Can sensuality be spiritual?
Sensuality is the pursuit of pleasure for its own sake, but no one has a good word to say about it. Moralists regard it as degrading, selfish and wasteful, if not actually evil. Hedonists, on the other hand find it frustrating and disappointing. It offers so much and rarely delivers. So is sensuality always bad or unsatisfying? Can it be redeemed? And is it possible for sensuality to be part of a spiritual life? We’re inclined to forget that some cultures have enthusiastically embraced sensuality as a natural part of the good life. Ancient Rome was a tolerant and promiscuous society in which every conceivable luxury was enjoyed. Married women were as open about their affairs as their husbands. Similarly, Japanese culture has an enormous capacity for sensory pleasures, from sex and pornography to moon-viewing and flower arrangement. The tea ceremony is a masterpiece of delicate sensuality. A traditional Japanese meal is a work of art, and all this indulgence is remarkably free of shame
