brahmacharya pratisthayam virya labhah 

Sutra 2.38 – ‘When walking in the awareness of the highest reality (brahmacharya) is firmly established, then a great strength, capacity, or vitality (virya) is acquired.’ Swami Sri Vidya

With these posts I am trying to bring a little simplicity into Yoga Philosophy, it is not an easy task, however the teachings of Yoga are very relevant to our modern day living so by giving you my thoughts around these concepts I hope I can shed a little light and bring some of these lessons into your everyday living.

The fourth Yama is Bramacharya, which can be translated as continence/celebacy, but it’s meaning goes much deeper. By truly practicing and honouring this Yama we simplify, remember our highest selves are so much more than the day to day craving and eversion. When we continue to return to the deeper meaning of Bramacharya we are lead to a state of Virya, which is a great vitality. The great Rishis and Seers chose to be celibate due to the fact that they saw a greater truth to life beyond being a householder, they saw into the reality of living in this human body and chose to sit with this until they became liberated from the pain of existence.

What does all this mean for us living in the world? For me, right now, it means I need to take time to be still, be with myself, look for what is out there beyond checking my emails and running from one thing to do to the next. It means I give myself permission to step back for a little time each day and marvel at how incredible this human life is, so much more than filling in gaps with checking my Facebook feed. For my practice it means simplifying how I spend my money so that I may take a little time off work and deepen my knowledge of my craft of choice, Yoga. Bramacharya means, for me, that there are many forces that we cannot explain, but if we stop distracting ourselves with the small stuff, we may be shown the light and see into the nature of reality for a few precious glimpses.

What is it all for? Are any of the distractions real or meaningful? Where does happiness for you come from? These are questions which will elicit different answers depending on where you are in life, and there is no wrong or right, simply what is right now. What can you do to contemplate this further? Sit. Still. And breath. See what is there, underneath the busyness, what is really there?