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Lord Shiva says in the Mahabharata: Those men who, impelled by desire in their hearts, cast their eyes on naked women, those men of wicked deeds take birth in this world to pass their whole lives in one continuous disease. (Source: Anusasana Parva: Section CXLV)

Means a porn addict passes next life in one continuous severe disease?

But if a person leaves porn and masturbation for whole life what is the prayachitta he/she can do

Please don't give opinions because I am searching for solutions in scriptures.

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  • What I have made bold in text. I want answer for them mainly?
    – user32378
    Commented Jan 6 at 12:15
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    is pornography a mild or henious sin --- All forms of attachment is bad. 2. Upanishads and Yoga aren't for mental health. They are for deeper philosophical inquiry. 3. do God accept sinners for moksha?for I want to ask about sinners like alcoholist, gamblers etc. -- Doesn't matter what sinner you are, you don't get liberation with attachment. If you are attached or feeling guilty about some act, then you need to purify yourself for liberation by giving up attachment, like any other attachment. No rocket science.
    – user29449
    Commented Jan 6 at 12:48
  • @AbhasKumarSinha can you please explain how to purify myself.and my question about type of sin was that like lieing to someone could be seen as very mild sin but physical violence Or adultery can be seen as henious sin. So, which category do I fall in
    – user32378
    Commented Jan 6 at 14:07
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    The the feeling of you won't do further in itself is a 50% atonement. Shastras say the guilt of sin itself atones the sin. Still, if u wish to do some sort of paryachitta what's more better than doing stotra path for your ishta, serving cows and other jeevas, worshipping Shivalinga. Tommorow is Bhauma Pradosh a day very beloved of Shiva, offer him just a jalabhishekam as prayaschita and ask for forgivance. That's more than enough. Commented Jan 8 at 17:45
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    This asks for some other questions - 1) Since the statement means that viewing naked women out of lust is a sin, does the same apply for viewing men also ? 2) By the term 'naked women', does it also include artistic depictions too ? If yes, then why there are so many nude women sculpted in medieval Hindu temples if they weren't meant to be viewed ?
    – অনু
    Commented Jan 12 at 5:26

2 Answers 2

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In Manusmriti, the punishment for shedding semen by a student, who is a Brahmachari is described below. And there is in general a punishment prescribed for any man who masturbates.

Watching pornography and shedding semen comes under the category of masturbation (shedding semen out of lust). So the punishment prescribed for shedding semen out of lust gets applied here.

A. For Students

The punishment for shedding semen by a student is very harsh. There are two categories here. One is shedding semen in sleep (nightfall) and shedding semen unchastely out of lust (masturbation).

He should always sleep alone and never shed his semen, for by shedding his semen out of lust he breaks his vow. - Manusmriti 2.180

A.1. Punishment for nightfall (Manusmriti Chapter 2)

[181] A twice-born chaste student of the Veda who has spilt his semen in his sleep, not out of lust, should bathe, worship the sun, and chant, three times, the Vedic verse that begins, ‘Let my sensory power return to me again.’

[182] He should fetch a pot of water, flowers, cow dung, clay, and sacrificial grass, as much as are needed, and go begging every day.

[183] A chaste student of the Veda, purified, should beg every day from the houses of people who do not fail to perform Vedic sacrifices and who are approved of for carrying out their own innate activities.

[184] He should not beg from his guru’s family nor from the relatives of his mother or father, but if he cannot get to the houses of others he should avoid each of these more than the one that precedes it.

[185] And if there are none of the people mentioned above, he should beg from the whole village, purified and restrained in his speech, but he should avoid those who have been indicted.

[186] When he has brought fuel from a distance, he should set it down in the open air, not on the ground, and tirelessly make oblations into the fire with it, morning and evening.

[187] If he fails to go begging or to put fuel on the fire for seven nights when he is not ill, he should carry out the vow for one who has shed his semen unchastely.

A.2 Punishment for masturbation (Manusmriti Chapter 11)

[119] But a man who has shed his semen in violation of a vow should sacrifice a one-eyed donkey to Ruin at a crossroads at night, according to the rules for the domestic sacrifice.

[120] He should make an oblation into the fire in accordance with the rules and then offer oblations of melted butter to the Wind, Indra, the Guru, and Fire while reciting the verse that begins, ‘All over me’.

[121] When a twice-born man who has undertaken a vow sheds his semen out of lust, those who understand the law and expound the Veda call that a violation of the vow.

[122] The brilliant energy of the Veda in a man who has undertaken a vow goes if he has shed his semen, into four gods: the Wind, Indra the much-invoked, the Guru, and Fire.

[123] If this error is committed, he should put on the skin of a donkey and go begging from seven houses, proclaiming his own act.

[124] Living on the food that he has begged from them once a day, washing at sunrise, noon, and sunset, after a year he becomes clean.

B. For any man

General Punishment for Masturbation (Manusmriti 11)

[174] If a man has shed his semen in non-human females, in a man, in a menstruating woman, in something other than a vagina, or in water, he should carry out the ‘Painful Heating’ vow.

This means if anyone masturbates he should do a Painful heating vow (Sāntapana penance). It is described as follows

The Sāntapana penance is traditionally said to consist of cow urine, cow dung, milk, yoghurt, melted butter, water infused with sacrificial grass, and a fast of one night. - Manusmriti 11.213

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    Bro, thanks but is there any other book (smriti)where this is dealt because I think this one is not for me . Please tell if this topic is dealt in any other smritis 🙏🙏
    – user32378
    Commented Jan 13 at 9:24
  • @Hope Just read the last part Santapana penance. Commented Jan 13 at 9:29
  • @Hope It must be covered in other smritis as well, I think. There are 29 smritis. However, I don't have much knowledge of other smritis. Commented Jan 13 at 9:30
  • If I do what's prescrobed in manusmriti 11.215 will I be sinless
    – user32378
    Commented Jan 13 at 10:22
  • @Hope No, 11.215 describes Tapta Kriccha penance, which I did not mention. It is the penance for having the meat of carnivorous animals. Commented Jan 13 at 10:58
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I know that you are looking for answers from scriptures. If you are open to other ideas, read further.

Prayaschitta is a technique for psychologically helping a person who has realized his mistake and does not want the guilt of the mistake stopping from living a normal life.

I do not think there is magic in Prayaschitta prescribed in the scriptures. Scriptures also say that Prayaschitta is not for those who are committing the same mistake again and again and just want to escape the consequences.

If you want , you can impose some punishment (like feed poor etc.) to yourself - although I do not think it is necessary - if you are honest.

Just do not commit the same mistake again and carry on with normal life.

If this is an addiction, it is altogether a different subject.

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  • I am 100% sure this won't happen again. Because whenever temptation come, I will quickly think about a child born with cancer or physical disability due to his bad karma
    – user32378
    Commented Jan 13 at 10:25

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