The Red Thread : Buddhist Approaches to Sexuality

In this study, Bernard Faure reveals Buddhism's paradoxical attitudes toward sexuality.

His broad range covers the entire geography of this religion, and its long evolution from the time of its founder, Sakyamuni, to the premodern age.

The anthropological approach uncovers the inherent discrepancies between the normative teachings of Buddhism and what its followers practice.

Framing his discussion on some of the most prominent Western thinkers of sexuality - Georges Bataille and Michel Foucault - Faure draws from different reservoirs of writings, such as the orthodox and heterodox "doctrines" of Buddhism, and its monastic codes.

Mythological as well as legal sources are also used.

The dialectics inherent in Mahayana Buddhism, in particular in the Tantric and Chan/Zen traditions, seemed to allow for greater laxity and even encouraged breaking of taboos.