Category:Bodily Relationships
Theme Analysis
The concept of bodily relationships is central to understanding the conditioned soul's entanglement in the material world. Srila Prabhupada elucidates that these relationships—spanning family, society, and nation—are products of the false ego, rooted in the misconception that the self is the body. This attachment acts as a formidable anchor, binding the living entity to the cycle of birth and death by fostering a sense of possessiveness and identity that is ultimately illusory and temporary. True liberation and peace are found not in expanding these temporary bonds, but in reviving the eternal relationship with the Supreme Lord, which transcends the fleeting nature of the material frame.
- The Foundation of False Ego: The root of all material relationships is the concept of aham mameti, or "I am this body, and everything in relationship to this body is mine," which places the soul in deep illusion.
- The Transience of Connections: Relationships with family, countrymen, and society are inextricably linked to the perishable body; they cease to exist when the body dies, making them fundamentally temporary and a source of anxiety.
- The Anchor of Material Existence: Attachment to kinsmen and bodily relations acts as a heavy weight that keeps the human form of life grounded in the material universe, preventing spiritual elevation.
- Spiritual Reality vs. Material Illusion: While the conditioned soul is absorbed in the drama of bodily distinctions, the self-realized soul understands that the only permanent relationship is with Krsna, free from the dualities of material affection.
- Explore the synthesized essence of this category in this Vanipedia article: Transcending Attachment to Bodily Relationships.
Pages in category "Bodily Relationships"
The following 88 pages are in this category, out of 88 total.
A
- A conditioned soul works in the service of his temporary body, bodily relatives like the wife and children, and the necessary paraphernalia for maintaining the body and bodily relations, such as the house, land, wealth, society and country
- A soul comes into this material world and creates bodily relationships with a father, a mother, sisters, brothers, a wife and children, but all these relationships pertain to the body, not the soul
- Actually we are standing on a false platform, understanding this body as the self, and in relationship with the body we are considering, "This country is my country. This man is my family man" or - my national man
- After creating in bodily relationships so many unwanted things, I am absorbed in thought that, - I belong to such-and-such nation. Therefore I have got my duty to do this, do that for the nation or to the society or to the family or to my personal self
- Aham mameti (SB 5.5.8): "I am this body, and in this bodily relationship he is my master, he is my servant, she is my wife, and he is my son." All these conceptions are temporary due to the inevitable change of body and the arrangement of material nature
- Almost everyone is thinking that he is this body; he has no information of the spirit soul. Guided by this misconception, one always thinks, "This is my body, and anything in relationship with this body is mine"
- Although situated in everyone's body, He (Krsna) has no bodily conception of life. He is always free from such conceptions, and thus He cannot be affected by anything in relation to the material body of the jiva
- Arjuna was hesitating to fight in bodily relationship. He was thinking that he is this body; his other side, the relatives, brothers or nephews or grandfather, the other side, they are also the bodies
- Arjuna was thinking only in terms of this body. "He is my grandfather. He is my brother. He is my countryman. He is my this." Why? Because they have got some bodily relation
- Arjuna was thinking that the body was himself and that his bodily relations or expansions were his brothers, nephews, brothers-in-law, grandfathers and so on. He was thinking in this way to satisfy his bodily demands. BG 1972 Introduction
- As far as bodily affairs or social activities are concerned, although a person is purified on the spiritual platform, it is sometimes seen that he acts in terms of his bodily relationships
- As long as a person is in this material world he has two different relationships in his dealings with others - one relationship pertains to the body, and the other pertains to the spirit
- As soon as someone thinks, "I am this material body (aham mameti (SB 5.5.8)) and everything in relationship with this material body is mine," he is in illusion - moha
B
- Because a devotee knows that he is not the body, he is never affected by bodily happiness or distress. He is not interested in bodily relationships with wife, children, home etc., or in the distress and happiness which come from these things
- Bodily relationships are so transient that even though one is affectionate towards someone in a bodily relationship, a slight provocation terminates this intimacy
- By maya alone Arjuna thought that the temporary bodily relationship with his kinsmen was more important than his eternal spiritual relationship with Krsna. BG 1972 purports
D
- Daksa, Nandisvara said, identified himself with the body like other materialistic persons and was trying to derive all kinds of facilities in relationship with the body
- Due to our long association with bodily relationships, bereavement on account of the annihilation of friends and relatives is not at all astonishing, but one has to learn the art of subduing such bereavement with higher, transcendental knowledge
F
- False ego is typified by two attitudes: "I am this body" (ahanta), and "Everything in my bodily relationships belongs to me" (mamata)
- Foolish people attach more importance to the present temporary life, and thus the foolish leaders make appeals to the body and the bodily relations. The bodily relations extend not only to this body but also to the family members, society and country
- For one who accepts the body - which is made of three elements - as his self, who has an affinity for intimate bodily relationships with his wife and children, who considers his land worshipable
H
- He (a devotee) is not interested in bodily relationships with wife, children, home, bank balance, etc., or in the distress and happiness which come from these things. This is the special advantage of being a devotee
- He (the person who is covered by a false sense of ego) falsely identifies the soul with the body, and his bodily relations with material things become the objects of his attraction
- He thinks that, "I am body," deha. And because from this body, I have got relationship with my wife, "Oh, she is my great friend," and the children, - They are my soldiers. They will protect me
- Here in this material world, the calculation of friend and enemy, everything, is in the relationship with this body, or sense gratification. But realization of God or the Absolute Truth, there is no such material consideration
- How this body shall be kept in comfort, how the bodily relationship - wife, children, family, community, society - they are all expanded bodily concept of life. So in any conception of this material world if we live, then you are living like cats & dogs
I
- I am taking care of this body, I am taking of this hand, this leg, this head because there is intimate relationship with this body. Suppose if your head is in danger, I am not going to protect. But when my head is in danger, I prepared to give life
- "I am this body" or "Everything in relationship to the body is mine" is called false ego, but when one is self-realized and thinks that he is an eternal servitor of the Supreme Lord, that identification is real ego
- I am very much ashamed of our bodily relationship, and I condemn myself because my body is contaminated by a relationship with a person who is an offender at the lotus feet of the greatest personality
- I know the pains and pleasure of my body; you know the pains and pleasure of your body. Therefore, in relationship with your body, you are ksetra-jna, and in relationship with my body I am ksetra-jna
- If I am not this body, then in relationship with this body, whatever I have expended, my extended selfishness, is at once vanished. Then I am mukta-purusa, I am liberated soul
- If one forgets all his bodily relationships within this material world and becomes situated in his spiritual identity, it is said that one has been freed from all material contamination by the blazing fire of yogic samadhi, or ecstasy
- If one keeps his bodily relationships within this material world and poses himself as a great yogi, he is not a bona fide yogi
- If there is any reluctance (on the part of Arjuna) to execute such a stern order (from Krsna) which is without consideration of so-called kinsmen in the bodily relationship, that reluctance should be thrown off. BG 1972 purports
- Illusioned by the material nature, the living entity identifies with false ego. More clearly, when the living entity is entrapped by the material body, he at once identifies with the bodily relationships, forgetting his own identity as spirit soul
- In all circumstances, everyone, as a spirit soul, must be a devotee of Lord Visnu and should not be concerned with bodily relationships, whether with friends or with enemies
- In another part of SB, the acceptance of the body as oneself, the acceptance of others as kinsmen in relationship to this body and the acceptance of the land of one's birth as worshipable are declared to be the products of an animal civilization
- In our village relationship, Nilambara Cakravarti Thakura was my uncle. Such a relationship is stronger than a bodily relationship
- In relation to his body, he accepts his home, his country, his society and all other paraphernalia as permanent. This materialistic acceptance of the permanency of home, land, etc., is called the illusion of maya
- In relation with body, we think of family, community, nationality. In this way our civilization is dog civilization. That is not human civilization. Human civilization begins when one understands that he is not this body
- In the conditioned state, sometimes devotional service and the conditional service in relation to the body will parallel one another. But then again, sometimes these activities become opposed to one another. BG 1972 purports
- In this material world, we are so much attached to this bodily relationship that it is to be considered just like we are ghostly haunted
- In this verse (SB 4.4.27) it is stated that by such meditation she (Sati) became free from all contamination. What was that contamination? The contamination was her concept of the body derived from Daksa, but she forgot that bodily relationship in trance
O
- One who wants to establish a good dynasty and be happy in the progress of temporary bodily relations should take shelter of the Pitas and the demigods in other pious planets
- One's seeing power should be increased through knowledge of spirit and matter, and one should not unnecessarily identify himself with the body and thus become attracted by bodily relationships
- Our other business is how to become fit for going back to home, back to Godhead. That is our real business. This is temporary business, because we have got some bodily relation
T
- The bodily relations extend not only to this body but also to the family members, wife, children, society, country and so many other things which end at the end of life
- The body's asat, perishable, temporary. So whatever you have got in relationship with this body - my country, my society, my bank balance, my money, my wife, children - everything in the body, they're also temporary. So they are very, very anxiety
- The conditioned soul considers his body to be his self and considers everything in relationship with the body to be his. Because he has this wrong conception of life, he is subjected to dualities like praise and chastisement
- The conditioned soul, being in the bodily conception of life, considers his body to be his self and considers everything in relationship with the body to be his
- The conditioned souls are eager to identify with the body and consider that the body is "myself" and that anything in relationship with the body or possessions of the body is - mine
- The different weights on the anchor which keep us grounded in material life are our attachment to kinsmen due to bodily relations - all these anchor the boat of the human body in the material universe
- The distressed and the man in want of money are in the material concept of life because distress and need of money are both in relationship with this body
- The false ego of identifying one's body as one's self and of claiming things possessed in relationship with this body is called maya
- The individual exists in darkness when he thinks that he is the material body and that everything in relationship with the material body belongs to him. This is called aham mama (janasya moho 'yam aham mameti (SB 5.5.8)). This is illusion
- The living entity accepts or produces different bodies and different bodily relationships in a particular circumstance, but as soon as he gives up the present body and accepts another, he has nothing to do with the former body
- The living entity has no true relationship with the material body he gets from his material father and mother. He is part and parcel of the Supreme Lord, but he is allowed to go through different bodies
- The materialist is never prepared to give up his body; rather, he wants to continue to live in his body to serve his society, family, friends and so on. Therefore by practicing the mystic yoga system one must become detached from bodily relationships
- The materialist tries to satisfy himself in relation to his body by constructing a skyscraper, but the devotee tries to satisfy the Superself, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, by constructing the temple
- The misguided materialist does not know that his very body is impermanent and that the attractions of home, land and wealth, which are in relationship to that body, are also temporary. Out of ignorance only, he thinks that everything is permanent
- The mother and other relatives are awaiting the child, and as soon as he is born, the mother feeds him, and everyone takes care of him. The living entity soon forgets his position and becomes entangled in bodily relationships
- The multifarious relationships between bodies are just so much stage play. One who is actually realized and has actually attained yoga no longer sees these bodily distinctions
- The perfection of yoga consists of giving up attachment for this body and bodily relationships and transferring that attachment to Krsna
- The scriptures say that whoever accepts this body as the self and accepts the bodily relations of wife, children and family as his own, is illusioned
- The spiritual living force is always active by nature. By illusion his activities are wrongly directed in relation with the body, but in the liberated condition of complete knowledge his activities are conducted in spiritual devotion
- There are different grades and standards of prosperity. The standard of comfort and happiness conceived by a common man engaged in material labor is the lowest grade of happiness, for it is in relationship with the body
- These bodily relationships are only temporary. Our real relationship is with Krishna. Try to cultivate that
- They are advertising humanitarian work, philanthropic work, Communism, this "ism," but when there is question of bodily relationship, immediately everything is changed
- They are very much attached to this material body and anything in relationship with this body. But the real purpose of human life is to become renounced - no more material body. That is required
- They should know it that bodily relation between the husband and wife is secondary; primary factor is that both should help one another in the matter of advancement of K.C
- They think this body, "I'm this body, so I'll be hurt, I'll die, I'll this," and so on and so many. Simply anxiety: "How I shall protect my body? How I shall protect my bodily relationship?" everything in connection with the body. Everything asat
- This attachment increases (anything relationship to this body). The material attachment involves thinking, - I am this body, and because I have this body in a particular place, that is my country. And that is going on
- This bodily relationship is material. Material means outward, external. It is not real relationship
W
- We are attached to this material world. But when we are united, man and woman together, our attachment for this material world becomes increased. Material world means "I am this body, and in relationship with this body everything is mine"
- When a child cries, what does he long for? His mother. But he has no language to express this. By nature he has his body, born of his mother's body, so there is an intimate relationship with the mother's body. The child won't like any other woman
- When Arjuna was thinking in terms of his bodily relationships with his kinsmen, Krsna immediately chastised him, saying, This bodily conception of life is befitting the anaryas, the non-Aryans, who are not advanced in knowledge
- When one becomes free from all bodily relationships within this material world and simply places himself in the position of an eternal servant of the Supreme Lord, it is to be understood that all contamination of his material attachment has been burned
- When one understands his spiritual identity and surrenders to the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the supreme spiritual person, one becomes actually happy. When one searches for happiness in matter, one must certainly lament for bodily relationships
- When the living entity is entrapped by the material body, he at once identifies with the bodily relationships, forgetting his own identity as spirit soul
- When the living entity lives within the material body, he falsely thinks that he is the body, although actually he is not. His relationship with his body and his so-called father and mother are false, illusory conceptions
- While sleeping, we forget everything about this body and bodily relations, although this forgetfulness is a temporary situation for only a few hours
- Without knowing that one's self-interest is in Visnu (or Krsna), conditioned souls are attracted by bodily relationships, hoping to be happy in such situations. Under delusion, they forget that Krsna is also the cause of material happiness. BG 1972 pur