Buddhism Can Help Tiger Woods Deal with His Sexual Addiction

I am not an expert on any of the following; Tiger Woods, Buddhism and sexual addiction, or even golf - to be honest I don't even like golf. This article contains my views on Buddhism. This is a philosophy that has been a part of my life for quite a few years but I don't claim to have any special insight into it. I would say though that I know a lot more about Buddhism than I do about golf.

Tiger Woods Turns to Buddhism for Help with his Sexual Addiction

Tiger Woods has decided that he will go back to his Buddhist roots in order to get help with his sexual addiction. This goes against the advice of Fox News commentator Brit Hume who claimed that only Christianity can help him. It seems though that Tiger does not depend on Fox to tell him how to think and has instead returned to the philosophy he was raised with. The good news for Tiger is that Buddhism has a lot to say about all types of addiction including Sexual addiction.

Buddhism and Sexual Addiction

The concept of sex as sin is missing in Buddhism, but the Buddha did advise followers to refrain from sexual misconduct. The Buddha does not seem to see anything wrong with the sex act itself, but was more concerned with the fact that it can lead to human suffering and attachment. In Buddhism sexual misconduct is usually described as a sexual action that causes hurt to somebody else or to the person performing the action. Tiger's infidelity would be viewed as sexual misconduct because it hurt his wife, children, and any of the women who had developed feelings for him. It would also be viewed as damaging to Tiger because you can't develop spiritually as a human if you are hurting other people.

An important idea in Buddhism is that suffering is caused by craving; addiction is taking this craving to an extreme level. Within Buddhism there is the belief that there is nothing outside of people that can bring them complete contentment. This can only come from inside the individual by letting go of as many attachments as possible. A famous Thai monk called Ajahn Chah described it by saying that the more you let go of things the happier you will be. The idea of non-self in Buddhism describes how the more people try to satisfy a "self" the more they will suffer.

Will Tiger Woods Ordain as a Monk in Thailand?

Tiger's mother is Thai and it is traditional for Thai men to spend at least a little time as a Buddhist monk. This is often done as a way to make merit for their mothers. Maybe a few months meditating in a monastery could help Tiger get over his sexual addiction. I know from personal experience that these temples can offer great help for other type of addictions.