Acharya Prashant explains that for any spiritual practice ('Sadhana') to be undertaken, there must first be a goal ('Sadhya'), which is a great purpose worth achieving. He states that the process begins with negation, where one must first negate the way they are already living. This requires an honest acknowledgment that one is not living rightly. Spiritual practice only becomes meaningful when one feels the need for it, recognizing their state of fear, jealousy, and insecurity. If a person is determined to declare they are already on the right path, any suggested practice will be ineffective and just become another layer on the pre-existing self. After acknowledging that the current way of life is not worth living, the question of substitution arises: 'If not this, then what?' This leads to the search for a higher, and even higher, purpose to live for. This very process of negation followed by finding a worthy purpose is, in itself, spiritual practice. The path, the light, and the legs to walk are already present; the crucial question is whether one's eyes are open and if they have submitted themselves to their current state of misery and pathos. The teacher's role is not to provide a path or light, but to encourage the seeker to act on what they already know with honesty and courage. One must act on their own pure convictions. The speaker emphasizes that the ego's trick is to portray oneself as a helpless victim, claiming 'things are happening to me.' In reality, one is always inwardly exercising a choice, as nothing happens without one's consent. The experiencer has calculated a benefit in acting fearful. When one questions these choices and realizes there is no real benefit, the fear will diminish.
