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केंद्र पर अनछुए रहना || आचार्य प्रशांत, युवाओं के संग (2014)
30K views
5 years ago
Experience
Untouched
Witnessing
Society
Mind
Reality
Kabir Saheb
Innocence
Description

Acharya Prashant addresses the apparent contradiction between the idea that experience veils thought and the fact that society values experience. He clarifies that there is no contradiction, as both statements are true simultaneously. Society, he explains, desires people whose thoughts are veiled by experience, individuals who are set in a particular pattern. Institutions fear a 'fresh' person and will not accept anyone who deviates from the established norm. The speaker advises to let experiences come, as they are an inevitable part of life and a source of external information and knowledge. However, one should remain seated in a place where experience cannot touch the core self. He uses the analogy of walking through a bustling market filled with commotion and temptations of greed. One should observe and experience everything but remain internally untouched, not allowing the market's chaos or greed to enter within. This is the art of living, which the wise have described as crossing a river without getting one's feet wet. He quotes Kabir Saheb, who said, "I have returned the sheet (the mind) as it was given to me," signifying a mind that remains pure and unstained by the world. He also cites Akbar Allahabadi: "I live in the world, but I am not a seeker of the world. I have passed through the market, but I am not a buyer." The speaker contrasts this with the common human condition where people don't just live in the world but beg from it for money, respect, and love, allowing the market to reside within them. The problem arises from attachment to transient things. To live skillfully is to enjoy and have fun without becoming serious, to remain light. What seems like a matter of life and death today will be insignificant tomorrow. This is the state of being a witness (Sakshi), where one is engaged in deep action, yet that action does not dominate the self. There is a corner within that remains a spectator to all happenings. The speaker concludes by advising to let everyone into your house but to keep the inner temple, the center of your being, untouched and unviolated.