Tantra and Desire

It is precisely because our present life is so inseparably linked with desire
that we must make use of desire’s tremendous energy if we wish to transform our life into something transcendental.

Before we can board the lightning vehicle of tantra, we have to understand why it is both necessary and possible to abandon our ordinary, limited view of ourselves and generate in its place the enlightened self- identity of a fully evolved being. We have to realise that our low opinion of ourselves, which keeps us trapped in the cycle of perpetual dissatisfaction, only arises because we are ignorant of our basic, essentially pure nature.

While the great explosion of desirous energy in this century is considered to be a serious obstacle to most spiritual paths, it is actually helpful for the practice of tantra where desire is the fuel propelling us to our highest destination. Perhaps only a path like tantra, with its emphasis on direct experience rather than blind acceptance, can rouse us out of our self-destructive patterns and give us the opportunity to fulfil ourselves completely.

-Lama Thubten Yeshe
Introduction to Tantra