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EMPEROR'S DUTY
Multiple love-making between two brothers and their wives. From a Chinese painting of the early eighteenth century.
Taoist love-posture of ritual love-making. From a fragment of a silk scroll of the early sixteenth century.
ADULTERY IN THE HEART
truly the Emperor is the Son of Heaven! As embodiments of the three Eternal Forces of creation, preservation, and transcendence, the Daughters of Earth serve to initiate the Em-
peror into the ways of man.
"The Emperor should make love with nine chosen consorts every night, proceeding
from the lower ranks to the higher. Each of the nine consorts should be satisfied fully, so
that the planets are pleased; retaining his semen by proficiency in the Art of Love, the Emperor concentrates powers within. Then, at the full moon, he bestows his seed on the
Queen of Heaven.
"Polyandry is permissible between blood brothers and a single woman, since brother-
hood implies shared origin. H o w can those of identical origin in reality be thought of as
different? However, be this as it may, it is true of life that brothers often seek to destroy one another through the natural expansive qualities of man, which in close proximity, manifest as rivalries and petty jealousies. When the force of expansion becomes limited, it is difficult indeed to contain. For polyandry to work successfully, brothers must truly become masters of themselves.
"As for your last question, my Conch Shell is even now ready to receive your precious Jade Scepter! However, by your questions it seems that you are not yet ready for me! And what of my sisters? Are you ready for them? Here now, Ts'ai-nu, the Elected Girl, has
prepared the wine. Drink and look within. See what other questions come to mind."
The Elected Girl holds |
a glass of warm aromatic wine, the color of cinnabar, to the Yellow |
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Emperor's lips. She takes |
the place |
of the |
Dark |
Girl, |
who |
has got up from |
the bed and |
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moved over to sit close |
to |
the Plain |
Girl. |
The |
Dark |
Girl |
hums gently to |
a |
melody played |
on the zither. The tune |
is |
made up |
of five |
notes, repeated |
over and over |
in |
different |
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sequences. |
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"Drink your fill, O Noble Lord! says the Elected Girl haughtily. "Su-nu, your precious Conch Shell, and Hsuan-nu, the Peach of Immortality, are busy composing a song in praise of the Five Elements that originate from the union of Yin and Yang. If you have an immediate use for me, please let me know. Though I prefer purple to the predominance of red in this Love Pavilion, I'll do my best to please you. Perhaps I should rub your head, to aid the effect of the wine? If you have any questions I'll be glad to answer them."
Taken |
aback |
by |
the |
reversal of roles, the |
Yellow Emperor drinks |
some wine and watches the |
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Elected |
Girl's face as |
she sensuously |
moves her body next to |
him |
in time with the music. |
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As she |
nods |
her |
head this way and |
that, |
her earrings jingle |
and |
the Emperor finds himself |
|
fascinated by the charms. The wine begins to take its effect.
"Truly you are a Goddess of Many Colors!" says the Yellow Emperor. |
"If indeed you are |
also a sex initiatress, initiate me now! Tell me the subtle effect, if any, |
of illicit affairs and |
other types of adultery. Explain to me the secret meanings of Self-worship, narcissism, autoeroticism, and forms of bondage. Please explain to me all about fetishism and foot worship.
Finally, if you |
can, tell me the meaning of the Taoist term 'Heavenly and Earthly Net.' In |
truth, I'm sure |
these topics are beyond the reach of even the Daughters of Earth!" |
Pouting erotically, Ts'ai-nu, the Elected Girl, rocks herself back and forth and says:
"Yellow Emperor indeed! H o w is it that illicit affairs and adultery are so close to your mind? Perhaps even now, among your own wives and concubines, there are those who savor such thoughts. Illicit affairs are unfortunate and are the cause of many calamities; their attraction is the thrill of the forbidden. If a woman has illicit affairs, the seed of her lovers will fight and the ancestors will be displeased. If a man has illicit affairs, he loses the respect of those who are devoted to him. So why bother with illicit affairs? Between truly caring people there is no space for deceit.
"Adultery does not only refer to acts of the body. Many women commit adultery in their hearts, as do men. At the slightest suspicion of unfaithfulness in their partner, both women and men tend to develop desires for others. Thinking to pay him or her back in kind, they commit adultery with the help of their imagination. While making love with their partner,
122 Shiva the Transcendental
they make believe they are loving someone else, even bringing to mind a favorite face or name. If such unions produce children, they tend to take after the imagined person.
"Self-worship exalts the nobility within and is a secret support for the Spirit. Self-worship implies knowledge of the Self and recognition of its transcendental qualities. Selfworship takes one beyond. In the world all acts of healthy conduct are forms of Self-worship, from bathing to eating to having sex. On the highest level Self-worship is meditation and transcendence.
"Narcissism is natural to woman. Striving to realize all her multifarious roles, she draws her narcissism from Nature. For a woman, narcissism can be a form of Self-worship and also a source of nourishment. Though narcissism can also serve the woman within every man, it is an illusory power that has no inherent potential for him. Yin, like water, holds its own mirror; Yang, like fire, throws no reflection back. When male narcissism dominates a culture, it impedes spiritual progress. In extreme, narcissism is a turning away from Bliss.
"Auto-eroticism is a derivation of narcissism. It is a secret circuit of the senses. Autoeroticism further softens what is already soft. Auto-eroticism is a paradox of Nature, a mystery born of solitude. The Earth is auto-erotic but Heaven is not.
"Bondage is the Soul's endless round of births and deaths. Bondage is also the body, helpless and confined. Great Emperor, if the sight of a fair maiden trussed and bound excites your passion, be that as it may! There are also those among our Earthly sisters whose blood is quickened by the tug of silken ropes about their delicate wrists and ankles. If both Yin and Yang find pleasure in such diversions, let bondage be practiced as an erotic art, but never should it be employed to degrade the Soul.
"There are those who adopt bondage as an effective means of reversing roles. As an erotic tool, bondage can free the mind by restricting the body. Symbolic of the total surrender prior to release, bondage mirrors the game of life. Those who advocate bondage for their own sadistic or masochistic ends should try warfare instead; then, as captor or captive, destiny is theirs alone, to either confront or flee from. Truly it is said, 'The ropes that bind the strongest are found within the mind.'
"Fetishism is like a play of ghosts; it is an obsession with specific objects or acts and is brought about by the mind's power of identification. Fetishism is the mind's attempt to endow with meaning that which is not yet fully understood. By the power of fetishism, inanimate objects or ideas appear to be animate. Sexual fetishism occurs when an object or idea associated with sexual pleasure acquires a psycho-spiritual hold over a person. It is the ritual surrounding the fetish that endows it with power and meaning. Sexual fetishes can take the form of such mundane things as silk scarves, stockings, underclothes, bondage ropes, furs, feathers, or other items associated with pleasures long past. When the mind is obsessively focused on the fetish, intimate, meaningful memories seem to spring to life on their own. Fetishism is generally associated with nostalgia and morbidity and often conceals an inability to either express or receive love. Although fetishism can be an artificial aid to self-confidence, the ultimate price for this is high.
"Since ancient times the feet have been recognized as microcosms of the body. Subtle nerves connect the feet with all the inner organs. It is the feet that bear the weight of the body through most of its years. Foot worship is thus a form of honoring the support of Mother Earth and is a custom reserved for those one respects. When the loved one returns weary from battle, his feet should be washed, oiled, and worshipped with incense and flowers. When the consort manifests herself as the Goddess of Earth, her lotus feet should be honored and exalted.
"Foot worship does not mean foot bondage or foot fetishism, both of which are unnatural. Though in women small feet are taken as signs of refinement and nobility, and are even said to indicate sexual prowess, foot binding is painful and serves no useful purpose. In the practice of the erotic arts the feet can serve as either Precious Crucible or Scepter. When the soles of the feet are placed together, a secret pleasure grotto is formed; at times when the ecstasy of love is rising, the toes curl naturally and can be easily used like the Positive Peak. Truly the feet are the microcosm of both man and woman!
"The Heavenly and Earthly Net is an ancient Chinese Rite designed to avert calamities
SELF-WORSHIP
Mimicry of the love-making of animals is a mystic Oriental practice believed to aid the harmonization of Heaven and Earth. From a Japanese print of the eighteenth century.
BONDAGE
FOOT WORSHIP
HEAVENLY AND EARTHLY NET
Shiva the Transcendental 123
and natural disasters caused by disharmony between Heaven and Earth. In this rite, performed in the dark of night, men and women make love like birds and beasts, mimicking their sounds, postures, and other antics. At times when emperors cannot fulfill their sexual duties, and when Heaven and Earth begin to manifest disorder, the Heavenly and Earthly Net is said to be the last resort. Through this sexual ritual, a natural hierarchy is evolved and the Tao, the Cosmic Order, is reestablished."
The Yellow Emperor momentarily places his head at the feet of the Elected Girl, who has finished talking and is caressing her left breast. Hsuan-nu, the Dark Girl, suddenly stops humming; a sense of expectancy fills the atmosphere. The Plain Girl puts aside her instrument.
The Dark Girl drinks some wine, |
leans |
over to the Plain Girl and kisses her on the |
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mouth. |
Then, taking |
her |
by the |
hand, |
she leads her over to join the Elected Girl and the |
Yellow |
Emperor on |
the |
dragon-shaped |
bed. |
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"So much for serious talk!" she says. "The facts of life are but common sense. Anyone knows that girls menstruate when they're twice seven and that boys can father children when they're twice eight; few, however, can play the Melody of the Five Elements. Everyone recognizes that clouds and mist are the Yin-juices of the Earth and that Jade is the Yang-essence of the Heavenly Dragon; few, however, understand the real function of the three sex initiatresses!
"Su-nu here is called the Plain Girl, the Queen of the White River; she is Earth's embodiment of all creativity. Ts'ai-nu, who is caressing herself, is called the Elected Girl, the Goddess of Many Colors; she is Earth's natural narcissism, the exquisite eroticism of all preservation. As for myself, Hsuan-nu, the Dark Girl, I am called the Peach of Immortality because I bear the sweetest fruits of the Earth and still bestow lasting transcendence!
"The tortoise, unicorn, phoenix, and dragon are all creatures with counterparts within the human body. All are called Ling, which means 'transcendental.' The tortoise enjoys this Earth without haste, and as a result, lives for a very long time; born of this Earth, the unicorn is much loved by women, and though rarely found, his horn is always hard; the phoenix is born from the ashes of Earth and rises constantly; the dragon, though originally resting in the bowels of the Earth, hides in the Heavens.
"In ancient times I, Hsuan-nu, made magic drums for the Yellow Emperor and so helped him slay the Monster of Time. Now, once again, monsters threaten this age and the sexual secrets have been forgotten. We three young girls have the Son of Heaven to ourselves. Is this the time for 'playing horse' or 'stringing pearls'? Conjoining our complementary forces into One, with our bodies forming the Precious Tripod of Immortality, let us perfect the Elixir right now."
The Elixir of Life was potentized for eighty-one days and nights, during which time all obstacles were easily overcome. Then, rising from the shores of the lake, the Celestial Dragon, bearing a sun and moon in eclipse, flew toward Mount Meru, illuminating it from above.
May it be Auspicious!
Overleaf: The King and Queen of Nepal are here depicted as Vishnu and Lakshmi.
Seated together in intimate Tantric ecstatic union, they embody the archetypes of preservation and prosperity. The multiheaded cosmic serpent, the tamed vital energy, symbolizes the infinite potency of the cosmos. A large painting on paper, formerly in the collection of the King of Nepal, circa 1830.
Vishnu, the Preserver, maintains all things and has the power to Manifest in many different forms. In the great Cosmic Ocean he reclines comfortably on the Serpent of Infinity and is the primeval Spirit of Existence, the Lord of the Universe.
VISHNU PURANA
Lakshmi is the consort of Vishnu; she is as beautiful as ten million rising suns and is the embodiment of sensuality. Lotus-eyed and garlanded with lotuses, she is the Eternal Mistress of all beings. She rests upon the thighs of Vishnu and is the patroness of prosperity.
LAKSHMI TANTRA
The lotus is a symbol of spirituality. The mystic forms of Vishnu and Lakshmi as Radha and Krishna, the embodiments of unconventional love, are portrayed seated on lotuses, wearing lotus petals, and holding lotus buds. This icon expresses the ideal of refined eroticism. From an Indian painting of the early eighteenth century.
The wife clasps the husband in her arms. They spread the virile
"milk," and, in delivering
herself, she |
milks for herself the |
potent Juice |
of Love. |
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RIG VEDA |
the erotic sentiment
The erotic sentiment is the potent "seed" of mysticism. It is the raw emotion of love, a feeling that stimulates the passions, "fires" the senses and awakens the Kundalini-energy at the sexual center. The erotic sentiment
is evoked through the delightful contact of the senses with the external world. W h e n refined and carefully channeled, eroticism leads to the experience of transcendence and ecstasy.
In the Tantric or "secret" tradition, the erotic sentiment correlates with the taste of sweetness. Vishnu, the Preserver, also known as "Lord of the Waters," is said to be the ruler of the erotic; this is supported by the ancient attribution of the watery element to the sense of taste, and by the necessity of saliva in discriminating flavors. Hindu texts recount the many erotic exploits of Vishnu, w h o in his incarnation as the youthful Krishna is the prototype of the lover. Of his amorous adventures and subtle play, more shall be said later.
Eroticism stirs up the fires of love, in all its varieties. The ancient Indian texts, such as the Kama Sutra and Ananga Ranga, refer to four distinct types of love: habitual love, imaginary love, natural love, and sensual love. Of course such categorization is a simplification since most loves are a mixture of the different types. However, the importance of this traditional classification of eros is in its bearing on the deeper mystical teachings of the Tantric tradition. We will encounter this fourfold division time and time again as we move deeper into the arcana of the East, most notably in the transformation of sexual energy and the stages of ecstasy.
The erotic sentiment is linked with the element of fire and the sense of sight. Shiva, the Yogic ideal of transcendence, is always associated with fire and mystic eroticism. To understand what this means we have to remember the relationship between the "inner fire" at the navel center of the Subtle Body (the solar plexus) and the "Third Eye" in the head center. This occult eye is brought into action through the distillation and transformation of the inner "fires" in the stomach, liver, spleen, heart, skin, and so on; such an effect is brought about by the different kinds of Yoga. In the Western mystical tradition there is also a knowledge of the spiritual fire, the fire of purified emotion.
In the esoteric teachings throughout the world, "fire" and "water" represent the solar-lunar forces of the microcosm. These two great forces can be resolved through the
126 Vishnu the Preserver