Media

Technology cannot substitute real-life interactions, and planned statements or responses can never carry the authenticity of something spontaneous. It can become a habit to hide behind text. Do not let that become a habit—that habit simply means fear. Do not protect fear.

The Influencers you follow on social media || Acharya Prashant, at IIT-Roorkee (2022)

22 min

Welcome: Namaskar Acharyaji, my colleagues, students, ladies and gentlemen. I was wondering how to welcome, but I forgot it all once I saw Acharyaji. I felt as if I have known him since centuries, such is his brilliance. Perhaps many people here do not know Sanskrit. Acharyaji has reached the… read_more

The One Most Important Thing About Life

34 min

“The will to live.” “The will to just continue.” That, he said, is the basic human existential tendency. I’m asking, “Don’t animals have that tendency?” At the root of all consciousness; is the will to survive and continue. We don’t want to die; the animals, too, don’t want to die, right? We feel pain, we suffer; so do animals. The reasons might be very different. Often the reasons are, in fact, not too different. Separate a human mother from her baby and you see the suffering. It’s very apparent. Separate a cow from her calf, and the suffering is much the same. Read more...

The Mind Must be 25 Forever

19 min

You wild away your childhood in just trivial matters and your youth in desires and consumption and now you are left with only regrets when you are old.* That's what the saints have always been telling you. Read more.....

Role of Social Media in Redefining Indian Perspectives

14 min

In the contemporary current intellectual discussions that happen in India, there is often a lack of, or at least an inadequate importance that is put upon the role that social media plays in our current consciousness. It's seen that they do discuss it, but they hand-wave it as a technology—that it is there and it has some influence. But we rarely see that in Indian discussions. We rarely dive into it—of what the problem it is creating or its benefits.

Objectifying Women with Her Consent: Acharya Prashant on Women Empowerment

Market-driven comedy: Make fun, nothing is sacred || Acharya Prashant, Advait Mahotsav (2021)

Questioner (Q): All the forms of multimedia — the film industry and the advertisements have presented images of both sexes which are very often unrealistic and debatable. The very quality of femininity has been portrayed in the film industry, ironically, as victims, as mere pretty faces and sidekicks. Why do… read_more

The mass murder of women! || Neem Candies

Questioner (Q): Acharya Ji, I watch stand-up sometimes to check what's going around, I see comedians using satire and sarcasm for India in their comedy. Big companies like Amazon, Netflix are hiring big content creators for promotions and making videos and they are shifting from their channels to the company's… read_more

Do you really care for her? || Neem Candies

A woman is murdered—even that is just a two-inch thing in some newspaper. But if it is a sensational rape case, then the entire country joins in.

Are we really concerned about women? Had we been concerned about women, how is it that the common man of this country is… read_more

A celebrity couple gives birth ||Neem Candies

You never take out a candlelight vigil on India Gate when a little girl is being badly conditioned by media, by society, by the school, by all the websites, by all the influences upon her. Have you ever seen a candlelight vigil against all the corrupting forces on the little… read_more

Why do fewer women go to work? || Acharya Prashant, at AIIMS Nagpur (2022)

A celebrity couple gives birth. Now, rabbits give birth. Same thing. But the media keeps splashing the face of this kid, this baby incessantly—incessantly! A thousand more women are then influenced, rather compelled to give birth. The media is constantly telling you, “Look at this baby. This is what you… read_more

15 min

Questioner (Q): A very good evening, sir. According to the world bank, out of the total economic growth of India, women contribute only seventeen per cent. However, their Chinese counterpart country put forty per cent into their nation’s growth, as we are aiming to be a five trillion economic country… read_more

Our heroes must change || Neem Candies

ख़ुद से ये पूछा करो || नीम लड्डू

A meat eater must not be able to hold a place of pride in popular culture. You need to have celebrities coming out and endorsing veganism, at least vegetarianism. You need to show the good guy in popular media, in the movies, as a vegan guy. It is very important.… read_more

2 min

किससे मिल रहे हो? किससे नहीं मिल रहे हो? कहाँ रोज़ पहुँच जाते हो? कहाँ से पैसे ला रहे हो? पहली बात – क्या ईमानदारी से काम रहे हो? दूसरी बात – जो कमा रहे हो, उसको खर्च कहाँ कर रहे हो? छः घण्टे से कोई खबरिया चैनल लगा कर… read_more

Using or abusing social media? || Neem Candies

Thinking to quit social media? || Neem Candies

If Facebook is satisfying you, it is not called as time wasted. Full stop. If the purpose of time is your satisfaction, and if doing all kinds of nonsense on Facebook satisfies you, then you cannot call it as wasted of time.

The only thing that determines whether time or… read_more

Big Fat Salary, Or Stable Job?

Thousands are watching us on YouTube—is YouTube good or bad? Good or bad? Depends on what you are using it for; depends, therefore, on who you are.

Remaining who you are, if you deactivate your Facebook account, that would still not help you. Addicted to Facebook, you are a slave… read_more

Acharya Prashant Interviewed By Kip Andersen (#Christspiracy) || Religion And Animals

Question : Sir, What is more, important for a fresher, big fat salary, or a stable job?

Acharya Prashant : Neither. What’s your name?

Listener1 : Acharya Ji, Taranjay.

AP : Taranjay is asking “What is more important for a fresher, a good salary or a stable job?” Neither. A… read_more

7 min

Now, how does man relate with the world? How does man know what to do, how to approach, how to touch, how to live, how to eat, how to talk, how to connect? That, to me, is the essence of religion. Man’s relationship with himself and the world. That is religion, and that is also the essence of all organized religions.

Spirituality Is Neither Culture Nor Tradition

4 min

Spirituality is neither a tradition nor a culture. Spirituality is not at all about following something or somebody. When it is said that you must follow the Guru, the Guru is the Truth, not a person not a man. Spirituality would never say, “Follow the words of a man.” Spirituality says, “Let the mind follow the Center, the Truth or you may call it the Heart or God.”

Living Without God: Principles For A Purposeful Life

Any belief is stupid because all beliefs come from a lack of investigation, and a lack of investigation comes from deep fear and a feeling of insecurity. If you are insecure and afraid, then you will not dare to ask questions and investigate. And it is from that fear and insecurity that the concept of God has arisen. Now, God and reality are two different things. God and Truth are not the same thing. The mark of religiosity or true spirituality is an abiding faith in the truth.

Are All the Interesting People Found in Hell?

7 min

No! They are not interesting people; they are sick people. It’s just that the very definition of the word 'interesting' has become distorted to their advantage. People in hell are as interesting as a stinking pile of trash is.

The Making of a Rare Vivekananda: The Role of Ramakrishna

Swami Vivekananda was an ordinary man—Narendra, and he too had his ordinary pursuits. It was the magical touch of Paramhans, that turned him into Vivekananda. And he wasn't too eager either. Many times, he ran away from Ramakrishna. It is a gigantic task, it doesn't just happen on its own. If you leave the youth to how they are, it is not liberation that would happen.

Shraddh: How To Satisfy Your Ancestors?

13 min

Liberate yourself of ignorance and help the entire planet. That should be the meaning of Shraddh. Instead, Shraddh has become an entire elaborate ceremony of superstition. This is that souls are floating in some other universe, and they come down, and they are hungry, and they are this, and there is talk of crows and sparrows and all kinds of crude superstition. That is not at all to be called as religious.

Is Self-Love About Being Happy?

Making yourself happy isn't self-love. Self-love is gifting yourself the highest possible. If you do not know what to give yourself, at least abstain from giving yourself toxic and harmful things. Real love is always tough. Self-love is an exercise in reduction, not accumulation. When you work to make your life beautiful, you are truly loving yourself.

Are You Spiritual or Religious? (The Difference Is Big)

10 min

If you are really a spiritual person, then you will find that the community that opposes you the most is not of atheists, it is of religious people. They will be the ones who would be opposing the really spiritual person the most, which is an unfortunate thing because the way religion was designed, it was designed to gradually make a person spiritual. Today, the situation is that these are not in sync or harmony with each other. Rather, these two have become greatly separated.

Is Sadness the Door to Happiness?

If you want to be happy, you should be sad. How many of you want deep happiness? You must go and must become deeply sad. This kind of happiness is of no use, it is coming from others, it is situation-dependent, there is no intelligence in it. There is another happiness that is called as ‘joy’. Find that happiness which nobody has given you and nobody can take away, which is your own nature. Lightness, simple pure lightness!

Astrology: Science or Superstition?

10 min

Anybody who believes in astrology cannot be rational. All you have is a set of beliefs—the belief that this thing will happen. There is no logic in it, only fear and insecurity. Science is based on verifiable and falsifiable experiments, whereas astrology is not subject to verification; hence, it is just a story. It's a story that is making big money for a lot of storytellers.

Happiness Is a False Medicine

3 min

The bulk of the human population is always, by default, in the state of boredom, frustration, irritation and anxiety— which are all nothing but sadness. The brain can never know the real happiness, i.e., 'Joy'. So, it is looking for some kind of a cheap substitute, which it finds in various objects: position, power, performance, money, appreciation, prestige, reputation— all these things. Happiness is a false medicine. A substitute. A cheap, unworthy substitute for joy.

Can the Materialistic Man Be Spiritual?

4 min

Whatsoever is precious will be non-dualistic, and if it is non-dualistic, it cannot have an object. Totally, if you are anything, then you are spiritual. The totality itself is spirituality. The emphasis, then, will not be on materialistic totally. The totality is important. Being total means you are total—not divided, not limited, not small.

Hurt by Those Around You?

Hurt comes when you are not sure of yourself. You are saying you are all right with your habits, but not all right with people criticizing you. You feel hurt. If you feel hurt, that clearly tells you that you do not know what you do and why you do it. If you know that making the bed, for example, is the best thing you can do with your time in the morning, then why would you pay attention to someone objecting to it?

Is Religion Merely Superstition?

11 min

Religion concerns itself with ‘Ego and its liberation!’ That’s all. In the name of religion, if you are talking about planets and stars, about fruits and vegetables, wear this, don’t wear that, eat this, don’t eat that, the house should face this direction, and a thousand other things that you associate with it, then all that is some kind of tribal superstition. Religion has nothing to do with these things.

What Is Creativity?

4 min

Creativity is the action of a fresh and free mind. With a fresh mind, whatever you do is creative. We have equated creativity with brilliance and dynamism, whereas it can be very ordinary. It’s like love—where something totally new comes from nowhere, where one is not overly concerned about results, and where one is not caught in mundane distractions. It's an expression of freedom and fearlessness.

Is Religion Patriarchal? Exploring Its Impact on Women's Lives

30 min

Vedānta is about the person gaining liberation from both of these—body identification and mental conditioning. So, ideally spirituality should be the woman’s best friend. But practically, evidence has been rather mixed; in fact, evidence has been that religion historically has been on the side of the oppressors when it comes to the women, oppressors of the women. The reason is that religion itself has not been well understood. Religion itself has been a victim of contamination, and when religion is contaminated then religion becomes a tool towards exploitation of women.

Alasinga Perumal - Swami Vivekananda's most loved disciple

3 min

We all know Swami Vivekananda. But have you heard about 'Shri Alasinga Perumal'?

Probably not. But if Alasinga Ji had not been there, Swami Vivekananda would never have been able to give that historic speech in Chicago, due to which he brought fame to Vedanta and Hinduism throughout the world.… read_more

The Many Images of Krishna: Their Utility and Limits

If you're obsessed with the lover-boy image of Krishna, then you will miss Krishna when he does not come as a charming lover. And he will not always come as a charming lover. If you are obsessed with Krishna, the male, then you will miss Krishna when he comes as a woman. Because, in your imagination, Krishna is the one wearing the peacock feather with the flute at his lips, appearing in attire that belonged to those ages, enjoying milk and butter, speaking Sanskrit.

Is Krishna Available Only to Arjuna?

14 min

Remember, it is not as if Krishna did not try with Duryodhana. Krishna goes to Duryodhana and what does Duryodhana do? He tries to arrest him. Krishna goes as the messenger of peace and Duryodhana says no, no, no! The action of Love is still taking place. He is not saying that I will leave Duryodhana to his fate. He says it is my responsibility to teach even Duryodhana. But when Duryodhana proves it beyond doubt, that he is incorrigible, then Krishna says, “Fine, now that the battle is destined, let the blows rain.”

How to Make Your Parents Happy?

For you to make your parents happy, the first requirement is that you must be happy. If you are not happy, how can you give happiness to your parents? There is a basic law of existence: you can only give what you have. How can you suffer and still make others happy? Please, get rid of the notion that you can compromise your life to make others happy.

What Is Auspicious and Why Do We Avoid It?

18 min

There is an innate inauspiciousness inbuilt in my existence. I am not good. And that’s the reason why man must seek improvement; that’s the reason why man seeks liberation; that’s the reason why man endeavors; that’s the reason why man has to look for successful navigation through life; that’s the reason why has man to look for success at all in some or the other field of life; that’s the reason man has desires. Because we are fundamentally not alright.

Beware of Those Suggesting to Avoid Reading Scriptures

It’s far easier to sit on a greatly decorated stage and talk about the virtues of Rudrākṣa, and what kind of water to drink, and why copper is useful; and all kinds of pseudo-scientific nonsense. But to really speak upon a Kabir or an Ashtavakra requires a tremendous understanding which does not come to everybody. If you are a spiritual teacher and you are saying you have not read any scripture, that raises questions on your love for the Truth.

Is Your Expensive Lifestyle a Trap?

6 min

If you want money, you'll have to trade your body, time, and effort. No one will pay you a fortune and let you enjoy liberty. Learn to survive at the minimum, and then money is not a burden. But when money sticks to the mind, when it becomes a part of the mind, and when you become money-minded, it is bad. Keep your costs low, and no one can enslave you.

Jagadish Chandra Bose: The Indian Scientist Who Deserved Two Nobel Prizes

3 min

Bose's contribution to radio technology was kept in the dark and came to light only recently. Francesco Marconi, grandson of G. Marconi himself, in one of his lectures, addressed Bose as the inventor of radio, and his grandfather as its propagator. Additionally, the international organization IEEE gave Bose the title of ‘Father of Radio Science’. Many scientists believe that Bose deserved two Nobel Prizes – one for his research on radio waves and the other for his semiconductor research.

Mood Swings? || AP Neem Candies

2 min

Acharya Prashant: Our story is that somebody says, ‘Hey! looking gorgeous today’. And we work up such a nice mood. And somebody says, ‘Hey! Where did you get this haircut from? Take two rupees from me, get a better haircut’. And we feel as if we have been put in… read_more

How to Earn a Higher Salary?

17 min

If you are really immersed in what you are doing, would you have time and inclination to worry about salary? The work itself is its own reward. There are people, who work to get paid. And there are people who work and get paid. An amusing thing is, those who stop worrying about salary, often start getting unexpected salaries.

What Is Sin and Repentance if Aham Brahmasmi?

There is no way to rid yourself of sins except by coming very close to God, so close that you lose your individual identity. This is why the Upanishadic Mahavakya, 'Aham Brahmasmi' (I am Brahma), is central to all spirituality. Without this realization, no redemption is possible. No matter what you say about yourself, Truth, God, or the world, nothing will bring you peace. Only the declaration ‘I am That and That am I’ can offer true rest. Everything else is sin.

Science in Ancient India

6 min

The beauty, the glory of the Vedas lies not in the fact that they contain all the secrets of the material universe; their glory lies in Vedanta. And the Vedas are de facto immortal because what Vedanta is talking of is stuff that is applicable to all times, all people, all ages. The stuff that I have spoken to you of over the last two hours is nothing but Vedanta. So, Vedanta is very much relevant even today, and it will continue to be relevant five hundred years from today, a thousand years from today.

Understanding Guilt for True Self-Improvement

7 min

Acharya Prashant: What does guilt say? Let’s first of all look at it. Guilt says, “I am better than how and what I did”, right? Guilt says, “I am better than my actions”, or “I am better than my thoughts. I am better than the account I gave of myself… read_more

You've Had Enough of This Person

Questioner: Namaskar Acharya ji! I am reading a book called “Freedom from the Known”, where the author, Jiddu Krishnamurthi, talks about removing authority to be free from the ego. What does he mean by authority? Can we take anything to be the authority and then say, “I’m not going to… read_more

What Is Desh Prem Divas?