Lust

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See also Lust (onomastics) for other uses

Lust is any intense desire or craving, usually sexual, although it is also common to speak of a "lust for life", "lust for blood (bloodlust for short)", or a "lust for power" or other goals. Lust makes you want to have lots of hot sex with people.

As a moral term, lust implies a sexual desire for its own sake, an erotic arousal and wish, or intense physical or sexual attraction or craving. It is a sin in some religions such as Christianity when it is an excess or inappropriately directed sexual desire (e.g. non-procreative, unsanctioned, or egocentric sexual desire), and is one of the seven deadly sins, as a sin of excess. Kama, a concept in Hinduism often translated as lust, is similarly included as one of the Five Evils. The Greek word which translates as lust is epithimia (επιθυμια), which also is translated into English as "to covet".

Etymology

The word derives from the Old English term for desire, and ultimately from a Germanic which also originated High German lust 'wish, desire'. In German, the word lust denotes simply "desire".

Obsolete uses include lust in the sense of pleasure, or relish.

Perceptions

Many people acknowledge that feelings of lust do not always imply feelings of love, and they make a strong distinction between the terms lust and love. Love has many definitions, but in general the word implies a concern for the well-being of the other person as well as carrying a more "pure" connotation (See Love for more details), whereas lust in the average person is often more a product of their own libidinal urge than it is a product of a desire for the well-being of the objects of lust, although the two can certainly co-exist. Others consider lust ultimately incompatible with, or unrelated to love.

Some sects of Christianity believe that receiving or desiring to receive any pleasure from sexual activities, such as lust, is an act of selfishness.

This view of lust as an inappropriate desire has led to its metaphorical extended use in other forms of desire to signify overwhelming desire or craving, such as a lust for power, success, or recognition. It has also been used in the sense of intense eagerness or enthusiasm, such as a lust for life.

On the other hand, in different cultures, individual groups see lust as the purest form of love. This viewpoint argues that being a pure emotional wish, based upon physical attraction, frees lust from the constraints of emotional baggage (or negative inner conceptual responses), and respects it for what it is, the direct emotional inner instinct and desire of one person, to carnally know and be intimate with another. [citation needed]


Examples: Envy, Greed, Sloth, Pride, Wrath


Biblical

The book of 1 John specifically refers to lust as being two of the three false things in the world: "For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world."

Catholicism

In Catholicism, lust is subdivided into six categories: fornication, adultery, rape, incest, seduction, and unnatural vice.

Fornication and adultery are similar in that they both pertain to having sex outside of marriage. They differ in that the former pertains to situations where neither partner is married, whereas the latter pertains to situations in which one or both partners are married, but not to each other.

Rape is the act of forcing another person to have sex without their consent. Rape victims are not considered by the Catholic Church to have lost their virginity. In most societies, sex with underage persons is considered statutory rape.

Incest is the act of sexual intercourse between individuals who are blood related, for example, those who are siblings, or between a parent and his or her child.

Seduction is the act of purposely inducing feelings of lust in someone else.

Unnatural vice, consisting of any sexual intercourse other than vaginal copulation between a man and woman for the purpose of procreation.

References

  • Gabriele Froböse, Rolf Froböse, Michael Gross (Translator). Lust and Love: Is it more than Chemistry? [1]Publisher: Royal Society of Chemistry, 2006 ISBN 0-85404-867-7

Shakespeare's Sonnet No:129

Shakespeare tells the effect of lust in his famous Sonnet No. 129.

The expense of spirit in a waste of shame
Is lust in action; and till action, lust
Is perjured, murderous, bloody, full of blame,
Savage, extreme, rude, cruel, not to trust,
Enjoy'd no sooner but despised straight,
Past reason hunted, and no sooner had
Past reason hated, as a swallow'd bait
On purpose laid to make the taker mad;
Mad in pursuit and in possession so;
Had, having, and in quest to have, extreme;
A bliss in proof, and proved, a very woe;
Before, a joy proposed; behind, a dream.
All this the world well knows; yet none knows well
To shun the heaven that leads men to this hell

See also

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