The Evolving movement of Temple Nights- going beyond the PlaySpace

Temple nights are so much more than just play parties—and as this global movement evolves, they have the potential to positively impact not just the individuals who attend but also our collective consciousness.

Let’s explore what these spaces are, their ancient roots, and their potential to dismantle patriarchy, heal sexual trauma, and reclaim love, beauty, and art.

WHAT IS A TEMPLE SPACE, REALLY?

The term "Temple Night" has been used frequently over the past five years in the global Tantra scene, often becoming watered down or misused. Many play parties with a slight spiritual vibe are labeled as "Temples," leading some to think the term is interchangeable with play parties. Similarly, Tantra is often reduced to just Sacred Sexuality, missing the vast spiritual tradition the term represents, so there is a similar theme and issue which is often related to a lack of depth of study from the facilitators of these spaces.

At its core, a Temple Night is a space to worship life through the body—a sacred space that can include eroticism and sexuality but doesn’t have to. If you attend a Temple Night and find it's just people hooking up, it's likely a conscious play party, not a 'true' temple.

People go to play parties to explore sexuality, while they attend Temple nights to explore the divine, which may or may not include sexuality. The overall difference is in the intention of the space, as from the external view they could look similar. 

Of course, conscious play parties are amazing—they offer supportive spaces for connection, exploration, and play. I’ve facilitated countless play parties and had incredible experiences, and the world needs these spaces. However, when an event advertises itself as a spiritual, embodied ritual of Eros and turns out to be something else, it can leave people feeling disappointed or misled, especially for those newer to these experiences. 

What happens at a Temple night?

The most basic structure of a Temple space includes a start and end time, introductory practices to help participants settle into the space, build consent, and activate sexual energy, followed by open time and a closing circle. This has a component of ritual space where there is a clear start and end to the experience, with practices aimed to help people connect deeper to the vibe of the space. 

Unskilled or inexperienced facilitators might throw together a few basic practices, leaving the depth of the experience dependent on the participants. In contrast, skilled facilitators carefully craft practices and rituals that guide participants into deeper states of presence and flow, which then enriches the open space and brings a certain flavour to the experience.

Some Temple spaces go even deeper, incorporating themes and rituals that help participants access a transpersonal experience, inviting a collective erotic trance-state. These spaces allow individuals to step beyond their personal desires and attachments into something more profound—which is a deep craving of the soul.

When you’ve facilitated dozens of these spaces, you start to notice the factors that influence the energy of the open time: the layout, lighting, practices, music, and the curation of participants (is it open to the public or vetted?). Even environmental factors like the moon, planetary cycles, and weather can affect the space. When the vibe is off, encounters may feel shallow, with people paired off or chatting rather than engaging. But when the vibe is deep, it feels like walking through honey—otherworldly, holy, with a palpable sense of magic in the air. Participants leave feeling open, connected, and profoundly moved, as if they’ve touched something fundamental to their nature.

There’s so much more potential for these spaces when facilitators and participants are willing to move beyond seeking and chasing, allowing for a deeper, more embodied experience.

TEMPLE SPACES AND THEIR ROOTS

Temple nights are loosely based on ancient Tantric Feasts and Sacred Sexuality Temples, where people would come together in ritual to invite the divine to move through them. Group trance states were integral, allowing participants to drop out of their minds and into a state of being in their bodies. Practitioners surrendered their egoic desires and plans, following the thread of intuition and Eros.

These ancient rites often involved group chanting, meditation, dancing, poetry, sacred sexuality, and spontaneous expression. Some rituals included sacraments like psychedelics or wine to induce ecstatic states, offering the resulting bliss to the divine.

Historically, access to these spaces required initiation and training. Participants needed foundational skills in presence, consent, boundaries, and self-reflection. Without this preparation, entering these spaces could be messy or even dangerous. Transpersonal experiences require a certain level of readiness, as each participant influences the collective field.

To navigate Eros with integrity, it's important to have the skills to navigate consent, boundaries, and attachment. Though we may understand these concepts intellectually, deeply ingrained patterns require practice to shift. This is why many facilitators, including myself, require foundational training before allowing participants into Temple spaces. This shared understanding creates both safety and depth.

It’s also essential to stay embodied and not get lost in the mind. Attunement—being sensitive to the energy around you—takes practice, but it's one of the most important frequencies to embody in these spaces. The more attuned and present the group, the deeper the space can go. This is why creating regular Temple spaces and building a community around them is so important.

HOW TEMPLES CAN DISMANTLE PATRIARCHY

A fascinating aspect of sacred sexuality history is that the decline of Temples of Eros coincides with the rise of patriarchy. Before the major Abrahamic religions suppressed women and sexuality, Temples—primarily run by women—were places to worship the body, the Erotic, and the Earth. The "Divine Feminine" was revered, but patriarchal religions destroyed these Temples and suppressed this aspect of reality, going as far as burning women alive.

These Temples provided a direct experience of the divine through the body, something organized religion sought to externalize, making people reliant on them for spiritual connection. Sexuality, once a powerful source of love and nourishment, was cast into the shadow and controlled.

Even today, those working with sacred sexuality face censorship and challenges, from having bank accounts removed to limited reach.

Modern society is plagued by sexual trauma, shame, and violence, but Temple Spaces offer an invitation to reclaim our roots, our wholeness, and our beauty. In these spaces, sex becomes art—a prayer. Women’s bodies are honored, love is celebrated, and a deeper, soul-based connection emerges that transcends heteronormative ideas.

When we slow down, drop out of our conditioned patterns, and enter a state of being, we decondition the distorted eroticism shaped by centuries of repression and shame. We create a new, empowering relationship with this energy.

Men, Women and everyone in between can meet soul-to-soul in these spaces, nourish one another, celebrate our sensual essence and move beyond the divide of the sexes. We can heal so many of the wounds created from our traumatic sexual history and find a new way of relating based on mutual respect and honouring. 

The world needs more love, beauty, and connection, and Temple spaces can help meet that collective need by evolving sexuality out of the shadows and into a new era.

Sacred Sexuality teachers and facilitators have the power to lead this movement if they are willing to truly commit to the cause, cultivating new levels of mastery to ensure their spaces remain sacred.

 Here is a beautiful spoken-word poetry creation by Maya Luna that evokes a sense of what happens when we enter the temple. 

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For 8 years now, I've been creating and facilitating Esoteric sexuality and playspaces, ranging from very intimate private gatherings to festivals, retreats and fetish clubnights. 

When I first started to explore combining play parties with Sacred sexuality, I had never heard of a Temple night- I don't know if they even existed yet under that name, and if they did I wasn't exposed to them- but I knew in my heart that there was something there to explore. Something that was missing from the play parties and sexuality events I'd been encountering. 

I've travelled the world experiencing countless Temple nights, play parties, sexuality festivals, fetish parties and spaces dedicated to Eros, Love and Play. I've got to witness this blooming 'scene' and how it's evolving, and I have met countless friends, colleagues and lovers in these spaces over the years. 

I'm grateful to be growing alongside this movement, constantly evolving and taking these spaces deeper and sharing the wisdom along the way. 

I have offerings both for people who are wanting to explore these spaces, as well as for professionals looking to upskill around their facilitation.

 If you want to come on a deep dive journey, this retreat is for you! We'll have a whole week to train the skills to navigate these spaces and dive deeper into practice together. Join the Sensual Arts Retreat and experience the Temple of Sensual Arts (and much more!)

This is my new course for Facilitators, featuring 5 other amazing guests bringing their wisdom on holding incredible Temple and Play spaces. Check out Devoted to Eros