You cannot worship something with the intent of obtaining favors—that's exploitation. Worshiping a cow while asking for milk is not worship. Worship is when you do not use any dairy product and yet respect the cow. The common man sees everything as an object for consumption. True nature worship is desireless—not based on consumption, with no one left to desire.
This summary is AI-generated. Please read the full article for complete understanding.
Questioner: Namaste, Acharya Ji.
I am Saransh, an 18-year-old student from Lucknow. Sir, my question is that can we take nature worship part of the Vedas with a special meaning today, with a higher meaning today because I've heard you saying once that there would have been a great consciousness which would have addressed Ganga as Ma or worshiped a tree. Can we take these Vedic gods with a special meaning or a higher meaning today?
Acharya Prashant: The higher meaning is desirelessness. You cannot worship something with a view to obtain favors from it. That's exploitation. That's consumption. That's worship only in name. That's like worshipping Margarita. You don't worship Margarita because you are charmed and you want to become one day like Margarita. You want to lose yourself and one day be dissolved. You worship margarita so that you can consume it fully and finish it off.
So the real kind of nature worship that we talk of, let's say, in Durga Saptshati, that's different. That's where the relationship is not of
