Buddhism offense is to bring bad karma to the offender who is to be punished in hell, if in the most extreme cases. Various kind of hell exists in Buddhism scripts. It is a religion, and it has sins.
The way I see it, he rather take in pain than be overcome with lust. I think he took the cowards way out because he couldn't overcome lust and feared that it would unravel his ideals. Instead of taking in time to explore his "sin" meditatively or even giving up his monkhood to enjoy the pleasures of a woman, he cut his john off to preserve his pride. His desire to overcome a desire is still desire. And when I write that, I hold him up to the standard he seeks.
There's two ways of looking at it. Say you're in dysfunctional relationship and the other person drives you insane or is full of issues. So that you don't have your blood pressure rise everyday and get involved in drama you break away from the person and end the relationship to be more at peace. That is perhaps how the monk viewed his penis, as problematic appendage that needed to be broken away from to have restoration of the peaceful state. He obviously for a long time hasn't view it as a sexual organ anyway. Also, say a guy in a relationship is accused of cheating. His wife or girlfriend sees suspicious emails and memberships to social networking sites (Myspace or something). When its brought up he says "Oh nah it means nothing. I'll get rid of the computer even". He sells the computer removing it out the house to keep the relationship stable. Does that mean he's now freed of his urges? Not even. Computers have a multitude of uses and not everyone uses it for satisfying their impulses. Something inside him made him do those things - a computer sitting there in the corner desk doesnt MAKE you do that. He should have been DISCIPLINED and have a better mindset to not use it for that, instead of laying all blame on the device. Removing the penis has its side effects too. Not just to the urinary system, there's hormonal changes and all kinds of other stuff...But if proof of conviction's what he's after he's certainly shown that...
There is such a thing as Buddhist Hells in some sects of Buddhism. You're sent there for bad Karma but not for offending a deity. The Theravada form of Buddhism practiced in Thailand I'm not sure subscribes to the concept of "Hell".
isn't this what i said, though? i'm not trying to be argumentative...but whether it's a deity that's offended or the universe/karma that's offended...it's still trying to avoid a negative...and there's still guilt associated with that for followers.
sishir: well, i'm not trying to be condesending to christians but, we buhddists are such bad asses that we'll cut off our penises for what we believe. max: hell, i'm about to cut mine off right now punk. just kidding guys
I think the key differences are "offense" and "guilt." There is nothing to offend so there is no offense. Buddhist thought recognizes guilt but considers it as another form of mental suffering that should be looked beyond. I agree there are many similarities but I think the idea of "sin" as I understand it in the Judeo-Christian perspective isn't applicable in a Buddhist perspective. I'm doing a very poor job of explaining this but will have to come back and see if I can explain it better.
Hopefully this will not turn into a D&D thread... I know everyone has different, if not conflicting opinions on what constitutes a sin, guilt, etc. However it is not my intention of seeing the thread of becoming some sort of a sling fest. Healthy discussion, on the other hand, is always welcome.
I would hope that a desire for cutting off your wiener is a form a mental suffering that should looked beyond too.
Not everyone is cut out to be a monk. Only a few reach Nirvana. It doesn't mean that a normal person can't live the best tenets of Buddhism. That guy's nuts.
