I heard that for a spiritual aspirant who is a male, women are considered a great distraction. Are there any scriptures/verses which say opposite i.e for woman, man is considered distraction?
2 Answers
Yes here are couple of verses from Bhagavata Purana which says man is Maya for woman.
SB 3.31.41 — A living entity who, as a result of attachment to a woman in his previous life, has been endowed with the form of a woman, foolishly looks upon māyā in the form of a man, her husband, as the bestower of wealth, progeny, house and other material assets.
SB 3.31.42 — A woman, therefore, should consider her husband, her house and her children to be the arrangement of the external energy of the Lord for her death, just as the sweet singing of the hunter is death for the deer.
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These 2 may be later insertion in SB to make it compatible with Sankara bhasya @KrishnaVarna we have shtri getting moksha so basically it contradicts Sruthi and other purana May 9, 2019 at 14:38
Yes, the Manusmriti says women are easily aroused by looking at men.
In the section in the Manusmriti on the ways for a husband to prevent adultery by the wife, some verses are given:
9.5 - Women should be specially guarded against even small attachments; for, if not guarded, they would bring grief to both families.
Medhatithi's commentary for the verse:
‘Attachment’— association, with a woman of unknown character,—one who is in the habit of standing at the doorway, looking at gaily dressed young men passing by, and so forth.
The meaning is that they should be guarded against temptations. Even though the acts mentioned above,—i,e. gazing at young men and so forth are not wrong in themselves, nor is the association of women with women wrong in itself.
Another verse:
9.14 - They [women] care not for beauty; they have no regard for age; be he handsome or ugly, they enjoy the man simply because he is a male.
The meaning of it is that women can commit adultery with another man, even if that man is not that handsome.
Medhatithi's commentary:
The husband should not labour under the vain hope—‘I am well favoured, handsome and young, how can my wife desire any other man, having me?’;—because women do not take into consideration the fact of a man being ‘handsome’ or ‘brave’; simply because he happens to be a male, they have recourse to him.
Then:
9.15 - Even though carefully guarded, they injure their husbands, on account of their passion for males, of ficklemindedness and of innate want of tenderness.
Medhatithi's commentary:
‘Passion for males’—At the sight of any and every man, women lose their firmness of mind and there arises in their minds an extreme desire for meeting him somehow or other, followed by a liquid exudation; this is what is called ‘passion for males.’
And finally:
9.16 - Knowing this disposition to be innate in them, from the very creation of the lord, the man should make the highest effort to guard them.
