Tantra Illuminated: The Philosophy, History, and Practice of a Timeless Tradition

by Christopher D. Wallis

Tantra Illuminated takes the reader on a fascinating journey to the very heart of Tantra: its key teachings, foundational lineages, and transformative practices.

Since the West's discovery of Tantra 100 years ago, there has been considerable fascination, speculation, and more than a little misinformation about this spiritual movement. Now, for the first time in the English language, Tantra Illuminated presents an accessible introduction to this sacred tradition that began 1,500 years ago in the far north of India. Translated from primary Sanskrit sources and offering a profound look at spiritual practice, this book reveals Tantra's rich history and powerful teachings.

Genres: Spirituality, Nonfiction, Philosophy, Religion, Hinduism, Buddhism, Sexuality

506 pages, Paperback

First published December 1, 2011

About the author

Christopher Wallis, also known as Hareesh, is a Sanskritist and scholar-practitioner of Classical Tantra with thirty years of experience. He was initiated by a traditional Indian guru at the age of sixteen, and received education at yoga āshrams, both in India and the West.

Subsequently, he engaged in fourteen years of formal education in Sanskrit, South Asian Studies, and classical Indian religions.

Hareesh teaches classical Tantric philosophy and Tantric practices, meditation, Sanskrit, and mantra-science to an engaged online community of practitioners. He is the Founder of tantrailluminated.org, an online learning portal where all his courses and teachings are available. He also offers workshops, retreats and classes in person in Portugal and around the world.

He combines his own practice of more than 25 years with a rigorous inquiry into the original Sanskrit sources to accurately translate and bring to modern practitioners this ancient nondual wisdom. The practices aim to facilitate both spiritual awakening and enhanced well-being for people in all walks of life. His community of students frequently praise his deep love for the tradition and the clarity of thought and expression.

Reviews

[Joao Fonseca · Rating 4 out of 5]

Notes and quotes:
Tantra Illuminated

Tan=expansion
Tra=device
Stretches our awareness and our capacity for joy (modern interpretation but in the same sprit as the roots)

There are several Tantras, different gurus followed different tantras.

Ramakartan? Definition:
.Must come from a initiation ritual
.adoration of the divine, in a sense of becoming the divine
.2 goals of tantric practice:
-Higher: spiritual freedom, release from suffering- moksha or mukti
-Lower: worldly enjoyment and prosperity, pleasure power - sidhi or bukti
.tantra is given in scriptures that are divinely revealed.

Tibetan budhism is almost totally tantric.

Scholarly, the features that characterize tantra as a spiritual movement are:
1. It’s seen as an alternative path, a new revelation, and/or a more rapid path;
2. A centrality of ritual especially the worship of deadies
3. Proliferation of number and type of diades compared to the antecedent tradition;
4. Visualization and self-identification with the diade
5. Centrality of mantras
6. Installation of mantras in specific points of the body-nyasa
7. Ontological identity of mantras and diades
8. Necessity of initiation and the importance of esoterecism or secrecy
9. Yoga, usually referring to visualization and meditation practices
10. Ritual use of mandalas and yantras
11. Teachings on spiritual phisiology that is the subtle body and chakras and kundalini
12. Mapping diades and pilgrimage sites on the practitioners body
13. Linguistic mysticism
14. Importance of the teacher, guru
15. Addition of worldly aims achieved though magical means
16. Lay or householder practitioners dominate the tradition rather that ascetics;
17. Bipolar symbology of god and Godess
18. Non-dualism
19. Revaluation of the body
20. Revaluation of negative mental states
21. Importance of Shakti, meaning power, energy or Godess
22. Revaluation of status and role of women,
23. Transgressive or antinomian acts
23. Utilization of sexual yogas
25. The cultivation of bliss
26. Spontaneity - Sahaja?
27. Special types of meditation that aim to transform the individual to an embodiement of the divine after a short span of time

6 elements that constitute the most prominent features classical tantra:
- yogic meditation
- mantras
-mandalas
-guru
-initiation
-ritual worship of the divine, using fire, water, flowers, scented pastes...
They do not define tantra by themselves because All of them are found to some degree in other non-tantric Indian religions as well. These 6 aspects are organized and given their specific form by the 7th feature, that of the diade yoga which entails working with the power of a particular aspect of the divine to which one has been linked through initiation, trough association with the diades mantra, yantra, visualization and/or consecrated image.
What makes a practice indisputably tantric is that it envolves diades and their mantras that are revealed in explicitly tantric scriptures.

It is impossible to describe the all field of Tantra in one book, this book focuses on non-dual shaiva tantra.

Hinduism is recent, is a grouping made by Europeans of different religions of that area. It is now seen as all religions that regard the Vedas as the spiritual authority.

Connection between Tantra and Yoga:
Yoga is older. Tantra incorporates yoga as a part of its systems of practice. Tantra expanded on previously existing yoga practice and added more techniques, complex pranayamas, detailed visualization practices and mantra science, as well as many body based practices specially yogic postures, sacred hand gestures and the activation of chakras in the body.

Kama sutra does not relate at all to Tantra because it’s aim is not spiritual liberation.

Non-dual shaiva Tantra:
A spiritual movement originating in Northern India that reached its peek in 9th to 12 centuries primarily characterized by:
1. Enphasis on direct experience of a divine reality that has transcendent and eminent aspects called shiva and shakti respectively. Shiva primarily understood as the pure consciousness that is the ultimate ground of being and shakti as the flowing energy making up the entire manifest universe.
2. Initiation into a guru disciple relationship and a egalitarian kula? Or spiritual community
3. Spiritual practice in 4 aspects: contemplation of view teachings, meditation rituals, yogic techniques of the subtle body and the aesthetic cultivation of the senses all aimed at accessing and assimilating the divine energy in all things in order to achieve worldly success an spiritual liberation. ( also applies to other forms of nondual tanta such as Buddhist forms, but these do not use shiva and shakti but Budha nature or dharma kaya?)

The divine has 2 aspects: .Trancendant=Shiva; personified as male divinity; pure consciousness, non personal utterly transcendent of all limitations or qualities, beyond the reach of senses, speech, and mind- the singular light of awareness. The quiescent and peaceful ground of all that is.
.Eminent=Shakti; perceivable trough the senses and the mind, personified as female devinity. The entire manifested universe is the Godess and therefore aught to be revered as such.
These 2 aspects are 1.

Tantra practitioners were not ascetics but people like you and I. A whole community that rejected the idea of cast, class and gender divisions.
Body is not seen as impure but a vehicle to realize divine reality. Experiences of the senses were not viewed as distractions from spirituality but opportunities to engage in divine worship.

Darshana means world view, vision of reality and way of seeing, it is also a map of the path you will walk.

All scentient beings seen and unseen are simply different forms of one divine coinsciousness, which looks out at the universe that is its own body trough uncountable pairs of eyes.
You are not separate from the Godess, you are the very means by which she knows herself. The basic principle of reality, that foundation of all that is, that to all things are reducible and not itsel reducible to anything else is conscious awareness. We cannot demonstrate the existence of any reality which is not the content of some beings experience and all experience take place in awareness, thus anything and everything we can point to as having any existence whatsoever, like external world or dreams and visions all exists within the field of awareness.
All limited counscionesses(you and me) are merely vantage points within one, all encompassing unbroken field of awareness. Thus there is only one perceived and only one doer in all of existence.

Liberation is complete when we are no longer waiting to be liberated. Progression in the path from point A to point B is a an illusion. You are moving through a process, yes, and there is a kind of directionality to your movement but it is not an evolution to some better state of being as much as it is a dissolving of that which prevents you from recognizing the truth that has always been right in front/whitin you.

The goal of the path is truth not happiness, make truth seeing your goal and more bliss you can imagine as a byproduct of that journey. But the moment your sights shift to bliss or pleasure as the goal, delusion begins to reassert itself.
This is the key teaching that shortens the duration of the process more than other single teaching.

Why does tantra view desire as a means to liberation, instead of negating it as other yogics do? Desire is as divine as anything itself but in order for it to become liberation it must have the right view toward it. Desire becomes a vehicle to your liberation when you trace it back to its source and realizing that your desire for some external situation is really a desire for the feeling, the flavour of coinsciousness(that you believe) that having that thing or person will bring you. All desire boils down to the fundamental desire of being. All longing is longing for god.
This fullness of being is not accomplished by a quantitative accumulation of good experiences, it is your natural state. It is a esses by finding the primal root of your desire far deeper than any particular wanting and letting it explode with the realization that ultimately you simply desire to be the whole of what you are.
You discover that what the mind really wants is to stop wanting and that will never happen until you realize and experience the whole of what you are.

5 Layers of the self:
- physical body
- mind
- prana
- transcendent void
- power of awareness (essential nature)
The layers are not separated. They are pervaded but all lower layers.
6th layer - vastu? - stuff around you, like you car or possessions, suffering comes by attaching yourself to this stuff.

Physical body: suffering comes from attachment to he body, if you believe you are only the body.

Heart mind-Chita?: thoughts and feelings. “I am smart, I am stupid, happy or sad”. When we identify only with our mind excluding the other dimensions, we suffer, for the kind changes even more rapidly than the body. Realize the mind is one of many sources of input, taken note of it as a part of its whole being.

Prana: vital energy or life force. We share it with all living beings. Connected to the breath. Interface between physical body and mind and is the key to mind-body connections but is more subtle and fundamental than either. It is the means by which the mind extends itself trough out the body in the for of what is called the subtle body.
“ i am energized, alive, drained...”

Transcendent void-shunya?: all pervasive is empty of all form of energy it is shiva without shakti. Reached trough meditation. “I am not of this world, my trough self transcends all things”.

Power of awareness: connection with the divine. Fusion of shiva and shakti. It is not top of hierarchy because it pervades the entire hierarchy. Express with a feeling not s thought. Mantra “shiva om”.

The lower layers you identify with are the ever changing expressions of the core consciousness.

5 powers of god( 5 shaktis) - what god is:
-shitshskti: power of counciousness of awareness.
-anandashankti: power of bliss
-itshashakti: power of will or creative impulse
- iñanashakti: power of knowing
-kryiashakti: power of action.

6th metapower swatantrica shakti: power of freedom or autonomy, context for the operation of the other 5.
These 6 pervade all reality.

5 acts of god( what god does) come from the power of action, which is not independent from the other actions:
- surshti, creation, emission, the flowing forth of self expression
- stitti, stasis, maintenance, preservation
-sonhara, disillusion, retraction
-kiromhana, forgetting, occlusion,
-onugraha, revealing, remembering, revelation, grace
Shiva Nataraja represents the 5 acts with the 4 hands and lifted leg

Tattwas- levels or principles of reality, from the bottom up( earth to shiva-liberation):
First 5, elements:
36. Earth. Where all are manifested. Bija mantra: Lam
35. Water. Liquidity and solvency. Bija mantra: Vam
34. Fire. Digestion and Transformation. Bija mantra: Ram
33: Wind. Mobility. Bija mantra: Yam
32: Space. Vacuity and extension( 3 dimsnsionality). Bija mantra: Ham

Next 5, subtle elements, the properties of things that make them perceptible by our senses:
31. Odor
30. Flavour
29. Appearance or form
28. Tactility, tangibility
27. Sound vibration.

Next 5, action capacities, fundamental function of the human being. Evacuation, reproduction, locomotion, manipulation and speech.

Next 5, sense capacities,
21. Smelling
20. Tasting
19. Seeing
18. Touching
17. Earing

Higher tantras, what is known as the mind:
16. Mind. Manas. Attention And sense processing
15. Ego. Ankara. Identity maker. “I am”. Ego is a persistent contraction of awareness in a form of a collection of self images that causes suffering trough artificial self limitation. In tantric tradition an enemy is an ally seen in a wrong way, thus the ego is not to be Anahi later in tantric yoga but purified and infinitely expanded until it melts into all that is
14. Discerning faculty. Budhi. The intellect. The most important mental faculty for all schools of yoga philosophy. The power by which we decide what is beneficial for us and what is not. It is impaired by samskara, an impression from past experiences, so the energy flows different trough you than someone else due to past experiences.
We formulate assumptions and make projections that to often are misaligned with the reality of the present. Our brains are too good at pattern matching. This act is the primary reason we are not able to be aware of the reality of the current situation as it is, and thereby make good choices. The spiritual path is much about cultivating clear vision and see things as they really are.
Budhi is not localized in the brain but extends trough the body so sanskaras of different kinds are distributed throughout the body and can be released by physical as well as mental practices of yoga. Without the practice of yoga, the gut instinct in we place so much trust my in fact be based in fear and lead us astray.
13. Secondary materiality. Prakrati. Nature, materiality. Entire physical universe of matter energy. Body mind field.
12. Individual soul. Purusha. The innermost self,soul, the witness, pure consciousness, Attman. In samkhya and classical patanjali yoga, the atman sits at the top of the hierarchy of tattwas, for those non tantric systems it is the ultimate principal, spirit as opposed to matter energy, and there are a plurality of divine souls that are not part of one conscious entity. For tantrical philosophy the purusha is not the highest principle, but a contracted form of the universal consciousness. There are not a plurality of selfs but one self.

How does shiva(absolute consciousness) manifest itself in the form of an individual soul? By concealing it’s fullness with 5 veils, kantrikas:
7. Limited power of action. Kalla. Gods self imposed limitation on power of action. All kantrikas are a limited form of gods power
8. Limites power of knowledge. Vydia. When we believe we know what life is like but in fact we are seeing a tiny slice.
9. Desire. Raga. Desire is whatever a soul think it needs for completeness, divine fullness.
10.Time. Kalla.
11. Causality. Nihity. It is the force that binds is to our karmas, the law of cause and effect.
6. Maya. In tantric is the The world source, the divines power to project itself into manifestation. Deludes is into seing duality where there is only unity. But does not have a negative characteristic in tantra.

Tattwas 1-5, the pure universe. It’s not a place, it’s a divine reality that pervades all of the manifest universe.
A description of the divine, phases of gods awareness:
5. Pure mantra wisdom. Shuda vidya. Not intellectual knowledge but various phases of shiva shakti self awareness expressed in the form of the 70million mantras. Mantras are conscious beings, analogous to angels in western traditions.
4. The Lord. Ishwara. Krishna, alla,jehova, etc. Most monotheistic religions presume to be the highest level of reality.
3. The ever benevolent one. Sadha Shiva. The word god is no longer applicable for it transcends any form of a deity with identifiable names or attributes.
2. Power. Godess, Shakti. Energy, capacity, capability. The whole universe is the body of the Godess and the movements of all forms of energy are her dance, her play.
1. The benevolent one. Shiva. Not the name of a god, rather the peaceful quiescent ground of all reality. The infinite silence of transcendent divinity. While shakti is extroversive,manifest, omniform and dynamic, shiva is introversive, transcendent, unmanifest, formless and still.
Shiva is the ground of being that which gives reality its coherence. In the essence of the Tantras, shiva is described as the coherence and unification of all the various shaktis, shaktiman, the one who olds the powers or olds space for their unfolding.
0. The heart. Shiva shakti in perfect fusion. Secret tattwa taught only in the esoteric non dual tantric sources is the key you understanding the whole philosophy. Is not trancendant. Transcends and encompasses, excludes nothing. It pervades the whole essence of all the tattwas. This ground of being is Incomprehensible by the mind.

A hunch will be defended by the Mind. Intuition stays silent, as a gift S

Mind and heart(emotion and tought) are 2 different names for one and the same thing. They merely enphasize some aspects of that entity. Therefore sometimes subconscious emotions manifest as thoughts and subconscious thoughts manifest as emotions

On this path there is no such thing as negative emotions, emotions I don’t like or I shouldn’t be having. Cast away the notion that this state of mind is better and you should be feeling this or that. We accept what is we work with what comes. All emotions are energy and all energy can empower you.

The practice envolves all the senses. Sound and light are fused. As the sound of the bija rises trough the central chanel one visualizes que sound as a sparkling point of light rising through the central Chanel, and track its movement with the rise of the hand in the appropriate mudra. Imagination, visual perception, auditory perception, physical motion, mantra, breadth all are entrained in a single flow and this is the key o tantric yoga. Mantra, mudra, visualization and breadth in a single flow.

Tantricas see the whole world as filled with energies, some of which can be called spirits and contends that this spirits can be contacted through the sound vibration of their mantras.
The westerns want to know if these are though to have independent agency because if not they can be explained psychologically as aspects of our own mind, which makes most westerners quite comfortable and agree. We love to ear information that confirms and elaborates what we already decided or been programmed to believe is true.
Westerners feel comfortable in the believe that we humans are the only self aware beings around, and that there are no consciousness beings that can be perceived with the usual 5 senses. However no traditional society in the world that has ever existed agrees with this materialistic view. Only modern technological societies that are no longer intimately connected to nature hold this view.

[Todd45387 · Rating 5 out of 5]

A revelation

This book is a masterful example of the author's self-proclaimed scholar/practitioner model. It is a beautifully written combination of history and philosophy infused with a radiant spirit -- an energetic signature that can be felt while reading the text. I've been a seeker for a long time and this book incredibly encapsulates and synthesizes what I have intuited in my heart but have been unable to express.

Highly recommend this book!!

[Morgan Blackledge · Rating 5 out of 5]

UN-BE-LEAVE-A-BLE!!

Utterly fantastic exegesis on Non-Dual Shiva Tantrism.

Superb scholarship meets authentic practice.

Christopher D. Wallis is AMAZING.

I’m agog!

5/5 💎

NOTE: I spent the JANUARY of 2025 rereading this.

I SO DESPERATELY wanted to write in more detail about the contents and my experience reading it. And I still do.

In fact.

I have been holding out on posting the reread for a month or so hoping I would find the time to make this happen. But (for some reason that is kind of mysterious) I simply cant (or wont) bring myself to sit down to this monster undertaking.

Maybe that means there will be another reread coming.

Anyway.

This is a FU KING great book.

I LOVE C. B. Wallis for (a) doing all the hard scholarly and practical work it took to write this thing, (b) actually sitting down and writing this thing, and (d) just from being the seriously serious, massively uncompromising, non-dual shiva-tantra dork/demigod that he so clearly was born to be and is.

FANTASTIC!

[Christopher Tompkins · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tantra Illuminated is the most accurate, comprehensive, and accessible portrayal of the Shaiva tradition by any modern scholar. Christopher Wallis renders the sould of the Tantrik masters with profound intuition and academic poise.

Christopher Tompkins
www.shaivayoga.com

[Michael Nguyen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Despite this being a highly informative book - rich with information about Śaiva Tantra, Śaiva Siddhanta, Abhinavagupta and Advaita Philosophy in general - the fact that he has written in a slightly preachy tone and recommended a sexual predator guru from Melbourne at "The Ashram" is highly disturbing. And I can't take any of his authority as a "spiritual teacher" seriously. As a scholar, however, his work is useful. I would just take his advice with a grain of salt. And I would also highly recommend anyone who read the section where Christopher Wallis recommends Swami Shankarananda to read these news articles on the so-called "Swami" first.

https://www.theage.com.au/national/vi...

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-02-2...

https://www.theage.com.au/national/vi...

https://www.9news.com.au/national/gur...

Again, it is highly irresponsible for a Spiritual "Tantra" teacher, and a scholar to recommend a sexual predator. I mean, "alleged" sexual predator. But I would still be very careful. Obviously, this Swami has not gone to court for what he has been accused of doing, but many sexual assault victims never get the justice they deserve. So I would just be very weary of any suggestion to visit random ashrams without doing prior research. Christopher Wallis rejects the internet as a legitimate source of information as it is filled with both "information and misinformation" but I think in this day an age, people have to make do with the information they have. If the internet can help save someone's life, and stop them from joining a cult, then I support someone's decision to use it. The internet both has its positives and negatives, so does reading articles from wikipedia. Yes the information online can cause massive harm, but it can also do massive good. So it's a double edged sword.

Another problem I have with Christopher Wallis is how he uses his religious knowledge to propose solutions to psychological problems. It is very misleading and dangerous. He has an incredibly limited understanding in the way he describes human suffering as purely a mental construct and imposes a spiritual "tantric" worldview over it, that true happiness is in accepting our own suffering and questioning our fear of it, rather than addressing structural injustices in society and real suffering caused by violence and human cruelty. He does not understand trauma, but he does understand the history of tantra. Do not allow his teachings on the mind or psychology to inform yours'. Trauma, and negative emotion are real. Rather than being "non-dualistic" and accepting injustice as good, I suggest one take the Jungian approach and integrating our shadow into our core personalities. BE assertive. Stand up for what we believe in. Is something feels wrong, than it might be wrong. Don't use logic to ignore emotions. The problem with Wallis' psychology is that it rationalises suffering as a mental construct. A notion also shared by Cognitive Behavioural Therapy proponents, a methodology which has been debunked and critiqued by Farah Dalal in his book "Cognitive Behavioural Tsunami", which I highly suggest people read for a more nuanced perspective on the false presentation of "positive thinking" therapy as a science.

The dark side is nothing to be afraid of. If we repress it, it will come out in worse ways. We need to be able to integrate our insecurities, resentments, angers, desires, the Freudian ID, and the chaos within us that is bubbling beneath. Like the integration of wratheful deities in Buddhist deity yoga. I recommend that negative emotions not be repressed or suppressed but rather EXPRESSED and preferably through safe ways such as art, music, therapy, assertiveness, discernment, introspection and setting boundaries. Using tantric methods and nondual śaivism to escape trauma is merely spiritual bypassing. A topic which he ironically discusses in here, but does not fully expand upon. In and some way, oddly, encourages with his suggestion to visit ashrams and seek guidance from potentially dangerous gurus. Please research these places before going there. And use the internet. There's no shame in google. Quora. Or whatever you use. But be honest with yourself and with others that you are using it. Don't pretend to be a scholar if you are just a student of the google search engine.

For people who want to understand cult indoctrination, which is real by the way (contrary to how guru worship proponents tell you what to believe) please read Michelle Haslam's PDF on the Kadampa Buddhist religion.

https://info-buddhism.com/PDF/Psychol...

In my opinion I find Christopher Wallis is too conservative in his defence of Nondual Śaiva lineages in the west as legitimate, and of the guru worship as an ultimate truth in Śaiva Tantra. He also uses the scriptures to promote a solipsistic worldview. It's propably a symptom of the original texts themselves. That "everything is in the mind" and "everything is consciousness". I think these claims must be critiqued and not just taken literally, very similar claims are made by Sam Harris in his propounding of Mindfulness. Wallis when he remarks on the supremacy of the guru has no proof outside of the religious scriptures, and anecdotal evidence of "irresponsible" students going to gurus and having bad experiences. Unfortunately, Wallis in his conservative defence of the Western Śaivism religion has placed the blame on irresponsible students as opposed to the recruitment tactics of cult members and the abuse of power by charismatic gurus. Do not take his spiritual advice or guidance seriously.

But all in all....

Don't listen to me, don't listen to Christopher Wallis. Perhaps even visit these Ashrams and Gurus that he recommends. You may even like it. But DO YOUR RESEARCH. Please.

Take care.

Namaste

[Dorum · Rating 5 out of 5]

Serious scholarship by a serious practitioner and scholar. This is not some bullshit sexual book. This is not some New Age feel yourself good philosophy. It is a serious research into the Saiva religion that is based on the Tantrik texts of the 5th-8th centuries. Furthermore, since the author is a practitioner, it also includes detailed explanation in modern language of most esoteric and strange concepts, practices and terms.

More importantly, one can clearly see what part of modern Yoga is actually of an ancient inspiration, and which one was simply invented in the 20th century. One can clearly see the difference and also the resemblance between modern and original practitioners of Yoga.

I guess my main criticism of modern Yoga is its fragmentary approach to history. There is Patanjali's Yoga Sutra written around AD400. Then we have the next texts in the fifteenth century. Somehow, nothing is generally written about the intermediary 1000+ years. This book actually fills in that void. It offers a general understanding on how Yoga evolved in these years, and it clears out some philosophical ideas and misconceptions.

[Kate · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my favorite book on Tantra ever written. I listened to it while home with my baby and it lifted me to sublime levels while I was changing diapers and pacing around my house. OMG I love this book.

[Jane Martin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Profound, scholarly and based on personal experience, this book is a guide to discovering the very roots of our soul. It explains the mystery of nondual Saiva Tantra without diminishing it; it leads me gently to a comprehension of this ancient teaching at the same time it encourages my participation in the journey. It acknowledges key questions many of us have about the meaning of God in our lives, and provides a grounding for the answers within the research and the personal experiences of the author. If you are interested in yoga, in questions like "why was I born?"; in learning more about living a spiritual life and what that entails; in gaining clarity about previously fuzzy ideas about yoga and what it is, then read this book. It is absolutely fascinating, well written, and very moving. This book is such a gift.

[Lizzy DeMarco · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really gave me some new ways of looking at spirituality, life and myself. A dense read for someone unfamiliar with many Hindu words, still I liked it a lot, I will be coming back to it again as I continue on this new journey :)

[Paul · Rating 5 out of 5]

A massive labor of love by a Westerner who has devoted his life to the study and practice of the profound path that goes by the name of Tantra. One thing that's surprising for the non-expert (at least for this one!) is how little is known about these teachings even in their native India and how close they came to extinction as recently as the 20th century. The author is part of a small but determined movement to change this, and he sends out a call for more scholars to join in this vital work.

The book delivers exactly what it promises: an overview of the philosophy, history, and practice of Tantra. While it could never give a complete account of such a vast field, it treats the subject in impressive depth and detail. And while it is a scholarly work--that is, written by an academic with the requisite credentials--the author is breaking ground by presenting the material in a way that is not detached and impersonal, but in a way that respects its subject as a living, powerful, and effective path to what we in the West might call salvation. He is a scholar, yes, but he is first and foremost a practitioner and teacher of this path.

While the book surveys the whole history of Tantra, its focus is on the teachings known as Nondual Shaiva Tantra (NST), especially as taught by the 11th-century Kashmiri master Abhinava Gupta, who developed a deep philosophy that synthesized many of the streams of Tantric thought and practice. A tantra is basically a revealed sacred text; Shaiva means relating to the great god Shiva, the divine Consciousness that underlies, permeates, and transcends all that can be experienced, thought, or imagined; and nondual points to the fact that no conscious being is in any way separate from Shiva: we are all, each one of us, manifestations of God. The Tantric path is one of coming to realize and live this reality.

My own interest in this subject is more than casual, for I myself joined with a Buddhist Tantric organization back in the 1980s, and I have fitfully practiced and studied that path since then. As this author observes, NST bears a close resemblance to Buddhist Tantra, and indeed the historical evidence appears to show that Buddhist Tantra is simply NST reconfigured slightly for a Buddhist audience.

I'm tremendously glad that Christopher Wallis has written this book and that I've read it. We need all the people we can to help us live the best and highest lives of which we're capable, to help wake us up to the divine reality of our existence.

[JSter · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tantra Illuminated is a relevant and beautiful work of the heart and should be a companion resource for any student of yoga, Tantra, Sanskrit, Indian philosophy, or history. This book is for those interested in learning more about the topic (you can stay close to the surface or go deep), as well as for scholars who are well versed in Shaiva Tantra—there is an incredible amount of knowledge and wisdom within!

I purchased both the audio and print versions, and suggest listening to the recording first, letting it wash over you so you can enjoy the resonance of Christopher’s voice as he reads, chants (divine!), and pronounces Sanskrit words and phrases with utter perfection, then delving deeper into study and contemplation in the print format. This is a book you can visit and revisit as it calls to you.

[Daniel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Christopher Wallis' certainly delivers on the promise of its subtitle and his passion for the material is evident. However, the work suffers from the modern Western preoccupation with repeatedly assuring the reader that all this talk of Gods and Goddess is primarily to be understood as philosophical metaphor. While the parts of the story of Tantra that Wallis chooses to emphasize are often heroically thorough, his failure to meaningfully explore Tantra's folk traditions/practices left me feeling like something crucial is missing.

[Trish · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Illustrations are just amazing. Ekabhumi is a dear friend of mine and a fantastic artist.

I found the book to be informative and easy to read,
my only issue with it was that I found it slightly preachy...

[Bon Tom · Rating 5 out of 5]

A lot more than I ever wanted to know about Tantra, written by the author totally passionate about the topic. And it's not a pun. Tantra is not what you think and what I thought. Read the book if you want realistic, not new agey/commercial account of it.

[Michelle Teasdale (Yeshe Lhatso) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent yet accessible scholarship, a thorough overview of the classical Tantric traditions. The content mostly covers non-dual Shaivism, but there was also enough on Vajrayana Buddhism for me as a practitioner. Highly recommended.

[Jason · Rating 4 out of 5]

Audio and kindle editions do not sync. Its a very frustrating listen. Wonderful scholarship of course.

[Wouter Zwemmer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mijn eerste boek in 2025

Rijk gedocumenteerde geschiedenis van de tantra-spiritualiteit, met name ’klassiek’ Indiaas shaivistisch tantra (9e-12e eeuw). Geschreven om dit complexe gedachtegoed beschikbaar te maken voor Westerlingen. Spoiler alert: dit boek gaat over spiritualiteit, niet over seks.

Aantekeningen voor mezelf gemaakt. Één grote spoiler.

Filosofie, spiritualiteit en praktijk
De auteur, Christopher Wallis, is een academisch specialist in Vergelijkende Oosterse Religies en Sanskriet, opgeleid in Berkeley en Oxford en zelf praktiserend tantrist. Volgens Wallis was shaivistisch tantra ooit de dominante religie in het hele Indiase subcontinent en in grote delen van Zuidoost Azië en Indonesië. Tegenwoordig is deze traditie vrijwel vergeten ondanks haar enorme invloed op andere spirituele tradities zoals (hatha) yoga en Tibetaans boeddhisme. Dat in het Westen sommige mensen tantra enkel associëren met seks of met new age clichés zoals ‘alles is één’, ‘alles is energie’, ‘alles is bewustzijn’, komt door popularisering in de jaren ‘60 en tijdens de new age-beweging van enkele ideeën van tantra. In werkelijkheid is tantra, net als uit tantra voortgekomen yoga en Tibetaans boeddhisme, een brede en diepe levensfilosofie, spiritualiteit en praktijk die twee hoofdstromingen kent (met veel substromen): duaal en nonduaal tantra. Shaivisme is nonduaal.

De geschriften
Tantra betekent zoiets als geschrift (‘body of teachings’). Letterlijk in het Sanskriet is tan het verspreiden van wijsheid en tra om te redden. Tra betekent ook wel ‘device’. Zo kun je tantra uitleggen als een instrument voor uitbreiding (verspreiding), en mantra als een instrument voor je geest. Vroeger heette tantra ‘de tantra’s’, als een verzameling geschriften, een beetje zoals de bijbel ook is ontstaan als een verzameling boeken. De shaivistische tantra-filosofie gaat er vanuit dat al het leven een uitingsvorm is van ‘leven in zijn algemeen’, of potentieel, als een ‘bewustzijn’ dat zich uitdrukt in alle vormen van leven. Dit eenheidsbewustzijn wordt als goddelijk gezien, met als metaforen Shiva (het transcendente, mannelijke) en Sakti (het immanente, vrouwelijke), waarbij Shiva staat voor het potentieel van het eenheidsbewustzijn, en Sakti voor alle uitdrukkingsvormen van dat potentieel in leven, in de werkelijkheid. Ook het onderscheid Shiva-Sakti is maar een filosofisch hulpmiddel want nonduaal betekent dat dit twee aspecten van de werkelijkheid zijn. De tantra-spiritualiteit streeft naar hoge en lage doelen. De hoge zijn bevrijding van het individuele bewustzijn van mensen, naar verlossing van lijden, zeg maar naar zoiets als verlichting; de lage doelen zijn wereldlijk genieten en ontwikkeling (‘prosperity’). Nonduaal betekent dus ook, naast de gedachte van eenheid van al het leven, dat het zich richt op het geestelijke én het wereldlijke leven, en wel geïntegreerd (zie ook het chakrasysteem wat uit tantra voortkomt).

Filosofie en praktijk
Nonduaal houdt in dat tantra zowel geestelijk als wereldlijk leven omvat. Tantra is dus zowel filosofie als praktijk. Alleen praktijk (bijvoorbeeld seks) is leeg en leidt niet tot verlossing van lijden, alleen filosofie is dromerij. De bedoeling van tantra is bevrijding van de mens en verandering van het dagelijkse leven ten gunste daarvan. Klassiek tantra omvat zes aspecten: yogische meditatie, mantras, mandalas, guru, initiatie, rituelen. Het is geen godsdienst waartoe je je kunt bekeren. Je hoeft ook niet religieus te zijn om aan tantra te doen, en tantra combineert met elke religie. Ook hier: nonduaal. Tantra en Kamasutra hebben niets met elkaar te maken. Seks speelt enkel een rol voor tantra als krachtige levensenergie (kundalini), niet als onderwerp voor maximalisatie op zich. Tantra is een filosofie, een verhaal over het leven. Volgens deze filosofie is elk verhaal niet de werkelijkheid zelf. Uiteindelijk heeft elke filosofie enkel zin als het het beleven van de werkelijkheid verbetert; ook tantra is niet alleen een intellectuele oefening maar ook een praktische toepassing. Voor tantra kan elke activiteit een uiting van verering zijn, omdat ales en iedereen een uiting is van het goddelijke (lees: het leven, de tao).

Universeel en spiritueel
Anders dan in de meeste religies ziet tantra het lichaam en het wereldlijke niet als zonde en zondig of onzuiver. Alles is manifestatie van het goddelijke, dus ook het lichaam. Tantra ziet het lichaam juist als bron en instrument voor het bereiken van het goddelijke, van verlichting. Alle mensen en alles wat leeft zijn de uitdrukking van een bewustzijn (noem het ‘leven’) dat zich wil uitdrukken in vorm. Tantra ziet alle leven als incarnaties van het Ene (universum, god?) om op zichzelf te reflecteren. Alle mensen zijn in die zin goddelijk en universeel. Als mensen zich identificeren met hun individuele uitingsvorm, omstandigheden en beperkingen, ontstaat lijden. De tantrische praktijk kan mensen helpen om het specifieke te overstijgen en zich te identificeren met de goddelijke (universele?) krachten van bewustzijn, ‘bliss’, willen (intentie), weten en doen. Het doel van tantrische beoefening is om dit te bereiken, en in alle praktische aspecten van het dagelijkse leven. Wallis noemt het begrip god en goddelijk vanuit Westers perspectief problematisch. Hij spreekt ook over ‘awareness’, bewustzijn. Hij noemt tantra spiritueel omdat dit universele bewustzijn op geen enkele manier kan worden aangetoond.

Mental maps en lijden
Ons brein maakt verhalen over de werkelijkheid met behulp van onze beperkte zintuigen. Het brein zelf is beperkt per definitie. We vormen beelden en verhalen over de werkelijkheid. Sommige van die beelden en verhalen worden mentale constructen, mental maps, waarmee we informatie over de werkelijkheid filteren en interpreteren. Daarmee beperken we onze kijk op en ons begrip van de werkelijkheid. Veel mensen geloven dat die mental maps van de werkelijkheid de werkelijkheid zelf zijn. Dit is de bron van alle lijden. Volgens de tantra-filosofie is het universele bewustzijn absoluut vrij en ‘blissful’ (stralend?). De spirituele praktijk is erop gericht om je beperkingen op te heffen die je verhinderen om deze vrijheid en straling in jezelf te ervaren. Verlichting is wanneer je al je mental maps hebt gevonden en losgelaten en volledig de vrijheid en straling van het eenheidsbewustzijn ervaart.

Geen evolutie
Omdat alle mensen incarnaties zijn van het Ene Licht dat op zichzelf reflecteert, is een ontmoeting met ieder ander voor een mens een mogelijkheid om op zichzelf te reflecteren. Kun je de ander in jezelf herkennen? Dit leidt noodzakelijk tot een uitbreiding van je zelfbewustzijn. Dit proces van uitbreiding kan net zolang doorgaan tot het individu eenheid ervaart met al het leven. Dit houdt in dat je alle mental maps (meestal in de vorm van ‘Ik ben…’-statements) hebt losgelaten. De tantra-filosofie kent geen evolutie, geen ‘in de toekomst zal de wereld beter zijn of is er een hiernamaals. Alles is er al op elk moment. De ontwikkeling die tantra nastreeft is bevrijding van de beperkingen van mensen om dit te zien en te ervaren.

Willen, weten, doen
Shiva-Sakti is bewustzijn, straling en vrijheid; de drie fundamentele krachten van god zijn: willen, weten en doen. Willen: zichzelf creatief willen uitdrukken in vorm; weten: zelfkennis, reflectie; doen: de werkelijkheid in actie, op elk moment. Het universele bewustzijn is nonduaal, dus niet alleen maar gezellig, zacht, lief en eenvoudig - moeilijk, bitter en zuur zijn er een onderdeel van. Dus pijn in het leven is evengoed een uitdrukking van het goddelijke als geluk. Tantra onderscheidt lijden van pijn. Pijn is natuurlijk, een beschermingsmechanisme, een waarschuwingssignaal. Lijden is het resultaat van onwetendheid van mensen van hun ware natuur, namelijk dat mensen niet een deel van het geheel zijn, maar dat ze zelf (een incarnatie van) het geheel zijn. Op enig moment voelt een mens de drang (will) om spirituele wijsheid te ontdekken (know) en spiritualiteit in de werkelijkheid toe te passen (act).

Hoopvol
Klassiek tantra is hoopvol in de zin dat er geen terugkeer naar god hoeft te worden verdiend, want al het leven ís god. De wereld ís god “for its own sake.” Mensen hoeven ook niet mooier of beter te worden, want ze zijn al goed zoals ze zijn. Het probleem is dat de meeste mensen zich niet zo voelen. Het doel van tantra is dat mensen op elk moment meer ‘aanwezig zijn’ (‘presence’), meer bewust van zichzelf en de omgeving, tegelijkertijd ontspannen en gefocust, tegelijk gegrond in de echte situatie en bewust van een groter geheel.

Ananda
Tantra stelt voor dat er de mogelijkheid van “joy (ananda)” is in elke situatie en activiteit, met joy als een liefdevolle acceptatie (bewustzijn) van de realiteit op dat moment. Zelfs verlichting is slechts een educatief concept, niet een soort permanent iets om te bereiken: “What we discover is that instead of walking a path to reach a specific final destination, we are walking it to learn how to walk it. The moment we fall into complete harmony with the walking, dissolving ideas about our destination or our identity as a walker, path and goal merge into one. In other words, liberation is complete when we are no longer waiting to be liberated.” Tantra streeft niet naar spirituele hoogtepunten want alle ervaringen zijn én tijdelijk én een uiting van het universele. Eigenlijk is de straling (ananda) die tantra voorstelt een bijproduct van overgave aan en acceptatie van de realiteit zoals die werkelijk is. Als je denkt dat je verlicht bent maar je voelt niet de bliss / ananda / joy, relief / profound contentment, dan heb je je wsl overgegeven aan jouw dominante verhaal over de werkelijkheid, niet aan de werkelijkheid zélf. “Make true seeing your goal, and more bliss than you can imagine will arise as a by-product of that journey; but the moment your sights shift to bliss as the goal, delusion begins to reassert itself.”

Desire
Tantra omarmt verlangen als even goddelijk als al het andere in de werkelijkheid, en als een middel voor verlichting. Hierin verschilt tantra van de meeste andere spirituele stromingen die verlangen meestal afwijzen. Wel een onderscheid in ‘gewoon verlangen’ dat het onjuiste zelfbewustzijn dat je niet voldoet, dat je gescheiden bent van het onderwerp van je verlangen, voedt. Tantra beoogt dat je inziet dat je nog meer dan het object van je verlangen, verlangt naar het gevoel dat het je geeft. Het verlangen naar dat gevoel is het diepe verlangen waar tantra naar streeft, naar “You discover that what the mind really wants is to stop wanting.” Hieruit volgt een verlangen om je uit te drukken in de wereld met compassievolle actie.

Enzovoort…
… en zo gaat dit boek nog wel even door… Met steeds meer detail en Sanskriet. Overall een leerzaam werk over een belangrijke filosofisch-spirituele stroming die het potentieel heeft om jou en de wereld fundamenteel ten goede te veranderen.

[Logan Streondj · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent, possibly best spiritual book I've ever read. I have many takeaways, most prominent are that all desire is ultimately a desire for the divine, which explains why attempting to satisfy it with material things is ultimately unsatisfactory.
Another good one was that when making a positive version of a negative statement have to integrate the divine to make it more powerful.
Also good to know was that originally the only sex related to tantra had to do with a small aspect about overcoming aversion so could more easily have forgiveness and compassion for all beings.
Another is that we all go through cycles of expansion and contraction, where we can expand our self definition loving more of creation or contract refine and limit our scope of entaglement.


Here are a few select quotes:
"When you see yourself clearly, there comes a flash of recognition: you are a microcosmic expression of precisely the same divine powers that create, maintain, and dissolve this whole universe. When you experientiallyrealize that the same beautiful and awesome powers that orchestrate the intricate and wondrous display of this entire creation are flowing within you, creating you even as you create with them, providing the very foundation of your whole experience of reality, there is a profound shift. Your fear and pettiness drop away as you harmoniously fall into the dance of life energy, realizing that you have been the only one who has ever limited your potential. An explosion of joy accompanies the realization that there is nothing to do, nothing to achieve, other than to fully embrace the divine powers that seek to manifest through you by expressing the entirety of your authentic being in the fullness of each moment, in an endless flow of such moments."


"Many spiritual traditions view the ego as an enemy on the spiritual path because its voice seems opposite to the voice of God, our innermost Self. However, in the Tantrik tradition, an enemy is simply an ally viewed in the wrong way. Thus the ego is not to be annihilated in Tantrik yoga but rather purified and infinitely expanded. Since the ego simply means “what you think you are,” expanding it means expanding your sense of self, including more and more in your self-definition. Ultimately, when the ego expands infinitely, you experience all things in yourself and yourself in all things. There are no more boundaries to selfhood. When you experience all beings as part of yourself, you naturally act with compassion and wisdom. This is the state of pūrṇo’ham vimarśa, which can be translated several ways: “the perfect ‘I’-consciousness,” or “the awareness ‘I am full and complete’”or “the awareness ‘the real I encompasses everything’.” It is the state of complete all-inclusive expansion. Just as the mass of any object accelerated to the speed of light increases to infinity, in the same way when the ego reaches the state of complete expansion, it merges into the ocean of Consciousness."

"From the perspective of the Śrī-vidyā, desire (icchā) is the motive force of the universe, since without it nothing would arise and divine Consciousness would remain static. The work of the spiritual practitioner, then, is to first release her judgments concerning her own desires, judgments that cause a contraction of Consciousness, and secondly to merge her limited desire into the greater pattern of divine Will. This does not mean giving up desire but rather learning to want passionately what the Goddess wants, which necessitates becoming one with Her. What the Goddess wants is simply to flow in relational patterns of ever-greater harmony, and we naturally fall into that dance when our conditioned desires that arise from a false sense of lack have fallen away. But this cannot happen as long as we are judging or condemning them instead of seeing that they are the same energy as divine Will constrained by our ignorance from expressing themselves in maximum harmony."

"strongest grade of śaktipāta is so powerful it brings about immediate liberation, a fierce and total awakening, with the unfortunate side effect that the intensity of the experience causes the body to drop (i.e., physical death). Needless to say, this is extremely rare. The second grade, also very rare, causes a spontaneous arising of intuitive insight, naturally leading to full awakening. When this intuitive knowledge arises, if it rapidly grows to completion of its own accord, the recipient is said to be a “Self-revealed guru,” a giver of both enjoyment and liberation, displaying the six signs of completion. On the other hand, if the intuitive insight is unsteady or incomplete, then s/he will need the scriptures and a teacher to confirm and strengthen it. Depending on the steadiness or shakiness of one’s intuition, Abhinava says, one must perform self-refinement through the sacred vow of disciplined yoga practice, either by himself or as directed by a guru. The third grade is much more common and is the weakest grade of śaktipāta that still permits one to attain liberation in the same lifetime. One who has received it experiences a strong desire to approach a true guru and has the intuition necessary to recognize such a teacher. In the recipient of the third grade, the burning questions, “What is the Truth? Who knows that Truth?” lead one, through intuition or the company of spiritual friends, to develop the longing to meet a master (Tantrāloka 13.222). If this desire is strong enough, says Abhinava, the longing will inevitably be fulfilled. Having met such a master, attainment of insight into things as they are follows rapidly, culminating in living liberation.
The fourth grade of śaktipāta leads a person to take initiation, though his perception of the divinity of his real Self is not as firm as a third-grade recipient, because it is difficult for him to break through his conditioned convictions and mental constructs of reality. Nonetheless, through the gradual ripening of his insight through practice, the fourth-grade recipient merges with the Divine upon leaving the body. This and the following grades account for the majority of people on the path. (By “the path” I do mean to imply that there is really only one path of spiritual transformation, regardless of what name it is given or which religion or culture it is articulated within.) The fifth and sixth grades are received by those who are ready for the spiritual life but who also have a strong desire for worldly enjoyment and prosperity. They thus seek, and find, a teacher who can support them in both endeavors. They practice a yoga that leads them to enjoyment and then to liberation, at the time of leaving the body or shortly thereafter. The three lowest grades of śaktipāta are received by one whose desire for enjoyments is stronger than for liberation. These grades of awakening grant one access to the path to enjoyment through yoga, culminating in liberation in a future life. These grades are not given much attention in the texts, but it is important to note here that what grade of śaktipāta you receive is not due to how “worthy” you are but to how intense your longing for awakening is in relation to your longing to enjoy “the good life.” Though the latter is described as the

"we believe the self-image that we see the world in such a way that confirms our view. When we ask ourselves, “Would Irather be happy or right?” we take a leap of faith. If we wait for enough “evidence” to come in before changing our self-image, we will wait forever, and grow old and petrified in our views in the meantime. So identify one of your negative self-messages now, and compose an antidote for it as Abhinava suggests. Now if, for example, mine is “I’m so stupid,” I might think the antidote is “I’m actually really smart!” Unfortunately, such a feeble rejoinder will not be successful in displacing an impure thought-form that has taken deep root and plagued you for years. As Abhinava teaches, the new purified thought-form 1) must be very powerful and 2) must terminate in the ultimate Reality. The only way to make it do that is to take it all the way to God. For example, instead of “I’m actually really smart,” I might say, “The divine intelligence that created this whole universe dwells within me as me, and by contacting it, I can understand anything I truly need to know in this life.” Now that’s something with power that I can work with, and it is a vikalpa that can take me beyond itself, which if you recall is one definition of a śuddhavikalpa. If you succeed in finding a true antidote to your negative self-message, you will know because you will probably be uncomfortable repeating it. You might feel silly saying it, or you might start to cry. A student of mine, when working with this technique, identified the negative self-message of “I’m a bad mother.” When she came up with the feeble antidote of “I’m a good mother,” I challenged her to root her śuddha-vikalpa in God. She said, “I am a manifestation of the Divine Mother,” and burst into tears. Then she said, “But I don’t really believe it.” We realized it had to be authentic for her, so we modified the statement to “I am a manifestation of the Divine Mother in the process of realizing and embodying my true nature.” You might try something similar so that it challenges you but also rings true for you. Then you might take the ultimate challenge: go to the mirror and look yourself right in the eye and repeat your śuddha-vikalpa, no matter how silly you feel,until you get past the point of feeling silly. You may be amazed at what happens. (If the mirror doesn’t work for you, you could try using a loved one as your “mirror.”)"
From "Tantra Illuminated " by Christopher Wallis

[Megan Knott · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very thorough and extremely well researched presentation of the history, theory and methodology of this fascinating tradition.

[Benjamin Hoshour · Rating 5 out of 5]

Christopher (Hareesh) Wallis has written THE definitive, modern day work on classical non-dual Saiva Tantra (NST). This book is simply masterful. The author manages to write with a scholarly breadth, but in an easily accessible and engaging style. Many books on Tantra fall into two unfortunate categories. Either they are written in a dense, academic prose that does not lend itself well to the non-scholar, or else they are purporting the bastardized version of "Neo-Tantra" with its overt and almost exclusive emphasis on sexuality. The author manages to avoid both of these pitfalls and the result is an easily readable and enjoyable ride that delivers accurate, scholarly, and practical information on one of the most profound religious philosophies ever developed.

In the book, the author manages to tackle the daunting task of actually defining, or at least delimiting, Tantra. This is no mean feat - scholars have been debating the meaning of Tantra for decades. After clearly presenting what Tantra is and what it is not, he delves into the philosophy of Tantra. What the author is calling non-dual Saiva Tantra (NST) is the Kuala variant of a Trika/Krama synthesis of Saiva Tanta as per Abhinavagupta, at least insofar as the philosophy is concerned. He carefully details the major “western” philosophical components of NST as well as the major philosophical points of interest inherent to NST. This section of the book is simply amazing. There is nowhere else that you can find all of the major philosophical components of classical Tantra in one place and that are explained so eloquently.

After the philosophy section, the author gives a detailed, but generalized, accounting of the history of Saiva Tantra. A lot of his work is based off of Alexis Sanderson, who is the pre-eminent scholar of Saiva Tantra. Not only do we learn the genesis and development of the classical Tantra, but we also learn that the Tantra subsumed many elements of Patanjali’s Yoga to produce Hatha Yoga, which he clearly shows has its roots in the Tantra. It is from Hatha Yoga that we obtained the Modern Postural Yoga. So not only do we get to learn about this history of classical Tantra, but we also learn about the Tantric roots of modern day yoga practice. The history is both relevant and fascinating.

Finally, the author covers the practice of NST in the modern day context. He covers the three “Means” to awakening and gives a detailed analysis of how one can use many of these practices today. In summary, this is THE one-stop shop for the most relevant and useful information regarding classical Saiva Tantra. As a student-practitioner-teacher, I feel confident in saying that no other currently available book in the English language comes close to the status of Tantra Illuminated as literal “Bible” in the field.

[Daniel · Rating 2 out of 5]

Wallis provides a fairly broad view of Nondual Saiva Tantra, touching on history, philosophy and practice in this book. It's not a bad job for the most part, and given the limited translations available the presentation was satisfactory.
My issue is the author's haughty tone, particularly his gripes with Christianity. To compound this, he uses a handful of quotes from texts to claim the egalitarian and transgressive practices of tantric communities, making all efforts to absolve them of any forms of discriminatory practice. I'm not inclined to believe the claims that these communities did not uphold caste and gender prejudices, as would have been commonplace in brahminical society at that time. There's no evidence of widespread practice of Tantra by lower caste communities, leaving little room for the fantasy of a revolutionary religious system. In addition, the claims about Shaivism being a Tantrik doctrine are in contradiction of most mainstream Indian history, given that it continues to occupy a large role in the traditional Vedic fold.
There are a number of claims here that seem critically lacking in support. The romanticized ideas about this historical practice place the author on the same spectrum of Western outsiders failing to engage with Indian realities. His knowledge of the philosophy and practice mean that it's not all bad, and there are bits of valuable information here if one can look beyond the white gaze questionable bits.
(Will probably edit in future with quotes etc)

[Vinay Varrier · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of the most comprehensive books on the tradition of Tantra that I have come across yet. Christopher is clearly a thorough academician who has opted for this study because of a passionate personal practice. Because of this he shows the invigorating color of his bhakti while maintaining the pragmatism of an academician. I feel it's a must read for anyone interested in exploring tantra & yoga academically and an absolute must read for anyone aspiring liberation through spirituality. One feels the deep ocean of knowledge that our ancients lived in and realizes that their knowledge is pragmatic and evergreen...fit for all generations.
I feel extremely motivated to explore the unexplored tantric scriptures academically after listening to this book...but then feel I might be a bit too late to pursue such a goal. Thanks for this magnificent work Christopher. Even though this is a 19 plus hours listen, one feel a thirst that remains unquenched. Will proceed to read his next piece on the recognition sutras.

[Ashley · Rating 5 out of 5]

An absolute masterwork.

Wallis speaks to this in his book, but public perception of tantra is deeply misinformed. This book, while still fairly surface level, provides a wealth of experiential and academic information to help provide a more accurate introduction to Nondual Śaiva Tantra than is currently available anywhere else to my knowledge.

I found this book deeply satisfying on a personal level, because I have explored quite a bit of spiritual/metaphysical territory, and NŚT mirrors my own personal conclusions almost exactly. What a strange relief to be reminded I'm not alone in my view of the world, and so eloquently.

I highlighted so much of this book it's difficult to narrow it down to a few quotes, but if these resonate with you I'd recommend giving Tantra Illuminated a read:

"...if you undertake the practice of yoga with the right View of yourself, that you already are a perfect and whole expression of the Divine and that you are doing yoga to realize and then fully express what is already true, then you have empowered your practice to take you all the way."

"The process of expansion continues until you experience yourself in all things, and all things in yourself... then, you no longer perceive yourself as a mother or an American or a doctor or a yogi but rather as the pattern of the whole universe currently playing a given role and no more identified with it than the actor on stage believes he is really Hamlet, even as he plays his part passionately."

"What we discover is that instead of walking a path to reach a specific final destination, we are walking it to learn how to walk it."

"Freedom means actually experiencing the divinity in each moment, which is the same as not wanting the present moment to be any different from the way it is."

"When we label [people] as 'evil', we shut down the possibility of understanding their experience, and we shut down the possibility of compassion, which is particularly sad because only acts of compassion and love furnish the compelling counter-evidence to a disconnected person that might begin to change his view. In other words, the only way for this disconnected self-concealment and concomitant misalignment to start to correct itself is for the individual to have an experience that gives him concrete evidence of another way of seeing and understanding reality, a way that demonstrates greater value because it is more effective in meeting his deepest needs. This is why we call love a transcendent principle: it is the appropriate response to both love and hate."

"...a Tāntrika renounces nothing and seeks tirelessly to realize the Divine on all layers of being."

"Any action done for its own sake, pure and selfless, with no agenda, as a spontaneous expression of your being, is a manifestation of kriyā śakti and thus does not bind you further into the karmic cycle."
-or, as described elsewhere-
"A karmic action is a morally charged action motivated by a desire to attain or avoid a particular result. When we learn to perform actions as service or sacrifice, investing in the process but letting go of our attachment to the final outcome, those actions have no karmic charge and therefore do not bind us, whatever the result may be."

"NŚT teaches that our universe exhibits self-similarity, like a snowflake or a fractal, with the same patterns repeating on all levels. As above, so below. As without, so within. As here, so elsewhere."

"...Tantra stresses sensual meditations - meditative savoring of food and music, as well as slowed down and ritualized acts of refined awareness like the Japanese tea ceremony - that allow us to cultivate our ability to let the senses meet their objects fully. In nondual Śaiva Tantra, this is called 'feeding the goddesses of the senses'. When fed properly, the 'goddesses' reward you by suffusing your awareness with aesthetic rapture (chanakara), increasing your capacity to experience beauty. The whole world becomes more vivid and real, more radiantly lovely, more full of life-energy..."

"But the ego is essentially a fiction, because all that really exists is the flux of phenomena in each present moment."

"...in the Tantrik tradition, an enemy is simply an ally viewed in the wrong way."

"Ultimately, when the ego expands infinitely, you experience all things in yourself and yourself in all things. There are no more boundaries to selfhood. You have acquired an all-encompassing 'I'. When you experience all beings as part of yourself, you naturally act with compassion and wisdom."

"Our words are patterns of energy that powerfully shape other people's experience of reality and our own, and therefore must be used with care."

"...the nondual Tāntrikas assert that it is possible to experience the supreme Light of the Divine in the midst of any and all worldly activities, and even in the midst of any and all moods or states of mind. To be more accurate, in this state we do not experience the Light in spite of our mood or condition or activity but as the very substance of those. The successful abiding within this state is Turyātīta, the liberation beyond that of the transcendentalists, the liberation that realizes the transcendent in the immanent and therefore embraces total intimacy with reality."

"There is no problem, and there has never been any problem - other than the fact that you think there's a problem: the flawed human understanding from which all suffering springs."

"...the real goal of the Tantra: to experience the Divine not just in rarefied 'spiritual' environments but in every aspect of mundane life."

"...'Love one person completely and you fall in love with the whole universe.'"

"...'let go of the conditionality of regard and allow yourself to experience Divinity in another human being.'"

"When our mental representations become fully aligned with reality, they fall away, for we don't need them anymore. We can experience the beauty of reality without any story at all."

[Daniel Claussen · Rating 5 out of 5]

For the yoga inspired westerner this book is the seminal manual for understanding and practicing tantra. Written by a scholar-practitioner for practitioners, this penetrating work serves as both a reference and source of inspiration for taking my practice deeper and expanding my awareness. Wallis helps reveal the exquisite and precisely wrought source teachings with profound clarity, beauty and practicality. An incredible contribution to the understanding of non-dual Shaivite Tantra for the 21st century!

[Melody · Rating 5 out of 5]

I normally never write reviews here, but this book...how could I not!? It is truly one of the most beautiful books I have ever read and Hareesh has done a wonderful job explaining so much. Never before have I received such a unified understanding of spirituality, on the whole, let alone that of Tantra. I originally downloaded as a free monthly audio version but it is so good I'm waiting for my paperback copy so I can dive in again!

[Christy Evans · Rating 5 out of 5]

if you are curious about (real) Tantra ~ this is the book to read!

[Tord Helsingeng · Rating 4 out of 5]

Surprisingly good. Great on theory, but heavily biased towards trika and krama, more than kaula. Perhaps Wallis' style could be called ambidextrous tantra?

[Carl leonhard · Rating 3 out of 5]

The author wears his subjectivity and the purpose of the book on his sleeve for all to see. However, if one keeps this in mind it is a very well-written book with a lot of useful information.

[Finja Kemski · Rating 5 out of 5]

Uff, absolutely enjoyed this so much — what an incredible depth and amount of research. Left me feeling super inspired. Would recommend to anyone who wants to expand one’s mindset in life.

[Raphael · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a fantastic and in-depth intro to Non-Dual Saiva Tantra, popularly known as Kashmiri Shaivism. Beautifully written, clear and deeply informative. Fully recommended.