Shaking in sex

What the Method Is

The core instruction for this meditation technique is: “When in such embrace your senses are shaken as leaves, enter this shaking.” This method specifically guides the practitioner to embrace and immerse themselves in the physical shaking and vibrations that may naturally arise during a deep sexual union, transforming the act into a state of profound meditation and existential oneness.

How It Is Done

To practice this method, one should:

  • Engage in deep, unhurried sexual communion: This method is a continuation of the previous technique, “In the sex act, do not seek the release,” emphasizing a prolonged and merged embrace rather than a hurried act focused on ejaculation.
  • Allow physical movement and vibration: When the senses begin to “shake as leaves” during the embrace, do not resist or control it. This shaking indicates that the energy is flowing throughout the entire body, involving every cell.
  • Lose control: Consciously let go of the need to control the body’s movements. The mind’s desire for control is a barrier; instead, allow yourself to be possessed by the experience, moving as if mad.
  • Become the shaking: Do not remain a detached observer or spectator. Instead, become the shaking itself, dissolving your sense of individual self into the vibrating energy. “Forget everything and become the shaking. It is not that your body is shaking: it is you, your whole being. You become the shaking itself.”
  • Encourage mutual participation: This shaking should ideally be a mutual experience, with both partners allowing their bodies to vibrate and dance.
  • Embrace screaming and other expressions: Allow for natural expressions such as screaming, moving, and shaking without inhibition.
  • Cultivate total involvement: Ensure that your whole being is involved in the act, forgetting societal inhibitions, religion, or culture.
  • Solo Practice (after initial experience): Once the experience of oneness and vibrating energy is deeply known with a partner, one can recreate this state alone. By simply remembering the union and lying down with closed eyes, one can induce the shaking and enter the meditative state even without a physical partner.
Commentaries and Insights
  • Transformation of Sex Energy: Tantra views sex as a total act that can throw one into a state of “no-mind” or “headless-ness,” transcending the usual mental processes. This shaking signifies that sex energy is spreading throughout the entire body, activating every cell, as “every cell is a sex cell”. This transformation allows sex to become a “life-giving force” rather than a mere release or depletion.
  • Ego Dissolution and Oneness: By allowing the body to shake and becoming the shaking, the mind and ego are lost, and the usual divisions between individuals dissolve. This leads to a feeling of oneness, or advait, where the two bodies become liquid, flowing into each other, and the individual self is merged into a larger, existential force. This state allows one to feel part of the whole cosmos, akin to Lao Tzu’s Tao or Shankara’s advait.
  • Beyond Ordinary Orgasm (“Valley Orgasm”): Conventional sex often culminates in a “peak orgasm,” a high point of excitement followed by a “fall” or depletion. Tantra, conversely, aims for a “valley orgasm,” which is a deep, profound relaxation and absorption where energy is not lost but gained and renewed. Shaking helps facilitate this by allowing the energy to circulate and revitalize the entire system, leading to a feeling of being filled with vitality and radiance for hours or even days.
  • Naturalness and Animal Instinct: The shaking may “look animal-like,” but Osho emphasizes that man is an animal and there is nothing wrong with this natural expression. Society’s condemnation of sex as sin has created deep barriers and inhibitions, preventing a total let-go and forcing the experience to be limited and perverted. Tantra, being amoral and accepting of everything, encourages embracing these natural energies without judgment to facilitate true transformation.
  • Shift from External Dependence to Inner Freedom: Initially, a partner is a “door” to this deeper experience. However, once the inner feeling of oneness and vibrating energy is realized through this method, the partner becomes dispensable, allowing one to enter into constant communion with the entire existence, whether walking, looking at the stars, or simply being. This provides freedom from dependence on another person for spiritual experience.
  • Comparison to Sneezing: Physiologically, the sex act has been compared to sneezing, as both involve a non-voluntary expulsion and subsequent relief. However, Tantra notes that sex involves far greater depths. The core idea of “entering this shaking” is similar to becoming aware at the start of a sneeze or fright, where the absence of mind and presence of total involvement can lead to profound insights.
  • Overcoming Suppression: This method offers a “third alternative” to suppression or mere expression of energy. By becoming passively alert and meditative during the shaking, the energy is transmuted and moves vertically upwards, turning destructive energies like sexuality into something spiritual and creative. This is not a kind of suppression, but an effort towards non-doing where one is just “being”.
  • Importance of Privacy: For this deep communion and meditative experience to occur, absolute privacy is often necessary, as the presence of others can create a barrier and inhibit the profound surrender required.
  • No Fixed Rules: Tantra does not provide fixed positions or strict rules for sex, as these can become mental impositions. Instead, it advises surrendering to the life force, allowing the body’s inherent wisdom to guide the experience, which will then flow naturally and harmoniously.