Brahmacharya

According to Indian system of thoughts, brahmacharyais a compulsory vow to be practised by everyone for the attainment of moksha, the supreme state of experience.Indian System has not but demarcated moksha as an area exclusively meant for the celebrated saints only. It includes not only all human beings in the sphere of moksha but also non-humans like plants, animals, birds etc.,which also are equally eligible to attain moksha.The Indian tradition is generous enough to accept that even a grain of sand can also attain moksha. If moksha is a state of experience to be aspired and attained by one and all and if brahmacharya is a necessary vow to be practised by everyone for the attainment of moksha, then what exactly is the meaning of the term brahmacharya is a question to be answered specifically.The English equivalent of brahmacharya is celibacy, which only means to abstain from sexual intercourse.But the Indian System does not insist that one has to practise celibacy as part of brahmacharya because if celibacy is part and parcel of brahmacharya, then a large group of household person cannot attain moksha.If we exclude all married men from the sphere of moksha, then indeed it is a great injustice. Brahmacharya in Indian context means the minimum use of worldly pleasures through self regulation.It does not prohibit the enjoyment of worldly pleasures because it is impossible to lead a normal life in a market ridden world without having worldly pleasures; moreover our sense organs and mind are having the inborn tendency to enjoy the world at its’ best.Therefore no human can abstain completely from enjoyment of worldly pleasures.Hence what the Indian System insists is that we have to control ourselves from the tide of market pleasures, checking our craving for physical pleasures.