Acharya Prashant advises to not let anybody become your universe. At the same time, one cannot do without assigning respective values to things, people, and places. This is a thing of attention, a tightrope walk that requires one to be alert. One cannot say everything is useless, nor can one say everything is useful. There would be careful hierarchies and lists, wisely and meticulously sorted in the wise mind. The top slot, however, should always remain vacant. All lists should begin from number two. As a practical way to practice this, the speaker suggests that when one makes a to-do list in the morning, they should leave the top slot vacant and begin from number two. This will serve as a useful reminder. Similarly, when throwing a party and making a list of invitees, one should keep the number one slot vacant. The chief guest should always be anonymous, secret, nameless, hidden, and faceless. This chief guest is so deeply invited that he remains uninvited, yet is definitely present because his presence does not require any invitation. This is the kind of life one must lead, where the first, the primary, the topmost, the ultimate, the absolute, must always be given its due place unconditionally, and all other things come after that. This is the feeling behind the old tradition of beginning any important work with an invocation of the Lord. It is not the words that matter, but the remembrance of the deity before the journey begins. The journey comes later; the deity comes first. The deity itself holds no objective importance, like a stone, but what is of importance is your remembrance. This remembrance ensures that you will not make a bad journey in the wrong direction. Forgetfulness is the very bane of existence. All evil stems from forgetting. Constant remembrance is at the core of right living.
