Establishing Right Relation with Nature || Acharya Prashant, at SPIT Mumbai (2022)

Acharya Prashant

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Transcript

00:00Hello Sir, Today's session is on Fearless Living.

00:07So with respect to this topic, I would like to ask you, aren't we going against the

00:12nature if we try to be fearless, because in the course of evolution, the emotion of fear

00:21has never been eliminated, also it helps many species in the race of survival, also it plays

00:28a huge role in avoiding wars and conflicts, not only among humans, but also among other

00:35species.

00:37So it's the nature which favours, which has planted the emotion of fear in all of us.

00:46So it will be in some sense, we are going against the nature.

00:51Very very good question, lovely, great one to begin with.

00:58What's your name?

01:00Lokesh Choudhury.

01:02Lokesh, good.

01:04Lokesh, you said, fear is an evolutionary tool embedded within us, so you are talking

01:17about the self, you are saying, within me, nature, mother nature, prakriti, has embedded

01:26this thing called fear to help us in some way.

01:32Who are you?

01:34Who are you?

01:35Who is being talked of here?

01:39Remember you are not one but two.

01:43One of you two is the body, right, the body, and whatsoever prakriti or mother nature has

01:55given you pertains to the body.

02:02The other you is consciousness.

02:09The body, as birthed by, as controlled and programmed and conditioned by prakriti, demands

02:19survival, demands security, demands pleasure, and demands reproduction.

02:28That's what the body wants.

02:33The body of the human being as well as the body of the animal, irrespective of whose

02:38body it is, the bodily needs are the same.

02:43The animal wants sleep, you too want sleep.

02:46The animal wants food, you too want food, we are talking at the level of the body.

02:52The animal wants bodily security, comfort, you too want that.

03:00And the animal's body reproduces, your body too reproduces.

03:07So whatsoever is there as a bodily mechanism is something animalistic.

03:17It helps, but it helps only one of you two.

03:22Who are the two first of all?

03:25I said we are two.

03:27One is body, the other is…

03:31So fear helps, but helps only the body.

03:41Fear is indeed great, but for whom?

03:44For the body.

03:46So that's the reason why all these things we find shared amongst humans and the other

03:54sentient beings, animals, flies, mosquitoes, birds, fish, all experience fear.

04:03Fear is something animalistic, and that does not take away from the fact that fear helps.

04:11Fear helps, but it helps the survival of the body.

04:16But who are you?

04:18If I tell you, for example, Lokesh, if I tell you, you look ugly, and I tell you, you are

04:30simply mad, which of these two is a bigger insult?

04:35If I say you are dumb, stupid, and if I say you look ugly, which of these two is a bigger

04:43insult?

04:44Stupid, right?

04:46If I say your looks are outright bad, and I say your IQ is 8.8, which of these two is

04:57a bigger humiliation?

04:58The IQ part.

05:01So what are you, consciousness or body?

05:05Anything that relates to the body is important, but far less important than anything that

05:11relates to your consciousness.

05:14So even you make this choice, without any teaching, without any guidance, even you daily

05:20make this choice that between the body and consciousness, you are actually the consciousness,

05:24not the body.

05:26So we said, first of all, we are not one but two, the body and the consciousness.

05:33Next we have said that between the body and the consciousness, all human beings prefer

05:39to be the consciousness.

05:42What do animals prefer?

05:44Body.

05:45In animals, consciousness is not that greatly developed.

05:49And when you go down to plants, their consciousness is even more limited.

05:53Are you getting it?

05:56So who are we?

05:57We are consciousness.

05:58Of course, we are the body as well.

06:01But between these two, which one is more important?

06:05Consciousness is more important.

06:06Now, so we are two, out of these, one is higher.

06:11Now, can we allow the lower one to dominate the higher?

06:15Please tell me.

06:17If something helps the lower one, but hurts the higher one, would you allow it?

06:26Please tell me.

06:27Okay, you have exams tomorrow morning, right?

06:32You set up the alarm, the alarm for 5 am.

06:36The consciousness is saying you must get up and study.

06:40And the body is saying you must keep sleeping.

06:43Which one do you prefer?

06:45Consciousness.

06:46And if you side with the body, then you regret, right?

06:50Don't you?

06:51You don't feel good.

06:52You say, oh, something bad I have done.

06:56The alarm rang and I still put it down.

07:00And then you wake up an hour later and you say, why did I do that?

07:07Something good for the body, bad for consciousness, you don't like it.

07:12Do you agree?

07:13Something good for the body and bad for the consciousness, you don't like it.

07:17Though it is good for the body.

07:19You got an extra hour of sleep, the body is happy, very happy.

07:23Had you actually woken up at 5 am, the face would have been a bit swollen and the eyes

07:29would have been a bit red.

07:32And people would have asked you, oh, are you short of sleep?

07:35It shows on the face, right?

07:36So the body would have felt bad had you woken up in time.

07:40But the consciousness would have felt great.

07:44And that would have shown up on your mark sheet.

07:50So what is good for the body, but bad for consciousness is not acceptable.

07:54Do you get this?

07:56What is good for the body, but bad for consciousness is not acceptable.

08:02Fear is that.

08:05Fear is something that is good for your physical survival.

08:09Fear is an evolutionary tool, helps you live a longer life.

08:15But it is not good for your consciousness.

08:18What's the point in living a long life if life is full of fear?

08:24Please tell me.

08:25What would you prefer?

08:27Living for 100 years, all afraid and insecure, doubtful, shivering, or living for just, just

08:42let's say, like Bhagat Singh, only 23 years, but bravely, stoutly, like a man.

08:50What would you prefer?

08:53That's what.

08:54Because we are not animals.

08:56No animal ever prefers to be martyred.

09:00No animal would ever say, I want a short, but meaningful life.

09:05For animals, body is everything.

09:06You are human beings precisely because for you, body is not everything.

09:11You can overrule your body.

09:12You can dictate your body.

09:13For you, body is just an instrument.

09:15You can use your body towards a higher purpose.

09:18That's why you're human beings.

09:20And that's why fear is such an obnoxious thing.

09:25Fear lowers consciousness and protects just the body.

09:32Fear says the body is everything.

09:33Please, please, please save yourself, save yourself.

09:38That's the reason why courage is such a high quality.

09:44Because courage enables you to go against your physical nature.

09:52Remember again and again, we are not animals.

09:55So, we should not do the stuff that Prakriti designs us to do, if that stuff lowers our

10:05consciousness.

10:09You say, you know, that we are products of nature.

10:13So, we should follow what nature tells us.

10:18Does nature tell you to wear clothes?

10:22Does nature tell you to wear clothes?

10:24Does nature tell you to wear these specs or use Twitter or use mobile phone or study

10:33engineering?

10:34Does nature tell you any of these things?

10:36Nature will be very happy.

10:38You just go and roam about in a jungle.

10:41Nature is very happy and find a mate there and procreate like animals.

10:44That's all that nature wants from you.

10:47Live and produce more beings that would live.

10:51That's all that Prakriti wants from you.

10:52Prakriti does not want you to know, be enlightened, be liberated.

10:57Prakriti has no such objective for you.

10:59In fact, when you try for realization, for knowledge, for freedom, Prakriti is not very

11:05happy then.

11:07Don't you see how your body rebels against you when you sit down to do something important?

11:14Have you seen that?

11:17You are okay.

11:18The moment you sit down to study, you start feeling drowsy.

11:21How many of you have experienced that?

11:23There was no sleepiness at all, but the moment you open the book, you feel like crashing

11:30on the bed.

11:31Experienced that?

11:34That's what Prakriti wants you to do.

11:37Just sleep and protect the body and keep the body happy.

11:43Prakriti has no intention to have you as a great one, as a realized one, as an elevated

11:53one, a free one, a liberated one.

11:55No.

11:56Prakriti does not want any of that.

11:59That does not mean that Prakriti is our enemy.

12:02That does not mean that we have to assault the body.

12:05That only means that we do not have to be ruled by our body.

12:11We cannot allow the body to dictate us, to gain control over us.

12:16We cannot allow that.

12:17And what do we mean by the body?

12:19You know, most of the emotions that you experience are simply physical.

12:26Most of the thoughts that we have are just biochemical things.

12:34If some additional chemical is injected in your body, your thoughts will change.

12:39Angry people will get placated.

12:43Peaceful people will suddenly erupt in anger.

12:49One injection and you can suddenly start feeling extremely violent or lustful.

12:55But you will say, oh, these are my emotions.

12:56No, these are not your emotions.

12:58These are things of the body.

13:02And we are not supposed to be slaves of the body.

13:06So we are not supposed to be slaves of our foolish emotions and desires.

13:15Because they are all bodily.

13:17Remember that which appears as desire or emotion is just a bodily thing.

13:25It is arising from your body.

13:28Certain emotions, for example, do not arise in you before the age of 12 or 14.

13:34Don't you know that?

13:35Where do they come from?

13:36They're coming from chemicals.

13:39And if there is an under secretion or overproduction of those chemicals, then your emotions will

13:46change accordingly.

13:49You can be made to fall in love just using one injection or one pill.

13:56You will be head over heels in love, madly in love.

14:00Why?

14:01Because of the chemical affecting the body, body, body.

14:05So these are all bodily things.

14:07We are not supposed to give them too much importance.

14:10Because for us, among the two things, which one is more important?

14:13Consciousness.

14:14Remember, remember, you are born to be liberated.

14:18You're not born to follow the commands of the body.

14:22That's not the purpose.

14:24The body will tell you, get a lot of money, earn security, a bigger house.

14:32Don't you know what a bigger house in the city corresponds to in the jungle?

14:37In the jungle, all animals, what do they build, what do they build?

14:43They have territorial occupation, they occupy dens, they build nests.

14:51And the equivalent of that is that you spend all your life trying to get a good bigger

14:57home for yourself.

14:59That is just bodily.

15:00That is not the purpose of life, to have a great house.

15:05Look at all the animals in the jungle, they are all running after mates.

15:11And males are fighting for the female and females are fighting for the male.

15:14The same thing is happening among human beings also.

15:17What is this?

15:18Does this relate to consciousness or just the body?

15:22The body.

15:23Are we supposed to do that?

15:24No, that's not the purpose of life.

15:25That's not the purpose of life.

15:27You have to be very cautious.

15:29Never defend your attitudes or behaviors by saying, oh, these are natural.

15:34You are not supposed to be natural.

15:37Animals are supposed to be natural.

15:39You're not supposed to be natural.

15:41Is this auditorium a natural place?

15:43Is this a cave?

15:45Is this a treetop?

15:48What is it then?

15:51It is a product of human consciousness.

15:53So don't keep parroting the argument, but this is not natural.

15:58If this is not natural, nothing is natural.

16:00Animals don't get haircuts, do they?

16:03Pedicure, manicure, saloons, airports.

16:06Do animals have any of these?

16:08Language.

16:09Do animals have language?

16:10Do animals brush their teeth?

16:12Then why do you keep repeating the natural argument?

16:15No, this is natural.

16:18Animals do this, so we will also do this.

16:19This is natural.

16:22Animals do this.

16:25No animal ever washed his face.

16:33Why do?

16:34No animal ever cared for a degree.

16:37No animal ever cleared an entrance examination.

16:45Why do you keep saying I have to do what is natural?

16:47Are you an animal or what?

16:51I repeat, that does not mean that you have to be anti-natural.

16:55Be careful.

16:56We are not saying we have to be anti-natural.

16:59We are saying we have to rise above our physical nature.

17:04We have to utilize our thoughts and emotions and body in a way that is conducive to consciousness.

17:13The body is not something to be beaten down.

17:16You don't have to exploit your body or torture it.

17:19That's not what we are saying.

17:21We are saying let consciousness decide the purpose, the destination.

17:25Let the body be the tool or the vehicle.

17:30That's what we are saying.

17:31Is that clear?

17:32Lokesh, where are you?

17:33Is that clear?

17:34We are not animals.

17:36So the nature argument does not work with us.

17:39We are, remember, you are always two.

17:44Whenever you are behaving in a certain way, ask yourself, is it the animal within me or

17:48is it my consciousness?

17:50Ask.

17:51Whenever you are to make a major decision, ask, what am I deciding as?

17:57As the animal or as a conscious entity?

18:02Who am I?

18:03That's the most fundamental question.

18:05Am I the animal or am I consciousness?

18:08Did you remember this?

18:10Good.

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