Body parts – arms, legs, hips, feet – are frequently in contact as they take time to look deeply in each other’s eyes while speaking. They exchange soft kisses and delight in the opportunity to talk about happiness, spirituality, love and, without hesitation, sex.

The pair are teachers and practitioners of tantra yoga, a form of the ancient discipline that integrates better known aspects of the Eastern philosophy (hatha, bakti) to ideally bring individual peace, satisfaction, happiness and ecstasy.

“Tantra is all about coming to your right, true self. It’s about being free, but being free with awareness,” said Kornylak, an osteopath who practices medicine from an office connected to his home.

“I’m in joy every day,” he said. “I’m connected to spirit and God every day, and I want to help others relearn how to love.”

The couple – she, tall with long, wavy hair, dressed in a flowing tunic and loose pants, and he, pony tailed, slim, wearing an iridescent blue shirt that matched the color of his eyes – grew animated as they shared a vision of creating a tantra community in Virginia Beach.

“Initially, we want to create a forum for people to find out about tantra,” said Seitz , 38, who moved to the Beach in September after a two-year, long-distance relationship with Kornylak, who settled here in 1989.

“We’d like to create a sacred space, to boost energy with group consciousness and to create an environment where people can explore intimacy without having the stress of sex, so we can begin to break down barriers.”

The couple is holding and planning events to introduce the public to their style of thought and life.

Earlier this winter they welcomed about 16 people into their home for a snuggle party, where guests were taught relaxation exercises, how to ask for and give permission to be touched, and then spent time holding and hugging – the snuggling part.

On Friday , they presented “Introduction to Tantra,” a workshop at The Heritage Center. And on Feb. 25, they ha ve a sensuous massage evening scheduled and each Thursday, with a gender-balanced group, they’ll hold tantra nights at their home.

“I think there’s a lot of people who’ve heard about tantra, but don’t really know what it is,” said Cindy Mills, director of The Heritage Center on Laskin Road.

Mills scheduled the “Awaken your Heart for Valentine’s Day” introductory tantra class and then signed up to take it.

“I’m curious to find out more,” she said. “Having been in a relationship with someone who studied tantra, I know what it can be like – emotionally wonderful, physically beautiful and very, very spiritual.”

Seitz, the earthy, creative, “juicy” part of the couple, described tantra as divine love.

“We’re all divine, all part of the One,” the massage therapist said. “So tantra practice is seeing the divine in another person and having it reflect back on you. So we create union with God. And God is love.”

Kornylak, 56, Seitz’s more cerebral, philosophical counterpart, gave a lengthier explanation.

“Traditionally, tantra was said to be the most powerful aspect of yoga because it incorporates the physical, the mental, the emotional, the spiritual. In the East, in India and Tibet, you could only practice it after a long process of cleansing, of body work, of study.

“In the West, people don’t have the time,” said Kornylak, who lectures throughout the United States on tantra and relationship issues.

Some people just pick up the more sensational aspects of tantra, such as sex, which is a side effect of tantra, but not the main focus, Kornylak said.

“Tantra is really about being available to yourself, in this moment, experiencing what is happening instead of what you thought should have, would have, could have, might have happened, and being free, feeling ecstasy,” he added.

Kornylak feels that one of the problems in America n culture is that people often equate “free” with being amoral .

“Tantra teaches you to be free, while still being aware of what’s right and wrong, what is acceptable to you and to the person you’re with,” he explained.

Kornylak has practiced and taught yoga for years.

After receiving bachelor’s degrees in physics and biochemistry and master’s degrees in Eastern philosophy and neurophysiology of consciousness, he spent the remainder of his 20s studying, teaching, traveling and meditating – sometimes up to 18 hours a day.

In 1978, he entered medical school.

Judy Johnson, a patient who sees Kornylak for pain management, calls her doctor a visionary.

“He works on body, soul, mind and spirit, and that’s how he alleviates pain, how he alleviates fear and helps people feel better,” Johnson said. “He is very skilled, and intelligent. He is so knowledgeable about everything he does.”

Architect Richard Fitts, 61, was curious when he saw the flier promoting The Heritage Center workshop. He asked his girlfriend to sign them up for the class as a birthday gift.

“I’ve been interested in yoga and spiritual awareness things for a long, long time,” the Norfolk resident said.

“The older I’ve gotten and wiser I’ve gotten, the more I feel I need to awaken my heart, and that’s what this workshop is titled. The idea of bringing the heart energy and the erotic energy together is very appealing to me. ”

While Kornylak and Seitz expect a lot of couples to be interested in their workshops, it is not necessary to be in a relationship to practice tantra, they said.

“Tantra is about coming to fullness within yourself, so you don’t have to be with someone,” Kornylak said. “Oftentimes, that is the key to people who have been single and frustrated. In tantra, the real transformation takes place within you.”