Please list benefits of practising celibacy.

Hare Krsna,

The benefits of practising celibacy are numerous, difficult to individually list them all.

His divine grace, A.C Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, has explained in the Srimad Bhagavatam why it is so important, especially nowadays in Kali Yuga.

Srimad Bhagavatam First Canto
For a man desiring to improve the condition of his existence, sex indulgence is considered suicidal, or even worse. Therefore, to live apart from family life means to become self-controlled in regard to all sense desires,
especially sex desires. The method is that one should have a duly sanctified sitting place made of straw, deerskin and carpet, and thus sitting on it one should chant the holy name of the Lord without offense,
as prescribed above. The whole process is to drag the mind from material engagements and fix it on the lotus feet of the Lord. This simple process alone will help one advance to the highest stage of spiritual success.

Srimad Bhagavatam Second Canto
"Birth, death,old age and disease are related to the material body, and they have nothing to do with the spirit soul. But as long as the bodily attachment for sensual enjoyment is encouraged, the individual spirit soul is forced
to continue the repetition of birth and death on account of the material body, which is compared to garments subjected to the law of deterioration.

In order to award the highest benefit of human life, the varnasrama system trains the follower to adopt the vow of celibacy beginning from the order of brahmacari. The brahmacari life is for students who are
educated to follow strictly the vow of celibacy. Youngsters who have had no taste of sex life can easily follow the vow of celibacy, and once fixed in the principle of such a life, one can very easily continue to the highest perfectional stage, attaining the kingdom of the three fourths energy of the Lord.

Any form of religious principles in which the followers are trained to pursue the vow of celibacy is good for the human being because only those who are trained in that way can end the miserable life of material existence.
The principles of nirvana, as recommended by Lord Buddha, are also meant for ending the miserable life of material existence. And this process, in the highest degree, is recommended here in the Srimad-Bhagavatam, with
clear perception of ideal perfection, although basically there is no difference between the process of Buddhists, Sankarites and Vaisnavites. For promotion to the highest status of perfection, namely freedom from birth and death, anxiety and fearfulness, not one of these processes allows the follower to break the vow of celibacy.

The vanaprasthas, or those retired from family life, and the sannyasis, or the renounced persons, cannot break the vow of celibacy if they want success in the process. The brahmacaris, vanaprasthas and sannyasis do not intend to take rebirth (apraja), nor are they meant for secretly indulging in sex life. Such a falldown by the spiritualist may be compensated by another chance for human life in good families of learned brahmanas or of rich merchants for another term of elevation, but the best thing is to attain the highest perfection of deathlessness as soon as the human form of life is attained; otherwise the whole policy of human life will prove to be a total failure."

"The whole world is moving under the spell of womanly attraction, and as soon as a man becomes united with a woman, he at once becomes a victim of material bondage under a tight knot."

"The desires for lording it over the material world, under the intoxication of a false sense of lordship, specifically begin just after the man's unification with a woman. The desires for acquiring a house, possessing land, having children and
becoming prominent in society, the affection for community and the place of birth, and the hankering for wealth, which are all like phantasmagoria or illusory dreams, encumber a human being, and he is thus impeded in his
progress toward self-realization, the real aim of life. The brahmacari, or a boy from the age of five years, especially from the higher castes, namely from the scholarly parents (the brahmanas), the administrative parents (the ksatriyas), or the mercantile or productive parents (the vaisyas), is trained until twenty-five years of age under the care of a
bona fide guru or teacher, and under strict observance of discipline he comes to understand the values of life along with taking specific training for a livelihood. The brahmacari is then allowed to go home and enter householder life and get married to a suitable woman. But there are many brahmacaris who do not go home to become householders but continue the life of naisthika-brahmacaris, without any connection with women. They accept the order of sannyasa, or the renounced order of life, knowing well that combination with women is an unnecessary burden that checks self-realization. Since sex desire is very strong at a certain stage of life, the guru may allow the brahmacari to marry; this license is given to a brahmacari who is unable to continue the way of naisthikabrahmacarya, and such discriminations are possible for the bona fide guru."

Note: It is not the women themselves who are a source of problems. It is easy to misinterprete the above statements.

It is just that free mixing of men and women and the strength of the senses is so strong that young spiritual aspirants have to be careful all the time. Even married couples should practice celibacy except for procreating good Krsna conscious children. Women need to be seen as souls behind the bodily cover.

Please reply if you have more questions.

Haribol,

Replies

Volunteer

Jay Krishnan Ramasawmy June 20, 2014 at 9:56pm

Hare Krsna,

The benefits of practising celibacy are numerous, difficult to individually list them all.

His divine grace, A.C Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, has explained in the Srimad Bhagavatam why it is so important, especially nowadays in Kali Yuga.

Srimad Bhagavatam First Canto
For a man desiring to improve the condition of his existence, sex indulgence is considered suicidal, or even worse. Therefore, to live apart from family life means to become self-controlled in regard to all sense desires,
especially sex desires. The method is that one should have a duly sanctified sitting place made of straw, deerskin and carpet, and thus sitting on it one should chant the holy name of the Lord without offense,
as prescribed above. The whole process is to drag the mind from material engagements and fix it on the lotus feet of the Lord. This simple process alone will help one advance to the highest stage of spiritual success.

Srimad Bhagavatam Second Canto
"Birth, death,old age and disease are related to the material body, and they have nothing to do with the spirit soul. But as long as the bodily attachment for sensual enjoyment is encouraged, the individual spirit soul is forced
to continue the repetition of birth and death on account of the material body, which is compared to garments subjected to the law of deterioration.

In order to award the highest benefit of human life, the varnasrama system trains the follower to adopt the vow of celibacy beginning from the order of brahmacari. The brahmacari life is for students who are
educated to follow strictly the vow of celibacy. Youngsters who have had no taste of sex life can easily follow the vow of celibacy, and once fixed in the principle of such a life, one can very easily continue to the highest perfectional stage, attaining the kingdom of the three fourths energy of the Lord.

Any form of religious principles in which the followers are trained to pursue the vow of celibacy is good for the human being because only those who are trained in that way can end the miserable life of material existence.
The principles of nirvana, as recommended by Lord Buddha, are also meant for ending the miserable life of material existence. And this process, in the highest degree, is recommended here in the Srimad-Bhagavatam, with
clear perception of ideal perfection, although basically there is no difference between the process of Buddhists, Sankarites and Vaisnavites. For promotion to the highest status of perfection, namely freedom from birth and death, anxiety and fearfulness, not one of these processes allows the follower to break the vow of celibacy.

The vanaprasthas, or those retired from family life, and the sannyasis, or the renounced persons, cannot break the vow of celibacy if they want success in the process. The brahmacaris, vanaprasthas and sannyasis do not intend to take rebirth (apraja), nor are they meant for secretly indulging in sex life. Such a falldown by the spiritualist may be compensated by another chance for human life in good families of learned brahmanas or of rich merchants for another term of elevation, but the best thing is to attain the highest perfection of deathlessness as soon as the human form of life is attained; otherwise the whole policy of human life will prove to be a total failure."

"The whole world is moving under the spell of womanly attraction, and as soon as a man becomes united with a woman, he at once becomes a victim of material bondage under a tight knot."

"The desires for lording it over the material world, under the intoxication of a false sense of lordship, specifically begin just after the man's unification with a woman. The desires for acquiring a house, possessing land, having children and
becoming prominent in society, the affection for community and the place of birth, and the hankering for wealth, which are all like phantasmagoria or illusory dreams, encumber a human being, and he is thus impeded in his
progress toward self-realization, the real aim of life. The brahmacari, or a boy from the age of five years, especially from the higher castes, namely from the scholarly parents (the brahmanas), the administrative parents (the ksatriyas), or the mercantile or productive parents (the vaisyas), is trained until twenty-five years of age under the care of a
bona fide guru or teacher, and under strict observance of discipline he comes to understand the values of life along with taking specific training for a livelihood. The brahmacari is then allowed to go home and enter householder life and get married to a suitable woman. But there are many brahmacaris who do not go home to become householders but continue the life of naisthika-brahmacaris, without any connection with women. They accept the order of sannyasa, or the renounced order of life, knowing well that combination with women is an unnecessary burden that checks self-realization. Since sex desire is very strong at a certain stage of life, the guru may allow the brahmacari to marry; this license is given to a brahmacari who is unable to continue the way of naisthikabrahmacarya, and such discriminations are possible for the bona fide guru."

Note: It is not the women themselves who are a source of problems. It is easy to misinterprete the above statements.

It is just that free mixing of men and women and the strength of the senses is so strong that young spiritual aspirants have to be careful all the time. Even married couples should practice celibacy except for procreating good Krsna conscious children. Women need to be seen as souls behind the bodily cover.

Please reply if you have more questions.

Haribol,
- Lord Chaitanya > Jay Krishnan Ramasawmy June 22, 2014 at 10:12am
  
  Thank you for your kind reply. :)

This reply was deleted.