Passion. The Tantric Path to Awakening

For thousands of years, followers of tantra have used the power of passion as a means to achieve the heights of mystical knowledge. The energy produced by it is used to sustain the inner fire that burns away the egoistic notions of the mind and to connect with the divine essence. In his book, Daniel Odier explores the techniques of tantra that allow us to influence our bodies by managing breath, thought, and energy flows. Indeed, according to tantra, to reach deep awareness, it is necessary first to perfectly tune one’s body. The author reveals many of the secret practices contained in the main tantric treatises and describes important techniques of the sexual ritual known as maithuna. Tantra is a path without fear and taboos, uniting the entirety of human experience with joy, pleasure, love, and fullness of life. Those who embark on the tantric path quickly sense, sometimes on the very first day, that the result—states of joy, spaciousness, and freedom—does not merely follow the practice. It is an integral part of it. All that needs to be done is to be present in every aspect of one’s inner life or in any event. Daniel Odier explains how to achieve this. The author details in an accessible manner both mindfulness practices and sexual rituals that will allow you to experience openness, relaxation, lightness, and love right here and now. The book contains a special section in which Odier answers various questions from practitioners—how to distinguish genuine passion from egoistic pleasure-seeking, what to do if your partner does not satisfy you, how to rid yourself of sexual blocks, and many others. For all who are interested in energy practices and tantra. The teaching of tantra, which has existed for several millennia, has reached the present day almost unchanged—thanks to the direct transmission of knowledge from teacher to student. Daniel Odier, who has practiced tantra for over thirty years, received initiation in this manner—from the great woman yogini Devi, whom he met during his travels in the foothills of the Himalayas. You can read about the history of their acquaintance and the process of learning in Odier's book "Tantric Quest: Meeting with Absolute Love." The path of studying tantra led Odier to Mahamudra—"The Great Seal." This is the final stage of initiation in the Kagyu school of Tibetan Buddhism, during which the teacher reveals to the student the nature of their true mind and imparts the ability to directly understand reality. The popularization of tantra in the modern world has led to inevitable simplifications and adaptations. Daniel Odier's books provide an opportunity to gain knowledge without distortions, directly from an initiate. Daniel Odier is a well-known French writer. He has written several popular science books on Buddhism, founded the Center for Tantra and Chan Buddhism in Paris, and taught a course on the spiritual traditions of the Far East at the University of California for several years. Odier is the author of the book "Tantric Quest: Meeting with Absolute Love," also published by our publishing house. He is also the author of a series of detective novels written under the pseudonym Delacorte. One of them, the novel "Diva," was adapted into a film. Odier lives in Paris.