Read this book first thing in the morning before starting your day. It will freshen up your perspective
My sister is the one to first tell me about Acharya Prashant. Though I was happy to take her at her word on his not being a godman in any sense of the term, I did not look him up for a long time. Then a video of him counselling a female professional having frequent run-ins with her in-laws over chores appeared on my feed on YouTube. That is when he really got my attention. He didn’t trivialise the quarrels. I don’t believe men can be feminists if only because women’s rights are women’s responsibility. But his rational approach to them and to family life which is congruent with mine and which added real value to the world also because of the large audience he was getting made an impression.
Though he does not perform cosmopolitan tastes, one might very well describe Acharya Prashant as a classical liberal. And an original one. Born Prashant Tripathi, Acharya Prashant cleared the Indian Civil Services examination and worked as a civil servant for a short period. However, he resigned from the service to pursue his calling as a Vedanta acharya or teacher, author and animal rights activist. He is an alumnus of IIT Delhi and IIM Ahmedabad. His latest book is a 180-strong collection of his teachings. Written in simple but elegant English, they deal with the various topics of freedom, parenting, suffering, courage, love, work, thought and the nature of being.
“Why does one desperately need unending fun? Why is life devoid of the simple thrill of right living? Entertainment [is] punishment”, indeed. This is the lesson of discipline. “Jump before you’re ready. If you wait to feel strong before stepping in, you will rot outside the arena. Your sword will rust, the battle will pass. And you will die untested… Had Arjuna hesitated, waiting for ‘full clarity’, would the Gita have descended?” The lesson of character. These are a few of the lessons that spoke to me. “Choose only the right battles.” This is one that did not.
“To really raise a child, you must first raise yourself.” “If your work is not loveable, life won’t be liveable.” “Self-love is not about feeling good, but about being ruthlessly true to oneself.” “If our responsibilities were truly ours, fulfilling them would bring joy. The very fact that they feel like a burden proves that they are not real.” Emancipation is a lesson that might prove difficult, and hence ‘controversial’.
“What blocks creativity? A cluttered mind.” That’s Acharya Prashant’s wisdom on the secret of creativity. “There is no wave in the mind that arises on its own. The mind is dependent on the world, and the world is dependent on the mind.” That’s him at his most profound.
Read this book first thing in the morning before starting your day. It will freshen up your perspective. The acharya’s bandwidth is large, so it can accommodate most problems of everyone.
Truth without Apology
Acharya Prashant
HarperCollins
pp. 351, Rs 399
