During my 300-hour advanced yoga teacher training at Center for Yoga in Los Angeles, I was particularly struck by the concept of Brahmacharya (Sutra II.38) in The Yoga Sutras, which challenged my understanding of sexual energy and its role in spiritual practice. Brahmacharya, often translated as continence or celibacy, is one of the five Yamas, which are ethical restraints in the practice of yoga. The five Yamas are:
Ahimsa (non-violence)
Satya (truthfulness)
Asteya (non-stealing)
Aparigraha (non-attachment)
Brahmacharya (continence)
The Yamas form the first limb of the eight limbs of yoga. These eight limbs provide a structured path for spiritual evolution, beginning with ethical restraints (Yamas) and culminating in deep meditative absorption (Samadhi), which include:
Yamas (ethical restraints)
Niyamas (positive duties)
Asanas (physical postures)
Pranayama (breathwork)
Pratyahara (withdrawal of the senses)
Dharana (concentration)
Dhyana (meditation)
Samadhi (absorption)
The Yoga Sutras are layered in complexity, like peeling an onion. The Yamas are found in the second chapter, Sadhana Pada, which focuses on the practical methods for spiritual progress. This chapter builds on the vision of Samadhi Pada (the first chapter) and leads to Vibhuti Pada (the third chapter, which discusses results), culminating in Kaivalya Pada (the final chapter on liberation).
What I appreciate about Sadhana Pada is that it contextualizes the eight limbs of yoga as a means to address the kleshas (obstacles to enlightenment) through discriminative discernment, or viveka (Sutra II.26 and II.28). Viveka, or discriminative discernment, is the practice of recognizing what is fleeting versus what is eternal. This ability helps practitioners navigate emotions and distractions with greater awareness. By practicing it, we learn to navigate disturbances—whether emotional or physical—without immediate reaction. In other words, one peels back what one is disturbed by, whether negative emotions or physical pain and confronts it in a new way. One of my personal kleshas is aversion (Sutra II.8), which is described as “attachment in reverse.” Through discriminative discernment, I practice witnessing what I avoid without resistance.
Among the five restraints of the Yamas, I will focus on Brahmacharya (Sutra II.30 and II.38). Sutra II.38 states: “Brahmacharya pratisthayam virya labhah,” meaning, “When established in Brahmacharya (continence or celibacy), vitality is gained.” Brahmacharya is less about suppression and more about energy management. Swami Satchidananda, in a 1974 talk at Rutgers University, advised a student inquiring about celibacy to “be efficient,” emphasizing that energy is a resource that can be directed toward spiritual growth and personal power.
One of the most debated aspects of Brahmacharya is its connection to sexual energy. While often translated as continence or celibacy, I interpret it as energy conservation, particularly through practices like semen retention, which align with the yogic goal of cultivating vitality. Sutra II.38 suggests that harnessing sexual energy leads to great vitality. Instead of depleting energy through excess, one can refine and redirect it through breathwork, conscious movement, and, in my interpretation, semen retention. “Virya” translates to vitality in Sutra II.38 and, in some contexts, refers to semen as its physical manifestation. The Hatha Yoga Pradipika, which was written in the 1500s and over one thousand years after The Yoga Sutras, discusses preserving and sublimating semen as an essential aspect of spiritual and physical power (HYP III.82–85). Vajroli Mudra, a tantric practice, trains the muscles around the urethra to retain and transmute sexual fluids, enhancing vitality, awareness, and kundalini awakening. Advanced stages even involve techniques that require significant preparation and discipline, reinforcing the idea that mastery over one’s energy is a lifelong pursuit.
Sexual energy, particularly in men, is considered highly concentrated. Sutra II.30 states that it takes sixty morsels of food to create one drop of blood and sixty drops of blood to produce a single drop of semen, emphasizing its potency. In gay culture, where sexual expression is often celebrated, semen retention can be especially challenging. However, its long-term benefits—such as increased vitality and heightened sensitivity—can be just as rewarding as the short-term pleasure of release.
Traditionally, Brahmacharya is interpreted as control over sexual impulses, but I see it as mastery of energy rather than repression. Consciously transmuting or channeling sexual energy for vitality or “virya”, offers spiritual growth. By learning to channel sexual energy upward rather than being controlled by cravings, one transforms it into a tool for spiritual growth. The Hatha Yoga Pradipika states that moving this energy up the Sushumna Nadi awakens dormant brain centers, expanding consciousness and deepening spiritual evolution.
Brahmacharya is about preserving life-sustaining energy, and retention is just one method of practicing moderation and awareness. Orgasm can be separated from ejaculation. There is a cliché that men become tired after ejaculating; the solution is to remove the source of depletion. Instead of focusing solely on semen retention, one can practice edging, slowing down, and engaging in perineal mudras like Vajroli Mudra to strengthen control. Vajroli Mudra remains central to advanced Hatha Yoga and requires discipline and guidance. When practiced correctly, it refines sexual expression into a tool for enlightenment, harnessing pleasure to benefit both oneself and others. It helps one energetically to feel more confident and attractive to others by holding onto what causes that tiredness. Mastery takes years of practice, starting with basic pelvic contractions to preserve and sublimate energy before progressing to advanced techniques that enhance both spiritual and physical vitality. More advanced practitioners are ultimately even able to reabsorb lost seminal fluid, thereby preventing the loss of their semen.
Focusing too much on semen retention in itself can be counterproductive. The thought itself can expend as much energy as the act. Sometimes, release is practical, especially in intimate partnerships, as it fosters connection through oxytocin release. In my experience teaching tantra, energy exchange plays a crucial role in intimacy. When one partner experiences release, the other benefits through the release of oxytocin, the bonding hormone. Sutra II.30 states that abstinence alone does not make one a master of Brahmacharya, and many great masters have lived married lives. As a married man, I integrate Brahmacharya into my practice by cultivating retention while also maintaining intimacy. Through this practice, I have begun to experience internal orgasms and distinguish between orgasm and ejaculation.
Although my students are more intrigued by the concept of semen retention than the practice itself, I emphasize to them the historical importance of this practice. Hindus, like the Taoists who practice sexual kung fu as outlined in the popular book The Multi-Orgasmic Man, developed methods to cultivate and transmute sexual energy thousands of years ago. Brahmacharya is not about denial of one’s sexual energy but about a conscious engagement with energy to foster vitality, confidence, and spiritual growth.
Works Cited
Carrera, Jaganath. Inside the Yoga Sutras: A Comprehensive Sourcebook for the Study and Practice of Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras. Integral Yoga Publications, 2006.
Swami Muktibodhananda. Hatha Yoga Pradipika: Light on Hatha Yoga. Bihar School of Yoga, 1998.
