Non-dual Saiva Tantra (NST) is an ancient divine practice of the worship of God that pursues both spiritual liberation (firstly) and worldly enjoyment (secondly).
(NB - it’s not about sex)
The word God can be quite divisive and triggering, carrying a lot of historic societal stigma. But in NST, this isn’t God in the sense of an archetypal Being in the sky, but refers to a pure Consciousness from which everything that is, was, and ever will be is brought into being.
NST holds that one thing alone exists: the Divine. This is what is meant by non-dual. Everything that exists is merely a different expression of that one Divine - that everything that exists is God. To experience this divinity in, and as, all things is the goal of the practice. Despite the non-dual nature of the Divine, it is seen to have two aspects: Siva (the transcendent) and Sakti (the immanent).
Siva is personified as male divinity and represents pure Consciousness, beyond all limitations or perceivable qualities, that makes all things possible.
Sakti is personified as female divinity and represents the entire perceivable universe brought into being by pure consciousness.
In NST, Siva and Sakti are actually one, but are described as two because they represent two interdependent aspects and experiences of reality: the enstatic, where we look within, surrendering everything and embracing our transcendent divine nature; and the ecstatic, where we outwardly express that divine nature into the world. In NST, both are necessary to fully know the Divine, and true spiritual liberation is the finding of harmonious balance between the two.
As a result, this physical reality isn’t to be ignored or seen as inhibiting spirituality, but as an opportunity through which to express and enjoy our divine nature experientially through artful play.
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