LUST: The emotion that launched a thousand ships

You have heard that it was said, 'Do not commit adultery.' But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart.. (Gospel of Matthew 5:27–28) 

Lust is a common emotion felt by every single entity. It is the desire to live. When extended, it becomes the desire to grow, reproduce, make the world, the world. Lust it the single emotion which causes growth for any particular field. The world lust has been misused by Abhramic religions to connotate purely and only sex, but by extension, lust is anything which is motivated by desire. This includes a lust for power, lust for blood, and so on. 


Before we get into the depths of understanding the destructive nature of Lust, we must first examine its crucial difference with sinister cousin Greed. Take for example, a delicious cake. Enjoying the taste and thoroughly eating the cake, licking it from the plate would be an example of lust. Greed on the other hand, its nefarious cousin, is not wanting OTHERS to have said cake regardless of whether you like it or not. Therefore, Desire (Kama) or Lust is INDULGENCE and it is usually associated with sexual intercourse quite simply because this is the one activity which genuine indulgence leads to more indulgence (we shall soon see why). Let us first find out whether there is any scientific basis for the destructive nature of lust, or is it just another one of religions sadistic intent on control? 

A famous scientific experiment was conducted on the effect of dopamine on lab rats. Dopamine, is a biochemical hormone which accelerates (or increases motivation) the desire for pleasure. Put it simply, it makes you "WANT"something. It is one of the primary motivating factor of having a chocolate ice-cream over celery. With a basic understanding of dopamine, let us take a look at the famous Coolidge experiment (brown et al). In this experiment, a male rat (breeding age) was put into a cage with a female rat (same age). Within a matter of minutes, the magical union began. However, after sex the rat was not interested in the female, it was also not interested in sex, that is until another female rat was placed in the cage and in an instant, the libido was infused and the bull of a rat began round 2. The amazing thing was that, as long as another female was being inserted, the male continued to have libido. This is not the disastrous part, as the rat continually increased its libido, it even avoided food and eventually died of exhaustion. Point to note: Sex (lust of any kind) is addictive. If it were not, there would be no sexoholics annonymous,  and various other support groups.

This experiment also proved an interesting aspect of the mammalian nature, we are designed to breed. It is one of our primary instincts and we thrive in polygamous relationships over monogamous ones as the animal experiment shows. The average mammalian male has 2 - 4 times the amount of libido than that of a female. This is mainly because of testosterone pumping through his bloodstream. One of the reason the warrior class of the Hindus (kshatriyas) were allowed polygamy was because of high levels of testosterone required for the muscle mass and the ratio of women to men were 4:1 as most of the men died in war. One of the more compelling evidences to the fact that the average human male has more libido than female is explained in the fact that almost all rape, harassment and abuse are caused by males.

Now that we have understood the drive behind sex, what about the aftermath? Mammalian males exhibit a post ejaculatory refractory period. During this period, a male temporarily cannot mate with the same female again and requires some time to recover full sexual function. The Coolidge effect further goes to state that upon the acquisition of another viable female, the refractory period is reduced and eventually eliminated. 


Here is where religion comes in. Most Vedantic and Abrahmic religions stress on one life partner. Too much of any thing is not a good thing. You wouldn't need a Biblical scripture or Quranic verse to tell this to you. As there is an increase to a specific stimuli, the body builds a resistance ultimately making the experience less and less enjoyable. This phenomenon is common amongst drug users and also applies to sex. The disinterest in ordinary sex would start to occur upon the attainment of different partners, and eventually, in order to keep up with the levels of dopamine, different fetishes would need to be carried out. Eventually risks would begin to be taken which involve attempts at extramarital affairs, rape, abuse, the list goes on to the extent of child pornography and bestiality. Ultimately, the enjoyment of marital union eventually begins to suffer and morality eventually disintegrates. 


Thus the propagators of religion must have understood that Lust is dangerous when not controlled. Indeed, Ravana, the demon king of Lanka in the Ramayana meets his ultimate downfall due to lust. To ensure that the snare of lust cant seep in to the average human, religions preached chastity, monks took to celibacy and renunciation  to further their spiritual development. The problem with celibacy is that curiosity acts as an aid to the overpowering nature of lust. This demonic emotion forces the average man into committing atrocious acts upon children, rape, affairs and eventually destroy the individual. Hence Krishna mentions "The three gates of Hell are LUST, ANGER and GREED" BG16:21. 

REFS

*Brown, R. E. (1974), "Sexual arousal, the Coolidge effect and dominance in the rat (Rattus norvegicus)", Animal Behaviour 22 (3): 634–637,

 Lester, GL; Gorzalka, BB (1988), "Effect of novel and familiar mating partners on the duration of sexual receptivity in the female hamster",Behavioral Neural Biology 49 (3): 398–405, 

Hergenhahn, B. R.; Olson, Matthew H. (2003), An introduction to theories of personality, Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Prentice Hall, pp. 396–397,ISBN 0130992267 

Capitalism: Pro or Con?

We live in a world where the top 1% control 40% of the worlds wealth and resources. It is funny to note then, that, in this world, the number of impoverished nations far outweigh those of the developed nations. Over the past 50 years the poor to rich ratio has increased from 34:1 to 74:1* and over 64% of the nation live under $1 a day*. Out of all the institutionalised belief systems, which includes religious institutions, educational institutions, government institutions, none is more dangerous, manipulative, exploitative and destructive than the monetary system. The saddest aspect of this is that we take for it granted. 

The Monetary system:

There are 2 main methods by which wealth is distributed. For those who have had a good understanding of the two main methods of governance would know that wealth is either distributed via a centralised means (Communism) or via decentralised (Capitalist) means. Thanks to history, it is clear that a centralised method of wealth control is by far much more destructive than the latter. All nations from USSR to Cambodia (Khymer Rouge) to North Korea have failed miserably and in their failure took hundreds of thousands of lives. However, the decentralised, free, open and independent economic reform should have been the holy grail of modern society right? 

Greece, Spain, and Italy and are on the verge of a financial collapse. America, the leader of the revolutionary ideology behind free market economies is under severe debt, which, most economists argue, is impossible to pay off as the interest is compounded each year. With the collapse of the American market, the rest of the world would be plunged into a financial doom that may take several years to recover, this is if it does not lead to anarchy. There was a time during the great depression when a loaf of bread cost up to $20 and if a basket full of cash was left unattended, then the basket would be stolen leaving behind the cash. What causes this financial collapse? The process and debt. 

In order for capitalism to work, consumption MUST occur. When consumption stops, jobs are lost and factories are closed. Unfortunately, there are only so many Iphone 4, Ipads, Iphone 4S and laptops one needs and thus the demand for this product decreases, causing loss of jobs. Add to this, the inflation of manufactured demand (by decreasing supply of said product), and the amount of debt the average individual has, and the most important factor of them all, corruption. Mixing these ingredients, it is very difficult to wonder, why didnt we have this collapse a good ten years ago?

Greed, Corruption and Civilisation

For as long as man has existed, greed and corruption (of some kind) have been his/her intrinsic flaws. In comparison, a corrupt socialist (or communist) government would lead to the wanton destruction of human lives as seen in North Korea, the Bolshevick uprising, and perhaps the most notorious of all, Khymer Rouge. The corrupt capitalist government however is far more subtle, working in the thinly covered veil of freedom. 

No one is more enslaved than those who believe they are free: Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

This is the ultimate goal of the alleged free market economy is to devise man into thinking that he is completely free to do what ever he/she wants. Today, there are more than 200 million debt bonded labourers thinking they are free and have to earn their living in parts of Africa, Cambodia, Malaysia, China and India. The amount of veiled slavery today is by far greater than all the historical accounts of slavery from the Roman empire to today. 

Yet, one could argue that, a well formed government would not let these countries to ruin correct? Unfortunately, this is never the case. Take 

1. Bolivia, an already impoverished nation sells its water supply (with the hand of a dictator) to a corporation which then sells it back to the public at exorbitant rates. 
2. Jamaica, once a normal economy takes debt to invest in coffee and chocolate plantations from the IMF. Due to immense competition created by free trade agreements, Jamaica quickly became one of the most impoverished nations in the world
3. India, a nation already heavily corrupt by socialist governments obtains bribes by large corporate organisations to pollute, exploit and devastate the economy further

This list is not exhaustive and can go on for a hundred more points, however the real point one must come to is this: All organisations seek to obtain one goal, Profit. Without profit, the purpose of the organisation is pointless, therefore an organisation would stop at nothing to maximise profits. Ultimately, money is fancy drawings on a piece of paper or plastic which has a wide social acceptance of perceived value. This value should not be substituted for anything. Some examples of evident slavery are:

1. When an employer (most common in the entertainment industry) performs couch casting
2. An employer works a human over 12 to 18 hours a day (main reasons for outsourcing in countries like India where the average IT consultant works that long)
3. The environment is plundered and destroyed in order to cut costs
4. Monopolising an industry to drive all others out of business
5. Laying of employees when there is low (or no) demand, yet the company is valued in billions 
6. Giving up values, beliefs and principles to bow to the monetary system

Costs of enslavement

The costs of this enslavement are obvious. 

1. Subsequent and irreversible damage  to our ecosystems.
2. Greater stratification of classes, IE loss of equality.
3. Increase in homicidal crime rates.
4. Lower quality of life.
5. Decreased life expectancy. 
6. Loss of values for the younger generation 
1. How many teenage pregnancies do we have today than 20 years ago?
2. How greater is the increase in under-age violence?
3. Increment in youth drug abuse
7. Compromise in lifestyle

Ultimately, this system cannot continue for more than 20 or 30 years. 

What can be done?

We need to understand that finance is only a piece of paper worth the number printed on it. In todays money run world, we are all enslaved into thinking we are worth what our bank statement states. No, quite far from it. We have no limitations or boundaries. There is a need for a monetary system as it stratifies who works hard and who lazes behind but not at the cost of his/her life. This is the understanding most humans need to go through, see that it is only a play, and at the time of death, not a single needle can be taken with you.  

The Cost of India’s democracy

India, a socially and culturally rigid civilisation for the past 3000 years was given the gift of free thought when the invading party, the British left the country on 1947. The country, spurred on by its founding fathers, great thinkers like Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru and Chakravarty Rajagopalachari had bright hopes of a brilliant future. There was a positive mentality with the general population and the prospect of an illustrious future for their children and theirs. However, much to the general populations dismay, today India is considered a failed state. The basic amenities such as electricity and clean drinking water a luxury for the rich. The governments corruption is so deeply rooted into the nation that it is taken for granted to offer bribes, and accept that its lower middle class are to be down trodden. Population and pollution are so out of control that sickness and disease is more common than air and water. Now this list can go on and continue to berate the nation but it would be of no avail. What is/are the root causes of the problem? What makes the nation what it is?

India: A brief history

3000 years ago, a beautiful civilisation flourished under the Indus valley. This civilization was primarily composed of pagans who worshipped their relevant gods and built magnificent megaliths. They then migrated to the southern parts of India and settled along the Ganges and Saraswathi river. 500 B.C.E and the civilisation of Chandragupta Mauriya flourished spurred on by the intelligent and cunning minister Chanakya. These years were considered the golden age of India where thought, intellect and culture thrived. Unfortunately this did not last long. Ahimsic thought (over compassion) crippled the army and weakened the mentality of the ruling class. This led to invasion by the Huns, Mongols, Mughals and eventually the British. Thus India was enslaved for a period of 2500 years. Now one must ask oneself, what would happen if a beggar becomes a king overnight? This, unfortunately was the idea of democracy and how politicians raped a country.

Nehruvian Socialism: The seeping venom which crippled a nation.

The funny thing about socialism is that it tends to live in an altruistic future. It predicts a heaven on earth and thus manipulates the majority of the weak minded individuals who seek a better lifestyle in a quick, non-committal and easy manner without any hard work. It empowers the government and weakens the individual by giving greater power to the government. How does it manage to convince the individual? Through manipulated propaganda. It fills the poor mans mind with a false promise of a better future by reinforcing communal work, all for one, etc. Thus socialism steadily breaks down competition. Why work when you will get paid? This notion was one of the notorious reasons for Indian corruption.

Jawaharlal Nehru: Socialist reformer and first president of India

One thing remains certain, Socialistic ideals have been a massive failure in any civilisation they attempted to take root. Whether it was the United Soviet Socialist Republic (USSR, which disbanded in the 80s), Cuba, Pol Pots Cambodia or North Korea. All have miserably failed and caused tremendous destruction to civilisation. Why then, did Nehru opt for socialism? His view was to break the gap between the rich and the poor. Unfortunately, today India’s gap between the rich and poor is evident when you take a look outside the plaza hotel to see thousands of slum dwellers, thereby establishing the weakness of socialist thought. When the socialistic ideals were introduced, India became more and more dependant on the government. The provision of ration cards, for example, was one such pathetic decision which dramatically increased India’s population density and made the nation more dependent on the government.

Cost of Nehruvian Socialism. Slum dwellers.

When a beggar becomes a member of parliament, he will try anything he can to secure his financial future. This is what happened and is happening in India. One of the reasons the nation is still crippled is that the wrong people got and continue to get power.

The costs of corruption

My friend once told me that India would have been better under British rule. I contemplated for a moment before dismissing him to be an arrogant British loyalist. Upon hearing an interesting statistic it became painfully obvious that there is a very good chance India would have prospered under the British. A recent survey stated that the net loss of wealth in past 60 years (post free India) is by far greater than the British inquisition. IE the amount of money that Indian politicians have smuggled into their Swiss banks is by far greater than any invader so far. If it sounds unbelievable here are a few facts:

• Kalmadi (organiser of the of the commonwealth games) scammed the nation 70,000 crores
• Spectrum Raja (telecom minister) 1.76 lakh crores. To put it in perspective about a 108 trucks filled with 1000 rupee notes.
• Kanimozi: Also involved in swindling 1 lakh crores

These are just 3 individuals, in the recent times (within 2 - 3 years). We also know that India was financially bankrupt during 1991 when it had to borrow 5 Billion dollars from the IMF thereby severely decreasing its currency strength. Which also tells us that as a nation corruption has been around for atleast 20 years.

So what can be done?

India is dramatically falling. It would be a safe assumption to note that within 40 or 50 years, India could very well be equal to or worse than Ethiopia or Sudan. This is evident due to the lack of infrastructure. An example would be my last trip when a few drops of rain made the city to float in sewage.

Rain water mixed with sewage stagnating on chennai main street.

Thus Indians should stop living in denial. The majority of the nationalist Indians I have met hold the view that India is the best country in the world, that corruption is virtually not present and we are making up facts. This denial, present in the majority of the patriotic nationalists, causes politicians to think they are doing the right thing. This causes confusion to the open minded individuals. The overtly patriotic Indians are thus, indirectly stabbing their own nation. They should seek to educate the masses, democracy only works in a literate civilisation. India is a civilisation with 45% of the population who are illiterate. This allows the incompetent members of parliament to buy votes from the illiterate villagers by offering television sets instead of food or water. There should a complete non-reliance on government products. I remember the pathetic service offered by Indian Airlines when I compared it to Jet Airways. I feel that as long as the nation’s capitalistic thought is bought forward it stands a chance. Otherwise, we are facing a catastrophic destruction of bharata varsha.

Envy: The poison Ivy of man

Envy: A definition


Considered one of the seven sins, within Catholic Christianity, and usually one of the most common cause of human misery is Envy. The irony is that this emotion causes no perceived physical pain. Aristotle defines envy as "as the pain caused by the good fortune of others," and Socrates goes far to mention that "it(Envy) is the ulcer of the human soul." In order for envy to work there must be an Envier and an Envied. The reason for this being such a destructive force is that it wishes to inflict misfortune on others. In the case of Aristotle, the good fortune could be extended to knowledge acquired, wealth, fame or beauty. These are, usually, the most common cause of envy among humans. Yet there must be a reason as to why this is considered a dangerous and destructive force. 


Jealousy Vs Envy

Jealousy is both reasonable and belongs to reasonable men, while envy is base and belongs to the base, for one makes himself get good things by jealousy, while the other does not allow his neighbour to have them through envy. -: Aristotle

Jealousy, is a more broader emotion which includes the fear of loss, insecurity, anxiety over an anticipated loss etc. It does not have an associated dose of Schadenfreude. It is usually associated with relationships where in a partner is jealous of another partners interest in a different person. Though just an example, as Aristotle so rightly puts it, Jealousy instigates a person to achieve more to overcome the fear of loss while the latter, Envy brings destruction and malevolence.  It enjoys itself when the Envied being is made a fool of himself/herself, loses something valuable or is degraded in some shape or form. Thus it is one of the leading cause of misery in humanity. All the great philosophers condemned it.

Do not overrate what you have received, nor envy others. He who envies others does not obtain peace of mind. -: Buddha

The presence of Envy in a humanity is a direct measure of the level mental maturity in the civilisation -: S. Vivekananda 

One who does not envy but is a compassionate friend to all ... such a devotee is very dear to Me. -: Krishna Gita Chapter 12:15

Cost of Envy

The obvious costs of envy are ridden through out history. This is evident in the Mahabharata (an ancient Indian epic) where the villain envies the protagonist to such an extent that he could not sleep, eat, or drink knowing that his enemies are prosperous. He then arranges to deceive them causing them to lose their royalty, wealth and honour. Adding insult to their injury he attempts to disrobe their queen in a public hall to indulge in his Schadenfreude, fortunately Krishna (god-incarnation) performs a miracle thus saves her dignity. This causes the epic Kurukshetra battle where he is slain and dies a slow and miserable death.

However, Envy is not absent in the Hebrew Torah. Cain, son of Adam, the first man, slaughters his only brother Abel in a fit of Envy when god refuses his offering over his brothers. Cane is thus regarded as the ancestor of evil and Abel (according to the book of Enoch 22:7) as the first martyr. Thus it is evident here, that when envy loses control (as it usually does), it can even

lead  to fratricide. This is, however, just the tip of the ice-berg, when compared to the biblical character Jesus, who as a result of Envy suffered a fate worse than death. A humiliating, scrutinizing, painful torture and eventual death.

After Christ's sermon on the mount, the Pharisees led by Caiphas decided that this rabbi needs to be put to death. The reason, Christ had 5000 followers that particular night and he spoke of him being the blessed son of man. Burning with envy, they send soldiers to drag him from the garden of Gethsemane, subject him to unfair trail at Sanhedrin and condemn him to death.


What is your judgment?” They answered, “He deserves death.” Matthew 26:66
Then they spit in his face and struck him. And some slapped him, Matthew 26:67


They then take him to Pontinus Pilate (Roman council/Judge) who tries his best to free him. He offers a heavily flogged Christ over a sadistic, serial killer, Barabbas to go free. The crowd crows Barabbas and condemn the poor rabbi to crucifixion.   

So when the crowd had gathered, Pilate asked them, "Which one do you want me to release to you: Barabbas, or Jesus who is called Christ?" Matthew 27:17*


For he knew it was out of envy that they had handed Jesus over to him. Matthew 27:18*

Now the chief priests and the elders persuaded the crowd to ask for Barabbas and destroy Jesus. Matthew 27:20*

But the governor said to them, "Which of the two do you want me to release for you?" And they said, "Barabbas." Matthew 27:21*

Pilate said to them, “Then what shall I do with Jesus who is called Christ?” They all said, “Let him be crucified!” Matthew 27:22*

Crucifixion is, on the whole a very sadistic, cruel and unusual punishment to condemn even a criminal with, but to have the mind to condemn a spiritual healer who preached love and compassion 

 If someone slaps you on the right cheek, offer the other cheek also. Matthew 5:39

The cost of envy is unrepairable when it has reached its loathing state. We all know that Hitler came to power by scape-goating the Jewish community. The German word Schadenfreude was coined when they were indulging in this emotion as the Jewish doctors and lawyers were washing their toilets during the NAZI regime. This emotion got so out of control that it lead to their genocide in concentration camps. Thus we can see that Envy breeds Hatred. 

It should be no surprise that when Sir Winston Churchill, who handled the World War so well, proved his capacity as a statesman, should have easily won the parliamentary elections. Unfortunately, the party he was representing lost by a landslide.

Coping With envy

So the million dollar question remains, How does one cope with envy? 

Determining the cause is important. The common phrase, "An idle mind is a devils workshop" is most often true. Envy, used to be most common among women who spent most of their time gossiping and spreading slander. Thus it was considered as a wholly feminine emotion. It was an incorrect consideration.

For the theist, this is an easy solution. Be content with what the supreme has bestowed on to you. Ask and yearn, work hard and earn you desire rather than wasting your good deeds and penances (tapasya) on the evils of drishti (evil eye). The other approach from a Karmic view, is to accept that an individual is enjoying the benefits of his previous good deed, now you perform good deeds to benefit man kind. As an agnostic/atheist, it would be beneficial to turn the envy into admiration. Admire the aspect, achievement, or fortune of the envied and transform an evil emotion into one of inspiration and love. Envy is trapped when it has to face a more powerful emotion, love. When Christ was on the Cross, he begs god for the forgiveness of his persecutors. Evidence of a highly mature mind. Love thy neighbour was his principle, and till his dying breath he lived by this principle.

Coping as the envied.

In most cases, the human mind plays all kinds of tricks to alienate the average man. Including the thought that everyone is against you and is envying your achievements. Though most of the times this is just a presumption, there would be certain occasions when an envious individual can be observed without doubt. One such occasion is an outward resentment to any of your achievements, which include discouraging you from further pursuits. It is very difficult to catch an envious person as he always hides it from the envied, but on occasions, the emotion would over power his/her capacity to hide and cause the facial expression shown here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Resentment

A person who has been envious of others for a very long time, would have easily mastered the ability to hide it. Most of those who have actually taken the time to read this article are more likely to be envied by others because your mental attention span is greater, hence allowing you to focus more intently on a current objective, making it more likely for success in any field. Thus you will have envious beings following you and scrutinizing you. If you feel envied, simply ignore the envier and cut of all relations with him/her. The Indian Rishis (Sages) went to forests as they knew that whole villages would envy their success. The ancient greeks used to send their politicians to compulsory exile till the envy in the land has cooled down. Suggesting that a lack of contact helps deal with envy. They method of handling is up to you. T Good luck and I hope this article has got you thinking.  However there is no panacea for this particular ill of society, and thanks to the capitalist mindset that envy breeds competition it is running amonk causing havoc.

Lots of love 

Srinath S Sherma.