TANTRIC MASSAGE VS. SENSUAL MASSAGE VS. EROTIC MASSAGE
Tantric Massage VS. Sensual Massage VS. Erotic Massage
(By: Stephanie ~ Devotional Bodywork)
“Tantra and tantric massage may have become trend words but they can be confusing and misleading. Tantra is often associated with mystical sexual practices and it can be difficult to understand what it is really all about. As humanity is, for the most part, coming out of thousands of years of sexual suppression, it is natural for the pendulum to swing and we’re seeing a reawakening of sexual liberation. From kink, BDSM, and porn, to swinging, sex-bots, sex parties and festivals, and somewhere in there is tantra and “sacred sexuality.”
A quick google search and there are numerous ads for “tantric massage” and entire websites dedicated to this but do they actually provide tantric massage?
What specifically distinguishes a tantric massage?
Tantra is now being offered as a professional holistic therapy that can support people with a range of issues around sex and intimacy. And as people begin to realise that no amount of “toys”, costumes, lubes and new “positions” is going to create sustainable deeply satisfying earth shattering cosmic awakening sexual fulfilment they long for, we return to the ancient spiritual practice of tantra to help open the heart and bring us into deeper connection with ourselves, our partners, and life as a whole.
A tantric master once said,
“When we can be intimate with ourselves, we can truly be intimate with others.”
As many of us embark on the journey of sexual awakening it’s important to understand exactly what’s being offered.
Similarities between tantric massage, sensual massage, and erotic massage:
The entire body is massaged in a sensual manner using oil.
They create physical and mental relaxation.
The sensation of touch can bring a sense of safety and comfort.
Tantric and erotic massages include touch on the sacred genital areas: the Lingam and the Yoni.
As you can see, although the similarities are few, it is because of them that these massages are easily confused. Especially when the word tantra is related almost exclusively with sex, detracting from its spiritual essence.
Sensual or Pleasure Massages:
Sensual massage or pleasure massages are typically full-body massages that focus purely on pleasure and may or may not conclude with genital massage.
Sensual massage is a relaxing form of massage that stimulates the erogenous zones of the body, not only to help alleviate stress but also to bring heightened states of pleasure.
It uses stimulation of the muscles coupled with the tactile sensation of the skin to relax and arouse the body.
The massage focuses on activation of pleasure through sensory stimulation. By focusing on activating the senses with various sensual and novel stimuli, it brings out the pleasures of the human body.
Following a relaxing massage of your entire body, the practitioner may massage the genitals with or without orgasm (including "hand relief" or a "happy ending," which is ejaculation). These massages typically last one to two hours. You might liken this type of experience with an erotic massage where the service focuses on body massage and ultimately, climax.
Erotic Massage:
Erotic massage is a widely available experience that normally includes whole body oil massage and may include body-to-body massage and mutual touch.
It’s a relaxing experience that allows sexual expression in a comfortable and safe environment. It can also be great for stress relief and providing pampering and a release in the hands of another person.
The focus of erotic massage is to activate physical pleasure and sexual arousal, with the goal of orgasm, climax, or sexual release i.e. a happy ending.
The massage usually encompasses a deeply enjoyable experience for the whole body with sexual energy being the focus of the experience. The massage usually ends with manual stimulation of the genitals to reach the climax. These massages typically last one to two hours.
These massage services are sexual in nature and necessary in the society in which we live, where lack of intimacy, education and acceptance in the face of different sexual inclinations, personal insecurities, and sexual guilt, shame, and repression continue to prevail.
This is a big reason why many people still need to explore the more physical aspects of their sexuality to reclaim their desires and fantasies and release any shame, taboos, fears and conditioned beliefs.
In this way, erotic massage meets this social mission very well.
Tantric Massage:
Tantric massage is carried out in a ritual that returns the body to it’s natural state, a state of relaxation and expansion, wholeness and aliveness, where life force energy is moving, flowing, and in a continuous exchange of giving and receiving with life.
Our energy channels must be open in order for energy to flow. Naturally, energy flows within our bodies, but it becomes blocked when stress, trauma, and patterns of protection cause muscle tension and energetic “contractions” in our system. These contractions prevent the flow of energy and may eventually cause pain and numbness.
Sexual energy is a potent energy that contains life force energy and the ability to create life. The ancient traditions practiced harnessing this energy and use it to heal their bodies, regenerate cells, and cure illness.
Priestesses taught men the secrets of sex and how to awaken and move sexual energy around their bodies thousands of years ago in India. This had the effect of making the men better lovers to their partners, but it also had other advantages such as increasing the vibration of the body, enhancing vitality, and clearing the body from blocked energy, unprocessed traumas and unexpressed emotions.
Tantric massage involves the movement of energy throughout our bodies by creating safety and relaxation in the nervous system, so that life force (sexual) energy is awakened from within and distributed throughout the nervous system, infusing consciousness into the body, spirit in matter.
Tantric massage typically lasts two to four hours because the practitioner is preparing the body and nervous system to open up to energy flow, which takes time.
As the body returns to its natural state, it senses it's wholeness and connectedness, that there is no separation between physicality and sexuality and spirituality. Hence sexuality becomes a portal for accessing higher states of consciousness, self awareness and new insights into your nature as a spiritual and sexual being.
The goal of tantric massage is not to achieve orgasm, but neither does it refuse to do so. Tantric massage allows us to enter into a space of presence with no goal, beyond the mind, where we can access infinite possibilities and healing through the innate intelligence and wisdom of the body.
Tantric massage is often confused with erotic massage because it involves massaging the entire body, including the genitals. The goal of erotic massage is usually to achieve climax and release sexual tension. Whereas Tantric massage focuses on creating conditions for life force (sexual energy) to naturally arise from WITHIN (as opposed to being activated by external stimulus) and move throughout the body delivering the healing power of sexual energy to your cells.
As a result, Tantric massage does not include ejaculation or sexual release. Instead, tantric massage teaches men how to circulate and contain orgasmic energy within the body, separating orgasm and ejaculation for prolonged pleasure, increased vitality, and leading to full-body or multiple orgasms as the entire body begins to vibrate and pulse with orgasmic life force energy.
Tantric genital massage, known as Lingam massage and Yoni massage or therapy, is different for each person and does not always have to be included in the tantric massage to awaken consciousness and sexual energy. Massage of the Lingam or Yoni depends on the sensitivity and need of the receiver. While erotic massage focuses on the physical aspect of release, tantric massage is concerned with the healing impact of touch.
Many people revere tantric massage as a physical form of therapy that can help with sexual issues and mental blockages. Tantric massage with a qualified practitioner can help with a variety of sexual issues including erectile dysfunction and premature ejaculation, as well as vaginismus, pain, numbness, and sexual traumas.
A fundamental aspect of Tantric massage is the use of breathing slowly and deeply in through the nose and out the mouth during the massage (both the giver and receiver). The purpose of breathing is to anchor consciousness in the body, and move towards a meditative state of deep relaxation, creating spaciousness within and expanding energy and pleasure sensations.
Unlike with sensual and erotic massage which build toward a peak state, Tantric massage journey’s through several waves of arousal and troughs of relaxation where energy is integrated and reabsorbed into the body thereby increasing ones pleasure capacity.
Finally, tantric massage connects our sex and heart so that sexuality becomes infused with the frequencies of oneness, love, and bliss. Tantric massage “techniques" without the quality of heart are useless. The quality of love infused in touch reconnects us with the healing power of Source energy and sends ripple effects throughout our lives.