what is the buddhist view on mastrubation and pornography?
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okay, i'm by no means an expert, but i wanna try anyway.\n\nbuddhism's got somethin' called The Four Noble Truths, which basically outline the nature of suffering, and The Eightfold Path, which tells ye how to deal with and hopefully eliminate suffering.  maybe i got that backwards, but i don't think so.\n\npart of ending suffering is right thinking (compassion is another).  since some pornography is exploitive (not all), then i think that the support of such would be frowned upon by buddhists.\n\non the other hand, you have different levels of involvement.  y'got y'lay buddhists--your everyday people.  and y'got y'monks--those who devote the entirety of their lives to buddhism.  for the latter, i'm pretty sure they must remain celibate (and dry--that means no booze), so either that one thang (ach, censorship!) or pornography i'm guessing would not be allowed.  even with lay-buddhists in general, i think drinking is still frowned upon somewhat...\n\nokay, not all monks can't drink and such...  so i've heard, the shaolin monks are exempt from the drinking rule (don't know about taking a wife) because long, long ago, they saved the emperor.  in thanks, he allowed them some leniency in their practices...  it's not like they can just go to a bar and drink whene'er they want though!!  their life is still quite involved with the temple, and that's putting it mildly!\n\ni hope that helps.  if not, i'm sure you can find some good resources on e-sangha.  it's a free buddhist newsgroup.\nhttp://www.lioncity.net/buddhism
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I personally believe that it is a sin, and so it is always harmful.  There is such a thing as becoming addicted to mastu rbation and/or sex, after all.  The body is not a toy, but a holy temple, and should treated with respect.
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Porn is like shoplifting.  It's the something for nothing mentality.\n\nAll the adrenaline without any risk or vulnerability or even having to consider the wants and needs of another human being.  It's completely selfish.\n\nIt sets men up to have an unrealistic expectations of what women want and what we're like.  It makes them insensitive as lovers.\n\n“You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.  Matthew 5:27-28\n\nSounds like cheating to me.
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MASTURBATION is an expression of lusting over someone. No scripture tells us that masturbation is a sin.\n\nKeep growing in the Lord Jesus and you will find later that this habit will stop.\n\nConnect with strong Christian men in your locality. \n\nALL THE BEST.
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Buddhism is a path of practice and spiritual development leading to Insight into the true nature of life. Buddhist practices such as meditation are means of changing oneself in order to develop the qualities of awareness, kindness, and wisdom. The experience developed within the Buddhist tradition over thousands of years has created an incomparable resource for all those who wish to follow a path - a path which ultimately culminates in Enlightenment or Buddhahood.\n\nBecause Buddhism does not include the idea of worshipping a creator God, some people do not see it as a religion in the normal, Western sense. The basic tenets of Buddhist teaching are straightforward and practical: nothing is fixed or permanent; actions have consequences; change is possible. Thus Buddhism addresses itself to all people irrespective of race, nationality, or gender. It teaches practical methods (such as meditation) which enable people to realize and utilize its teachings in order to transform their experience, to be fully responsible for their lives and to develop the qualities of Wisdom and Compassion.\nBuddhism explains the reality of life and the universe: that all beings are equal by nature and that all teachings are equal. The Buddha said many times that the wisdom to understand the true reality of life and the universe, and the virtuous abilities to cultivate are all already within our true nature. Buddhism teaches us to have a broad mind, one that overflows with sincerity, purity, equality, proper understanding, and compassion. Everyday, we must strive to awaken to this reality. Being contented with all conditions and settings is a good example for all, and striving for attainment of freedom of mind and spirit will help to awaken. From this, we can see that the Buddha is a compassionate multicultural educator who is worthy of emulation.\nBuddhism is Not a Religion. According to the Webster's Dictionary, the definition of religion is as follows, "An organized system of beliefs, rites, and celebrations centered on a supernatural being power; belief pursued with devotion."\nBuddhism is not a religion because:\nbullet\n\nFirst, the Buddha is not a 'supernatural being power'. The Buddha is simply a person who has reached Complete Understanding of the reality of life and the universe. Life refers to ourselves, and universe refers to our living environment. The Buddha taught that all beings possess the same ability to reach Complete Understanding of themselves and their environment, and relieve themselves from all sufferings to attain utmost happiness. All beings can become Buddhas, and all beings and the Buddha are equal by nature. The Buddha is not a God, but a teacher, who teach us the way to restore Wisdom and Understanding by conquering the greed, hatred, and ignorance which blind us at the present moment. The word 'Buddha' is a Sanskrit word, when translated it means, "Wisdom, Awareness/Understanding". We call the founder of Buddhism Shakyamuni Buddha because He has attained Complete Understanding and Wisdom of life and the universe. Buddhism is His education to us, it is His teaching which shine the way to Buddhahood.\nbullet\n\nSecond, the 'belief' in the Buddha's teachings is not blind belief, or blind faith. Shakyamuni Buddha taught us not to blindly believe what he tells us, he wants us to try the teachings and prove them for ourselves. The Buddha wants us to know, not merely believe. The Buddha's teachings flow from his own experience and understanding of the truth, and shows us a path of our own to taste the truth for ourselves. The Buddha uses a perfectly scientific way of showing us reality in its true form.\nbullet\n\nThird, Buddhism is not a religion because all the 'rites and celebrations' are not centered on a supernatural being, but rather the people attending the assemblies. The ceremonies and celebrations in Buddhism all serve an educational purpose, a reminder of
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oh ! you didnt read from the website....?\n\nits buddhism....
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I'm a Christian, and my boyfriend is Buddhist.  I'm very interested in how the two intersect, and they can and do very easily.  The teachings of Christ and Buddha are similar in many areas.  The book "Living Buddha, Living Christ" by Thich Nhat Hanh is a great examination of that.  There have also been many Buddhist Christians, with the adherents following Christian doctrine and Buddhist philosophy.  I think they work well together.
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Well, I think theology is the wrong word since Buddhism is none=theistic. Still, here is a brief description of Buddhist beliefs. \n\nBuddhist beliefs revolve around a few basic principals. The first being the Four Nobel Truths:\n\n1) All worldly life is unsatisfactory, disjointed, containing suffering.\n2) There is a cause of suffering, which is attachment or desire rooted in ignorance\n3) There is an end of suffering, called Nirvana.\n4) There is a path that leads out of suffering, known as the Noble Eightfold Path.\n\nThe Noble Eightfold Path (listed below) is an intellectual understanding of the truth. The 'KNOWLEDGE' of Buddhism is liked to a finger pointing the way to the mood. The truth of Buddhism would be the moon. With knowledge, we point to the truth, just as with a finger we point to the moon. IF you focus on the finger, you will miss the moon but without the finger you will not know where the moon is. The same is true of the Knowledge and truth of Buddhism.\n\nThe Noble Eightfold Path: (Divided into three categories)\n>Wisdom\n1) Right Understanding - Looking at the world without attachment and desire, without ego.\n2) Right Thought - Keeping the mind on what is at hand and being resolved on renunciation, freedom from ill will, and on harmlessness.\n\n>Ethical Conduct\n3) Right Speech - Abstaining from lying, divisive, abusive and idle chatter.\n4) Right Action - Abstaining from taking life, stealing and improper sexual activities\n5) Right Livelihood - Doing what is right with ones life.\n\n>Concentration or Mental Development\n6) Right Effort - A persistent desire and an matching endeavor to participate in proper activates the are good and just.\n7) Right Mindfulness - Remaining focused on ones actions, speech, thoughts and lively hood.\n8) Right Concentration - by abandoning all selfishness and adopting a heart of compassion, keeping ones mind on what needs to be do including the helping of others.\n\nTo aid in the practice of the Noble Eightfold Path, the Five Precepts or the moral tenants of Buddhism are:\n\n1. To refrain from harming living creatures (ahimsa).\n2. To refrain from taking that which is not freely given (stealing).\n3. To refrain from sexual misconduct. (causing Physical, emotional or mental harm to yourself or others.)\n4. To refrain from incorrect speech (lying, harsh language, slander, idle chit-chat).\n5. To refrain from intoxicants which lead to loss of mindfulness.\n\nThe practice of Buddhism is found in studding the Sutras and more importantly for Ch'an (Zen) meditating to free the 'Unborn Buddha-mind' that is within all of us. \n\nI have included a couple of links that should help you learn more is you are interested.\n\nI hope this helps.
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great summary dba gregg\n\np.s. The Dhammapada is NOT "their holy book" but is one "scripture" that was passed down along with many others\n\nQuickly, \n\n> Do they live a simplistic life?\nSome do, and some don't.  People are individuals and categorizing them seems silly.  A Buddhist ascetic (monk?) on the other hand, you might think of as living a simpleR life (not simplistic).\n\n> The purpose of Buddhism?\nof buddhism? to propagate the teachings of the Buddha... the goal of [the teachings AKA dharma] which is to live life that's good for yourself and others (and ultimately achieve Nirvana).\n\n> Related to nature in any way?\nsure, "dharma" could be thought of as the teaching, or law of nature, or etc...  \n\nif you're talking about do they like to go camping or prance around naked in the woods, ummm... doubtful (though could be exceptions).\n\nsome buddhists like to be in nature, as do non-buddhists.  i bet some don't either.
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Masturbation is a sin because a person consents in their own heart to take sexual gratification from impure thoughts. It is sinful to indulge in the sexual pleasure that is derived from the satisfaction of using one's imagination to FIXATE upon obscene images, or obscene actions, or forbidden sex. Lustfully fixating upon genitals, or sexual acts, is idolatry. This is called: the worship of obscenities. This is the sin of those addicted to pornography. That's often a "guy" thing. Alternatively, taking delight in the lust of another, or consummating a fantasy of forbidden sexual romance, is the sin of adultery in the heart. That's often a "girl" thing. The act of masturbation is an outward act that confirms that one's heart and mind has consented to an inward act of impurity. Only by consenting to an imagined act of impurity can one attain orgasm. To attain sexual release, a person's will consents to LOVE something that is sexually impure. \n\nA sin consists in loving something that God hates, or in hating something that God loves. Because God is pure love, in one sense there is no hatred in God. But there are actions that God regards with a COMPLETE ABSENCE of love. There are many things that men can do that God does not love. In so far as God does not love a human action, according to our way of thinking it can be said that God hates it. These actions are sins. They are often as hateful to men as they are to God! What are some things that God does not love? What are some things that, according to our human way of speaking, we might say that God hates?? \n\nAbove all, God hates falsehood. God hates any form of lie, rejoicing in cruel lies, or in telling harmful lies about others. He hates any kind of injustice perpetrated upon his children! God hates cruelty, or the defrauding of a worker of his just wages. God hates it when one person entices another person to do something harmful to himself or others: like to worship evil, or to steal, or to lie, or to take drugs. God also hates impure sexual lust because lust is a false pretense of love. It is a gross and disordered counterfeit of what should really be a sentiment of holy love. Lust consists in fixating on the body of another human being as a sexual object - solely for sexual gratification. When a person lusts, he is making no lasting commitment to the other human being. He is regarding the other human being's body as a sexual object to be used for his own gratification - but nothing more! Outside of marriage, a person who lusts is acting as if he would take another person sexually to be his spouse: but he has absolutely no intention of actually doing so. That is why LUST IS A LIE. \n\nWhen the subject of masturbation arises, it always refers to stimulating one's self for the gratification of sexual lust, or in stimulating one's self sexually while fantasizing about the lust of another person. In impure sexual fantasy, a person uses his own imagination as a pornographic tool to give his body the ability to attain sexual gratification. In reality entertaining lustful fantasy is embracing a falsehood of the heart and mind, in an act of abuse of his own body in order to attain selfish sexual gratification. This is sexual idolatry! God hates falsehood - especially worshipping a false god! This is why God hates impurity in all it's forms. \n\nGod hates the worship of ugliness, or obscenity, or bestiality. A person who might sexually gratify himself while looking at bestiality is acting as if bestiality is a good thing - when it is a hateful thing! In the same way: lustfully fixating upon lurid sexual pornography is a behavior that pretends that some obscene sexual image, or a lurid posture, or an obscene action is a good thing, when they are nothing but obscene and hateful images! These images are used as objects of false worship. These obscene images, be they real, photographic, or imaginary, are the objects of the "wo
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Masturbation is NOT a sin.\n\nIt is NOT dirty or wrong or shameful or anything to be embarased about.\n\nIt is normal, and it is healthy.
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Be mindful. I am a Buddhist. We believe that if we are mindful of each thing that we do, then it can take on an entirely different, and much deeper, meaning. We enter into the moment, not try to avoid it. So if we are doing laundry, we use this as a time of meditation. Please learn more about this technique of mindfulness. You do not have to be Buddhist to benefit from it. Look for "Being Peace" by Thich Nhat Hanh, a very kind and wise Buddhist monk from Vietnam who now lives at Plum Village in France.
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You'll have to forgive Shehawke -- she is apparently an idiot.  Furthermore, "sutra" does not mean "crookedness."  It is a standard term that can describe any technical or religious tract.\n\nThe Kama Sutra (literally, "the Scripture of Desire") is an Ancient Hindu text that is considered the definitive Hindu work on topics like erotic love, romantic pursuit, desire, and the role of these feelings in the human experience.  It is infamous for giving explicit details on contorted, creative sexual positions and sexual technique -- many transcripts contain revealing illustrations.  It also addresses the topic of what could be called sexual magic.\n\nIt is one of the earliest texts we know of that deal with sex in this manner.\n\nAlso, the name "Kama Sutra" has been applied to countless sexual self-help videos and pornographic films.  An independent 1997 film also shared the name, but had nothing much at all to do with the classical work.
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http://www.gotquestions.org/masturbation-sin.html
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I am Buddhist but I understand that christianity believes the Bible to be the word of God. In Buddhism we have  writtings which are said to be the word\nof the Buddha - these are called the Sutras. This literature\nis vast - you couldnt fit it in your pocket. For example one of the largest Sutras which was the basis of many of the Chinese and Japanese Buddhist schools is called the Flower Ornament Sutra - this Sutra alone is bigger than the Bible.\n\nBuddhism also has many later texts which are commentaries on these Sutras, there are also the Tantras and other inspired texts written by other teachers.\n\nSo why is there so much written in Buddhism? Well Buddhism\nis a very complete science of the mind and how to awaken for\nevery different type of being with all their differences and their complexities.\n\nSo what should we carry around with us? Well the first thing\nin Buddhism is really to learn meditation - so going to\na qualified meditation teacher and learning meditation is the first step. You then have that with you at all times.\n\nGood luck\nBodhicitta
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Masturbation is a normal thing for people to do. Nothing harmful about spanking the monkey every now and than. It said to be good to masturbate to get old sperm out and new sperm in if you don't have sex yet in life.
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As you're talking about 'exhibitionism' involving people exposing themselves (as opposed to just showing off or acting stupid,) I have to say that YES, it's porn. \n\nAs far as I'm concerned the definition of whether something's pornographic doesn't include whether money is paid, and after all the first and foremost definition of 'pornography' in the Yahoo education dictionary is "Sexually explicit pictures, writing, or other material whose primary purpose is to cause sexual arousal."\n\nTHAT is exactly the same as MY definition!