Bramacharya is the fourth Yama, described by Maharishi Patanjali, in the Yoga Sutras. The literal definition of the root words, brahma and acarya, is “brahmanical behavior”. In fact, Bramacharya is also the first Asrama (stage of the life of a Brahman), when a student lives a life of celibacy and purity, while studying the Vedas.

In the words of Swami Sivananda: “Celibacy is to a yogi what electricity is to a light bulb. Without celibacy, no spiritual progress is possible. It is a potent weapon and shield to wage war against the evil forces within. lust, anger and greed. It serves as a gateway to the happiness of the afterlife and opens the door to liberation.”

How does this apply to the general population, who are not Brahmins? How can the average Yoga practitioner live a pure life? Quite simply, Brahmacharya is the path of moderation. There is no need to hug the extremes.

Siddhartha Gautama, the Buddha, described the “Middle Way” as the middle path between an ascetic lifestyle and one dedicated to the world as we know it. Again, this is moderation in our thoughts, words, actions, and non-actions.

You can apply this to relationships, diet, work, religion, and everything else in life. If we consider diet, you might be amused by the findings. Contemporary yogis and yoginis have, in some cases, banned coffee. Coffee contains caffeine and therefore must be “bad” because our senses are overstimulated.

After a lecture on the spiritual and physical “evils” of coffee, several yoga teacher trainees decided to forgo their morning cup of joe. In reality, they were going through a form of chemical withdrawal the next day. By lunchtime, some of them had gone for coffee and said that they felt better during the afternoon Yoga session.

To be honest, some of us can give up coffee without much effort, while others will get a headache without coffee, and this is a reaction to physical dependence on caffeine. So where do we find a cup of decaf coffee? Will giving up coffee get you a ticket to heaven?

So far, we’ve only discussed moderation in coffee consumption, but let’s expand our thoughts to another topic. If we spend our lives in worship, but have poor relationships with others, something is missing. The people around us are worthy of our attention, and we still live on Earth.

When you consider the extremes, look at our history and the role fundamentalism has played in keeping humanity from progressing. The path of moderation is full of tolerance for those who do not live like us. A yogic lifestyle requires moderation and thus avoiding extremes.

© Copyright 2008 – Paul Jerard / Aura Publications

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