We should never desire an increase in material pleasures. On the contrary, we must accept them only in accordance with the primary necessities of existence, neither more nor less.

By increasing material pleasure, we increase the chains that bind us to the sufferings of material existence. If more wealth, more women, and more aristocratic connections are among the materialist's major aspirations, it is because he is completely ignorant of the benefits that would accrue from the worship of God, which benefits its creator in this life as well as after death. Thus, oblivious to these truths, the fool, desiring to increase his wealth and multiply his wives and children, worships various celestial beings. Now, the purpose of existence is to put an end to all material suffering, not to increase it. Even to obtain material pleasures, there is no need to approach celestial beings. These are simple servants of the Lord, who are responsible to Him for providing incarnate beings with all the elements necessary for life, such as water, light, air, etc.

We must work wholeheartedly within the limits of our abilities and worship the Supreme Lord by offering Him the hard-earned fruits of our labor. This should be our motto. Whoever takes care to fulfill their duty and occupation well, with faith in the Lord, will be led to gradually progress on the path to return to God.

One who is attracted solely by sense gratification will not be able to free themselves from material slavery; their life will be nothing but a waste of time. Indeed, any action that does not elevate its doer to the level of piety is useless. By nature, everyone has an inclination towards this or that form of activity, and when this activity leads to piety, this in turn leads to renunciation, and the latter to devotional service, one then attains perfection of the act.

Any action that does not ultimately lead to loving and devoted service to God is a cause of shackles in this world. Unless a being gradually rises to the level of devotional service from his natural activity, he is little better than a corpse. Action that does not foster the blossoming of Krishna consciousness must be considered useless.

Indeed, material success is not a blessing at all, for as soon as we are deluded by the gifts of nature, we become increasingly enslaved to material energy. Without any hope of liberation, we become slaves to material energy, through its form of “matter.” One must have sufficient intelligence to know how to use these material assets for spiritual realization. Everything we have must be used in the service of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. One must strive to worship God, the Supreme Lord, with everything one possesses. There are many forms of service to the Supreme Lord, and each living entity can serve Him to the best of their ability. After engaging in speculative activities for many, many lives, one who truly awakens to his true consciousness and surrenders to the Supreme Lord, Krishna, finds his quest for knowledge truly fulfilled.

There is a vast difference between theoretical freedom and the actual liberation from material slavery.

One who turns away from the auspicious path of devotional service to seek knowledge of the truth through speculation is only wasting their precious time. The fruit of such effort is only the effort itself; there is no other gain. Speculative efforts always end in exhaustion. It is sometimes explained, as an example, that there is no point in threshing rice husks since the grain has already been extracted. Similarly, the mere practice of speculation is not enough to free us from material slavery, for its cause remains. The cause must first be neutralized; only then will the effect be eliminated.