Acharya Prashant addresses the question of Mary's virginity by explaining that it is a symbolic concept, not a literal, physical one. To illustrate this, he recounts a story about Shri Krishna and Rukmini. While strolling by the river Yamuna, Krishna asks Rukmini to take a meal to a sage meditating on the opposite bank. When Rukmini points out the overflowing river, Krishna instructs her to tell the Yamuna, "If Krishna is a complete celibate, then give me a path." Rukmini, knowing her relationship with Krishna, is astonished but obeys. The river parts, and she crosses. After the sage consumes the entire meal, he instructs Rukmini to tell the river on her way back, "If the sage is one who only consumes water, then give me a path." Again, Rukmini is baffled as she saw him eat, but she follows the instruction, and the river parts once more. The speaker clarifies that these stories are not to be taken at a worldly, physical level. At the physical level, Krishna is not a celibate, but spiritually, there is no greater celibate because 'Brahmacharya' means to abide in Brahman, which Krishna always does. He is one with Brahman. Similarly, the sage is without food (Nirahari) because he is not identified with the body that eats; he is the Atman, which is beyond consumption. His life is a testament to this non-identification with the body. Applying this symbolism to Mary's virginity, Acharya Prashant explains that if a physical body gives birth to another physical body, the mother cannot be a virgin. However, the story of Mary's virginity signifies that the child born, Jesus, is not merely a body. He is not an ordinary being bound by the laws of nature but one with a higher inspiration and purpose beyond the physical. Since Jesus is not just a body, his mother Mary is also not just a body, and thus her virginity remains symbolically intact. This virginity also represents purity, like light that remains undefiled even when it falls on filth. The birth of Jesus is the birth of light, not of a mere physical body.
