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Let there be spaces in your togetherness || Acharya Prashant, on Khalil Gibran (2016)
Acharya Prashant
1.5K views
8 years ago
Personality
Ego
Togetherness
Heart
Kahlil Gibran
Relationship
Conditioning
Parenthood
Description

Acharya Prashant explains that Kahlil Gibran's advice to maintain space in togetherness is directed at the personality or the ego. He asserts that personalities are inherently insecure, exclusive, and incapable of true union because they seek to dominate, protect, and expand their own views and patterns. When two personalities come too close, the result is inevitable friction, conflict, or exploitation. Therefore, at the level of the mind and personality, a dignified distance must be maintained to avoid mutual suffering. True union is only possible at the level of the heart, which is selfless and beyond personal agendas. He further clarifies that the mind can only be 'the heart' when it is surrendered and free from personal insecurities and agendas. A person who has challenged and broken their own mental patterns acts out of compassion rather than ego and can then bridge the distance to help others. Acharya Prashant emphasizes that most people are surrounded by layers of mental conditioning and protective armors, making real nakedness—which he defines as spiritual innocence and transparency—extremely rare. He warns that without this mental nakedness and maturity, bringing children into the world is a tragedy, as parents often project their own darkness onto their offspring. Finally, he discusses the concept that children come through parents but do not belong to them. He explains that the ego demands ownership and control over children to feel secure, but a spiritually mature person understands they are merely a medium. He uses the metaphor of a door to illustrate that while a person may enter a room through a doorway, they do not belong to the door. True parenthood, in a spiritual sense, transcends biological reproduction and extends compassion to all.