The common factor of animal life and human life is these four principles of bodily demands, namely that we require to eat and we require to sleep, we require some defensive measures for protecting ourself from the enemies and we require some extent of sense gratification. That is the needs of my body. They are not the needs of myself as I am, spirit soul.
Now, if I want to get rid of this bodily encagement, or the threefold miseries of material existence, then I must put myself under treatment. Just like a diseased man goes to a physician for treatment to get out of to . . . get relief from the sufferings of the disease, similarly, our material existence, consisting of threefold miseries and birth, death, old age and diseases, if we are actually conscious for our happiness, we must make a permanent solution of these miseries. That is the mission of human life.
So for making that mission fulfilled, we have got developed consciousness than the animals. That developed consciousness should not be misused only for the animal propensities of life. That is the whole thing. And therefore, Lord Kṛṣṇa says that in order to reach to that stage of perfection, you should work. Your work should not be stopped. We have already discussed this point, that niyataṁ kuru karma tvaṁ karma jyāyo hy akarmaṇaḥ (BG 3.8).
that "Your prescribed duty should be prosecuted nicely. Go on. Don't stop it, but work for the life of karma-yoga. Karma-yoga. Ordinary work is called karma. Ordinary work is karma. And when it is added with yoga, that means spiritualized work. Yoga. Yoga means spiritual perfection, or linking up with the Supreme.