"White Tantric" European Yoga Festival - France

In the last five days I’ve gone for two good long walks amidst the French countryside and participated in 3 days of intensive yogic meditation. The variation of yogic meditation I participated in is called “White Tantric”. There are a number of different types of Tantric yoga and “White Tantric” is not to be confused with the pop culture variety. “White Tantric” is very different.

The meditation begins by organizing participants in long straight rows. Everyone is paired up and the rows are aligned so that each person faces their partner Preferably men sit on one side and woman sit on the other but it’s not uncommon for women to pair up with women because more woman practice yoga than men. Once everyone is set the meditation begins. Almost all meditations are done sitting on the ground cross legged and last either 30 or 60 minutes.

While sitting the arms and hands are placed in a yogic posture and held in a specific position known as a kriya or mudra. Hands can be together in prayer pose, held up showing a certain number of fingers etc. Sometimes the meditation requires holding the arms up in a position that can start to be difficult in just a couple of minutes but somehow you do it for 30 or 60 minutes. Some sittings are silent but many include chanting a mantra which is a phrase that’s usually in an ancient language. The phrase translated could mean something like “grant me peace and serenity” or “god give me peace within”, etc. Some sessions are done with eyes closed while others are done staring directly into the eyes of your partner without blinking until you really have to. Staring into the eyes of another person is kind of strange at first but after a couple of minutes it feels almost normal.

Yoga recognizes that energy flows through the body and the postures affect the flow. The purpose of a mantra chant is to create one pointedness. Meditation is not about spacing out or getting to where there’s nothing in your head. That’s called going to sleep. Meditation is about focusing and being mindful without the chatterings of what can be referred to as the monkey mind.

During the European Yoga festival a 3 day White Tantric session is offered and it’s the main reason many people attend. This year there were 1,700 participants from all over the world with 7 different language interpreters to help the moderator. Each day started at 8am and went until 6pm. Partners are pair up randomly or your free to choose. I had a different partner each day which allowed me to meet more people and added variety to the experience. Everyone is also asked to wear white with some kind of white head covering.

I’ve attended two “White Tantric” events in the USA but it’s been a few years since doing so. I found the practice to be very powerful and beneficial for clearing up the mind and moving through what I call mental roadblocks. The fact that you’re meditating and focusing with such large number of people creates quite an atmosphere. It’s very powerful and unifying.

The first meditation involved sitting with hands placed in a certain position while utilizing a yoga breathing technique with eyes closed. I figured at home on my own 5 minutes would seem like an eternity but we did it for 60 minutes. So began 3 full days. During the sessions it’s not uncommon for a person to experience all kinds of emotions. For me about half the time I experienced some amazing moments of hope, joy, clarity etc. while the rest of the time I couldn’t get past how much my knees and butt hurt. Everyone experiences his or her on personal challenges but somehow through the power of a being in a large group or whatever you get through it.

The meditations are specifically designed to deal with a certain issue. This year many of the sittings dealt with the issue of fear. Over a 3 day period there can be many ups and downs but the practice is designed to leave you feeling better in the end. By time the last meditation finishes everyone is feeling quite good if not ecstatic on some level. Also, a person is usually left with a lasting affect that can lead to positive change, clearer thinking, and a new outlook on life upon returning home.

For me it was a very positive experience and in the end and feel that by participating in the “White Tantric” meditation I’ve accomplished what I came here to do. It was especially interesting going through the process with such a diverse international group of people. For two days, just by chance, I sat next to a man from Iran. He commented how it was really hard to find the kind of unity, anywhere in the world, like you find at the European Yoga Festival.