Acharya Prashant addresses a questioner's fear of death arising from a physical ailment. He begins by asking the questioner if he remembers what he was doing on a specific date six months ago. When the questioner cannot recall, Acharya Prashant explains that just as a few months in the past quickly fade from memory, a few months in the future is also a significant amount of time, and life moves on. He suggests that even if the worst-case scenario is true and the questioner has only five months to live, that is still a lot of life. The way to overcome the fear is to decide what to do with the time one has. He points out that the real issue is not having anything meaningful to do, which leads to instability and fear. Even if a doctor confirms a terminal illness, they will still give a timeframe of a few months, which is a long time. He uses another example, asking if the questioner remembers the shirt he wore a week ago. Since the past week is already insignificant, one should not be overly concerned about the week to come. When the questioner mentions his past achievements and responsibilities as a source of fear, Acharya Prashant advises that if these duties are real, he should focus on fulfilling them. If time is short, one must work with more urgency and not waste time worrying. A person with less time should be more active, not lethargic. Acharya Prashant explains that time is an illusion (Maya). The fact is, whether one has ten years or five months, it is all the same because life is lived in moments. People give themselves mental insurance by thinking they have a long time, like twenty years, but one's capacity to act is limited to the present moment. He contrasts the worldly person, who is always concerned about the future, with the spiritual person, who finds joy in the present moment. He gives the example of revolutionaries who, even when facing execution, would continue their meaningful work, like reading the Gita, until the very end. They did not mourn their impending death but used every available moment. He concludes by distinguishing between religion, which is often future-oriented (heaven, hell, next life), and spirituality (Adhyatma), which is about living rightly in the present moment without attachment to the results, which is the essence of Nishkama Karma (action without desire for fruits).
