[Buddha-l] Re: Seduction of a holy man

[SJZiobro at cs.com]

Joanna, your comments, as usual, are insightful.  Andrew, this story could 
fit in my tentative typology precisely in virtue of the young ascetic's ability 
to practice the brahama viharas.  The tendency towards implementing metta, 
karuna, mudita, and upekkha is a greater realization of mercy in his life.

Stan

In a message dated 3/4/2006 10:36:54 PM Eastern Standard Time, jkirk at spro.net 
writes: 
> Amazing story-- seems to include recognition that the ascetic state is 
> ambivalent.
> The bit about his innocence of sex difference is funny.....could it have 
> been a sly
> dig at the standards of purity expected of, and perhaps performed by or 
> simulated by,
> ascetics?
> Best,
> Joanna
> ====================
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "Andrew Skilton" <skiltonat at Cardiff.ac.uk>
> 
> >Joanna,
> >
> >In the spirit of not answering your original query, one of my favourite
> >seduction stories is jataka 526 (nalinika), which sadly involves no 
> >speaking
> >foetuses that save the day. Here a father brings up his son as an ascetic, 
> >whose
> >power eventually threatens Sakka.  Sakka therefore punishes the locals 
> >(why
> >not?) and talks the local king into sending his daughter to seduce the 
> >lad.The
> >entire community it seems gets involved in launching this nubile spiritual
> >Exocet against the young man, it being arranged that she descends on him 
> >while
> >his dad is away rooting up herbs.  The inevitable happens, related with 
> >much sly
> >humour by the way, but interestingly while the lad loses his powers due to
> >sexual indulgence, he subsequently regains them through the practice of 
> >the
> >brahma viharas. (The local community is saved, by the way.)
> >
> >Stan,
> >
> >Not sure how this one fits your typology. Here the ascetic 'succumbs' but 
> >is
> >rehabilitated.  His 'failure' is not, surprisingly, a satire of phoney 
> >holy men.
> >In a way his 'purity' remains intact, not least because he is amusingly
> >depicted as completely ignorant of sexual difference even after his 
> >encounter,
> >but perhaps also because the story is placing the 'ethical' virtues of the
> >brahma viharas above the 'ritual' virtue of sexual abstinence?
> >
> >Andrew


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