Indian journalist Spriha Srivastava interviewed Diane Riley for the Sunday Indian times. Sacred love versus pure sex;

tantra is often taboo

 Tantra is often taboo !

because people don’t understand it. People
usually project their thoughts and fantasies in Tantra
and think that’s what it is.  And when you speak of Tantra is often taboo. And that is why they tend to misunderstand
it. Tantra in its purest sense is sexuality and love, and
exploring it emotionally, physically
and spiritually. It’s about being at your highest, purest
and most authentic self. People usually fail to understand the
ritual or practice of love-making as it was in the ancient Hindu
culture. So what people understand,
very wrongly, is that it’s an orgy or  free sex or partner swapping. Tantra, in fact, helps one in working on one’s relationship. The initial reactions to Tantra When I first introduced Tantra to people 35 years ago, they would not even understand why I wanted to talk about sexuality and spirituality in the same breath? Neighbours were very suspicious that I was running a brothel in the suburbs, people I met in the neighbourhood thought we were kinky and subversive. People would think that sexuality just belongs to your physical body and spirituality belongs to the soul. That was 35 years ago! Now views have changed a lot, but with some it has not! More People realize the benefits of tantric principles to help in their relationship and to bring closeness, emotionally. It helps discover more sensual pleasures with one’s partner. Tantra can mean many things to different people.  For myself I didn’t want to explore Tantra in the swinging style. I wanted to explore deep and connected intimate love through Tantra. I would urge people to explore themselves and their relationship further’. I haven’t seen people stay together who are into swinging . When people go to swinging parties, I think it’s more to do with making a statement that I’m going to let go of my fears and explore sexuality; I’m going to let go of my cultural pre-disposition or what my mom and dad have taught me. And it’s alright to go and explore these things, but deeper relationships are disadvantaged with swinging.
It’s for people who want to explore such a thing and want to experiment. It’s not for those who want a partner for a journey through life. Swinging is
similar to group sex, it can be arousing, breaking down belief systems, an adventure. Tantra, sacred sexuality, on the other hand, can be about exploring sex with your  partner. Well, that doesn’t mean that one can’t have thoughts about someone else. But Tantra helps one realize those thoughts as your own desire and then channelize it to use that sexual energy with your own partner.  It’s about enhancing your sexual feelings and reaching a spiritual level. So if it’s emotional satisfaction that one needs then Tantra is the way. ”
Tantra sex consultant ,
Diane Riley tells Spriha Srivastava
the sunday indian 54 7 march
c o v e r s t o r y

The new “Pulling”: Tantric massage for women

..It’s not a coconut oil mouth rinse technique, much sexier than that…

Did you know it’s great for your health to self pleasure? It raising your natural feel-good endorphins, increases your immune system, keeps colds away and radiates your bliss from inside out!

How to …

“Inner and Outer”…The lip layers of your vulva are like the petals of a flower. …

Start with massaging

the length of the outer lips between the thumb and the fingertips. Then do

the same with the inner lips. You can also use circular massage between the

thumb and the fingers, trying different pressures to suit.  Try “pulling” your lips

gently extending them, pulling them, bringing subtle pleasure.

Tantric Massage: Good vibrations

Place your entire hand over your yoni and vibrate your hand, pause, and

then continue. Now use the middle three fingers, gliding them back and

forth along the opening, with the little finger and thumb sliding between

the inner and outer lips of the vagina. Vibrate your hand and fingers as you

lightly stroke from the very base of the vagina right through and over the

clitoris. Move you hand in this way from the perineum area up toward the

clitoris, taking note of what pleasurable feelings arise.

Massaging your most precious bits..

Sometimes, direct stimulation of the clitoris can quickly turn from pleasure

to irritation or pain. So take time to experiment. To orientate direction for

this exercise, think of your clitoris as a tiny clock face, with the line from

12 o’clock to six o’clock representing the vertical axis. The 12 is where

your clitoris is and the six is towards the perineum. Start at 12 o’clock and,

with circular stroking, make little circles around the edge of the clock face,

~ Living the Dance: using Arts Therapies to Enhance our Lives ~

Next event: Women’s Weekend Workshop 

Moving Menopause: Enhancing the Journey

~ Discovering how to more fully embrace and celebrate the passage of menopause ~

Through modalities such as naturally expressive movement and dance, pastels, clay-work, writing, body-sense; mindfulness skills and meditation, (no former experience is needed)

Saturday 28 February and Sunday 1 March

with Satyo Cate Sullivan at Leela Cottage, Robertson, Southern Highlands

Menopause is often a taboo topic or something to be dreaded and endured. There is much more to it than that. This workshop is about embracing menopause as a richly meaningful part of our lives, going beyond the myths and exploring its possibilities as a time of transformation. Amidst the sometimes tumultuous changes new potentials can be born. This weekend is for all women – younger women, those approaching, in the midst of, and those moving or who have moved beyond menopause.

• Enquire into themes such as: Meaning and significance of this phase of life for you ~~ Completions and Openings ~~ Self-care ~~ A time for YOU ~~ The nitty gritty and the good bits ~~ Opportunities to release, repair, renew ~~ Sexuality ~~ Fresh beginnings ~~ What is important now? ~~
• Experience: A reshaping of the concept of menopause ~~ A deepening sense of what being in the feminine is about ~~ A weekend of being richly companioned ~~ A gathering of wisdom ~~ Time out and space for you ~~
• Take away with you: A new valuing of this part of your life’s journey ~~ Your own wiser understandings ~~ An enhanced sense of who you are as a woman ~~ 

About Satyo: Satyo Cate Sullivan (BCA., MA (Cat). PACFA reg.) works as a counsellor, psychotherapist and creative arts therapist in the Shoalhaven and Southern Highlands specialising in working with women.

When: Saturday 28 February, 9.30 – 5pm and Sunday 1 March, 9.30 – 4.30pm.
To Book: Full payment or 50% to C. Sullivan, BSB 062 585 Account no. 0022 1907. Or send cheque to C. Sullivan, PO Box 3381, Robertson, 2577
Price of Workshop: – $220 EARLY BIRD: $190 – received by February 13. Maximum number in workshop – 8 women. There are one or two concession prices.
Enquiries and Bookings: Satyo on 0412 122010.
Email: satyo@shoal.net.au   Website: http://satyosullivan.com  Or  Contact Maya Cowley on 0435 091467.
If accommodation is required please enquire.

Yoga, Raw Food & Meditation

Enjoy a One Day Retreat of Raw Food, Yoga & Meditation on Sydney’s North Shore on Sunday the 18th of May.

Contact Soelae on hello@wellness-events.com.au for more information.

Who is Ishtar?

‘Qadishu’ or temple dancers in ancient Sumeria, dedicated their love to service of the goddess, Ishtar. These sexual priestesses of love were ‘sacred women of the goddess’ or holy women. Through sexual embrace, a temple priestess could take a man into a state of higher consciousness, to a place where physical delight and spiritual ecstasy became one. The priestesses did not make love to seek admiration from the man — or simply to fulfill his, or their own, sexual pleasure. Their higher purpose was to worship the goddess and transcend individual needs. Thus the door to the divine opened. The priestesses became a conduit between the divine and the physical world. They sanctified sexual love for the goddess by tapping into the transformative and regenerative powers of sexuality.

Extract From Sexy & Sacred by Diane Riley ©

In society where female sexual images are often exploitive and disempowering, can we reconcile and integrate our sexuality with spirit?

Many myths and legends from various traditions have inspired and helped me to deepen my understanding of myself as a woman.

Aphrodite, the best known ‘goddess of love’ in Western tradition, can offer us many lessons on the value of desire and sexual pleasure within the feminine being. Aphrodite, a Greek goddess first written about by the Greek poets Homer and Hesiod around 700 B.C.E. She was revered for her power, sexuality, and grace.

Sacred Feminine

In Western traditions, Aphrodite is the most well known of all the ancient goddesses. She is the goddess of love, sexuality and passion and at different times and places has been known by many names including: Venus, Inanna, Ishtar and Isis.

Aphrodite is the one we most readily recognise as connected with sexuality.

Aphrodite was joyously proud of her own body, seeing it as part of the divine nature of the universe. This was not vanity, but a deep respect for her feminine nature.

Aphrodite was also known as the ‘golden goddess’, not only because of her beauty, but also because she radiated love and sensuality. This ‘golden glow of Aphrodite’, is a description of a love that is pure, a love not tainted by desires of the ego or games of power. It is, instead, a love that springs from a woman’s true sexual essence. Aphrodite did not exploit love for her own ego or for power and money.

Extract from Sexy and Sacred by Diane Riley ©

In ancient India, the word yoni (I like to pronounce it ‘yonn-ee’, however it is also commonly pronounced as ‘yo-nee’, rhyming with pony) was acknowledged as the gateway through which we were all born. It comes from early Vedic tantric writings and means ‘sacred place, precious garden, field of pleasure, gateway’. Therefore in lovemaking, the yoni was revered as a place where a man could enter ‘a field of heaven’.

The term ‘vagina’ came from the Latin, meaning, ‘sheath for the sword’. My thought when I hear ‘vagina’, is that it is an anatomical and medical expression (I will take my ‘vagina’ to the gynaecologist) but when I hear ‘yoni’ I think of it as part of a sensual woman! By renaming our sacred parts we can bring a magical and transformative quality to lovemaking again. How much more preferable is the use of the word yoni to another — far less poetic and often derogatory term — such as ‘cunt’? ‘Cunt’ for example is commonly used to describe someone you fervently detest or it is used as the most injurious of insults. It is fascinating to understand the derivations of its meaning (though we won’t dwell on this here) but, interestingly, the early usage of ‘cunt’ came from the early Norse word ‘kunna’ meaning ‘to know’, and from Middle English ‘cunte’ meaning country.
Extract from Sexy and Sacred by Diane Riley ©

Shakti and Shiva

The Tantric interplay of the male and female energies was represented in Hindu mythology with Shakti and Shiva, and
represented in Taoism with yin and yang. Both Tantra and Taoism aimed to create union of body, mind and spirit. And in both,
sexuality was seen and practised in a spiritual context.

Tantra always emphasizes the sacredness in sex; it teaches that there should be no repression or guilt attached to sex. It also
teaches that when a man approaches his beloved, he should have a sacred feeling, as if he were going into a temple. Tantra
claims that to know the truth about love, you need to accept the sacredness of sex.

Traditional Tantra teaches the practices of meditation, concentration, devotion to the goddess and the movement of kundalini
up the spine for spiritual enlightenment. Contemporary Tantra mainly focuses on the sexual aspect of Tantra and adapts its
practices from the classical erotic texts of India, primarily the Kama Sutra.

Extract From Sexy & Sacred by Diane Riley ©

Diane and Kerry share tantric wisdoms and practical knowledge so valuable to modern committed relationships. Whether you want to bring more pleasure to a partner, or a heightened sense of love and spirituality to your life or relationship, Diane and Kerry’s teachings of contemporary Tantra are accessible to everyone and profound combining sexuality, spirituality and the path of partnership. Their wealth of experience affords them insight and understanding of the dynamics of sexuality and relationship.

Together Kerry and Diane were at the forefront of the introduction of the philosophy of sacred sexuality to Australia. Their books ‘Sexual Secrets for Men’, has been published worldwide in different languages, including Polish, ‘Sexy and Sacred, sexual secrets for women’ is a ground breaking approach to tantric practices for women, and they co created the DVD ‘The Secrets of Sacred Sex’, which has now sold over 200,000 copies. They are directors of Australian School of Tantra with established teaching of sacred sexuality for over 25 years.

For more information about Diane & Kerry please click here. 

Train with tantric experts to get the best you can from your love life for you & your partner. Whether single or in a relationship this course will undoubtedly add enormous value to your love life.

These techniques can also help drastically professional by adding these techniques and modality to use with your clients to assist enhancing relationships and handling sexual issues.

During the workshop you will learn:

• Practices of Tantric & Taoist Sexology for longer lasting, heartfelt and more soulful sex
• How to Amplify deep attraction by building feminine & masculine polarity: Yin & Yang
• (If you are Women) how to connect deeply with your inner sacred goddess and take your man into experiences he won’t forget.
• The secrets to expand your orgasmic potential

• Tibetan Pulsing – rewiring of the motor nerves to release a new surge of energy and fresh juice into the sensation you feel during sex and in your whole life
• A powerful & little known practice from the temples of Tibet & the teachings of De- Raj for you to have the ultimate Tantric experience! Taught on Sunday – a unique opportunity not to be missed!
• What is the secret of connecting the energy of sexuality with the energy of deep love blending them into a divine opening to ecstasy.
• Authentic communication skills to validate each other and at the same time expressing your needs and desires
• Practical ways to initiate your partner into the ways of tantra and more heartfelt, soulful love making.

• Tantric meditations & breathing practices to keep you totally in the present moment- in the “power of now”

Diane and Kerry will give you the keys to keeping love and sexual passion alive in a relationship.

Please note: No nudity necessary all practices will be safe, supportive & fun

Organizers: Zosia and Dawid Rzepeccy: http://tantralove.eu/en/