|
In November of 1998, I did my first workshop with Joseph Kramer. At that time his weekend workshops were called "Healing the
Body Erotic." For this one, about thirty men gathered in a dance studio on Fourteenth Street in New York City. I knew about
half of them. Many had attended workshops that I had facilitated called "Massage and Meditation." By the end of the weekend,
I felt bonded to all the men present.
We started by standing in two circles - the men in the inner circle facing outward, each facing a partner in the outer circle.
We looked into each other's eyes. We held hands. We took deep breaths. We introduced ourselves. Then the inner circle moved
one man to the left. We continued moving from man to man. Sometimes we made faces at each other. Sometimes we pretended we
were gorillas or sumo wrestlers trying to scare each other. Sometimes we stretched. Sometimes we massaged each other's shoulders.
Usually we ended each encounter with a hug.
After about an hour, we reformed into groups of threes. Each group was given a blindfold. Somehow, I was the first in my group
to wear the blindfold. Then I heard Joe tell the men without blindfolds to remove the blindfolded man's clothing. When I was
naked, I got to choose which of the other two in my group would be stripped next.
During the remainder of the day we touched; we danced; we learned to breathe with the rebirthing breath - emphasizing the
inhalation and relaxing on the exhalation; we learned the big draw - lying down on our backs, taking a full breath and, with
legs and shoulders lifted, contracting all our muscles as much as possible, then releasing after twenty or thirty seconds.
All of this was preparation for the next day when massage tables were set up and we learned to give and receive a Taoist erotic
massage. Lying on the table, breathing the rebirthing breath, I was massaged by six other men in succession while Joe gave
them instruction. At the end, I did the big draw and learned I could float between the conscious and the subconscious in a
world I had before only dimly sensed.
This was my experiential introduction to erotic spirituality. I had only read about the subject before then. I didnít have
the theory to describe to myself what was happening at that time, but I was learning to turn off my egocentric mind. I was
learning to open up to Universal reality in a new way.
There are now many opportunities for men and woman to have the kind of experience that I had in 1998. Body Electric, the school that Joe Kramer founded, offers classes for men alone, for women alone, and for men and women together. Other
teachers offer similar instruction.
The preceeding is an excerpt from my work, Sacred Praxis, a manuscript now being completed. For those making
personal retreats at Easton Mountain, I offer private sessions in erotic spirituality. Contact me for more information.
To give you some sense of erotic spirituality, here are two meditations from Sacred Praxis
With a Mirror
Sit naked on a cushion about three inches thick. Place a mirror a few feet in front of you. Have two candles lit, one on each
side of the mirror. Set a timer for twenty or thirty minutes. Bring you focus to your sex organs. Just relax and keep your
gaze on them, as you would while meditating on a mandala or a drawing of sacred geometry. When distracting thoughts come,
note them and go back to looking at your personal mandala, your sex organs.
With a Mudra (a meditation for men)
For this meditation, sit naked on a cushion about three inches thick. Set a timer for twenty or thirty minutes. Bring the
inside edges of you thumbnails to the inside edges of your ring finger nails. Then bring the tips of the remaining three fingers
of your right hand to the corresponding fingers of your left hand. Let your wrists rest on your thighs close to your crotch.
Then let your cock rest on the point where your two little fingers meet. Close your eyes. Bring all your awareness to the
sensation of your cock touching your two fingers. If distracting thoughts come, note them and bring your awareness back to
your cock.
|
