Acharya Prashant explains that there is only one fundamental mistake for a human being: to not realize one's internal self and to remain a slave to it. This internal slavery is the source of all weakness. He states that this is the reason India was defeated in most battles over the last ten centuries and why, as a people, it is not progressing fast enough even today. The tragedy first takes place internally, and then its effects manifest externally in all possible ways. He asserts that man is nothing without wisdom. While weapons might win a few battles, it is wisdom that wins wars in very subtle ways. If one loses wisdom, they are a loser, even if the world declares them a winner. Because human beings are special and not like other animals, they need spirituality, or what he calls wisdom. This wisdom, or religiosity, is the center of human existence. Without this center, one is scattered and has no power, like a wheel without an axle. Man needs this center, which is wisdom and spirituality. The trouble with India, he explains, has been the contamination of its religion. When religion itself gets corrupted, nothing can save a people. The core of wisdom, Vedant, was always present, but along with it, there was a lot of "garbage." Unfortunately, people chose to focus on the garbage—hollow practices, empty rituals, discrimination based on birth and gender, and imaginative stories—while ignoring the core. This is what is often called religion today. When religion is corrupted, the population loses its scientific temper, makes no new discoveries, writes no worthy literature, and ceases exploration. The society becomes divided, fragmented, and exploitative. Consequently, they also lose wars. The central problem is not losing wars, but the corruption of religion. He finds this especially tragic because India is the "mother of religion" and possessed the highest wisdom from its saints and sages. He concludes that unless there is a return to pure religion, which he propagates as Vedant, the future will remain bleak.