Acharya Prashant explains that patriarchy is not merely an external ideology or a system imposed by men on women; rather, it is fundamentally rooted in 'body-consciousness' or identifying oneself solely as a physical body. He compares this state to that of animals, whose entire identity, behavior, and relationships are determined by their physical nature. In human society, when individuals identify only as bodies, roles are assigned based on physical attributes—such as the female's capacity for childbirth and the male's greater muscular strength. This body-centric view naturally leads to the traditional division of labor and the confinement of women to domestic roles, which is the essence of patriarchy.