Kama (Sense Gratification)
"Those who strongly desire to cross the ocean of nescience must not associate with the modes of ignorance, for hedonistic activities are the greatest obstructions to realisation of religious principles, economic development, regulated sense gratification and, at last, liberation." (Srimad Bhagavatam 4.22.34).
The unrestricted pursuit of sense enjoyment is diametrically opposed to spiritual advancement. However, when sense gratification is regulated according to scriptural injunctions, it can be transformed from an impediment into a stepping-stone for progress.
"Vedic civilisation offers us all knowledge in the sastras, and if we live a regulated life under the direction of sastras and guru, all our material desires will be fulfilled; at the same time we will be able to go forward to liberation." (Srimad Bhagavatam 4.22.34 Bhaktivedanta Purport).
The varnashram system facilitates spiritual advancement for everyone. Those who are unable to practice celibacy can serve God by getting married and following the scriptural guidelines for grihastha ashram. The act of sex can be either degrading or divine, depending on how it is applied.
"I am sex life which is not contrary to religious principles" (Words of Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita 7.11)
Kama according to dharma, or sex life according to religious principles, is explained as follows by Srila AC Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada.
"Similarly, sex life, according to religious principles (dharma), should be for the propagation of children, not otherwise. The responsibility of parents is then to make their offspring Krsna conscious." (Bhagavad-gita As It Is 7.11 Bhaktivedanta Purport.)
The divine purpose of sex life within marriage is to provide new human bodies for pious souls to facilitate their spiritual advancement. Thus it is a service that assists the Lord to fulfil His ultimate purpose for creating the material world, to give the living entities the opportunity to return back home to His spiritual kingdom. The process for inviting a pious or spiritually evolved soul to enter the womb begins before conception.
"Before engaging in sexual intercourse, both the husband and the wife must consider their mental condition, the particular time, the husband's direction, and obedience to the demigods." (Srimad Bhagavatam 3.14.38 Bhaktivedanta Purport).
The mind can be purified by continuous chanting of the holy names of the Lord, and inauspicious times, such as twilight, are meant to be avoided.
"The circumstances for creating good children are mentioned in kama-sastra" (Srimad Bhagavatam 3.23.11 Bhaktivedanta Purport)
Srila Prabhupada instructed his disciples to chant fifty rounds of the Hare Krishna mantra as a simple substitute for the Vedic rituals of garbhadana samskara, since all other sacrifices are said to be included in the chanting of the holy names of the Lord.
For a husband and wife to indulge in sexual intercourse only for procreation and not otherwise requires great self-control. Such a level of self-control can be attained only by those who develop a higher taste by engaging their senses in devotional service to the Lord.
"The embodied soul may be restricted from sense enjoyment, though the taste for sense objects remains. But, ceasing such engagements by experiencing a higher taste, he is fixed in consciousness." (Bhagavad-gita 2. 59.)
Our original prema (pure love for Krishna) is transformed into kama (lust) when we fall down into the material world. By practising bhakti yoga, under the direction of the spiritual master, we can gradually purify our kama and transform it back into its original state of prema.
"Artwork courtesy of The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust International, Inc.
www.krishna.com. Used with permission."