Living a life of purity and chastity may seem like a difficult path to take at first, without the allure of sensory pleasure. However, as one advances, it leads to great bliss and serenity. The quest for sensual pleasure is an illusory objective that may seem exciting at first, but ultimately leads to great pain. Even those who choose this path eventually realize that they have been deceived by their own senses and must return to the path of purity and godliness. This is the only way to achieve eternal bliss. We can save ourselves a great deal of trouble by listening to the voices of great masters who have written books of substance, such as the Bible, Quran, or Bhagavad-Gita.
As Lady Eleanor Roosevelt once said, “Learn from the mistakes of others, you cannot live long enough to make them all yourself.” The wise person absorbs the wisdom present all around them and learns from the mistakes of others.
Although the life of a spiritual celibate may seem dull and unappealing to the sensual man, he will eventually come to realize that the celibate is actually pursuing the shortcut to the land of eternal bliss. The sensual man, on the other hand, has wasted his time, energy, and might on the attractive but dead-end road to misery. He will have to travel all the way back to the crossroads once again and take the only true path to the land of bliss – the path of purity, godliness, and virtue.
God has given us some great weapons to fight temptations, including intelligence, discrimination, and contemplation. When used properly, they tell us what is right and what is wrong. All that is required is an iron determination to implement the suggestions given by the soul through these instruments. The soul is higher than all other faculties, and each one of us can hear its voice if we set aside time to sit quietly, contemplate, and concentrate on divinity. This is what meditation is all about. The tool used to calm the mind and empty it of its distractions is pranayama, or control of the vital energy achieved through regulated breathing. After learning these practices from a knowledgeable source, practice them constantly, and you will ultimately bear fruit.
