In contrast with many Indian religious traditions, Buddhism does not regard the body and the mind or spirit as being two entirely separate entities - there is no sense in Buddhism that the body is a "vessel" that is guided or inhabited by the mind or spirit. Rather, the body and mind combine and interact in a complex way to constitute an individual. Buddhist attitudes towards the body itself are complex, combining the distaste for sensual pleasure that characterizes the general Buddhist view towards desire with a recognition of both the individuals dependence on the body, and the utility of the body as an aide in the development of insight. Issues of gender, the mortification of the body, and the body as a source of troublesome desire are all addressed within the Buddhist scriptural tradition directly, while Buddhist attitudes towards other, more contemporary issues have continued to develop and change in response to the social and material changes in modern society. Historical and scriptural perspectives Views Place The Buddhist tradition regards the body and the mind as being mutually dependent. The body or physical form (called Rūpa) is considered as one of the five skandha, the five interdependent components that constitute an individual. The Buddha taught that there is no separate, permanent, or unchanging self, and that a human being is an impermanent composite of interdependent physical, emotional and cognitive components. Identifying either the body or the mind as the self is dismissed as a mistaken view by the Buddha; in the Anatta-lakkhana Sutta, it is clearly stated that none of the five skandha should be regarded as the self. Traditional sources often emphasize the attitude that the body should be subordinate to the mind; scriptures depict the Buddha instructing followers to look beyond physical discomfort and leave their minds undisturbed. Revulsion Though perhaps less concerned with issues of purity and pollution than the Brahmanist tradition, certain views of the body recorded in Buddhist scriptures do depict the body as unwholesome and potentially an object of disgust. This is the “unwantedness” of a body in the tradition of Buddhism identified by some scholars. Reflecting on the loathsomeness of the body is considered to be a particularly powerful method for countering attachment to sensual pleasures, such as sexuality or pride in appearance. Stories recorded in scriptures and in the biographies of Buddhist teachers particularly focus on the contemplation of the foulness