Celibacy is the state of voluntarily being unmarried, sexually abstinent, or both for religious reasons. Used in terms of abstaining from sexual relations, it is in association with the role of a religious official or devotee. In its narrow sense, the term celibacy is applied only to those for whom the unmarried state is the result of a sacred vow, act of renunciation, or religious conviction. In a wider sense, it is understood to only mean abstinence from sexual activity. Celibacy has existed in one form or another throughout history, in all the major religions of the world, views on it have varied. Judaism opposes celibacy. However, the priests of the Essenes, a Jewish sect during the Second Temple period, practised celibacy; the Romans viewed celibacy as an aberration and legislated fiscal penalties against it, with the sole exception granted to the Vestal Virgins. The Islamic attitudes toward celibacy have been complex as well. Several Hadiths indicate that Prophet Muhammad denounced celibacy.

Classical Hindu culture encouraged asceticism and celibacy in the stages of life, after one has met his societal obligations. Jainism, on the other hand, preached complete celibacy for young monks and considered celibacy to be an essential behavior to attain moksha. Buddhism is similar to Jainism in this respect. There were, significant cultural differences in the various areas where Buddhism spread, which affected the local attitudes toward celibacy, it was not well received in China, for example, where other religions movements such as Daoism were opposed to it. A somewhat similar situation existed in Japan, where the Shinto tradition opposed celibacy. In most native African and American Indian religious traditions, celibacy has been viewed negatively as well, although there were exceptions like periodic celibacy practiced by some Mesoamerican warriors; the English word celibacy derives from the Latin caelibatus, "state of being unmarried", from Latin caelebs, meaning "unmarried". This word derives from two Proto-Indo-European stems, *kaiwelo- "alone" and *libs- "living".

The words abstinence and celibacy are used interchangeably, but are not the same thing. Sexual abstinence known as continence, is abstaining from some or all aspects of sexual activity for some limited period of time, while celibacy may be defined as a voluntary religious vow not to marry or engage in sexual activity. Asexuality is conflated with celibacy and sexual abstinence, but it is considered distinct from the two, as celibacy and sexual abstinence are behavioral and those who use those terms for themselves are motivated by factors such as an individual's personal or religious beliefs. A. W. Richard Sipe, while focusing on the topic of celibacy in Catholicism, states that "the most assumed definition of celibate is an unmarried or single person, celibacy is perceived as synonymous with sexual abstinence or restraint." Sipe adds that in the uniform milieu of Catholic priests in the United States "there is no clear operational definition of celibacy". Elizabeth Abbott commented on the terminology in her A History of Celibacy: "I drafted a definition that discarded the rigidly pedantic and unhelpful distinctions between celibacy and virginity".

The concept of "new celibacy" was introduced by Gabrielle Brown in her 1980 book The New Celibacy. In a revised version of her book, she claims that "abstinence is a response on the outside to what's going on, celibacy is a response from the inside". According to her definition, celibacy is much more than not having sex, it is more intentional than abstinence, its goal is personal growth and empowerment. This new perspective on celibacy is echoed by several authors including Elizabeth Abbott, Wendy Keller, Wendy Shalit; the rule of celibacy in the Buddhist religion, whether Theravada, has a long history. Celibacy was advocated as an ideal rule of life for all monks and nuns by Gautama Buddha, except for Japan where it is not followed due to historical and political developments following the Meiji Restoration. In Japan, celibacy was an ideal among Buddhist clerics for hundreds of years, but violations of clerical celibacy were so common for so long that in 1872, state laws made marriage legal for Buddhist clerics.

Subsequently, ninety percent of Buddhist monks/clerics married. An example is Higashifushimi Kunihide, a prominent Buddhist priest of Japanese royal ancestry, married and a father whilst serving as a monk for most of his lifetime. Gautama known as the Buddha, is known for his renunciation of his wife, Princess Yasodharā, son, Rahula. In order to pursue an ascetic life, he needed to renounce aspects of the impermanent world, including his wife and son. On both his wife and son joined the ascetic community and are mentioned in the Buddhist texts to have become enlightened. In another sense, a buddhavacana recorded the zen patriarch Vimalakirti as being an advocate of marital continence instead of monastic renunciation, the sutra became somewhat popular due to its brash humour as well as integrating the role of women in laity as well as spiritual life. In the religious movement of Brahma Kumaris, celibacy is promoted for peace and to defeat power of lust and to prepare for life in forthcoming Heaven on earth for 2,500 years when children will be created by the power of the mind for householders to like holy brother and sister.

In this belief system, celibacy is given the utmost importance. It is said that, as per the direction of the Supreme God those lead a pure and celibate li

Woman on the Night Train aka Night Train Woman is a 1972 Japanese film in Nikkatsu's Roman porno series, directed by Noboru Tanaka and starring Mari Tanaka. Saeko is abnormally attached to Yumi; when Yumi becomes engaged to Arikawa, Saeko schemes to separate the two. She seduces Arikawa who becomes confused over his attraction to both sisters, he approaches their father about his dilemma. The father explains that the two are half-sisters, Saeko being the result of his affair with Tomoko, a family maid. After Arikawa explains this to the sisters, Saeko's obsession with Yumi seems to end. However, when Yumi and Arikawa leave for a vacation together, Saeko follows them on the night train; when she catches up to them, she kills her sister with a razor blade and kills herself. Mari Tanaka as Saeko Mizuki Keiko Tsuzuki as Yumi Mizuki Tomoko Katsura as Hiroko Kibaji Tankoba as Okajima Akemi Yamaguchi as Mika Keisuke Yukioka as Hajime Mizuki Toshihiko Oda as Yōji Arikawa Hidetoshi Kageyama as Gorō Hiroyuki Mikawa as Kishibe During Woman on the Night Train's Japanese critics noted the influence of European filmmakers on Tanaka's style.

The use of metaphor and symbolism in the film was said to be similar to some of Roger Vadim's films. Luis Buñuel's Diary of a Chambermaid, Octave Mirbeau's original novel were said to be particular influences on Woman on the Night Train. In their Japanese Cinema Encyclopedia: The Sex Films and Yuko Mihara Weisser give Woman on the Night Train a rating of three out of four stars, they judge the film's weakness to be the rambling and far-fetched plot, but they write that this is compensated for by Tanaka's visuals and camera work, which they call, "some of the best in any pink film". They note the welcome influence of French cinema on Tanaka's style, they single out the flashback scene in which the father seduces the maid as indicative of Tanaka's visual flair. Rather than staging the scene in a mundane bedroom setting, Tanaka makes the seduction more shocking by filming it among the stuffy, professorial father's books and papers in his study. Allmovie judges Woman on the Night Train "memorable", "tylish and absorbing", one of Nikkatsu's best entries in the softcore genre of this period.

They note that this film set a high standard against which Tanaka's work seemed lesser in comparison. Woman on the Night Train was released theatrically in Japan on July 19, 1972, it was released on DVD in Japan on September 22, 2006 as part of Geneon's fifth wave of Nikkatsu Roman porno series. Yogisha no Onna at AllMovie "YOGISHA NO ONNA". Complete Index to World Film. Retrieved 2010-05-16. Yogisha no onna on IMDb Sharp, Jasper. Behind the Pink Curtain: The Complete History of Japanese Sex Cinema. Guildford: FAB Press. Pp. 134, 363. ISBN 978-1-903254-54-7. Weisser, Thomas. Japanese Cinema Encyclopedia: The Sex Films. Miami: Vital Books: Asian Cult Cinema Publications. Pp. 511–512. ISBN 1-889288-52-7. 夜汽車の女. Allcinema.net. Retrieved 2010-05-16. 夜汽車の女. Japanese Cinema Database. Retrieved 2010-05-16. 夜汽車の女. Japanese Movie Database. Retrieved 2010-05-16. 夜汽車の女. Kinema Junpo. Retrieved 2010-05-16

Thomas John Ball was an English professional golfer. Ball placed second in the 1908 Open Championship and tied for second place in the 1909 Open Championship, he won the Belgian Open twice, in 1913 and again in 1914. He won the 1909 News of the World Match Play tournament; the 1908 Open Championship was held 18–19 June at Prestwick Golf Club in Prestwick, South Ayrshire, Scotland. Scottish professional James Braid won the Championship for the fourth time, eight strokes ahead of runner-up Ball. Ball's round-by-round scores were 76-73-76-74=299; the primary difference between Ball's score and Braid's was the first round scoring when Braid's superb 70 put him in excellent position to win—which he did. Ball took home £25 for his fine performance; the 1909 Open Championship was held 10–11 June at Royal Cinque Ports Golf Club in Deal, England. English star J. H. Taylor won the Championship for the fourth time, six strokes ahead of runners-up Ball and James Braid. Ball carded rounds of 74-75-76-76=301—winning £20 in the process—and finished six shots behind the winning score of 295 posted by J.

H. Taylor. Ball's father, was a greenkeeper from Hoylake, his brothers Sydney, William Henry and Frank were professional golfers, as was Harry's son Errie. Ball died on 18 February 1919 in Wimbledon, England, he is best remembered for having three top-10 finishes in the Open Championship, including a second-place finish in 1908. Note: This list may be incomplete. 1908 Leeds Cup 1909 News of the World Match Play and District Professional Championship 1910 Liverpool and District Professional Championship 1911 Southern Professional Foursomes Tournament, 1913 Belgian Open 1914 Belgian Open Note: Ball only played in The Open Championship. WD = withdrew CUT = missed the half-way cut "T" indicates a tie for a place England–Scotland Professional Match: 1909, 1910, 1912, 1913 Coronation Match: 1911