Devanagari
केशप्रसाधनोन्मर्दस्नपनाभ्यञ्जनादिकम् ।
गुरुस्त्रीभिर्युवतिभि: कारयेन्नात्मनो युवा ॥ ८ ॥
Verse text
keśa-prasādhanonmarda-
snapanābhyaṣjanādikam
guru-strībhir yuvatibhiḥ
kārayen nātmano yuvā
Synonyms
keśa
—
prasādhana — brushing the hair
;
unmarda
—
massaging the body
;
snapana
—
bathing
;
abhyaṣjana
—
ādikam — massaging the body with oil and so on
;
guru
—
strībhiḥ — by the wife of the spiritual master
;
yuvatibhiḥ
—
very young
;
kārayet
—
should allow to do
;
na
—
never
;
ātmanaḥ
—
for personal service
;
yuvā
—
if the student is a young man .
Translation
If the wife of the spiritual master is young, a young brahmacārī should not allow her to care for his hair, massage his body with oil, or bathe him with affection like a mother.
Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)
If the wife of the guru is young, a young brahmacārī should not allow her to dress his hair, massage his body with oil, or bathe him with affection like a mother.
If the wife of the guru sees the student as a son out of affection and wants to dress his hair or do other such services by her own will, it should not be allowed.
Purport
The relationship between the student or disciple and the wife of the spiritual master or teacher is like that between son and mother. A mother sometimes cares for her son by combing his hair, massaging his body with oil, or bathing him. Similarly, the wife of the teacher is also a mother (
guru-patnī
), and therefore she may also care for the disciple in a motherly way. If the wife of the teacher is a young woman, however, a young
brahmacārī
should not allow such a mother to touch him. This is strictly prohibited. There are seven kinds of mothers:
ātma-mātā guroḥ patnī
brāhmaṇī rāja-patnikā
dhenur dhātrī tathā pṛthvī
saptaitā mātaraḥ smṛtāḥ
These mothers are the original mother, the wife of the teacher or spiritual master, the wife of a
brāhmaṇa,
the king’s wife, the cow, the nurse and the earth. Unnecessary association with women, even with one’s mother, sister or daughter, is strictly prohibited. This is human civilization. A civilization that allows men to mix unrestrictedly with women is an animal civilization. In Kali-yuga, people are extremely liberal, but mixing with women and talking with them as equals actually constitutes an uncivilized way of life.