Don’t dismiss the desires of the mind. Go deeply into those desires. And behind each desire, you will find only one desire — the desire to be free.
Acharya Prashant
MEANING OF THIS QUOTE
Every human being, regardless of their age, caste, creed, religion, has desires. Desires are something that are common to everyone, irrespective of their social status or economic conditions. That said, most cultures around the world regard desire as the root cause of all evil. Every vice, from greed to gluttony, is said to be borne out of desire. Even so, every desire has one single yearning at its heart – the desire to be free. This longing may not be equally prominent in everyone, but it is the guiding principle of everything we crave for.
HOW COME?
Desire is passion; it is the insatiable lust for material pleasures. It is one of the many ways our minds trick us into believing we need something we actually don’t. In fact, human needs are really basic. It is our mind that hoodwinks us into thinking that we need all those luxuries we strive for. Ironically, our desires refuse to subside even when we accomplish those comforts. Our mind keeps setting the bar higher, and before we know it, we are stuck in a never-ending pursuit of sense gratification. It isn’t until old age sets in and we no longer have the physical capacity or drive to relish the material belongings we spent our lives amassing that it dawns on us that all of it was just a means to set us free. Every time we set ourselves a materialistic goal, we desperately hoped it would somehow liberate us.
SHOULD WE STOP HARBORING ANY DESIRES IN LIFE?
From a spiritual standpoint, yes, but that is hardly practical in this day and age. Balance should be our watchword – while having desires is inevitable, it is imperative to take out a few minutes every day to introspect and reflect on the actual feelings that dictate those wishes.
CONCLUSION
It would be foolish to hold oneself guilty for desiring something, for it is what makes us human. That said, it is important to address the reasons why we have the sort of longings we do. You don’t have to dismiss your desires; all you need to do is get to the bottom of them. It is only by doing so that we can truly achieve what we so badly want – freedom from all desire.
Prashant Tripathi, popularly known as Acharya Prashant, is an Indian author and Advaita guru. A teacher of seventeen forms of Gita and sixty forms of Upanishads, Acharya is well-known for his profound thoughts on life. He once noted, ‘Don’t dismiss the desires of the mind. Go deeply into those desires. And behind each desire, you will find only one desire — the desire to be free.’