Acharya Prashant responds to a question about the root cause of mental health issues like depression, anxiety, and suicidal thoughts among the youth. The questioner shares her personal experience with these struggles after moving to Delhi for exam preparations, noting that while her parents sought help from psychologists and traditional healers, the advice given was superficial. She found solace in spirituality and observes that today's youth face similar, if not worse, problems. Acharya Prashant begins by acknowledging that the statistics on mental health have worsened over the decades. He states that the stress level of an average young person today is comparable to, or even greater than, that of a soldier in World War II. He explains that what we call "mental health" is the health of the mind, which he defines as an aggregation of the objects and thoughts we give importance to. At the center of this mental field is the subject, the "I" or the ego. The mind's content is unique to each individual because it depends on what the subject chooses to hold within. The fundamental human condition, he explains, is that the self, or ego, is born feeling incomplete and flawed. This inherent sense of lack drives the human organism to constantly seek fulfillment through the senses, trying to add things to itself to feel whole. The speaker argues that the problem has been exacerbated in the last century due to mass industrial production and the resulting consumerist culture. The capacity to acquire and consume has increased exponentially, shifting the economic bottleneck from production to consumption. This has led to a pervasive philosophy that we are born to consume, that consumption brings happiness, and that happiness is the ultimate goal of life. This consumerist philosophy is subtly propagated through various media, leaving no room for wisdom. He posits that wisdom literature, which once served to protect mental health by teaching that external acquisitions cannot bring lasting peace, has been pushed aside. We are now taught a philosophy that encourages endless consumption, which ultimately leads to disappointment and depression when the promised fulfillment never arrives. Addressing the issue of suicide directly, Acharya Prashant advises that since death is inevitable for everyone, one should not run from it but face it. Instead of succumbing to personal sorrow, he suggests channeling that energy into a larger struggle against the universal problem of suffering. He encourages a person contemplating suicide to live life fully and fight a bigger battle before the end. He points out that all Indian philosophies begin with the problem of 'dukkha' (suffering). Therefore, if one is born into suffering and life is short, it is better to engage in a meaningful struggle. He concludes by saying, "When you have to die anyway, why not die playing the whole game?" Turn the inner sorrow into a struggle.
