Why is abstaining from pleasure always said to be the way to the spiritual path?

Question

E.g. some of the precepts of Buddhism follow thus:

abstain from: all sexual activity and all intoxicants.

I'll ignore the second, though IMO that too is problematic because there are lots of things - even in nature - that could be intoxicants yet we're not aware of the fact. However, as for sexual activity, doesn't that resonate of many religions? (And Buddhism isn't a religion?) Why do we have to ignore our biological functions in order to elevate ourselves spiritually, not knowing if that even leads to happiness or not?

Answer 1

Try Buddhist Tantra. There are many ways to Divine yourself or *Divine being*, I can think of no better way than to follow your bliss, what ever your bliss may be. : )

Answer 2

"Why do John's disciples and the disciples of the

Pharisees fast, but your disciples don't fast?"  -Mark 2:18

Not ALL paths to enlightenment preach fasting and abstaining.

"For it is better to marry than to burn." - 1st Corinthians 7:9

It is better to do what you are  comfortable than to overextend yourself into error.

And Yahoo Saith:

"Did you leave the Caps Lock key on? Using all caps can be perceived as shouting.."

"Hmm...it looks like you have a lot of punctuation."

"Oops! It looks like you have 2 misspelling(s)."

Answer 3

You can be spiritually curious without becoming a monk or nun.

Answer 4

You do not have to. Don't believe those who say you do.

Answer 5

personally i think it all has to do with moderation. giving in to human pleasures makes malicious animals. non-logical ones, animals that would exploit others for their own pleasures, make slaves, rape and stuff like that. that you see a girl you are attracted to and do not rape her means you are holding back. animals in nature would. it seems common sense for us, but back in the day it was perhaps not so common sense. it was more like, you want something and you would just brainlessly go and get it. like monkey behaviour is. like most other animals, when they smell food and are hungry they will fight over it, not share it. but we consider more, nowadays, others how they would feel as a result of our actions and so we choose not to act in certain ways in light of that, also maybe some of because of the laws. some don't steal because they think it wrong, some because they don't want to get caught. buddhism is another reason why not to do things.

it leads to happiness because it builds a happy society, you treat others well they treat you well it snowballs to a happy society of people doing well for each other all because they have learned to moderate and withhold from their basic pleasures rather than create a take, or be taken from, defensive, warlike atmosphere.

intoxicants can also be the source of many bad things. again, in my opinion, in moderation it is ok. i find moderation is key, a virtue in most religions and philosophies. this is i think the most important lesson humanity needs to learn in order to solve many, most even of the world's problems. including over population, pollution, and war.

i can't believe the buddhist philosophy would be to never have s*x whatsoever. that would end humanity pretty quickly, buddhism would have extinguished itself. though perhaps for extended periods of time to teach self restraint, i could definitely see that happening.

Answer 6

I don't believe we should abstain from our "biological functions" in order to obtain spiritual purity. Regardless of religion, whatever God or Goddess put us here, we were put here...made as we are. We are designed by nature to feel pleasure from s*x. It's how we reproduce. It is one of the most sacred acts we have in humanity. It shows love, intimacy, comfort, it creates life. It's only people who have a lack of common snese who abuse our human nature and our "biological function"

Answer 7

depends on who's pleasure you are speaking of.

Answer 8

Yours touches on the point itself: "Why do we have to ignore our biological functions in order to elevate ourselves spiritually, not knowing if that even leads to happiness or not?"

You got it...  You are absolutely correct.  Because yours addresses that which is timeless, unadulterated.

Point is, to dismiss out of hand what is an integral part in any one part or portion of human existence is to wipe out all parts evident or not.

We are wise to scrutinize the gratuitous turns of thought of others, whose postulates are too often given to be true, but which are not -- popular perhaps, plausible maybe; but true -- no?

It is this.  The popular and sadly accepted turn of thought among the mass social consciousness is -- "No pain, no gain."  'Baloney!  This is far from truth.  Such is the same headset that propogates hyperbole about "Win-Win," in which one faction undertakes to run roughshod over others, which consequence is, one part wins, but the whole to which that one part is attached and subject, too often fails miserably.  The result of an unhealthy natural environment is example of this, as is an unhealthy national economy.

Now, it is this.  We had better put aside such maxims as that of "win-win" and "no pain, no gain" and instead resolve to looking at things in new and deeper and fresher and broader ways, else we clap ourselves into prisons of our own making.  

So if a guy entreats me about "No pain, no gain," my encumbency is to return with, No pleasure, no treasure.

'Just that simiple...  And this is equally if not moreso the acme of a spiritual path.

Answer 9

This is  a practical admonition only.  You aren't required to do it if you don't want to.  In Kundalini yoga or chakra medition, one of the goals is to move the chi (energy) from one psycho-spiritual center (chakra) to the next.  If you ground this energy in sexual release, it becomes more difficult to move it to the next chakra.  The admonition against intoxicants is because it's hard enough to move this energy and notice the subtle differences in consciousness when unaffected.  How would you know what to attribute to the yoga technique vs. the affects of the intoxicant?

Again, you don't have to do this if you don't want to. It's just practical advice from people who have already tread the path .  Religion, however, tends to take this practical advice and turn it into dogma.

The "happiness" is not in the abstaining but in what it allows you to do.  If you have no interest in yoga, I wouldn't worry about it.

Answer 10

So sorry , perhaps you have misunderstood the meaning of what you have read in a questionable translation.

The Buddha taught all to end their "desires" as they follow a "middle path" one that is neither too austere or too lenient.

Abstaining from intoxicants is advised as using such clouds ones mind and stops one from seeing what is for what it is.

Abstaining from sexual activity is only advised for those who have taken vows and are living in a monastery where such activity can lead to disharmony and disunity among those who reside in the same.

Emotions, like thoughts, are quickly changing from moment to moment and often lead to desires of wanting to possess or to be possessed by another as well as often leading one to fail to heed reason in an objective manner.

The Buddha also told us to seek our own individual answers from within ourselves and to follow our own individual path.

Be well and, please, be wise.

Answer 11

Because the people who say it are dismissive of Western culture and materialism, and have altruism built into their minds from religious inculcation. (Yes, altruism, devised by Comte, was for purposes of the Catholic Church. But the action of altruism is what we say Jesus did by submitting to the cross.)

On the other hand,

"I consider promiscuity immoral. Not because s*x is evil, but because s*x is too good and too important . . . ."

"This, my body and spirit, this is the end of the quest. I wished to know the meaning of things. I am the meaning. I wished to find a warrant for being. I need no warrant for being, and no word of sanction upon my being. I am the warrant and the sanction." [That does not sound like abstinence to me!]

"It is my eyes which see, and the sight of my eyes grants beauty to the earth. It is my ears which hear, and the hearing of my ears gives its song to the world. It is my mind which thinks, and the judgment of my mind is the only searchlight that can find the truth. It is my will which chooses, and the choice of my will is the only edict I must respect.

"I know not if this earth on which I stand is the core of the universe or if it is but a speck of dust lost in eternity. I know not and I care not. For I know what happiness is possible to me on earth. And my happiness needs no higher aim to vindicate it. My happiness is not the means to any end. It is the end. It is its own goal. It is its own purpose.

"For in the temple of his spirit, each man is alone. Let each man keep his temple untouched and undefiled. Then let him join hands with others if he wishes, but only beyond his holy threshold."

All that spiritual stuff was written by the atheist Ayn Rand, who believed devoutly that man had a soul, a soul that died when his body died. She was a materialist, if you want to consider laissez faire capitalsim "materialism." But she never advocated "conspicuous consumption."

I find my spiritual path by follow truth no matter where the truth leads me, because to dismiss any path that shows itself to me is to dismiss reality.

Right now, my reality, my spiritual path, is 4 hours of research and composition on my blog 5 days a week, with an easy day on Saturday.

My site: Thank you very much for looking at it. http://freeassemblage.blogspot.com/