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Video Information:
Context:
~ Where should a student focus?
~ Why do we get distracted?
~ What is important?
~ What is the importance of the right purpose?
~ What do we mean by social skills?
Music Credits: Milind Date
Be a part of the Live Sessions: https://acharyaprashant.org/hi/enquiry-gita-course?cmId=m00056
📚 Want to read Acharya Prashant's Books?
Get Free Delivery: https://acharyaprashant.org/en/books?cmId=m00056
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#AcharyaPrashant #आचार्यप्रशांत #Philosophy #BhagavadGita #vedanta #students #purpose
➖➖➖
Video Information:
Context:
~ Where should a student focus?
~ Why do we get distracted?
~ What is important?
~ What is the importance of the right purpose?
~ What do we mean by social skills?
Music Credits: Milind Date
Category
📚
LearningTranscript
00:00Namaskar Acharyaji. Namaste. My name is Rashi Goyal. I am a second year undergraduate student
00:08of the Department of Geology and Geophysics at IIT Kharagpur. So, my question to you is
00:15when we as an IITian, we had to pass through a phase where we have to be away from being
00:23socializing in order to succeed, in order to clear our JEE advance, we need to be more
00:29focused towards our studies. But as soon as we enter college, we had a scenario in which
00:35we need to be a social person, we need friends, we need people to communicate or express our
00:40thoughts. But due to being a learner from a long time, it puts a lot of stress to adapt
00:48that habit of being a social person again. So, that affects our mental health. So, how
00:54to overcome this habit of not expressing oneself. So, Rashi, what you're saying is when you
01:01were preparing for the JEE, at that time you didn't really socialize, you kept studying
01:10and now when you have entered. Yes. Like when during the JEE times, what actually happens
01:18is we avoid attending marriage and parties, we avoid talking, like we spend most of the
01:27time studying. Like when we wake up, we study, we go to coaching class, we do have some exams
01:34or tests and then we came home, we study again, then we sleep. This is what our schedule is.
01:41But as soon as we enter college, we tend to have other things to do, like we need to
01:48make friends, we need to have someone to listen to our problems.
01:52Now, didn't you have problems when you were preparing for the JEE? What happened then?
01:58Who did you go to speak to? Like generally, we used to go to our teachers.
02:04We don't, because it was a competitive environment. So, we used to feel like to talk to a teacher
02:12is the best thing. But right now, we talk mostly to first towards with our friends and
02:19then we go to a teacher if it's a major issue. Let me ask you something. How driven and focused
02:27did you feel at the time of JEE preparation? Now that you have cleared the JEE, you are
02:34in a good position to say, how driven were you?
02:39Like I mentioned, I was like completely into studies.
02:43Completely into studies, right? Yeah.
02:46And now after entering IIT? Like I am now bit relaxed that I had at least…
02:53Which semester are you from, Rashi? Right now, I am in my second year. I will
03:00be having my fourth semester from January. If it's not very personal, may I ask your
03:05CGPA? Yeah, right now it's near about 8.5.
03:12And 8.5 means what? DR 5, 10, 15? Sir, I am not sure about that.
03:27You would have been very sure of your percentile and rank when you were preparing for the JEE,
03:32right? What do they call it in IIT Kharagpur? They don't call it DR, departmental rank.
03:36What is it called there? Equality R.
03:39Equality R, right. So, the tradition continues. See, the thing is you had a purpose then.
03:46So, you didn't need to socialize and that purpose is bigger than the company of any
03:55of these friends and all. Now you are in IIT and there are so many other things to do,
04:03we all know of them. So, you are saying, oh my god, I just kept studying, I didn't
04:08develop my so-called soft skills, I am not very good at communication, I must talk a
04:16lot, I must be attractive to others, I must get the best company possible and by best
04:24what we mean is the most glamorous. What do you mean by social skills? You are a human
04:31being, right? You are a human being. If somebody is worth it, there would be a relationship.
04:44What do you mean by social skills? It's just the absence of a purpose now. Give yourself
04:55a purpose. You do not need to be great at socializing. Let the purpose decide the kind
05:04of company you are to get and if you have a great purpose, you will get just the right
05:09company. What happens is once you enter IIT, placement is almost guaranteed. So, that bogie
05:23is off your mind. You don't have to clear the JEE once again and because everybody gets
05:36into a relaxed mode once you enter the campus. Therefore, even with very modest kind of effort,
05:48you can have a decent CGPA and a decent rank. That's been happening since ages, that's been
05:55happening across all IITs. So, you will have to agree to what I am saying. What you lack
06:05now is the same fire that you had at the time of JEE preparation. At that time, it was like
06:14I have to get in and if I do not get in, I am losing on something very very important.
06:20In contrast, right now your statement is I already have what is important. Therefore,
06:25let me get into other things that offer pleasure and fun and excitement and the rest of it.
06:34No, you have not attained anything yet. Let that be very clear to you. Clearing the JEE
06:41is nothing. Clearing the JEE at best guarantees you bread and butter and an upper middle class
06:49kind of life, doesn't mean much. There is a long distance to cover and especially as
06:57a woman in Indian conditions, you have to keep sprinting. You cannot reduce your pace,
07:04you cannot let your guard down, you cannot start seeking company and socialization and
07:11relationships because all of this ultimately leads to that one thing that we can call as
07:21the final bondage. Why do you want to go towards that? Be a scholar rather than the sensation
07:31on the campus. But that is what we want to be called, right? Mr. campus or Miss campus
07:40rather than the best scholar out there. And if you have to do something apart from
07:46your studies, there are so many co-curriculars to choose from. I am sure KGP campus offers
07:58at least 10 different kinds of sports and great infrastructure, debating, dramatics.
08:08That is one good thing about being in an IIT campus. You get exposure to so many things
08:16that are usually not available to the common student. Excel in them, socialization etc.
08:25carry next to zero value and as I said, if what you are doing carries value and importance,
08:34socialization, the right kind of socialization will happen on its own. You will get the right
08:40kind of company, be totally devoted to your work and to your purpose and some person or
08:47a group of persons cannot be the purpose in your life.
08:52I say that to everybody and when I am addressing a girl, I say that with heightened emphasis.
09:01Forget all this, please. I have seen what now an entire generation of IITians pass through
09:17in front of my eyes. Do not get into that same old kind of trap. It firstly leads to
09:28mediocrity and then it leads to bondages. Learn to excel, keep the fire burning. If
09:37you are in IIT, I am pretty sure your rank would have been in the top 1 percentile. Obviously,
09:43it has to be top 1 percentile or 1.5 or 0.5 whatever. So, that benchmark has to be maintained.
09:53Tell me, since the last 2 years, what is it that you belong to the top 1 percentile of?
10:04JEE was the last thing you excelled at, right? Tell me, what is it that you have added to your
10:14kitty post the JEE? Are you 1 percent, top 1 percent in swimming, 1 percent in debating,
10:24in dramatics, in tennis, in what? And that which you are seeking now will push you, I said deeper
10:40into mediocrity. Do you want to be among those students of your class who used to obtain 50,
10:5060, 70 percent or 75, 80 percent and were satisfied with that? Do you want to be counted
10:57among them, please? No, sir. Yes. So, maintain the JEE like spirit throughout your life.
11:08You have to excel. Relationships and such thing, let the mediocre ones count them as
11:18their priority. Read, read a lot. You would have poured into the books and burned the
11:32midnight oil and since entering the campus, how much have you really read? And even if
11:41you have read, I am sure it mostly belongs to the technical genre, right? Yes, sir. And
11:50the entire world's literature is waiting for you. When will you read that? When will you
11:58read that? And if you do not read that, don't you see you will be missing out on so much?
12:08What can the company of a common second or third year student give you? Don't you want
12:17to learn from the great philosophers, the great writers? Don't you want to be with them?
12:26But you see it's the body, we want a living being, the warmth of another living body.
12:33That's what this body craves for. So, even if you must have that, then let that be secondary
12:44to your purpose, goal and work. Choose the company of those who assist in your work.
12:56Choose the company of those who are aligned with your work. Persons must be way down in
13:06your priority. Remember who you are. You are someone who must excel. You are someone who
13:19must know, learn, realize and ultimately be liberated. And this fact of central identity
13:29of yours must govern all your life decisions. Acharya ji, as you said that we have to explore
13:49more on other fronts. I went through one of your videos wherein you mentioned that the two years
13:57of IIM achievement is you did not let the system get inside your head. How did you go about doing
14:04that? Because as you shared right now, as you answered Rashi's question, you mentioned that
14:12we have to keep the fire burning. We have to move forward in our 20s and the rest of our life.
14:19We should just keep learning. But the core idea or the core basis that we have got is the
14:25capitalistic basis that everything has to have a capitalistic purpose and not just out of curiosity.
14:31Very well said. See, most people excel only when that excellence leads to
14:44capital gains, only when that excellence leads to monetary benefits. You are right. And that is
14:51why so many people stop studying the moment they enter NIT or NIM or they at least are not
15:02at their best. That is because it is not studies fundamentally or books fundamentally or knowledge
15:11fundamentally that attracted them. What attracted them was the prospect of plum placements.
15:20So, the moment that placement is assured or obtained, the fire dies down. No, that should
15:25not be there. Remain the same person throughout your life, the same person that had not yet
15:35cleared the JEE but was raring to clear the JEE, the same person who was sprinting and putting in
15:4710, 12, 16 hours a day. That you cannot do if you are studying for the sake of money,
15:56because money will come and once money comes, then you will be easily satisfied.
16:01Therefore, you must have a very very high purpose in life, the kind of purpose that can never
16:09actually be fully attained. If it can never be fully attained, you will be working towards it
16:15all your life without ever having a final satisfaction that you have arrived. That
16:22dissatisfaction is extremely important. What is that final purpose I am referring to?
16:28It's called realization or liberation. It's called annihilation of the ego. Now,
16:33annihilation of the ego just cannot happen directly. It has to happen through your life
16:38work. You have to choose your work in a way that it keeps diminishing your ego
16:46and because the ego can never be fully absolutely diminished, reduced to zero.
16:51Therefore, you will have to keep the fire burning throughout your life. That's the method.
16:56Choose such a mammoth goal that you always have to be on your toes, that you never fall
17:05complacent, that you can never give yourself the liberty to say, now I am done and I can retire.
17:17Getting it? This must be sounding a bit different from the usual things you hear.
17:26I understand that but we are trying to keep it as lucid as possible. Keep coming, keep coming.
17:35You said that we have to take up a goal that we may never achieve.
17:41Yes.
17:44Isn't that something which, if we are not here for, if you're not there to see our life's work,
17:54how will that keep the fire burning? Because ultimately we are a species
18:01that looks towards feedbacks. That's what your body does.
18:07And that's why I said it's important to not to listen too much to your body.
18:12The body wants attainable goals. The consciousness is in need of a goal
18:18that is extremely worthy, extremely lovable, even though unattainable.
18:28Consciousness has a deep need. Therefore, this is where love comes in.
18:37You must fall in love with what you do. More accurately, you must do something
18:46worth falling in love with.
18:52Getting it? The final goal is within. The final goal is annihilation of the darkness and bondage
19:03within. But because it is within, it cannot happen directly, we said. So, you have to choose
19:12a series of projects so challenging that they keep resulting in your betterment.
19:24Externally, obviously, you cannot just choose a project that will never be finished.
19:29So, external projects, they will keep coming and going. And may you be successful at all the
19:37external challenges you pick up. But once a challenge is overcome,
19:45pick the next one. And what will be the next one? It will be decided
19:50by the previous one that you have just overcome. So, may you have a great series of successes in
19:58the external world and all those successes lead to your final victory within. What is that final
20:08victory within? You must be just preparing to ask your next question. Sir, but you said that the
20:13internal goal can never be fully achieved. The internal victory is about continuously having
20:22worked in the right direction, in the inward direction. If you can manage to do that your
20:30entire life, you are a winner. And the direction is towards liberation of consciousness. Towards
20:37liberation of consciousness. Being hell-bent, I want to see what all remains as a bondage in my
20:46life. I want to identify my hidden masters one after the other and keep negating them continuously.
20:56And there are just so many of them. There are just so many of them because internally
21:01there sits someone who is very prepared to be a slave.
21:07Because here somebody is prepared to be a slave. So, masters come in great abundance.
21:18I'll keep negating all those masters. I'll keep negating the slavery within. I'll keep reducing
21:25my tendency to be dependent, to be lazy, to be hungry, to be afraid, to be greedy.
21:34I'll keep identifying where my weaknesses lie. I'll keep challenging overcoming them.
21:39That's the great purpose one must have in life.
21:46Acharya ji, I have a follow-up question. Our great purpose is liberation. But how do we
21:54choose our own path? Or we can say, how to not be influenced by our surrounding, the bonds,
22:03our relationship with others, not just family, friends, the society we live in,
22:09our surrounding. How to identify who I am without getting influenced by
22:18others, external factors? When you say you want to identify who you are, if you are honest,
22:24you will realize you are the one who is already influenced by everybody. Influenced by everybody
22:31and driven by the body. So, enslaved doubly, driven by the body and influenced by all and
22:38sundry. That's who we are. So, identifying who we are is not very difficult. We are social
22:45creatures, we are physical creatures and being either of them is no good at all. That's what.
22:52Now, you said, how do we identify the right work? You have to start from where you are.
22:56Your goal is liberation, but you are where you are and whatever the destination might be,
23:06the first step has to be taken from your current location.
23:11Knowing your current location honestly, accurately is very important. Do not keep yourself in
23:18delusion and there will be a tendency to self-delude because it hurts to know where you really are.
23:27We might think that we are in an amusement park, enjoying ourselves and when you want to be a bit
23:40honest for a change, you realize you are in a prison cell. So, knowing where you really are
23:52is the first thing and a very difficult thing, not because it is difficult to know where you are,
24:01but because it is difficult to acknowledge where you are, it hurts.
24:09So, acknowledge where you are, you will see how badly enslaved you might be and then immediately
24:16you will know what to do, that is your work. If I know I am sitting on this sofa
24:28and my leg has been chained to the leg of the sofa, don't I know what to do?
24:38So, my situation decides my immediate work and the situation is invariably of bondage.
24:48We all are in bondage.
24:56So, that answers my question very rightly.