Questioner: Pranam Acharya Ji. My question is, when I’m doing something, like telling people what is correct or what is not, I’m seeing that deep down there is a desire within me, like an ego tendency, that’s not very like promoting veganism or kind of something. So, when I’m saying to my parents, “Don’t eat milk products,” it’s not about that don’t eat milk products; I just want to gain a kind of respect in the eyes of my parents. So, what I’m seeing is there is a deep ego tendency within me. When I am seeing that, I feel like such a worthless person. So why should I promote the service of truth and all that I’m not worthy of it? I have this kind of feeling when I’m doing these things.
Acharya Prashant: Why should you serve the truth when you are a worthless person? You should serve the truth exactly because you are a worthless person. How else will you become worthy? One becomes worthy by committing to the right thing. What else is the definition of worth, value? Value is always in the context of the evaluator, right? A thing holds value to you, when that thing can raise your consciousness.
Elevation of consciousness is the only real value addition. All else is just accessories. Right? And only the pursuit of truth can elevate your consciousness. So, if you feel that inwardly you are at some lowly point, it becomes even more important for you to chase the truth. What does it mean to chase the truth? Is the truth hidden somewhere, some kind of treasure hunt or something?
What do we mean by chasing the truth? Identifying the false and having the courage to drop it. Chasing the truth is not like a treasure hunt; It’s not like chasing a job, money, or something else, right? Remember Vedant proceeds through neti-neti, through negation. So, chasing the truth means not chasing the false. Identify what is false in your life, what is deceptive in your life, and then like a man, drop it.
