The Art Of Sexual Ecstasy

The Art of Sexual Ecstasy (1990) – Margo Anand
The Aquarian Press | ISBN: 1855360072
Condition: Good | Sold by Crappy Old Books

Sex. One of humanity’s most enduring interests, responsible for everything from the continuation of the species to an astonishing quantity of bad poetry, embarrassing misunderstandings and matrimonial disagreements about whose turn it is to switch off the bedroom light. Yet despite several thousand years of enthusiastic research, human beings remain remarkably confused about the subject.

Fortunately, Margo Anand has arrived to explain that there may be rather more to intimacy than the traditional combination of awkward fumbling, unrealistic expectations and wondering whether the neighbours can hear anything.

In The Art of Sexual Ecstasy, Anand explores the ancient principles of Tantra, presenting sexuality not merely as a physical activity but as a potential pathway towards emotional connection, heightened awareness, spiritual development and a rather more enthusiastic appreciation of being alive.

Published in 1990, when New Age spirituality was flourishing and respectable bookshops were increasingly discovering that Eastern philosophy could be commercially attractive provided it promised to improve one’s love life, this ambitious volume brings together meditation, breathing exercises, relaxation, movement and the cultivation of sensual awareness.

Anand’s approach encourages readers to reconsider the familiar separation between mind, body and spirit. Rather than treating sexuality as an athletic competition with an unnecessarily complicated scoring system, she proposes a more deliberate exploration of intimacy, communication and pleasure.

Naturally, this involves slowing down, paying attention and possibly abandoning the comforting British tradition of pretending that nothing remotely intimate is happening even when the evidence suggests otherwise.

The book draws upon Tantric traditions while incorporating modern psychological and personal-development ideas. Its exercises and philosophical discussions aim to encourage greater self-awareness and more meaningful connections between partners, although readers expecting an ancient, universally agreed scientific formula for achieving ecstasy may be disappointed. Spiritual experiences are notoriously difficult to measure, and the laboratory equipment required would probably make everyone uncomfortable.

There is something wonderfully characteristic of the late twentieth century about the book’s combination of Eastern mysticism, Western self-improvement and the optimistic conviction that practically every aspect of human existence can be transformed through breathing correctly.

Nevertheless, beneath the more ambitious spiritual claims lie subjects of enduring relevance: affection, trust, communication, bodily awareness and the recognition that satisfying relationships generally require more than simply turning up and hoping for the best.

This 1990 Aquarian Press edition, offered in Good condition by Crappy Old Books, will appeal to readers interested in Tantra, the history of alternative spirituality, relationships, human sexuality and the extraordinary enthusiasm with which the New Age movement approached the possibilities of personal transformation.

A fascinating journey into the intersection of sensuality and spirituality, from an era when enlightenment was apparently available through meditation, incense and a sufficiently open mind.

And while most people would be perfectly happy with a decent night’s sleep and somebody reme

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