THE APEX OF CIVILIZATION STOPPING SEX LIFE The ancient Vedic literatures identify and categorize living entities

in various species or forms of life. To be precise, the number of species has been divided in six categories totaling 8,400,000. From the Padma Purana we receive the following information: Jalaja nava laksani (900,000 types of aquatics) Sthavara laksa-vimsati (2 million types of tress, plants and creepers) Krmayo rudra-sankhyakah (1.1 million type of insects) Paksimam dasa-laksanam (1 million types of birds) Trimsal-laksani pusavah (3 million types of animals) Catur-laksani manusah (400,000 types of humans) This means that the larger percentage of species (79%) is below the human level (21%) and by simple observation we know that the population of humans on the planet is very minute compared to the population of the other species combined. Out of these 400,000 human species, most are not civilized being predominantly governed by the basic urges of eating, sleeping, mating and defending, the basic instinct in all lower forms of life. According to Vedic culture, civilization begins when one rises above the bodily identification and accepts the basic concept of God consciousness, understanding that there is a fundamental difference between matter and spirit or between the body and the soul. That is considered the beginning of knowledge. In all the lower species of life, namely the 8 million below the human form of life, due to total bodily identification and undeveloped consciousness, the focal point in life is how to increase sense gratification. That sense gratification is most strongly expressed through the sex urge, described in the sastra as maituna bhava, the spirit of enjoyment through sex indulgence. By the laws of nature, when opportunities for sex life present themselves, the natural instinct is to indulge. This is also explained in the Bhagavad-gita as kama, lust, the all-devouring sinful enemy of this world: kama esa krodha esa rajo-guna samudbhavah mahasama maha-papma viddhy enam iha vairinam The Supreme Personality of Godhead said: it is lust only, Arjuna, which is born of contact with the material mode of passion and later transformed into wrath, and which is the all-devouring sinful enemy of this world. Bg.3.37 When this same bodily identification remains the focal point in the

human form of life, according to Vedic understanding, one behaves just like one in animal consciousness and is therefor referred to as dui-pada pasu, a two-legged animal. In such lower consciousness, one cannot develop spiritual life and is destined to continue suffering in this material world. To put an end to this unending suffering, the Vedic literatures give so much importance to voluntarily accepting vows of celibacy during the tender years of student life. In this way one can learn to regulate, minimize and eventually stop altogether the sex attraction. This eradication of sex life is described as the climax of sanatana-dharma or varnasrama dharma. The highest benefit that can be awarded to a human being is to train him to be detached from sex life, particularly because it is only due to sex indulgence that the conditioned life of material existence continues birth after birth. Human civilization in which there is no control of sex life is a fourth class civilization because in such an atmosphere there is no liberation of the soul encaged in the material body. SB 2.6.20 An intelligent person will therefore try to understand how precious and rare is this human form of life. One should not lose this opportunity to put an end to the never-ending repetition of birth and death in this material world. The greatest danger is to again plunge into lower species of life to experience untold sufferings life after life. Therefore, training and consciousness building is of most importance for which the scientific system of varnas and asramas have been designed with special emphasis on sense control: In order to award the highest benefit of human life, the varnasrama system trains the followers to adopt the vow of celibacy beginning from the order of brahmacaries. The brahmacary life is for students who are educated to follow strictly the vow of celibacy. Youngsters who have had no taste for 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. Srimad-Bhagavatam, 2.6.20 In this age of Kali, this is more easily achieved by taking up to the chanting of the holy names of God, in particular the Hare Krishna mahamantra as recommended by Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu: Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare Developing a higher taste in life, love of God, is only possible if the sex urge is controlled. This is the perfection of life, the apex of civilization.