Acharya Prashant explains that religion, as it is commonly practiced, is very outward-looking. It focuses on others, the past, and established practices. A religious person follows rituals that have been observed for thousands of years, adhering to the ways of their forefathers. This approach is based on external identities like being a Hindu or a Muslim, belonging to a particular sect, or holding certain beliefs. It involves venerating external things, such as a specific temple or a particular guru. He uses the analogy of being concerned with the "towel" (the external object) rather than the "eyes" (the observer). In contrast, spirituality, while being the true center of religion, is distinct from its common practice. Spirituality is inward-looking and sets aside external matters. Its fundamental question is, "Who is looking?" or "Who is this 'I' that says anything?" It begins from the only point of certainty: the self. While one cannot be sure if the external world is real or a dream, one can be sure that if there is a thought, there is a thinker; if there is suffering, there is a sufferer. Spirituality starts from this undeniable point of the "I". The difference between the two is that religion is concerned with the observed, while spirituality is concerned with the observer. Before judging the "towel," spirituality insists on testing the "eyes." The religious mind asks, "Who created me?" assuming its own existence, whereas the spiritual mind first asks, "Do I exist at all?" This makes the spiritual approach more rigorous and scientific. Acharya Prashant notes that historically, there has been a great conflict between the two, with truly spiritual people often being persecuted by the religious, who get stuck at the periphery and resist the center. To help someone move from a religious to a spiritual mindset, one can ask fundamental questions at opportune moments. Questions like, "After all your practices, are you truly at peace?" or "Do your beliefs help you in moments of crisis?" can be effective. The ultimate goal is peace and joy, and if one has achieved that, external practices become unnecessary. The religious mind often asks questions based on unexamined assumptions, like "Who created us?", without first questioning the reality of the "us" that is asking. The spiritual inquiry begins by examining the questioner itself.
