Acharya Prashant responds to a question about the role of silence and speech in self-realization, based on a quote by Ramana Maharshi. He begins by stating that silence has nothing to do with words; it belongs to a different dimension. Therefore, neither the presence nor the absence of words is necessarily silence. He explains that there can be silence in wordlessness, and there can be silence in words. Conversely, there can be an absence of silence in wordlessness, and an absence of silence in words. For instance, someone can be extremely silent even in the thick of words, while another can be very noisy even while not speaking. Interpreting Ramana Maharshi's quote, "From silence came thought, from thought the ego, and from ego speech," Acharya Prashant equates "silence" with Truth. He explains the chain of creation: from Truth (Silence) comes the fundamental tendency (thought), which leads to multifarious tendencies (the ego), which then result in myriad thoughts and actions (speech). The Maharshi, he clarifies, is pointing towards a life where one's speech and actions proceed directly from this Silence, or Truth. This is contrasted with the ordinary life where actions are not inspired by Truth. Spirituality is not about forbidding things but about allowing life to be vibrant, colorful, and expansive, as it stems from the infinite Truth. Addressing the questioner's profession, which involves joking, Acharya Prashant advises that one's jokes should also proceed from Silence. The test for this is whether the joke leads the audience to inner silence. Such a joke is spiritual, almost a sacred verse. The real joke is the ego making fun of itself, which comes from Truth. In contrast, a joke that comes from noise is the ego making fun of everyone else, which he calls a micro-aggression or a violent assault. He encourages the questioner to be a great joker, one who has the ability to laugh even at their most sensitive core, as this is a great service to others, stunning them into silence. He concludes that spirituality is not about being a "chicken-hearted type" who is allergic to criticism, but about being ruthlessly honest with oneself.