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Are earthly pleasures a hindrance to spiritual growth? || Acharya Prashant (2019)
Prakrati
622 views
2 years ago
Spiritual Joy
Earthly Living
Wisdom
Happiness
Guru Nanak
Shri Buddha
Mahavir
Hedonism
Description

Acharya Prashant clarifies that there is no inherent conflict between spiritual growth and earthly living. He explains that a person who lacks spiritual development remains joyless regardless of their earthly experiences, such as traveling. In contrast, spiritually accomplished individuals, like the wandering monks, fakirs, and great teachers like Shri Buddha, Mahavir, and Guru Nanak, travel because they are already filled with joy and wish to share it. He argues that the earth reveals its true treasures only to those who are spiritually complete; for them, earthly living is heavenly, whereas for the unaccomplished, it is hellish. He refutes the mental model that spiritual joy comes at the cost of earthly joy. Since a human being is a product of the earth—composed of soil, water, and sunlight—all joy experienced by a human is technically earthly. Spirituality is described as deep intelligence and the art of choosing the superior over the inferior. Acharya Prashant characterizes spirituality as a form of absolute greed or hedonism, where the seeker refuses to settle for small, ephemeral pleasures and instead demands infinite, eternal happiness. This ultimate joy is not sought in a future life or another world, but right here and now on this earth.