THERE IS nothing like living a simple life. According to Bob Corbett there are two kinds of simple livings: voluntary and social. Voluntary simple life is neither a place nor a particular set of practices.

Many people do it differently (even when motivated by the same motive) from other practitioners. On the other hand it is not nothing either. It may sometimes be hard for another to recognize that one is living a life of voluntary simplicity, but there is a criterion, which any person can use to discover whether or not he or she is living such a life and where one is in it.

In other words, simple living is also termed as  voluntary simplicity. It reflects a lifestyle in which individuals consciously choose to minimize the 'more-is-better' pursuit of wealth and consumption. There are some people who  choose simple living for a variety of reasons, including  spirituality, health,  increase in 'quality time' for family and friends, stress reduction, conservation, social justice or anti-consumerism, while others choose to live more simply for reasons of personal taste or personal economy.

According to James Neill, simple living also connotes living with nature that is termed as Wilderdom, which means simply living in nature- taken to the full extent.  When simple living in nature is taken to the full extent, personal and systemic transformation ensues. Wilderdom emphasizes that whatever living philosophy one constructs, it cannot avoid the laws of nature, and the best way to get familiar with the laws of nature is to live simply in natural surrounds. 

Once placed within this context, the individual can attend to his/her heart's greatest desire, whatever that may be at the time, such as bringing up children, building, growing, studying, or providing a community with a product or service. In order to live, we consume and expel air, water, food and use some basic living tools.  This necessarily involves movement; one cannot be static.  Thus, we must interact with the surrounds; entire isolation is not possible.  We give away the air we breathe and the water and food that pass through us, and then we must search for more.  That is the way of survival for animals on planet Earth.  And it is all we really need to bother doing - Giving and receiving. The following quotes are highly relevant in this context:

Coming back to voluntary simplicity, we mention below a variety of reasons that make an individual to go for it:

• seeking a more just way to live with other people;
  
• seeking a more just way to live with the environment;
  
• seeking a life of less tension;
  
• seeking a life where one has more control over how one uses one's time;
  
• seeking a life which is more under one's own control and not dictated as much by external forces;
  
• seeking a religious life directed more toward salvation than materialism is seen to be; and
  
• seeking a life which is less materialist.