Bhagavad Gita 17.14

deva-dvija-guru-prājña-

pūjanaṁ śaucam ārjavam

brahmacaryam ahiṁsā ca]

śārīraṁ tapa ucyate

Worship of devas, sages, teachers and the wise,

Cleanliness, honesty—virtues to help the soul rise;

Celibacy and non-violence maintained,

These are bodily austerities sustained.

My dear Lord, many are the ways in which I pander to my body, sometimes consciously by giving it sensual revelry or physical luxury, and sometimes unconsciously by choosing the paths that cause it the least discomfort or pain. Please remind me of the cost associated with such choices. Help me to shift my focus from what I am doing for my body to what my body is meant to do for the real me, the soul.

O supremely powerful Lord, help me see how austerity makes the body a better vessel for the soul. Just as a vessel is meant to shelter securely and share appropriately whatever is contained within it, grant me the vision to see how regulating my bodily indulgences can make my body a more efficient and effective vessel for my soul’s consciousness. Lead me to appreciate that a body disciplined by austerity will first protect the soul’s consciousness from being too affected by the world and second help it effect changes in the outer world.

Bless me, O supremely benevolent Lord, to see how a body trained in austerity becomes a strong and steady vehicle for elevating my consciousness to the spiritual level, so that I can experience you, the supreme spiritual reality, more fully, more purposefully, more joyfully.

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17.14 Austerity of the body consists in worship of the Supreme Lord, the brāhmaṇas, the spiritual master, and superiors like the father and mother, and in cleanliness, simplicity, celibacy and nonviolence.