Massimo2002
Active Member
Me personally I think it is good in moderation every once in a while to let off sexual steam.
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I'm curious do any of the religious or spiritual people here consider masturbating bad and if so why ?
- Thread starter Massimo2002
- Start date
It looks like nobody is interested in engaging with you on this topic. I am well past retirement and no longer have such urges (at least not much), so let me weigh in.
You are quite correct to say that there is nothing wrong in masturbation performed in moderation. Nothing wrong meaning it is not intrinsically 'sinful' or 'evil'. However, spiritually speaking, the less you do it the better. If you can handle it, stopping completely can be good for your spiritual health. However, if abstinence affects your mental health, it is better to go ahead and release the tension.
In the Mahabharata, there is this character named Pandu who was cursed by someone such that he would die if he ever had sex. The allegorical meaning of this curse is that ALL men lose some spiritually energy when they ejaculate. Loss of spiritual energy may eventually lead to your spiritual death even though you are physically alive - no need to worry about this, only extreme indulgence leads to such a state.
Note it is not the act of sex, but the ejaculation that causes loss of this energy. So many some Tantrics and some Japanese masters boast of the ability to have orgasms without ejaculation - in effect preserving their spiritual energy while indulging in sexual practices.
You can read about this here: Why Orgasms Are So Spiritually Harmful – Ascending Path
Another interesting note - women do not lose any energy if they indulge in sex or have orgasms or whatever. In fact, they gain energy if they engage in sex. But they need to be careful who they have sex with - they may gain the wrong kind.
You are quite correct to say that there is nothing wrong in masturbation performed in moderation. Nothing wrong meaning it is not intrinsically 'sinful' or 'evil'. However, spiritually speaking, the less you do it the better. If you can handle it, stopping completely can be good for your spiritual health. However, if abstinence affects your mental health, it is better to go ahead and release the tension.
In the Mahabharata, there is this character named Pandu who was cursed by someone such that he would die if he ever had sex. The allegorical meaning of this curse is that ALL men lose some spiritually energy when they ejaculate. Loss of spiritual energy may eventually lead to your spiritual death even though you are physically alive - no need to worry about this, only extreme indulgence leads to such a state.
Note it is not the act of sex, but the ejaculation that causes loss of this energy. So many some Tantrics and some Japanese masters boast of the ability to have orgasms without ejaculation - in effect preserving their spiritual energy while indulging in sexual practices.
You can read about this here: Why Orgasms Are So Spiritually Harmful – Ascending Path
Another interesting note - women do not lose any energy if they indulge in sex or have orgasms or whatever. In fact, they gain energy if they engage in sex. But they need to be careful who they have sex with - they may gain the wrong kind.
I'm spiritual but not religious and agree. The assertions against it reek of bovine feces in my opinion.
Misunderstood
Active Member
I feel it is up to each person according to their needs and beliefs and not anyone else business what they do. I find nothing wrong with it.
I know this is a bit different but kind of related. A man loses his seed by ejaculating (not orgasm), according to some spiritual teachings. A woman does not lose energy by orgasm either. But they pass their seed (egg) by menstruating, which is pretty much the same thing.
This causes the female to lose a great deal of energy. So much so it can even cause death. My sister was put on Birth Control right after puberty, not for birth control, but to control bleeding during menstruation. She would become very anemic and come close to death. She has since had her uterus removed, anemia was not able to be controlled very well.
I know this is a bit different but kind of related. A man loses his seed by ejaculating (not orgasm), according to some spiritual teachings. A woman does not lose energy by orgasm either. But they pass their seed (egg) by menstruating, which is pretty much the same thing.
This causes the female to lose a great deal of energy. So much so it can even cause death. My sister was put on Birth Control right after puberty, not for birth control, but to control bleeding during menstruation. She would become very anemic and come close to death. She has since had her uterus removed, anemia was not able to be controlled very well.
Arnaud1221
Red-hood
I has been explain to me why I have a penis. And I doubt this should be done.
Bible don't say directly is it wrong or not. But, there are for example these general rules:
"All things are lawful for me," but not all things are expedient. "All things are lawful for me," but I will not be brought under the power of anything.
1 Cor. 6:12
"All things are lawful for me," but not all things are profitable. "All things are lawful for me," but not all things build up.
1 Cor. 10:23
So, you should not allow anything else than God to rule you. And it is good to think, is some action really beneficial. And in all cases, I think sin is to reject God, or be apart from God. Therefore, anything that leads you away from God, can be seen as sin. My advice is, don't reject God for anything.
Massimo2002
Active Member
Fascinating view point and article thanks for sharing.
Twilight Hue
Twilight, not bright nor dark, good nor bad.
Why do people make wanking your thingy so damm complicated?
Sounds like a sequel to The Little Engine That Could.
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Trailblazer
Veteran Member
According to my religion, the Baha'i Faith, masturbation must be viewed in light of the proper use of the sex instinct.
The following is an excerpt from the writings of the Guardian of the Baha'i Faith.
1220. Masturbation
"We have found in the Holy Writings no explicit references to masturbation, but there are a number of principles and teachings which can guide a Bahá’í to the correct attitude towards it. In a letter to an individual believer, written by the Guardian's secretary on his behalf, it is pointed out that:
'The Bahá’í Faith recognizes the value of the sex impulse, but condemns its illegitimate and improper expressions such as free love, companionate marriage and others, all of which it considers positively harmful to man and to the society in which he lives. The proper use of the sex instinct is the natural right of every individual, and it is precisely for this very purpose that the institution of marriage has been established. The Bahá’ís do not believe in the suppression of the sex impulse but in its regulation and control.'
"In response to another letter enquiring if there were any legitimate way in which a person could express the sex instinct if, for some reason, he were unable to marry or if outer circumstances such as economic factors were to cause him to delay marriage, the Guardian's secretary wrote on his behalf:
'Concerning your question whether there are any legitimate forms of expression of the sex instinct outside of marriage: According to the Bahá’í Teachings no sexual act can be considered lawful unless performed between lawfully married persons. Outside of marital life there can be no lawful or healthy use of the sex impulse. The Bahá’í youth should, on the one hand, be taught the lesson of self-control which, when exercised, undoubtedly has a salutary effect on the development of character and of personality in general, and on the other should be advised, nay even encouraged, to contract marriage while still young and in full possession of their physical vigour. Economic factors, no doubt, are often a serious hindrance to early marriage but in most cases are only an excuse, and as such should not be over stressed.'
"In another letter on the Guardian's behalf, also to an individual believer, the secretary writes:
'Amongst the many other evils afflicting society in this spiritual low water mark in history is the question of immorality, and over-emphasis of sex…'
"This indicates how the whole matter of sex and the problems related to it have assumed far too great an importance in the thinking of present-day society.
"Masturbation is clearly not a proper use of the sex instinct, as this is understood in the Faith. Moreover it involves, as you have pointed out, mental fantasies, while Bahá’u’lláh, in the Kitáb-i-Aqdas, has exhorted us not to indulge our passions and in one of His well-known Tablets ‘Abdu'l-Bahá encourages us to keep our 'secret thoughts pure'. Of course many wayward thoughts come involuntarily to the mind and these are merely a result of weakness and are not blameworthy unless they become fixed or even worse, are expressed in improper acts. In 'The Advent of Divine Justice', when describing the moral standards that Bahá’ís must uphold both individually and in their community life, the Guardian wrote:
'Such a chaste and holy life, with its implications of modesty, purity, temperance, decency, and clean-mindedness, involves no less than the exercise of moderation in all that pertains to dress, language, amusements, and all artistic and literary avocations. It demands daily vigilance in the control of one's carnal desires and corrupt inclinations.'
"Your problem, therefore, is one against which you should continue to struggle, with determination and with the aid of prayer. You should remember, however, that it is only one of the many temptations and faults that a human being must strive to overcome during his lifetime, and you should not increase the difficulty you have by over-emphasising its importance. We suggest you try to see it within the whole spectrum of the qualities that a Bahá’í must develop in his character. Be vigilant against temptation, but do not allow it to claim too great a share of your attention. You should concentrate, rather, on the virtues that you should develop, the services you should strive to render, and, above all, on God and His attributes, and devote your energies to living a full Bahá’í life in all its many aspects."
(From a letter of the Universal House of Justice to an individual believer, a copy of which was sent to the compiler with a letter dated March 8, 1981)
Lights of Guidance/Chastity and Sex Education - Bahaiworks, a library of works about the Bahá’í Faith
Masturbation is neither a vice nor a social ill
Indeed it is healthy although I wouldn't go as far as to call it a virtue!
We Never Know
No Slack
A man once said " show me a man that says he has never masturbated and I will show you a liar"
Trailblazer
Veteran Member
That's funny, and it reminds me of something my late husband told me years ago.....
He was passing along what one of his superiors in the army said years ago.
His superior said that if he asked the men if they had ever masturbated 99% would say yes and the other 1% would be lying.
Trailblazer
Veteran Member
I'm sorry, but I cannot look at masturbation from a man's viewpoint since I am a woman.
Some people might think it is the same for a man and a woman but I don't think so.
What do you think?
Some people might think it is the same for a man and a woman but I don't think so.
What do you think?
Are you implying that masturbators are people traffickers? If so citation to a reliable source required in my view.
No. But they end up going to escorts and many of those are human trafficked.
Masturbating regularly for men (multiple times a week), reduces prostate cancer risk. Yes actually.
Ejaculation frequency and prostate cancer - Harvard Health
Ejaculation frequency and prostate cancer - Harvard Health
I think only rich people can afford escorts, the rest of us are lucky enough just to see the strippers.
But people are gonna eat, and a portion of that food is produced by slave labour. It is wrong, but the root cause of the problem is inequitable income distribution in my opinion, so taxing billionaires seems like the best way to solve it. I think it is similar with strippers or prostitutes, unless you speak their language or have investigative means at your disposal it is difficult to tell if your stripper is forced labour or not. So best to work on the root cause of the problem which is inequity rather than acting like people will ever stop masturbating in my view.