Brahmacharya
Question
Hello Dhanajay,
I want to thank you for your responses to other questioners...they have been excellent! I have a couple of questions...you mentioned in another response, to 'ease' into Brahmacharya, for a few days, then a few weeks, then a few months etc...do you still see benefit from part-time Brahmacharya...maybe a few months per year? I have been abstinent for a few weeks now, and have SO much energy that I do not sleep...I am still alert and energised. Is this common? Is it normal for a yogi to sleep only 2-3 hours per day?
Answer
Hello Dru,
Trust this finds you fine. Good to hear of your interest as regards Brahmacharya. Coming to the answers,
A life of Brahmacharya will give benefits and nothing but benefits to man or woman, immaterial of their age, cast, creed, marital status and any other external factor. If a man stays for a single day in a state of Brahmacharya in thought, word and deed he derives the benefit of that single day's virtue and purity, however small it might be. If he maintains the absolute state of purity for a week, weeks, months or years he derives the commensurate benefit that increases with time.
A person used to a life of sexuality will not be able to practice unbroken Brahmacharya all of a sudden. It is a divine and special mode of life that requires much change in the overall personality comprised of physical, mental and karmic elements. The grace of God and honest efforts are necessary for one to reach a stage where he can remain endlessly in the state and enjoy the immense benefits and power. Also, the bodily purification and cleansing of toxins that is required to make the mind and body fit for unbroken celibacy takes time, effort and consistent practice. Brief periods of illness sometimes manifest at the initial stages of Brahmacharya when the embedded toxins present within due to past karma surface in the course of purification. The Brahmachari has to brave all these odds and yet march on with determination if he wants to win the reward called unbroken Brahmacharya. Keeping the above fact in mind, it makes more sense to gradually increase the duration of Brahmacharya and finally achieve the unbroken state.
Is there any benefit from part-time Brahmacharya? As mentioned, Brahmacharya always has its benefits immaterial of the duration. The longer and more consistent Brahmacharya is, the greater and more pronounced are the benefits and power. If a person were to practice it for a few weeks or months he derives that much benefit as his efforts deserve. The benefits in terms of physical health and strength, mental calmness, emotional stability and increase in spiritual awareness proportionately increase with longer and longer durations of Brahmacharya and so much to the point that man gradually reaches a state where he will never be ready to loose his semen for the momentary excitement of sexual release that is followed by weakness, depression and emotional imbalance caused by the immense loss of Prâna as an aftermath of ejaculation. Once this state is reached where one is not ready to part with semen at any cost, it becomes all the more possible in taking concrete steps towards unbroken Brahmacharya; the gateway to the unfolding of all siddhis (divine powers) and finally self-realization in course of time.
What is very important is to ensure that adequate physical and intellectual activity coupled with God-meditation are practiced on a daily basis without fail. A life of Yoga with Prânayâma (as has been explained in past answers) if followed will accelerate progress to a great extent. Unbroken Brahmacharya comes very much into the reach of one established in Yoga with Prânayâma. Equally important is never letting lustful thoughts grow in the mind when they show their heads. One should not try to fight lustful thoughts but should instead displace these thoughts by replacing them with divine, virtuous and productive thoughts. If these points are ruthlessly enforced the state of unbroken Brahmacharya becomes very possible and reachable. This is the real, natural and default state of a human being. The sexual state is a state that is natural only at the time of copulation carried out for begetting a child and nothing more. People ignorantly extend this state to all domains of their life, thereby limiting their true potential, forgetting their divinity and immersing themselves in all sorts of physical, mental and emotional problems.
The conservation and transmutation of semen saves the body a mammoth amount of life energy. The initial stages of Brahmacharya do not involve resorption of semen but only involve non-production of the excessive amounts of semen that the body earlier had to generate. Since the loss has been stopped, the body correspondingly rests and reduces semen production. This rest that the body savors is of no mean magnitude but immense in proportion. It puts the body on the track where it starts restoring itself to perfect health. Sleep is a state where the body rejuvenates and refurbishes from stress and strain accrued while being awake . Since an enormous amount of energy is conserved through checking the loss of semen, the body is left fresh with much energy even after a days work, reducing the need for sleep and rest in the Yogi. For overall health and well being a Yogi is allowed not more than maximum of 7 hours of sleep at night. This duration may be lesser based on how much sleep each individual needs dictated by the intensity of his activity. Sleeping during the day when the Sun is up is to be avoided.
ॐ तत् सत्
(That Supreme being is the absolute truth)