Acharya Prashant explains that the feeling of being hurt or offended arises from broken expectations, which are rooted in illusions. These illusions occur because we fail to understand the true nature of others and instead project our own desires onto them. For instance, if one mistakes a truck for an aircraft, the expectation that it will fly is bound to be shattered. This error is not merely about having expectations but stems from a fundamental lack of understanding and being in a state of illusion. He further clarifies that the chain of suffering begins with self-ignorance, which leads to the formation of the ego. This ego seeks fulfillment from the external world, creating intense desires. These desires cause us to superimpose our needs onto reality, seeing things not as they are but as we want them to be. Because we do not know our own truth, we are unable to perceive the truth of others. Consequently, self-knowledge is not a luxury or a spiritual tactic but an absolute necessity for living without constant pain. Acharya Prashant emphasizes that we are primarily deceived by our own lack of understanding rather than by others. Often, we blame others for breaking promises they never made, simply because we lived in our own imaginations. He advises that one should be transparent about their reality and not encourage the false projections of others for temporary ego satisfaction. True decisions must come from discretion and wisdom rather than being driven by intense desire, as desire often clouds one's judgment and leads to inevitable suffering.
