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Look what came out in my philosophy exam today.
Buddha: “So long as lustful desire, however small, of man for women, is not controlled, so long the mind of man is not free, but is bound like a calf tied to a cow.” Buddhism, the ancient Greek and Roman stoic philosophies, and many other religious and philosophical traditions, teach us that happiness requires that we detach ourselves – not completely, but to a very significant degree – from the world. This means: killing the passions, of which sexual passion is the clearest example. But the truth is that every stage of life has a set of attachments, and a degree of detachment, appropriate to it. To be calm and free of desire in one’s old age may be consoling, but to be free of passion and detached in one’s youth is to miss out on life’s adventure, its bitter fruit, without which its sweet fruit does not taste sweet. It is not desirable to be young and free from passion, always calm. Buddhism, then, may be a medicine properly prescribed to elderly patients, but certainly not to young ones.