Yoga

True meaning of Brahmacharya

Patanjali Yoga Sutra Knowledge Sheet 70

"Brahmacharya pratishtayam viaryalabhaha'' (II Sutra 38)

Brahmacharya = celibacy; Pratishtayam = established; Viarya = vigour; Iabhaha = gained.
"On being established in celibacy vigour is gained."

Yoga Sutras of Patanjali

Brahmacharya is celibacy. Celibacy brings you strength, lots of strength. Brahmacharya has a higher meaning than just celibacy. Brahma means infinity, charya means moving in infinity. Knowing your vast nature. Not thinking that you are just the body, but you walk like you are a glow of light. You move in the world as though you are space. This is when celibacy naturally happens. Do you see what I am saying? When you are sitting in meditation you do not feel like you are a body, a lump of heavy weight, 80 pound, 90 pounds, 100 pounds, 60 kilos sitting there solid. You feel so light as though you are like a feather. Isn't it?

When you walk how do you feel? You do not feel the weight of the body. You are more space. The more joyful you are you do not feel the body. The more you are in infinite consciousness, the least you feel the tension or the physical weight of your person. That is brahmacharya.

Our consciousness expanded to infinity, moving in infinity, in our true nature, in that space brings you lot of vigour and valour and strength in you. A person who is small minded is always looking at "who is good looking, with whom can I have sex?" You will see that such a person's energy is low, so dull and nobody goes near that sort of a person. A person who is so obsessed with sex is so unattractive. Isn't it? They create such a thick and dull vibration around him or her. There is no strength, there is no vigour, there is no commitment. Nothing comes out of them. Have you noticed this? If you have not noticed, see in all those places where such people gather in the bars. You can find them here and there in one of the streets. Such thick, lust loaded mind. They have no strength at all. They just go anywhere, go behind anybody. They do not even see where they are going.

There is a story about Mullah Nasseruddin. Mullah Nasseruddin was watching a dance on a move screen. An actress was dancing. Mullah was watching dance, waiting and waiting. Suddenly Mullah went flat on the floor. His wife asked "What is this? What are you doing?" he said "I want to see the dance of this lady more closely. I am waiting when she will sit down". The mind goes to such a crazy state that there is not enough strength left behind. It is limited and all jealousy, anger, frustration and everything comes up when this stench of negativity comes in the mind. That is the weakest and the poorest mind. All truth about existence disappears. When your mind is obsessed with such a load of negativity, you cannot even observe the beautiful nature you are in. Isn't it?

Brahmacharya pratishtayam veryalabaha. Great strength comes when you are in Brahmacharya. When brahmacharya is established in you, you see that you are more than the body. You see yourself as the consciousness, Brahaman. Not indulging in sensual pleasures like sex or taste, smell etc gives you strength from inside. The more obsessed you are with something, that indicates your weakness. When Brahmacharya is firmly established in you. You become vast and powerful.

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(This is part of a series of knowledge sheets based on Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar's commentaries on Patanjali Yoga Sutras.)