Transcendent Sex: When Lovemaking Opens the Veil (Paperback)

~ (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Claiming that lovemaking can be a path to soulful realization, developmental psychologist Wade explores "one of the best-kept secrets in human history" in this study of ordinary people’s spontaneous spiritual awakenings through transcendent sex. Drawing heavily from the well-articulated, first-hand accounts of nearly 100 respondents (specifically chosen for their lack of any spiritual framework or ideology to explain the episodes), the author repeatedly offers historical, religious and cultural traditions as a background, and context for readers’ understanding of her arguments. Though not a how-to book per se, Wade’s volume broaches the myriad shapes mystical sex may take, including animal possession, time travel, out-of-body experiences, past life regression and even enlightenment, and it provides warnings on the down side of altered state sex (dangerous liaisons and overwhelming intimacy) and suggestions for facilitating transcendent sex. Despite the fact most of those interviewed had only a one-time experience, the long-term effects on their lives often proved profound and healing. Wade’s unique subject matter, and her openness with the research data, should make this a welcome addition to the spirituality/self-help genre.
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Review

"... absolutely enthralling and completely captivating... Wade has written an essential guide to understanding the spiritual component of sexuality." -- Caroline M. Myss, author

"TRANSCENDENT SEX is a glimpse into the nature of your immortal divine being. Read, enjoy and be liberated." -- Deepak Chopra, author

"What Raymond Moody did for our understanding of death, Jenny Wade has done for sex...A heaven-breaking book." -- Kenneth Ring, Ph.D., author

The subject of transcendent sex "is an understudied and unknown area...Highly recommended to collections in religion, spirituality, and sexuality." -- Library Journal, March 15, 2004

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 336 pages
• Publisher: Pocket; First Printing edition (April 6, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0743482174
• ISBN-13: 978-0743482172
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.5 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #438,532 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Ordinary people with extraordinary experiences!, April 2, 2004

By A Customer

She's done it again! In Transcendent Sex, Dr. Jenny Wade relates the experiences of people just like you and me who have touched the divine, not by meditation or yoga or drugs, but simply by making love. Often these folks didn't even plan on having a transcendent experience, it just happened!

In her first book, Changes of Mind, Dr. Wade showed how consciousness develops over our lifetime and more importantly, how these discrete stages of development, she calls them MindSets, persist and shape our interactions at work and in other relationships. In effect we don't just have one `mind' inside our head, but several--each with it's own values, strengths and weaknesses--some more `evolved' than others. Gaining access to the higher states was thought to be a path reserved for the devoted practitioners of the mystic arts, but now she presents the stories of ordinary people having truly extraordinary experiences which transcend their day-to-day conscious minds. For some it reflects attainment of a higher state of awareness.

Why is this book important? I don't want to spoil the pleasure of your experience of sex, but if one of these invitations to glimpse a world beyond the limits of your bedroom comes unbidden, it will be comforting to know that you are not losing your mind, but in a way finding it. If these transcendent insights occur to one partner and not the other, you now have a basis for a deeper understanding of each other and the wonder of the universe by reflecting on the perhaps similar experiences of others.

As with Changes of Mind, Dr. Wade shows her uncanny ability to tease a taxonomy out of what some might leave as a collection of interesting but disparate tales. Using her familiar metrics of sense of self, sense of place and sense of time, she sifts the ninety or so interviews into groupings that not only enhance the reading, but also facilitate a quick reference should something troubling occur.

On that note, I should paraphrase Dr. Wade's admonition: not all transcendent experiences are welcome and some may be downright unsettling. While this is not a `How To' book, she does give some pointers on being open to the experience and also some advice on dealing with the darker aspects. Above all this is not a book about Sex or a guide to better orgasms: if pressed, I would say it's about the boundless spiritual energy that we all possess. It is a phenomenal book!

20 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Transcendent Jenny Wade, March 30, 2004

By A Customer

What Raymond Moody did for our understanding of death, Jenny Wade has done for sex -- namely, to show how sexual encounters between ordinary people can vault them into the realm of the transcendent, unleash powerful forces of spiritual transformation and ultimately lead to God-consciousness itself. "Transcendent Sex" is a superbly written work, with many fascinating stories of extraordinary experiences that can be spontaneously triggered by sex, and also demonstrates that many of these experiences are no different in form and content from those that are deliberately sought through a variety of spiritual practices. In addition, there are practical guides -- and warnings -- for those readers who would like to cultivate such episodes in their own sexual life. The author deserves a great deal of credit for bringing these experiences to light and showing how sex itself is not merely a hedonic delight that pleasures the senses, but can also become a means of spiritual awakening. A heaven-breaking book.

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A groundbreaking book, March 27, 2006

By	Daniel J. Benor "Wholistic Healing Publications" (Medford, NJ) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Jenny Wade interviewed 91 people (identified through personal acquaintance networks) who spontaneously experienced transcendent awarenesses during sexual encounters. They report these experiences were so profoundly moving that their sexual encounters paled by comparison. In fact, the sexual climax was often experienced as a distraction or even as an annoyance.

A variety of transcendent experiences were identified by her subjects, including transfiguration of the sexual partner, shape shifting, channeling of spirit awarenesses, totally being in the present moment, cosmic awareness, out of body experiences, and past life recall.

Wade writes clearly, providing the background for understanding these transcendent sexual experiences in the context of more commonly reported transcendent experiences. She illustrates each of these types of experience with fascinating quotes from her subjects.

"I was taken up beyond my body and the warmth of the sun on my skin and the clear blue sky until I went in that golden sunlight and cerulean blue. Then I shot out beyond it into the vastness of space where all was silence and the blackness lit by stars. Everything there looked clear and beautiful and cold, yet I could feel the life pulsating through it, the fierce fires of the distant suns and burning stars. It was beauty and it was love and there I was in the middle of this universe stretching forever. I wanted to stay there always. --Rachel" (p.111)

The only criticism I can muster about this book is a minor unclarity about whether these transcendent experiences as sexual encounters are ever shared by both partners. On page 141 Wade clarifies that past life awarenesses are the only transcendent experiences that couples regularly share.

While transcendent sex as a Tantric meditative practice has been well known and extensively described, Wade clearly expands the boundaries of these experiences in this groundbreaking book.