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ORIGINAL: mnottertail

what if I am lotusing on a bed of gravel, grasshopper?

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ORIGINAL: Icarys

Snatch the pebble from my hand, then and only then may you find enlightenment and a new pebble if your fast enough.

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ORIGINAL: wisdomtogive

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ORIGINAL: Icarys

Snatch the pebble from my hand, then and only then may you find enlightenment and a new pebble if your fast enough.

I probably would be fast enough, but may I feed my stomach first? It is hungry since I orginally thought your wrote if you fast...fasting being not eating:)

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ORIGINAL: wisdomtogive

Chuckles...awwwwwwwww eternal enlightment, Icarys, comes through peanut butter:)

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ORIGINAL: mnottertail

why an exclamation point in your peroration, rather than a question mark? enlighten me.

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This still comes back to two questions....OP, how do you define spirituality and what is spirit in context to your question?

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ORIGINAL: CNJDom

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ORIGINAL: Lorenzo19

I believe everyone has thier own path to spirituality. The Kama Sutra expouses how sexuality can be that path. BDSM-D/s has upped the ante in sexuality. Maybe it is time for Kama Sutra 2nd Edition.

The question is:

How is or can BDSM-D/s be a path to spirituality?
What can BDSM-D/s teach us about the spirit?
Do you feel more spiritual because of your BDSM-D/s experiences?
Do you feel less spiritual (more animalistic) because of your BDSM-D/s experiences?


I will give My view points later. I dont want this thread to start out as a debate of My opinions.

I once took a class at a local BDSM festival where the topic was about the spiritual side of BDSM.  I could see that between ritualistic BDSM practice and pseudo-shamanism, it seemed very plausible all-in-all.  The use of pain-trance-spiritualism has been in use by many cultures (Native American, African, and Asian-Indians especially) gain a spiritual insight while undergoing physical and mental stresses in the name of submitting to these acts willingly.  In this particular class also touched on Dominant-trance (a lighter level of this might be delving into the Dom-space concept) as well.  I believe that BDSM can have a spiritual aspect certainly, and at times I feel we touch on a different level during these moments. 

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ORIGINAL: takemeforyourown

Personally, when I first discovered my submissive tendencies I wondered if what I was really seeking was God...to be the slave of God. I still think about that. Isn't that the essence of one who chooses as a vocation to serve the Almighty? But I am just a human girl, with the human need for physical love as well.

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ORIGINAL: Lorenzo19

I believe everyone has thier own path to spirituality. The Kama Sutra expouses how sexuality can be that path. BDSM-D/s has upped the ante in sexuality. Maybe it is time for Kama Sutra 2nd Edition.

The question is:

How is or can BDSM-D/s be a path to spirituality?
What can BDSM-D/s teach us about the spirit?
Do you feel more spiritual because of your BDSM-D/s experiences?
Do you feel less spiritual (more animalistic) because of your BDSM-D/s experiences?


I will give My view points later. I dont want this thread to start out as a debate of My opinions.

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ORIGINAL: Lorenzo19

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This still comes back to two questions....OP, how do you define spirituality and what is spirit in context to your question?

Since time immorial the elements have been divided into 4 groups irregadless of religion, faith or lack there of:

1) earth - physial 2) air - intellect 3) water - emotion 4) fire - spirit

what is spirit? spirit is not physical, emotional, intellectual
what is left over is spiritual. Is there anything left over? The anients thought so. I think so.
I suppose this in itself would be a good topic of itself.

How does this relate to your original post and/or the recent question you asked...

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Can one of the possible objectives of BDSM-D/s be Spiritual Suicide? In other words are some people seeking the dark side of BDSM-D/s rather than the light side? and does that objective have a negitive effect on the spirit?

If spirit isn't physical, emotional or intellectual, is it really spirit you're referring to?  I'm trying to make sense of your definition of spirit in relation to your questions regarding BDSM and D/s.  Many people, myself included, have told you how their BDSM activities and D/s choices have, or have not as the case may be, affected them...either as a path to or a tool used, or not...again as the case may be. 
 
As I tried to explain to you in my post you responded to, is there a positive/negative...good/bad...dark/light side of BDSM and D/s and who makes that judgement call?  What is spiritual death to one person is enlightenment to another. 
 
One definition of spirit is incorporeal consciousness...are you suggesting people make choices in regards to BDSM and D/s activities in order to cause the death of this consciousness? 
 
To be honest, all this talk of positive and negative...good and bad makes me wonder if you see life as only black and white with no shades of gray or a middle path.


It just goes to show the spiritual state of the world today. Few seem to even know what is the spirit.

Indeed.  You may choose to not see this as a serious reply...that is your choice.  Then again...do you really know these "few" you're referring to in real life or are you making a judgement call based on your limited knowledge?
 
At this point, I'm agreeing with wisdomtogive...eternal enlightment comes through peanut butter!

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One definition of spirit is incorporeal consciousness...are you suggesting people make choices in regards to BDSM and D/s activities in order to cause the death of this consciousness?

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ORIGINAL: Lorenzo19

CarrieO

You and several others have asked what I mean by spirit. I have attempted to do that. positive/negative...good/bad...dark/light are not judgements of right and wrong. They are results and relative to the objective.

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One definition of spirit is incorporeal consciousness...are you suggesting people make choices in regards to BDSM and D/s activities in order to cause the death of this consciousness?

Absolutely. And this could be seen as a negitive result. As death is usually thought of in the negitive. Life in the positive. I am NOT saying that to die is wrong or even undesired. It depends on the objective. For someone seeking spiritual suicide the objective is death. And achieving it is success. Euthanasia is death as the desired and expected result.

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Can one of the possible objectives of BDSM-D/s be Spiritual Suicide? In other words are some people seeking the dark side of BDSM-D/s rather than the light side? and does that objective have a negitive effect on the spirit?

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Take away my personality, wants, needs, treat me like a thing without feelings, without thoughts, without memories, without friends, without love, without hopes or dreams, without any semblence of being human, or having ever been human, an object, a thing. even less than a thing.

The logical dilemma with this type of question, in my opinion, is that it will be relative to the person/s involved and therefore difficult to give a single answer.   Spirals and spirals leading deeper and deeper to nowhere and everything...much like a belly button.