Pradyumna: "Morning is the best time to hold spiritual services."
Prabhupāda: Yes, this is very important thing; therefore we are insisting everyone to rise early in the morning. But even though sometimes we rise early in the morning, we compensate in other time. (laughter) (chuckles) This should be practiced, you see—reducing eating, sleeping, mating; there is spiritual advancement. This is the test. The more you reduce, the ideal is to bring it to nil. Just like Gosvāmīs, they did it. Nidrāhāra-vihārakādi-vijitau (Śrī Śrī Ṣaḍ Gosvāmy Aṣṭaka), they conquered over sleeping and eating and mating. Conquered over.
So our ideal is we are fighting with māyā, so the fighting will conquer over māyā when we see that we are not disturbed by these four processes: eating, sleeping, mating and defending. This is the test. Nobody has to take certificate from anyone as how he is spiritually advancing. He can test himself: "How far I have conquered over these four things: eating, sleeping, mating and defending." That's all. That is the test. So it is not required that don't eat, don't sleep, don't . . . but minimize it, at least regulate it. Try. This is called austerity, tapasya. I want to sleep, but still I shall regulate it. I want to eat, but I must regulate it. I want sense enjoyment, so I must regulate it. That is old Vedic civilization.