Tantric sex is any of a range of practices in Hindu and later Buddhist Tantra that claim to be able to utilize sexual activity in a sacred ritual or yogic context.
Tantric sex is associated with antinomian elements, such as the consumption of alcohol and the offerings of defiled substances like flesh to deities.
Moreover, sexual fluids may be viewed as "power substances" and used for ritual purposes, either externally or internally [1, 2].
The actual terms used in the classical texts to refer to this practice include "Karma-mudrā" (Tibetan ལས་ཀྱི་ཕྱག་རྒྱ las kyi phyag rgya, "action seal") in Buddhist tantras and "Maithuna" (Devanagari मैथुन, "coupling") in Hindu sources.
In Hindu Tantra, Maithuna is the most important of the five makara (five "tantric substances") and constitutes the main part of the Grand Ritual of Tantra variously known as Panchamakara, Panchatattva, and Tattva Chakra.
In Tibetan Esoteric (Vajrayana) Buddhism, Karmamudrā is often an important part of the completion stage of tantric practice.
While there may be some connection between these practices and the Kāma-Shāstra literature (which include the Kāma Sūtra), the two practice traditions are separate methods with separate goals.
As the British Indologist Geoffrey Samuel notes, while the kāma sāstra literature is about the pursuit of sexual pleasure (kāmā), sexual yoga practices are often aimed towards the quest for final spiritual liberation (moksha) [3]. More Tantric sex
In 1992, Jane Wrightson passed with an Australian rating of R18 (like the American NC-17), the Australian tantric sex film Sacred Sex, which was appealed unsuccessfully to the Film and Video Board of Review by the Society for the Promotion of Community Standards, who viewed her classification as too liberal.
(Mantraon) Superstitious Buddhist monks crossing a dangerous bridge: deep Tibetan chant of Om mani padme hum for calm and nervous system reset with help of internet slop
Trolls and a princess (John Bauer)
A bridge troll is a being in Nordic folklore, including Norse mythology. In Old Norse sources, beings described as "trolls" dwell in isolated areas of mountains, rocks, and caves, live together in small family units, and are rarely helpful to human beings.
In later Scandinavian folklore, trolls became beings in their own right, where they live far from human habitation, are not Christianized and brought to heel (like Zionist Hillary Clinton might like), and are considered dangerous to human beings.
TROLLS IN BUDDHISM: A kumbhāṇḍa (Sanskrit) or kumbhaṇḍa (Pāli) is one of a group of dwarfish, trollish, misshapen spirits among the lesser unseen being in Buddhist cosmology and mythology [1, 2]. Kumbhāṇḍa was a dialectal form for "gourd," and due to their large scrotums or stomachs, they got their name from the resemblance. But kumbhāṇḍa may also be interpreted as "pot-egg" since "pot" (kumbha like the world's largest festival, the Kumbha Mela, that pot or jar having spilled the the nectar of the gods, the amrita or ambrosia of immortality, on a few spots in India) and "egg" (aṇḍa). This was a common euphemism for "testicle," the kumbhāṇḍas were imagined as having testicles "as large as pots" [1]. The terms kumbhāṇḍa (dwarf or troll) and yakṣa (Sasquatch, female yakshi or Yeti, ogre) are sometimes used for the same creature. Yakṣa (Pali yakkha) in this case is the more general term, including a variety of lower woodland of for the most part unseen being. More
Depending on the source, their appearance varies greatly; trolls may be ugly and slow-witted or look and behave exactly like human beings, with no particularly grotesque characteristic about them.
In Scandinavian folklore, trolls are sometimes associated with particular landmarks like bridges (sometimes said to have been formed by a troll having been exposed to sunlight).
Trolls are depicted in a variety of media in modern popular culture.
Etymology (word origin)
The Old Norse nouns troll and trǫll are variously defined as "fiend, demon, werewolf, jötunn," like the Middle High German troll, trolle, "fiend."
According to philologist Vladimir Orel, the word is likely borrowed from Old Norse, possibly developed from Proto-Germanic neuter noun *trullan, meaning "to tread, step on" [tromp, stomp, stamp]. The origin of the Proto-Germanic word is unknown [1]. Additionally, the Old Norse verb trylla means "to enchant..." More
Among his early influences, Rupert Sheldrake cites The Structure of Scientific Revolutions (1962) by Thomas Kuhn. He has said this book led him to view contemporary scientific understanding of life as simply a paradigm, which he called "the mechanistic theory of life."
Reading Kuhn's work, Sheldrake says, focused his mind on how scientific paradigms can change [16]. Sheldrake says that although there are similarities between morphic resonance and Hinduism's akashic records[31], he first conceived of the idea while at Cambridge U, before his travels to India, where he later developed it.
He attributes the origin of his idea to two influences, his studies of the holistic tradition in biology, and French philosopher Henri Bergson's 1896 book Matter and Memory. He says he took Bergson's concept of memories not being materially embedded in the brain and generalized it to morphic resonance, where memories are not only immaterial but also under the influence of the collective memories of similar organisms.
While his colleagues at Cambridge were not receptive to the idea, Sheldrake found the opposite to be true in India.
He recounts his Indian colleagues saying, "There's nothing new in this; it was all known millennia ago to the ancient rishis [seers]." Sheldrake thus characterizes morphic resonance as a convergence between Western and Eastern thought yet found by himself first in Western philosophy [15, 151].
Sheldrake has also noted similarities between morphic resonance and Carl Jung's collective unconscious, with regard to collective memories being shared across individuals and the coalescing of particular behaviors through repetition, which Jung called archetypes [15].
But whereas Jung assumed that archetypal forms were transmitted through physical inheritance, Sheldrake attributes collective memories to morphic resonance and rejects any explanation of them involving what he terms "mechanistic biology."
Lewis Wolpert, one of Sheldrake's critics, has described morphic resonance as an updated Drieschian vitalism [28, 152]. More
When does summer really begin? It's not an astronomical question, as the people into genes insist gender is as easy to assign as reading x's and y's. It is easy if we make it that easy, but it is not so easy when we do not all agree to that as the objective measure.
What is "social summer"?
Mandatory: All Americans must visit a beach.
There's a kind of social summer, which runs between Memorial Day and Labor Day, just an approximation. The seasons do not always cooperate even in parts of the US where four distinct seasons make themselves obvious. There is "Indian summer," which is just a way of saying a long hot spell after official calendrical summer should have ended.
Another example of social summer is the one set by the local school district: When school ends, that's summer. Just ask Alice Cooper! When school begins again, that resumption is the end, even if the weather is still great and drives to the beach are worth the traffic.
There did not used to be a "universal time" but rather many different times depending on the place. They were not simultaneous but more dependent on the sun circling (not revolving) overhead chased by the moon. Those were Tartarian (Tartary) times, and that's all been erased now. A universal measure imposes a definition that does not make sense for everybody on the ground.
Another social summer measure is determined by the concert calendar. The end comes to Pasadena, Los Angeles with the Just Like Heaven Festival this Saturday (Aug. 22, 2026).
New for 2026: Updated clubhouse amenities, enhanced VIP experiences, plus new shade sails, cooling misters, expanded shaded seating, and additional water refill stations throughout the festival grounds, giving concertgoers even more ways to stay cool and recharge between musical sets. For even more convenience, spend the day in VIP for a lot more money. Spend the day dancing in the expansive VIP viewing areas and lounging in shaded spaces between acts, all while enjoying exclusive food and drink options and air-conditioned restrooms.
Buy Now Just Like Heaven | August 22, 2026
"Defund the police" was a deception to provoke public outrage. Congress funds new secret police forces and pays them much more now. If police officers want to scam the system, overseers look the other way. Let's make THE PURGE legal for a little while, and then we can use the predictable mayhem and disorder as a pretext to implement some Orwellian policies for "public safety" and a smiley face police state.
(Detective Andrew) Aug. 22, 2026: Commentator Drew Baxter is a retired police lieutenant and former detective with nearly 29 years of law enforcement experience at the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office in Tampa, Florida. He worked in 911 dispatch, undercover narcotics, informant handling, and wiretap investigations before retiring as commander of the communications center. He is a self-described "expert" instructor in interviews and interrogations and courtroom testimony and demeanor.
Want a deeper dive? Drew Baxter co-hosts The Comm Center with active 911 dispatcher Jon, breaking down real 911 calls, bodycam footage, and full investigations from the inside
A tiny town in Quebec has become the first municipality in North America to officially recognize trees as living beings with a fundamental set of rights.
Terrasse-Vaudreuil, a town of about 2,000 people just west of Montreal, Canada, adopted a resolution on June 9, 2026, to sign the Universal Declaration of Tree Rights.
This declaration was launched in 2018 in response to worldwide deforestation and the perception of trees as nothing more than objects and a resource to be extracted by humans.
Its stated goal is to "recognize the Tree as a sentient living being, a source of Life, and a common good of humanity."
American activist Julia Butterfly Hill will be so happy to hear it as will Luna the Tree
A 2019 petition in support of the declaration had garnered just shy of 88,000 signatures, and Terrasse-Vaudreuil's adoption of its principles marks the first public entity in North America to sign on as well.
The town's Mayor Michel Bourdeau said in a press release translated from French: "By adopting this resolution, Terrasse-Vaudreuil reaffirms its commitment to building a sustainable future.
"This recognition will be accompanied by concrete programs aimed at protecting our tree canopy, planting trees, and raising public awareness of their importance."
Mayor Bourdeau told Canadian outlet CBC that "our biggest ally is the trees" when it comes to fighting climate change.
The town's mayor said he is committed to protecting the canopy, raising awareness of the importance of trees, and planting more of them.
The Universal Declaration of Tree Rights was created in response to worldwide deforestation.
Town adopts tree rights principles
Terrasse-Vaudreuil has promised to abide by the three fundamental principles of the Universal Declaration of Tree Rights.
The first principle states: "The Tree, a sentient living being and source of Life, is a common good of humanity."
The second principle states: "Life on Earth depends upon the existence of the Tree."
The third states: "Human beings, endowed with reason and conscience, must act with the Tree in a spirit of fraternity and solidarity."
According to the town's press release, adopting the resolution was a citizen-led initiative inspired by the film Des arbres et des arts ("Trees and the Arts"), by Quebec filmmaker André Desrochers.
The film argues that trees are living beings that communicate with each other through [VOCs and] underground fungal networks that interact symbiotically with roots.
The first article of the Universal Declaration of Tree Rights, which claims trees are "sentient," makes a similar argument, though it also emphasizes a distinction between the rights of trees and those of humans.
"The recognition of Tree Rights must not automatically be confused with the attribution of legal personhood," the declaration states.
"In certain legal systems, legal personhood may constitute one mechanism for protecting a natural entity. It is, however, neither a necessary foundation nor the exclusive objective of the Universal Declaration of Tree Rights."
The Universal Declaration of Tree Rights aims to change the perception of trees as simply a resource to be extracted by humans.
The town adopted the resolution after being inspired by a film that argues trees communicate through fungal networks [called mycelia] connected by roots.
The main idea behind recognizing trees as sentient beings is to stop people from viewing the plants "solely as an object, property, raw material or resource available exclusively for human benefit," according to the declaration.
Other natural bodies have been granted similar legal protections in North America on occasion. Quebec’s Magpie River was given legal personhood in 2021 by the Innu Council of Ekuanitshit and the regional municipal council of Minganie (Duck River).
The protection granted the river nine rights, including freedom from pollution, the right to evolve naturally and a mandate to retain its natural biodiversity.
Lake Erie in Ohio was temporarily granted legal personhood similar to that of an individual or corporation through the 2019 Lake Erie Bill of Rights, but a federal judge ruled the measure unconstitutional in 2020.
The Daily Mail has reached out to Bourdeau, the mayor of Terrasse-Vaudreuil, for comment. More
Two things are true. 1. There is no self. In other words, all things are marked by the characteristic of being impersonal ("empty"). 2. Whatever arises arises dependent on causes and conditions, which is known as Dependent Origination.
Only by comprehending both will someone avoid confusion and an apparent paradox. Of course, there are two "truths," the conventional everyday truth (honesty) and the ultimate truth (reality). That there is, ultimately speaking, no ongoing persisting surviving transmigrating self is of the latter variety.
How could that possibly be true if all that we have is ourselves and our experiences, our conscious awareness and this body?
It is completely counterintuitive, but it can be known-and-seen directly, which results in enlightenment (awakening) if penetrated as it really is. Before that, it can be comprehended intellectually.
This is a very advanced teaching for dedicated meditators and monastics, not easily understood by them until they develop direct insight into the Truth. Therefore, how is any ordinary, uninstructed person ever to figure it out? They will not. But anyone can receive intellectual instruction to understand it without being liberated by the Truth. For liberation, practice of direct-seeing and insight (vipassana) into the true nature of existence is necessary:
Not-self (anatta) is the central doctrine in Buddhism, without understanding which a real knowledge of Buddhism is altogether impossible.
This uniquely Buddhist anattā doctrine teaches that there is neither within the body or mind -- the bodily or mental phenomena of existence -- nor outside of them can there be found anything that in the ultimate sense could be regarded as a "self" (a real self-existing ego-entity, soul, or any other abiding substance.
This is the pivotal central doctrine of Buddhism, that which without comprehending, no real understanding of Buddhism (i.e., the historical Buddha's Dharma) is possible.
This strange doctrine is the only really specific Buddhist teaching, with which the entire structure of the Buddha Dharma stands or falls.
All other Buddhist doctrines might, more or less, be found in other philosophical systems or religions, but the anattā-doctrine (that ultimately ALL things are impersonal) has been clearly and unreservedly taught only by a buddha, which is why the Buddha was known in his day as the Anattā-vādi or "Teacher that all is Impersonal."
Whoever has not yet penetrated the impersonal nature of all existence, who does not comprehend that in reality there exists only this continually self-consuming process of arising and passing bodily and mental phenomena (called the Five AggregatesCLUNG to as self), and that there is no separate soul, self, or ego-entity within or without this impersonal process, such a person will not be able to understand Buddhism, that is, the teaching of the Four Ennobling Truths (sacca) the fourth of which is the Ennobling Eightfold Path, in the correct light.
One will necessarily assume (wrongly think)
that it is one's self, soul (atta, atman), ego, or personality that chooses and performs skillful and unskillful karma (intentional actions),
that experiences suffering, neutral feelings, and happiness as a result (phala, vipaka, the fruition and resultants of previous actions),
that will be reborn according to that karma (those former deeds),
that will enter or fail to enter nirvana (nibbāna, the quenching and cooling of the threefold fire of greed, hatred/fear, and delusion),
that walks or fails to walk the Eightfold Path to awakening.
"Mere suffering exists, no 'sufferer' is to be found;
Deeds are, but no 'doer' of deeds is really there;
Nirvana is, but not any 'person' who 'enters' it;
The Path is but no 'traveler' on it is to be seen."
"Whoever is unclear with regard to conditionally arisen phenomena and fails to comprehend that ALL actions are conditioned through ignorance and so on [through the 12 causal links of Dependent Origination], that person [necessarily assumes] thinks that it is one's soul, self, ego, or personality that understands or fails to understand, that acts or causes to act, that comes to existence at rebirth and passes out of existence at death...that has sense-impressions, feels, desires, becomes attached, continues, and at rebirth reappears or enters a new existence" (Vis.M. XVII. 117).
[The Three Universal Characteristics of Existence are that all things are radically impermanent, unable to fulfill (ultimately unsatisfactory, disappointing, liable to suffering), and impersonal.]
While in the case of the first two characteristics, it is stated that all "formations" (sabbe sankhārā) are impermanent and subject to suffering, the corresponding text for the third characteristic states that "all things are not-self" (sabbe dhammā anattā, MN 35, Dhp. 279).
This is for emphasizing that the wrong view of assuming, believing, holding that it is an abiding self or substance is neither applicable to any "formation" or conditioned phenomenon, nor to nirvana (the "unconditioned element" (asankhatā dhātu)
The "Discourse on the Characteristic of Not-Self" (Anattā-Lakkhana Sutta) was the second discourse delivered by the historical Buddha after his great awakening, enlightenment (maha-bodhi) to his first five disciples, who after hearing it attained to the same awakening (arhatship).
The contemplation of not-self (anattā-anupassanā) leads to the freedom of the "emptiness liberation" (suññatā-vimokkha).
At the next two stages of enlightenment, one becomes a "vision-attainer" (ditthippatta or "right view reacher"), and at the ultimate stage of "full awakening" (arhatship), one is called "liberated by wisdom" (paññā-vimutti). More
Tao Temple (video); Ven. Nyanatiloka (Buddhist Dictionary) edited and clarified by Dhr. Seven and Amber Larson, Wisdom Quarterly, summer 2026
Amidst what some researchers call a "friendship recession," apps and services have been proliferating to connect Americans. We hear from people who have already tried them or use them regularly to reflect on what about them has worked and hasn't.
TRANSCRIPT
HOST SCOTT SIMON: Many of the old places where friendships formed -- the office, houses of worship, maybe the VFW [Veterans of Foreign Wars, a.k.a. degenerate bars] -- may have become less central to people's lives.
Just react to things with opinions!
It's part of what's been called a friendship recession: Americans spending dramatically less time with friends than they did a decade ago. As Leslie McClurg of member station KQED FM [San Francisco Bay Area and Sacramento] reports, a growing number of apps and services are trying to bring people back together.
BYLINE LESLIE MCCLURG: When Jen Hobbs moved to Oakland last summer, she assumed friends would come naturally at the coffee shop or after an exercise class, but six months in...
JEN HOBBS: And on New Year's, I was kind of reflecting on things, and I realized I still don't have any friends.
Talk about fitness on TikTok with a hot bod!
MCCLURG: She made it her resolution to fix that and downloaded every friendship app that she had seen advertised on Instagram. Some are simple, like "BumbleFor Friends" (BFF: Bumble For Friends), which works much like the company's dating app.
But instead of swiping for lovers, you're swiping for pals. Others, like Timeleft [or Friend Cult], go further by matching users with like-minded strangers for a meal. [SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING]
UNIDENTIFIED COMMENTATOR: In restaurants across the country [LAUGHTER] total strangers are gathering for conversation and community over shared meals. More
We’re not a social club, we’re a Friend Cult™ -- a weekly, Oakland-based gathering that makes it easier to see friends. No more text tag, no more calendar Tetris, no more doomscrolling. Just show up and hang out — like it used to be. See friends. Eat food. Feel better. Die happy.
An "influencer" has the ability to alter the attitudes, shopping behavior, or shopping decisions of others through knowledge, position, authority, or the because of an audience relationship.
This ability is either inherent to one's personality or is completely constructed by others for some benefit: social, personal, or economical [1].
The term "influencer" is used in media, business, religion, politics, and communication, referring to folks like social media influencers, podcasters, public speakers, religious influencers, writers, and newsletter writers who have dedicated followings [2, 3].
One writer defines influencers as those "who exercise influence over the organization and its potential customers" [4]. Another defines them as someone "who significantly shapes the customer's purchasing decision" [5]. According to another writer, influencers are "well-connected, create an impact, have active minds, and are trendsetters" [6].
What does every American want?
Just because someone has many followers does not necessarily mean that person has much influence over them [7, 8].
In contemporary usage, it means a social media influencer [9, 10, 11] or an online influencer [12, 13, 14] who builds a grassroots online presence through engaging content such as photos, videos, and updates.
This is done by using direct audience interaction to establish authenticity, expertise, and appeal by standing apart from traditional celebrities by growing a platform through social media rather than pre-existing fame [15, 16].
The modern term is commonly a paid role in which a business entity pays for social media influence-for-hire activity to promote products and services, known as influencer marketing [17].
As such, an influencer effectively acts as a modern salesperson or a marketer. A 1% increase in spending on influencer marketing can lead to a 0.5% increase in audience engagement [18] for a company or corporation.
Types include fashion influencer, travel influencer, virtual influencer, content creators [19, 20, 21], and streamers [22, 23, 24]. More
How to Win Friends and Influence People
How to be an influencer? Keep talking until someone breaks your jaw like Jake? Read a book?
.
This classic self-help book written by Dale Carnegie came out in 1936. Worldwide, over 30 million copies have been sold since, making it one of the best-selling books of all time [1, 2].
Dale Carnegie had been conducting business courses in New York since 1912 [3]. In 1934, Leon Shimkin (Simon & Schuster) took one of Carnegie's 14-week courses on human relations and public speaking. He later persuaded Carnegie to let a stenographer take notes from the course to be revised for publication [3].
The initial 5,000 copies of the book sold exceptionally well, going through 17 editions in the first year [3]. In 1981, a revised edition containing updated language and anecdotes was released [4]. The revised edition reduced the number of sections from six to four, eliminating sections on effective business letters and improving marital satisfaction. In 2011, it was Number 19 on Time'sList of the 100 Most Influential Nonfiction Books [5]. In 2022, a newly revised edition was published.
Author Dale Carnegie
I know what people want (Carnegie)
Before How to Win Friends and Influence People, the self-help genre had other successes. Authors like Orison Swett Marden and Samuel Smiles had sold well with their self-help titles in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Dale Carnegie began his career teaching night classes at a NY YMCA, later expanding to YMCAs in Philadelphia and Baltimore [6]. He then taught independently at hotels in London, Paris, New York, Boston, Philadelphia, and Baltimore, writing small booklets to go along with his courses [7].
When evolution gets us
After one of his 14-week courses, publisher Leon Shimkin of Simon & Schuster approached him [8]. Shimkin urged Carnegie to write a book, but he was not initially persuaded. Shimkin then hired a stenographer to type up one of Carnegie's long lectures and presented that transcript to Carnegie [9], who edited and revised it into its final form [10].
To market the book, Shimkin sent 500 copies to former graduates of the Dale Carnegie Course, with a note that pointed out the utility of the book for refreshing students with the advice they had learned [11]: 141.
Or just work out until you have a hot bod. See?
The 500 mailed copies brought orders for over 5,000 more copies, so Simon & Schuster had to quickly increase the original print order of 1,200 [11]: 142. Shimkin also ran a full-page ad in the New York Times complete with quotes by Andrew Carnegie and John D. Rockefeller on the importance of human relations [12].
Originally published in Nov. 1936, the book reached the New York Times best-seller list by the end of the year and stayed on it for the next two years [11]: 141.
Simon & Schuster continued to advertise the book, relying heavily on testimonials as well as the testable approach the book offered [12]. More
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