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To go beyond yourself, come close to yourself || Acharya Prashant, on Lao Tzu (2015)
Acharya Prashant
1.1K views
6 years ago
Wholeness
Humility
Lao Tzu
Shri Krishna
Immortality
Morality
Self
Innocence
Description

Acharya Prashant explains that to become whole, one must first acknowledge being partial. He emphasizes that a fragment can only recognize its smallness and limitations when it is in touch with the absolute or the immense. This realization of one's own smallness is the foundation of humility. He notes that the individual often exists on the false assumption of being a separate, complete unit, but true wholeness comes from realizing that the mind and body are inherently limited and broken. This realization cannot come from the partial self but only through the touch and blessings of the whole. He further discusses the concept of crookedness, stating that the world is naturally crooked and straight lines do not exist in reality. He argues that the only 'straight' thing possible is the realization of one's own crookedness. Once a person realizes that the innocent and straight one resides in their heart, they no longer feel the burden to maintain a mask of fake straightness or morality. This inner certainty allows one to navigate the world's manipulations and social codes with freedom and sportiness, much like Shri Krishna, who could act in manipulative ways because his heart remained innocent and centered in the absolute. Finally, Acharya Prashant highlights the burden of placing ideals like immortality or morality on the body and mind, which are incapable of sustaining them. He explains that when one is convinced of the immortality of the self within, they can let the body die without fear. Similarly, when deep spirituality is seated in the heart, there is no need to adhere to external codes of goodness or piety. Acting pious is often a sign of hypocrisy used by those who are not fundamentally pure. True freedom comes from being fundamentally straight at the center, which allows one to be unabashedly crooked in the external world.