Acharya Prashant begins by questioning the common preoccupation with planning the future. He suggests that there are better things to think about than becoming the typical "aunty" or "uncle" obsessed with future plans. He finds it difficult to convey the concept of "freedom from the future" to people engrossed in their domestic lives, for whom this idea is alien. He notes that people are constantly thinking about the future, such as their children's tuitions, driven by the fear of being taunted by society as irresponsible parents. The speaker explains that a child's well-being lies in not creating too many preconceived notions about their future. He asserts that even the best future one can imagine for oneself is an inferior thing. He advises to get so exhausted in the present moment that one falls into a deep, dreamless sleep, as dreams of the future only come to those whose sleep is shallow. The goal is to be so immersed and engaged in the present that the future does not even appear in dreams. Acharya Prashant addresses the apparent contradiction in scriptures like the Isha Upanishad, which on one hand advocate for freedom from the flow of time, and on the other, urge remembering the past with the verse "Om Krato Smara Kritam Smara" (O mind, remember your deeds). He clarifies this by quoting Kabir Saheb: "That which doesn't get off your head, that is called Maya." He explains that remembering the past is not about carrying it as a burden, like a donkey with heavy books, but about learning from it to avoid repeating mistakes. History repeats itself only for those who learn nothing from it. He states that the desire to repeat the past comes from being unconscious of it. People who live in desires and longings find it necessary to distort history—personal, communal, or national—to suit their narratives. The Upanishads warn against this, urging a clear understanding of the past to be free from it. Freedom from the past is freedom from time itself, which includes the future, as the future is merely a projection of the past. Any imagined future is not new; it is a modification of past experiences. The truly new is always unexpected and unplanned. The speaker explains that we are stuck in the old because we are afraid of the new and its uncertainty. He gives an example of a person who was poor in childhood: their future will either be an acceptance of poverty or a reaction against it by striving for wealth. In both cases, the future is a product of the past. He concludes that we are just a mechanical process, a flow. The present is the only point where this cycle can be broken, but for most, the present doesn't exist because they are not present in it. The present is an opportunity for consciousness to act freely, breaking the chain of past and future.