The Kama Sutra Is Not Tantric Sex

Now that I’ve published Secrets Of The Kama Sutra as an ebook I’ve had a few emails from people confused about the Kama Sutra and Tantric Sex. Even some professional sex writers are confused. So let’s be clear. The Kama Sutra is not about Tantric Sex.

Here’s the difference:

• ·         In the Kama Sutra, sex is for pleasure.
• ·         In Tantra, sex is for spiritual experience.

This is a big difference. So why the confusion? A little of the history of Tantric sex will make everything clearer. Back in the early days, some Tantrikas (it’s important to stress ‘some’) used the energy generated in sexualised group rituals to gain siddhis (magical powers) and enlightenment. Well, that’s what they hoped. Every woman who took part became a goddess for the duration of the ceremony and every man became a god. So it wasn’t important who you had sex with. It was the spiritual experience that was important.

Now contrast that with the Kama Sutra. Although the Kama Sutra mentions sex with more than one woman (it’s all written from the male perspective), it’s essentially about private sex between two individuals for enjoyment. And although the Kama Sutra says sex is both a sacred duty and one of the obligations of a Hindu in pursuit of moksha (release from the cycle of death and rebirth), that’s a long way from the Tantric view of sexual energy as a path to enlightenment.

There are those who still practise the sexualised Tantric rituals in their early form but most teachers nowadays have adapted things for monogamous couples. Unfortunately, some self-proclaimed ‘gurus’ have ‘adapted’ things so far they no longer bear any resemblance to Tantra. And that’s where the problem arises. This ‘modernised’ Tantra starts to look like the Kama Sutra. But it’s not the real thing. As far as I’m concerned, spiritual experience is the goal of Tantric sex, and sex without it just isn’t Tantric.

Nor are many of today’s books about the Kama Sutra the real thing, either. The world’s oldest surviving sex manual is both the most famous and the most misquoted. A few years ago I set the record straight in a book which was published by Hodder Headline as Teach Yourself Kama Sutra. Now I’ve revised the material, added a new chapter, and made the whole thing available as an ebook called Secrets Of The Kama Sutra.

So what is the difference between the real Kama Sutra and modern takes on the subject? Well, for a start, most modern versions get several of the positions wrong. These modern positions may well be hugely enjoyable but, if they’re not authentic, you might as well buy any sex manual. The whole point about reading the Kama Sutra is to do things as they were done all those centuries ago in India.

The ‘position of Indrani‘ is a case in point. Modern illustrations show the woman with her knees against her breasts, but they should be in her armpits, with her thighs close to her sides and her feet low, not up in the air. The muscular tension in the authentic version is much higher, thus increasing the excitement.

Again, in the ‘fixing of a nail‘, the woman’s foot should not be against the man’s head (modern versions) but against her own head (authentic version).

Modern versions also miss out the theatricality of the Kama Sutra, the dressing up, the light sado-masochism, and the special techniques such as the ‘pair of tongs’.

If you want to get it right you can download Secrets Of The Kama Sutra now by clicking on the banner at the top of the page.