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एक वो ही ज़िंदा है, बाकी सब मुर्दे || आचार्य प्रशांत
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2 years ago
Rebirth
Dharma
Life and Death
Atma (The Self)
Ahamkar (Ego)
Prakriti (Nature)
Immortality
Description

Acharya Prashant explains that the purpose of Dharma is to realize that this very birth is false. Therefore, the question of a next birth or rebirth is irrelevant, as a next birth can only occur if the current one is real. He questions how someone who is not even truly born can talk about a future birth. We are not even alive today, so the concept of a next life is meaningless. He states that people are essentially "dead bodies" or automatons, merely processes of nature (Prakriti). He uses the analogy of a chair's armrest, which makes a sound when struck. Just as the chair reacts mechanically, humans react to stimuli like words without true consciousness. There is no fundamental difference between this mechanical reaction and what we call being alive. We are born with a body, but we are not truly "living." The true purpose of life is to become alive, and Dharma is the means to achieve this. While a mother provides the physical body (deh), it is Dharma that gives life (jeevan). One who attains this true life through Dharma understands that there are no past or future births and achieves immortality (amarta). In contrast, those who are not truly alive are the ones preoccupied with past and future lives. Acharya Prashant calls the concept of rebirth a "toy" or a "rattle" for the common person, who is like a child. Because people are constantly worried about the future, they are given the idea of a future after death to keep them in check and prevent them from becoming completely immoral. However, this is just a tool and not the ultimate truth. The real problem is the deranged ego (vikshipt ahankar) and the false beliefs we hold. The solution is not to add another belief about an afterlife but to get rid of all false beliefs. India's greatest contribution to the world is the concept of Atma (the Self), which means the awakening of the dead within to true life. Ahamkar (the ego), on the other hand, is the conditioned, mechanical self that is a product of external influences. It is this false self that is the "corpse." True religiosity is about realizing the Atma, not getting entangled in stories about rebirth.