# Sexuality is False **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [September 6, 2019, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sexuality-is-false/839799 "2019-09-06T17:07:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![John\_DiFool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_difool/32/19543_2.png) [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2019, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sexuality-is-false/839799/41 "2019-09-07T22:51:58Z")
Apes don’t quote philosophy. Yes they do, Otto; they just don’t understand it. ---
**Author:** ![Inigo\_Montoya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inigo_montoya/32/124_2.png) [@Inigo\_Montoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inigo_Montoya)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2019, 11:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sexuality-is-false/839799/42 "2019-09-07T23:44:04Z")
> [@Dallas\_Jones](#): > > I remember when I was a squid. > > My sexual needs were about the same. Always have to have the lights on, do ya? Well the light is a false construct as well, so HA! And once again, HA! ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [September 7, 2019, 11:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sexuality-is-false/839799/43 "2019-09-07T23:56:22Z")
**Machinaforce** , you should tell the many millions of people who surf porn, and/or contribute vast income to the porn/sex industry, that their libido is an illusion. ---
**Author:** ![Two\_Many\_Cats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8dc957/32.png) [@Two\_Many\_Cats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Two_Many_Cats)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2019, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sexuality-is-false/839799/44 "2019-09-08T00:21:56Z")
> [@Machinaforce](#): > > The link is saying that sexual desire is false and an illusion of sorts because it’s based on the false construct of a “self”. Maybe this sort of outlook is useful if you’re a second son living out in certain Asian countries where a good portion of the fetuses that are revealed to be female by way of sonogram are aborted in hopes for male children, and your hopes of a wife are slim to none. But if you aren’t in that situation, what’s the point? ---
**Author:** ![Weedy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/weedy/32/301_2.png) [@Weedy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Weedy)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2019, 1:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sexuality-is-false/839799/45 "2019-09-08T01:48:26Z")
> [@Machinaforce](#): > > It’s not about what’s the right fit but what is true, and in this sense I can’t really argue with what they say because on some level I know it to be true even though I don’t like it or want it to be. Comics don’t work because I can see right through them, not much does really because it’s based on an illusion or rooted in a lie. Buddhism in a sense ruined a lot of things for me and I can’t see them the same again. I can relate to this, because I had similar experiences when I was practising meditation. But you need to think about compassion. Where does that fit in? Buddhism doesn’t exist without compassion, so you need to factor that in somewhere. It’s not just about the mental gymnastics. Focus on compassion (metta, loving kindness) will help you to gain a broader perspective. ---
**Author:** ![Machinaforce](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/aeb1de/32.png) [@Machinaforce](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machinaforce)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2019, 5:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sexuality-is-false/839799/46 "2019-09-08T05:12:38Z")
> [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > I’m wondering–do you have a sense of humor? This is a serious question, and not meant as an insult–there are people, especially ones “on the spectrum” who honestly do not [get jokes](https://youtube.com/watch?v=Q27YiPRiewg). I ask because I have noticed multiple times in your threads where someone has made a jokey statment and you answer it very seriously, as if you didn’t even notice that it was supposed to be humorous. > It would explain a lot about your attitude about life, the universe, and everything. Do you derive pleasure from any form of fiction or from anything at all? Have you ever? Fiction doesn’t really do anything for me anymore, not since my exposure to Buddhism. ---
**Author:** ![Machinaforce](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/aeb1de/32.png) [@Machinaforce](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machinaforce)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2019, 5:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sexuality-is-false/839799/47 "2019-09-08T05:18:06Z")
> [@Weedy](#): > > I can relate to this, because I had similar experiences when I was practising meditation. But you need to think about compassion. Where does that fit in? Buddhism doesn’t exist without compassion, so you need to factor that in somewhere. It’s not just about the mental gymnastics. Focus on compassion (metta, loving kindness) will help you to gain a broader perspective. Compassion doesn’t do a lick to replace everything that I lost due to Buddhism,so much so that I can honestly say I would be better off forgetting all of it. Plus when I look at Buddhism compassion doesn’t fit with the rest of the teachings, it just feels horned in there. In fact I would wager that if they didn’t put that in then no one would follow it. It just doesn’t fit within the whole of Buddhism. IT would explain why some say that Buddhism gets close to truth but compassion holds it back. But this isn’t about controlling sexual impulses but the idea that sexuality is false because it’s rooted in the false construct of a self. I mean it hurts to think that I’ve been lying to myself this whole time. ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2019, 5:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sexuality-is-false/839799/48 "2019-09-08T05:32:21Z")
> [@Machinaforce](#): > > IT would explain why some say that Buddhism gets close to truth but compassion holds it back. If Buddhism lead one to truth, then China would have been an idealic, peaceful land free of crime, everyone would be living in a state of bliss, and the teachings would have spread across the planet and been taken up by everyone. It appeals to you. That’s not truth. Believing that something which appeals to you is truth is narcissism. As said, if Buddhism were true, you would be able to see it affect the world in a positive way. To my knowledge, China was just as full of murder, rape, and tyranny as everywhere else on the planet. Your feeling on the matter be as it may, you can just look at history and it tells you that you’re not correct. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2019, 6:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sexuality-is-false/839799/49 "2019-09-08T06:12:36Z")
> [@Machinaforce](#): > > Fiction doesn’t really do anything for me anymore, not since my exposure to Buddhism. Much of Buddhism is fiction. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2019, 6:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sexuality-is-false/839799/50 "2019-09-08T06:20:01Z")
> [@Velocity](#): > > **Machinaforce** , you should tell the many millions of people who surf porn, and/or contribute vast income to the porn/sex industry, that their libido is an illusion. Maybe he can be an apostle to the incels. They might feel better if convinced that libido is an illusion. ---
**Author:** ![nightshadea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/7ba0ec/32.png) [@nightshadea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nightshadea)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2019, 6:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sexuality-is-false/839799/51 "2019-09-08T06:21:59Z")
> [@Voyager](#): > > Much of Buddhism is fiction. isnt much if not all of any religion fiction? ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2019, 6:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sexuality-is-false/839799/52 "2019-09-08T06:37:18Z")
You’re going down that rabbit hole again. Machina, buddy, seriously you need to find something else to do with your time. This is no-wheres-ville. You depress me, man. And I’m usually a happy, silly person. Go get you one of those adult coloring books and some colored pencils. You’d be happier, and more productive. ---
**Author:** ![Machinaforce](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/aeb1de/32.png) [@Machinaforce](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machinaforce)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2019, 6:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sexuality-is-false/839799/53 "2019-09-08T06:45:53Z")
> [@Sage\_Rat](#): > > If Buddhism lead one to truth, then China would have been an idealic, peaceful land free of crime, everyone would be living in a state of bliss, and the teachings would have spread across the planet and been taken up by everyone. > > It appeals to you. That’s not truth. Believing that something which appeals to you is truth is narcissism. > > As said, if Buddhism were true, you would be able to see it affect the world in a positive way. To my knowledge, China was just as full of murder, rape, and tyranny as everywhere else on the planet. Your feeling on the matter be as it may, you can just look at history and it tells you that you’re not correct. Buddhism requires that one has to give up a lot for it, which makes your statement flawed. The reality is that many don’t want to let go of the things that it asks you to. ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2019, 6:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sexuality-is-false/839799/54 "2019-09-08T06:48:28Z")
Why should I? It’s just Buddhism. ---
**Author:** ![Machinaforce](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/aeb1de/32.png) [@Machinaforce](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machinaforce)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2019, 6:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sexuality-is-false/839799/55 "2019-09-08T06:49:15Z")
> [@Beckdawrek](#): > > You’re going down that rabbit hole again. > Machina, buddy, seriously you need to find something else to do with your time. This is no-wheres-ville. > You depress me, man. And I’m usually a happy, silly person. > Go get you one of those adult coloring books and some colored pencils. You’d be happier, and more productive. There’s really no going back, although to be honest I wish I could do so. But I can’t. The usual methods of getting happy don’t work because of Buddhism. From the article: > [@](#): > > Desire and liberation are in the same locations as the appearances of life. But that life differs as to whether it is the life of opposition and trouble that is centered on desire, or whether it is the peaceful and free life with its roots in the no-self. If the practitioner perfects study, he becomes free from all instinctual desire. This is because it has gotten rid of the life criteria of “I”. The love and compassion that are the perfection of the conditionally-produced life is the light of no-self mind, so leaves no place for the sexual appetite and its images. Therefore, according to the extent to which one has escaped from the bonds of such instinctual appetites, one can estimate this extent of practice by the practitioner. ---
**Author:** ![Machinaforce](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/aeb1de/32.png) [@Machinaforce](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Machinaforce)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2019, 6:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sexuality-is-false/839799/56 "2019-09-08T06:51:29Z")
> [@JohnT](#): > > Why should I? It’s just Buddhism. Because otherwise you are living in illusion and not reality, and apparently from what I’m told there is a good amount of psychology to back Buddhism, including there not being a self. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2019, 7:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sexuality-is-false/839799/57 "2019-09-08T07:04:24Z")
I just checked. I am a ‘self’ Right now my ‘self’ is sporting a headache. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2019, 7:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sexuality-is-false/839799/58 "2019-09-08T07:15:07Z")
I haz a headache, therefore I haz a head 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2019, 7:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sexuality-is-false/839799/59 "2019-09-08T07:15:10Z")
Not infrequently in Thailand and other Buddhist countries, I would run into farangs (Westerners) who were intent on teaching the local Buddhists about Buddhism. These farangs were not generally viewed in a favorable light by the locals. Threads like this make me think of that. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [September 8, 2019, 8:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sexuality-is-false/839799/60 "2019-09-08T08:53:27Z")
> [@Machinaforce](#): > > The usual methods of getting happy don’t work because of Buddhism. Then fuck Buddhism. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sexuality-is-false/839799.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sexuality-is-false/839799.md?page=4)