Category:Body and Soul
Theme Analysis
The analytical study of the difference between the body and the soul is the foundation of spiritual knowledge, known in the Vedas as sāṅkhya. Śrīla Prabhupāda explains that while the conditioned soul is encased in a temporary material frame distinct from their eternal self, the Supreme Lord Kṛṣṇa transcends this duality—His body and soul are identical and spiritual. This category clarifies that the human mission is to distinguish the occupier (the soul) from the dwelling (the body) and to maintain the body only as far as necessary to execute spiritual service, ultimately aiming for a liberated state where the distinction between body and self ceases to exist.
- The Fundamental Distinction: The beginning of self-realization is to understand that the living entity is not the material body but the spirit soul within. Ignorance of this fact is the root of all material problems.
- The Absolute Nature of Kṛṣṇa: Unlike the conditioned soul, whose body is material and temporary, Kṛṣṇa has no distinction between His body and His soul; He is entirely spiritual, blissful, and eternal.
- Practical Maintenance: A devotee does not neglect the body but maintains "body and soul together" through honest means and simple living, utilizing the body as a vehicle for serving the Lord.
- The Goal of Knowledge: True education leads to the realization of the self beyond the body. When one is liberated, they attain a spiritual body where, like Kṛṣṇa, the difference between the body and the soul vanishes.
- Explore the synthesized essence of this category in this Vanipedia article: Analytical Study of Body and Soul.
Subcategories
This category has the following 4 subcategories, out of 4 total.
Pages in category "Body and Soul"
The following 105 pages are in this category, out of 105 total.
1
A
- A Krsna conscious person, fully engaged in self-realization, has very little time to falsely possess any material object. For maintaining body and soul, he does not require unfair means of accumulating money. BG 1972 purports
- A ksatriya's duty is to give charity, & a brahmana's duty is to accept charity, but not more than needed to maintain body & soul together. Therefore, when the brahmanas were given so much land by Lord Ramacandra, they returned it to Him & were not greedy
- A sober person can study himself and distinguish the soul from the body by analytical study
- A Vaisnava knows perfectly well that for Krsna, Lord Jagannatha or Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu - unlike for ordinary human beings - there is no distinction between the body and the soul
- According to the Vedic injunctions, aitadatmyam idam sarvam, sarvam khalv idam brahma: everything is the Supreme Brahman. Therefore, both the body and the soul are Brahman, since matter and spirit emanate from Brahman
- After writing this and thus accepting the real purport of the Gita, how can Dr. Radhakrishnan later state that Lord Krsna's body and soul are different? Such an idea must be a result of his materialistic education
- Although lamenting for the death of her (Mandodari's) husband (Ravana), she knew what would happen to his body and soul, for although one cannot see directly with one's material eyes, one can see with eyes of knowledge - pasyanti jnana-caksusah
- An analytical study of the soul and the body has been very graphically explained by Lord Krsna. BG 1972 purports
- Arjuna also inquires about atma, which refers to body, soul and mind. According to the Vedic dictionary, atma refers to the mind, soul, body and senses also. BG 1972 purports
- As far as the Nirukti Vedic Dictionary is concerned, atma refers to body, mind and soul. However, in this verse of Bhagavad-gita, atma refers to mind
- As long as the living being, under illusion, accepts the body or the mind as the soul, he will always be unhappy, like a man in the burning heat of autumn
- As long as the soul and the body are combined, we can understand that there is life. But when they are separated, there is no manifested existence of the body or the soul
- As we have got distinction between the body and the soul, Krsna has no such distinction. Krsna is completely soul. And if we think that Krsna is like us, that is forbidden
- At no time is there a distinction between the body and the soul of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. His personal identity and His body are made of blissful spiritual energy. There is no distinction between them
E
- Even for the most highly educated person on the mundane plane, it is impossible to get out of the entanglement of maya simply by theoretical knowledge, or by separating the soul from the body. BG 1972 purports
- Everyone’s body is very dear to oneself, and one wants to protect the body by all means because within the body the soul is living
F
- For economic development one does not need to get money by hook or by crook; one needs only sufficient money to maintain his body and soul
- For providing myself, my body and soul together, I have to, work so much. But Krsna, He is providing millions and trillions of living entities without any endeavor
- For the Supreme Personality of Godhead there is no distinction between the body & the soul. Bhagavad-gita, therefore, certifies that anyone who thinks of Krsna as an ordinary human being is without knowledge of His transcendental nature & is a great fool
- For the Supreme Personality of Godhead, there is no difference between the body and the soul. He is completely soul; He has no material body
H
- Having acquired a good sitting place in a secluded environment, the yogi begins to purify the atma - body, mind and soul. The yogi should not think, - Now I will try to achieve some wonderful powers
- He (the perfect yogi at the time of death) does not feel his material body being separated from his soul; the soul is immediately transferred to the spiritual world
- He (the self-realized person) is never bewildered by mistaking the gross body for the soul, nor does he accept the body as permanent and disregard the existence of the soul. BG 1972 purports
- How is it possible for one to become his own friend? This is explained here; atma means mind, body and soul. When we speak of atma, insofar as we are in the bodily conception, we refer to the body
I
- If one does not enter the devotional service of the Lord but artificially considers himself Brahman or Narayana, not perfectly understanding that the soul and body are different, one certainly falls down. Such a person again gives importance to the body
- In every field of activities, in every body, there are two souls: the individual soul and the Supersoul. BG 1972 purports
- In other words, one should not bother about his personal or family maintenance or sustenance. If one is actually surrendered in body and soul, he should always remember that his only concern is to be engaged in the service of the Lord
- In the material world one has to work for the maintenance of the body and soul, but how can one perform such work in a way that is favorable for the execution of Krsna consciousness
- In the original Vedas, a distinction between the soul, the Supersoul and the body is made, especially in the Katha Upanisad. BG 1972 purports
- In the Vedic literature it is said that the soul is always pure and uncontaminated by material attachment. The identification of the body with the soul is due to misunderstanding
- In those planets (the planets in the kingdom of God) there is no difference between the body and the soul, nor is there any influence of time as we experience it in the material world
- It (9th chapter of BG) is the most confidential because confidential or transcendental knowledge involves understanding the difference between the soul and the body. And the king of all confidential knowledge culminates in devotional service. BG 1972 pur
- It is not forbidden, that "You starve," no. That is not stated in the sastra: Yavad artha-vinirnayam. To keep your health and body, and the body and the soul together, you must live very nicely so that you may not be diseased
- It is superfluous to speak about Krsna, because every one of you exalted personalities knows the Supreme Brahman, for whom there are no material differences between body & soul, between energy & the energetic, or between one part of the body & another
J
- Just as a great python, although lying in one place, not endeavoring for its livelihood, gets the food it needs to maintain body and soul, one who is desireless also obtains his livelihood without endeavor
- Just like Krishna has no differentiation between body and soul, similarly, those who are transferred or living eternally in the spiritual sky, they haven't got also such distinction, between spirit and body
- Just like of a house, rented house, one is the occupier and another is the proprietor, similarly, this body, I the soul, you the soul, we are simply occupier. The real proprietor is Krsna
K
- Krsna said, you (Arjuna) are talking like a learned man, but you do not know that one who is learned - one who knows what is body and what is soul - does not lament for any stage of the body, neither in the living nor in the dead condition. BG 1972 pur
- Krsna says, that asmin dehe, "Within this body, the soul is there." "No, no. I don't believe." Dull brain cannot understand
N
- Narada said to Yudhisthira: "One may claim proprietorship to as much wealth as required to maintain body & soul together, but one who desires proprietorship over more than that is considered a thief, and he deserves to be punished by the laws of nature"
- Neither Vedic knowledge nor modern science denies the existence of the spirit soul in the body, and the science of the soul is explicitly described in the Bhagavad-gita by the Personality of Godhead Himself. BG 1972 purports
O
- On the spiritual platform, body and soul are identical; there is no distinction between them
- One has to become dhira. If one remains adhira, then he'll never be able to understand the distinction between body and soul
- One need not try to earn a livelihood to maintain body & soul together. This is illustrated by the example of the great python, which lies in one place, never going here & there to earn a livelihood to maintain itself, & yet is maintained by Lord
- One should attempt to know the distinction between body and soul without any attachment for male and female. As long as such distinction is there, one should not try to become a sannyasi like Sukadeva Gosvami
- One who does not understand the constitutional position of the body and the soul (atma) becomes too attached to the bodily concept of life - SB 10.4.20
- One who is both devoted and highly advanced in intelligence does not take action against the soul or the body. If there is any discrepancy, he forgives. It is said that forgiveness is a quality of those who are advancing in spiritual knowledge
- One who takes foodstuff after a performance of sacrifice eats real food for proper maintenance of the body and soul, but one who cooks for himself and does not perform any sacrifice eats only lumps of sin in the shape of foodstuffs
- Our speculative theories that atma, the living force, is a combination of matter, that matter is a transformation of the soul, or that the body is part of the soul are all insubstantial
- Our Vedic advice is that make life very simple. You must have some means of livelihood. Keep your body and soul together. So according to quality, guna-karma-vibhagasah (BG 4.13), there must be division, and then simple life
P
- People do not understand. I have seen many European big, big professors, they do not have any clear conception that the body and the soul, different
- Practically everyone throughout the universe, especially on this planet, Bhurloka, thinks that there is no separate existence of the body and soul and therefore no need of self-realization
R
- Real Sankhya philosophy is described by Lord Kapila in the Srimad-Bhagavatam, but even that Sankhya has nothing to do with the current topics. Here (in BG 2.39), Sankhya means analytical description of the body and the soul
- Recently I received a letter from a doctor in Toronto. He suggested that there is body and there is soul. I corresponded with him. Actually, it is a fact. The soul is there
T
- The basic principle of civilization - accepting this body as the soul - is the beginning of all problems. The great philosophers, scientists, theologists and thoughtful men, they do not know what is the defect
- The Bhagavad-gita was delivered to the conditioned souls of the world to deliver them from the wrong conception of identifying the body with the soul and to reestablish the soul's eternal relation with the Supreme Lord
- The Bhagavata says that you can make economic development as far as it maintains your body and soul together. Not that making whole life economic development and real purpose of life forget
- The body is born and is destined to be vanquished today or tomorrow; therefore the body is not as important as the soul. One who knows this is actually learned. BG 1972 purports
- The conclusion should be the body and the soul, they are different. It is very simple truth, but because we have accumulated so much garbage dirty things within our heart, we cannot understand even this simple thing
- The demigods are empowered administrators of material affairs. The supply of air, light, water and all other benedictions for maintaining the body and soul of every living entity are entrusted to the demigods. BG 1972 purports
- The devotee, when he is completely free from all material desires or all material qualities, transcends the duality of action for the body and soul. Then the bodily concept of life is completely over
- The difference between the body and soul can be realized by a person who is thoughtful (manisi or muni), and after this realization of the individual spirit soul one can very easily understand the supreme spirit soul
- The karmis, the gross fruitive workers, do not understand the distinction between the body and the soul. Out of many millions of karmis, there may be one jnani, one wise man who can understand
- The Kurma Purana confirms, deha-dehi-vibhedo ’yam nesvare vidyate kvacit: There is no difference between body and soul in the Supreme Personality of Godhead
- The natural products created by the Supreme Personality of Godhead should be utilized to maintain the bodies and souls of all living entities
- The particular type of body the soul will get, how it is to be manufactured, that is also by superior intelligence
- The practice of austerity and penance is meant for understanding the distinction between the body and the soul and how the soul can be unaffected by the pleasures and pains of the body
- The principle of the soul is eternal, and it exists in this body or in another body. Even in this lifetime we experience existence in a child's body, a youth's body, a man's body & an old body. After the annihilation of the body, we acquire another body
- The real subject matter for a wise man to contemplate is the salvation of the soul. Therefore Sri Krsna first explained the distinction between the body and the soul
- The soul has nothing to do with the body and the senses, but due to ignorance, he identifies himself with the body, and he feels pleasure and pain due to bodily pleasure and pain
- The substance is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and both the body and the soul are energies of the Supreme Godhead, as described by the Lord Himself in Bhagavad-gita - BG 7.4-5
- The Supreme Lord, by His different energies, spreads throughout one's body and soul, although we cannot see Him. An intelligent man, however, can see the Supreme Lord existing everywhere
- The word atma denotes body, mind and soul-depending upon different circumstances. BG 1972 purports
- There is a distinction between the body and the soul of the materially existing living being, but because Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu and Lord Jagannatha do not possess material bodies, there is no distinction between Their bodies and souls
- There is no difference between Krsna’s body and His soul. Krsna is simultaneously both soul and body. The distinction between body and soul applies to conditioned souls
- There is no difference between the body and soul of the Supreme Lord Visnu, although in the material world there is always a difference between the body and the soul
- There is no distinction between body and soul. Everything is one. That we cannot experience now, but we have to get information from these authorized book. Therefore they are far, far better. There is no question of comparison
- There is no distinction between the body and the soul of the Supreme Personality of Godhead at any time
- Therefore, O King Citraketu, carefully consider the position of the atma. In other words, try to understand who you are - whether body, mind or soul
- They are shameless because they have not yet understood the difference between the body and the soul and instead have accepted the body of a brahmana to be a brahmana
- This (BG 14.3) is an explanation of the world: everything that takes place is due to the combination of ksetra & ksetrajna, the body & the spirit soul. This combination of material nature & the living entity is made possible by the SG Himself. BG 1972 p
- This (SB 7.7.18) is a very important verse in understanding the difference between the spiritual soul and the material body. The soul is eternal, as stated in Bhagavad-gita - BG 2.20
- This chapter (2 of the Bhagavad-gita) instructs us in self-realization by an analytical study of the material body and the spirit soul, as explained by the supreme authority, Lord Sri Krsna. BG 1972 purports
- This is the beginning of spiritual life, to distinguish between the soul and the body. One who does not understand that there is soul, there is no spiritual education, because he is animal
- This sankhya (which analytically studies the soul and the body) has nothing to do with the sankhya philosophy of the atheist Kapila. BG 1972 purports
U
- Under the impression of the body, we seek the history of birth, etc., of the soul. The soul does not at any time become old, as the body does. BG 1972 purports
- Unless, one is saved from the wrong conception of the body and the soul, there is no knowledge of Godhead, and unless there is knowledge of God, all advancement of material civilization, however dazzling, should be considered a failure
W
- When one considers his body - his head, his hands and so on - one can certainly understand the difference between the spirit soul and the body. No one says, "I head." Everyone says, "My head"
- When you are liberated, we get spiritual body. Similar . . . at that time, as Krsna has no difference between His body and soul, similarly, we also have no difference between body and soul
- When you get spiritual body, the quality of the body and the soul is the same. But individuality must continue. How can you stop individuality? But that individuality and this individuality is different. In that individuality there is no disagreement
- With sacrificial performances the conditioned souls will never be in difficulty in keeping body & soul together. Ultimately they can purify their existence. They will find natural promotion into spiritual existence, the real identity of the living being
- Without the basic principle of soul, the body cannot be produced
Y
- Yes in spiritual life one must be careful not to eat more than is required to keep body and soul together. The most important point is that one becomes satisfied by serving Krsna rather than by serving the senses
- You have said that I am not stout and strong, and these words are befitting a person who does not know the distinction between the body and the soul