Acharya Mahaprajna
To recall then, any comfort, which does harm to our physical health is not desirable. Today, many articles have come in vogue, which appear comfortable but ultimately pervert the mind and produce fickleness in the mind. Facilities that are provided in recreation clubs look attractive to the mind at first, but in the long run, these go on stuffing the mind with perversions. That is why Mahavira said: put limits to your wants and avoid such comforts.
A person was asked, "Why do you drink alcohol?"
"It is essential for me", he replied.
"Why is it essential? What happens with it?" he was further queried.
"Soon after drinking it, all tension disappears", he said.
This is the language of logic: alcohol is essential for removing our tension. Mahavira said, "Limit this imaginary need. The real need is food and water." Alcohol merely is an imaginary need, which assumes that it is essential for removing tension. Today, the market of intoxicants, which has become pervasive, is based on imaginary needs. If Mahavira were asked about it he would say, "Control it. This is not essential for you. It is an unreal need, which you have only assumed to be real." It needs to be realized that even our imagination many a time generates wants.
