Women in Tantrism

 

A short but interesting essay or article on the role of women in the Tantric forms of Shaktism. It turns out to be...complex. If you´re searching for some kind of completely unproblematic feminist paradise (complete with orgiastic sex), you´ve come to the wrong place. 

My impression is that in practice, powerful women in Tantrism are always celibate. A few are gurus, some are wandering ascetics or celibate housewives. Women in Tantra who do have ritual or non-ritual sex are usually subordinate to their male partners. They can be a dutiful wife or a prostitute. The latter may be relatively "free", but this is combined with a low social and economic status. In no case does classical (or even early modern) Tantra resemble Western neo-Tantra, with its strong emphasis on female empowerment and sexual liberation.

There does seem to be a contradiction between the social and religious roles prescribed for women in classical Tantrism, and the Tantric universe. The latter is filled with female spirits, some wrathful, others benevolent. The distinction between them and female human Tantric teachers is not always clear. And, of course, the central cult figure in Shaktism is the Goddess...      

Women in Hindu Shakta Tantra