‘Sexual utopia’ island where community practises bondage and ‘penis stimulation’

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    Jade sex eggs, Japanese shibari rope bondage and tantric massage might not be the most obvious therapeutic tools – but for one tight-knit island community, they are the keys to unlocking ultimate "sexual healing".

    Thailand's Ko Pha-Ngan is more commonly known as a bucket list destination for revellers hoping to experience a boozy full moon party – but the island has a very different side where untrained sexual "healers" from all over the world gather to share their tantric practice.

    Also known as Tantra Island, Ko Pha-Ngan is home to a "conscious tantric community" who engage in a swathe of unusual practices all in a bid to heal their psychological wounds – and in a new documentary by VICE, reporter Tir Dhondy flew from London to the island to investigate the bizarre retreat.

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    "Within this community, expats from all around the world have claimed to have created a tantric utopia," Tir explained.

    Tir spent a week on Tantra Island, barely enough time to get a taste of the various classes on offer, which included bondage workshops and "moving meditation" lap-dances.

    During a five-hour Japanese ropes session, attendees were encouraged to "find control, lose control", and tie each other up – even in ways that didn't feel good.

    “Meet those wounds, meet those pains and let them f***ing go," the instructor said.

    "The body is very uncomfortable and reaching many different layers of uncomfort, and that begins to open up the mind.”

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    Describing the session, Tir said: "It’s long and laboursome. It’s hot and sweaty. I’ve got marks all on my arms. I wouldn’t say ‘enjoying it’ is the right word.”

    Another session saw Tir watch on as a tantric masseuse, Roxy, wrapped herself around a very eager client named Yannick, before giving him a full-body experience to stimulate his lingham – another word for his penis.

    "When you can relax certain parts of your feet, the lingham will actually get aroused," Roxy explained.

    Each member of the expat community that calls the island home teaches a different form of sexual healing – but the process to become a teacher here isn't particularly challenging.

    One interviewee said: "This is not a regulated industry – there's no code of conduct. Someone can just take a two-day workshop and they are a massage therapist."

    Another practitioner who identifies just as a "healer", Heather, explained she's similar to a sex therapist but "without the licence".

    And it makes sense – throughout the documentary, no practitioner provides a concrete definition for what "tantra" actually is.

    Tir's says she understands the word to mean: "Living in the moment, even at dinnertime; manifesting my will; having a strong yoni [vagina]; knowing how to verbalise my sacred sexuality; and being connected to the fire, air and water of my being.”

    But the lack of defined parameters means that some rogue healers are able to take advantage of the guests who come to Ko Pha-Ngan seeking relief from their trauma.

    In 2019, a yoga school on the island, Agama, was forced to close its doors after its owner was hit by a swathe of sexual assault claims – although Tir explained that it has quietly reopened recently.

    But even its closure didn't eradicate dodgy practices from the island – one of the tantric healers estimated there was a complaint of sexual abuse on the island every week.

    One woman claimed in a Facebook post that a man had offered to clear her vaginal chakras by penetrating her with his fingers.

    “So much of the teaching involves being touched by strangers, and it involves doing things that make you uncomfortable," Tir explained.

    "Some men have figured this out, and I think they’ve taken advantage of it."

    Watch the documentary here.

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