Brahmacarya literally means `to act in Brahman.' One whose
life's actions are always executed in the consciousness of `I am not the
body' is called a brahmacari. The word brahmacarya is commonly translated
as `sexual abstinence,' but celibacy is only a partial explanation of this
word. Sexual continence in itself is not the goal; the goal is to control
the senses in order to achieve deeper levels of inner awareness. Patanjala
Yoga takes brahmacarya in a wider sense to mean selectively performing only
those activities that are helpful in achieving the highest goal of life.
Brahmacarya is possible only when the mind is free from all sensuous
desires, especially the sexual urge, which is the most powerful and which
can be most destructive if not directed and channeled properly. Illicit
sexual activity dissipates vital energy that is to be utilized for the
attainment of higher consciousness. For achieving this goal, the Yoga
system advises one to organize all his sensory forces and to utilize them
in a proper and beneficial way. It teaches control of sensual cravings in
order to attain that inner peace and happiness that is greater than all
transient bodily pleasures. Uncontrolled senses weaken the mind, and a
weakened mind has no capacity to concentrate in one direction or on one
object. A person with a mind weakened by lust fails to think properly, to
speak properly, or to act properly. For higher attainment, one therefore
has to withdraw his energies from the petty charms and temptations
of sensory objects and convert the flow of the life force toward
higher consciousness.