Material nature's only business is beating us and kicking us. But we are so foolish that we think, "This kicking is very nice." That is our disease — we accept the kicking as very nice. We are always suffering three kinds of disturbances: adhyatmika, adhibhautika, and adhidaivika. These are disturbances caused by our own body and mind, disturbances caused by other living entities, and disturbances caused by the demigods, like severe weather or famine. We are always suffering from some disturbance, yet still we are thinking this material world is very nice, and we are trying to improve it. That is foolishness.

(Srila Prabhupada, quoted in "On Improving the Material World" Back to Godhead Magazine #17-06, 1982)