Tantra

Tantra (Sanskrit: तन्त्र "weave" meaning continuity^[1]), tantricism or tantrism is the name for a number of traditions from Indian religions. Tantra began to blossom as a movement within both Buddhism and Hinduism around A.D. 500, reaching its fullest flowering 500 to 700 years later. These traditions are usually esoteric in their nature. Tantra exists in Hindu, Bönpo, Buddhist, and Jain forms. Tantra in its various forms has existed in South Asia, China, Japan, Tibet, Korea, Cambodia, Burma, Indonesia and Mongolia.^[2] In the west, today, traditional Tantric practices can be found within the Tibetan Buddhist tradition, and via the Kundalini and Kriya yoga schools, all of which are right-handed paths.

Tantra is derived from 2 words - "Tanoti" (Liberation of energy) and "Trayati" (Expansion of consciousness).

1. ↑ Norbu, p. 49
2. ↑ White (2000), p. 7