Attitudes about sex (and paying for it)

[sweetnpetite]

How did the sale of sex go from paying to enter paradise to paying for something vile? If we can make ourselves one with the gods by intake of food and drink — an idea that far predates Christian communion — how much more so through sex, in its full regalia of joy, pleasure and emotional healing. And what exactly is wrong with money changing hands for it? We pay even for sacred food and drink, for ritual wine and bread have to come from somewhere. Why did the archetype of the sacred whore fall from grace?

http://www.sex-is-sacred.org/whore.htm

 

[CharleyH]

http://www.sex-is-sacred.org/whore.htm

I thought a whore and a christan or catholic were all interchangeable terms?

 

[ABSTRUSE]

I thought a whore and a christan or catholic were all interchangeable terms?

Only in Canada.

 

[CharleyH]

Only in Canada.

Similar to incest in Utah, Pennsylvania, Vermot, Virginia, Louisiana, DC ...

 

[ABSTRUSE]

Similar to incest in Utah, Pennsylvania, Vermot, Virginia, Louisiana, DC ...

Don't ever leave out us Amish folk.

 

[CharleyH]

Don't ever leave out us Amish folk.

I thought that was you? You discusting LOL

 

[elsol]

I thought a whore and a christan or catholic were all interchangeable terms?

The actually interchageability in that set is... whore/woman

Sincerely,
ElSol

 

[CharleyH]

The actually interchageability in that set is... whore/woman

Sincerely,
ElSol

I thought it was like whore/womb/ man?

 

[Penelope Street]

The actually interchageability in that set is... whore/woman

Historically this has been the case and, barring men developing some skills worth paying for, it is likely to continue to be the norm.

 

[TxRad]

Historically this has been the case and, barring men developing some skills worth paying for, it is likely to continue to be the norm.

I take it that you haven't been to any major cities of late... The numbers of Male prostitues are fast catching up with the Ladies.....

 

[rgraham666]

Considering all the problems we already have with both sex and religion I fail to see how combining the two of them is likely to make things better.

 

[elsol]

I take it that you haven't been to any major cities of late... The numbers of Male prostitues are fast catching up with the Ladies.....

Aren't most male prostitutes there for men?

Sincerely,
ElSol

 

[elsol]

As to the preciding question...

*burp*

Valentine's Day, Christmas, Anniversary, birthday, 'Just cause you're you' gifts, 'I screwed the pooch' gifts or cash.

To be quite honest, my favorite girlfriends were the ones who liked gift certificates.

Sincerely,
ElSol

 

[TxRad]

Aren't most male prostitutes there for men?

Sincerely,
ElSol

Uhhhh, not my cup of tea as the saying goes, so I don't know..... In Vegas and other party towns, they could be for either or both.....

 

[TxRad]

Considering all the problems we already have with both sex and religion I fail to see how combining the two of them is likely to make things better.

As bad as religion has screwed up sex, it couldn't be any worse....

 

[rgraham666]

As bad as religion has screwed up sex, it couldn't be any worse....

Shh! You'll jinx us.

It can always be worse.

 

[SeaCat]

We all pay for sex in one way or another.

My views on sex are against the morality of too many here, it offends many peoples views of morality. (Not that I truly give a shit. There are a very few people who's morality I care about and they know who they are.)

Cat

 

[dr_mabeuse]

I don't know what you're suggesting, Sweet. Don't most women abhor the idea of being paid for sex?

Does doing it on the steps of a pagan temple make it okay?

 

[Alex756]

On all seriousnss, I think some of the stigma for paying for sex is ... well its like paying for something that should be a gift.

Its like buying flowers for yourself. Its like paying someone to like you. its like people who cram a loved one into a nursing home and never visit, they are paying for love.

Sex should be more than a piece of bread, even holy bread. The spiritualness of it should make it even farther beyond money. Its like a very precious gift. Society and religion might make rules on who you can share it with, but it still is a very special gift.

I think paying for it cheepens it, just like buying your own flowers. They just don't mean as much as if someone spontaniously gave you flowers of their own free will.

I hope that makes sense, I've had a hellish week err 2 weeks. is October over yet?

~Alex

 

[yui]

I don't know what you're suggesting, Sweet. Don't most women abhor the idea of being paid for sex?

Does doing it on the steps of a pagan temple make it okay?

I dunno, Doc, some days, I think I would make a hell of a rich man's mistress. If I'm not getting what I need from sex, shouldn't I get a few things I want? Does that make me a whore? What's that quote? Paraphrasing:

"Would you sleep with me for a million dollars?"

"Yes."

"Would you sleep for me for $100?"

"What do you think I am? A whore?"

"We've already established what you are, now we're haggling over the price."

It's a slippery slope. I want to get everything on my own, but hard work doesn't always get you there. Playing Luc's advocate, at what point does selling your soul differentiate between selling your body?

Again, don't flame me, peeps; it's just a question.

 

[Huckleman2000]

I dunno, Doc, some days, I think I would make a hell of a rich man's mistress. If I'm not getting what I need from sex, shouldn't I get a few things I want? Does that make me a whore? What's that quote? Paraphrasing:

"Would you sleep with me for a million dollars?"

"Yes."

"Would you sleep for me for $100?"

"What do you think I am? A whore?"

"We've already established what you are, now we're haggling over the price."

It's a slippery slope. I want to get everything on my own, but hard work doesn't always get you there. Playing Luc's advocate, at what point does selling your soul differentiate between selling your body?

Again, don't flame me, peeps; it's just a question.

Y'know, if this is an offer, I'm pretty sure I can scrounge up $100 around here somewhere.

Seriously, Yui raises a good point. It's rare that life offers us a really big, clear choice between our principles and our desire for a comfortable life. Usually, one can live within principles and enough creature comforts that we don't ever have to confront these bigger issues. Still, Donald Trump is living proof that when the stakes are high, either as a rich man or as a beautiful woman, the trade-off is not nearly so straightforward.

I mean, in any long term relationship, we've all had sex that our heart hasn't been totally into. I've faked, and I don't want to know how often women fake.

 

[cantdog]

On all seriousnss, I think some of the stigma for paying for sex is ... well its like paying for something that should be a gift.

Its like buying flowers for yourself. Its like paying someone to like you. its like people who cram a loved one into a nursing home and never visit, they are paying for love.

Sex should be more than a piece of bread, even holy bread. The spiritualness of it should make it even farther beyond money. Its like a very precious gift. Society and religion might make rules on who you can share it with, but it still is a very special gift.

I think paying for it cheepens it, just like buying your own flowers. They just don't mean as much as if someone spontaniously gave you flowers of their own free will.

I hope that makes sense, I've had a hellish week err 2 weeks. is October over yet?

~Alex

It's been a hellish 5 years.

My objection to prostitution is the inflated price. It's a necessity priced as a luxury.

Seriously, though, I don't see what's wrong with temple prostitution. Temples need devotion. One sacrifice is as valid as the next.

In the end, people ought to butt out. Sex is none of your business, unless you're the one having it.

 

[elsol]

If I had the money, I'd pay for it.

'Hi... how would you like to spend the weekend in Paris, do all the shopping you want? By the way, we're sleeping in the same bed and I'm not a cuddler!'

then again if i ever hit the lottery, I'm setting up the 'Hang out at my pool wearing a skimpy bikini' Scholarship for women.


Sincerely,
elsol

 

[Boxlicker101]

On all seriousnss, I think some of the stigma for paying for sex is ... well its like paying for something that should be a gift.

Its like buying flowers for yourself. Its like paying someone to like you. its like people who cram a loved one into a nursing home and never visit, they are paying for love.

Sex should be more than a piece of bread, even holy bread. The spiritualness of it should make it even farther beyond money. Its like a very precious gift. Society and religion might make rules on who you can share it with, but it still is a very special gift.

I think paying for it cheepens it, just like buying your own flowers. They just don't mean as much as if someone spontaniously gave you flowers of their own free will.

I hope that makes sense, I've had a hellish week err 2 weeks. is October over yet?

~Alex

I think it's a macho thing. "Do you mean you have to pay for it? You poor sap! I get all I want for free from a dozen different women." That boast may be true or it may not, (In my case it isn't) but it's a way for one man to make himself out to be more manly than another.

I don't have any numbers but I would be willing to bet there are far more female prostitutes than male, and that most male prostitutes serve gay men. The reason is simple. A woman can get all the sex she wants so why should she pay for it? Maybe not in quality, but in quantity.

 

[dr_mabeuse]

I think paying for it cheepens it, just like buying your own flowers.

Yeah, but what's wrong with cheap sex?

I mean, men don't go to prostitutes looking for love and affection. They go there for sex, and often the cheapness and lack of emotional involvment is the very thing that attracts them.

It's funny, because I wrote a story about a temple prostitute and I did a bunch of research, and I came away with the feeling that it wasn't the joyous and sporty opportunity for free love described in SnP's article. However you slice it, women just don't seem to enjoy being compelled to sleep with strangers off the street, and I can just imagine the kind of men who took advantage of the opportunity for free sex. They must have been the ones who couldn't get laid any other way, the kind who might avail themselves of a glory hole today. I have to think that either access was closely controlled by the temple, with the girls' favors going to the big temple supporters, or else serving as a temple prostitute was worse than working the sleaziest streets for drachmas.

I'd also point out the weird symbolism of cash money in the transaction. Few people would object to receiving a gift of flowers or candy or poetry as prelude to sex, because while these things might be costly, they have no intrinsic value. You can't turn around and buy something else with those flowers, and so they're understood as tokens of affection. WIth jewelry and clothes it gets a little dicier, and by the time you get to hard cash, you're dealing with outright prostitution. You're paying for it, not just showing your appreciation.

In any case, I don't see how associating a prostitute with a temple does anything to change the nature of the relationship. We might like to think of hushed temples dedicated to the Goddess, with incense burning as the comely hierodule leads some worshipful and attractive youth to her sacred bed, but people were just as hypocritical then as they are now, and just a cynical about religion.