Category:Desire to Enjoy
Theme Analysis
The "desire to enjoy" (bhoga-vāñchā) is identified by Śrīla Prabhupāda as the root cause of the living entity's entanglement in the material world. Originally, the soul is a servant of Kṛṣṇa, who is the only supreme enjoyer (bhoktā). However, when the soul attempts to imitate the Lord's position and enjoy independently, it is captured by the illusory energy (māyā). This desire manifests variously—from gross economic development and sex life to the subtle, cheating desire for liberation (mokṣa). The analysis clarifies that true freedom is not the artificial repression of enjoyment (like the fox and the "sour grapes") but the realignment of one's desire to enjoy with Kṛṣṇa, in the mood of service.
- The Origin of Misfortune: The moment the living entity forgets Kṛṣṇa and desires to enjoy the material world, their spiritual identity is covered, and they fall into the cycle of birth and death.
- The Mechanism of Transmigration: The specific type of body one receives is determined by the specific nature of one's desire to enjoy. Nature awards a dress (body) suitable for the desired sense gratification.
- The Two Witches: Both the desire for material enjoyment and the desire for liberation are compared to witches that haunt the conditioned soul. Both are self-centered attempts to be the master or the "One."
- Real vs. Illusory Enjoyment: Enjoyment is not forbidden; it exists in the spiritual world. However, material enjoyment is a perverted reflection where one tries to exploit resources, whereas spiritual enjoyment is experienced through the service of the Lord.
- Explore the synthesized essence of this category in this Vanipedia article: Root of Misfortune - The Desire to Enjoy.
Subcategories
This category has the following 2 subcategories, out of 2 total.
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Pages in category "Desire to Enjoy"
The following 72 pages are in this category, out of 72 total.
1
A
- A material desire is explained as a desire to enjoy the material world to its fullest extent. In modern language, this is called economic development
- Alas, how strange it is that we (Arjuna and the Pandavas) are preparing to commit greatly sinful acts. Driven by the desire to enjoy royal happiness, we are intent on killing our own kinsmen
- An advanced devotee has no desire to enjoy or reject anything. His only duty is to accept whatever is favorable for the advancement of Krsna consciousness
- And if the desire for fame and reputation pollutes my heart, certainly I shall go to hell. By giving others the remnants of my food, I shall consider myself superior and shall be burdened with the weight of false pride
- Anger causes frustration, as in the story of the unsuccessful fox and the "sour grapes." The living entity is then forced to pretend to be a renouncer. But at the bottom of such renunciation burns the great flame of greed and the desire for enjoyment
- As long as one has even a slight desire to enjoy or lord it over material nature, there is no chance of his being freed from the influence of nature's material modes
- As long as there is the desire to enjoy sensually or to become one with the Supreme or to possess the mystic powers, there is no question of attaining the stage of pure devotional service
- As soon as one desires to enjoy his senses, he puts himself under the control of material energy and automatically, or mechanically, is placed into the cycle of birth and death in various life-forms
- As spirit souls we are part and parcel of the Supreme Spirit, but due to our desire to enjoy this material world, we have been put into material nature. Yet in whatever species of life we may be, Krsna is the Father
B
- Because of his desire to enjoy the material world, the living entity is dressed with the material gross and subtle bodies. Thus he is given a chance to enjoy the senses. The senses are therefore the instruments for enjoying the material world
- Because we are desiring to enjoy more, therefore we do not give the chance to the animals to live properly; rather, we are trying to eat the animals. This is not required
F
- Factually, the spiritual energy, the living entity who desires to enjoy material things, is manipulated by the Supreme Lord. The so-called father and mother have nothing to do with the living entity
- For those who want to lord it over material nature, there are so many departments of material enjoyment; material knowledge and material science are available, and the Lord provides for persons who want to enjoy them
I
- I am spirit soul. I have nothing to do with this material world, but because I have a desire to enjoy it in different ways, I am transmigrating from one body to another. I do not know when this began, but it is still going on - This is real knowledge
- If one maintains within his heart the desire to enjoy the result of good work, or, being embarrassed by the material world, the desire to get out of material entanglement, one will never be able to attain the transcendental mellows of devotional service
- If you have desire to enjoy, then don't become a sannyasi, brahmacari. You become a married man, live peacefully with wife and children. That is allowed
- If you still have any desire to enjoy the company of your friends within this material world, then don't look upon the form of Krsna, who is standing on the bank of Kesi-ghata
- If you want to enjoy spiritual life, then you have to enjoy in spiritual body. But as we have no information of the spiritual life, spiritual enjoyment, we are simply desiring to enjoy this world
- In his eternal conditioned existence the jiva is full of the desire to enjoy matter, while in his eternal liberated state he is full of the desire to render devotional service to the Lord. Thus the jiva can never become God
- In old age the senses lose their strength, and although an old man desires to enjoy his senses, and especially sex life, he is very miserable because his instruments of enjoyment no longer function
- In the conditioned soul the desire to enjoy the fruitive results of work is so deep-rooted that it is very difficult even for the great sages to control such desires, despite great endeavors. BG 1972 purports
K
- King Puranjana was actually thinking of becoming her (the shy girl) husband and consequently was asking her whether she was thinking of her prospective husband or whether she was married. This is an example of bhoga-iccha - the desire for enjoyment
- Krsna bhuliya jiva bhoga vancha kare, as soon as you desire to enjoy independently, immediately - that means immediately he is captured by maya
O
- O Almighty Lord! I have no desire to accumulate wealth, nor have I any desire to enjoy beautiful women, nor do I want any number of followers. I only want Your causeless devotional service in my life, birth after birth
- One acts in naiskarmya when he fully engages in Krsna conscious activities without material desires to enjoy, either here or in the upper planetary systems, in the present life or in a future life (iha-amutra). Anyabhilasita-sunyam - BRS 1.1.11
- One cannot enjoy material illusory prosperity if he desires to return home, back to Godhead. One who has no information of the transcendental bliss in the association of the Lord foolishly desires to enjoy this temporary material happiness
- One should know: I am spirit soul. I have nothing to do with this material world, but because I have a desire to enjoy it in different ways, I am transmigrating from one body to another. I do not know when this began, but it is still going on
- One who is attracted by such desires (for enjoyment) becomes conditioned in this material world, and one who is not so attracted attains liberation
- One who knows that he must work in Krsna consciousness, who no longer desires to enjoy this material world, is actually learned
- Only misers desire to enjoy the fruit of their own work just to be further entangled in material bondage. Except for work in KC, all activities are abominable because they continually bind the worker to the cycle of birth and death. BG 1972 purports
- Originally the living entity is a spiritual being, but when he actually desires to enjoy this material world, he comes down
S
- Sometimes devotees desire to enjoy material happiness also; therefore, by the arrangement of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the devotee is given a chance to enjoy the material world before his final entrance into the spiritual world
- Sri Caitanya prayed - O Almighty Lord, I have no desire to accumulate wealth, nor to enjoy beautiful women. Nor do I want any number of followers. What I want only is the causeless mercy of Your devotional service in my life, birth after birth. BG 1972 p
- Srila Rupa Gosvami has written a very nice verse wherein one gopi advises another, "My dear friend, if you desire to enjoy the company of material society, friendship and love, then please do not go to see this smiling boy Govinda"
- Sweet-smelling breezes blew always, refreshing the mind and body. Krsna, with His friends and Balarama, entered the forest and, seeing the favorable situation, desired to enjoy the atmosphere to the fullest extent
T
- The brahmana desired to enjoy the company of a prostitute, and therefore his wife went to her and became her maidservant, just to draw her attention for his service
- The cloud and air are different substances. Similarly consciousness is pure spiritual, but when the consciousness desires to enjoy matter, it becomes cloudy and dusty, or contaminated
- The desire for enjoyment is present both in Krsna and in His parts and parcels, the living entities. In the spiritual world, such desires are also spiritual. No one should mistakenly consider such desires to be material
- The different forms of the living entities are different dresses offered by the illusory, external energy of the Lord according to the modes of nature the living being desires to enjoy
- The gopis continued, "We see Your mildly smiling face, and our desire to enjoy You (Krsna) increases"
- The lawful workers are again divided into two sections: namely, the workers with a desire to enjoy the fruits of their work; and the transcendental workers, without any such desire
- The little taste experienced in sex is our desire to enjoy another's wife, and the flies are the guardians of women, like the husband, father-in-law, mother-in-law and so forth. The creeper itself is women in general
- The Lord is the only enjoyer, and all others are enjoyed. The living beings are predominated enjoyers. But the eternally conditioned souls, forgetful of this constitutional position, have strong aspirations to enjoy
- The material desire to enjoy the material world and the desire to become liberated from material bondage are considered to be two witches, and they haunt one like ghosts
- The material world cannot be enjoyed by any living entity. If one so desires to enjoy it, he immediately becomes a demon like Ravana, Hiranyakasipu or Kamsa
- The naras are also meant to serve Narayana under the guidance of the goddess of fortune. The living being cannot enjoy the goddess of fortune without serving Narayana, & therefore whoever desires to enjoy her wrongly will be punished by the law of nature
- The prefix 'pra' in the word 'projjhita' specifically refers to those desiring liberation or oneness with the Supreme. Such a desire should be understood to be the foremost cheating propensity
- The qualities of the material modes in the body will act, but as spirit soul the self is aloof from such activities. How does he become aloof? He does not desire to enjoy the body, nor does he desire to get out of it. BG 1972 purports
- The soul has no death, but when the same pure soul desires to enjoy the material world independently, he is placed under the conditions of material nature and must therefore accept a certain type of body and suffer the pains and pleasures thereof
- The Supersoul gives the individual soul all facilities to achieve whatever he desires to enjoy in this material world. Suffering is a reaction to the living entity's propensity to try to lord it over the material world
- The system of varnasrama & its prescribed duties are so designed that the conditioned soul may enjoy in the material world according to his desire for sense gratification & at the same time gradually become elevated to spiritual understanding
- The word akama refers to one who does not have any material desires. Moksa-kama refers to one who seeks liberation from material miseries, and sarva-kama refers to one who has the material desire to enjoy
- The worker who is attached to work and the fruits of work, desiring to enjoy those fruits, and who is greedy, always envious, impure, and moved by joy and sorrow, is said to be in the mode of passion
- The worker with a desire to enjoy the fruits of his work is hankering after transient material happiness, and such a worker is rewarded with worldly or heavenly happiness within the material worlds
- To desire to enjoy this material world as a subordinate of the Supreme Personality of Godhead is godly. The demons, however, want to enjoy this material world without considering the SP of Godhead. This is the difference between a demon and a demigod
W
- When Krsna forces somebody to surrender, that is a great favor. But generally, He does not do so. But He does so to a person who is very sincere to Krsna's service but at the same time he has got slight desire for material enjoyment
- When the living entities desire to enjoy themselves, they develop a consciousness of duality and come to hate the service of the Lord. In this way the living entities fall into the material world
- When we desire to enjoy this material world, forgetting service of Krsna, that is the beginning of our misfortune
- While Balarama was in that happy mood, He desired to enjoy the company of the gopis in the water of the Yamuna