"Our sexuality, like our breathing and thinking and doing, wells up in the inexhaustible Mystery of existence. And as we begin to feel that Mystery, our spiritual heart burgeons and our body starts to sing. The song that wells forth in our sexuality is as beautiful as it is ancient. It is the song of Life itself." So writes Georg Feuerstein, designer of a series of distance-learning courses for Traditional Yoga Studies and author of more than 30 books including Tantra: The Path of Ecstasy. In this little volume, he examines love as a state of being that draws out the best in us.
Feuerstein sees romantic love as "a magic spell woven by the ego that feels unloved and desires to be loved." That is something quite different from the intimacy that breaks down the walls separating us from others. Before we can truly know another, says the author, we must come to terms with our own inner being. This exploration opens us up and enables us to live without masks. Vulnerable people are gentle people, willing to share everything.
Lovers are also individuals able to practice compassion and charity. They do not have to be first but have learned the fine art of stepping out of the way. This circle brings us back to intimacy. Feuerstein states: "Intimacy halves our experience of sorrow and pain, the inevitable companions of finite existence. And it magnifies our experience of joy. Through joy vicissitudes of human existence become bearable and ultimately meaningful."
We were glad to read the author's views on the close connection between true love and Mystery. Most of us still cling to the illusion that we can understand our lovers completely. Yet the truth is we are much better off by respecting his or her Mystery and enjoying the supreme adventure we have together on a journey filled with surprises.
