Brahmacharya, rather than an act of repression and denial, is an act of stoking the fire of connection to something bigger than ourselves. Like the bandhas we use in asana practice, brahmacharya means being more aware of how I channel my energy – are we making choices in our daily liives to move closer to connection with Source energy or are we moving further away. As with all of the yamas and nyamas, it helps me to think of them not in terms of black and white or right and wrong, but in terms of what brings us closer to our true nature.
Brahmacharya can be practiced in every moment. For example, when I'm out at a restaurant and order that decadent cheesecake at the end of my meal, am I practicing brahmacharya? It depends. Surely it will bring me that inner ecstasy. I'd be following my bliss, as they say. However, if I'm already completely stuffed to the gills and only want to taste it to satisfy an overwhelming craving and then leave half of it on my plate, then no, I'm not practicing brahmacharya. I'm wasting all of the energy that went into making this beautiful dessert and I'm wasting my own energy trying to satisfy myself from the outside in. However, if I have mindfully eaten less dinner in order to make room for this delectable dessert and order it from a place of contentment (not desperation), then proceed to enjoy every bite with gratitude, then yes, I am practicing brahmacharya and eating cheesecake becomes a spiritual experience. So I must ask myself frequently, where do I concentrate my energy? Am I stoking the fire from within or trying to fill myself up with outside pleasures. When I feel lonely, anxious, scared, what choices am I making? Am I quelling the unpleasant emotions with sweets, TV, shopping? or am I stoking the fire, reinforcing the connection to Source through other means like asana, meditation, or simply sitting with the emotion and going through it rather than circumventing it with sensual shortcuts.
When we make the choice to embrace whatever emotions are arising and go through them, our connection to Source becomes stronger. The more often we make that choice, like a muscle, the stronger our discipline becomes and the easier it is to practice brahmacharya in each moment.
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In our fast-paced society where stress is predominant, we are surrounded by convenient and quick fixes - coffee, chocolate, fast food, TV, etc. and it is tempting to indulge in desires that can lead to obsession. We crave comfort in many forms and forget the simple pleasures in life as
we strive for more and more. I don't look at brahmacharya as a practice of denial or of giving up what gives us pleasure. Instead, it is a practice of seeing the divinity of who we are and recognizing the pleasure in what we already have.
I read somewhere that the practice of always wanting will always leave you feeling unsatisfied. It's so easy to see what we don't have and to ignore and not appreciate what we do have. The practice of brahmacharya can be practiced on and off the mat. On our mat, knowing what will serve our body, mind and spirit at the present time can help us to not push ourselves beyond what we need. Overextending, overstretching, overachieving, going beyond our limits can lead not only to physical injury but also to an unsatisfied mind and deflated spirit. Off our mat, we can become obsessed with an ideal that doesn't align with our own truth. We may want to be thinner, taller, richer, smarter, "fill-in-the-blank"-er, and our obsession leads to disappointment in ourselves. The practice of brahmacharya helps us appreciate who and
what we are at the present time without judgment. It is recognition of our own unique and individual needs which in turn teaches us that our own truth is indeed the ideal we strive.
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This is the yama that gives me the most trouble. As a woman, some commentaries on the yama bharmacharya simply don't relate. So I go back to considering what was said in the context of to whom it was said to glean some meaning that might be more applicable. As one of my cool yoga teacher friend says, "What I love about Patanjali is the permission to essentially not take someone else's word for it... But to kick the tires for yourself..." The inevitable flaw in this, of course, is that we incorrectly interpret these teachings based on what we most want to hear - extrapolating and then molding it to our own ego-driven way of thinking - and miss the point entirely. Nevertheless, fear of failing shall never hold me back (as witnessed by my many failings), so here goes:
Brahma - God, the SourceThis leads me to thinking about food, something I think about much of the time. Indeed, perhaps I was already thinking about food when I started thinking about brahmacharya. Food, moving towards the source, moderation. When I asked (read: begged) my yoga teacher for instructions on the yogic way of eating, he essentially gave me one very brief teaching, which was what was given to him: Eat close to the source. Or, since this was a spoken instruction, maybe it could be: Eat close to The Source. Here is our 5000 or more year-old tradition herding us back to what most of us Mid-Westerners already know. A tomato picked from our own backyard is a thousand times more delicious than even those organic ones flown in from California, supporting a non-local economy and gobbling up gallons of gas and oil along the way.
Charya - to move
moving towards the source
or, as found in many commentaries, moderation
Is it possible to extrapolate and allow this understanding of brahmacharya to unfold in such a way? Methinks, this was probably not what Patanjali was originally guiding his young disciples towards. However, it seems very applicable for the here and now.
Food and moderation: Entire careers have been built on this concept. And the growing (literally) number of cases of obesity in the US speak to the urgency of heeding this advice. It's simple, really; dessert doesn't have to be at every meal, half of the sandwich can satisfy me better than stuffing in the whole no matter how good it tastes, and treating myself to coffee doesn't need to be multiple times a week. Small steps. Just like in playing with awareness in asana, it requires visiting over and over again, a moment to moment, day by day practice.
Food and moving towards the source: We are now far removed from our ancestors' hunting & gathering lifestyle and it's obligatory diet, but the Clintonville Farmer's Market is returning soon and I am so looking forward to it. I've often courted a vegan diet, but we've yet to make the commitment to one another. The CFM gives me a chance to use the fresh fruits and veggies available to make vegan recipes and get creative in the kitchen, all while supporting local farmers and eating closer to the source as I define it. The "moving towards the source" piece of this yama regards all of our energies. Does this action take me away from or towards God? Defining God is the subject of another reflection all together, one that is a lifetime's work, but it seems worth it to ask ourselves "does this food choice take me away from or towards my understanding of God?" It's a rich question, full of other richer still questions.
And, as I frequently do, I turn to my friend Hafiz, for further guidance on the subject:
The Vegetables******************
Today
The vegetables would like to be cut
By someone who is singing God's Name.
How could Hafiz know
Such top secret information?
Because
Once we were all tomatoes,
Potatoes, onions, or
Zucchini.
Bramacharya (Haiku)
Continence practice:
I see what sits on my plate
And stop writing here.
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For me, bramacharya (abstinence or self restraint) is about focus. It is about knowing and nurturing our greatest strengths, not wasting energy on activities or relationships that aren't beneficial to our personal growth. If we are overly reactive to environmental stimuli, or cater too much to the needs of others, we spread ourselves thin, and can no longer put our best talents into the world. Bramacharya means truly loving and respecting oneself, and staying focused on that difficult task.
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