Is it okay to have a 'favorite' sin?

betaboy

Let's say I have an explosive temper and also great sexual urge. Would it be better to indulge in sex - in whatever way possible - so that the energy that may be used for anger will somehow be diluted or sublimated? Is this a tantric practice?

I am not sure if I am making myself clear. Not saying one should purposely sin, but is it wise to choose the lesser of the two evils ... just to keep away from the other, more problematic sin? Later on one can work on this 'lesser' evil following the same method. I believe in this because it may not be possible to get rid of all defilements in one lifetime - in each birth, maybe we are only supposed to be free of one defilement. Maybe in this life, anger; next life, lust; and so on.

Insights, my friends?

robot

Make sense to me.
Except the part about us supposed to do certain things in one life or the next.
Unless you have a desire for rape and murder. Then dealing with both urges at once would be best.
Just do what you can. Each success lays the groundwork for the next one.

Jeffrey

Anger is a one headed dragon. You just have to realize you are angry with the 'big' part of your mind and you can cut the head right there. This is the third noble truth category.

Desire is harder to deal with because it is a multi headed hydra. One desire ends and another pops up. To deal with that you just have to be present and mindful. You may at times indulge but don't be divided into a 'poor me' who is addicted and a 'hell yeah' who indulges.

So with that in mind I'd work on anger first. Work on the coursest things and things that are easier first.

But why not work on both. If you fail then that is still really a success.

person

I find that meditating and engaging in Buddhist study and practice acts as a kind of panacea and that all my negativities tend to lessen.

I can specifically work on a particular issue and that helps that one area. In my experience you are right about it being hard to try to specifically tackle more than one thing at a time.

I believe it is generally recommended to address whatever negativity is the strongest or gives you the most trouble. However that comes from monastics who can spend all their time and energy on the issue. Maybe for us lay practitioners something lighter is in order? Try for yourself, if addressing a greater negativity is too much work on a smaller one instead.

The best path is the one that works for you.

ThailandTom

robot said:

Make sense to me.
Except the part about us supposed to do certain things in one life or the next.
Unless you have a desire for rape and murder. Then dealing with both urges at once would be best.
Just do what you can. Each success lays the groundwork for the next one.

I'm not too sure if one should indulge in them, I personally think there is a fine line between going all out and shagging anything that moves or being a total nympho with a partner and not having sex at all with regards to dealing with the problem. There should be a middle way. I guess over time you may start to learn that you are causing yourself suffering but why wait so long, get some wisdom from other sources and start to implement that into the situation and see where that takes you spiritually..

person

What works for me in working with my cravings is to take short vows of abstinence, one day a week to start and work my way up to more often as it gets easier.

betaboy

robot said:

Make sense to me.
Except the part about us supposed to do certain things in one life or the next.
Unless you have a desire for rape and murder. Then dealing with both urges at once would be best.
Just do what you can. Each success lays the groundwork for the next one.

What I mean is: there are lots of things about us that may not be good for us: not just anger or lust, but there is also desire, attachment, and so on. It is sheer arrogance to believe that all of this can be sorted out in one life or even in just a few lives. Of course, this doesn't apply to nihilists who reject the concept of rebirth.

seeker242

betaboy said:

It is sheer arrogance to believe that all of this can be sorted out in one life or even in just a few lives.

You could also say that not believing this is just a lack of confidence or just the fetter of skeptical doubting. One does not need to partake in arrogance in order to have confidence.

lobster

I am not sure if I am making myself clear.

Perfectly clear you prefer the three poisons to anything beneficial.

Results working for you yet? Same time tomorrow?

:banghead:

genkaku

Maybe if as much energy were directed at solving the problem as is currently employed in eluding or excusing it, there could be some progress.

footiam

betaboy said:

Let's say I have an explosive temper and also great sexual urge. Would it be better to indulge in sex - in whatever way possible - so that the energy that may be used for anger will somehow be diluted or sublimated? Is this a tantric practice?

I am not sure if I am making myself clear. Not saying one should purposely sin, but is it wise to choose the lesser of the two evils ... just to keep away from the other, more problematic sin? Later on one can work on this 'lesser' evil following the same method. I believe in this because it may not be possible to get rid of all defilements in one lifetime - in each birth, maybe we are only supposed to be free of one defilement. Maybe in this life, anger; next life, lust; and so on.

Insights, my friends?

I don't know if there is such thing as 'sin' in Buddhism.