The Supreme Consciousness is always present in everything: brahmacarya means seeing the Supreme in every person and every thing, not celibacy, as it is often interpreted.
A person changes depending on their surroundings: in certain company they begin to think differently. The mind is a wave, and we are constantly in contact with the different waves of the outer world. In a forest we feel inspired; in the city we feel drained. Often our surroundings impose false beliefs, desires, doctrines and ideology on us, and a person who takes all this into their mind begins to live a false life that is not their own, and that makes them unhappy.
The principle of brahmacarya is needed above all to keep the mind on a high, cosmic wave of harmony.
Translated from Sanskrit, "Brahma" means "the Supreme Consciousness, the absolute, absolute Love," and "car" means "to move; to eat something on the move." The combination of these two words, brahmacarya, means "to move and eat Brahma on the move."
For someone who follows this principle, the perception of the surrounding world is different from the usual: the most ordinary things are for them an expression of a form of the Supreme. It is meditation in everyday life, in every moment of life: sweetness, a magical atmosphere, enchantment.
Every person they meet is perceived like this: "Right now, through these eyes, God is looking at me, knows me, loves me."
This changes all our relationships in a wonderful way: when a person remembers that the Supreme Consciousness is dealing with them in the form of living beings, they behave differently, rightly and with dignity.
A spiritual teacher once decided to test his students and gave them a simple task. He gathered them all and said, "Children, take these sticks, go and find a place where no one can see you, break them there, and come back for lunch." The children ran off and soon came back with broken sticks. But one boy did not come back. Late in the evening, no longer able to bear his hunger, this boy came home. His sticks were not broken. The teacher asked, "My son, what is the matter? I gave such a simple task; couldn't you do it?" "No, teacher," the boy answered. "I failed. Wherever I went, whether I climbed a tall tree, dived under the water or buried myself in the earth, I could not shake the feeling that the eyes of God were watching me all the time. I found no place where I could hide from God." The teacher embraced the boy, blessed him and said, "You are the only one who passed the test."
This is the idea of brahmacarya: always to remember that everything around us is a disguise for the spiritual reality that is present everywhere and in everything. If this idea is kept, the mind will always stay high.
There is another interpretation. Historically, brahmacarya has sometimes been interpreted as refraining from spending semen, that is, as celibacy. In fact, neither the word Brahma nor the word carya carries any meaning of keeping celibacy. This interpretation spread as a trick of religious people, aimed at dominating and controlling the laity. The monks decided that if ordinary people could freely do spiritual practice, the privileged position of the monks would be lost, and so they planted this inferiority complex in people's minds. It is impossible for family people to be celibate. And so every time they entered into relations, the complex was triggered: "I am doing something sinful and bad." And although this interpretation is certainly wrong, it is important to remember that moderation is good for physical health.
Practice
Before every action you do regularly (eating, sleeping, meditation), become aware of your harmony and unity with the Supreme Consciousness; feel that God surrounds you. Having taken this idea in, do the action: it will be blessed and will happen "rightly," in accordance with the cosmic will.