Article for Krásná paní magazine

“It is almost a mystical beginning. By chance, an offer of tantra courses caught my attention. I was curious about what awaited me. I had to decide immediately that very day, because the next course would not be for another six months. I did not have time to think about it, I simply decided to go for it. A sympathetic man came to pick me up and on the way to Křivoklát he told me what tantra is really about. I remember the sentence he said to me as we were entering the course: Remember this moment well, because your life will never be the same again.”

I entered full of expectations and the first tantric course completely captivated me. I found myself among people from various professions who had a desire for self-discovery and believed that life is not only about work or family, but that there is something more beyond that,” recalls the founder of Centre Integrity, tantra lecturer and creator of the tantric massage Inner wave Bc., Michaela Lynnette Torstenová.

What fascinated you the most about it?

For me, the most interesting thing was that people took off their masks. Suddenly, it was clear who they really were. No longer a lawyer, a programmer, an accountant. They were simply themselves. People who dance, sing, play children’s games. It was very beautiful to observe that even those who are, for example, forty years old suddenly stop being stiff and start playing like children. Just as we once discovered the world and allowed ourselves to be excited by it. I feel that we gradually lose this ability. Tantra is precisely about helping a person rediscover their playful and spontaneous side.

And did you find it?

I think so. The first course started a certain process within me. Then I completed others and enrolled in tantric training, which was a course in a closed group where a person searches for themselves. For me, it was an immense liberation, a return to myself.

How did you actually come up with the idea to establish the Centre Tantra masáže Praha s.r.o.?

Before I enrolled in any tantra course, between high school and university I completed a massage retraining course. I enjoyed massaging and touching people. However, I felt that I would like to do it a bit differently. In the Czech Republic at that time, it was common that when you wanted a massage, you were offered a back, neck, and leg massage. I did not want to work in this way. In my first massage practice, I offered massages where a person could say what hurt, and I focused on that. I also incorporated scented oils and music into the massage and placed emphasis on the overall atmosphere.

Isn’t it very physically demanding?

Not at all. A person must master technique and know how to work with their body and its weight. When you learn how to use your body properly, it is not hard work. You have to know how to place yourself fully into it.

For me, it was always more tiring when someone came and said: I would like my back and neck massaged and I have half an hour. It was better when I had, for example, three people and worked with one of them for two hours. I always took breaks in between. Moreover, I believe that the body needs to relax as a whole, and that takes longer than just half an hour.

Are people drawn to tantric massages?

I feel that interest continues to grow. I started as an independent masseuse while developing my own technique. The interest was already so great that I could not keep up, so I decided to train several tantric masseuses. I selected four women who seemed interesting to me and taught them the technique I had developed. At first, we worked in a small massage studio, and after half a year I decided to establish my own centre for tantric massages. We spent two years in Žižkov in a space of 42 square metres. It was provisional, but pleasant, beautiful, and full of experiences. In July 2011, however, I fulfilled my dream of a tantric temple. We are finally opening a true Tantra centre, which will also include a sauna and herbal baths. The area is 180 square metres and will be expanded in the future with space for seminars and teaching. I would like it to create the impression of a tantric temple, where it is not only about a different kind of massage, but also about the environment, statues, paintings, and books. So that when a person enters, they step into another world.

What potential should tantric masseuses have?

For me, it is important that they are mature personalities. Tantra is also about the need to open up, to speak about one’s sexuality, and to relax. Some people are very rigid, whether in their ability to feel arousal or to receive tenderness. Tantric massages should help them learn how to open up and give something of themselves, thus expanding their experience. Masseuses work with this and at the same time must get to know themselves, so that they can also experiment and experience what they later guide clients through.

A masseuse must also be energetic and have inner dynamism, because tantric massage is also about awakening a person. It is about that spark which the masseuse should help the client find. It is then up to them whether it resonates and transforms them, or whether they return to the life they lived before. I believe that for many people, tantric massage represents a kind of milestone.

In what way is it different?

Probably in a different approach to sexuality. Western society as a whole is oriented toward achieving results, performance, and efficiency. Sexuality, however, requires something else. It requires that a person does not push, relaxes, lets things flow, and does not focus on the outcome, which is the satisfaction of a partner or oneself. This is what many people are looking for in tantra. They feel that sexuality can be something deeper and more meaningful. Tantric massage is about letting go of all expectations and perceiving only the present moment. Tantra is experiencing a boom throughout Europe and is very appealing to us. It is a kind of counterbalance to how we normally live. Society pushes us toward performance, and we are unable to live in a divided way.

Have you developed a new form of tantric massage as well? Where do you find further inspiration?

I have drawn most of my inspiration from the tantric group. The foundation is not only about technique, but also about the approach to people, observation, and listening to the stories of others.

You give out a lot of energy during massages. How do you recharge?

I sing, and last year I began studying at an acting school. I am constantly learning something new and working on myself. That is how I recharge. Singing and acting are primarily for joy. It is good that I have it this way, and I recommend it to my masseuses as well, who work for me four days a week. They need time for their own lives too, so they can paint, sing, go to the theatre. They must be balanced and interesting in order to have something to give to others.