tantra

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tan·tra

(tŭn′trə, tăn′-)

Any of a comparatively recent class of Hindu or Buddhist religious literature written in Sanskrit and concerned with powerful ritual acts of body, speech, and mind.

[Sanskrit tantram, doctrine, loom; see ten- in Indo-European roots.]

tan′tric (-trĭk) adj.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Tantra

(ˈtæntrə; ˈtʌn-)

(Hinduism) Hinduism Buddhism the sacred books of Tantrism, written between the 7th and 17th centuries ad, mainly in the form of a dialogue between Siva and his wife

[C18: from Sanskrit: warp, hence underlying principle, from tanoti he weaves]

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

Tan•tra

(ˈtʌn trə, ˈtɑn-, ˈtæn-)

n., pl. -tras.

1. (italics) any of several books of esoteric Hindu doctrine regarding rituals, meditation, etc., composed in the form of dialogues between Shiva and his Shakti.

2. (l.c.)the exoteric philosophy or practice based on these writings: influential in Buddhism, esp. in Tibet.

[< Skt]

Tan′tric, adj.

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Noun	1.	tantra - any of a fairly recent class of Hindu or Buddhist religious literature concerned with ritual acts of body and speech and mind Sanskrit literature - Hindu literature written in Sanskrit
	2.	Tantra - doctrine of enlightenment as the realization of the oneness of one's self and the visible world; combines elements of Hinduism and paganism including magical and mystical elements like mantras and mudras and erotic rites; especially influential in Tibet Tantrism Buddhism - the teaching of Buddha that life is permeated with suffering caused by desire, that suffering ceases when desire ceases, and that enlightenment obtained through right conduct and wisdom and meditation releases one from desire and suffering and rebirth

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Tantra One of the later Hindu or Buddhist scriptures dealing especially with techniques and rituals, including meditative and sexual practices.