"Sex" and "the Buddhist." Two words you rarely hear in a sentence!
Buddhism is always associated with meditating or chanting and "purity." While that is an important path of the practice, let's not forget the human behind the Buddhist, where our sexuality, sexual relations and desires can play a big part of our lives as we navigate sometimes messy and chaotic adulthood.

We'll do the topic that nobody wants to talk about.

In this episode, you will be hearing new voices on the show! Wilson and Cheryl will be partnering up as co-hosts, and we dive into this topic with Venerable Damcho, a nun based in Sravasti Abbey.

?What can we learn about sex from a fully celibate monastic? Keep an open mind and come and find out for yourselves!
We cover:
?What's a healthy way to think about sex?
?Is porn destroying your sex life?
?Don't settle for Grade F Happiness
?If lust is consuming your mind.... here's the antidote

And many more!

ABOUT OUR GUESTS:
Venerable Thubten Damcho is a Buddhist nun residing at Sravasti Abbey, one of the first Tibetan Buddhist training monasteries in the United States. Born and raised in Singapore, she graduated from Princeton University in 2006 and worked as a high school teacher and public policy analyst in the Singapore government before returning to the U.S. to take novice ordination in 2013. She tells her story in The Straits Times Singapore.

Venerable Damcho's monastic life is rich and varied. She serves as assistant to Sravasti Abbey’s founder, author and well-known Buddhist teacher Venerable Thubten Chodron. Her other responsibilities range from translating Chinese texts into English to removing weeds from the Abbey's 300-acre property. Venerable Damcho has given Dharma talks in Spokane, Idaho, California, India, and Singapore. She was the Chinese-English interpreter at a full ordination program in Taiwan in 2019, and has studied Tibetan through Maitripa College and with other teachers since 2017.

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Wilson Ng: Navigating the uncertain waters of love and lust while learning to accept his sexuality, Wilson has learnt a lot from the mistakes made. He is learning to accept himself for his attachment to lust and to see the inherently unsatisfactory nature of sex and lust.

TRANSCRIPT: https://bit.ly/hol-ep-27

(0:00) Introductions

(1:07) How is sex different from other sensual pleasures?

(5:09) Why is sex such a taboo in the education system and in society?

(8:32) Helpful conversations to understand the causes, conditions and effects of our sexuality

(13:52) Living with our desires as lay Buddhists with kindness and wisdom

(18:03) Reflecting on the kindness of others to remedy a transactional mindset

(21:23) The mind of attachment projects unrealistic expectations of others

(26:45) The drawbacks of porn consumption on individuals and society

(33:22) Impact of Pornography on Masculinity and Treatment of Women

(37:33) Facilitating discussions on sexuality in the classroom with mindfulness

(39:59) Wisdom as an Antidote to Attachment, Craving is never satisfied by fulfilling it

(43:44) Don’t settle for Grade F happiness, strive for Grade A happiness!

RESOURCES:
Exploring Monastic Life program at Sravasti Abbey
Our abbess Venerable Thubten Chodron teaches often on the kindness of others
Her book Guided Buddhist Meditations is a great resource for analytic meditation
The Mask You Live In
Miss Representation

SPECIAL THANKS TO OUR SPONSORS:
Buddhist Youth Network, Lim Soon Kiat, Alvin Chan, Tan Key Seng, Soh Hwee Hoon, Geraldine Tay, Venerable You Guang, Wilson Ng, Diga, Joyce, Tan Jia Yee, Joanne, Suñña, Shuo Mei,

Editor and transcriber of this episode: Tee Ke Hui, Cheryl Cheah

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