Expert: Joe McSorley - 2/12/2004

Question
Dear sir,i am a devoted buddhist.and i do have a question on the following matter which really confuse me.it is a sinful matter which i have encounter on this following website http://www.awakenedwoman.com/women_and_buddhism.htm

which say something very ill of buddhism
quoted:
A surprising and provocative form of Kwan Yin was known as the "Woman of Yen-chu," a woman who gave away sex to any man who asked her, in order to free him of his unhealthy desire. She was the sensual Bodhisattva who used bodily desire to achieve enlightenment. (Learning about her, I pondered a possible connection between the Woman of Yen-chu and the temple priestesses of antiquity, whose religious duties included sexual intercourse.) Later, when the rather puritanical Confucianism became popular in China, this Kwan Yin fell into disrepute and was no longer worshipped.

it seem to me that these website is totally coughing out matter to confuse or redirect us out of buddhism.i hope the web master would tell me more on it.as myself is also abit confuse.thanks.*May buddha bless us*

peter tan  

Answer
Dear Peter,
  The first question I would have for you is what is Buddhism?  If this website seeks to redirect us out of something we must know what that is it is redirecting us out of.  Humans will twist anything to their own desire including Buddhism.  The Buddhism in the US is atrocious when viewed against the Buddhism of old Japan and China, especially Zen.  Everyone puts their brand on it.  They contort it and bend it, style it and distort it to fit their own belief systems al the time and always have.  So the woman of this website put their brand on it so it verifies their lifestyle.  It is not Buddhism but the human ego doing what it always does.  There are many stories of such sexual relations and religion/philosophy going back to the Kama Sutra and all through Taoism with its fox spirits and alchemy.  
 I always direct people back to the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path.  The historical Buddha did not tell people to have great sex to realize awakening or to meditate inceasintly or to pray to him or to be blessed by him, did he?  No, it is all things we add later and his followers add later.  I always quote the story of Bodhidharma and Hui Ka because Bodhi, at the moment of Hui's  great plight did not give him instructions or tell him to meditate or to imitate himself.  He said to hand him the source of his problems that he might pacify them.  This is to face Buddhism at its root at all times and not to get lost in faith or sex or anything else.
 I appreciate that you are a devoted Buddhist and I am sure you try to be a good man.  I must ask who is it that you are devoted to?  If nothing has any substance as the Buddha taught then the Buddha has no substance, what can you be devoted to and what can bless you/us?  To see the Buddha as outside of you or apart from you is to miss the Buddha.  “If you meet the Buddha on the road, kill him” demands we face this for if the Buddha is outside of us and not our fundamental nature than it is not the real Buddha.
  Thank you for your question.  Take care,
        Joe