathe in, drawing energy around and up to their tailbone, up their spine and neck, over the top of their head, and finally down their forehead to the roof of their mouth. As they do this, trace this pathway (the back channel) with your hand, tapping all along the spine, up to the top of their head.

Your partner then places the tip of their tongue on the roof of their mouth and exhales, letting the energy trickle down the front of their body, down to their genitals and back to their perineum. As they exhale, brush down this pathway (the front channel) with your fingers.

Repeat until your partner feels the Microcosmic Orbit as an actual circuit of energy.

Now switch places with your partner.

Your intention in this section of your ritual is to release any stress and tension you felt prior to the start of the ritual and replace it with a relaxed, alive awareness. The exercises above are suggestions. Create your own techniques. Laugh for ten minutes. Wrestle with your partner. Have a pillow fight. Any activity that leaves you relaxed but tingly and ready for more is perfect.

In these next three chapters, you will learn several traditional Tantric lovemaking positions and � just as important � variations that will help personalize and add variety to your ritual. I hope they will also give you some ideas for creating your own variations. As you try each posture, I suggest you start off with the traditional form and then allow it to morph into one or more of the variations. This way, you�ll get a sense of the original intent and also find the form that works best for you and your partner.

Tantric lovemaking positions allow you to build, share, and circulate sexual energy with a partner or partners. In the process of a Tantric ritual, you will circulate two distinct expressions of life/sex energy: the genital/sexual/lower chakra energy and the heart/spiritual/upper chakra energy. During lovemaking, you�ll want to keep both fires lit and burning brightly. If all the heat is in your genitals, you will miss the presence of the Divine within you both. If all the heat is in your heart and upper chakras, you will miss the passion and desire for each other. Many of the postures can be done with or without genital contact or penetration. This is important for people who may be just getting to know each other and want to explore emotional intimacy but aren�t ready for genital intimacy. Or for people on the asexuality spectrum who may want to deepen their energetic or romantic connection without engaging in physical sex. In short, you can add actual fucking when, where, and if you like.

When we first come together with a partner, we want to open up and invite our partner into our emotional and physical space in the same way we are welcomed into theirs. In order to do this, we need to drop our emotional and physical defenses. This pose helps us feel less separate by harmonizing our energy with our partner�s.

For Those on the Asexuality Spectrum

If you are on the asexuality spectrum, you, too, can find a loving connection in these positions or their variations. Remember, the union between the divine aspects of Shiva and Shakti is transcendental and therefore also asexual. There need be no goal of genital orgasm, or even sexual feelings. You can set an intention to raise energy for deepening a friendship or exploring intimacy in some other context. For example, one asexual client of mine prefers romantic friendships. They have no interest in �sexual feelings,� which they define as feelings of arousal. They particularly enjoy eye gazing (which they call �eye sex�) because it�s very spiritual for them. Many other positions described in the next few chapters can be adapted to meet the interests and needs of a wide range of asexual identities and preferences. For example, when I ask you to focus on sexual energy, you can just focus on the part of your body that feels the most energized.

The Pose of Recognition with Hand Balancing is most easily done on the floor. Use pillows to make yourselves comfortable. Sit directly across from one another, close but not quite touching, with your legs crossed. (See variations below if sitting cross-legged on the floor is not possible for you.) Look into your partner�s nondominant eye. (If you are right-handed, your left eye is your nondominant eye; if you�re left-handed, it�s your right eye.) Put your right hand, palm down, onto your partner�s upturned left hand. Put your left hand, palm up, under your partner�s downturned right hand.

It is said that the eyes are the gateway to the soul. In my Tantric training I was taught that the nondominant eye is the receptive eye, and therefore the actual gateway to the soul. It is not necessary to keep your gaze glued to your partner�s eye � but eye gazing is a wonderfully intimate practice, and it does give you a very specific place to put your gaze. This helps keep your attention focused.

Traditionally, the hand balancing exercise helps unite your yang/masculine energy (situated on the right side of your body) with your yin/feminine energy (located on the left side of your body) by joining with the opposite polarities of your partner. The upturned hand receives love; the downturned hand projects love.

Some people like to invoke the Tantric love god, Shiva, and the goddess, Shakti, by calling or singing their names. You can simply gaze into your partner�s eye and recognize the god/goddess/divinity in them. You�ll see your own divinity reflected back to you.

Feel free to modify the Pose of Recognition so that it meets your physical, emotional, and physical needs. Here are some suggestions.

Eye Gazing for Three

If you are in a triad, you can still practice eye gazing intimately and effectively. While your two partners gaze into each others� eyes, simply sit and witness the power and the beauty and the strength of their connection. Notice the thoughts that pass through your mind. Don�t judge your thoughts; just notice what they are and let them gently float away. Do you feel connected? Left out? Filled with love? In awe? Just witness. If you want to, you can set a timer. After, say, ten minutes, switch. Repeat. Switch again.

SITTING POSITIONS. Instead of sitting directly in front of each other, sit slightly to the side of each other and gently hold hands. Sitting directly in front of each other can feel confrontational to people who are used to facing off across a desk with a boss or a competitor. The last thing we need at the beginning of lovemaking is to feel confrontational!

LEG POSITIONS. You can use a wide variety of leg positions for all the sitting postures. Don�t feel that you have to sit in the classic cross-legged lotus position unless it�s comfortable for you. You can sit on a pillow or two so that your knees are lower than your hips, with your legs outstretched over your partner�s outstretched legs. You can even sit on chairs. The most important thing is that you both be comfortable. If at any time you feel uncomfortable, move! Change positions. Staying conscious during sex means first and foremost knowing and responding to what your body is feeling. You cannot be totally present when you�re sore or cramping!

The Pose of Recognition with Hand Balancing

HAND BALANCING. Hand balancing is traditionally used to balance male and female energies. I look at this somewhat differently. For me, hand balancing helps balance all my identities, not just male and female � or even yin and yang. When I feel out of balance, it�s not my male and female sides that need balancing � it�s all the other identities I try to juggle on a daily basis!

A Note to the Time-Challenged

Yes, it will certainly take longer than twenty minutes to practice all these positions. But it will only take twenty minutes to practice one or two of them. Eventually, you may want to make the time to string them all together in a ritual. But, please, do start enjoying at least some of them right now. Simply add one or two to whatever kind of erotic play you�re already enjoying. If you wait until you have the time to do all of these, you may never try any of them.

Living in the Western world at this time means not living one life, but ninety-nine lives. We become more people in one day than our ancestors were in a lifetime. Here are just some of the identities that I juggled while writing this book: author, Broadway theatre manager, sex educator, workshop facilitator, friend, daughter of two parents in their late eighties, gardener, herbalist, meditator, artist, and lover. I also went from caregiver to estate executrix when an old and dear friend of mine became seriously ill and died.

So, when I sit down opposite my lover and connect with them in the hand balancing position, I�m not focused on balancing male and female. I want to balance all my identities and, specifically, bring the lover identity into proper balance. It is the myself-as-lover who gets pushed aside and buried by busyness and the demands made on me by all my other identities.

This may in fact be the primary reason why so many people who are truly in love with each other are not making love to each other. Their inner lover has been shoved aside by all the other identities a person needs to be in a day. Use hand balancing to bring your inner lover in balance with all your other identities.

Imagine that in your left hand, you hold yourself as Lover. In your right hand, you hold all your other identities. Put your right hand, palm down, onto your partner�s upturned left hand (which holds their self as Lover). Put your left hand, palm up, under your partner�s downturned right hand. Let your identities relax and flow.

DRAWING IN THE SACRED. Tantric practice includes seeing the god/dess in your partner or calling your partner a god/dess. This works for many people, but not for all of us. I consider myself a very spiritual person, but I�m uncomfortable seeing my partner as either a conduit for, or the literal incarnation of, an anthropomorphized, gendered deity.

A healthy compromise might be the twelve-step model of a higher power. You can decide for yourself who or what your higher power is. One friend of mine, an atheist and recovering alcoholic, decided her higher power would be the singer George Michael. Whenever she wanted a drink she called upon George Michael to keep her from drinking. It worked for her; she�s still sober. Your higher power could be a God, a Goddess, the Universe, All That Is, Source, the Divine, an energy force, an inner knowing, or Dolly Parton.

I believe that all human desire for connection is really a desire for connection with some higher power � a desire for a connection to something greater than our everyday selves. Relationships, especially sexual and/or romantic relationships, provide an ideal arena in which to practice and enjoy connection. The act of raising sexual/life-force energy in any situation puts us in closer connection with our higher power. Add a partner and the effect is multiplied. Therefore, it makes sense that when we raise sexual energy while connecting with a partner, we feel or see the presence of a higher power reflected in that partner � hence the Tantric tradition of seeing god/dess in your partner.

COMMUNICATION. The Pose of Recognition is a good position for sharing anything that needs or wants to be spoken so that the two of you can move deeper into erotic intimacy. If you are with a new partner, each of you can ask and answer, �How do you like to be touched?� If you have been partners for a while, each of you can ask and answer, �What are some things you love about me?� If you�ll be moving from this position into an activity that requires consent and negotiation, each of you can tell the other what you would like to do, might like to do, and definitely would not like to do.

Should you feel the need to clear out some feelings that you think may be preventing you from opening up to your partner, or if you are feeling emotionally stuck, you can each complete a little exercise to help you get in touch with what you are feeling.

I am angry about�

I am sad about�

I am scared about�

I am glad about�

This is not a discussion or a bitch session; it�s an emotional clearing exercise. Complete all four statements without interruption or comment by your partner. Then allow your partner to do the same. Repeat until you can move ahead in peace. You will probably discover that whatever is making your partner mad, sad, glad, or scared has nothing to do with you. If anything does come up that might merit further discussion, agree to set it aside to discuss later if it�s still on your mind.

OTHER SUGGESTIONS. As you do eye gazing and hand balancing, you may feel a desire to reach out toward your partner and pull them toward you. Please resist that temptation. You don�t have to do anything except breathe. Just be with them and with yourself. Feel what comes up. See what happens. Just be. THE POSE OF GIVING AND RECEIVING

I can always count on the Pose of Giving and Receiving to drop me into my body and restore my ability to receive pleasure. When you give the strokes at the Resilient Edge of Resistance (see chapter 6), you�ll find giving as pleasurable as receiving.

Sit across from one another. One partner sits with their hands resting on their thighs, palms up. This person is the receiver. The receiver does not give out energy; they accept it.

FIRST STROKE. The giver begins at the top of the receiver�s head and, slowly and gently, like a feather, strokes down the receiver�s head, neck, shoulders, arms, and wrists, and finally off the hands. Do this once.

SECOND STROKE. The giver again begins at the top of their partner�s head, but now strokes down to the third eye (center of the forehead), lightly strokes the receiver�s eyes, moves back to the ears, comes forward and touches the nose with their thumbs, brings the thumbs down to the lips, and then strokes down the chin to the throat center. The giver continues stroking down to the receiver�s heart center; brushes the nipples, outer torso, and inner thighs; moves back to the wrists; and slowly moves off the hands and fingertips.

THIRD STROKE. The second stroke is repeated.

The giver then turns their attention inward and becomes the receiver, placing palms upward on thighs as their partner becomes the giver, stroking down the receiver�s body three times. Remember to go slowly � you cannot do this stroke too slowly. And breathe, both of you.

One purpose of this exercise is to learn to go totally into receiving when you are receiving, and totally into giving when you are giving. While doing this exercise, notice which role is more difficult for you � giving or receiving. Allow yourself the balance of being able to relate in both ways.

Once you�ve gotten used to doing this pose in the traditional manner, try experimenting with some variations.

ADD A MORE INTENSE TOUCH. Do the first stroke in the traditional manner. Use your fingertips and be as soft and delicate as you can. For the second and third strokes, use your fingernails, or ice, or even the tines of a fork. For these more intense strokes, you may have to change the path you follow. For instance, ice would be harmless if stroked over the face, neck, and inner arms, but if you wanted to use a fork (or something even sharper, such as a talon), you might start at the tops of the shoulders and stroke down the outsides of the arms, avoiding prominent veins, nerve centers, and tendons.

DO THE STROKES ON THE BACK. This is safer and more appropriate for sharp items and many other intense sensations. Stroke down your partner�s arms or back, to their buttocks. Or, start with your fingers on their head and neck, and then switch to the sharp item when you reach their upper arms.

HAVE THE RECEIVER LIE DOWN. This way you can stroke your partner from the top of their head to the tips of their toes. You can use light, delicate strokes on their front, then have them turn over, and use more intense strokes on their back.

The Pose of Giving and Receiving

ADD BONDAGE. Here�s a little nugget of Taoist wisdom: sensory deprivation amplifies chi by conserving it. When you blindfold someone, chi cannot leak out their eyes. When you use earplugs, chi can�t leak out their ears. Having more chi means having more energy. This is how sensory deprivation intensifies sensation, making your strokes even more delectable.

ADD FOOD. Feed your partner a morsel of chocolate or fruit between strokes.

This giving-and-receiving ritual focuses on opening the senses. It can be done as part of a longer Tantric ritual or on its own. It can be an inventive and intimate game to play with a new lover or with someone you�re not ready to have genital sex with. It�s also a great exercise for rekindling desire between lovers who�ve grown bored by repetitive, unconscious sex.

First, you will give to your partner, and then you�ll repeat the exercise receiving from your partner. The receiver is blindfolded. Placing the receiver in bondage can also be delightful. (This can be achieved by means of real physical restraints or simply a verbal command not to move a muscle.) Just make sure that the only sense completely blocked out for the entire exercise is sight. If you want to play with gags or earplugs, remove them for the taste or auditory portions of the exercise.

Separately, you and your partner go through your respective homes and gather items that you can use to delight and stimulate each other�s senses. Do this separately so that neither of you knows what delights lie in store. Some suggestions for each of the senses follow:

Taste: chocolate, fruit, mustard, whipped cream, salsa, a sparkling beverage, a few granules of salt, diluted lemon juice, sweet or sour pickles

Smell: essential oils, a flower, mothballs, kitchen spices, motor oil, rich garden soil, your skin, a blown-out match, tuna fish

Touch: a feather; a silk or satin scarf; a cold, smooth stone; sandpaper; leather; your fingernails; chain links; a warm (but not scalding) cup of tea

Sound: bells, drums, wind chimes, the rattle of chains, whistles, pebbles dropped one by one into a glass of water, your whisper, a cat purring

This is meant to be a fun and pleasurable adventure. Avoid sensory cues that you know your partner dislikes, but do try to be creative in your choices. A warm (or cool) washcloth on the back of the neck is a wonderful sensation when you are blindfolded. So is the sound of singing through a vacuum cleaner hose. Don�t forget that some of your selections will have multiple sensual properties (for example, leather has a distinctive smell, feel, and taste). THE EXERCISE

Blindfold your partner, and then sit in front of them. Make sure they are comfortable, and then stop speaking. During the course of the exercise, either or both of you may moan, vocalize ooh and ahh, or giggle. Occasionally an actual word or two may leak out. But this is not a speaking exercise. Talking about each sensation will take both you and your partner away from actually experiencing it.

Concentrate on one sense at a time. I prefer to start with taste because food has taste and texture, as well as temperature and smell � it quickly opens up many senses. Plus, feeding someone is intimate and sweet and generally produces just the right amount of silliness to make the rest of the exercise even more fun. Here�s how it works:

TASTE. Feed your partner. Actually, don�t feed them � tempt them silly. Tease, tease, and tease some more. Run a tasty morsel over their lips and tongue, but don�t let them bite it. Allow them to experience the aroma, texture, and temperature of the food, and only then let them have a small bite. Go slowly; don�t let them gobble it. This will invite your partner to become the taste of the food or the drink.

SMELL. First, smell the item yourself. How strong or subtle is the scent? This will tell you how close to their nose you�ll want to put it. Some smells can be overwhelming. Waft the scent by them; don�t just shove it under their nose and hold it there. Wait a few seconds between each scent � it gives your partner time to process each one. If your partner prefers, you can offer a sniff of roasted coffee beans between smells to clear the sense memory of the previous smell.

SOUND. You can tease with sound, just as you did with taste. Start with subtle, soft little sounds. Use variety. A sound can be near or far, soft or loud, high-pitched or low. Don�t forget the infinite variety of the human voice. Whisper a loving word or two into your partner�s ear, keeping in mind that this is a sensual delight, not a conversation.

TOUCH. Touch can be hard or soft, rough or smooth, fast or slow, wet or dry. Whatever you choose, go very slowly and offer only one type of sensation at a time. Remember, you want your partner to experience the sensation so completely that they become the touch.

When you are done, sit silently for a few moments. Then remove your partner�s blindfold. Ask your partner to tell you what they experienced. Which sensations were particularly nice? Were they unable to identify any of the delights? Did any of the sensual delights surprise them? How does your partner feel now?

Now switch places; it�s your turn to receive.

This exercise can be repeated over and over to refine the quality of the sensations that you and your partner enjoy. If your partner particularly enjoyed some of the softer touches, you can add additional ones, like faux fur or satin sheets. Maybe you discovered that your lover has always been turned on by the smell of urine, semen, or menstrual blood. And who would have guessed that the slow beating of a deep bass drum would drive your partner crazy with desire? When I do this exercise, I am almost always surprised and amazed at how much more there is to experience in a single sensation, particularly in the senses that I do not rely upon primarily. The practice of becoming the taste, touch, sound, and smell of each sensation has taught me how to be more present in each erotic moment. It has also taught me how to make each moment more erotic.

Take what you�ve discovered in these giving-and-receiving exercises and apply it to all your sexual adventures. Above all, know that you are responsible for your own pleasure. What you ask for, how you receive it, how much you allow, and what you do with it are completely up to you. Your partners are similarly responsible for their own pleasure. When you accept responsibility for your own erotic power and pleasure, here�s what happens:

You stop expecting your partner(s) to be the source of your orgasms.

You stop pressuring them to give you things you haven�t yet learned to accept.

You stop blaming them for not knowing what you want.

You learn to articulate to your partner what it is you really want.

Think of yourself as a facilitator of your lover�s pleasure, not the source of that pleasure. When two (or more) powerful, responsible, knowledgeable, erotically charged beings come together to share their power in erotic love, there are no limits to where they can go and what they can achieve.

Repeat often:

I am the source of my own sexual pleasure.

The afterglow is a magical, mystical, fulfilling part of sex that can last longer and be more varied than you might imagine. During the afterglow, some people see colors or visions; some hear music or a universal hum; others feel waves of emotion. Some people feel a deeper intimacy with their partner; others may feel an intimacy with all of creation.

You�ll want to stay connected to your partner, but you�ll also want to be free to travel on your own postorgasmic journey. These postures will help you make the most of this precious time.

Lie on your right side. Place your partner�s toes at your third eye and hold their feet with your hands. Your partner places your feet on their third eye. Visualize a circuit of energy moving from your third eye to your partner�s feet, up their body, through their third eye, into your feet, and up your body. If you like, you can lightly stroke your partner�s body with your upper hand.

Toes to Third Eye

This is my favorite position for resting after orgasm. I usually do the visualization for the first few breaths, and then I let it go and just meditate. I also love a few minutes of light stroking. It keeps me aware of my body, allowing me to meditate without drifting off to sleep.

Lie on your backs next to each other with your heads in opposite directions. Your partner should be on your right side. Bend your right leg and place your right foot on your partner�s heart chakra. Stretch your left leg out along your partner�s right side. Place your right hand on your partner�s left foot. Your genitals will be touching. Breathe together. Feel the heart/genital energy circuit and allow your energies to melt and circulate.

Heart-Foot-Hand

Don�t worry if your foot doesn�t reach exactly to your partner�s heart. It can rest anyplace on the body that feels comfortable. You can even rest it just off your partner�s body to the right. The most important thing is that your genitals touch.

This is a peaceful resting posture that you can use at the end of your ritual or between periods of intense sexual activity.

The same grounding hug you used in your preparation with your partner is an ideal closing posture as well. It is also a particularly effective technique to use as part of the aftercare in a BDSM scene. It helps bring the submissive partner back to earth without jarring them out of the altered consciousness they�ve been enjoying. Once again, here�s how to give a grounding hug:

Stand with your feet hip-distance apart and your knees slightly bent. Breathe using the Bottom Breath (see chapter 5), bringing your awareness to your root chakra. Imagine that your legs are huge, strong tree roots anchoring you deep into the earth.

Embrace your partner. Place one hand on their lower back, and the other on their upper or middle back. Breathe your belly into their belly. As you hug, imagine that you are grounding your partner in the earth, rooting them the way you are rooted.

Continue breathing together. Feel your partner let go and relax, their center of gravity moving down into their pelvis and legs.

The afterglow does not end when you sit or stand up from your last position. The afterglow from some Tantric rituals can be felt for days. Treat yourself gently. Ease back into your normal life. Pay particular attention to any feelings or inspirations that may arise in the next couple of days. These rituals are powerful energetic events and can provide you with important insights and direction.

You can create an infinite number of rituals using not only these positions and their variations but also a variety of other erotic activities. As you read the following chapters, you�ll see the same structure � set the stage, chill out and warm up, come together, rock and roll, and afterglow � applied to other rituals. One of the most remarkable, consciousness-altering uses of this structure is in an erotic massage ritual I call the Erotic Awakening Massage.

This version of the Erotic Awakening Massage has the same structure as any other Tantric ritual, with one slight modification. First, you�ll set the stage for your massage. Next, instead of chilling out and warming up, you�ll come together with your partner so that you can both share any thoughts, feelings, or agreements that need to be spoken before the massage actually begins. The chill out and warm up portion of the ritual is a luxurious sensual massage followed by the first of the genital strokes. This soon intensifies into rock and roll as the genital strokes become more specifically arousing. Finally, following a Clench and Hold, the receiver enters a long afterglow filled with endless possibilities.

Start by creating a serene space for your massage by choosing a comfortably warm room with soft lighting, lots of fresh air, and music with a gentle, steady rhythm. You certainly can do the massage without music, but I find that the right music helps both receiver and giver maintain conscious breathing. Plus, this massage is such a great dance, it�s a shame to do it without music.

Put a towel and a sheet on your massage table. If you don�t have a massage table, you can use another kind of table or the floor. Although it may seem logical to use a bed, beds are usually at an uncomfortable height for the person who is giving the massage. It�s important for both of you to be comfortable at all times. As the giver, you don�t want a sore back at the end of your partner�s pleasure.

If you are the giver, make sure your fingernails are not too long or too sharp. Trim any ragged edges. Check your hands for any calluses and smooth them down with a pumice stone.

Next, gather the things you�ll need: latex, nitrile, or vinyl gloves; condoms; lube; and massage oil or cornstarch (also known as corn flour). Cornstarch? Yes. Instead of oil, you might like the feel of cornstarch on your skin. It�s like getting a massage with powdered silk. It�s hypoallergenic and it�s easy to clean up � just shake it out or vacuum it up.

When you�re set up and ready to begin, take a moment to connect with your partner. You might sit face to face and breathe together as you gaze into each other�s eyes. Find that place of connection between the two of you that needs no words � that place of mirroring where you can see the best of yourself in her and her best in you. Try to look beyond the physical to actually see her spirit.

This is a time for speaking. Tell each other how you are feeling. Let your partner know any physical or medical limitations you may have. If you are receiving, tell your partner if there are any places on your body that are especially sensitive, or any places you do not want touched. Do you have a special request? Perhaps there is something you want to heal or create in your life. You can make that desire the focus of the energy raised in this massage by making a dedication (see chapter 24 for more on dedicating sexual energy). If you�re the giver, you may have intentions and needs to express as well. Now is the time to speak these. You are partners in this experience.

The receiver lies on the table or floor, face down. The giver might begin the sensual massage with the touch of something other than a hand. Try an ostrich feather or a silk scarf. Your intention is to help your partner relax and come to a deeper awareness of her body. So alternate elegant, relaxing strokes with different types of touch that are a bit more stimulating. You could use a loofah sponge (mild) or a cat-o�-nine-tails (wild). (See the �Props: Mild to Wild� chart in chapter 12 for other ideas.) When you�re both ready to move on, lovingly apply cornstarch or massage oil. Give her a sensual massage using the whole-hand touching strokes you learned earlier.

Remember her hands, her feet, and her head. We carry so much tension in these places. Massage her feet; gently pull her toes. On your way up to the top of her head, do the same for her hands. Then massage her scalp.

Invite her to turn over. Gently massage her breasts with whole-hand circular glides. This helps open her heart center. Spread the heart energy down her arms and then down her torso.

Take a moment to make sure you are both breathing consciously. You can help the receiver keep breathing by staying conscious of your own breathing. The idea is not to control her breathing, but to set up a rhythm with her. When the two of you are breathing in a rhythm and at a pace that�s comfortable for you both, you�ve established another level of connection. The rhythm of the music can help.

Now that your partner has relaxed and dropped into her body, it�s time to begin building some erotic energy.

OVER EGGS EASY. Glide your palms in circles on her abdomen, in the area where her ovaries are, or were, or would have been. Not all people with pussies have ovaries or uteruses. Whatever lies beneath the surface, these are still important sexual energy centers. Alternate circles with stillness. Remember the Resilient Edge of Resistance, and both you and your partner will stay relaxed and energized.

THE WOMB WARMER. Glide your palms in circles on her abdomen, in the area where her uterus is, or was, or would have been. Don�t be afraid to use some pressure � it can feel really good on an exhale. But be sensitive, especially if she is menstruating. Look for feedback in how she is responding to your touch, and when in doubt, ask. Alternate circles with stillness.

THE HEART-WOMB PALM REST. Rest one hand over her womb, and the other over her heart. Breathe with her. This stroke connects her energized womb with her heart.

SENSUAL GLOVE STROKES. Familiarize your partner with the feel of latex, nitrile, or vinyl. Dance a pair of gloves gently over her skin; or try a more energizing stroke � a fast, circular slapping motion up and down her body. A flogging with gloves is guaranteed to produce lots of energy and lots of laughs. It makes a lot of noise and doesn�t hurt at all. Put on the gloves and keep them on until the end of the massage. Place your hands on her womb and heart. Turn the hand on her womb toward her feet and move it over her pubic mound and genitals, and you�re ready to begin the next stroke.

THE HEART-PUSSY PALM REST. Rest one hand over her genitals, and the other hand over her heart. You are connecting heart energy and sexual energy. Just be still and be there.

THE OUTER LABIA ACUPRESS. With the sides of your forefingers of both hands, press where the outer labia meet the thighs. This stroke helps your partner open herself to pleasure. Press, release, press, release.

THE PUBIC HAIR PULL. Grab fingerfuls of her pubic hair (if there is any) and lift. Don�t yank or jerk. Don�t tug on one hair at a time. Do scratch vigorously. Knead the pubic mound. This stroke feels great if it�s used sparingly, but it can get annoying if you overdo it. Stay conscious and in touch with each other so you�ll know the difference.

As giver, take another moment to make sure you are breathing consciously. Take a long, full, deep, audible breath. This will encourage your partner to breathe. There are numerous effective ways to encourage breathing throughout the course of the massage. Some of my favorite breath-coaching cheers include: �Wouldn�t a nice full breath feel good right now?� or �There�s so much nice, fresh air in the room; it�s a shame we�re not using more of it.� Some people might prefer the sassier �If you don�t breathe, I�ll turn off the vibrator,� or �Okay, don�t breathe � see if I care!� That one is most effective when followed by an evil laugh. It�s all a matter of style.

Help your partner find a comfortable position. Her legs can be stretched out along the length of the table; or her knees can be raised, with her feet flat on the table. She can also put the bottoms of her feet together, with her knees apart. Use pillows under her knees for extra support.

The Vulva

VIBRATE THAT VULVA. Place your entire hand over her vulva. Hold and vibrate.

PUSSY PETTING. Lubricate your hands. Ask if she�d like the lube warmed or cool. To warm the lube, pour a generous amount onto one palm and hold your hands together for a few moments. Pet her pussy with long, slow strokes from bottom to top, and then top to bottom. (Avoid the anus. You don�t want to introduce any bacteria from her anus into her vagina. It can cause a nasty infection.)

THE THREE-FINGER PUSSY PET. Using your three longest fingers, glide the middle finger between the two inner labia as the other two fingers slide along the space between the inner and outer labia on each side. You can hold the vulva open with your other hand, if that makes it easier.

THE OUTER/INNER LABIA MASSAGE. Hold each of her labia between your thumb and fingertips and lovingly massage each of the outer labia, and then each of the inner labia. Be very specific and go slowly. The legs of the clitoris are within the outer labia, so when you�re massaging the labia, you are also stroking the clitoris. Labia sizes will vary widely. Whatever you discover is both normal and unique.

TOUR DE FRANCE. With one hand, gently pull the pubic mound up toward her belly to open the vulva. With the forefinger of your other hand, trace a circle between inner and outer labia from the perineum to above the clitoris and back to the perineum. For extra yum, add a little loop around the clitoris.

The Mushy Puss

THE MUSHY PUSS. Place your flattened hands on either side of the vulva and smoosh the labia together with the sides of your index fingers. Use a little pressure, because the clitoris is there in between getting a nice little stroke.

DIVINE DRUMMING. Tap the inner thighs and vulva with your flat hand, as if playing a drum. Ask for her feedback � harder? Softer? A fast rhythm? Slow, single drumbeats? Be sensitive with this one. Some women like quite intense drumming; others might not like it as hard. A single drumbeat can send a charge of energy all the way to the top of her head. Receiver, don�t wait to be asked for feedback; ask for what you want. Giver, remember to say �thank you� whenever she names her desire.

THE BREATH OF SPRING. Gently part her labia and blow air on them. Get closer and it�s a warm wind; stand back and it�s a cool breeze.

Time for a breathing check:

How is she doing? How are you doing?

Open the labia and gently pull back the clitoral hood so that you can see the head (glans) of the clit. Some clits are shy and small and like to hide under their hoods. Others are bold and big and obvious. All clits are highly sensitive. Clits that like to hide will usually begin to peek out from under their hoods as arousal builds. It�s usually best to let them reveal themselves in their own time. Strokes done with the clit hooded are still very arousing.

Now that you know where the clitoris is, don�t grope around blindly! If you lose sight or feel of the clit (or urethral sponge or labia or anything else), stop, find it, and then proceed. That�s the difference between conscious touch and unsatisfying groping. Keep your attention on your intention.

FLUTTERBY. Gently touch and tickle her clitoris. Use an intentional but very light touch. Think of a butterfly�s wings. This touch can be slow or rapid. Ask which she prefers.

ROCK AROUND THE CLIT CLOCK. This stroke is a huge favorite. Pretend that the clit is the center of a clock. With your forefinger, make tiny circles immediately to the side of the clit, stopping at the location of each �hour.� Tell her what �time� it is at each stroke, and ask which she likes best. Every person with a pussy will have a favorite hour. Two o�clock is very popular. Six o�clock is popular as well.

PINCH AND PULL. Using plenty of lube, try to pinch and pull the clit. (If you can actually pinch and pull it, you are not using enough lube!) You will be stroking down the clitoral hood, with the clitoral shaft underneath it. It feels amazing.

AS SHE LIKES IT. Any requests? There�s a good reason why all the strokes have fun, easy-to-remember names. It�s so you can ask for what you want easily. Ask her how she would like her clit massaged. She can ask you to repeat a stroke, or she may make up a new one!

Involve her whole body. Beginning with any of the pussy strokes you�ve just learned, move on to spread the energy down her thighs and legs and up her body to her heart, her third eye, and the top of her head. Use your sensual massage strokes, particularly glides and kneading. Do this frequently and at any time during the massage. Keep returning to her vulva to reenergize.

It is always important to ask the receiver what she wants and enjoys, but never more important than now. Not every person with a pussy likes to be penetrated. And those women who do like to be penetrated deserve the courtesy of being asked. So this is the time to ask. If she says yes, enter her gently and slowly. If she is menstruating, you may need to remove a tampon. Remind her to breathe and relax; then gently remove the tampon, wrap it in a paper towel, and throw it away.

ONE FINGER. Use lots of lube. Very slowly, insert your well-lubed forefinger. (You did trim your fingernails, right?) Don�t do anything once you are inside, just be there. This is a wonderful time to breathe together and bring energy up to her heart.

TWO FINGERS. Ask if she would like another finger. If she says yes, enter her with a second finger. Slowly�so that she has time to tell you to slow down or stop when she has had enough. Going slowly can also be delicious for the giver. Go completely into the experience of feeling what you�re touching.

THE FOUR DIRECTIONS. With one or two fingers inside her vagina, stroke or press firmly upward (toward the ceiling). Turn your hand 90 degrees clockwise and press to one side. Turn your hand 90 degrees clockwise again and press downward (toward the floor). Turn your hand 90 degrees clockwise once more and press to the other side. Repeat. Be aware of how much pressure you�re using. Firm pressure may feel yummy, but start gently.

THE GODDESS SPOT. Locate and massage the entire urethral sponge with one or two fingers. The urethral sponge is a cylindrical tube of tissue that surrounds the urethra. It sits above the vagina (i.e., toward the front of the body) and can be stimulated through the roof of the vagina. Enter her with one finger and make a �come hither� gesture. Stimulating the urethral sponge can produce a jolting or electrically charged sensation. She may suddenly feel as though she has to pee. So start gently. Communication is key. If she is very aroused, you can probably feel the ribbed or nubbly texture of the urethral sponge, which is different from that of the smooth surrounding vaginal walls.

The G-Spot

THE DOORBELL. Press firmly on the urethral sponge, as if ringing a doorbell. Press, release, press, release�

GODDESS SPOT MASSAGE. Apply steady pressure, circling around her urethral sponge in both directions. Stroke back and forth. Add clitoral stimulation with your other hand. Alternate between goddess spot stimulation and clitoral stimulation; try ten seconds of each. Invite her to add PC squeezes, which increase sexual energy and pump it up the body.

As the energy starts to build, it is even more important for you as the giver to remember to stop and center yourself and breathe with your partner for a moment. Just stop. Remember the power of stillness. These moments give the receiver time to integrate the energy and prepare her to move to even higher states of erotic charging.

THE CERVIX. The cervix is the narrow outer end of the uterus, located at the upper rear of the vagina. Some women who have a cervix like to have it pushed against. But even if a person with a pussy does not have a cervix, she may still like a thrusting stroke. Ask before you thrust. Go easier during menstruation.

Twist and Shout

TWIST AND SHOUT. Using one, two, or three fingers, penetrate in and out while twisting at the wrist. Your knuckles will roll past her urethral sponge. Twist and shout is a thrusting stroke, and thrusting strokes increase energy. Remind her about PC squeezes � they make it even more energizing. If she is breathing and moving her pelvis, she may be meeting your hand halfway; you won�t have to do much except twist your hand and meet her.

THE HEALING THRUST. This is a perfect stroke to alternate with twist and shout. It is the same thrust, without the twist. She may like this thrust slow, deep, and hard, or fast and shallow. Ask her to be specific. Many women have experienced penetration they felt they had no control over or penetration they did not want. This conscious penetration, which she can control with her feedback, may be empowering and healing, or just plain feel wonderful. Be sure to encourage her to breathe and relax.

Filled with Love

FILLED WITH LOVE (AKA FISTING). Some people with pussies might enjoy having a whole fist inside their vagina. Make sure she is very relaxed and breathing deeply. Start with two fingers, and then add a third. Tuck your thumb under all four fingers and curl your fingers inward. This stroke is not a thrusting motion; it�s a twist. You�ll know pretty quickly whether your hand will slide in past your knuckles or not. If it doesn�t, stop. If it does, stop when you are inside. Just stop and be still. Bring your awareness to your breath. Appreciate that feeling of going back to the womb. This stroke works wonders to relax the whole pelvis and builds a lot of life/sex energy. Try it with your other hand under her tailbone, or while massaging her abdomen with your other hand.

STILLNESS. Hold completely still while your hand or fingers are inside her vagina. Don�t move; just be there; meditate.

This section of the massage uses a vibrator. A battery-operated vibrator is neither strong nor subtle. A plug-in or rechargeable vibrator is the way to go. To maintain safer-sex protocol, put a large latex (or nitrile or vinyl) glove over the head of a large vibrator, and plastic wrap on the handle. You can use condoms for wand-type vibrators; roll the condom down the shaft.

Think of the vibrator as an extension of your hands. In all the following strokes, feel for that Resilient Edge of Resistance. Too much pressure with the vibrator will hurt, but too little feels annoying.

Start at the bottoms of her feet, and move up her legs. Then vibrate her chakras. At the first chakra, place your hand between the vibrator and her pussy. Then move up to her belly, her solar plexus, then her heart and nipples. Anytime you are using the vibrator over a bony area, put your hand between the vibrator and her body. This is especially important around the throat. (I like to vibrate the throat chakra by placing the vibrator � at slow speed � at the back of her neck.) Vibrate the center of her forehead and the top of her head.

Now vibrate her inner thighs and around her outer labia to get her used to the sensation of the vibrator and to tease her unmercifully.

VIBRATE AROUND THE CLIT CLOCK. Place the vibrator on top of your lubricated forefinger and place your finger at twelve, three, six, and nine o�clock.

VIBRATE THE CLITORIS. Some women don�t like the vibrator directly on the clitoris. You can use a finger beneath the vibrator; or you can apply the vibrator to one side of her clit. Use enough lube to make sure the vibrator glides easily.

THE VIBRATING DOORBELL. Press, release, press, release with the vibrator on her vulva and clitoris.

VIBRATE THE VAGINAL OPENING. Place the head of the vibrator at the vaginal opening.

AS SHE LIKES IT. Ask her how and where she�d like her vibrations.

FREESTYLE. By this time, the energy will probably be rocketing along nicely. Remind her to breathe. Use whole-hand strokes to spread the energy around her body, and just try to keep up with her. This section of the massage can get loud and wild and crazy. (Don�t you just love that?) She may have an orgasm, or several; she may not. There is no goal. You are using breath and erotic energy in whatever form it chooses to take to charge the body. Let whatever happens happen. Simply focus on building and circulating as much sexual energy as possible.

When her body is fully charged with breath and sexual energy, it�s time for the Clench and Hold. Invite her to take about thirty fast, full breaths and then three big, deep breaths. She holds the third deep breath and tenses every muscle in her body, especially her buttocks, abdomen, and pelvic floor.

Remember, there are a number of ways to do this clench. She can:

Press downward onto the massage table or floor with her hands and shoulders, head and butt, and legs and feet

Extend her body outward as far as it can go, reaching for the opposite walls with her feet and her hands

Pull in toward the center of her body as hard as she can, first clenching her abdominal muscles, and then pulling the rest of her body in toward her abs

When she takes the third deep breath, remove your hands and the vibrator. Count silently to fifteen, and then tell her to let go and relax.

This is the most profound portion of the massage, for both giver and receiver. If you have been giving the massage, sit or stand nearby quietly and breathe. Don�t talk to your partner or touch her. Just let her be for fifteen to thirty minutes. Notice how you are feeling. Although you will want to keep some of your awareness on your partner, use this time for yourself as well. What was your experience? Although there is no goal in this massage, the emphasis is on going into a new place of meditation and relaxation within ourselves, and this can be true for the giver as well as the receiver.

If the receiver indicates that she wants to be covered up, gently fold the sheet around her. She may want her face covered. For some women, this feels like being held safely in the arms of mother earth; for others, it may feel like a tomb. Everyone�s experience of this process will be different. There is no right or wrong way to feel. Some women who receive this massage may not feel very much the first time. Some may need more time to work with the conscious breath techniques and practice receiving in order to relax and receive pleasure. Some women, especially those who have been sexually abused, may cry or feel angry or numb. Allow whatever needs to happen to happen. She may laugh or cry or yell, or lie there so still and peacefully that she looks as if she has died. Resist the temptation to hug her or comfort her unless she specifically asks you to.

Create an ending to your massage that is consistent with your initial intention. If your intention was to create an intimate connection, the giver(s) and the receiver might end the massage with a long cuddle. Or, if your initial intention was to send the receiver on an inner voyage of discovery, the giver might sit quietly beside the massage table for the duration of this afterglow.

When she indicates that she is ready to move, help her roll onto her side, and eventually to sit up. Remember that you have been spreading her energy and her juices around her body. To maintain safer-sex protocol, do not touch her until she has had a shower or unless you are still wearing (or have put on a fresh pair of) gloves. If you want to hug as she gets off the table, make sure her sheet is between you.

This erotic massage is a healing and clearing process. Many women report feeling more sensitive for a few days after receiving this massage. Some feel great, some cry more easily, some notice that they feel all their emotions more intensely, and some feel relaxed and energized. Be gentle with her and be gentle with yourself.

You have just experienced a new and powerful way of relating erotically: an experience of pure giving and pure receiving. Take some time to express gratitude to your partner for sharing this experience with you, and communicate something of what the experience was like for you. Try to avoid slipping back into old patterns. If you were the one receiving, don�t immediately start thinking of what you can do for your partner. If you were the one giving, don�t quiz your partner on how you could have done it better. Speak from your heart. Use the time and your experience to deepen and expand your own lives and to grow in your relating with each other.

The Erotic Awakening Massage for people with penises begins much like the massage for people with pussies. After all, both pussies and penises are connected to bodies, minds, and spirits, all of which get attended to in the course of this massage. But as explained in chapter 17, this version of the massage is designed to avoid ejaculation, creating deeper (and even multiple) orgasms.

If you haven�t already, please read the sections called �Setting Up� and �Connecting� in chapter 18. Prepare a serene space with soft lighting, fresh air, and nice music. Gather the things you�ll need: nitrile or vinyl gloves, condoms, lube, massage oil or cornstarch, and, if he likes, a vibrator. (Vibrators are not just for vulvas and clitorises. They are delightful on all sorts of genitals, and, of course, on each and every chakra.) Connect with each other before you begin to touch. You can ask yourself and each other, �What wants to be spoken now so that we can both surrender to the massage when the touching begins?�

Here is a special note for the person receiving: Please remember that, although it is the job of the person giving the massage to ask what you would like and how you would like it, it is also your job to tell them. Receiving is not a passive activity. This massage is a process you are participating in, not something someone is doing to you. It is your responsibility to say �a little harder,� �a little softer,� �a little more to the right,� and of course, �ooh, that�s nice.� And givers, sometimes when the receiver says �not so hard� or �a little to the left,� you may think, �Oh, I have done something wrong.� No, you haven�t. Don�t take it personally; simply do what they ask. In fact, it�s nice to say �thank you� whenever you get feedback. The thank-you honors the receiver for naming his desire.

Although this erotic massage will focus on his cock, you will want to remember to spread his sexual energy all throughout his body and, in particular, you will want to open the energy channel between his cock and his heart. The natural heart/cock connection is often damaged in the process of growing up male in the Western world, where men are encouraged to act more from the first and second chakras than the heart chakra. Only in the last couple of decades has the archetype of the sensitive guy become acceptable, and even then, just barely. This massage can be a great healer of the heart/cock schism.

The style of this erotic massage for people with penises is to build up energy in the cock with specific cock strokes and then distribute that energy throughout the body. From the cock, we will bring energy into the belly and the heart and then distribute it from these centers into the arms and legs. By bringing sexual energy away from the cock and into the rest of the body, we charge the entire body with sexual energy while avoiding ejaculation. Remember, we are not trying to avoid orgasm � only ejaculation, which usually depletes the sexual energy.

The strokes we will use to concentrate and distribute the energy are circles and U-shaped strokes. A U is a glide with your palm from the belly or heart or perineum out to both arms or both legs. For example, from the heart, you glide from the nipple down to the knee, back up to the same nipple, over to the other nipple, and then down to the other knee. From the belly or perineum, it�s the same: glide from the belly or perineum to the knee, back up to where you began, and then down to the other knee. Circles concentrate energy; Us distribute them. Use a circular stroke on the belly or heart or perineum to concentrate sexual energy in those areas, and then use a U to distribute that energy further.

Gather your latex gloves and grab some lube (or if he prefers massage oil, grab your nitrile or vinyl gloves), and let�s get started.

Invite your person with a penis to lie on his back. Invite him (or order him, if that�s the style you�ve both agreed upon) to breathe.

Begin with a sensual massage. Try tantalizing him with a feather or a scarf. One touch that many men find deliciously awakening is a light brushing over the top of any body hair they may have. When you are ready to begin the sensual massage strokes, you can use cornstarch, oil, or just your bare hands. You do not need to put on your gloves until you are about to touch his cock. Take your time with the sensual massage. The key to all erotic massage is relaxation. It may sound strange to hear that you want your partner to be totally relaxed if you want to be sexual with him, but it�s true. After he is completely relaxed, you can add any amount of conscious tension you want. This is much better for eroticism than being driven or blocked by the many little unconscious tensions we all carry around most of the time.

Help your partner maintain an even, conscious breath by breathing evenly and consciously yourself. Matching your breath to your partner�s is a surefire way to instant intimacy. After you have relaxed his body, you can start to wake up the genital area. Many men focus most of their awareness on the glans � the head of the penis. Waking up the area around the penis opens the energetic pathways between the cock and the rest of the body.

The Penis

You can tug on his pubic hair, just not one hair at a time! Grab fingerfuls of it and lift. You can scratch vigorously in his pubic hair. Knead the whole pubic symphysis � the flesh over the pubic bone. Gently take the skin between your thumb and forefinger and knead it.

Now tickle or gently tug on the hair of the scrotum. If the skin of the scrotum is fairly loose, you can knead it. Don�t knead the testicles, just the scrotal skin. Knead it between your finger and thumb, stretching it until you find the Resilient Edge of Resistance � that is, until you feel it start to pull back.

Now it�s time to put on your gloves and begin the cock strokes.

COCK SHIATSU. This is a great wake-up stroke. Grasp the head of his cock and stretch it to its full length. Cocks are elastic � they stretch quite easily. Hold his cock in the stretched position between finger and thumb. Using your other hand, squeeze a finger width at a time from base to glans and back. You can work quite deeply. You can do this laterally (from the sides) and then along the top and bottom (dorsal and ventral). This is a stroke to awaken the entire shaft of the penis and to open the channel of the shaft so that the pleasurable energy from the cock can run up into the rest of his body. From a reflexology perspective, this deep tissue awakening also stimulates and awakens all of the energy points of the rest of the body.

Pulling Back the Skin

PULLING BACK THE SKIN. Here�s a basic technique you�ll use in many of the strokes. You�ll be pulling back all the skin covering the penis, not just the foreskin. Grasp the head (glans) between thumb and fingers. Firmly stretch the cock upward until there is some resistance. (As my Chester used to say, �Penises are not made of china. They do not break. You are not pulling it off. You are just finding out how far it stretches.�) Use your other hand to pull the loose skin down and hold it at the base where the penis meets the body. Anytime the instructions that follow tell you to �pull back the skin� or �pull back the skin and hold it at the base,� this is the technique you�ll use. It can be done with both circumcised and uncircumcised men. You may want to check with uncut men to find out if they want their foreskin retracted; many do.

Now it�s time to sensuously apply oil or lube to the insides and tops of the thighs, making sure the cock and the balls are sufficiently oiled. Use extra lube or oil wherever there is more hair.

ROCK AROUND THE COCK CLOCK. Lay the penis on the belly and � with both hands � stroke it from base to glans in a continuous motion. Your hands can be flat or wrapped around the shaft. Slowly move the cock from the twelve o�clock position (pointing straight up to the navel) to the one o�clock position, and so on, around the clock. At four o�clock, slide off the cock and onto the inside of the thigh, pushing energy into the leg. At six o�clock, wrap your hands around the cock. (If he is already rigidly erect, six o�clock may point straight up to the ceiling rather than downward toward the feet.) Go all the way around the clock. For some variations, go counterclockwise, or stroke your hands in opposite directions on the cock. Your left hand pulls the skin back and holds it at the base of the cock; your right hand glides out from the base, along the shaft, and grasps the glans. While the right hand hold the glans, your left hand grasps the shaft just behind the glans and glides from the back of the glans back to the base. Repeat. Continuous, slow motion makes this particularly delectable.

TWIST AND SHOUT. This is another very popular stroke. Pull back the skin with one hand, squeeze the shaft with your whole other hand, and pull with a twisting motion. As you pull, your hand will slide up the shaft and off the head. It feels best when done deeply and slowly. This stroke usually produces cringing and gasps of horror when demonstrated in front of people without penises. But really, the penis will not break. People with penises enjoy this stroke when it�s done with some real intensity. Ask him. He will probably encourage you to do it harder and deeper.

THE CORKSCREW. This is a variation on twist and shout. You are going to pretend that the head of the cock is a cork you�re trying to pop out of a wine bottle. Pull back the skin and hold it at the base. With the penis between the knuckles of your index and middle finger, squeeze, twist, and pull. You can also play with the �cork� at the end of the stroke instead of popping it off.

FIRE. This is a high-energy stroke. Hold the cock straight out from his body between the flat palms of both your hands. Using lots of lube, move your hands in opposite directions with deep friction. Use medium to deep pressure. This can be done rapidly, or very deeply and slowly. Alternating between the two tempos usually produces loud moans of delight.

HAND JIVE. This stroke is a cousin to the fire stroke. Hold the cock between both palms and interlace all your fingers. With your hands clamped together, stroke up and down the shaft. Use your thumbs to play with the head a bit. As a variation, you can hold your hands still and let him fuck your fists.

Juicer

JUICER. This is another �pull back the skin� stroke. Pull back the skin and hold it at the base. With the other hand, act as if you were juicing an orange on his cock. Use your fingertips to make a fast circular motion to �juice� up and down all along the shaft. This stroke builds and moves energy all along the shaft. When your fingers are far down on the shaft, the palm will be making slippery contact with the glans and urethral meatus (piss slit). Pay special attention to the coronal ridge (back edge of the head). You can lightly tease it with your fingernails or simply slide your fingertips all around it.

You may be giving a great massage, but are you breathing consciously? Breathe more, and it�ll feel even better � to both of you. Take a long, full, deep, audible breath. This will encourage your partner to breathe. If that doesn�t do it, just threaten to stop the massage until he does breathe. This is nearly 100 percent effective as a breath-maximization tool.

These cock strokes are not designed to get him off as fast as possible � quite the opposite! You want to build up a maximum amount of energy while avoiding ejaculation. To do this, use many different tempos and pressures, and change them frequently. Alternate high-energy strokes with calmer ones. Alternate strokes that focus on the glans with strokes that focus more on the shaft. Mix it up � keep him guessing! In addition, remember the body strokes. Spread that sexual energy up from his cock, into his belly and heart, and out to his arms and legs.

If at any time the receiver feels close to ejaculation, tell him to shake his body. He cannot ejaculate while he is vibrating his legs, arms, and face.

Now, let�s pick up where you left off. Here are some more cock strokes.

HAIRY PALM. Grasp the cock with one whole hand. Grasp the base if he is erect, or hold it just behind the head if he is not. Holding the palm of your other hand flat, glide it in a light, circular motion directly on the urethral meatus. It is too intense for some men even if done lightly; other men like it quite hard. You can vary the stroke by rotating your wrist so that your flat palm glides around the meatus on the soft tissue of the glans. My favorite variation on this stroke is to hold the palm still and scrape the palm with the glans.

HEELING. This is done with the heel of your palm. Lay his cock on his belly. Place your hand flat on the penis, fingers pointed toward his feet. Using the heel of your palm, glide from the head to the base, pressing the cock into the belly. Think of the belly as an ironing board and the heel of the palm as an iron, and iron all the wrinkles out of the cock. You�ll notice that when you focus the pressure on the heel of your palm, his piss slit will bend up and kiss your wrist.

Heeling

VARIATIONS ON HEELING. (1) Splay your fingers to stimulate the belly even more. (2) As your fingers approach his balls, gently wrap your fingers around them. Don�t press � just give them a little light stimulation. (3) Do heeling in the opposite direction, from the base of the cock to the tip.

COCK ROOT VIBRATIONS. When the cock is hard, you can feel that the erection extends all the way back up and inside the body. The perineum actually feels hard. We call this the cock root. With the fingers of one hand, lift the balls out of the way. Place the palm of your other hand against the cock root and vibrate. (You can also use a vibrator, either on top of your hand or directly on the cock root.) If he is relaxed and breathing consciously, cock root vibrations will travel up his whole body. Cock root vibrations are no different from vibrations anywhere else on the body: adjust the speed of your vibrations until you feel a natural wave.

FRENULUM FROLIC. The area on the underside of the head of the cock where it joins the shaft is called the frenum or frenulum. This is a very sensitive area of the penis for most men, and it is very important in the awakening and energizing process of the massage. Pinching the skin here can be very enjoyable for the receiver. You can also do thumb circles, laying the head of the penis on your palm for support, and using the tip of the thumb on your other hand to make alternating deep and very light circles on the frenum. Or both thumbs can slide over it alternately while the shaft is supported by the fingertips.

Rainbow Rub

THE RAINBOW RUB. This stroke also concentrates on the frenum. Pull back the skin and hold it at the base. With the other hand, grasp the glans between the fingertips and the heel of the palm. Squeeze the fingertips tightly until the hand slips up over the top of the cock. Move as though you are lifting the glans off the shaft; then put it back. This is a firm and deep stroke. The frenum (which Joseph Kramer calls the Gates of Consciousness) is thought by penis reflexologists to be the main point for stimulation of the third eye or visual center. Hence the name �rainbow rub,� since it can enhance or stimulate the seeing of colors and/or visions.

Vary your strokes. The Resilient Edge of Resistance applies here as well. Just as his body gets used to a deep sensation, get light and tickle it again. When you consistently and consciously change the nature of the stimulation, the body becomes increasingly more alive and awake. Since the intention is not to ejaculate, avoid the consistent back-and-forth motion that would lead to it. But orgasms without ejaculation are permitted, and even encouraged. Constant change wakes up the penis so that it can actually become more sensitive than it would be at ejaculation. If you then move all that energy throughout the body, he can experience multiple orgasms during the course of this massage without the inevitable drain of energy that follows ejaculation for many men.

By the way, how�s the breathing going?

At this point in the massage, breathing should be full and deep and powerful. Remember, the more you breathe, the more you feel. Go for it.

RING THE BALLS. This stroke is unique in its ability to delight the receiver, while cooling down the energy when ejaculation is dangerously close. Using your thumb and forefinger, form a ring around the base of the scrotal sac, where the scrotal sac joins the body. Pull the skin of the scrotal sac taut and hold it. Using the backs of your fingernails, tickle the skin. Just about the time he gets used to this tingly, tickly sensation, wrap your whole palm over the balls. When you feel him relax, go back to fingernail tickling. You can use this stroke anytime, but it is particularly effective if he is getting close to ejaculation. You can, of course, simply remove your hands from his cock � that will certainly work. But if you want to keep the energy high, �ring the balls� will keep the energy building without moving him closer to ejaculation. Stimulating the testicles sends energy streaming out through the rest of the body, so this is also an energy distribution stroke.

By now, his energy should be rockin� and rollin�. In these few minutes before the Clench and Hold, encourage him to breathe even more fully. Alternate cock strokes with body strokes. Spread the energy around his entire body. Remember, there is no goal. You are using breath and erotic energy to charge the body. Let whatever happens happen. Simply focus on building and circulating as much sexual energy as possible.

And let�s get real, here. Despite your best intentions, ejaculation may happen. If it does, enjoy it! Just because it wasn�t your intention doesn�t make it a �mistake.� It�s no big deal. After all, this is erotic massage, not brain surgery. There�s enough guilt around sex without piling more on ourselves. Enjoy the orgasm, and unless the receiver still wants to do a Clench and Hold, move on to the afterglow section of the massage. Later, you can make note of how you passed that point of no return and decide which techniques you�ll use to avoid ejaculation the next time.

When he is fully charged with breath and sexual energy, it�s time for the Clench and Hold. Invite him to do about thirty seconds of faster, fuller breaths, followed by three big, deep breaths. He holds the third deep breath and tenses every muscle in his body, especially his buttocks and abdomen. Remember, there are a number of ways to do this clench.

He can:

Press downward onto the massage table or floor with his hands and shoulders, head and butt, and legs and feet

Extend his body outward as far as it can go, reaching for the opposite walls with his feet and hands

Pull in toward the center of his body as hard as he can, first clenching his abdominal muscles, and then pulling the rest of his body in toward his abs

When he takes the third deep breath, remove your hands. Count silently to fifteen, then tell him to let go and relax.

Stay nearby and stay present. Even though you are not touching him, your presence is supportive. You are holding a safe space for him. Stand by the table quietly. He may be crying, laughing, or just lying very still. Unless he specifically indicates with his hands or his voice that he wants to be touched, do not touch him. Occasionally, people become very active after the Clench and Hold. If he is thrashing around on the table and you�re worried about him falling off, simply place your body against the near edge of the table and reach over and grab the far edge of the table. This way, if he rolls, he won�t fall off the table.

After fifteen to thirty minutes, he will probably have come back into his body. If you want to touch him, touch his knee and his wrist. This is a safe and noninvasive invitation to return to his body. Take long, slow, deep breaths, or match your breathing to his. You may want to massage him gently and slowly with a towel to remove some of the massage oil. When he indicates that he is ready to move, help him roll onto his side and, eventually, to sit up. Keep your gloves on until you are completely finished. Stay with him until you know that he is able to walk on his own two feet.

Feel free to fold, spindle, and mutilate the techniques in these two massages. In fact, I am about to do just that in the next chapter, where I�ll adapt everything you�ve just read into a massage for trans and gender-nonconforming people. However, I do recommend that you try the Erotic Awakening Massage in its entirety at least a few times to experience the completely unique way that breath, touch, and movement build sexual energy in this process. After that, feel free to break it apart and incorporate chunks or bits of it into other sexual play. Or introduce other types of sexual play into the Erotic Awakening Massage. The creative possibilities are vast, and the effects are extraordinary.

Repeat after me:

Genitals do not define gender.

Gender is not determined by the shape and style of genitals.

Did that sound odd? Wrong? Even frightening? If it did, it�s not surprising. These two statements fly in the face of the most basic assumptions about gender in Western cultures. But finally, human experience � backed by science � is breaking the myth of two-and-only-two genders, determined at birth solely by the shape of one�s genitals. Genitals themselves do not have a gender. They are simply tissue. In fact, in utero, all of us have the same genital tissue. In the course of our fetal development, and guided by chromosomes, this tissue may form a penis, a clitoris, a scrotum, a vulva, genitals resembling a combination of these, or none of the above.

How Genitals Develop

Whatever the configuration of your genitals, none of them defines your gender. What�s more, gender is not even determined by your chromosomes. We now know that there are many more sex chromosomal variations than just XX for women and XY for men. Scientists know of XO, XXX, XXXX, XXXXX, XXY, XXXY, XY/XXY, XYY, just to name a few. Chromosomal variations may � but do not necessarily � produce genitals that seem to be something other than �normal� penises and vulvas, further rendering genitals-as-gender-marker quite useless. In addition, other chromosomal variations can produce ambiguous external genitalia that does not look clearly male or female.

So to find gender we must look above the waist. Gender identity is a construct of the mind � some would say the soul. There are an infinite number of unique genders just waiting to be explored by brave trans and gender-nonconforming people. However, awareness and acceptance of infinite gender possibilities is new, and the rule books are only beginning to be written. While the gender-nonconforming spirit might be unfettered by binary thinking and traditional gender expectations, the gender-nonconforming body may have trouble navigating the physical � and especially the erotic � world.

I created this Erotic Awakening Massage at the request of the trans and gender-nonconforming students in my Urban Tantra Professional Training Program. They wanted a process by which they and their clients and friends could discover and express their sexuality no matter where they fall along the vast gender spectrum. In the process, we stumbled upon a gender-free erotic massage that could be used by everybody and anybody � because everyone falls somewhere on the gender spectrum. So anyone at all can experience the freedom of gender-free/gender-inclusive eroticism. However, this particular massage is designed specifically for the needs and pleasures of people outside the gender binary.

This Erotic Awakening Massage relies upon effective communication without the use of usual names for genitalia such as penis, scrotum, testicles, vulva, clitoris, vagina, and so on. Instead, communication focuses on sensations. This may seem odd, as I usually encourage the proper naming of body parts to facilitate clear communications and help reduce sexual shame. But for many people, traditional names for genitals are gendered terms and their use triggers discomforts associated with gender dysphoria (which simply means that a person feels like their emotional and psychological gender identity is not in alignment with the gender they were assigned at birth). Gender dysphoria � that is, focusing on the misalignment � is utterly unsexy.

The exception to this no-traditional-names rule is when the receiver of the massage chooses to use a traditional name to better express their gender identity and discover their turn-on. For example, a person may wish to experience their penis as a clitoris or their clitoris as a dick. Or perhaps they use entirely different terminology to describe their genitals, such as front hole/rear hole, cocklit, dicklit, junk, stuff, bits, astral rod, and good spot. In these cases, the giver will want to use the terms the receiver prefers.

Giving this massage requires a basic knowledge of erotic anatomy and the willingness to drop expectations and adopt a childlike curiosity about how genitals work. I use the phrase intentional na�vet� to describe this quality. One of the simplest ways to enter the state of intentional na�vet� is to first learn the genital anatomy and the massage strokes outlined in the previous two chapters � and then �unlearn� it all. That�s right, forget everything you think you know. Of course, in practical terms, unlearning is much more difficult than learning. And that serves us well in this case, because you�ll remember just enough to approach this massage with empowered hands and minds.

Once you have chosen to unlearn how a vulva or a penis is supposed to respond, you can newly discover which bits of genital tissue enjoy which types of touch and sensation. Using a variety of strokes (which can be borrowed and/or adapted from the unlearned Erotic Awakening Massages for pussies and penises in chapters 18 and 19) plus variations in pressure, friction, and speed, you can build arousal, thus creating an experience of discovery and ungendered pleasure for trans and gender-nonconforming people.

Before we begin the massage, let�s remember that all genitals have evolved from the same tissue. Instead of buying into the myth of how different male and female genitals are, let�s look at the similarities.

As you can see in the illustrations opposite, all genitals have these basic parts:

Glans: The glans is the head of both a penis and a clitoris, as well as any similar structure that may be something in between (as in the case for some intersex people).

Urethral opening: This is located in the center of the glans of the penis, and between the glans of the clitoris and the vaginal opening.

Shaft: All clitorises and penises have shafts. A portion of all shafts extends into the body.

Bulbs: Bulbs are made of erectile tissue. The bulb of the penis is in the midline of the root (the part buried inside the body), surrounded on either side by the legs (or crura). The bulb of the penis extends up into the underside of the shaft as the corpus spongiosum. The clitoral bulbs (also known as vestibular bulbs) are found next to the clitoral shaft, the clitoral legs, the urethra, the urethral sponge, and vaginal opening.

Legs: The legs (or crura) of the clitoris are within the outer labia. The legs of the penis are in the root of the penis, on either side of the bulb, and on either side of the top of the external shaft, forming the two corpora cavernosa.

Frenulum: The frenulum is an elastic band of tissue located under the glans of the penis and at the point where the two labia minora meet at the back of the vulva.

Same Jell-O, Different Molds #1

Furthermore, all genitals are made up of the same tissues, which can be found in slightly different places, as seen in the illustration below.

The tissue that makes up the glans on both the penis and the clitoris is the same.

The tissue that makes up the shaft of both the penis and the clitoris is the same.

The tissue of the scrotum is the same as the tissue of the outer labia.

The tissue that makes up the penile shaft is the same as the tissue of the clitoral shaft.

The tissue that makes up the inner labia also makes up the raphe � the seamlike ridge that extends through the midline of the scrotum and upward through the midline on the underside of the penis.

Same Jell-O, Different Molds #2

Now that we know our anatomy, let�s begin.

The Erotic Awakening Massage for Trans and Gender-Nonconforming People begins in much the same way as the massage for people with pussies and penises. Prepare a serene space and gather the things you�ll need: gloves (latex, nitrile, or vinyl), condoms, lube, vibrator, and massage oil or cornstarch.

Communication is key in all the Erotic Awakening Massages, but it takes on a somewhat different intention in this one. Before the receiver gets on the massage table, ask them to tell you how they identify. How do they describe their gender? Which (if any) pronouns do they prefer (e.g., he, she, they, their name, etc.)? What do they call their genitals? Do they have specific names for specific bits? How would they like you to refer to their genitals? If they have no preferences, you can go with the gender-inclusive names we discussed earlier: glans, shaft, legs, bulbs, and frenulum.

When Genital Touch Triggers Gender Dysphoria

You can adapt this Erotic Awakening Massage for people who experience gender dysphoria when their genitals are touched. Begin by supporting them � with or without touch � in the breath-based meditation in the �Using Sex Magic to Ease Gender Dysphoria� section in chapter 24. They may wish to wear articles of clothing and/or prosthetic genitals that reinforce their gender identity � or not. They may wish to touch themself � or not. Anal stimulation and penetration may be reinforcing of gender identity � or not. In short, ask them what activities and sensations are likely or known to strengthen their gender identity and which are not.

Then ask them if there are any places on their body that they do not want you to touch. They may ask you not to touch their genitals, certain parts of their genitals, or their chest, or breasts. Or touch may be conditional. One of my nonbinary friends said, �I�d be okay with touch on my upper body if you can treat it as a chest, not as breasts. Touch the less fleshy parts and be a bit rough.� Another told me, �My breasts are super new and very sensitive. I love them touched, but I�m still getting used to how sensitive they are. Please start very gently.�

Ask them if there is any kind of touch they especially like or would like to experiment with. This is a good time for the receiver to ask for something that they haven�t had the opportunity to ask for or receive in previous erotic encounters. For example, �I haven�t had sex with anyone since I started taking estrogen. I know my big clit (formerly, penis) will respond differently now, and I�d like to spend some time exploring that.�

The most important agreement between giver and receiver during this massage is the promise to give and receive feedback. Consent is an ongoing process. Something the receiver thought sounded yummy before the massage began might not feel as appealing twenty minutes into it. The receiver may at any time request more touch, less touch, or a different touch. Any requests may be modified or rescinded, and new requests can be made. And all activity can be stopped at any time � for a few moments or for good. As in the previous two massages, it�s affirming to the receiver to hear a �thank you� from the giver whenever they make a request or answer the giver�s request for feedback.

I always ask for the receiver to tell me their intention for the massage. It�s much easier to accompany someone on their erotic journey if I have a sense of where, or in what direction, they�d like to go. For example, would they like to explore sensation and sexual response after surgery or hormones? Or relearn their erotic body? Or practice feeling safe when they�re touched erotically? Or appreciate or celebrate their changing body? Having an intention makes it easier for me to offer appropriate choices in touch and energy-building techniques and for them to choose the ones that fit their intention.

In chapter 17, we practiced sensual massage strokes using your whole hand to glide, knead, vibrate, and lift and hold different parts of the body. These strokes can be used to either relax the body or to build energy, depending on your intention. The same is true for the breath. You can encourage your partner to use their breath to relax into a peaceful serenity or to build enormous amounts of ecstatic energy. Remember, not only are genitals genderless � so are lungs! I invite you to think of this Erotic Awakening Massage as an ecstatic breathwork session accompanied by conscious touch.

Genital touch is just one of many possible sensual, loving, stimulating ways to arouse a body, and it is completely optional. That being said, nongendered/gender-inclusive genital touch can be delicious, affirming, and even life changing. In this massage, I�m not going to suggest specific genital massage strokes. Instead, I�m going to suggest several ways to touch that are likely to be pleasurable for genitals of any shape or configuration.

Before you touch, I invite you to put your heart in your fingertips. Genitals are small and sensitive, and we want to touch them consciously and with love. Remember how I explained whole-hand touching (this page)? I asked you to find the sweet, sensitive spot in the center of your palm and imagine that it was connected directly to your heart. Now I�d like to you to do that with your fingertips. Place your fingertips directly on your heart. Imagine them charging up with love and awareness. Then imagine them able to make a conscious heart connection to the body you are about to touch.

Reminder: Try to stay at the Resilient Edge of Resistance while offering all these touches. Play with the elasticity of the flesh and find the edge where there is both resistance and resilience. That�s where your touch will be the most aware, awake, and pleasurable. Right, so now let�s take a look at what kinds of touch you have at your fingertips (or palms).

PRESSURE AND FRICTION. I�ve combined these two types of touch because you could give an entire genital massage with just these two. Some types of genital tissues respond most enthusiastically to pressure, others to friction. For example, shafts usually enjoy varying degrees of pressure, while glans like varying intensities of friction. Experiment. Which other bits like to be stroked or rubbed, and which like to be pushed or squeezed? Which ones like both? You can generally increase both pressure and friction as arousal builds, but always be sure to check in with the receiver to see how they like it.

VIBRATIONS AND PULSES. Both vibrations and pulses are strokes that involve the use of a flat surface of the hand, such as the palm or the flat side of a closed fist. You might vibrate the entire genital area with your palm or vibrate the perineum with your fist. You can also vibrate the pubic mound or upper thighs or buttocks. Pulses are simply slower versions of vibrations, as in Pulse. Pause. Pulse. Pause. Pulse.

TAPPING OR DRUMMING. These strokes can be done lightly or with some gusto. Start gently, especially on genitals. Place one hand over the genitals, then tap or drum on your hand. Be sensible. Remember the erotic anatomy you unlearned from the previous chapters. Some genital tissue and structures will enjoy this stroke more than others. Ask for feedback before and during.

KNEADING. Lots of genital tissues love kneading. Kneading is a very effective way to stimulate legs, bulbs, and shafts. Begin with a lighter pressure and ask if they�d like more.

SCRATCHING. Often popular on the pubic mound or on any area covered by hair, scratching can also be a lovely sensation when done by using the back of your hand to run your fingernails over sensitive areas.

VARIATIONS IN SPEED AND PRESSURE. Begin with slow and light, and follow the Resilient Edge of Resistance toward faster and deeper. Remember that one of the most delicious strokes of all is complete stillness.

Now that you have your strokes in hand, let�s take a look at the sequencing of the massage. The Erotic Awakening Massages for People with Pussies and Penises followed a relatively structured sequence. In this massage, we don�t have guidelines about whether or not to orgasm or ejaculate, or about whether to build arousal in a slow climb or within a dance of higher and lower intensities. Our focus is on building energy in the erotic body. Most people will call this arousal, but some will simply experience it as energy. This massage is not dependent upon any particular sequence. It�s a journey of pleasure and discovery without a road map � it�s more like having an adventure in the woods. Anyone creative and brave enough to create their own gender is equally able to create and enjoy their own unique sexuality. As the giver, it�s our job to hold a space for them to do that. As the receiver, it�s their job to give us feedback.

Verbal communication is always our primary and preferred means of feedback, but there are other useful ways the body tells us what it�s experiencing. The breath may become slow and deep or fast and intense or even stop for a while. Muscles may tense, then release or shake. Sounds other than words can tell us that our partner is experiencing pleasure or surprise or discomfort. The skin may communicate excitement with flushing or goosebumps. Genitals may become engorged with blood. Often, we will be able to interpret what the body is telling us. Other times, we may not be so sure and we�ll need to ask. Remember, �How are you doing?� is not a demand for a lot of information. It�s just a check-in to make sure both receiver and giver are on the same pleasure track.

As in the Erotic Awakening Massages for people with pussies and penises, this massage may also culminate in a Clench and Hold or � as I like to call it here � a gender-free orgasm, followed by a long, meditative afterglow.

Do keep in mind that no two bodies of any gender share an identical set of turn-ons or paths to pleasure. Just like everyone else, arousal in trans and gender-nonconforming bodies may be affected by hormones, aftereffects of surgeries, personal history, emotional states, and a whole host of other factors. Your partner may choose to share some of these with you, but it�s not necessary for them to do so. If both you and your partner approach the Erotic Awakening Massage with intentional na�vet� and if you both keep your breath, voice, ears, consciousness, and heart focused on whatever is happening in the present moment, you will meet each other�s emotional, physical, and spiritual Resilient Edge of Resistance.

The experience of living openly with a trans or gender-nonconforming identity is relatively new in the world. Bringing pleasure to someone who is living such a gender identity and/or expression is an even newer concept. Give yourselves a huge amount of love and applause for being erotic pioneers. Namaste.

As I mentioned in the introduction, both Tantra and BDSM are erotic arts of consciousness that have more in common than may at first seem apparent. In this chapter, I would like to encourage further blurring of the lines between Tantra and BDSM. Both BDSM and Tantra produce intense erotic sensations that can create prolonged ecstatic states of arousal and altered states of consciousness. You may have already begun to appreciate this if you have tried any of the numerous techniques and toys borrowed from BDSM that I have suggested thus far, such as bondage, sensory deprivation, and the �wilder� list of sensation-producing devices (see the �Props: Mild to Wild� chart in chapter 12).

This chapter is not only for people who are new to BDSM, or who are unsure about BDSM, or who simply want to include some more intense sensation in their Tantric practice. It is also for people who love and adore BDSM and would like to know how to incorporate Tantric techniques into their play. First, however, I�d like to tell you how I stumbled upon my realization of the inseparable, yin/yang connection between these two sacred arts.

I�ve always been fascinated with the idea of play piercings. Play piercings are temporary piercings. The needles are usually standard hypodermic needles, minus the syringe. These are pierced through small folds of skin anywhere on the body where there is no danger to any blood vessels, nerves, or tendons. They are designed to stay in the skin for a few minutes or a few hours. Sometimes, small weights are attached to the piercings; when the piercee moves or dances, the swinging weights stimulate the needles and the body produces endorphins. The high is euphoric.

In the Olympics of pain, I was more of a sprinter than a long-distance runner. I loved the rush of endorphins from a permanent piercing: the feeling of fire when the big needle went into my flesh, and the wait while the needle was left in place until the endorphins kicked in. And then the best part: surfing the waves of altered consciousness in the afterglow. The long, meditative astral travels that accompanied permanent piercings were better than any drug I had ever tried.

But I had never tried play piercings. To satisfy my curiosity, I attended a play piercing demonstration by my friend Raelyn Gallina, the high priestess of piercers. Voyeuring was the whole point of the event, held on the ninth floor of an undistinguished building in New York�s Chelsea district, accessible only by a cramped, battered elevator. On the makeshift stage of what appeared to be an abandoned off-off-Broadway theatre sat two women and Raelyn. One woman was very young, probably just eighteen, with short, dark hair. She wore dark blue jeans and a dark teal zip-up sweatshirt over a neat white T-shirt. The other was older, blonde, and casually elegant in black leather pants and a satin blouse. Both were perched precariously on the edge of excitement and fear.

Raelyn is calm, centered, and entirely focused on her setup: gloves, alcohol, and needles in sealed blue packets. Every imaginable safe and hygienic protocol is in place. She is ready to begin.

The younger woman removes her sweatshirt, her T-shirt, and finally her bra. Raelyn swabs her chest with gauze soaked with alcohol. She speaks to the young woman too softly for me to hear the words. The young woman nods. Raelyn picks up the first needle. She pinches a small bit of skin on the top of the young woman�s breast near the center of her chest, and pushes the needle through the flesh. The young woman winces slightly, then exhales. Raelyn waits. The young woman smiles. Two dozen needles are to follow.

One after another, Raelyn places her needles in a circular pattern, starting at the breastbone. She circles down around the outer edge of the young woman�s breast, beneath her breasts, around the outer edge of the other breast, and back to the first needle at the breastbone. After each needle, Raelyn waits for the young woman to take a breath, letting the endorphins catch up with the piercings. After the first few needles, though, there�s no need to wait. The young woman is clearly enjoying the effect of each subsequent needle more and more. After the last needle, Raelyn picks up a spool of elastic thread. To my amazement, she weaves the thread among the needles until the young woman is wearing a beautiful white spider web of needles and thread on her chest.

Raelyn picks up a thread in the center of the mandala and gives it a tug. I gasp. The young woman seems startled, and then a moment later she grins. The grin turns into a giddy giggle. Then she laughs. Happily.

Now it�s the second woman�s turn. Raelyn does exactly the same thing to her. This woman has clearly done this before. She seems less surprised by the sensations and she knows how to use her breath to increase the effect of the endorphins. It�s not that she doesn�t feel the pain; she appears quite sensitive. It�s just that she�s learned that she can play the pain like music, changing the pitch and the tone and the volume. I enjoy watching her; I know what she�s doing. I use my breath the same way to build and move sexual energy in my body. I realize I�m breathing in rhythm with her. I�m getting high.

Raelyn keeps on piercing � as focused and present and beautiful as ever. Occasionally, she pauses between needles to give a gentle tug on the first woman�s mandala to keep the endorphins flowing. Raelyn finishes the circle of needles on the second woman�s chest, and then she weaves an identical elastic thread mandala. She gives the center threads a tug. The blonde woman shivers and then smiles.

Raelyn is sitting on a chair in the center of the stage. The first woman sits facing her on her left. The blonde woman is on her right. Raelyn playfully tugs one mandala, and then the other. Then she stands up, moves her chair away, and asks the women to move in closer to each other until their knees are almost touching. She picks up her spool of elastic thread, and my excitement grows as she ties the two webs together.

The two women are now facing each other, their chests not more than eighteen inches apart. They�re gazing into each other�s eyes. As if moved by some instinctual drive, they gently begin to rock back and forth, first toward one, then the other. As they become more confident, their gaze grows stronger, and their breathing becomes deeper and faster. They make an ahh sound on each exhale. The rocking becomes more and more active, until I see an endless wave of energy between them. I�m knocked breathless. I�m seeing something totally familiar and something completely alien at the same time. I know this! I have never had a needle mandala on my chest, but I know exactly what they�re feeling. This is the Tantric heart position!

Instead of each partner touching the other�s heart with the palm of their hand, these two are connected by needles and thread! Everything else is the same: the breathing, the rocking back and forth, the eye gazing. This posture can bring up laughter or tears � both of which are happening on the stage this very moment! The young dark-haired woman is smiling through the tears flowing down her cheeks and the blonde woman is simply radiant with joy.

Raelyn had woven a physical diagram of the energy exchange. Tonight, S/M had become visible Tantra! What a mindfuck! I wanted to run out and call every Tantrika I knew and tell them of my most amazing discovery. Both Tantra and this kind of S/M employ the same magic ingredients of sexual energy, endorphins, ritual, and consciousness to attain transcendent states of ecstatic connection. This was Tantra concretized. Tantra for the concrete. Urban Tantra! My head and my cunt exploded with the possibilities.

Suddenly S/M made sense to me in a way it never had before. I certainly understood that S/M ran on sexual energy and endorphins. But until tonight, I had never understood that it could be a sacred practice. But why not? The defining core of both practices is consciousness and the awareness that you are setting up a powerful dynamic for erotic or spiritual purposes. Both are journeys of transformation requiring courage and commitment. I have heard both Tantrikas and BDSM aficionados describe their experiences as feeling as if they had been forged by fire into something stronger. When we can see both Tantra and BDSM as sacred sex, we step into the totality of possibilities of sensation and eroticism.

Like Tantra, BDSM is a vastly complex and comprehensive practice incorporating a wide variety of play, from the wild to the mild. There are people who have been practicing BDSM their whole adult lives and have never played with needles or any other sharp, shiny instruments. Stories about the wilder and harder activities in BDSM can discourage people from trying any aspect, just as stories about the touchy-feely aspects of Tantra can put off people who love BDSM. Just as we have to change our minds about how sex works to understand Tantra, let�s take a moment to bust some popular myths about BDSM.

BDSM IS NOT VIOLENCE. BDSM scenes may appear scary and painful if you have never experienced this kind of play. It may seem that the dominant (aka the top, or sadist) can do anything they want to the submissive (aka the bottom, or masochist). In reality, it�s the submissive who is in charge. Both partners negotiate the scene before the action starts. The submissive can stop or slow down the scene at any time by uttering a safeword. (A safeword is a word or short phrase that either party can use when they want all play to stop immediately. It is typically a word that would not otherwise come up in an erotic environment.)

BDSM has nothing to do with committing violence against a helpless person. Tying someone up and beating them against their will is naked brutality. It�s not BDSM. BDSM operates under one of two credos: Safe, Sane, and Consensual, or Risk-Aware, Consensual Kink (R.A.C.K.). �Safe� means that precautions are taken to keep everyone involved safe from physical harm. �Risk-aware� acknowledges that some activities have a physical or emotional risk and that the players accept that risk with appropriate safety precautions in place. �Sane� means that the players are not under the influence of drugs or alcohol and are not doing anything mean or malicious and that everyone�s emotional and mental safety is being cared for. �Consensual� means that everyone participating is doing so because they want to; no coercion of any kind is taking place. Consent may be withdrawn or modified at any time.

In short, BDSM is consensual; violence is not.

BDSM IS NOT AN ILLNESS OR AN ABERRATION. Research studies have shown that compared to the normative samples on ten psychological disorders, BDSM practitioners had lower levels of depression, anxiety, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), psychological sadism, psychological masochism, borderline pathology, and paranoia. Further, results showed that in comparison to nonpractitioners, BDSM practitioners exhibited higher levels of extraversion, conscientiousness, openness to experience, and subjective well-being.

As much as 62 percent of the population is thought to have some interest in BDSM, and mainstream media is full of BDSM-inspired art and erotica. Although historically BDSM behavior was listed as a psychological problem along with masturbation and homosexuality, like the latter two, it no longer is. BDSM-like practices have been performed in many cultures and by many spiritual seekers, including early Christian mystics, Native Americans, and Indian Fakirs. The energy built in these rituals can be used for spiritual journeys, as an offering to a deity, and for personal bliss.

BDSM IS NOT PARTICULARLY DANGEROUS. Most BDSM activities are completely safe, but some activities require more skill and practice than others. It doesn�t take a federal safety inspector to figure out that playing with ropes, chains, whips, canes, electricity, and needles can be dangerous if you don�t know what you�re doing. This is where the safe, sane, and risk-aware rules come into play. If you want to play with a toy or technique you haven�t used before, ask a more experienced player to teach you how to do it safely. BDSM players are extremely conscientious about safety and are usually very open about sharing their expertise. If you want someone to use a particular toy on you, make sure they know how to play with it safely before you start a scene.

PEOPLE WHO LIKE BDSM ARE NO MORE LIKELY TO BE SURVIVORS OF CHILDHOOD SEXUAL ABUSE THAN ANYONE ELSE. People with an interest in BDSM come from all sorts of family backgrounds, all walks of life, and all genders and sexual orientations. Some people who come from abusive backgrounds find BDSM completely unappealing; others find it to be an important part of their healing. Most BDSM aficionados come from healthy families, as do most other erotic explorers. Some identify as �lifers,� having had BDSM fantasies from their earliest memories. Some players felt a connection the first time they tried BDSM and then proceeded to become regular or not-so-regular players.

PAIN IS NOT A MANDATORY PART OF ANY BDSM SCENE. Lots of people who love BDSM hate pain. BDSM covers a range of activities, from light bondage and role-playing to sensory games and body modification. The pain level can range from intense to nonexistent. It�s all up to the individuals negotiating the scene. S/M does involve pain, but bondage/discipline and dominance/submission can be completely pain free. Submissives who do like pain experience it in a wide variety of ways. Some receive the sting of a riding crop or the bite of a flogger as a kind of sexual pleasure. Some people who suffer from chronic pain say that the focused pain they experience in S/M alleviates their chronic pain. Other people like the feeling of power they experience from being able to transmute painful stimuli into pleasure. Consensual pain, when administered carefully, in measured doses, releases powerful endorphins that give some people a great deal of pleasure and peace.

JUST BECAUSE A BDSM SCENE MAY LOOK UGLY TO YOU DOESN�T MEAN IT�S NOT FULL OF LOVE AND POSSIBILITIES FOR SPIRITUAL TRANSFORMATION. Some of the bravest and most spiritually aware people in BDSM play with the darkest aspects of human existence. Imagine the levels of courage and trust it takes to lay out all the parts of yourself you usually take such good care to hide � your greatest fears, your deepest shame, your naked vulnerabilities � and allow someone to take you on a journey into the heart of those feelings. In Tantra we speak of walking through the fire of human experience for the purpose of burning off fear, shame, and attachments. We emerge on the other side scrubbed clean from the inside out � free of limiting beliefs that kept us small and powerless. The outer process of spiritual transformation can be intense and difficult to witness, but the inner process of the participants may be indescribably beautiful.

As your practice of Tantra deepens, it is increasingly likely that you may want to expand your sexual/spiritual repertoire to include something found more commonly in a dungeon than an ashram. Go for it! It is not necessary to make a lifetime commitment to anything other than listening to your body and your spirit and asking for what you really want and need. If on Tuesday what you want is a massage with feathers, great. If on Friday you�re begging to be flogged, also great. As long as your partners agree that they are comfortable giving you what you want, go for it.

Many of the ways a Tantric practice can be enhanced by BSDM are scattered throughout this book. For you to make the most of them, it will be helpful to have an understanding of power exchange and erotic pain. From a Tantric perspective, both power exchange and pain are simply ways to move and share energy. Let�s look at how they work and how you can fold them into your Tantric practice, if that�s something you�d like to do.

Power exchange in a Tantric and/or erotic context means power sharing, not power taken by force. If you choose to surrender some of your power to someone else for a ritual or scene, you are loaning a portion of your personal power to your partner for a specific period of time. To do that, you must be able to access and own your own power. Powerless people can�t give what they don�t have. You can give away a little or a lot of your power � aka control � in any area of your life. The amount of power/control that you relinquish could be as small as letting someone else decide what you�ll be having for dinner that evening, or as daring as asking someone else to make all or most of your decisions in every area of your life for an extended period of time. It�s completely up to you. And I do mean up to you. Once the power exchange is negotiated and the ritual begins, it might appear to an outsider that the dominant partner has all the power all the time, but in fact, it�s the submissive who�s in control, because they can stop the power exchange at any time and take back their power.

If you are the partner choosing to take control, you must also be aware of the source and strength of your own power. Being on the receiving end of the gift of someone�s power is not an opportunity for ego enhancement or a way to pick up some extra power you feel you�re lacking. Power/control in this context means accepting responsibility. You are responsible for your partner�s physical, mental, and emotional safety for the entire period they are under your control. Obviously, if all you are controlling is what your partner is having for dinner, the responsibility is pretty light. The worst risks you could face are their disappointment in your choice or perhaps a tummy ache. But when the commitment is deeper and longer, the risks rise proportionately. This is why some full-time dominant/submissive relationships are negotiated for years before being entered into fully.

So what exactly does intentional power exchange feel like? Here�s a little experiment based on an exercise you are already familiar with: �The Heart Connection� from chapter 15.

Heart Connection with Power Exchange

This time, you will do the Heart Connection with the intention of maintaining an equal power exchange. This means that you will stay at that Resilient Edge of Resistance by each contributing the same amount of energy to the exercise. No one will be leading and no one will be following.

As a reminder, here are the basics:

Place your right hand over your partner�s heart. Your partner places their right hand over your heart. You place your left hand over your partner�s right hand (which is on your heart). Then, your partner places their left hand over your right hand (which is on their heart).

The Heart Connection: Hands to Hearts

Breathe together and look into each other�s left (or nondominant) eye. Allow a sigh or an ahh to come out every four or five breaths. Continue for thirty or forty breaths or until you feel that your hearts are open and connected.

After a while, let yourself rock back and forth. As your rocking becomes faster and more intense, take your hands off each other�s hearts and hold them together between you in a prayer position, joining all four hands. As you continue to rock, move your joined hands in circles, sending energy up the front of your body and down the front of your partner�s. Then reverse, sending energy up the front of your partner�s body and down the front of yours.

The Heart Connection: Rocking Back and Forth

Now let�s try this exercise again with a power exchange. This time one of you will contribute 25 percent more power to the exchange, and the other will contribute 25 percent less. Okay, go!

Now come back to an equal power exchange. Keep going until you feel the equality is stable.

Now switch! The partner that was giving less now gives 25 percent more, and the partner that was giving more now gives 25 percent less. Go!

Once again come back to an equal power exchange. Keep going until you feel the equality is stable again.

What happened? Was more or less energy generated between you by adding the power exchange? Did you prefer having more or less power? How did the heart connection and eye gazing affect your experience of the power exchange?

As with so many other aspects of Tantra, Tantric power exchange is an intentional choice you can make about where and how to run your energy. It can produce deeply relaxing, healing, trance-inducing, and exciting intimate connections.

The first question people who aren�t familiar with erotic pain usually ask is, �Why on earth would anyone find pain sexy?� Actually, not all pain is sexy. There is a huge difference between the �Yum!� of erotic pain and the �Ouch!� of non-erotic pain. The primary difference is intention. Erotic pain is intentional. Unintentional/accidental pain is not.

Non-erotic pain is the unwanted by-product of an illness or accident. Erotic pain is not only intentional, but it is also desired by the person receiving it, who perceives it as exciting, pleasurable, cathartic, loving, and a wonderful way to achieve surrender or release. Even when erotic pain is desired, it takes practice and skill to deliver it in a manner that builds energy and desire. When intense sensation is built up slowly, the body has a chance to produce elevated levels of dopamine and endorphins, increasing one�s desire for more intense, pleasurable sensations.

Playful erotic spanking is one way many people can come to understand how pain might be pleasurable and exciting. It�s not dangerous, and a smack on the bottom stimulates all sorts of erotic nerves that carry pleasurable sensations to the brain. Let�s try an exercise in which you can experience giving and receiving erotic pain/intense sensation using Tantric techniques to transmute that pain into pleasurable energy.

Playing with Pain

You will both have a safeword. For purposes of this exercise, the safeword is red. If at any time either of you wants to stop, just say, �Red!�

The receiver will decide what kind of intense sensation they would like to receive and ask the giver to deliver it. (Sometimes a single, effective, painful sensation can only be created with multiple strokes; therefore, those multiple strokes � such as three spanks in quick succession � count as a single sensation.) Unless you are both experienced BDSM players, givers will use hands and other body parts only, not toys or other implements.

The giver must agree that they are willing and happy to give the requested sensation. If so, they deliver the sensation, then sit back and do nothing, allowing the receptive partner to fully experience the sensation.

The receiver dives into the sensation as totally as they can, using their breath, imagination, sound, and PC squeezes to move the energy from the pain and carry it through their body.

When it feels like the sensation has dissipated, the receiver may ask for another sensation, perhaps specifying that the next sensation be lighter or harder or something completely different.

The role of the active partner is to give the sensation only when asked and to support the receptive partner with breath and focused energy.

Communication is key in this exercise, for both giver and receiver. Continue for as long as you are both having fun and then switch. Afterward, ask yourself these questions: Did you enjoy this experiment in erotic pain more or less than you thought you would? Was there anything about it that surprised you? Would you like to try more of this? Or not?

Playing with erotic pain is not for everyone. But if you enjoy it, you can use it to build and share energy at any intensity level you choose. If you don�t enjoy erotic pain, perhaps you have gained a clearer understanding of why some people do.

In 2003, I was invited by author and sex educator Tristan Taormino to facilitate two Urban Tantra workshops at Dark Odyssey, a pioneering gathering of people from the Tantric, BDSM, Polyamorous, Pagan, and Queer communities. When I stepped into the workshop room � a dungeon � for the first time, I was scared. At least half the attendees were experienced BDSM players. Although my form of Tantra welcomed a harder touch and a darker look than some Tantric practices, did it really have anything to offer people who were as devoted to BDSM as these folks?

I began by reading the quote from Osho on the subject of the three basic elements of higher sex that I shared with you in chapter 2. When I finished, both Tantrikas and BDSM players were eagerly nodding agreement. Then I noticed that everyone was nodding. I had momentarily forgotten Tantra�s guiding principle: the elimination of duality. Paradoxically, the very principles that make the apparently opposing sexualities of Tantra and BDSM seem so different are the things that make them so similar.

As the weekend progressed, it became increasingly more fascinating and fun to see all the ways in which Tantra can enhance the practice of BDSM, and vice versa. Here are some actual questions I�ve been asked by Urban Tantra workshop participants, followed by the answers for each:

I get stage fright before I walk into a dungeon. I think about how much it is going to hurt. I love it once I start. But because of this fear, I don�t play as often as I�d like. Can Tantra help me?

You are someone who needs to prepare more than usual before playing. Bottoms often wait for a top to take the lead in a scene. Your scene starts before you leave for the dungeon. Think of your BDSM scene as a Tantric ritual. Take responsibility for your own preparation. Before you leave home, chill out by doing the Bottom Breath (see chapter 5). This will help calm your fear. Then warm up: raise some endorphins and a feeling of personal power by doing a few karate chops. Or scream underwater. Or better still, do the Cathartic Meditation (see chapter 5).

Come together with your top in negotiation. In addition to talking about what you definitely would like, what you definitely don�t want, and what you might be willing to try, negotiate a longer warming-up period for the rock and roll stage of your scene. Agree on a safeword. In your negotiations, also agree on how your top will treat you during the afterglow. You might want something like the kind of care provided by the giver in the Erotic Awakening Massage rituals (see chapters 18 through 20). A note for your top: a grounding hug is an excellent way to bring your bottom back to earth without losing the state of altered consciousness the two of you have spent so long building.

I�m a top. I�d like to be able to read my bottom more easily � to be more intuitive. Any tips?

Learn how to play at the Resilient Edge of Resistance (see chapter 6). No matter what kind of physical or emotional scene you are doing, you can coax more and more out of your bottom if you stay at your bottom�s Resilient Edge of Resistance.

To stay at this ever-shifting edge, remain conscious. This simply means being in a relaxed state of awareness, with a quiet mind. Then you are able to focus gently and easily on what�s going on in each present moment.

Use your breath to keep your attention focused on your intentions. Match your breath to the frequency and depth of your bottom�s breath. This will bring you to a physical awareness of what they are feeling. Observe how and where their energy is moving. Are they undulating their hips and making low, guttural sounds? Then their energy is in the first or second chakras. Are they tossing their head and making high-pitched squeals? Then their energy is in the upper chakras. We build energy in BDSM in the same ways we build energy in Tantra. It�s a dance of heart/upper chakra energy with genital/lower chakra energy. Keep both fires stoked with the appropriate mix of hard and soft play. Your bottom will think you can read their mind.

There is a top in my community that I�d love to play with. Everyone I know recommends him highly. But I just can�t bring myself to play with someone I don�t know well. Can Tantra help me to be more trusting?

Yes, it can. In the come together/negotiation part of your ritual, do more than talk. Connect on body and spirit levels by eye gazing and using the Circular Breath. Negotiate while sitting in the Pose of Recognition with hand balancing. Play the mad/sad/glad/scared game to increase intimacy between you (see chapter 14). A few minutes of the heart position will also get your energy moving in a circuit between you. Pass this information along to your dream top�respectfully. If this top is as good as you hear he is, he�ll love learning some new techniques.

One of my bottoms loves to jump in at the deep end with heavy sensation play right from the start. But another just can�t handle that. I need some innovative tips on how to warm up my more fragile bottom.

First determine what kind of sensations the bottom likes. Thuddy? Tingly? Stinging? Sharp? Are you trying to deliver lighter strokes with the heaviest piece of equipment you have? Your fragile bottom may see that imposing tool and experience any sensation coming from it as too painful (see the �Props: Mild to Wild� chart in chapter 12). Start with an inoffensive, silly prop that delivers a milder sensation, and work your way up to harder strokes with heavier equipment. Stay at the Resilient Edge of Resistance. Drop your judgments about what is or isn�t a �proper� BDSM prop. It won�t spoil your tough top image if you carry a long, pink ostrich feather into the dungeon.

I can�t stay in bondage very long without getting claustrophobic. I always ask to be released sooner than I want to be and sooner than my top would like. Any advice?

Try using the Bottom Breath and keep your focus on your breathing (see chapter 5). Don�t use an energizing breath, and don�t allow your fear to dictate the way you breathe. Short, rapid inhalations and exhalations will only make you more anxious.

Keep some part of your body moving. Even if most of your body is immobilized, there is always something you can move � your PC muscle, for example. Follow the example of my dance teacher Luigi after he was paralyzed in a car accident (see �Let�s Dance� in chapter 8).

I have a serious foot fetish. I fear that no one in either the Tantric or the BDSM community will take me seriously. Where do I fit in?

Every fetish � from toes to tampons and plushies to playpens � can be enjoyed Tantrically. In Tantra, we strive to become the taste, feel, sound, and smell of our sensual experiences. If you love feet, dive deeply into their worship. Go into it totally. Find partners with tired toes in either the Tantric or the BDSM community who will appreciate your devotion. Don�t worry about fitting in. Drop your expectations of how you will be received. Don�t judge yourself or allow others to judge you. Above all, drop your desire to understand why feet affect you the way they do. Conduct your foot worship with respect and consciousness and good manners, and you will be welcomed in more places than you can imagine.

I have been exclusively a top for ten years. I�m feeling out of balance. How might I use Tantra to explore bottom space?

Find yourself a switch (a partner who is comfortable either as a top or a bottom) and negotiate a scene that will be the BDSM equivalent of the Pose of Giving and Receiving (see chapter 14). Go totally into topping and then totally into bottoming. Notice what bottoming is like for you and share that with your partner. Repeat the exercise, noticing the sense of commitment you have when you are topping. Try to move toward that sense of commitment to bottoming. Good bottoms pay attention to what their tops want from them. Using your experience as a top, pay attention to your own body responses to bottoming. Use the witnessing technique (see �Witnessing� in chapter 5).

My lover and I don�t include genital sex in our BDSM play. Can I use Tantric techniques to give myself an orgasm during a scene?

Tantra and BDSM share the opportunity for extended full-body orgasmic states. In both Tantra and BDSM, these orgasmic states are created using a wide variety of techniques that go beyond genital stimulation. Practicing the Breath Energygasm and the Clench and Hold (both in chapter 10) will open neural pathways in your body that, once opened, stay open. These newly opened energy pathways will allow more and more pleasurable sensations of all kinds to flow throughout your body. Once you can easily do the Breath Energygasm and the Clench and Hold, you can incorporate them into whatever kind of scene you like. While you are being flogged, for example, you can have a full-body energy orgasm by breathing sexual energy up your chakras, followed by a Clench and Hold.

I proudly refer to myself as a pain slut. How can I use Tantric techniques to help me process deeper levels of pain?

Breath is your best friend when you want to turn intense pain into intense pleasure. Experiment with the Heart Breath, the Breath of Fire, and the Circular Breath (see chapter 5), but also feel free to invent your own breathwork style. Alternate charging and calming breaths. The secret to being able to take longer and more intense levels of pain is to keep the pain moving through you. Think of the pain as energy. Use all the same techniques you�d use to keep any other form of energy moving though your erotic body: imagination, sound, PC squeezes, and intention. Use your imagination to create an image of yourself as a pure energy channel. You might imagine yourself as a huge bird, and each dose of pain strengthens your wings and allows you to fly higher. Or perhaps you�ll turn into a surfer, riding the pain like a huge wave until it disappears on the beach.

Sometime our eagerness for sensation drives us to go too quickly. You may be asking for more intensity when you aren�t sufficiently warmed up. Ask your top to be aware of this and to go slowly even if you are giving signals that you want more now.

I am a serious S/M player. I have a crush on someone who is far more Tantric than kinky. Is this worth pursuing? What can we do together that we would both enjoy?

Sure, it�s worth pursuing, provided both of you are willing to be creative.

The Erotic Awakening Massage (see chapters 17 to 20) offers many opportunities to give and receive pleasure of varying style and intensity. Modify it to include your individual preferences.

In the next chapter, you�ll find an Erotic Playsheet and directions on how to use it. It will help you create an erotic encounter that will give each of you pleasure without asking either of you to compromise too radically.

As you can see, the yin and yang of Tantra and BDSM can be a delicious dance of conscious touch and intimate relating. Be creative. Borrow your favorite elements of each. Avoid the inclination to label your creation as a modified version of either. It�s all sacred sex, and the style, intensity, and components of your creating will probably change daily. In the next chapter, you�ll see how you can create rituals that will match your moods and fulfill your desires.

With so many Tantric techniques available to you, how do you decide which techniques to use, and when? In this chapter, you�ll learn to design Tantric rituals that fit your particular lifestyle and erotic tastes � rituals you can actually do in the time you�ve got. Life presents us with one surprise after another. Some are juicy and delightful; others are painful and difficult. No matter what kind of surprise happens to find you, you can use sex to celebrate it or help heal it. You accomplish this by creating erotic time that suits the mood you actually are in, as opposed to the mood you think you should be in to enjoy sex.

A solo ritual is relatively simple to create, as you need only be concerned with pleasing yourself. If you have a partner and want to be sexual with them, things can get more complex. The two of you might try to come together after a busy day in the big city only to find yourselves in entirely different moods. This could lead to sex that is a compromise in which no one gets their needs met. That kind of sex can be worse than no sex at all, so over time, many couples find their sex lives fading away. Tantric rituals help you bring life, joy, and a much-needed sense of humor back to your sex life.

Whether you are planning to enjoy a Tantric ritual with your partner or by yourself, your first step is to figure out how you are feeling. This may not be as easy as it sounds. Try it. Ask yourself, �How am I feeling right at this moment?� Are you in touch with your feelings, or are you more or less clueless? Now ask yourself, �What would I enjoy sexually right now?� On my good days, I have a pretty clear idea of what would make me all wet and tingly. I can also pinpoint exactly how mad, sad, glad, or scared I am. On my stress-filled, less-than-great days, those questions make me hopelessly frustrated, and I am likely to growl, �I don�t know. I�m having a hard day. I�ll get back to you!�

I�ve put together an Erotic Playsheet. It helps me get back in touch with my feelings and desires on less-than-clear days. It�s a set of questions that you � or you and your partner(s) � can answer prior to sex to get a better idea of how you are feeling and what you might want. The Erotic Playsheet is divided into two sections: how you are feeling, and which erotic activities you might enjoy. Make it part of your preparation. Breathe. Relax and take your time. The Erotic Playsheet is a gentle guide; it�s not a test. Answer as many questions as you can, but leave it blank if you honestly don�t know the answer or if you�re not interested in a particular activity. The Erotic Playsheet is simply a tool for locating your feelings and desires so that you can better honor them.

Let�s follow one woman and two couples as they create Tantric rituals that satisfy their particular needs and desires.

ONE OF THOSE DAYS

Carol is a single mother who works in sales for a large corporation. This morning, she had to leave a meeting with an important client to pick up her son at his school and take him to the hospital because he got into a fight and broke his wrist. This afternoon, Carol was reprimanded by her boss, who questioned her commitment to the company. She got a lecture from her son�s principal about her parenting skills. And she got a call from her lover, Sonia, who wonders why Carol can�t spend more time with her.

On the opposite page you can see how Carol filled out her Erotic Playsheet when she finally got home.

To chill out, Carol draws a warm bath scented with essential oil of ylang-ylang. To warm up, she takes a deep breath, puts her face in the water, and screams �Fuck you!� at her boss and at the school principal. She takes another breath, puts her face in the water, and screams �You asshole!� at her son. Her third breath and scream is at her girlfriend: �Leave me alone!� Feeling considerably less tense and numb, Carol goes to her bedroom and locks the door. She lights her favorite rose-scented candle, opens the window for some fresh air, and presses play on her favorite playlist for days like this � Janis Joplin�s Pearl.

As she gets out her vibrator and her favorite dildo, she realizes that Pearl is not quite the right music for the come together section of her ritual. She adds ten minutes of a sensuous Brazilian instrumental to the beginning of the playlist with Pearl programmed to play right afterward.

Carol lies on her bed and begins the Breath Energygasm. As she begins breathing into her solar plexus, Carol discovers she can�t even feel this part of her body. After several breaths, she begins to cry. She keeps on breathing, and the tears keep on flowing. As the energy moves up into her heart, her crying subsides and she feels the stirring of a warm, comforting fullness in her solar plexus.

As she breathes into her throat, Pearl begins. Janis wails �Move Over� as Carol sucks and tongues her dildo to lubricate it; then she slides it into her vagina. She turns her vibrator on high and places it on the exposed end of the dildo. As the rock and roll phase intensifies, Carol rolls over onto her hands and knees, breathing, doing PC squeezes, vibrating her clitoris, and undulating her body like a wave. After her first orgasm, she rolls onto her back and keeps up her circular breathing. When her clitoris has become less sensitive, Carol brings herself to orgasm again, this time combining her orgasm with a Clench and Hold.

When Carol lets go after the Clench and Hold, she lies flat on her back with her palms up, in the classic yoga corpse pose. In the afterglow, Carol meditates as Janis sings about freedom being just another word for nothing left to lose. Carol realizes that she does feel free, strong, and quite peaceful. By the time Janis asks the Lord for a Mercedes-Benz, Carol is dozing off with a satisfied smile on her face.

DIFFERENT LIVES

Tiffany and Grant have been live-in lovers for two years. For the past four years, Tiffany has been working as a dominatrix to pay her way through drama school in New York. She earns a substantial amount of money and she enjoys her work. It has helped her develop and expand her sense of personal and sexual power.

Recently, however, Tiffany has been feeling out of balance. She is trying to connect more with her compassionate, intuitive, spiritual side. Earlier this week, Tiffany auditioned for and was cast in a supporting role in an independent film to be shot in Los Angeles. Having recently graduated, Tiffany feels it�s time to change careers and move to L.A. She is thrilled with her new acting job, but apprehensive about all the changes that this will bring.

Grant is a writer. He has written two books of critical essays, both of which were published and well received. His dream is to be a best-selling novelist. He has spent the better part of the past year writing an erotic thriller for which he had high hopes. This week, his agent informed him that three publishers turned down the book, calling it too cerebral, theoretical, unrealistic, and unsexy. Grant has no objections to relocating to Los Angeles to be with Tiffany. However, he is better at planning than at execution, and he has no idea how to actually go about making the move. At home one evening in new York, they decide to share a Tantric ritual. You can see Tiffany and Grant�s Erotic Playsheets on the following pages.

Tiffany and Grant show each other their playsheets. They laugh at the obvious differences in their needs and desires. It only takes a few minutes of loving negotiation to arrive at a ritual that will satisfy them both. They begin by setting the stage. They light candles and gather massage supplies, glasses of water, and some fruit. Tiffany puts soft, pretty pillows on the floor and dresses herself in a colorful sarong while Grant changes into his leather shorts. They put together a playlist with music by Vangelis, Dead Can Dance, and Stan Getz and set the play to random.

To chill out, both do ten minutes of the shaking section of the Exhilaration Meditation with their eyes closed. For their warm up, they give each other grounding hugs. To come together, they sit facing each other on the floor. After a couple of minutes of eye gazing, each shares the things they are mad, sad, glad, or scared about while the other listens silently. They follow this with the Pose of Giving and Receiving. Tiffany receives first. On some of the strokes, Grant uses a feather and a bit of fur instead of his fingers. When it is Grant�s turn to receive, Tiffany blindfolds him and ties his hands in front of him. She feeds him, teasing him with each bite. She pauses, making him wonder and wait for what will come next. She softly strokes his head and neck, then rakes her fingernails down his arms and onto his thighs.

Tiffany tells Grant to lie back on the floor. Rock and roll begins as she takes off his shorts and kisses his cock. She runs her tongue around his cock and sucks it until he is hard and breathing deeply. Then she lubes her hands, places them on either side of Grant�s cock, and gives him particularly hot fire strokes. She follows this with all the strokes he requested, plus a few extra, just for fun. Then she kisses him, removes his blindfold, unties his hands, and says, �My turn.�

Grant rolls her over onto her back and strokes her breasts, kissing her nipples. His hands move down her belly to her pussy. He begins pussy petting. Then he begins to rock around the clit clock, throwing in an occasional pinch and pull. He does some tap, tap tapping for divine drumming, and then, because Tiffany asked for harder strokes, he plays her like a big bass drum, one big beat at a time. As her squeals of laughter and pleasure subside, he gently and slowly slips a finger inside her vagina and holds it perfectly still. Tiffany begins to move against his hand, then she asks for another finger. He complies, giving her urethral sponge a yummy, intense massage, just the way she likes it.

Tiffany sits up and straddles Grant in Yab Yum. They fuck blissfully and deeply in this position, breathing, rocking, and squeezing their PC muscles. Grant begins to breathe faster, fuller breaths that let Tiffany know he wants to do a Clench and Hold with her. They take in a deep breath, clench, stare into each other�s eyes, and then let go. They continue to gaze into each other�s eyes; it is as if they can see into each other�s soul. Finally, they gently fall backward into Heart-Foot-Hand position. In their afterglow, Grant feels his root chakra pressed against Tiffany�s, and her power and earthiness supporting him. Tiffany feels Grant�s foot on her heart and feels her heart and third eye alive, awake, and pulsing. They lie like this for many minutes. When they sit up, they wrap a blanket around themselves, sip some water, and feel closer, stronger, more open, and more trusting with each other and about their new life.

P.S., YOUR CAT IS DEAD

Simon and Tony have been lovers for four years. This past year, Tony went through major surgery. Simon took time off from his job to nurse him back to health. Just as Tony was feeling better, Simon�s mother was diagnosed with cancer and died within three months. Two weeks ago, Simon�s only brother was killed in an automobile accident. Tony and Simon are trying to cope. They love each other and they believe in the power of sex to heal. Simon and Tony�s Erotic Playsheets are on the following pages.

Tony sets up their massage table in the bedroom. He turns off all the lamps and lights just enough candles to be able to see. He turns on an electric heater. When the room is comfortably warm, he selects Thunderdrums from his music library and invites Simon into the room.

Seeing how stiff Simon looks, Tony invites him to chill out with an elephant massage. It makes Simon feel looser, and he even laughs a little. When Simon stands up, he offers Tony an elephant massage, and Tony accepts. Tony suggests that Simon might like to warm up by doing a section of the Cathartic Meditation, which they both enjoy. Simon doesn�t feel up to it, but he wants to let out some of the anger he is feeling. So he yells as he throws karate chops into a pillow that Tony holds in front of him. Tony yells along with Simon, which lets Simon feel supported and also gets Tony�s energy rising.

To come together, Tony and Simon sit facing each other on their massage table. They gaze into each other�s eyes. Tony tells Simon how much he loves him, how grateful he is for all the love and support Simon has given him this past year, and that it is his intention to do the same for him now. Simon gratefully accepts and asks Tony if it will be okay if they call in the spirits of Simon�s mother and brother. Tony thinks it is a wonderful idea and suggests they also invite in the spirits of some of their friends who have passed away. Simon and Tony call out the names of their loved ones and invite their spirits to join them in their ritual.

Simon lies on his belly on the massage table. Tony begins by giving him a sensual massage. Although it feels nice, Simon tells Tony that he needs something harder. Tony chooses a medium-intensity flogger and begins striking Simon�s back and buttocks and thighs. Simon asks for harder strokes. Although he specifically asked for no pain, he experiences the flogging as delicious. Simon takes deeper and deeper breaths; they feel like the first deep breaths he has taken in weeks. Tony, watching Simon�s breathing and body, slows down, doing fewer, more intense strokes. The last strokes take most of Tony�s strength. Simon sighs deeply and moans. Finally, Tony puts down the flogger and picks up the massage oil.

Simon feels his nerves begin to calm down. He is ready to rock and roll. As Tony starts to oil his cock, Simon realizes how little he has been feeling, not only in his cock but everywhere in his body. Tony concentrates on intense, energy-building cock strokes. Every time Simon gets close to ejaculating, Tony removes his hands from Simon�s cock and spreads the energy up into his heart. Tony visualizes all their combined sexual energy flowing into Simon�s body, replacing his grief and anger with peace and joy. He feels that he is channeling the love of all the spirits they have called in. Simon tells Tony he wants to do a Clench and Hold. They breathe fast, full breaths together, and then Simon clenches, holding the clench so long that Tony has to tell him to let go.

At first Simon is very still. Then he begins to smile. Tears run down his cheeks and onto the sheet covering the massage table. Tony stands by the table, just being present. After a few minutes, Tony asks Simon if he�d like to be covered. Simon says yes.

After Tony covers Simon, he changes the music, replacing Thunderdrums with soft, celestial music. Simon lies perfectly still. He is so still that Tony is not even sure he is breathing. Tony just sits with him. He feels the presence of the family and friends they have invited to join them as if they are alive and standing beside them in the room. It is profoundly peaceful and comforting. Tony weeps.

Meanwhile, Simon does indeed feel as if he is dead. He isn�t aware of any specific images or sounds, though he does remember thinking that he didn�t know it was possible to breathe so shallowly. He starts to giggle. His giggles become peals of laughter, which in turn become wracking sobs, as he recognizes the overwhelmingly strong presence of his mother and his brother. He realizes that he has not laughed so hard since he was with the two of them last year. Simon thanks them both and tells them how much he loves and misses them. For the first time since their deaths, he feels the comfort of knowing that they will always be with him.

Tony and Simon sit in their separate but shared afterglow for almost an hour. Finally, Simon offers Tony his hand. Holding hands, they do not speak. When Simon is ready to get off the massage table, Tony takes him into the bathroom and the two of them share a warm bubble bath by candlelight. Both Tony and Simon have received a healing.

No matter what your day, week, or month has brought you, you can create a Tantric ritual that will transport you from whatever you�re feeling now into someplace more ecstatic and peaceful. Make some copies of the Erotic Playsheet. Fill it out and start creating your own rituals. Be flexible. In the three examples given, the resulting rituals did not precisely follow what was written on the playsheets. The rituals morphed into what the participants wanted and needed in the present moment. Stay conscious. Honor your intentions. Remember to celebrate.

Sex in groups is vastly underrated and underexplored. The consensus in polite society has always been that sex is a private affair; only exhibitionists and sex workers are brazen enough to be sexual in public.

Wrong.

Many people harbor fantasies about having sex in public. Fantasies such as fucking in an elevator or in a dark corner of a museum turn us on because of the danger of being discovered. Public sex is such a powerfully �bad� thing to do. But there is another, more subtle, force at play. Public sex owes its power to the presence � real or imagined � of other people. Think about how sexual energy builds in your body when you are alone; then think about how it builds when you are with a partner. For most people, the presence of another being amplifies the energy, causing it to build more quickly and intensely. Adding more beings to the party can exponentially increase the intensity, the power, and the magic of an erotic encounter. Notice that I say adding partners can increase the intensity, not that it always will. Building erotic energy in groups is tricky. Actually, it�s not building the energy that is tricky, it�s building the group that takes consciousness, intention, and attention.

In 1977, a swingers� club for heterosexual couples opened in New York City. Plato�s Retreat was legendary; it had a sixty-person Jacuzzi, a clothing-optional dance floor, hot and cold buffets, and a huge orgy room. Plato�s Retreat was less than thirty blocks from my apartment for eight years, and yet I never went. For my taste, it was overwhelmingly heterosexual, and I wasn�t particularly interested in heterosexual sex. What�s more, I�d heard that the kind of sex that went on there was pretty sleazy, chaotic, and unsafe on an emotional as well a physical level. The very few swingers I had met up to that point just weren�t people with whom I wanted to be sexual. Even though I was very curious about group sex, I imagined that all group sex parties would be like Plato�s Retreat, so I stayed away from all of them. Years later � after I had begun to practice Tantra � I was finally able to articulate what I had been trying to avoid. More important, I had discovered what kind of group sexual energy I loved and wanted more of. I had found my erotic group preference when I started participating in, and later facilitating, sex workshops.

Why would a sex workshop be hotter than a sex party? It might seem at first glance that the casual, unstructured nature of a party would be more conducive to a hot time than a workshop. Paradoxically, the casual, drop-in nature of many sex parties or BDSM play parties can be an erotic disadvantage because their structure and style are modeled more on a party than on a ritual or a workshop. In many cases, the organizers of the party find a space for six to eight hours or so on a given evening. They send out invitations to the general public or to a large mailing list, and anyone can come to the party. This system is great for bringing new people and fresh energy to an ongoing party group, but the downside is getting a lot of people who want to play but don�t know anyone else in the room. As at many regular parties, people wind up hiding in the corners, clutching their drinks, and staring at the action in the center of the room. And while it is true that sex with a stranger at a party like this can be very hot, it is not the same as participating in group erotic energy. Conscious group erotic energy has to be built over time by everyone in the room, and most play parties don�t last long enough to build that kind of energy.

Let�s compare this to a sex workshop. All my workshops that involve actual sexual contact among the participants have lasted at least two or, more commonly, three or more days. Whenever possible, we find a venue in a beautiful natural setting. The first day is primarily devoted to getting to know each other. We sit in a circle and agree to abide by some basic rules of behavior and manners. I refer to these rules as our agreements. Our first agreement is that no one will ever be asked to do anything they do not want to do. The second agreement is no means no; maybe also means no; only an unqualified, enthusiastic yes means yes. The third agreement is that we will all abide by safer sex protocols during our time together. Then we talk about our intentions and discuss what we hope to get out of our time together. We do some moving meditations to release any stress and negative feelings we may have brought with us from our daily lives. Everyone learns various ways to breathe and to move erotic energy around. Everyone receives some instruction on how to touch with conscious intention. Then we all get to give and receive a sensual massage. That is just day one!

When we meet again the next morning, after a good night�s sleep, people are still a bit nervous about being sexual in a group but are willing to let go and try it because the other participants are no longer strangers. They are people we have all come to know and trust � at least for the duration of the workshop. For the next two or more days, we can practice truly conscious sex, because we share common tools, an agreed-upon safer-sex protocol, and a sense of safety. Everyone has had the time to set their own boundaries and has agreed to respect the boundaries of others.

How can we experience the goodies of a workshop in the time and space of a party? It is certainly possible to have conscious sex in a group setting that isn�t three hours away and doesn�t last three or more days. There are countless ways to be sexual in a group. Sex in groups does not have to mean having sex with everyone else in the group. Masturbation can be a group activity; so can partner sex. As you learned in chapter 14, you can adapt traditional Tantric partner positions for two to accommodate triads, so that the third person never has to sit out and wait their turn for a partner. Be creative and inclusive!

Articulate an intention for your ritual. �I want to get off with as many people all over me as possible� is a perfectly lovely desire, but it�s a lousy intention for a group ritual. Your intention should include and benefit all members of the group. For example: �Our intention is to bring together members of the BDSM and Tantric communities for an evening-long exploration of the sacred eroticism common to both.� Your intention should be able to be stated in a sentence or two. Keep it simple.

What kind of erotic play suits your intention? What doesn�t? Be specific. Is nudity expected? Or optional? Is fucking allowed? How about blood sports, such as play piercings? Decide in advance what is and isn�t acceptable for your group. Make sure to provide a safe, comfortable space for all the activities you plan to encourage.

Before the ritual, inform everyone of the rules/protocols for the ritual. Be sure to clearly state, in advance, your intention and your safer-sex policy, so that people will come mentally and physically prepared. Of course, you will have safer-sex supplies at easy-to-reach locales throughout your space.

Have a facilitator. Or a team of facilitators. At least one facilitator who is not participating in the fun is needed to make sure that the rules are being followed and no one is getting hurt. We call this job �holding the space.� You might call your facilitator a Dungeon Master or a High Priestess. Choose a title appropriate to the style of your ritual. In one of my workshops, the person who made sure participants followed the safer-sex protocol was called �Proto-Kali.�

Start and end at a specified time. Ask everyone to arrive before the start time; people should not be allowed to drop in once the ritual gets going. Anyone who leaves early must tell the facilitator they are leaving. Looking up from a hot time, realizing someone is missing, and not knowing why can completely break an erotic spell.

Gather with clothes on first. Whether it�s a meal, a circle, or some other way of gathering, make sure everyone gets to meet everyone else and share their expectations for the gathering. Let people ask questions. Restate the intention and the rules, particularly the rules for consent. People feel safer when they see that everyone else hears and agrees to the same rules.

Be flexible but firm. Keep true to your intention. Remember, this is your party. If someone isn�t enjoying themselves, it is perfectly okay for them to leave. Take note of things that work and things that don�t so that you can make your next party/ritual even better.

Lynda Gayle and her husband, Tom, are the founders of Club Relate, America�s first heterosexual masturbation club. The story of Club Relate is a fine example of how careful planning, effective rules, and good manners create a great time for everyone. Lynda�s story is also a great lesson in how to create a sex party that respects people�s relationships, feelings, and desires.

My husband, Tom, and I used to go to swingers� clubs. Both of us particularly enjoy masturbation, but at the swingers� clubs it was a real taboo. It�s hard to believe that masturbation would be looked down upon in that scene, but it was just not an okay thing to do. I think it�s because of the intensity of the act. And when people are not okay with masturbation in their own lives, they don�t want to see anybody else doing it.

We placed a personal ad to see if there were other people who also enjoyed masturbation who would like to join us. Thirteen people showed up for the first party. It was the first time everyone had gotten together with a group of people where it was okay to do this. It was like�magic! We started at 4 p.m. and went until 4 o�clock in the morning! Needless to say, we were all exhausted. I told Tom, we have got to figure out a better way of doing this! So now parties have set time limits.

The time limits also help make our club relationship-protective. If you go to a swingers� party, your wife might go with someone and stay for an hour�two hours�three hours�that can make you a little anxious! At Club Relate, everything is done together in the open. Everything is structured so that you know when it starts and when it stops. And because everything is done together there is no secretiveness.

At first, we were meeting people individually before they came to the party. But pretty soon there were so many people that individual interviews were impractical. Now we have group orientations for the new people in the afternoon before each party starts. We spend some time talking about why masturbation is important in their lives, if they were ever made to feel guilty about it, and, perhaps most important, if they are able to share it in their primary relationship at this time. Then we go over the rules for the club and how the party works. There are two rules. The first rule is: no drugs in ya, on ya, or around ya. The second rule is: if anyone asks you if you want to play and it�s not what you want, you don�t have to be creative and come up with an excuse. All you have to say is, �No, thank you, but thank you for asking.�

After the orientation, we go to dinner. The people who have already been through the orientation know we go to dinner at 5 p.m. So they come and have dinner with the new people. There�s nothing like getting to know people over dinner. Then we come back to the hotel � the parties usually take place in a penthouse suite � at about 7:30 for hospitality time. During this time, we get people talking about where they have come from. We have had people from Italy, England, Germany, and Sweden, as well as from all over the U.S. It really is incredible how far people travel. Usually we have thirty-five to forty people at a party; we will not go over fifty. We try to keep a balanced ratio between couples, single females, and single males.

After hospitality time, everyone is told that it is time to dress down. That means you get out of your street clothes into something sexy, or if you are okay with your body and you feel sexy when you are nude, then great! Then the party starts. It lasts for one hour and fifteen minutes. I know that doesn�t sound very long, but the party is relationship-protective. If somebody is with your partner, they are not going to be with them for longer than an hour and fifteen minutes. Also, we don�t allow smoking at our parties and we figured people could go an hour and fifteen minutes without a smoke. In a way, it�s just like kindergarten � we tell you when it�s time to rest, have something to eat and drink, and freshen up.

We have a thirty-minute break and then Tom announces, �It�s time to start the second session.� This session also lasts for an hour and fifteen minutes. We finish at around 11:30 p.m. This way it�s still early if you want to invite someone back to your room for a private session. Or if you want to drive back home.

Masturbation is not the only thing that goes on at our parties. To me, masturbation is self-stimulation or some kind of manual stimulation. It is not intercourse. If you use a dildo or a vibrator, that is masturbation, whether you are holding it or someone else is. There are some people who only want to watch�and some people who want to be watched. There are some couples who want to have intercourse with each other while everyone is watching � that is really hot. I love watching people watch that! I say that any kind of sex play is acceptable because there is always somebody who wants to watch it.

Sometimes we might have some light S/M (which we call Sensual Magic). There might be people who didn�t know that they wanted to be spanked, but when they see it, it�s a turn-on. A wife may say to her husband, �Hey, that�s what I want you to do to me.� So in a way, it�s like a class or show-and-tell. Plus, you get to move around from room to room. Usually there are at least two bedrooms. In one particular hotel we go to, the closet is big enough for a party! Plus, the bathroom has a shower and a Jacuzzi.

I asked Lynda Gayle what advice she would give to someone who�d like to try swinging but might not know how to start � or might be a little afraid.

I would say: do it anyway. Go armed with Rule #2: �No, thank you, but thank you for asking.� Also, go with a clear idea of what you do � and do not � want to experience. State what your limits are to others so they will know how to respect them; but do tell them what it is you do want to experience. Even if you just want to watch your wife touch another woman�s breast for the first time, say that! Somebody is going to help you find that experience because they want you to have fun. For the most part, the people you are going to find in the swinging lifestyle are very sincere and kind. If that�s not what you find at your first club, keep looking.

Another delicious and powerful way to manifest group sexual energy is in a ritual performed by a group to pleasure one person. It can be a ritual to celebrate a birthday or to mark an important life passage, or it can be a kind of shamanic ritual to help someone find a new life path.

My friend Margaret wanted to do something special for her girlfriend Robin�s thirty-fifth birthday. So, on the evening of Robin�s birthday, four of us arrived at Margaret�s apartment dressed in high slut gear and wearing elaborate masks. When the unsuspecting Robin arrived, she tried to hide her delight as we blindfolded her, removed her clothes, tied her hands behind her back, and covered her with an oversized coat. We took off our masks, put coats on over our slut outfits, and walked Robin outside to my car, which was waiting up the block. We worried about being stopped by some good samaritan who thought we were actually kidnapping her. Luckily, Margaret lived across the street from the Gay/Lesbian/Bisexual/Transgender Community Center, so the only attention we attracted was from a lovely queer man who said, �Ooo, is it a birthday kidnapping? How fun!�

We drove the blindfolded Robin into, out of, and around the twisted streets of Greenwich Village for something approaching an hour. She never knew until much later that she had only gone across town. We threatened her with all manner of devilish things that we would do to her whether or not she behaved. When we finally arrived at the East Village loft of one of the kidnappers, we hustled her up several flights of stairs and into the bedroom. We tied her spread-eagled to the bed and turned up the music in the room as loud as we thought we could get away with without complaints from the neighbors. This gave us time to prepare for the next part of our plan while Robin, bound and blindfolded in the next room, could not possibly hear what we were doing or saying.

Margaret had carefully orchestrated the ritual to fulfill as many of Robin�s desires and fantasies as possible. We began in the bedroom, stroking Robin with some soft and some not-so-soft floggers. We played her body like a percussion instrument, which she very much appreciated. Robin is a world-class drummer. We used every imaginable sensation-producing device we could find: hard, thuddy things and sharp, stingy things; soft, fuzzy things and cool, smooth things. We played her fast and hard, then soft and slow, then slow and hard. In between, we teased her with nibbles of tiny champagne grapes and chocolate.

After this act of our birthday ritual had reached its climax, we let her rest, giving her body time to integrate and appreciate all the delicious sensations with which we had bombarded her. Then we untied her and carried her into a big sunken tub. Her lover held her like a baby as we all bathed and caressed her. Slowly, we removed her blindfold. The dark marble bathroom was the showpiece of this loft. It looked like a cave temple, decorated with candles placed judiciously around the room. Robin looked as though she had been reborn.

After Robin�s long, luxurious bath, we all wrapped her in a warm soft towel and brought her into the main room for a snack of delicious gourmet treats. Robin was in bliss. She thanked us all profusely, obviously thinking that her surprise was over. �Oh no,� we informed her. �We were just giving you a little break before the big finale: an Erotic Awakening Massage given by all five of us!�

I delight in designing and facilitating a group erotic ritual for someone I love. One of my lovers, Diana, had long admired my labia piercings and decided she wanted one. She wanted to receive the piercing, not at a traditional piercing parlor, but as part of a ritual in a workshop setting. The Erotic Rites workshop was perfect. In it, each woman designed a ritual or rite for herself. The intention of the rite was to receive support and assistance from the group in a ritual that would honor the woman�s sexual past as it prepared her to step into her erotic future. Roughly half the group assisted each woman in her ritual; the rest witnessed the rite.

Diana and I had just begun our relationship. She had been married to a man for twenty-five years and was now, with her husband�s encouragement, exploring both polyamory and sex with a woman. Needless to say, Diana was at the doorway to a hugely significant new phase of her sexual evolution.

Diana and I began her ritual seated and facing each other on a massage table in the Yab Yum position. We breathed together, gazed into each other�s eyes, and shared how much we loved each other and what we wanted for each other. Diana stated her intention of what she wanted to receive from her ritual. I stated what I hoped to give her. We breathed ourselves into a seated, open-eyed Clench and Hold. I gently laid her back onto the massage table, removed her bra and panties, and kissed her over her heart chakra. When Diana told me she was ready, I called over the professional piercer, who was standing by. As the needle pierced her labia, Diana let out a low, guttural sound, then opened her eyes in amazement as the warm rush of endorphins flowed up her body. After the piercer put in the jeweled ring Diana had selected, Diana sat up and looked at it, beaming with pride and pleasure. Having raised all her yummy endorphins, we were now about to put them to good use.

As Tina Turner�s �Never in Your Wildest Dreams� played in the background, six women massaged Diana, alternating elegant, sensual strokes using hands and feathers with hard, slapping strokes using wooden spoons and light floggers. They stroked her everywhere but between her legs where the fresh piercing was. As the music changed to Gloria Gaynor�s �I Will Survive,� we began vibrating her chakras with two huge electric vibrators. We skipped the root chakra, which was too close to the fresh piercing. We breathed with her and danced beside the table, sending her all the love and juice and energy we could. Meanwhile, the women who were witnessing the ritual surrounded us, dancing and generating more energy.

Caught in the tsunami of energy we were all creating, Diana was breathing rapidly. Suddenly she took a huge, deep breath and held it in a Clench and Hold. We screamed �Go for it! Reach right into the next part of your life!� Diana let go. Her spine arched like a bow. As it curled back down to the table, her legs arched. Then, as they came back down, she sat up and curled up over her legs. She looked like a sea serpent riding a wave. She hugged herself; she stroked herself; she cried. She appeared to pass seamlessly through veils of emotions as though she were traveling through the past, present, and future of her life. Finally she lay still and peaceful on the table. She opened her eyes and reached for me. I fell into her arms, crying.

You do not need to wait for a workshop to create an experience like this for yourself or your lover. You can gather a group of friends together and create an erotic ritual in your own home. If being sexual around friends who you do not consider lovers is unfamiliar to you, it may seem strange or uncomfortable. Our culture saturates itself with sex. At the same time, it makes rules to keep sex confined to one primary relationship. Silly, huh? Why should we not play sexually with our dearest friends? Sure, perhaps not all your friends would be interested in that kind of play, but it�s not hard to make friends who would be. Fuck buddies and friends with benefits are friends who get together to enjoy sex the way other friends may get together to see movies or play sports.

One of my favorite sex parties with friends was a celebration of the completion of a project we had all worked on together. On Earth Day in 1990, I got together with nine other graduates of Betty Dodson�s Bodysex workshops to make a video documenting Betty�s twenty-five years of legendary masturbation workshops for women. The result was Selfloving: Portrait of a Women�s Sexuality Seminar. The video shoot was a smashing success, and all the women who participated became good friends. A few weeks after the shoot, one of the women asked us all to a slumber party at her new home in a suburban town in New England. Six of us were available and eagerly accepted. When we asked if we could bring anything, our hostess, Julie, said, �Yes. Your vibrators, a sexy outfit, and whichever dildo you�re the fondest of this week.�

We arrived in the late afternoon of a warm spring Saturday. Our visit started suburbanly enough. Julie took us on a tour of her beautiful old colonial house and served us iced tea, and we all sat down to catch up with each other�s news. As the afternoon turned into evening, our hostess invited us to gather around the dining room table for hors d�oeuvres and entertainment. We proceeded to suck down huge, salty, raw oysters as our hostess climbed onto the table, smiling down at us seductively. She performed an extremely athletic and explicit striptease, giving each of us a tasty little show right in front of our plate!

After a gorgeous dinner with all the trimmings, we knew a party would follow. I was feeling overfed from such a big meal, and tired, and not particularly interested in sex. Besides, I had no idea what the game plan was. It was hard to get excited with no expectation of what might happen. We went upstairs to change clothes. �Into what?� I wondered. What was the theme? I�d always heard that the costume makes the character, so I dived into my costume and toy bag. I needed a serious jolt of energy; nothing soft and flowing would do it for me tonight. I strapped on my dildo harness, into which I had inserted a large, bright purple dildo. Then I shook my breasts into a leather cupless bra and picked up a riding crop. I had begun to wake up a little. I would fake it till I felt sexy. Then I gave myself permission to sit back and watch if that was all I wanted to do. The minute I did so, I felt energized. I set off in search of some action to match my hard-edged mood.

Still not all that sure of myself, I cruised down the stairs to the living room, following the sound of Janis Joplin�s �Piece of My Heart.� Betty, dressed in leather chaps, stood behind Patricia, teasing her with a huge strap-on dildo. Patricia was also dressed in leather, though her outfit wasn�t much more than a few straps. Before I could ask if I could join them, they said, �Ooo, you look hot; come on over here.� Encouraged, I made my way over to Betty and stood behind her. I did to her whatever she did to Patricia. The scene melted its way into a three-way fuck, suck, bite, and wrestlefest that lasted considerably longer than the Joplin album.

When the three of us had recovered, I was dispatched to find out what everyone else was up to. I made my way upstairs, where I heard giggling from the bathroom off the master bedroom. Lost in the pleasures of a bathtub filled with rose-smelling bubbles and sweet, wet flesh, our three friends caressed, licked, and fingered each other. When they saw me � still sporting my leather and dildo � they decided it was time for the water goddesses to join the leather goddesses on the living room floor.

Downstairs, we all formed a circle, lying on our backs with knees up and vibrators in hand. Someone put a Springsteen album on the stereo. Using the conscious rhythmic breathing, the PC squeezes, and the vibrator techniques we had all mastered in Betty�s workshops, we wove the hard and soft energies with which we had been playing into the most powerful jill-off I have ever been a part of. I came over and over again for twenty-five minutes � until I finally managed to stagger outside. I threw myself down on the cool, wet grass. I had left my vibrator inside the house and I was just lying on my back, but I was still coming. The earth rose up to meet me and the stars danced on my breasts and belly. I felt like an invincible bridge between the earthly and the mystical, filled with pure divine power.

The next morning we met in our circle with our coffee, sharing what had happened for us, each of us grateful and amazed at how powerful and life-changing sex could be among the right friends.

Chester Mainard and I created the Dark Heart ritual for the Great Australian Bliss Out and Love In. It was an evening in the middle of an intensive five-day residential workshop. The evening was called Dark Heart in reference to the many dark emotions and hurt feelings that had arisen out of an exercise earlier in the week during which some participants found themselves recreating old, destructive patterns of sexual behavior. The Dark Heart was designed to be a play space in which participants had the freedom to create the sexual experience they wanted and also to provide an environment with rules that supported conscious behavior. It was a space in which the dark and wounded heart could be embraced, honored, and healed with attention, love, and consciousness.

Chester transformed our usually light, airy, sun-filled workshop room into a cushioned, womblike, tomblike space. He had placed a few candles around the room, and a ray of soft moonlight filtered in through one window. That was the only light. The room was divided into four areas. Each area was set aside for a specific activity, and only for that activity.

The first area was for communicating. If you wanted to talk with someone and you were not being sexual at that time, you sat in the communication area. There you could negotiate what you and your partner wanted to do or share something about what you had done. You could also sit in this area if you were waiting to talk to someone. The only talking permitted in the other areas was necessary communication directly relating to the activity at hand.

The second area was for selfloving. Here you could masturbate alone or with others. You could also sit in this space if you simply wanted to be alone or meditate.

The other two spaces were for sexual or sensual interactions. Both had massage tables. One area was for people working in pairs, the other for people working in groups of more than two. At different times during the evening, one area was used for sensual massage while the other was used for erotic massage and other types of lovemaking.

To move from, say, selfloving to a partner or group activity, you had to leave the selfloving area and move to the communication area to discuss what you wanted to do. Then you would move to the appropriate play space. If anyone attempted a conversation outside the communication area, they were gently escorted there. Similarly, if you wanted to invite someone in the selfloving area to share erotic touch, you had to leave the selfloving area and move to the appropriate space.

We were all a bit worried that this would end up as a whole lot of regimentation with no purpose or pleasure in it. In fact, the ritual was as hot as it was fascinating. We all learned how easy it is to slip into unconsciousness, and how equally easy it is to go back into being conscious. The Dark Heart was a ritual with consciousness built into its design and its rules. It allowed for our changes of moods, minds, and hearts; it only asked that we be aware of those changes. Because we could see and hear what was happening in the other areas of the room, the energy from each area fed into the others, which was intensely erotic. Each of us could be alone while feeling that we could come together easily. Dark Heart followed a day in which we had gone from pleasure to pleasure to way over the pleasure line into the unpleasant realization that we had recreated the sexual excesses of our past. It was a perfect way to deal with the stresses we were feeling. We came together erotically in spite of them.

If you have ever been curious but a little shy about trying sex in groups, I hope you�re now feeling more inspired and encouraged. If you�re a longtime group sex ritual lover, you�ve now got some more ideas to incorporate into your own rituals. Finally, if you and your partner would like to experiment with some group play but are feeling apprehensive about its impact on your relationship, you�ll find a few guidelines on the following pages that I hope will help. Play safe and have fun!

The single most important rule to expanding your erotic life beyond your primary relationship is this: you must be completely honest, honorable, reliable, and trustworthy about the agreements you make when you try group sex, or any other kind of non-monogamy. If you aren�t prepared to tell the truth, behave with integrity, and keep your promises, it won�t work out, so you needn�t read any further.

Discuss with your partner what specifically interests you about group sex. What delights you? What terrifies you? What would you like to discover for (or about) yourself in the experience? Is your partner interested in exploring it as well? What would they like out of it? If they are not interested, would they be open to your trying it alone? Under what, if any, circumstances would it be okay with them? (Perhaps a workshop would be okay, but a private party would not.)

What kind of erotic play do you each want to explore? If you want to explore Tantra and your partner wants to explore BDSM, it�s likely you�ll need to go to different events to get your needs met. Will you accompany each other to events or attend different events (on the same night or different nights)?

Decide what size and type of group would best serve your needs. A small workshop? A large play party? A medium-sized swingers� evening? Would you prefer to go to a couples-only event, or not?

Make mutually agreed-upon rules for yourselves. Which activities are you comfortable with and which are you not? For instance, you and your partner may decide that you�d love to have sex in a group setting, but only with each other. If you and your partner are comfortable being sexual with others, set limits. For example, perhaps it�s fine with you if your partner gives someone a hand job, but not a blow job. Your partner may be comfortable with you participating in a BDSM scene as long as there is no genital contact. Perhaps all lower chakra penetrative sex is off-limits, but oral sex is not. Whatever your rules, follow them scrupulously! If you find them too restrictive, don�t break them and then tell your partner; follow them and then discuss modifying them with your partner later.

Set time limits. Agree on how long you are willing to be apart or engaged with someone else; tell your new partners at the beginning of your encounter and set the timer on your phone or watch. If you and your partner attend separate events, or if one of you is attending an event without the other, agree on a time and place to meet after the event, and be there on time.

Go slowly. Give yourselves time to discover your limits and your needs. If either you or your partner is feeling hurt or uncomfortable, it�s time to create a new rule.

Make sure both you and your partner are getting your needs met. Ask yourself, �What is best for me, my partner, and my relationship?� If you fancy someone and want to play one-on-one with them, but it makes your partner uncomfortable, then, obviously, playing with them would not be best for your partner or your relationship. Don�t do it. On the other hand, if you want to go to a sex workshop that you feel is important for your personal self-development and your partner feels threatened, you may decide that you will attend the workshop anyway. If you have demonstrated that you are honest, honorable, reliable, and trustworthy in your other agreements around sex and groups, it is likely that your partner will be able to accept your decision.

According to the Tarot, magic is the art of transformation. By this definition, we have been practicing sex magic since page one. There is nothing all that magical about sex magic. It�s as logical and often as predictable as technology. In the late nineteenth century, it was magical that a voice could be transmitted through a telephone wire. Thirty years ago, it seemed equally magical that a signal could be transmitted from one mobile phone to another without wires. Sex magic also comes in wired or wireless. The hardwired aspect of sex magic is the mind/body connection.

You experienced that when you focused all your attention on one little finger in the Focused Awareness exercise (see the �Focus and Imagine� section in chapter 3). Remember how that finger became more sensitive and alive than your other fingers? That�s an excellent example of a hardwired mind/body connection that seems like magic. But what about wireless sex magic? What about the other day when you thought of someone you hadn�t heard from in years and they called you the very next day? Is that a coincidence? Is it magic? Or might that be an example of some kind of wireless connection between you and that other person?

Sex magic can be as simple and as wired as masturbating to relax or to fall asleep. Sex magic can be as unwired as sending an orgasm as a prayer to promote peace in the Middle East. For people who believe in a higher power and talk with or pray to that higher power, sex magic may seem either logical or heretical, depending on the nature of your beliefs. Sex magic has a lot in common with prayer; we do conscious sex magic to accomplish any or all of several intentions:

To connect with a higher power

To send healing energy

To influence the outcome of a given situation

What else might you do with the sexual energy you raise?

Sex magic is what happens when you dedicate your sexual energy in service to your intentions. Dedicated sex magicians feel that the earth is their church and their body is their altar as they dedicate their sexual energy for the benefit of themselves, their community, and their world. Sex magic is not religion, although it can certainly feel like a physical prayer. It is not Paganism, although it can be included in Pagan or Wiccan rituals. It is not at odds with any spiritual practice. It can be practiced within the structures of most nonfundamentalist religions. What makes sex magic different from other types of magic or prayer is the sheer power of the erotic. When you are in a high state of sexual excitement, enormous quantities of energy are released in the body, producing a trancelike state of consciousness. When you are in this hypnotic state of sexual excitement, you become especially receptive and impressionable. Visions you hold � and words you hear � at this time are powerfully imprinted on your consciousness. (This is why partners need to be especially aware of what they say to each other during lovemaking.) This combination of energy and receptivity offers a unique opportunity for transformation.

A few years ago, an article that appeared in the health section of the New York Times reported the less-than-astonishing news that a scientific study revealed that positive experiences can significantly boost the immune system, while negative events were shown to suppress it. This was reported as though millions of people had not already discovered this. There was one interesting twist to the study. The boost to the immune system that results from pleasant events can last as long as two days, while the negative effects of a stressful encounter mainly take their toll in just one day. So finally, there it was in print in the New York Times: a scientific study that clearly demonstrated that pleasure is more powerful than pain. Yet it is remarkable how rarely pleasure is ever mentioned as a tool when dealing with disease, illness, and pain.

I once observed a terminally ill cancer patient feel tremendously better after a half hour of watching Annie Sprinkle�s sexually explicit one-woman show on tape. Color came into her face, she was more alive, and she was suddenly interested in having a little something to eat. No, she wasn�t interested in having sex with anyone. That�s not the point. Using our sexual energy as healing energy does not necessarily mean being turned on erotically or being interested in having sex with a partner. Our sexual energy is our life-force energy. When we activate it, we can use it for our healing and empowerment.

My brother Bill once drove across the state of Florida to be with his lover, Drew, who was then in hospital. They were both in the late stages of AIDS. Bill called me from the car phone, sounding so terrible, so desperately ill, I didn�t think he was going to make it to the hospital in Ft. Lauderdale. I felt completely helpless. As we spoke, one of my guardian angels whispered in my ear, �Tell him to stop at a gas station and cruise some guys.� I thought that was pretty weird, but I couldn�t think of anything else to say, so I said, �Bill, why don�t you do what we always used to do when the drive was long and boring. Pull into a gas station, stand around, and cruise some guys.� Bill said dispiritedly, �Oh yeah, right. Those days are long gone.� He was on so many body-numbing drugs that he hadn�t felt sexual for months, if not years. But I kept trying. I teased him by saying, �You know those hunky guys in the tank tops with the gorgeous biceps that quiver when they pump the gas�the ones with the suntans and the blonde hair and the cute little buns?� After a few minutes of that kind of banter, he finally laughed and said, �Look, there�s a gas station up ahead. I think I am going to stop.� He sounded like the healthy Bill I used to know years before. That little shot of sexual energy got him across the entire state of Florida.

You can use your sexual energy for your own health and well-being. Let�s look at some examples of the healing power of sex that you may already be familiar with and some that might surprise you.

How many times have you had sex � with a partner or with yourself � and then gone straight to sleep? How many times have you masturbated in order to relax and be able to go to sleep? Wilhelm Reich, the revolutionary sex researcher, made the study of orgasm as a vital healing force his life�s work. What Reich found in his scientific studies wasn�t so different from what had been discovered centuries before in Asia. Reich claimed that orgone energy (which other traditions call Kundalini or chi) streams up and down the body from the top of the head to the bottom of the feet and back again. This energy is built up by taking in food, water, and air and is subsequently discharged by normal human activities such as emotional expression, the thinking process, body heat and growth, and excretion. In the normal course of one�s life, more energy is built up than is discharged. This buildup of energy creates a tension � even without the stresses we experience in today�s modern life. The most reliable method that nature has created for the release of that tension is sexual orgasm.

You may have noticed that a headache will go away if you masturbate and lie quietly for a few moments. You�ve breathed more deeply and opened up your blood vessels. Oxygenated blood went to your brain. Endorphins were released. By the time you stood up, the headache wasn�t so bad or it was just plain gone. If you haven�t experienced this, try it. The same is true for menstrual cramps. Just when you think that sex is the last thing you are interested in, get out the vibrator. The sexual energy you generate opens up and relaxes the entire pelvic area. This will work almost all the time. If it doesn�t wipe out all your cramps, it will reduce them considerably.

Sex can open up your sinus passages and make the symptoms of a cold much less severe. What�s more, sex is a lot more fun than popping mind-numbing antihistamines, which increase your blood pressure and add even more tension to an already tense you. One time as I was flying from New York to Australia, I had a bad cold. When I got off the plane, my head was pounding, my sinuses were sealed shut, and I was miserably jet-lagged. When I finally settled into my room, I lay down and turned on my vibrator. I gave myself an orgasm � not a particularly mind-blowing one, just a nice one. I meditated for about fifteen minutes, and when I got up, I could breathe clearly for the first time in sixteen hours. My headache was gone and I felt oriented enough in time and space to be able to participate in the day.

Sex brings us back to our own body rhythm. It takes us home, both physically and psychically. Using sex for self-healing does not have to include partner sex. Often, when we are not feeling well, the last thing we are interested in is sex with a partner; we just don�t have the energy to give to someone else. You can masturbate or you can simply receive from your partner. Either way, the raising and releasing of sexual energy brings you back to yourself and nurtures your body. Like magic.

Sex releases endorphins, those friendly little feel-good brain chemicals that are powerful enough to lift us out of pain and into euphoria. Some years ago, I had a little cyst in the middle of my back. I�m very sensitive in the solar plexus/third chakra, so I�m not very open to the idea of surgery in that area. I went to a traditional medical doctor to have the cyst removed. While he was giving me a local anesthetic, he quizzed me about my favorite movies, what I did for a living, and what I thought of the weather. He had obviously learned in medical school that you should engage the patient in conversation at moments like this to distract them from what you are doing to them. But this chitchat was making me more and more anxious. I was getting nauseous. I asked him to please stop talking. I started to do some circular breathing, some visualization, and some PC squeezes.

Taking slow, easy, full breaths, I began to circulate sexual energy around my body in the Microcosmic Orbit. Within a minute or two, I felt as though I had partially left my body, especially the part the doctor was operating on. I was somewhat aware of what was going on, but I had transcended the fear and nausea. In fact, I was having a pretty good time! The poor doctor. He had never seen anything like this in his office before. He was a good sport about it, though. Some doctors simply can�t cope when you mix sexual healing techniques with traditional medicine. One doctor told me that he would not treat me if I continued to do �that strange breathing� and make �those strange sounds.� I found another doctor quite easily.

Using sexual energy as a pain reliever and relaxation tool can come in quite handy at the dentist. The trick is to move sexual energy around your body in such a way as not to interrupt the dentist�s work. I usually use a slow Circular Breath and circulate energy from my pussy to my heart. I found myself a Zen Buddhist periodontist who�d also studied a lot of Kundalini yoga and some Tantra. There are quite a few Western medical practitioners who are closet Tantrikas. As this more enlightened dentist worked on my teeth, I listened to didgeridoo music, breathed, and did PC squeezes. This didn�t require a lot of movement. I easily kept my upper body totally still while I let my pelvis slowly rock back and forth in rhythm with the PC squeezes and the breath. It�s more like moving within your body rather than actually moving your body. I got through an entire mouthful of periodontal surgery feeling well and happy; and my dentist was impressed at how fast my gums healed. Experiment with this the next time you go to the dentist. Going to the dentist can bring up so much fear. The breathing will relax you; and when you concentrate on moving your sexual energy throughout your body, the combination of breath and subtle movement will take your focus off what�s happening in your mouth. Remember, sex feels good because it produces endorphins, which we want more of when something hurts or upsets us.

In her book Woman�s Experience of Sex, Sheila Kitzinger observes that birth is usually treated as though it is a medical/surgical crisis. The mother feels imprisoned in a situation outside her control. Childbirth classes often teach a breath that encourages a �hold it�push�shoot� style of giving birth that is more like the way men ejaculate than the way women orgasm. A woman is supposed to carry on holding, pushing, and shooting as long as she can, and then fall back exhausted.

The energy flowing through the body in childbirth � the pressure of contracting muscles, the downward movement of the baby, and the opening of soft tissues � can be powerfully erotic when a woman does what comes naturally. When a woman does what comes naturally, she will breathe in a pattern that corresponds almost exactly with that of sexual excitement and orgasm. Her breath will quicken as she builds up to an orgasm, or contraction. Her breath then slows down after an orgasm or contraction. Then the quickening of breath picks up again in preparation for the next orgasm or contraction, and so on.

Women who are about to give birth would be wise to take stock of what their bodies are doing when they have their best orgasms. Use that as the model on which to base the breathing, the movement, the peaking, and the resting of labor. If you are multiorgasmic, take note of the period of time between one orgasm and the next. Learn to fully appreciate the valleys between the orgasms. How do you build up the energy again for another orgasm? Apply the same consciousness to childbirth as you learned in sex. If you are not yet multiorgasmic, it might help to learn how to be before you give birth.

Women who have given birth before and after participating in my Erotic Awakening workshops have reported that their post-workshop labors were much easier. The breathing they had learned to move sexual energy was exactly the breathing they needed to use in labor.

Our spine is literally our support system, so it follows that back pain has a lot to do with support and survival. Caroline Myss, author of Anatomy of the Spirit, maintains that lower back pain is always related to finances or financial relationships, whether those relationships are of an intimate or a business nature. And remember your chakras. The lower back is also part of the sexual energy center of the body. The fears that manifest as pain in this area can range from �Can I earn a living?� to �Can I find a partner?� and �Can I take care of myself?� Essentially, the issues of support and survival here boil down to trusting and receiving � the same issues that arise around sexuality.

Many of us have grown up with a belief that we need to struggle in order to survive, or that pleasure is something that we have to earn � we have to do something (usually something difficult) in order to have the right to enjoy ourselves. Learning to receive sexual pleasure can help us break out of this puritanical equation. When you both ask for pleasure and really receive it, you begin to reprogram your body and your mind, and you open yourself up to greater trust and the enjoyment of abundance, as well as a greater spirit of guilt-free generosity.

The next time you experience lower back pain, use sex as a physical affirmation. Imagine your sexual energy flowing up from your root chakra. Feel it opening up all your energy channels. Feel it expanding your energy field so that you can reach out and accept abundance and prosperity. You can say an affirmation such as, �I am open to receive all good� as you orgasm. The expansion and the power that results from this will center you and restore your trust in the natural flow of universal abundance. As a side benefit, your back will begin to feel a whole lot better.

People who live with gender dysphoria experience significant distress because their gender identity is at odds with the gender they were assigned at birth. It�s the feeling that your body does not match your true gender. It can be very difficult to raise sexual energy with genitals that constantly remind you of this incongruity, but you can use sex magic techniques to feel more integrated. It is entirely possible to raise sexual energy without triggering the discomforts of gender dysphoria.

According to a survey I conducted (�A Survey of How Trans Women, Trans Men, and People of Nonbinary Gender Experience Their Genitals,� 2016), a majority of trans and gender-nonconforming people have experienced �energy genitals.� Energy genitals is the sensation of having genitals in a different shape, size, or configuration than the ones on your body. Some people can experience energy genitals simply by imagining them. Others feel them when engaging in sexual activities. Still others call them forth by strapping on a prosthetic or tucking away their physical genitals. In this sex magic meditation, we are going to focus on empowering your energy genitals.

Review the instructions on how to have a Breath Energygasm (see chapter 10). This will be the basis for this meditation. Begin with the simple intentions to feel at home in your body and to meet your energy genitals. As you breathe into the first chakra, imagine the energy flowing into your energy genitals. You may know what your energy genitals look/feel/sound/smell/taste like, or you may discover them for the first time in the course of energizing them. If at any point you have trouble imagining your energy genitals, ask yourself, �If I already knew what my energy genitals were like, what would they look/feel/sound/smell/taste like?� Continue to breathe into your energy genitals.

Next, begin to breathe up the chakras. On the inhale, breathe in from your energy genitals, connecting them with the second chakra, then the third, then the heart, and so on. As you breathe, you might imagine each part of your body in perfect alignment with your gender identity, or you could just keep your primary focus on your energy genitals. Feel free to change positions, touch yourself, or not. Allow any emotions you feel to rise and fall. There is no single correct way to do this, so just go with what feels right. When you feel you�ve reached an energy peak, let yourself climax with a gender-free Clench and Hold. Then do nothing. Just be. Allow yourself to feel whole, happy, and perfectly gendered.

One of the most challenging issues we face when we talk about sexual healing lies in the area of sexual abuse. Sexual abuse wounds the body, the mind, and the emotions. Abuse most often occurs at times in our lives when we are particularly vulnerable. The wounds of sexual abuse are so deep and so profound, it�s easy to feel that the spirit itself is wounded. Higher self/spirit cannot be wounded. The spirit is always intact. It�s always whole and strong and available to help us in a method of healing, which for lack of any other name, I call homeopathic sexuality.

Homeopathy is the branch of healing based on the principle of �like cures like.� In other words, a substance taken in small amounts will cure the same symptoms it causes if taken in large amounts. No, we are absolutely not going to subject someone with a history of sexual abuse to even the smallest bit of more abuse. But we can use just the right amount and kind of sexual energy. Homeopathic sexuality is grounded in the understanding that our higher power can and will guide us to ways to work with our own sexual energy to heal past sexual traumas.

Forms of sexual abuse range from years of intense physical and emotional trauma to the less obvious varieties that nearly everyone has experienced: being humiliated for masturbating or for not fitting into the right gender mold, being coerced into having sex when you didn�t want it, or being told you look like a whore when you�re sixteen and have just spent two hours making yourself look beautiful for a date. The wounds may not be physical, but in this puritanical culture we are constantly wounded or abused emotionally as we grow up learning to be sexual. Whatever the physical or emotional circumstances, sexual abuse is abuse of power. Period.

Psychotherapist Dean Allen works extensively with energy medicine and the physical disorders created in the body by emotional traumas. He defines power as �the ability to meet pressure with pressure in such a way as to hold the outside force at bay, confront the issue with courage, and resolve the issue with pride.� In cases of sexual abuse, the abused is in a situation where they are not able � or feel they are not able � to hold the abuser at bay. Once the abuse starts, they are not able to confront the issue, and they are certainly not able to resolve the issue with any pride. The abuser may be a parent or someone in authority; they may be larger and stronger.

The abuser�s misuse of power is rooted in insecurity. Abusers have a win/lose mentality. According to Dean Allen, abusers believe that the source of their power is winning and that winning means overpowering someone else. Once begun, patterns of abuse often carry on for years and years, not to mention from generation to generation. The experience creates a debilitating drag on the energy of the sexual power center. Once in place, this drag will remain on the sexual energy center until the true power inherent in that center is restored through healing.

Healing sexual abuse through sexuality begins by peeling away the layers of armor we have built up to protect ourselves from further abuse. What does some of this armoring look like? It often manifests as hatred of the body and an extremely negative body image. That can range from putting on lots of weight (representing layers of protection) to anorexia and bulimia, which are attempts to make the body invisible. Armor may be in the form of sexual shutdown � loss of feeling in the sex organs and the inability to receive pleasure from sex. Armor can manifest as lack of boundaries or compulsive sex � the inability to say no to sex or the desire to seek it out in excess even though the person receives little or no pleasure from it. It�s also common for survivors of sexual abuse to experience real pleasure only when they are giving or receiving pain. (This is certainly not to say that everyone who loves BDSM is a survivor of sexual abuse.)

When the power in the sexual energy center has been drained, blocked, or dragged down, we seek to replace that power by attaching ourselves to situations or people that seem more powerful than we are. Later in life, we often look to exactly the same type of person as the first abuser.

Homeopathic sexuality is a gentle process that seeks to stimulate the body�s natural healing response. In the case of sexual abuse, it means gently introducing the recovering person to the beauty and power of their own sexuality. Homeopathic sexuality is the step-by-step process of relearning pleasure. We move from sex as survival to sex as pleasure.

At first, any sort of invocation of sexual healing energy might be uncomfortable. As the sexual energy begins to peel away the armor, the layers of feeling underneath are very sensitive, very tender. As we gently move out beyond the protection of these layers, we find safety and empowerment. This can come in the form of being given a safe space and the permission to say no, thereby reestablishing more naturally healthy boundaries. Participating in a sexual healing workshop, where you are given the opportunity to say, �No, I really don�t want to be touched right now,� and have that wish honored and supported, can be worth a year in therapy. The discovery or rediscovery of what actually feels good, what feels bad, and what has no feeling at all � that�s what I mean by a relearning.

I am not advocating any one path of sexual healing for sexual abuse. I am advocating some form of sexual healing. I have known people who have been in therapy for years and are still victims of their childhood sexual abuse; I have known others who are long-term survivors. The choice is up to each individual. Tantra can give you the time and space to experience your sexuality as a gift rather than as a wound. With its emphasis on consciousness and its support for a wide range of emotional and sexual expressions, Tantra can help heal past traumas and open up new avenues of trust and pleasure.

It is not the amount or type of sex someone has that determines sexually compulsive behavior, what the media is fond of calling �sex addiction�; rather, it�s the obsession with having sex at the expense of most everything else. People living with this compulsion describe their need for sex the way people addicted to physical substances describe their needs. They feel out of control, unable to stop, obsessed with an elusive physical high they believe comes from sex. Sexual compulsives don�t get high from the sex � they get high from the power. One woman described this as the power of getting someone to want her, to give her attention. It was about the chase, not the sex. The sex was the least of it � she said she felt empty afterward and wanted to get away as fast as she could. Sexual compulsives may even put themselves in real physical danger, because surviving that danger increases their feeling of power and, therefore, the high; it�s an adrenaline rush. Not surprisingly, many sexual compulsives were sexually abused as children. They seek to restore the power that has been drained, blocked, or dragged down in their sexual energy centers by putting themselves in situations that make them feel powerful in relation to sex.

Sexual compulsion is often treated the way alcoholism or drug addiction is treated � by strict abstinence from sex. But sex is not like alcohol or drugs. It�s more like breath and food. According to Taoist philosophy, the triple generators of life are food, breath, and sex. So completely shutting down one�s sexuality during the recovery period is like saying, �I am powerless over food so I will never eat again� or �I caught a virus from breathing so I will never breathe again.� We need to make the distinction between sexual activity and sexual energy. Certainly, abstaining from some forms of sexual activity can be a healthy choice � in the case of sexual compulsives and in many other cases. But that does not mean shutting down our sexual energy.

The more conscious we become of our sexual power, the more we are able to use it as a force for healing, for loving, for creativity, and for right action. Tantra and sex magic offer us the opportunity for personal and planetary transformation. When we are conscious of ourselves as alive, loving, erotic beings, we walk in the world with a greater awareness. We are appreciative of everyone else�s alive, loving eroticism. We are more able to put ourselves in someone else�s shoes. We stop feeling so separate.

Any Tantric ritual � solo, partner, or group � can become a healing ritual when it is performed on behalf of someone else, be they across the room, across town, or across the ocean. Years ago, Louise Hay taught me the technique of sending love to people and places that needed healing. As I learned more, I began sending orgasmic energy as well.

I dedicated orgasmic energy to ending apartheid in South Africa. I sent love and orgasms for years. Maybe the orgasms helped, maybe not. But every time I sent the people of South Africa an orgasm, I was reminded of the healing that was needed there. There is nothing like being erotically focused on something to make you more aware of it. I paid more attention to what was going on there; I sent money; I did whatever I could to support my sexual prayers.

Wouldn�t it be wonderful if we could focus some of our excess sexual energy on healing the planet instead of focusing on personal romantic dramas that bring us pain? We each possess an unlimited amount of sexual energy. Each of us has enough to support a deeply intimate relationship plus enough to keep us healthy, happy, and whole. On top of that, we each have more than enough sexual energy left over to donate to the healing of someone else.

You have learned many ways to circulate sexual energy within yourself, with a partner, or throughout a group. Now let�s expand upon that. Pick one of your favorite Tantric techniques or visualizations. Pick a place in the world that could use some healing. Now adapt the exercise you chose so that you direct as much love and bliss to that place as you would normally give to yourself or to a partner. You can send your sexual energy to a country or to a group of people or to just one person in need of spiritual, emotional, or physical help.

Before you begin, state your intention. Make it as inclusive and as open as possible. For example, if I want to send sex magic/healing to the Tibetan people living in exile or under the yoke of Chinese dictatorship, I may not know what kind of healing is actually required. Instead of saying, �I dedicate my sexual energy to anything that gets the Chinese out of Tibet,� I would say, �I dedicate my sexual energy as a physical prayer for peace and healing for the people of Tibet. May this healing occur in whatever form is in the highest good for the people of Tibet and for all concerned.�

Don�t be afraid to ask for outside help. Call in spirit helpers on behalf of your beneficiary. Spirit helpers include gods, goddesses, angels, devas, fairies, and so on. Call both your own spirit helpers as well as those of your beneficiaries. Ask that your sexual energy join all the energy in the Universe that also desires healing for your person or country or situation.

After you have made your dedication, let go of it. Trust that your intention is manifesting at exactly the right time, in exactly the right place, and in exactly the perfect manner. You do not need to focus on it at every moment during your sex magic ritual. If you did, you wouldn�t be conscious and present in your ritual. Do what you would do in any Tantric ritual � focus on the sexual energy. I like to return to the thought of my dedication just before or just after the moment of orgasm. I like to visualize or feel my intention becoming manifest. This is my personal choice and may not be right for everyone.

Dedicating your orgasms to include a purpose beyond your own pleasure will remind you that your sexuality is a sacred and a powerful tool of transformation. You can dedicate your orgasms and/or sexual energy as a prayer for a wide variety of reasons, such as the following:

You can ask for wisdom about work, school, or a relationship, or for help in making a decision.

You can send orgasmic energy to help heal a friend�s illness, your own depression, the earth from the devastation of climate change, and so on.

You can dedicate an orgasm to someone in gratitude for the help they gave you, to your parents on their anniversary, or to a world leader who is working on behalf of peace and justice. Better yet, dedicate an orgasm to a world leader you do not feel is doing the right thing.

You can simply dedicate your orgasm to your own highest good and for the highest good of everyone on the planet.

I practice a powerful meditation I learned from the Dalai Lama. It is a Tibetan Buddhist meditation called Tonglen. In Tonglen, you breathe in all the pain and suffering of the world and breathe out peace, prosperity, and happiness.

Breathe the suffering of the world into your heart and breathe out happiness, bliss for all beings.

When you inhale, take upon yourself the suffering of other sentient beings. Then when you exhale, give your prosperity, your virtues, your happiness to all sentient beings.

��His Holiness, the Dalai Lama

Tonglen is a method for awakening the compassion inherent in all of us. The Dalai Lama points out that whatever suffering exists in the world comes from cherishing one�s own interest; whatever happiness exists comes from cherishing the welfare of others. Tonglen is a method for overcoming our fear of suffering and for dissolving the tightness of our heart, both of which conditions arise from cherishing ourselves over others.

Tonglen can be a particularly powerful form of sex magic. Instead of breathing into and out of my heart, I breathe into my pussy and out my heart, or into my heart and out my pussy. I activate my Kundalini energy to connect with and help alleviate the suffering of all those who I feel are in great need of healing, especially those suffering from sexual abuse and sexual violence.

Tonglen is not some airy-fairy visualization. You really send your happiness out. You really take on the suffering of others. Tonglen is very powerful; you may want to start small. You could begin the practice by taking on the suffering of one person you know to be hurting � someone you wish to help. For example, if you know of a child who is hurting, you breathe in all the pain and fear of that child. On the wings of your outgoing breath, you send the child happiness, joy, or whatever might relieve their pain.

Once you�re comfortable with performing Tonglen for one person, increase the scope of your ritual. Perform your Tonglen for a family, a neighborhood, a region, a nation, a continent, and the planet itself, keeping in mind that you are quite literally breathing in the pain and suffering of people, not the abstract idea of pain and suffering. Move outward slowly and pick your suffering carefully, particularly if you are doing my sex magic variation on the practice.

Tonglen may seem peculiarly masochistic, but I assure you it doesn�t feel that way. Tonglen gives me a healthier perspective on the world. It makes me feel like I am helping people in some small way and that makes me feel stronger, more capable, and more connected to all the beings on the planet.

Try it. Breathe in for all of us and breathe out for all of us.

You�ve probably heard or experienced for yourself that sexual arousal is one of the most common reactions to the death of a loved one. While many people feel ashamed of this reaction, from a Tantric perspective, the turn-on not only makes sense, but it�s also totally natural for two very good reasons:

The body knows it needs a powerful release of tension and emotion, so it wants sex.

Death and grief make us feel lost and disconnected. Sex makes us feel alive and brings us back home to our bodies.

When it comes to death, sex and orgasm do more than relieve grief and pain. Orgasm is often referred to as �the little death.� Similarly, death is sometimes called �the ultimate orgasm.� Earlier in this book, I detailed my experience of leaving my body and visiting my dead friends during my first Erotic Awakening Massage. That experience taught me like nothing else the depth of the connection between death and orgasm. Letting go as completely as we can in orgasm is as close as we can get to death without actually dying. In the afterglow of an orgasm, you get a taste of what it is like to have your soul temporarily released from the earth trance, which your mind experiences as reality.

Ram Dass, author, teacher, and longtime spiritual seeker, had a massive stroke in 1997. He is now exploring the spiritual landscape of aging and dying. He calls death �ripening into God.� His description of the meditations he is using to prepare for death sound very similar to what happens to us in orgasm:

When you deepen into a moment, you disappear � at least the solid �you� that you�re used to experiencing disappears. Everything around you � maybe it�s a palm tree, dripping water, cars honking, people racing past you � everything feels ecstatic when you free yourself into the moment. You recognize your interconnectedness, and all these things in a moment can become mystical doorways for the soul. In this state you can�t worry about the past or the future and you can�t worry about �me,� because you can no longer find a separate �me.� In the moment we become free from the Ego�s desires and open to the Soul. We interrupt the Ego melodrama. The soap opera takes a break for a message from our sponsor: God.

The conscious use of orgasm to prepare for death may not answer questions like �What happens at the precise moment of death?� or �What happens after we die?� but I can tell you from personal experience that the conscious use of orgasm can alleviate much of our fear of death. At the risk of sounding macabre, I�ve come to love practicing death.

You need only be clear and committed in your intention to know something more of death. Given clarity of intention, you can perform a ritual/meditation with the consciousness you have developed thus far in Tantra. You are likely to have revealing, rewarding experiences. Keep in mind that the more sexual energy you raise, the more likely you are to have full, rich orgasmic experiences that leave you with the timeless, egoless, bodiless feeling of an after-death experience. Your practice of death is less about what you do than how you do it. You can use any and many Tantric techniques to raise this energy. The Erotic Awakening Massage ritual is a particularly effective path to this end. While you are designing your Erotic Awakening Massage ritual, keep the following principles in mind:

Commit to your sexual pleasure, your sexual energy, and your orgasm.

As you breathe, masturbate, fuck, or flog, hold the intention to know death better.

You may imagine briefly stepping out of your body, seeing yourself as spirit, or becoming peace or silence or a part of All That Is.

You may imagine being embraced by God/dess or even kissing Death on the lips.

At the point of orgasm, let go as completely as you can. Let your body go. Let your mind go. Let your emotions go.

Do nothing, plan nothing, be nothing. Let death happen to you in whatever form it chooses to take.

Make no judgments about what happens.

My other favorite death meditation is energetically quite different. It is done with a partner. One of you will �die� and the other will witness the �death.� If you are the one who is �dying,� lie down flat on your back in the yoga corpse pose with your arms and legs extended and relaxed. Your partner sits on the floor next to you and just witnesses. The rest is simple: all you do is die. How do you die? Well, that�s what you discover in the course of the meditation. Your breath may get shallow, you may have visions; everyone�s method of death and experience of dying is different. And that�s the point. There is no one way to die. You may find that dying is very easy for you; you may find it very difficult. That is also appropriate. This meditation is not about who dies better, faster, or more easily. It�s about opening yourself up to a closer, healthier relationship with death.

If you are the witnessing partner in this meditation, try to keep your eyes open or partially open most of the time. Stay present with your partner. Even though you are only witnessing, keep in mind that witnessing death is in and of itself a powerful experience. As a witness, you too may experience visions; your partner�s face may appear to change. You may feel emotional; it may bring up memories or visions or feelings about the death of a loved one. If you believe in past lives, you may even experience some of your own deaths.

It is said that only through death do we really know life. Each time you perform a death meditation, you are likely to discover a new aspect of death. Every time you embrace death a bit more tightly, your delight in life expands proportionately.

As I am sure you realize by now, Tantra is about far more than sex. In Tantra, all worldly activities are opportunities to experience the Divine, especially when they are approached with consciousness and intention. Sex is simply one particularly delightful and powerful way to tap into the pleasures and power that permeate the entire universe. As you dive totally into each present moment in sex, you tap into universal freedom and ecstasy. Soon you will be able to make that same ecstatic connection in other areas of your life. When you live Tantrically, you live with love and passion for all of life, and with a consistent, blissful connection to All That Is and All That You Are.