Austerity
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Austerity of the body involves worshiping positive spirituality (God), showing kindness, spending time around wise, pure, simple people, behaving with self-restraint, purity, and not injuring others.
Austerity of speech involves speech that causes no harm to others, speaking truthfully, saying what you mean, and meaning what you say.
Austerity of thought involves cheerfulness, kindliness, silence, self- control, pure-heartedness, Divine joy, and gratitude, and regularly studying scriptures.
• Sattwic austerity is practiced by those who practice three-fold austerity with devotion, resolve, and faith and without wishing for anything in return. Austerity arising out of a sense of duty is also sattwic.
• Rajasic austerity is practiced when these austerities are performed with the aim to become famous, wealthy, desiring to be worshiped or applauded, or when an austerity is done with an ostentatious and obvious display.
• Tamasic austerity is practiced with the aim of deluding or confus- ing people and hurting oneself or others. [Verse 11–17]
