White Tiger, Green Dragon

Book excerpt: White Tiger, Green Dragon follows the spiritual, erotic and psychic evolution of Tu Ming, a Taoist monk in Old China. Tu is apprenticed in sequence to five female adepts in the discipline known as the “dual cultivation,” a kind of tantra yoga in which sexual techniques replicate states of spiritual progress. This practice culminates in the creation of a spiritual embryo at the moment of enlightenment. The five masters who instruct Tu run the gamut of Chinese folklore characters, including the gentle pillow girl, Mei Cha, the doughty herb gatherer, Su Ba, and Lekshe Tsogyel, an acrobatic aristocrat from Tibet. Tu advances not only in his practice, but also in his understanding of life and love as he falls under the spell of five unforgettable women unequaled in religious literature. In the exciting conclusion, he experiences an epiphany that redefines what it means to attain the highest knowledge.