Menu
Donate
SIGN IN
 4 Comments
Email
Save
Tweet
Share

Tantra is, and was, a subversive philosophy of feminine power

For many people in the West, the word ‘tantric’ conjures thoughts of extraordinarily lengthy sex sessions – perhaps involving the musician Sting – or yoga. But this oversimplified and often commercialised popular understanding of Tantra belies a subversive philosophy that challenges stereotypes of womanhood. In this video from the British Museum, the curator Imma Ramos takes viewers on a tour of the exhibition ‘Tantra: Enlightenment to Revolution’, tracing Tantra from its roots in 6th-century India up until today. In doing so, Ramos touches on how Tantra’s philosophy of divine feminine power has influenced Hinduism and Buddhism, India’s independence movement, and modern artistic thought and feminist practice.

Video by the British Museum

2 August 2022
Email
Save
Tweet
Share

Aeon is not-for-profit and free for everyone

Make a donation

Get Aeon straight to your inbox

Join our newsletter
Ancient wine drinking | Aeon
Save

video

The ancient world

What wine vessels reveal about politics and luxury in ancient Athens and Persia

16 minutes

David Goldblatt in Johannesburg | Aeon
Save

video

Art

David Goldblatt captured the contradictions of apartheid in stark black and white

15 minutes

Eliminative materialism | Aeon
Save

video

Philosophy of mind

Do we have good reasons to believe in beliefs? A radical philosophy of mind says no

5 minutes

Eleonore Stump on the problem of evil | Aeon
Save

video

Philosophy of religion

How a devout Catholic philosopher approaches the problem of evil

8 minutes

Drawings of my BF | Aeon
Save

video

Love and friendship

When drawing your muse hundreds of times becomes an exercise in love

7 minutes

Our ark | Aeon
Save

video

Thinkers and theories

Is simulation theory a way to shirk responsibility for the world we’ve created?

13 minutes

Ndagukunda déjà (I love you, already) | Aeon
Save

video

Family life

In Rwanda, Sébastien finds traces of personal history in the wake of national tragedy

21 minutes

Shakespeare’s First Folio | Aeon
Save

video

Dance and theatre

Leaf through Shakespeare’s First Folio for a riveting journey into theatre history

13 minutes

How to design architecture for wildlife | Aeon
Save

video

Architecture

Modern architecture should embrace – not ignore or repel – the nonhuman world

8 minutes