maithuna

thumb|Loving Couple, Maithuna, Eastern Ganga dynasty, 13th century Orissa, India Maithuna (Devanagari: मैथुन) is a Sanskrit term for sexual intercourse within Tantra (Tantric sex), or alternatively for the sexual fluids generated or the couple participating in the ritual. It is the most important of the Panchamakara and constitutes the main part of the grand ritual of Tantra also known as Tattva Chakra. Maithuna means the union of opposing forces, underlining the nonduality between human and divine, as well as worldly enjoyment (kama) and spiritual liberation (moksha). Maithuna is a popular icon in ancient Hindu art, portrayed as a couple engaged in physical loving.

==Concept== Maithuna entails male-female couples and their union in the physical, sexual sense as synonymous with kriya nishpatti (mature cleansing). Just as neither spirit nor matter by itself is effective but both working together bring harmony so is maithuna effective only then when the union is consecrated. The couple become for the time being divine: she is Shakti and he is Shiva, and they confront ultimate reality and experience bliss through union. The scriptures warn that unless this spiritual transformation occurs, the union is incomplete. However, some writers, sects and schools like Yogananda consider this to be a purely mental and symbolic act, without actual intercourse.