Editing Subtle body (section)

==== Tantra ====
In [[Tantra]] traditions meanwhile ([[Shaivism|Shaiva]] [[Kaula (Hinduism)|Kaula]], [[Kashmir Shaivism]] and Buddhist [[Vajrayana]]), the subtle body was seen in a more positive light, offering potential for yogic practices which could lead to liberation.{{sfn|Samuel|2013|p=34}} Tantric traditions contain the most complex theories of the subtle body, with sophisticated descriptions of energy [[Nadi (yoga)|nadis]] (literally "stream or river", channels through which ''vayu'' and ''prana'' flows) and [[chakra]]s, points of focus where nadis meet.{{sfn|Samuel|2013|pp=38–39}}

The main channels, shared by both Hindu and Buddhist systems, but visualised entirely differently, are the central (in Hindu systems: ''[[sushumna]]''; in Buddhist: ''avadhuti''), left and right (in Hindu systems: ''ida'' and ''pingala''; Buddhist: ''lalana'' and ''rasana'').{{sfn|Samuel|2013|p=39}} Further subsidiary channels are said to radiate outwards from the chakras, where the main channels meet.{{sfn|Mallinson|Singleton|2017|pp=172–174}}

Chakra systems vary with the tantra; the ''[[Netra Tantra]]'' describes six chakras, the ''Kaulajñana-nirnaya'' describes eight, and the ''Kubjikamata Tantra'' describes seven (the most widely known set).{{sfn|Samuel|2013|p=40}}{{sfn|Mallinson|Singleton|2017|pp=175–178}}

In the [[Dzogchen]] tradition of [[Tibetan Buddhism]], the subtle body takes a different form. More specifically, the tradition points to four areas of particularly concentration of [[Energy (esotericism)|bodily energy]] – viz. the heart (''tsitta''), where the enlightened energy resides; the "luminous channels" (''‘od rtsa''), through which the energy flows; the skull (''dung khang''), where it spreads before finally being released through the fourth hot-spot, namely the eyes (''tsakshu'' / ''briguta'').<ref name="Geisshuesler"/>{{rp|63}} Flavio Geisshuesler, who has studied the functioning of the Dzogchen subtle body in the context of the practice of [[sky-gazing (Dzogchen)|sky-gazing]], argues that many of the specific motifs that appear in the tradition's conception of the body are of pre-Buddhist origin. More specifically, he notes that the Dzogchen body's motifs of "deer-hearts, silk-channels, buffalo-horns, or far-reaching lassos [...] reproduce the terminology of the hunting of animalistic vitality as if internalizing the quest for precious substances."<ref name="Geisshuesler">{{cite book | last=Geisshuesler | first=Flavio | title=Tibetan Sky-Gazing Meditation and the Pre-History of Great Perfection Buddhism | date=2024 | location=London | publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing | isbn=978-1-350-42881-2 | url=https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/tibetan-skygazing-meditation-and-the-prehistory-of-great-perfection-buddhism-9781350428812/ | page=5}}</ref>