Karl Marx

Ancient Spiritual Practices Relevant Today?
Ancient Spiritual Practices Relevant Today?
16 min
Practices do not determine the core of spirituality; consciousness does. If someone is feeding you practices in the name of spirituality, then that fellow is either ignorant or cunning or both, which is actually the same thing.
Acharya Prashant Interviewed By Kip Andersen (#Christspiracy) || Religion And Animals
Acharya Prashant Interviewed By Kip Andersen (#Christspiracy) || Religion And Animals
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.
Your Worth does not come from Bearing Babies or Breast-Feeding || AP Neem Candies
Your Worth does not come from Bearing Babies or Breast-Feeding || AP Neem Candies
6 min

Acharya Prashant: You have said, “What kind of change our education system needs to have so that our coming generations live together in peace and fulfillment?” Live together with each other, right? You haven’t said they live together with animals. The trees, the rivers, the rabbits, and the lions. That

How Not to React?
How Not to React?
6 min
The things that happen within you — anger, lust, disappointment, greed — are conditioned chemical reactions. It is the mark of a wise person not to be driven by one’s own reactions. Chemicals are reactive; consciousness can wait. Let the elements do what they are doing — 'I am not wedded to the limitations of this chemical godown.' This is what the knowers have called ‘detachment'. They have also called it ‘witnessing'.
Related Articles
Are You Spiritual or Religious? (The Difference Is Big)
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.
How to Live Fully?
How to Live Fully?
3 min
Living fully does not mean adding something to life. It means recognizing that life is already complete, and you must not disrespect that fullness. It is not about going out and consuming life. The volume or quantity of experiences doesn’t matter; what matters is the quality. There is nothing but fullness—just go close to it.
Is Religion Merely Superstition?
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.
Why Do We Need the Society?
Why Do We Need the Society?
8 min
Society is not a curse; nothing is a curse. If you are aware that the milk is stale, can it harm you? No, because you wouldn’t drink it. Society cannot harm you if you are aware. So try to find things with clarity. This is not the time to complain about the rottenness or falseness in society. Be true, rise up, and let action happen.
How to Be Happy Everyday?
How to Be Happy Everyday?
7 min
Happiness is just a glimpse of the absence of suffering. Real happiness comes when you cultivate it, just like a gardener cultivates his flowers. Our normal happiness is ephemeral, preceded and succeeded by sorrow, whereas Ananda (Joy) is freedom from both. Real happiness is freedom not merely from sadness, but also from superficial happiness.
Is Religion Patriarchal? Exploring Its Impact on Women's Lives
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.
The Sixth Mass Extinction has started!
The Sixth Mass Extinction has started!
4 min

To date, mass extinction has occurred five times on Earth. Mass extinction means the complete destruction of all living beings. Five times in history, the Earth's temperature increased beyond limits, and life on the planet came to an end.

And now, the sixth mass extinction has begun! The reason for

Mahatma Jyotiba Phule
Mahatma Jyotiba Phule
3 min
Mahatma Jyotiba Phule Opened the first indigenous school for girls at the age of 21. He worked all his life against evils like child marriage, suppression of women's education, casteism, prohibition of widow remarriage, and infanticide. Babasaheb Ambedkar called him his guru and intellectual father.
Suicides in Educational Institutions
Suicides in Educational Institutions
7 min
From all the directions, the message that is coming to you is, there is this particular definition of success; and if you cannot measure up to it, then life is not worth living. So, some of our friends, unfortunately, take it very literally. They say, “If life is not worth living, why should we anyway continue living at all?” You could say, “They are more logical than the rest of us.”
Are We All Rapists?
Are We All Rapists?
10 min
Rape is a state of mind; the body only expresses it. A mind that cannot love will only rape. And we all rape. Is there anything you don’t rape? Look at how we consume rivers—are we not raping them? We are bothered only when the act becomes sexual and explicit. Laws or hanging a few people won’t stop rape. Till the mind of the individual does not change, rape will not stop.
Life is for Better Things || Neem Candies
Life is for Better Things || Neem Candies
1 min

That could be one necessary mark of a true feminist: she would not be dependent on anybody else for a single rupee, especially not on the male partner.

“Financial independence and then still having kids, is that something that can be counted under feminism as such?”

No, you see, these

There Is an Elephant in the Room (We Smoothly Ignore It)
There Is an Elephant in the Room (We Smoothly Ignore It)
23 min

Questioner 1 Thank you Acharya Ji for taking the time and giving us this opportunity to sit down with you and discuss climate change, veganism, and a lot of other questions that we have for you. With me I have on the panel today, Niharika Raizada Ji, a renowned actress,

What Is Desh Prem Divas?
What Is Desh Prem Divas?
8 min

Acharya Prashant: Before we say love for the country, we should know what is this thing called country. If we don’t know what is country then whom do we love? If we don’t know what country is then what do we call love as?

This is just a machine (pointing

Parents Insist on Horoscope and Find the Guy is 'Manglik'
Parents Insist on Horoscope and Find the Guy is 'Manglik'
15 min

Questioner: Good evening sir. I’m…. and I’m a PhD student here at IIT, Kanpur. Sir, I have a very personal question. Being a girl child, especially in India, comes with very different sets of consequences. Despite being given equal opportunities like education and skills, at the end where we’re supposed

Want More Pleasure?
Want More Pleasure?
9 min

Questioner: Acharyaji, my question is that the greed of getting more and more pleasure is increasing with time, and finally I’m finding myself getting stuck in the vicious circle of getting more and more pleasure. Sir, what are the ways that you could suggest to me to get out of

To Give Birth is to Take Debt
To Give Birth is to Take Debt
4 min

Acharya Prashant: Parents have first of all committed the mistake of bringing another person into this world of agony, longing, and suffering that they compensate for by investing themselves in raising the kid. That is why it is imperative for parents to bring education to the kids, give food to

Living for Others?
Living for Others?
16 min

Questioner: Some people say that you should live for yourself, and some people say that it gives you more happiness if you live for others. So, which of these approaches is the right one?

Acharya Prashant: So, she is asking whether to live for oneself or others, right? That’s the

Women in Revealing Dresses: Liberation or Titillation?
Women in Revealing Dresses: Liberation or Titillation?
9 min
To those who articulate that women should mind their clothes and dressings, the question arises: what kind of person are you, man or woman, if anything is able to disturb or provoke you so easily? The allegation is that when watching a woman dressed skimpily, it becomes a disturbance, a distraction, even a provocation. How will you insulate yourself, and how much will you insulate yourself from the world? And what are the limits to what you want to see and not see? Today, it is said that a woman’s legs or thighs provoke you. What prevents you from saying tomorrow that her ankles and fingernails provoke you? Would you then demand that she should cover up from head to toe?
Religious Fanatics and Bigots - Where Do They Come from?
Religious Fanatics and Bigots - Where Do They Come from?
17 min

Questioner: Sir, I am Saurabh Kumar from Rajdhani College, Delhi University. My question is that there is one or two days ago, there was Ram Navami. Some people were going and cheering Ram, Ram at the mosque and figuring out some flags at the mosque. And they are looking like

Hell is Full of these People - You might Recognize Some of them || AP Neem Candies
Hell is Full of these People - You might Recognize Some of them || AP Neem Candies
4 min

Acharya Prashant: Hell is a place where you get a lot of sympathy, consolation, condolence, and commiseration. You're told that we agree that you are in a miserable state. Your neighbor comes to you, puts his hand on your shoulder, and with a grave face tells you that you are

A Single Mother with a 4-year-Old Kid, Is She Helpless? || AP Neem Candies
A Single Mother with a 4-year-Old Kid, Is She Helpless? || AP Neem Candies
3 min

Acharya Prashant: Socially, we have been trained to visualize the happy family as a kid with his two arms being held by two people of opposite gender. That’s really not needed. The kid is already being held in the palm of his real Father. The real Father is not even

We forced the virus to come to us || AP Neem candies
We forced the virus to come to us || AP Neem candies
5 min

Acharya Prashant: What’s worse, there might be much more lethal and incurable viruses to come in the future.

We talk of the virus as the problem. In fact, if you go to social media to get a hang of how we are looking at the whole thing in a cultural

Is Texting Replacing Real Connections?
Is Texting Replacing Real Connections?
9 min
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.
How to Face Cancel Culture?
How to Face Cancel Culture?
3 min
Cancel culture arises when one's fundamental identity is social. If you take your identity from society, you've given them the right to cancel it. Don’t let anyone control your centre. Be your own master. Be of the world and live yet, independently of the world. Let them cancel what they can! That’s what spirituality blesses you with—your real identity, which no one can dare cancel.
External growth is Passe, We now Need Internal Growth
External growth is Passe, We now Need Internal Growth
13 min

Questioner: Acharya Ji, if we talk about the subject matter of economics, it was said by the father of economics, Adam Smith, that economics is a science of wealth where he puts money over men. So over the years as time passed and the scope was broadened, the economist Alfred

Is It Better to Let the Poor and the Sick Die?
Is It Better to Let the Poor and the Sick Die?
12 min

Questioner: We know that currently the Earth is overpopulated. People around me very loosely say that the people who are physically, mentally, or economically not so well off, they are better off dead. So, I want to ask, what is your take on this? And what do you think is

How to Correct a Bad Decision?
How to Correct a Bad Decision?
1 min
Do not focus on the decision. Rather, look at the decision-maker. The decision is not bad, humbly accept that the decision-maker is bad. Without this acceptance, the series of bad decisions will continue. When one realizes that the decision-makers' mind has been full of beliefs, past, and fear, then there is radical transformation in one’s being. The old, frozen, conditioned decision-maker simply evaporates.
How SMP* Are Crushing Your Soul [*Small-Minded People]
How SMP* Are Crushing Your Soul [*Small-Minded People]
8 min

Acharya Prashant : If it was possible for one man to move toward greatness, it was possible for everybody. Even if you have collected great numbers, all those numbers mean nothing in front of the one person who is demonstrating that something could have been done. So, they get hurt.

Why Do We Crave Holidays?
Why Do We Crave Holidays?
5 min
The mind is fed up of its daily, boring, routine, fettered and frustrated life. But it has no faith or courage to break away from this life. It is very necessary for it to keep looking towards the future. Some special day must always lie ahead: New Year, Valentine’s, Holi, your birthday, Diwali and so on. This cycle keeps up the illusion that something great is coming.
Celebrate Diwali as a True Religion
Celebrate Diwali as a True Religion
21 min
Is ‘Diwali’ about going back home, indulging again in your set routines that you anyway follow, eating a lot of sweets and oil, then using small electric bulbs to light up your home, then bursting crackers, then unnecessarily saying ‘Happy Diwali’ to everybody, when there is, in fact, hardly anything happy about it? In the name of religion, all that we know is rituals, rituals, and rituals.
Mark of False Dharma According to Bhagavad Gita
Mark of False Dharma According to Bhagavad Gita
11 min
There is only one Dharma. And that is to attain liberation or peace, to gain freedom from your bondages, to gain freedom from your inner chaos and noise, to gain freedom from your inner falseness. Gaining freedom from inner falseness is more commonly known as Truth realization. It is a euphemism—a very decorated euphemism. It’s not really Truth that is really realized; it is falseness that is dropped.
Why Is Sanatan Dharma Needed?
Why Is Sanatan Dharma Needed?
10 min
We did not come to the cities so that we could please our ego all the more, that was not at all the objective, though that’s what we might be doing today. The objective was to have more peace in our external space, so that we can devote ourselves to higher pursuits in life. ‘Sanatana Dharma’ really is the authentic thing. Or else, tomorrow you too will become ancient like everybody who is gone and done and dusted.
Why Have Religions Emerged Only From a Few Places in the World?
Why Have Religions Emerged Only From a Few Places in the World?
8 min

Questioner: Namaste Sir. So, I have observed one thing: if we look at the major religions and spiritual traditions around the world that are well accepted, we see that they emerged from certain places only. For example, the Abrahamic religions—all of them happened in the Arab world and around Israel

Worse Than a Dog, Higher Than a God || AP Neem Candies
Worse Than a Dog, Higher Than a God || AP Neem Candies
4 min
If dogs were to write a holy text, would they say that “We are inferior to humans”? If chickens were to write a Bible of their own, would they say that “We exist so that we may be slaughtered in factories and packed”? Read more....
Duryodhana's Mental State in the Mahabharat Battlefield
Duryodhana's Mental State in the Mahabharat Battlefield
63 min
Time is already short, and you cannot waste something you already are short on. And Duryodhana lost out on it. And it's the most regrettable thing when you observe a life gone waste, that too a life like Duryodhana's. Duryodhana is a very dark example of that wasted opportunity, and he realizes that. He was not ‘Duryodhana’ from the beginning, he was named as Suyodhana- someone who would be glorious in war-someone who could win the internal war.
What is Spirituality?
What is Spirituality?
3 min
Being spiritual is simply about not being stupid. Spirituality is not at all organised religion. It is not about customs or rituals or beliefs. Spirituality is an awakened state of mind in which the mind really understands. So, mind has only two options: spirituality or stupidity.The mind when conditioned and away from origin (essence), is bound to be stupid. Only a spiritual man really lives, loves and enjoys. Others die without living.
Things You DON'T Need to Have a Great Life
Things You DON'T Need to Have a Great Life
21 min

Questioner: I have something to say. There is a very famous line which is called─ the survival of the fittest. Now, I am an actor, and I’m also a medical practitioner. I studied cardiology, and as an actor, I have always advocated less makeup and simpler ways of life to

Do Spiritual Scriptures Have Any Meaning?
Do Spiritual Scriptures Have Any Meaning?
4 min
In understanding, there are no meanings left. Understanding is the dissolution of all meanings. When you decode it, you decode it only to see that it is just coming to a certain end, a certain clarity. By itself, it means nothing. When Krishna says 'Nishkaam Karma', it means no expectations associated with actions. The right teaching can never be affirmative. It will only be a revelation of your falsenesses.
Indian Constitution and Vedanta
Indian Constitution and Vedanta
18 min

Questioner: Good afternoon sir. Sir, you are promoting the Vedantic teachings and want people to adopt them in their day-to-day lives. As per my understanding, Vedant talks about Self-awareness, and the path to Self-awareness can be different for different people, as we are all facing different kinds of obstacles. So,

Shiva's Caste
Shiva's Caste
15 min

Questioner: Acharya Ji, Juliana Hathovic has been listening to you for quite some years now and she has been very regular with what happens in the socio-spiritual domain in India.

She went through the recent statements by the Vice-chancellor of JNU on Shiva's caste. She just sent me a query

Deh Shiva bar mohe ihai (The spiritual battle within) || Acharya Prashant, on Guru Gobind Singh (2019)
Deh Shiva bar mohe ihai (The spiritual battle within) || Acharya Prashant, on Guru Gobind Singh (2019)
1 min

Verse: Deh Shiva bar mohe ihai

देह शिवा बर मोहे ईहे, शुभ कर्मन ते कभुं न टरूं न डरौं अरि सौं जब जाय लड़ौं, निश्चय कर अपनी जीत करौं, अरु सिख हों आपने ही मन कौ इह लालच हउ गुन तउ उचरों, जब आव की अउध निदान बनै अति ही

Acharya Prashant on Osho
Acharya Prashant on Osho
19 min
Osho’s defining characteristic was courage. He was a man of deep intellect, prolifically well-read, a genius in devising new methods of meditation, yet above all his other qualities, his courage is his hallmark. Born in a middle-class family in a small city in the deprivation and resourcelessness of pre-independence India, he built himself up all on his own. Books would be his companions. Even as a teenager, he would travel across cities, to various libraries and sources, to look for books and knowledge.
To What Extent Is Education Important?
To What Extent Is Education Important?
4 min
Formal education is important to the extent the body is important. The less the body-identification, the less is the importance of object-centric education. A person's attachment to material possessions, driven by societal values, leads to poverty and duality. Poverty, unlike the natural world, is man-made and rooted in the desire to accumulate. While education enables material progress, it doesn’t address deeper issues of self-identity and existence.
Let Life Be a Celebration of Intelligence
Let Life Be a Celebration of Intelligence
5 min
Eating, walking, sleeping, working, dying – these alone surely cannot mean being alive. Life is much more than the physical and mental processes. Machines can walk, eat, work. The programmed analysis that computers do is no different from what we call thinking. Machines have no role in their formation, just as we have no role in our birth. And machines can be programmed to self-terminate after a certain time, just as we die.
Role of Social Media in Redefining Indian Perspectives
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.
Acharya Prashant: The Only Male Spiritual Teacher for Women’s Empowerment
Acharya Prashant: The Only Male Spiritual Teacher for Women’s Empowerment
26 min
Real women empowerment isn't about simply making choices, but about making wise ones. If you do not know how to make decisions, autonomy in decision-making becomes a curse, doesn’t it? Today, many teens and college-going girls embrace a radical mindset: 'I’ll live life my own way, I decide for myself.' 'You only live once, my way or the highway,' and similar attitudes stem from the same center of ignorance as previous generations. Now, the exploiter is within, and this false sense of freedom leads to disastrous choices. True women empowerment demands wisdom, not just autonomy. Spiritual education is crucial, especially for girls.