Questioner (Q): Sir, can an introvert become more communicative?
Acharya Prashant (AP): Why does an introvert need to be more communicative?
Q: He has some fears and doubts when he talks to someone.
AP: Who is an introvert?
Q: The one who is afraid of asking doubts.
AP: That is not introversion, that is fear.
Q2: An introvert is someone who keeps everything to himself. The one who is afraid of expressing himself.
AP: There may be a fellow who speaks too much because of fear. ‘Introvert’ and ‘extrovert’ are not solid classifications. The more closely you look at them, you will find that they are just layers of smoke. Who is an introvert?
Q2: The one who is shy.
Q3: The one who is quiet.
AP: Shyness and quietness do not have anything in common.
Q5: The one who wants to be isolated.
AP: Isolated.
Q4: The one who fears rejection from society.
AP: The one who has fears of rejection from the society. See, whatever is coming from you all as the meaning of ‘introvert’ is very different from each other. Introversion is just a vague, hazy image. A person is a person. It is usually assumed that an introvert is a person who does not talk much. And if you are an extrovert, you like to talk a lot. But as I said that you can keep so much to yourself because you are afraid, and you can even speak too much because you are afraid. The quantity of your verbiage does not matter. Just reduce the question to asking that 'how do I get rid of fear?' That is sufficient. Introvert, extrovert do not matter.
You are afraid of speaking in front of others because you think your image will be spoiled. Did you ask that question when there were a hundred students sitting here? But now that there are only ten left, you are comfortably asking this question, because the chances of spoiling your image are far less from the situation when there were hundred people.
So, fear comes when you were thinking of your image, when you are bothered by what others will think of you. That is what is fear. Right? Don’t be bothered. Why should you be bothered?
Q5: People expect you to behave in a particular way and act in a particular way.
AP: Let them expect. I expect you to walk on your head. Let all of us expect that he will walk on his head. (Addressing the same questioner) Will you walk on your head?
Q5: No.
AP: Let all of us expect that he will break his teeth. Will you break your teeth? Let them keep expecting. Why are you obliged to meet somebody else’s expectations? Why should you meet somebody else’s expectations? Let them keep expecting. Right? Next question.
Q6: I am reading a book these days. In that book, it is written that every good becomes evil. Would you agree with that?
AP: It is not a question of agreement. It is the truth. These are two sides of the same coin. They necessarily go together. Can you call something good, if evil does not exist? For anything to exist, there must be a background of its opposite to exist.
For good to exist, there must be a background of evil. Are you getting it?
Q6: Sir, I am asking if good becomes evil.
AP: Good does not become evil. Good already has some seeds of evil in it. Or you can say that anything has seeds of its opposite in it.
You take birth and you already have seeds of death, because birth means that you will die one day. Birth will become death. The day you are born, it is already decided that you will die someday. Everything has the seeds of opposite of it. Today you enter this university, so one day you will leave this university. So, coming will become going. Everything has the seed of its opposite to exist. You switched on this light, now it is certain that the light will go off at some point in time. So, light will become darkness.
Everything has the seeds of its opposite in it.
