Brahmacarya in the Vishṇu Dharmottara Purāṇa

Brahmacarya · brahma-carya, “walking in Brahman”

A brahmacārin is a Vedic student who lives with his guru (teacher) and follows a life of study, simplicity and self-control. This stage of life is called brahmacarya. It begins with the upanayana, the sacred-thread ceremony that marks the start of formal learning.

Chapter 86 of the Dvitīya Khaṇḍa (second part) of the Vishṇu Dharmottara Purāṇa gives the Brahmacarya-varṇana, a description of the student’s life. In it, Pushkara lays out the student’s full daily routine. He stresses three things above all: guru-sevā (service to the teacher), agni-kārya (tending the sacred fire), and sandhyopāsana (the prayers at dawn and dusk, the two meeting points of the day). He ends by describing the two ways a student’s life can be completed: as a snātaka, who finishes his studies, or as a naishṭhika-brahmacārin, who stays celibate for life.

The Student’s Daily Routine

After the ācārya (teacher) performs the upanayana, the first things taught to the new student are four: śauca (cleanliness), ācāra (right conduct), agni-kārya (looking after the sacred fire), and sandhyopāsana (prārthanā at dawn and dusk). All Vedic learning rests on these four. Without them, whatever the student learns has no firm root in dharma.

The brahmacārin’s day runs like this:

  1. Rising: The student gets up at brahma-muhūrta (the hour before dawn), bathes, and performs the morning agni-kārya.
  2. Guru-praṇāma: He goes to his guru and offers sāshṭāṅga praṇāma (a full bow with the whole body on the ground). He touches the guru’s left foot with his left hand and the right foot with his right hand, says his own name, and offers abhivādana (a formal greeting).
  3. Adhyayana (study): With the guru’s permission, he recites the Vedas. He sits facing the guru, with his hands held in brahmāñjali (a respectful gesture used during study), and recites with proper reverence. He chants praṇava (Oṃ) at the start and end of each recitation.
  4. Anadhyāya (non-study days): On the set anadhyāya days, study stops. This rule must be kept carefully.
  5. Bhikshā-caraṇa (the alms round): After study, the student goes to brāhmaṇa homes to ask for food. He does not ask at his guru’s own home. When he has received food, he tells the guru and eats only with the guru’s permission. Facing east while eating brings long life, facing south brings fame, facing north brings truth, and facing west brings prosperity.

Service to the Guru

Everything the student does is for the guru’s good and happiness, done with bhakti (loving devotion) and without ahaṃkāra (ego). In the evening:

  • He performs the evening sandhyā.
  • He lights the sacred fire for the evening agni-kārya.
  • He greets the guru.
  • Only then does he do whatever work the guru has asked of him.

What the Brahmacārin Must Avoid

The student must strictly keep away from:

  • Madya (intoxicants)
  • Māṃsa (meat)
  • Kājala or kāṭuka (unsuitable kinds of cosmetics)
  • Taking part in śrāddha (rites for the ancestors) while he is a student
  • Gāna (music for entertainment) and nāṭya (dance and drama)
  • Hiṃsā (violence of any kind)
  • Parāpavāda (speaking ill of others)
  • Aślīla-sambhāshaṇa (vulgar speech)

He must wear the mekhalā (sacred girdle), the ajina (deerskin) and the daṇḍa (staff) at all times. If any of these is lost or ruined, it is placed in water, and a new set is taken with a fresh rite.

Bathing and Bodily Discipline

For the whole period of the brahmacarya-vrata (the student’s vow), the student bathes and drinks as his guru instructs and allows. He sleeps on the floor, not on a raised bed.

Completing the Student Vow

To complete the period of Vedic study:

  1. The student performs the samāpti-vrata (completion rite) over three nights.
  2. He becomes purified.
  3. He offers guru-dakshiṇā, the traditional gift to the teacher in thanks for his teaching.
  4. The snātaka-saṃskāra, the graduation bath, is then performed.

At the snātaka ceremony, the student also completes the go-dāna-vrata (the gift of a cow). Both of these, the snāna (bath) and the go-dāna, are to be done before marriage.

The Two Paths After Student Life

The path of the snātaka: Having finished his Vedic study and the snātaka rite, the student gives guru-dakshiṇā, completes his vidyā (learning), and then enters the gṛhastha-āśrama, the householder’s stage of life. He carries into household life the good of both this world and the next (iha-loka and para-loka).

The path of the naishṭhika-brahmacārin: Or the student may choose to stay in his guru’s home for good, keeping brahmacarya until the body falls away (śarīra-moksha). Such a person is called a naishṭhika-brahmacārin. Pushkara speaks of him in lofty words: he is like the wind, like ākāśa (space); he is the very form of Brahman. He reaches the highest state, Brahma-pada, and is freed from all sorrow.

Pūjā of Vishṇu at Every Stage

Bhagavān Vāsudeva is to be honoured with pūjā at every stage of student life. He is called upon during the alms round. Bhagavān Hṛshīkeśa, the master of all the senses, presides over every vrata (vow). Pushkara closes by saying that whatever vow the student takes, the pūjā of Bhagavān Vishṇu must go with it and cannot be separated from it.

Sources

  • Vishṇu Dharmottara Purāṇa, Uttarārdha (Dvitīya Khaṇḍa), Chapter 86