Answer
To understand this, we must first understand the fundamental problem of material existence.
The soul is not the material body, yet the conditioned living being identifies with the body.
This bodily identification means that we think only in terms of the body and rarely consider that we are eternal spirit souls distinct from it.
Such identification is the very definition of ignorance and is the source of all suffering.
The Bhagavad-gita teaches that pleasure and pain belong to the body and mind, not to the soul itself.
The soul, being purely spiritual, is never contaminated by matter. Spirit and matter are fundamentally different and do not mix.
However, the consciousness of the conditioned soul becomes absorbed in bodily identification.
At present, our awareness is almost entirely focused on bodily sensations:
Seeing
Hearing
Smelling
Tasting
Touching
Acting through the senses
We are also absorbed in the activities of the subtle body—thinking, feeling, and willing.
In contrast, we have very little awareness of our true spiritual identity, of Krishna, or of His constant presence within our hearts.
Yet Krishna is always present as the Paramatma, guiding every living being from within. He gives remembrance, knowledge, and forgetfulness, and even enables the digestion of our food. Nevertheless, because of ignorance, we remain unaware of His presence.
The purpose of spiritual life is to correct this defect in consciousness.
We must shift our awareness from material sensations to spiritual reality.
How is this accomplished?
By chanting the Hare Krishna maha-mantra and attentively hearing the transcendental sound vibration.
As we hear the holy name, that spiritual sound enters the heart and gradually awakens our dormant Krishna consciousness.
As spiritual awareness develops, we become less absorbed in material experiences and increasingly conscious of Krishna.
Even while attentively hearing spiritual topics, one experiences a glimpse of this transformation. During such hearing, one's awareness naturally withdraws from surrounding material distractions and becomes focused on spiritual reality.
This is genuine spiritual progress.
As one becomes Krishna conscious, material pain, anxiety, and suffering lose their influence.
Ultimately, Krishna Himself takes charge of the devotee's life, and the devotee becomes interested only in Krishna, His service, and His eternal spiritual reality, rather than temporary material pleasures.
Therefore, the real solution to the problem of material pleasure and pain is not merely to analyze how they are stored in the mind, but to awaken Krishna consciousness, which gradually frees one from bodily identification altogether.
