Padmasambhava

On the left is an image of Padmasambhava (Lotus born), a legendary founder of Buddhism in Tibet. As part of my beginning practice, I'm supposed to recite 100,000 mantras dedicated to him. (Om ah hung vajra guru padma siddhi hung) I think I'm up to about 5,000. The idea is to recite 108 at a time, using a mala to keep track. (This is a necklace of 108 beads, which in my case are lotus seeds.) In any event, he is often depicted with consorts, or in yab-yum, which is the primordial union of male and female, said to be symbolic of the union of wisdom and compassion. The male aspect represents compassion, whereas the female aspect represents wisdom. (Indeed Tara, female Buddha, is said to be the mother of all Buddhas, as she is associated with prajna paramita, the perfection of wisdom.) Sexual union is decidely absent in Christian symbology, and in Western thought, it often comes attached to ideas such as shame and guilt. I think it makes sense, however, to use this imagery toward the goal of liberation and enlightenment, considering how our brains are constructed to dwell on sex to such an extent. So perhaps one can use sexual thoughts, when they arise, as reminders of how compassion needs to be united with wisdom.
After all, in the Diamond Sutra, we are told that those who wish to be Bodhisattvas should cultivate compassion (bodhichitta) for all living beings, while also clearly seeing the true nature of reality.