My first white tantra yoga – a personal blog
I had actually only heard horror stories about white tantra. And hey, not to be confused with eroticism, making love with feathers or other antics, white tanta yoga is mediation. And not just a little bit. A meditation marathon, so to speak, with a lot of people at the same time. Again group sex, but energetically (sorry, just kidding).
The point is that it is not facilitated in the Netherlands. Because yes, organized from White Tantric Yoga® in the USA. They look at Europe through their American glasses; white tantra in Germany, England and France. Check. The Netherlands? Where is that? Oh that's next door. Fine.
It was October in Frankfurt. Five and a half hours from here. And with American glasses on, you'll be there in no time. With four yoginis in the car (we love traveling together and the environment) we shared nuts and fruit, sang mantras, and in a bubble beyond time&space we were in Frankfurt in no time. Go to bed, ready at 6.15 tomorrow.
At 07:00 we arrived at the location, which was large enough to easily host 300 people. In accordance with the regulations, we wore only gleaming white clothing and had our heads tightly wrapped in white turbans.
White tantra yoga is 'not just a little meditation'. You meditate in a fixed position (in long rows next to each other) and opposite a partner. This is an all day partner; that can be your life partner, a friend, but also someone you meet there for the first time. There is a facilitator, there are moderators and YB himself was there on screen and taught through his Subtile Body.
We sat on our sheep, in long rows (with some space on the sides) and opposite the partner. The theme of this day was fear. “What would your life be like if there was no fear?” asked the facilitator. "What would you do that you're not doing now?" They were nice questions to start the day with. I gave the thought and place and then let it go. The idea of white tantra yoga is that you can release subconscious blockages (fears?) during meditation. A very thorough cleaning of the mind, so to speak.
The first kriya (meditation) lasted 62 minutes. And during that hour there was a mudra (hand posture), a mantra and an eye focus. The latter was the most difficult, because the eye focus was: look your partner straight in the eye. Needless to say, this gives some giggles at first, then some turmoil, some friction, then tears, and finally softening. I had a beautiful partner, with beautiful eyes; it was nice to be allowed to drown in it, to look at her without judgment and without fear.
Between the kriyas there was a break to stretch the legs, do the toileting and drink tea and water. Then a 31 minute meditation. And another one. And another one and then we had lunch. A lovely warm kitcherie. And I kept thinking: when will it start? When is that Very Awful? It didn't come. The kriyas remained gentle, kind and docile. The mantras were tongue twisters, but you have 31 or 62 minutes to get to know the sounds 😉 Also very friendly: for the participants who have trouble sitting on the floor for so long, there was the possibility to do the exercises sitting on a straight chair to do.
The facilitator complimented us on the chanting and called this day 'a gentle white tantric experience', and that was it.
The atmosphere was very gentle, friendly and uplifting. We sang our way through time. We sang away from everything. The energy, shooting vertically through space, was almost visible and tangible. I felt light, enlightened, and far beyond time&space. What a bubble.
More information about white tantra yoga? Read the blog.