Acharya Prashant begins by telling a story about a servant who is sent to the market. When asked what he wants, the servant says he wants salt. He gets the salt and gives it to his master. The speaker asks what the servant gained. Even though the servant's desire was fulfilled, he remained a servant. Getting the salt did not make him the master. This is compared to a hungry waiter who serves food to everyone but remains hungry himself. If he asks the chef for two tandoori rotis, the chef might give them to him, but will that satiate the waiter's hunger? The speaker states that our desires are like this. We say we want a particular thing, and we might even get it, but our own hunger is not satiated. The speaker addresses the questioner's point about motivational speakers misusing a verse from the Gita, which says that you get what you ask for. He clarifies that what these speakers say is correct, but they say it without a disclaimer. They say that if you desire something from the heart, it will manifest in some form. This is true. The issue is that if you remain the ego, whatever you desire will be in accordance with the ego. He gives the example of an ant: if an ant asks for something, it will ask for a grain of sugar, not a diamond factory. Even if it asks for a factory, it will be a jaggery factory, not one for diamonds and jewels. Our desires are merely a projection of our ego. To ask for a desire is to ask for a little more of what you already are, and you are troubled by what you are. The problem is complicated by the fact that we do not know that our desires are just a projection of our ego. The ego and its desires are two names for the same thing because the ego determines the desires. A drunkard will only ask for alcohol. If he gets it, does that change the fact that he is a drunkard? He asks for it because he is dissatisfied with himself, yet what he asks for is a reflection of his dissatisfaction. Desire comes from inner incompleteness. We are not satisfied with what we are, so we desire. But what we desire is a reflection of what we are. So, when we get what we desire, we get a little more of ourselves, but we were already very troubled by ourselves. Therefore, one must be very thoughtful about what one asks for. One must understand why there is a need to ask in the first place. The need to ask arises because what you are is not right. So, do not ask for something that you hold very dear. As Kabir Saheb says, a lustful person asks for lust, and a greedy person asks for money. Whatever you are, you will ask for the same. The whole self-help industry, which originated in America and is linked to consumerism and capitalism, tells you, "You can do it," but it never pays attention to what 'it' is. The 'it' is left open, so whatever attracts you at the moment, you are told to do it. But what attracts you is in the hands of the capitalist. The capitalist determines what will attract you. Our desires are determined by either capital or tradition. We are servants to these two hidden masters. The desire that comes from self-knowledge is called 'Nishkamna' (desirelessness). Shri Krishna also desires that Arjun should fight, but this desire comes from his self-knowledge, so it is desireless. Our task is not to accept or reject a desire but to know it. When a desire arises, one should not rush to fulfill it or suppress it. One should sit with it and examine it. Most desires are so fake and shallow that if you look at them closely, they run away, hiding their faces. But if a desire remains even after all inquiry and questioning, then perhaps that desire is spiritual, original, and authentic. Then, one should pursue it with all one's heart.
