A thousand feelings: envy, fear, hatred, competition will come to you. You cannot fight them all, and there is no need to fight them. Be courageous when that feeling comes, and sit down like friends and talk. Be honest that you are the one who is nurturing that feeling all the time. Be aware that it is coming. Let it not enter like a thief. And when it comes, don’t feel small. You only need to understand, not control.
Question: Sir, when we lose a loved one in the form of a body, what happens actually is that the love remains intact but we lose that loved one in that physical form – the body. Please guide.
Do not let your inner welfare be conditional. If your inner sense of well-being is dependent on favorable external conditions, then it is a very sorry state to be in, because conditions are never under our control and, I am saying, I will allow myself to feel alright only upon
Is lust a thought, or is lust more or less instantaneous? Does lust even give you space to think? In fact, if you could think in the moment of great lust or anger, then you would act better.
Questioner (Q): How can negative emotions be expressed healthily? Can expressing negative emotions like crying be maladaptive? Does gender have a relation to mental health?
The man has seen the emotional side of the mother, so the man knows the woman’s emotionality. But the woman has never seen the sexual side of her father, so the woman really does not know man’s sexuality that much.
When you don’t operate from a spiritual center, then you operate from an emotional center. These emotions are causing this climate change. You are so emotional about that next foreign holiday, right? That is carbon intensive. You are so emotional about having a good, nice nest of your own—that is
Hurt is not automatic. Somewhere there is an admission from you that you are hurt, and that you would be hurt, and that you would call yourself as hurt. Don’t call yourself as hurt, and see what happens.
The woman is her own worst enemy because she is very, very biology-driven. Man, too, is biology driven but he abides by his intellect much more than the woman does.
Before you accept or reject something, before you get wildly drawn to something, or before you just ignore something and move on, pause for five seconds and ask, “What is in it for me? What is the real importance it holds?”
Instead of proceeding with a packaged product like meat, why don’t you slaughter the thing yourself? And when you slaughter the animal yourself, why don’t you know it fully even as you slaughter it? After all, even from a perspective of self-interest, if something is going into your body, it…
For us, support just means weeping with the weeping one. We totally forget that in most cases the ones who are weeping do not need to weep. The ones who are weeping are needlessly weeping, and if you support their tears, you are supporting their false centers; you are making…
Questioner (Q): On one hand, I want to spiritually grow towards enlightenment, but at the same time, some side of me wants to have earthly freedom, experiences, like traveling. Even though I know that those things won’t bring me True Joy.
“Why are women so emotional? If we are saying that it is okay for a man to be emotional, there is an implicit assumption that men are not emotional but women are.”
“You have said that women and men both have emotionality but they express it differently. I have noticed women tend to be more indirect and coy when they talk. Is that again a same trait that is coming out differently?”
Questioner: How can negative emotions be expressed in a healthy way? Can expressing negative emotions be maladaptive? Does gender have a relation to mental health?
Acharya Prashant: You see, it does not matter whether you call the emotion negative or positive. The first thing to understand is that when you…
Channelize your desire. You must know what you are really hungry for. Your central and primary desire is not sex. Sex may appear overpowering, tempting, but that is really not what you ultimately want. Figure out what you really must have, and then sex will be assigned automatically, inwardly, its
Weakness is such a great strength. The child controls the mother—how? Not through his strength, but through his weakness. Decades and decades of the mother’s life are controlled by the child through the child’s weakness.
प्रश्नकर्ता: प्रणाम आचार्य जी, पाँच साल का रिश्ता था, शादी होने वाली थी। कुछ वजहों से कि उसका रुझान अध्यात्म में नहीं है, झूठ बोलती है चीज़ों को लेकर ताकि हमारा रिश्ता बना रहे; इन चीज़ों ने बहुत ज़्यादा मुझे ठेस पहुँचाई। अब मैं उस बिन्दु पर खड़ा हूँ कि
आचार्य प्रशांत: अभी-अभी, सुबह, हम जा रहे थे तो एक मकान के सामने रुके, वहाँ एक आदमी था, उसे अपने कुत्ते से बहुत प्यार था, तो हम जिसको प्यार करते हैं उसके साथ क्या करते हैं?
प्रश्नकर्ता: देखिए, ये सब एक ही तो हैं। अध्यात्म में ही ऐसा ही बताया है और विज्ञान भी यही कह रहा है कि सब एक है। तो क्या पौधा, क्या जानवर, क्यों हम भेद कर रहे हैं? हमें बिलकुल पक्षपात नहीं करना चाहिए जैसे हम पौधों को खाते हैं ठीक…
प्रश्नकर्ता: नमस्ते, आचार्य जी। मैं अपना प्रश्न एक उदाहरण से प्रारम्भ करूँगा। जैसे आज़ादी के तुरन्त बाद भारत और पाकिस्तान जो साथ में देश थे वो अलग हो गये। और उसके कुछ समय तक भी पाकिस्तान नहीं चल पाया और उसमें से भी पाकिस्तान और बांग्लादेश दोनों अलग हो गए।
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Expression is a relationship you establish with the world. It becomes a gift you give to others. What gets expressed, gets amplified. Anger expressed is anger amplified; attachment expressed is attachment multiplied. Do you want to gift chains and shackles, or something that helps and liberates?
When feelings surge in your mind and body, be careful and pay attention! This is the moment when you lose the plot. The initial surge of energy that a feeling has is beyond your consciousness and control; it is determined mostly by your conditioning and partly by your genes. So, don't add conscious energy to the unconscious uprising. The most important mark of a wise man is that he does not live by feelings.
पुरुषों में महत्त्वाकांक्षा और महिलाओं में भावना, उन्हें कहीं का नहीं छोड़ते। समाज, संस्कार, लोकधर्म और देह, ये सब मिलकर चाहते हैं कि आप अपना पूरा जीवन सिर्फ़ देह के कामों में निकाल दो, कोई भी ऊँचा काम न करो। तुम्हारी भावनाएँ बंधन हैं, गहना मत माना करो उन्हें। संघर्ष करना सीखो, कोई भावनात्मक मजबूरी नहीं होती। 'मैं क्या करूँ, मेरे आँसू निकल जाते हैं।' तो फिर, ‘आँसुओं के साथ सही काम करो।’ बात इसमें नहीं है कि भावना उठी, बात इसमें है कि आपने भावना को समर्थन दे दिया क्या?
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?
Excerpts from Articles
ज्योतिष कितना सच है? कुंडली, ग्रह-नक्षत्र: इनका क्या अर्थ है?
वेदांत को केवल इसलिए सही या श्रेष्ठ नहीं माना जा सकता कि वह किसी विशेष परंपरा से आता है। विज्ञान जहाँ भौतिक जगत की वस्तुनिष्ठ जाँच करता है, वहीं अद्वैत वेदांत सीधे मनुष्य के ‘मैं’, उसके दुख, बंधन और मुक्ति की पड़ताल करता है। इसकी कसौटी वैज्ञानिक प्रमाण नहीं, बल्कि अपने जीवन में इसकी सच्चाई को देख पाना है। किसी दर्शन को मान लेना नहीं, बल्कि उससे स्वयं को मुक्त करना ही उसका वास्तविक उद्देश्य है।
Justice Without Boundaries: Why Compassion Cannot Stop at Species
Oppression should not see caste, gender, creed or colour, and it should not see species either. The moral threshold is sentience, not intelligence. An animal feels pain as fully as a human does, whether or not it can explain its suffering.
एक पुजारी जो रोज़ भूत-प्रेत, तंत्र-मंत्र और वशीकरण के नाम पर आए लोगों से मिलता है, आचार्य प्रशांत से पूछता है: जब वो ख़ुद जानता है कि कुछ भूत-चुड़ैल नहीं होता, तो लोग बार-बार इसी झूठ की शरण में क्यों जाते हैं? जवाब अंधविश्वास से कहीं गहरा निकलता है — यह हमारे भीतर के उस झूठ की कहानी है, जिसे हम हर कीमत पर बचाना चाहते हैं।
Climate change is more than an environmental crisis—it is a crisis of human choices. Our patterns of consumption, consumerism and endless pursuit of more are putting increasing pressure on the planet. But meaningful change does not necessarily begin with new technology or stricter policies. It begins with a deeper question: what are we willing to change within ourselves?
Struggling to choose between a secure job and the path you actually feel drawn to? This isn't really a question about careers. It's about why other people's opinions have so much power over you in the first place. Real clarity doesn't come from finding the 'right' choice. It comes from honestly looking at your own fear, again and again, until it stops running the decision for you.
रक्षाबंधन केवल भाई-बहन के रिश्ते और सुरक्षा की रस्म तक सीमित नहीं होना चाहिए। आज असली रक्षा उन चीज़ों की ज़रूरत है जो कमज़ोर और संकट में हैं—गौरैया, नदियाँ, पहाड़, पेड़, महासागर और पृथ्वी। साथ ही ईमानदारी, आत्मज्ञान और मानवीय मूल्यों की भी रक्षा जरूरी है। धर्म कर्मकांड नहीं, अपनी शक्ति और उससे जुड़ी व्यापक ज़िम्मेदारी को समझना है।
फ़ालतू खर्च छोड़िए, अपनी ज़िंदगी पर खर्च करना सीखिए
आचार्य प्रशांत बताते हैं कि क्यों हम सही खान-पान, स्वास्थ्य और अपने ऊपर ज़रूरी खर्च से बचते हैं, लेकिन दिखावे और फ़ालतू सामाजिक परंपराओं पर पैसा बहा देते हैं। अधिकांश लोगों के लिए समस्या सिर्फ़ पैसों की कमी नहीं, बल्कि विवेक और सही प्राथमिकताओं की कमी भी है।
हम एक ऐसे माहौल में जीते हैं जिसमें समझ के लिए बहुत जगह नहीं है, और इसलिए हमने भावनाओं को बहुत ऊँचा दर्जा दे दिया है। यह बहुत दुर्भाग्यपूर्ण है, क्योंकि जो कोई भी तुम्हें ग़ुलाम बनाना चाहेगा, वह जरूर भावुकता का प्रदर्शन करेगा। भावुक करके ही तुम्हारे मन पर कब्जा किया जा सकता है। भावुकता में बड़ी हिंसा है! संवेदनशीलता में प्रेम है; संवेदनशीलता सीखो, भावुकता नहीं।
जब हमारा दमन होता है तब जिस ऊर्जा का दमन हो रहा होता है, वह ऊर्जा हममें सड़ने लगती है। वही ऊर्जा जो एक फूल बन सकती थी, काँटा बन जाती है। जिस ऊर्जा से विकास हो सकता था, वह थम कर बदबू देना शुरू कर देती हैl ऊर्जा को…
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…
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उत्साह और निरुत्साह एक दूसरे की छाया है। बेईमानी हमारी ये होती है कि अचानक किसी दिन आएँगे 'आज मैं ये कर दूँगा, वो कर दूँगा।' ऊँचे-ऊँचे दावे, बड़ी-बड़ी बातें और वो बड़ी बातें हम कर ही इसीलिए रहे हैं ताकि कल से फिर कुछ न करना पड़े। जो असली आदमी होता है उसके पास एक शान्त, स्थिर, शीतल उत्साह होता है। जब उत्साह सहज बन जाए, उत्साह में जब एक सहजता हो, आपको उत्साह चाहिए ही नहीं, आपका सहज काम ही ऊर्जावान हैं।
Questioner: When I do something my parents don’t approve of, they scold me. But sometimes the matter goes too far and I get offended, and then I refrain from talking back to them; I fear that if I say something, I will end up hurting them. But then, if I…
Questioner 1: Namaskar Acharya Ji! My question is, how should I control my emotions, so that they don’t become too extreme in positive as well as in negative situations. Actually, it happens to me every time that whenever I achieve my goal, I feel so happy. But if I fail,…
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Question: Sir, you said our actions define who we are. But our actions also keep changing from time to time.
A person may be sleeping in this session and be very active in the next. So, can it be said that the definition of who we are keeps changing?
Speaker:…
Vineet, we will have to understand the difference between ‘reaction’ and ‘response’, right?
Ammonia and chlorine react with each other because they are configured to…
Acharya Prashant: There would anyway be so many thoughts, live in them.…
Ask yourself: Had you not been feeling this way or that way, what would have you done? And you will get a very good answer.
When you…
…
Thought has its uses. The emotional ones need to be the thoughtful…
Acharya Prashant (AP): It doesn't matter whether you call the emotion negative or positive. The first thing to understand is that when you start calling…
Do you get this? The man knows the woman’s emotionality,…
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Questioner: Hello sir, I am Utkarsh. I am pursuing my Master in Philosophy from the Department of Philosophy itself – Delhi University; my question dates back to the perennial debate between the concepts of EQ and IQ. And to expound my question, I would like to elaborate that this dates…
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One feels like worshiping the woman for enduring so much. One feels like worshiping the woman for being so willingly exploited. And one feels like slapping her hard in the face for being so stupid. Her own worst enemy she is.
Talk emotions to her, and she will be pleased.…
…
Before you accept or reject something, before you get wildly drawn to something, or before you just ignore something and move on, pause for five seconds, just five seconds, and ask: What is in it for me? What is the real importance it holds?
Do not be carried away by…
If you are envious that somebody has something, then rest assured, you too desire that something. Envy and desire go together. Unless the other has
…
If you are angry, it tells you that there is something within you that is resisting the world now. Why is it resisting the world? Go into it. Try
…
Hurt is not an obligation. Hurt is a choice. Insecurity, fear, temptations—none…
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Questioner (Q): I have been following some of the pages on social media, and there is one topic that is quite “in” these days—which says, ‘no emotion is a mistake’. But I have heard you in the past, and you have said that emotions are intensified thoughts. So won’t that…
“What do I do? I am just a kid.”
“What do I do? I don’t have the right background.”
“What do I do? I am just twenty years old.”
“What do I do? Nobody helps me.”
“What do I do?…
The woman is simpler, more innocent. I would dare to say the woman is simple and innocent just as animals…
Do not be carried away by emotions. Do not…
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Question: How can we control our emotions?
Speaker: How can you control something that you do not quite understand? Our friend here is controlling the operations of this camera. How is he able to control the operations? Because he understands the functioning, he knows what leads to what, he knows…
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To avoid facing pain, you have become numb and insensitive towards yourself. Deeper sensitivity results in deeper pain. To avoid facing pain we become insensitive, and when you are insensitive,
…
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Questioner: Sir, how to control our emotions?
Acharya Prashant: So, Shantanu is talking about controlling emotions. Let’s say Shantanu is driving his car. Do you drive your car in a controlled way or in an uncontrolled way? Obviously in a controlled way. Now, what is all control about? You are…
Are earthly pleasures a hindrance to spiritual growth?
Acharya…
What do you see in the topic itself? “Emotional outbursts to settled living.” What is happening here?
What is happening here is that the mind is desiring the movement from one place to another place. From place A to place B; emotional outbursts…
Acharya Prashant:
Can you do that?
Why must we give importance to hypothetical questions? Can you really get rid of all emotions? And if you do, would that person be the same as this one? And if not,…
Both are. It’s just that both express their emotionality in different ways. Inner urges, latent tendencies in women…
It is biological, very biological.
“Let the man make the…
…
If the wife is strong, or if the husband is strong, they would not really…
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आचार्य प्रशांत: जो ये सारा छवि बचाने का खेल है, ये माल के लालच का खेल है।
ये जो पूरी बात ही है कि समाज में अपनी छवि अच्छी रहे, इज्ज़त ऊँची रहे, समझिए अच्छे से, कि वो बात पूरे तरीक़े से भौतिक है, मटेरियल है। भौतिक है, मटेरियल है।…
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प्रश्नकर्ता: सर नमस्ते, चार साल से एक लड़के के साथ सम्बन्ध में हूँ। हम एक-दूसरे से बहुत प्यार करते हैं, पर प्यार के साथ रिलेशनशिप (सम्बन्ध) में रोमांस और इंटिमेसी (आत्मीयता) भी आते हैं। आज इतने सालों में उसको देखती हूँ, तो दिखता है कि उसे तो सिर्फ़ फिजिकल लव…
