!ights of pleasure

does spiritual development require celibacy?

Eileen Delehanty Pearkes looks at the nuances of brahmacarya in the !th of a "#-part series exploring the yamas & niyamas. illustrations by Cristina Sitja Rubio

20 ascent magazine 35 autumn 2007 few merlin hawks live in a small are followed by the niyamas, or prin- As raptors, merlins are birds of prey stretch of mature woodland ciples that guide one’s relationship to that use their strength and speed to not far from my house. I hear oneself. Brahmacarya is the fourth seize and plunder. They are direct and Athem taking control of the skies each yama, explained in sutra II.38. This keenly aware. They are more likely to year as the mating season begins. They word translates variously as “contin- capture and consume small songbirds fill the air with a high-pitched avian ence,” “chastity” and “celibacy” or more than nibble politely at seed-heads of laughter somewhere between a hoot generally as “highest modification of grass. Like eagles, falcons and other and a cackle. They swoop and slice the the senses” and “respect for the Divine.” hawks, they know what they want and dome overhead with their sharp wings. A common interpretation of the ori- they go after it. Their focused stance Sometimes, they construct their roost ginal Sanskrit is that with containment includes the work of procreation. in a tall fir tree that stands like a senti- of sexual energy comes greater vital- For creatures other than humans, nel just down the hill. I like to look up ity, potency and vigour. This in turn annual mating appears to be motivated from my tasks in the garden to watch focuses essential energy on spiritual by a deep-seated instinct to perpetu- them go about their celestial lives. worship and respect. ate the species. It does not get much When I was walking in the wood- The freedom of the birds was not more complicated than that, whether land one day, I heard a merlin’s intense lost on me that day, nor was the sense I the creature is a bear, deer, sea otter chuckle directly overhead. I looked up had of their airy pragmatism, their sin- or hummingbird. In the natural world, and, following the noise to the tip of gular focus on the task at hand, their the act of copulation is precisely con- a fir tree, found two merlins, not one. unfettered, instinctual approach. I tained by its own purpose. Emotional They were locked in a midair mating couldn’t help but contrast their experi- entanglements, complicated power dance, wings fluttering around them in ence to mine. Mating to perpetuate the struggles, hurt feelings and the giving a feathered tangle. I was spellbound by species may have been the purpose of over of precious energy to another do their balance and poise. Even from my sex back in the mists of time, but for not appear to enter into the process. own perch on the ground, I could feel thousands of years, human physical And then there is the quasi-natural the incredible concentration of energy intimacy has also been imbued with world of human beings. I seem to be as they joined with one another with- many other complex cultural experien- on a different flight pattern altogether out any support of their weight. ces: love, pleasure, possession, power from the birds and other wild creatures The yoga sutras of Patanjali, which and control, to name just a few. In fact, around me. I often find that I need outline the various practices that the biological purpose behind sex – the spiritual guidance for my relation- lead to spiritual freedom in a series meeting of two sets of cells to form a ships with others to function at their of aphorisms, discuss a yogi’s use of new life – is an outcome specifically best, even when it comes to matters sexual energy. Patanjali mentions the avoided or guarded against by many of the flesh. How can I allow myself five yamas, or basic principles of behav- in the West. The emotionally charged to be influenced by brahmacarya, to iour guiding how an individual should or physically pleasurable aspects of learn to love in a constructive way that relate to others in the world. The yamas mating often dominate instead. supports my spiritual development?

ascent magazine 35 autumn 2007 21 Does spiritual development necessarily many nuances of the meaning behind and drama can be traced back to the require celibacy? brahmacarya. He teaches that contin- misuse of, or a lack of awareness of, the As B. K. S. Iyengar points out in ence or control of sexual energy does potency of sexual energy and the best Light on the Yoga Sutra, brahmacarya not translate as complete denial of it, use of its gifts. is often misunderstood in the West as and in no way contradicts the meas- As I have reflected on brahmacarya, total abstinence. The sutra’s language ured enjoyment of pleasure. In his view, I have had moments of wondering is in fact quite vague on the “dos and brahmacarya encompasses but does not whether it is possible to have sex and don’ts” of relating to others in this way. limit itself to the concept of physical continue to develop spiritually and Another yoga teacher and translator of celibacy. Developing a cultured body physically in a yoga practice. I have the sutras, Mukunda Stiles, interprets in the yoga tradition is not so much a also wondered the opposite with this yama not as celibacy or contain- moral issue as a choice: to use sexual some clawing resentment: Why might ment at all but as “abiding in behaviour energy wisely and well. I need to give up such a pleasurable, that respects the Divine as omnipres- I have had the experience of doing deeply human experience in order to ent.” Nothing there about never having neither, with the result being a fair evolve and seek greater meaning in this sex. In fact, the great master Vasista share of mixed feelings, inner turmoil world? had 100 children, and some of yoga’s and even some good old-fashioned Abstinence is counseled by many twentieth-century masters – Iyengar drama in my life. My track record of spiritual teachers in many traditions himself, Sri K. Pattabi Jois and T. K. V. “abiding behaviour” has fallen short of during the process of an individual Desikachar, to name a few – are mar- the mark. My own foibles explicate seeker’s evolution toward the highest ried with children. quite clearly how romantic entangle- forms of human consciousness. On the Iyengar writes and thinks in a ments could effectively divert a spirit- path to spiritual liberation, all attach- measured tone as he presents the ual seeker. Much of my life’s turmoil ments, egoism and clinging to life

22 ascent magazine 35 autumn 2007 must be relinquished. The process of tion to the full and appropriate use of inspires me, my practice of yoga tethers enlightenment can be impeded by the the abundant energy carried by each of me, always, to the Earth. When I stand leaking of energy to procreation and us through our lives, in whatever stage in the Mountain pose at the beginning pleasure, rather than containing it to we find ourselves. We are all, in effect, and end of the primary series of Ash- do the work of higher consciousness: lifelong students of the complex inter- tanga Yoga, I feel the Earth’s stability prayer, meditation and selfless service play between self and other. We are all and reality beneath my feet. I love the to the Divine. lifelong seekers of greater meaning in practice for its refinement of my body’s And yet I am not a sanyasin, the the world. physical experience in the world. I Sanskrit word that describes a seeker Being guided by brahmacarya asks appreciate the ideal of brahmacarya, on the path who gives up everything in me to take full responsibility for the one that promises not to exclude the service to the Divine. Many yoga trad- remarkable potential of the creative fullness of human experience, but to itions in India would instead call me a life force, one that manifests in many give it greater meaning. \ “householder yogi,” one who seeks to forms, at many levels. Connecting integrate the wisdom and elegance of intimately with another human being Eileen Delehanty Pearkes practises Ashtanga Yoga yoga within the framework of day-to- is only one of the possibilities, though and lives in Nelson, BC. She is the author of !e day life, as I peel carrots, vacuum, nur- it is an enticing one. It can be danger- Geography of Memory and co-author of !e Inner Green. Her third book, !e Glass Seed, will soon be ture a marriage and family and meet ous, exciting, risky and, in its own way, released by timeless books. Eileen’s exploration of deadlines. liberating. It can call up powerful and the yamas and niyamas will continue in the next issue as she interprets tapas (or puri!cation). The word brahmacarya also de- mysterious experiences. It can bring previous parts in this series for ascent: Asteya: scribes a specific stage of life when about wonderful flights of pleasure. non-stealing (issue "#); Samtosa: accepting what young Hindu students undertake study Although the focused awareness happens (issue $"); Aparigraha: taking only what is necessary (issue $$); Sauca: inner and outer cleanli- of the sacred texts. It calls cultural atten- and perception of the midair merlins ness (issue $%)

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