Category:Bodily Necessities
Theme Analysis
"Bodily necessities" refer to the four primary demands of the material body: eating (āhāra), sleeping (nidrā), mating (maithuna), and defending (bhaya). Śrīla Prabhupāda explains that these needs are common to both humans and animals. However, human life is distinct because it offers the facility for spiritual realization. A civilization that focuses solely on improving these four activities—"polished dogism"—is considered foolish and unbalanced. The philosophy of Kṛṣṇa consciousness does not advocate for the artificial negation of these needs but for their regulation. A devotee accepts only what is necessary to keep the body healthy for God's service (yukta-vairāgya). By minimizing bodily demands and prioritizing the needs of the soul, one can live happily and advance toward the ultimate goal of life.
- The Four Demands: Eating, sleeping, mating, and defending are unavoidable as long as one has a material body. Even great devotees must attend to them, but they do so mechanically or with detachment.
- Animal vs. Human: Animals are preoccupied only with these four things. If humans do the same, even in a sophisticated way (e.g., sleeping on a soft mattress instead of the floor), they remain on the animal platform.
- The Principle of Minimization: The goal is to reduce these necessities to the minimum required for maintenance, not to increase them artificially. Modern civilization is criticized for creating unnecessary needs.
- Spiritual Necessity: The soul has its own necessity—service to Kṛṣṇa. Neglecting the soul to pamper the body is like cleaning a birdcage while starving the bird.
- Explore the synthesized essence of this category in this Vanipedia article: Balancing Bodily Necessities with Spiritual Life.
Pages in category "Bodily Necessities"
The following 76 pages are in this category, out of 76 total.
A
- A civilization that simply looks after these bodily necessities and does not care for the necessities of the soul is a foolish, unbalanced civilization
- A devotee should accept only those things that are favorable for keeping his body and soul together and should reject those things that increase the demands of the body. Only the bare necessities for bodily maintenance should be accepted
- A Krsna conscious person is never disturbed by the bodily necessities - namely eating, sleeping, mating and defending
- Actually, if one is self-realized, he is no more fearful or concerned with the bodily necessities of life. That is liberation
- Alpa-buddhayah: less intelligent. They are simply busy with these bodily necessities of life. There is no education of the real living force
- Animals in bodies lower than that of the human being are conscious only as far as their bodily distress and happiness are concerned; they cannot think of more than their bodily necessities of life-eating, sleeping, mating and defending
- As far as one's bodily necessities are concerned, one can pick up torn clothing from the street, take fruits offered by trees, drink water from flowing rivers, and live in a mountain cave constructed by nature herself
- As far as one's bodily necessities are concerned, one can pick up torn clothing out of the street, can take fruits offered by trees, can drink water which flows from rivers, and can live in a cave constructed by nature herself
- As far as the bodily necessities are concerned, the reasoning power is there even in the animal. If a cat wants to steal some milk from your kitchen, she has very nice reasoning power: she is always looking to see when the master is out and she can take
- As long as we have these bodies we have to accept the bodily necessities of eating, sleeping, mating, and defending, although the soul itself does not need these things
- As soon as we are reestablished in our original position of servitorship to the Supreme Lord, we begin to forget the necessities of the body, and at last we forget the body
B
- Because we are spiritual beings. That I was trying to explain. That we have bodily necessities, at the same time we have spiritual necessities. This Western civilization, they are simply after the bodily necessities
- Bodily necessities - eating, sleeping, mating and defending - are all very easily available in any form of life
- By making one's bodily necessities secondary, one can primarily devote his time to the cultivation of Krsna consciousness through the chanting of the holy names of God
- By minimizing bodily necessities, one can primarily devote his time to the cultivation of Krsna consciousness through the chanting of the holy names of God. Pure devotional service means engaging all the senses of the body in the service of the Lord
C
- Concerning the offense of aham-mama-buddhi, or dehatma-buddhi (considering the body to be the self), Jiva Gosvami states -Those who are overly absorbed in the conception of the body and the bodily necessities are also called pasandis
- Conditioned soul has very little time to cultivate attachment to hearing the nectarean words of the Supreme Personality of Godhead because he is always disturbed by the bodily necessities such as hunger and thirst
D
- Darkness means "I am this body, and to fulfill the necessities of the body is the highest perfection of my life"
- Despite all kinds of tribulations, the living entity, subjected to the necessities of the body, mind and senses and suffering from various types of disease, is carried away by many plans due to his lust to enjoy the world
E
- Eating, sleeping, sex life and fear are the four bodily necessities but to utilize the full duration of life a person desiring to advance in spiritual consciousness must reduce these activities. That will give him an opportunity to fully use his lifetime
- Everyone who has accepted a material body must maintain the necessities of the body by acting or earning some livelihood. A devotee should only work for such income as is absolutely necessary
H
- He hasn't got to work. Because people are very much perplexed how to get shelter, how to get food. But he has got the chance. He hasn't got to endeavor for food and shelter and other necessities of the body
- Hundred years ago they could do without motorcar, and now they cannot live without a car. In this way, unnecessarily, they’re increasing bodily or material necessities of life. This is recklessness
I
- If one engages only in caring for the necessities of the body, not caring for the eternal necessities of life, then he is part of a civilization whose advancement puts the living entities in the darkest region of ignorance
- If you become so much dependent on the bodily necessities of life, then you cannot become fully and wholly for the benefit of the mass of people. Our Gandhi, he imitated this. For the mass of people... But that was to a certain extent successful
- If you simply look after the bodily necessities and do not care to look after the necessity of the soul, that is foolish civilization
- If you think that "I am serving for my sense gratification: I have to eat, I have to sleep, I must have sex and I must defend . . ." These are the necessities of the body. These necessities are there in the animal form of life also
J
K
- Knowledge in the matter of the bodily necessities of eating, sleeping, mating and fearing, transformed into various branches of advancement of knowledge, is all temporary
- Knowledge means to know that the mission of the human form of life is to end all the miseries of material existence and that in spite of having to fulfill the bodily necessities in a regulated way, one must be detached from such animal life
- Krsna has His transcendental form, sac-cid-ananda-vigraha (BS 5.1), He is not disturbed by the bodily necessities of life, which are called daihika; for example, He is never hungry, thirsty or fatigued - na hanyate deha-gato 'pi daihikaih
N
- Necessities of the body is material, and the necessities of the soul is spiritual. But unfortunately, although the spirit is there, we are so much absorbed in material consciousness, we do not understand what is spirit soul
- Nirjana-bhajana - cultivating Krsna consciousness in a solitary place - is not possible for the neophyte, for he will be disturbed by the bodily necessities (eating, sleeping, mating and defending). Being so disturbed, one cannot cultivate KC
- Nothing should be used for one's sense gratification. That is real renunciation. Nor should one unnecessarily increase the necessities of the body
O
- One must know the necessities of the body and also the necessities of the soul. The real necessity in life is to supply the comforts of the soul, and the soul cannot be comforted by material adjustments
- One must know what is the necessity of the body and what is the necessity of the soul. The real necessity of life is to supply the comforts of the soul. And the soul can be comforted not by material adjustment
- One should have knowledge perfectly, and it must be demonstrated. Demonstrated in practical field. Yes. But that means one who has actually felt himself that, "I am not this body," then naturally his bodily necessities will be reduced to the minimum
- One should not view death with horror, nor have recourse to defining the body as soul, nor give way to exaggeration in enjoying the bodily necessities of life
- One who truly understands "I am not this body" will actually reduce his bodily necessities to a minimum. When one increases the demands of the body while thinking "I am not this body," then of what use is that knowledge
P
- Persons who regulate eating, sleeping and other necessities of the body in the proper proportion become very successful in the yoga process
- Prahlada Maharaja was always absorbed in thought of Krsna. Thus, being always embraced by the Lord, he did not know how his bodily necessities, such as sitting, walking, eating, lying down, drinking and talking, were being automatically performed
S
- Sastra says. . . visayah khalu sarvatah syat (SB 11.9.29): "In any form of life you'll get full facilities for the bodily necessities of life." Just see the birds & bees. They have no anxiety for maintaining the body or fulfilling the necessities of life
- Sex life is not denied, because eating, sleeping, mating and defending, that is the necessity of the body. You cannot stop it. So there is concession that you can have sex life only for begetting children - for no other purpose
- Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, without neglecting the necessities of the body, imparted spiritual advancement to purify the existential condition of humanity
- Successful life is that, that we should make our bodily necessities of life as far as required, not more than that. I want to eat something. God has given sufficient food. You grow. You live anywhere. You grow foodstuff
- Suppose there is car and a driver. So the petrol and grease, these things are required for the car. But you cannot eat them. You have to eat something else. So we are thinking that the bodily necessities, petrol and grease, is my food. That is a mistake
T
- The members of the Yadu dynasty acted automatically for their bodily necessities, but their actual attention was always fixed on Krsna. Their bodily activities were performed mechanically, but their minds were always absorbed in Krsna
- The modern civilization is suffering from this defect, that they are not inquisitive about the Brahman. They are simply... Just like cats and dogs, they are interested with this body and the bodily necessities of life. They do not know beyond that
- The most important ceremony for sense gratification is marriage because sexual intercourse is one of the principal necessities of the material body. Yan maithunadi-grhamedhi-sukham hi tuccham - SB 7.9.45
- The necessities of human society are food grains, fruits, milk, minerals, clothing, wood, etc. One requires all these items to fulfill the material needs of the body. Certainly one does not require flesh and fish or iron tools and machinery
- The opulence we possess is impossible for either you or your flatterers to imagine, persons who engage in fruitive activities by performing great sacrifices are concerned with satisfying their bodily necessities by eating foodstuff offered as a sacrifice
- The real necessity is, bodily necessity is, eating, sleeping, mating and defending. This is necessity. So if you can eat locally, you can sleep locally, you can have your sex life also locally and you can defend locally, then what is the wrong
- The revealed scripture advises that, "You have to maintain your body. That's all right. But for simply material comforts you should not devote time more than it is absolutely required." That means don't increase your bodily necessities
- The soul is the most important part of the body; without the presence of the soul, the body has no value. Still people are placing great stress on the bodily necessities of life, not caring for the vital soul
- The soul is the most important part of this body; without the presence of the soul, the body has no value. Still people are placing great stress on the bodily necessities of life, not caring for the vital soul. BG 1972 purports
- The word visaya refers to the four bodily necessities of life - eating, sleeping, mating and defending
- Their love for Krsna was so intense that in their regular activities - in sitting, sleeping, traveling, talking, sporting, cleansing, bathing - they were simply absorbed in thoughts of Krsna and paid no attention to bodily necessities
- They (the poor) may live very comfortably, without denial of any of the body's necessities, but they live under spiritual control, and thus they live happily and save time for advancement in Krsna consciousness
- This is not a proper civilization. Simply concentrating on these four different bodily necessities of life - eating, sleeping, mating and defending - no
- Those who are very much addicted to the bodily necessities of life, for them this hatha-yoga system. Hatha-yoga system means astanga-yoga. Yama, niyama, asana, pranayama, dhyana, dharana, pratyahara, samadhi
W
- We are taking care of the necessities of the body, but we have no information of the soul and its necessities
- We have neglected the real problems of life. And we are misusing our intelligence for constructing big buildings and constructing or increasing the so-called bodily necessities of life
- When one engages in devotional service in Krsna consciousness, he still has to eat, sleep, defend and mate because these are necessities of the body. But he performs such activities in a regulated way
- When we are awakened to Krsna consciousness, we forget all these bodies. The bodily necessities become secondary, for the primary necessity is the engagement of the soul in real, spiritual life
- When you use bodily necessities in excessive proportion, that is called kama
- Without the presence of the soul, the body has no value. Still people are placing great stress on the bodily necessities of life, not caring for the vital soul
Y
- You should take food just to maintain your health nicely. Similarly, other necessities of body must be taken care of. If you become diseased, then how you can execute Krsna consciousness?
- Your bodily necessities are the same as those of the animals; the animals also eat, they also sleep, they also mate and also defend. So we require these things also