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00:00:10Hey everyone, this is Saurabh Netra Valkar here and I'm part of the USA National Cricket
00:00:16Team. I've been part of Acharya Prashant's Gita community for the last two and a half
00:00:21years and I've learned immensely. On this trip, representing USA at the T20 World Cup,
00:00:29I got an opportunity to catch up with my teacher. And it was a very insightful conversation
00:00:35and here it is for you.
00:00:48We can rule. They say it's too good to edge it. I've heard you use also a lot of cricket
00:00:56analogies in your talk. And I've heard you also used to bowl left arm and bat righty.
00:01:00How else I do that?
00:01:02I used to bowl at the stumps directly when I was a kid. It was not a dedicated ground or
00:01:08even a proper pitch. But my backyard had enough empty space. So there were those 22 yards and
00:01:13a little bit of run-up available.
00:01:14I would bowl at the stumps. But that meant that my natural length became fuller.
00:01:21Fuller, yes.
00:01:22Because, you know, there is no batsmen. I was bowling directly at the stumps. It took me,
00:01:27when I reached college, it took me time and practice to get to good length.
00:01:34Put the length back, yeah, yeah.
00:01:35But that also meant that I developed a good yorker because I was bowling directly at the stumps.
00:01:40Height was a barrier when it came to pitching it short. So I used shoulder as much as I could
00:01:48to be an effective short pitcher. I suppose you need to be at least six or something.
00:01:54To get little extra out of the pitch, yes.
00:01:57So Malcolm Marshall was 5'10".
00:02:04I think the community through the teachings is doing the best at it. How can me at an individual
00:02:12and what else can be done. And I see that in the community as well. Like you prep for your
00:02:18questions,
00:02:19you listen to the session and then you post your reflections. Slowly, like I turn to the community,
00:02:24I guess hopefully more people will join in. Our destruction inside us. As if the heart itself
00:02:32is a ticking time bomb. The individual will have to be awakened. And that's the role of the Gita
00:02:41community you are a part of. Yeah, I had a question relating to that in the podcast.
00:02:47We can do. Oh, I can ask it? Yeah, fine.
00:02:54Your time was quite competitive also. Yes.
00:03:00From your own area, Zaheer, Agarkar, these guys.
00:03:04Yeah, I used to be in and out of the side. I played for Mumbai, uh, Tanji Trophy. Under 19,
00:03:10I played for India and 2010 World Cup. Then engineering, I was doing 2009 to 13. That was very
00:03:20exactly clashing with my peak under 19 days. Somehow I balanced both and like juggled.
00:03:27In fact, it's an interesting background. Most professional sportspersons do not have the
00:03:35kind of academic degree you have. So to have managed both is remarkable.
00:03:45So Acharya Ji, my question was essentially, um, I'm tying down my journey to the teachings now that I can
00:03:54look back to it. So I've always grown up, uh, having a deep existential crisis.
00:04:01What's going on in the world? How does the world work? So I naturally gravitated to math and science.
00:04:07And in my community was a cricket, uh, crazy. So I've always
00:04:12like day night, I used to play cricket in the building. And that's how I grew up with these two
00:04:16loves. And somehow came through the grind age groups and all that. But like, you know, in India,
00:04:24both fields are so time demanding. Uh, you need to practice for five hours. And then there is a
00:04:30travel time. I grew up in Bombay. So I used to go into the local trains of Mumbai after school
00:04:36and all
00:04:36that. So somehow through the support of my parents who used to help me do my homework in the train
00:04:42and
00:04:42all that. And then my coaches also helped a little bit, but it tested my passion and my love for
00:04:51the
00:04:51game. Engineering time and my 11th and 12th were the hardest years. I was actually prepping for IIT
00:04:59JE as well. And when the JE was there, I got picked for the Indian under 19 team. I couldn't
00:05:05give JE.
00:05:06I played the world cup. I came and I gave the state entrance exam. And then
00:05:11into the four years of engineering, again, journaling of five hours attendance with the
00:05:16tournaments and all that. Somehow a path are treaded, but, uh, certain things got lost as well.
00:05:25For example, I didn't have the cushion to spend extended time with friends and family,
00:05:32but still the true friends that had to stay stayed. And the teaching that came to mind now that I
00:05:40look
00:05:40back is the Ishavasya Upanishad first shloka, where you say Ishavasya idam sarvam tena tyaktena
00:05:47bunjita. If you're fully devoted to the truth, the truth shows you some kind of a door and something
00:05:54opens up. So I'm really grateful for that. But I see in India, especially I've seen both sides on
00:06:01the engineering side, uh, talented, uh, cricketers who under either the pressure that they won't be able
00:06:09to manage both. They dropped the sport or guys who are really good in sport. They dropped out of
00:06:16school and they gave their best. But in cricket, especially there's a very low rate of success,
00:06:22because there are just a few seats in the Indian team and you don't get grades all the time.
00:06:28And then I see them now struggling to make ends meet. So how do, what's your take on how one
00:06:37should
00:06:37approach it when one loves something? And how do they take that leap of faith? I myself was at least,
00:06:44at least adamant that I had a deep interest in this. I wanted to know more. So that kept me
00:06:49going.
00:06:50Uh, what's your take on that? Sort of one would like to frame it as an either or kind of
00:07:02dilemma. It's cricket
00:07:06or studies. It's passion one or passion two.
00:07:16Responsibility one versus responsibility two or love. Responsibility and love. That kind of dilemma is
00:07:29how one would instinctively want to frame it as. But probably it's not that way.
00:07:42Probably there are more than two variables in the equation.
00:07:50We want to believe as if it's between X and Y.
00:07:56Probably there is S, T, U, V, Z all hiding somewhere and consuming our time,
00:08:06energies, resources and commitment.
00:08:10And since we are not talking of them, therefore their allocation remains untested, unquestioned,
00:08:22untouched.
00:08:25So let's say out of the hundred units of my life energy,
00:08:29energy, my attention, time, money, everything, all that I may command as a person, out of hundred units of that,
00:08:42there is some 30-40 that goes towards X.
00:08:51And there is a new Y calling me.
00:08:56A beautiful Y, a deserving Y. It would appear that I'll have to allocate resources to Y
00:09:06from the 40 units that I presently allot to X.
00:09:10We do not question where the remaining 60 is going.
00:09:14That's the S, T, U, V, Z.
00:09:18They sit, they hide and they very quietly
00:09:26steal our life energy.
00:09:30That's where the pruning is really needed.
00:09:34That's where we need to shine the light.
00:09:37Probably even 60% is an understatement.
00:09:44Maybe more than that is consumed by unseen variables,
00:09:52unknown factors,
00:09:55hiding silently in nooks and corners of our consciousness.
00:10:01But nevertheless,
00:10:03extracting their share,
00:10:06extracting their
00:10:10amount,
00:10:11and
00:10:14we don't test them.
00:10:17We don't test them.
00:10:19So,
00:10:24it's a false dilemma.
00:10:25X versus Y.
00:10:27It's a false dilemma.
00:10:28Yeah, I agree with you.
00:10:29I think while you were saying that I connected it to my current life in US,
00:10:33where I am a full-time software engineer as well at Oracle.
00:10:39So, there I optimize in the sense are most of our local games are on the weekends.
00:10:45And my training time,
00:10:46what I've done is we've made some life choices,
00:10:49where I live very close to work.
00:10:51So, if I'm done at 5,
00:10:53I'm home at 5.15 or 5.30,
00:10:56then I have my whole evening to go to the gym or to train.
00:10:59The gym is in the office itself.
00:11:00So, I hit the gym there.
00:11:02I take an extended lunch break and do bowling practice there.
00:11:07So, it's not like my work is getting compromised,
00:11:09but I'm finding these other low-hanging fruits where I can sort of squeeze in.
00:11:15The entire problem in this is psychologically, when we are wasting ourselves,
00:11:21then the register that can note the wastage stands deliberately closed.
00:11:33So, the wastage would never be registered.
00:11:38So, out of the 100 units,
00:11:41right, we might be miss-spending or under-utilizing,
00:11:46let's say 50, 60, even 70.
00:11:48A lot of people, maybe they are mis-utilizing even 95.
00:11:51We don't know.
00:11:52But the more efficient ones, I suppose even they are not really putting themselves optimally to work.
00:12:03The result is, we feel as if we are short of resources, energy, time, but we are not.
00:12:10And when a deserving candidate appears, it feels like a dilemma, like a dichotomy.
00:12:20If I go towards X, then Y has to be lost or compromised.
00:12:25Whereas both X and Y can be maintained, entertained and one can do justice to both.
00:12:35Provided one can just edge out the undeserving ones, but we'll never know them.
00:12:44Because when we are indulging them, then the register stands closed.
00:12:49So, that's the thing to notice.
00:12:51I mean, it's 5 pm, does it not happen?
00:12:54One does not even know when the clock struck 7 from 5.
00:12:59And that's a massive wastage.
00:13:01There is so much that could have happened in those two hours.
00:13:07I mean, imagine, I don't suppose most people's gym beyond two hours.
00:13:12Even end-to-end, it is within two hours, right?
00:13:16But two hours can be just loafed away.
00:13:20Yes.
00:13:20Two hours, like, you know, one is in a reverie and one does not know.
00:13:25It's two hours.
00:13:25Yeah, yeah, yeah.
00:13:27But two hours of gymming sound like a lot.
00:13:32One has done so much.
00:13:33If two hours of gymming mean a lot, then two hours have equal value anywhere.
00:13:41Why do we not then acknowledge the wastage that happens when one is lying on the bed?
00:13:48One is lying on the bed and then it's taking one and a half hours to finally sleep.
00:13:55One and a half hours is a lot and one and a half hours happening daily.
00:13:59And if you can even then even compound the wastage that amounts to a substantial fraction of the life itself.
00:14:09Yes, yes, definitely.
00:14:11But one doesn't want to look at it because that would mean questioning one's idle pleasures.
00:14:18Yes, yes, yeah.
00:14:20And we want to call that as personal time or me time or many things.
00:14:27Yes, you know, that's about me.
00:14:30Do I always have to be productive?
00:14:32No, you don't always have to be productive towards others.
00:14:35But you always, yes, all 24 hours have to be responsible and loving towards yourself.
00:14:40Yourself, that's true.
00:14:41You don't have to produce something for others' consumption or social validation.
00:14:47But 24 hours, they all are your life, your time and you have one single life.
00:14:52So every moment you are accountable at least to one entity, which is yourself.
00:14:57And if we can somehow do that inner accounting a little more rigorously,
00:15:08we'll find that it's not so difficult.
00:15:14A lot of cricketers, for example, would say that even getting into college is impossible.
00:15:21Yeah.
00:15:22Along with a professional sporting routine.
00:15:27But you did it, you showed it, and India, then US, and now Oracle.
00:15:34Yes.
00:15:35Or Google.
00:15:36I work at Oracle.
00:15:36Yes, Oracle.
00:15:37Oracle.
00:15:39Full-time?
00:15:40Yeah, full-time.
00:15:41Full-time.
00:15:43Full-time student and a full-time employee at Oracle.
00:15:47At Oracle, yeah.
00:15:48And along with that, cricketing laurels.
00:15:52So it's possible.
00:15:54It's possible, yeah.
00:15:55It's possible.
00:15:55It's possible, for sure.
00:15:56And probably much more is also possible, without really compromising on anything.
00:16:02And yeah, the thing you mentioned, that the personal time, or the me time, yes, I did
00:16:06used to feel that I'm losing out on, say, going out on a college trip for friends.
00:16:11But actually, if I now, I look back, the close friends are few.
00:16:16But I know they're there for me.
00:16:18So they are already there.
00:16:19So not like that got affected.
00:16:21The rule of thumb is, if something valuable or deserving enters your life
00:16:29and displaces away something else, then that something else by definition is undeserving.
00:16:38If something deserving, valuable, important, lovable enters life, and because of that,
00:16:46I have to compromise on something else, then I need not regret the loss of that something else.
00:16:53Because that something else by definition would be something that couldn't stand the weight
00:17:00of the deserving entrant.
00:17:04It makes sense.
00:17:05No, I agree.
00:17:06I completely agree.
00:17:08So while talking about sports, another couple of questions I had
00:17:16regarding to how sports teaches you a lot of life lessons.
00:17:21So two questions.
00:17:23So first question is essentially, as a sportsman, it is a given that you fail more than you succeed.
00:17:33And you have this, so I myself have a routine, which I called as you prep, execute, and you reflect.
00:17:41And I see that in the community as well, like you prep for your questions,
00:17:46you listen to the session, and then you post your reflections.
00:17:50And that process, essentially, even if you do that to the best of your ability,
00:17:57like you prepare well, you eat well, you train well, still most of the time, you might fail on the
00:18:03field,
00:18:04like you might still lose the game, or you might still get hit, you hardly get five wicket holes in
00:18:08your whole
00:18:10career.
00:18:10So if you are the best guys, they would have got 15-25 wickets hole or 100 hundreds of the
00:18:16great Sachin Sir,
00:18:18but you would have played more than 1000 games.
00:18:20So that is a fact.
00:18:22So it ties down to the session we had a couple of days back, where we were talking about checking
00:18:27the
00:18:27results of our actions. But I think we shouldn't just check the material or statistical outcomes,
00:18:36but the process outcomes, where what did I plan to achieve in the session? Did I actually achieve
00:18:43that? Did I get 1% better every day? And if that is a check, and you still get out
00:18:49on a zero,
00:18:50that's still a win for you. Right. So results are not in binary. Results at the Vyavharic level,
00:18:57at the level of the practical reality, are always relative to where you stand.
00:19:06So if your mental model, as we were discussing, if your mental model results in improvement over
00:19:13where you have previously been, then the model holds good. Result does not mean it's a binary between
00:19:24victory and defeat. Obviously, you might bowl a beautiful delivery.
00:19:31Get hit for six.
00:19:32And not only get hit for six, it beats the batsman,
00:19:36beats the stumps, also beats the wicketkeeper. Yes, yes. They say it's too good to edge it.
00:19:46And the batsman gets a four. Because it swung so viciously, even the keeper couldn't gather it.
00:19:53And that's what you get for bowling a beautiful ball. It happens. And rank back deliveries,
00:19:59sometimes you get a wicket. You get a wicket on a full toss.
00:20:01On a full toss. Which happens a lot of times. Especially in T20. Yeah. So, it's not about a
00:20:08particular outcome relative to other. It is not about whether you could beat the other,
00:20:19the other in the form of the batsman. So yes, it is relative, but not relative to the other out
00:20:28there.
00:20:29Who is uncontrollable. Who is uncontrollable. Correct. Correct. It is relative to this one.
00:20:35Was this delivery actually better than the one I have previously bowled? Am I a better person?
00:20:45So that's the improvement. That's the result one has to keep an eye on. Am I getting better? Am I
00:21:02better person? Am I getting better? Am I getting better? Am I getting better? Am I getting better?
00:21:08Am I getting better? Am I getting better? Am I getting better? Am I getting better? Am I getting better?
00:21:27you sprain an ankle as a fast bowler, the entire career is gone. Especially fast
00:21:36bowlers, they are prone to all kinds of injuries, shoulder, back, knees, ankles,
00:21:43just everything. So how does one control that? And one did nothing, one could
00:21:48slip, one could slip, the foot lands wrongly and the career itself is gone.
00:21:56It's not about variables outside of oneself. It's about the inner thing. Am I getting better? So I
00:22:06do something and then I must check whether this is leading genuinely to an inner improvement. Inner
00:22:14improvement in two terms, my own performance relative to myself, relative to my own previous
00:22:20performance. Second, do I feel more fulfilled? The honesty to yourself is important.
00:22:27Do I feel more fulfilled?
00:22:30Makes sense. I think this shift I learned from actually Ricky Ponting, who is my coach in one of
00:22:38the teams that I play for US. They are very process oriented. Like we have proper data analysts day
00:22:44before the game, we have our plans. If I execute my plans, and if I get hit, they don't question
00:22:51anything, they're actually happy. But if I don't do what I planned, that's when you're held accountable.
00:22:56I think that's what I liked about them. It's very process oriented, but it's still objective. It's not
00:23:02inner where you can lie to yourself. So that's what I learned from the day before yesterday's session.
00:23:09That's the honest way of going about the business of life. One cannot take credit for
00:23:20for random outcomes. You know, there was no discipline. One didn't follow the process. One
00:23:28didn't stick to the script and still one got three or four wickets. And I don't think that deserves to
00:23:35be celebrated. On the other hand, as you said, the thinking was right. The execution was disciplined.
00:23:43And then one returns without a wicket or even gets hit. I don't think one can be blamed. In fact,
00:23:52one deserves a pat on the back to to stand by the discipline of the plan in spite of getting
00:23:59hit.
00:23:59So that in fact deserves a longer pat on the back. I've learned that the hard way. I've been in
00:24:06that case
00:24:07where I've not done well. I got a five wicket hall and thought that I did something great. And then
00:24:12next day I get a wake-up call. The sport humbles you soon. So I've learned that. Yeah, that's been
00:24:17a great learning.
00:24:18That's the typical way of the ego. Doership. Doership. Claiming credit where it deserves none. And
00:24:28playing the victim where there was actually no external agency planning deliberate harm. Deliberate harm.
00:24:38Correct. And still playing the victim as if the entire universe has hatched the conspiracy.
00:24:44I've been in that state as well. Yeah. So the other question that ties from this is, uh, this is
00:24:53at an
00:24:53individual, uh, level we spoke about now at a team level. So in team sport, uh, the question is that
00:25:03basically we talk a lot in cricket like individual brilliance can at best, uh, win you a couple of
00:25:11matches here and there. But if you want to, to win a tournament, it has to be a team effort
00:25:17and you don't have to be the hero in every game. You can just do your role to the best
00:25:23of your ability.
00:25:24And, uh, essentially collaboration is mandatory to actually achieve your goal. The ultimate goal.
00:25:31You might have randomness. Like we discovered you might do individually
00:25:35a brilliant here and there. So extending that to two levels. One is at a human, uh,
00:25:44level where we see so many conflicts in the world. I think the main reason is because people are trying
00:25:51to have power and do good themselves rather than let good be done. So how can we extrapolate
00:26:01these learnings from sport to a general life level where we learn to collaborate with each other
00:26:08irrespective of our cultural differences and all that? You see, individual sport versus a team sport
00:26:18like cricket involves a broadening of the ego boundary.
00:26:27I am this body when it comes to tennis. When it comes to tennis, who am I? The I will
00:26:37be defined as
00:26:38this body. Correct. When it comes to cricket, the I will be defined as 11 plus 3 plus the support
00:26:48staff and coach and manager and maybe even larger something. Do you get this? So when it comes to
00:26:55tennis, this I has to win for itself. It has to take care of only this one. When it comes
00:27:03to cricket,
00:27:04this I has to submit itself to the service of the larger I which is at least the 11 people
00:27:13on the field.
00:27:15Right? So that demands a spiritual discipline as well. And the captain who commands the ship.
00:27:20And the captain who commands the ship. So that demands a certain spiritual sense. You know,
00:27:31it's not about me. It's about this collective. This collective. Right? The unit is not the individual,
00:27:41but the team, but the team. The unit is no more the individual, but the team. In fact, the individual
00:27:48has to give up the I and subsume it to the identity of the team. Team. And this is spiritual.
00:28:01I am remembering Hanumanji here. You are submitting yourself to Ram. It's as if the team is the body.
00:28:12The team is the body. And let's say you are the left arm. You are the left arm. If the
00:28:18left arm starts
00:28:20behaving as if it's a separate individual, then the body will collapse. Because this does something,
00:28:32this does something else. The heart does something totally different. The kidneys behave as if they
00:28:39are sovereign. And the whole system gets dysfunctional and just collapses.
00:28:48If you extend the same analogy. To the world. To the world. That's what is happening, I guess. Yes.
00:28:56The individual ego is anyway a myth. It's anyway a myth. But in the day-to-day functioning,
00:29:06it appears to hold some ground, hold some validity.
00:29:14In team sport, therefore, something beyond individual brilliance is needed.
00:29:20In fact, we know of many players who could have had longer careers. Could they display better team
00:29:27spirit? Team spirit? Team spirit, yes. We know of them. So, they retained their place in the team
00:29:33as long as they were individually very brilliant and indispensable. But the day their career came to
00:29:42a little slant, they were dropped. Not necessarily because they were performing badly, but because they
00:29:49were... Didn't fit in the team culture. Didn't fit in the team. They didn't carry the team spirit.
00:29:53We also know of so many matches lost because the players didn't care about the interests of the team.
00:30:00We know of that. And that appears very awkward. And one sees through that. Yes. Somebody trying to hit
00:30:10a six and getting out and the six is not even needed. The bowler getting angry and bowling short pitch
00:30:20stuff
00:30:20and getting hit for six and getting hit for six. That happened on India's tour to England.
00:30:24Won the first test on the basis of... No, not this tour. The one prior to this one. Won the
00:30:30test
00:30:30because of short pitch bowling and got so excited because the pitches were favorable there. You don't
00:30:35get them in India. They started bowling just too much short pitch stuff and were hit all over the park
00:30:41in India. I lost that test and the series as well. 4-1 or 3-1. So, if we extend
00:30:50that to the entire
00:30:53planetary community, you see what will happen. I'll have to forget my little self, my little
00:31:03my little family, my little this, my little that. And forget it not in the sense of compromising it,
00:31:11in terms of realizing that the interests of this one cannot be separated from the interests of everyone.
00:31:27And that's not a moral position to take. That's the reality. That's not a favor one is extending to
00:31:37somebody. One is just being real because that's the truth. And it's necessary. It's necessary.
00:31:45One cannot fight with the truth. One cannot dispute facts. We are a team. We are a team. And
00:32:00the definition of the team has to has to broaden progressively.
00:32:09So, Achareji, while you mentioned about broadening the definition of our self, like I'm not just this,
00:32:19I'm not my family, I'm more than that. If we broaden it to the widest level, say towards the earth,
00:32:26we humans are one species of millions of species. And all us living beings and even non-living entities,
00:32:38we have mountains, oceans, we all are a team and our goal is to sustain ourselves. Where
00:32:45I feel we as humans are trying to score our own hundred by doing extreme development just in human
00:32:53interest. What means good to us? We are exploiting all the resources of this world. And we are
00:33:00extinguishing, like extincting other species. Can sport teach us that? I think like how do we like
00:33:09convey that in a better way to the world? It's like this.
00:33:1750 balls left to secure a draw. 50 balls left to secure a draw. Last pair at the crease.
00:33:3150 balls to face. And you will at least land a draw. But there is this one
00:33:40super stud, high achiever, ultra confident one, who's batting on 60 or something.
00:33:56And he feels that his place in the team is uncertain, at stake.
00:34:08So what does he do? He says 50 balls left. I'll go for a hundred. I'll go for a hundred.
00:34:17That's homo sapiens. He'll score a hundred but the team is out. He would score nothing. He would be
00:34:23out, the team too would be out. That's homo sapiens. That's our species. The team is planet earth.
00:34:31The team is planet earth. The team is planet earth. What we now need from this last pair
00:34:37is some consideration. The one at the bowler's end is probably a decent individual, some other species,
00:34:48somebody. But the one at the striking end is just too ambitious for his own survival. He won't survive.
00:35:03And when he perishes, because it is the last wicket, the team perishes. The whole earth perishes. The whole
00:35:08earth perishes. It's very dark but it's true. The fall of his wicket means the fall of the entire team.
00:35:16And maybe it was a seven test match series. Very long drawn. Earlier they used to have seven test
00:35:22matches. A very long drawn series. Right now standing tied at 3-3. So this last wicket actually means
00:35:33loss of a wicket, loss of a match, loss of a series, loss of a championship. And in the case
00:35:42of our planet,
00:35:42loss of existence itself. That's where we are at, at the tipping point. Yes.
00:35:49This one is just too concerned about his own century. Can I, can I enjoy a little more privilege,
00:35:57little more comfort, more pleasures, can I have them? And the crowd is cheering for him because the crowd
00:36:04are his type. So if he just leaves a few balls, the crowd doesn't like it. The crowd consists of
00:36:21his
00:36:21friends, his family, his peers. They all want him to hit a six. Because that's how they have been all
00:36:30their life. So even if some sense descends to his mind, the crowd gets at him and encourages him, provokes
00:36:43him to do something stupid. Whereas what he needs to do now is just drop the anchor and then stay
00:36:53still,
00:36:54stay still and hold on, hang on. So I guess that ties down to him getting the right message. I
00:37:04think
00:37:04that's what the community is trying to do where the other coaches and the captains need to send the right
00:37:11message that they are looking for a draw. And that only comes from self-knowledge. So the coaches,
00:37:17captains need to be trained. And that's what we are trying to do, I guess. And slowly,
00:37:22I turn to the community, I guess hopefully more people will join in.
00:37:30I don't see any other solution. Because the enemy is not outside of us.
00:37:41We are cancerous from within. It's not as if an external pathogen has invaded us.
00:38:00So we have become quite good and smart at locating external enemies and putting them down. We also in
00:38:15in fact now have technology to shoot down threatening asteroids. Asteroids, yes, yes.
00:38:23You can fire rockets at asteroids, probably coming towards earth. But what to do when the asteroid is
00:38:32is rising from an inner station. And we don't want to admit that. Why? Because we have no,
00:38:44no defense towards that. We have developed a lot of ammunition, a lot of armament that is directed
00:38:54externally. And since the armament is directed externally, therefore, therefore, we want to situate
00:39:03all the problems externally. Externally. Look at, look at the, look at the inverted logic.
00:39:12As they say, when, when all you have is a hammer, then every problem looks like a nail.
00:39:20Hmm. Since the entire capacity we have developed is externally directed. Therefore, even if we do get
00:39:31to faintly realize that the real problem lies within, we refuse to acknowledge it. Because if indeed the real
00:39:41problem lies within, we will have no method, no capability to cope with it. Historically, mankind has
00:39:50not developed any such capability. So we want to convince ourselves that all our enemies are out there
00:39:59somewhere. We don't have sufficient knowledge of the universe. Oh, we still have not really mapped the
00:40:06oceans. Oh, the cosmos still remains unknown. You know, some pathogens are still hiding under the ice
00:40:16sheets or in deep forests. We do not know them. Hollywood, Hollywood, for example, look at all the
00:40:26movies involving aliens. All the threats are coming from? Outside. Outside. Outside. That's just not true.
00:40:36The real threat is inside. Hmm. And we are blowing ourselves up. The doomsday clock. Hmm? 85 seconds to
00:40:47catastrophe. Final destruction. This January it has been reset. And, and it's not doomsday because of an alien
00:40:58invasion. It's doomsday. It's doomsday because we are carrying our destruction inside us. As if the heart
00:41:06itself is a ticking time bomb. Hmm. Hmm? The individual will have to be awakened. And that's the role of
00:41:15the Gita
00:41:16community you are a part of. So, uh, that leads me to one question where within the team, uh, in
00:41:26the US
00:41:27team, especially, uh, I'm privileged to have interacted with, uh, or play with people from such, uh, diverse,
00:41:37cultures. We have people from India, Pakistan, Australia, South Africa, England,
00:41:42West Indies, West Indies who have very, very different upbringings and different practices
00:41:48that they follow. But we all have managed to come together for the love of the game.
00:41:54And we know each other as individuals, as work colleagues, as play, uh, like as playmates. And we
00:42:01play together with all, and we know, we, we respect each other's struggles and journeys to get here.
00:42:08So I've seen a beautiful instances in the team room. For example, I'm practicing my yoga
00:42:14asanas or pranayama. I'm chanting home. And at the same time, another person is offering a namaz.
00:42:20Uh, there, an instance happened lately where I was reading the Ashtavakra Gita and they were having
00:42:26another like discussion and we've had, uh, conversations about the Bible and everything.
00:42:32But now we are open to hearing out their practices and everything with a blank slate.
00:42:38And I've come to figure out that everybody is essentially seeking peace and love. Just that
00:42:45they're conditioned by their respective practices. But when you don't have that common link now,
00:42:52because we have that bond of coming together for the love of the game,
00:42:57we trust each other or we understand each other that we are discussing for the good of it. We are
00:43:02really inquisitive. But when we are in daily life, we become little bit, uh, uh, like hesitant to,
00:43:10uh, what you would say, hear out or actually empathize with the other person's point of view
00:43:17or conditioning. And that is the cause of most of the conflicts in the world. It's your way or my
00:43:22way
00:43:23is better. So what is that common thing in life in general, apart from the sport that can bring us
00:43:31all
00:43:33together, irrespective of our conditioning. And so that then we tackle this larger issue of us being one
00:43:40team. I think the community through the teachings is doing the best at it. How can me at an individual
00:43:49and what else can be done? You already mentioned that we all as one species are looking for one common
00:43:59thing, which is peace or freedom from the inner restlessness, freedom from the inner pestering noise,
00:44:19fear, and all kinds of psychosis, random thoughts, this, that.
00:44:36All of that can be put under one umbrella term, suffering.
00:44:41suffering. That's what every individual is aiming at.
00:44:50But if your religion or your concept of religion
00:44:58does not really
00:45:03aim at addressing suffering,
00:45:08then as you said, religion for you is just a fossilized set of practices, practices,
00:45:20having no existential use. It is as if you do not even expect religion to mitigate your suffering.
00:45:29That is the situation of most people. When it comes to religion, you ask them,
00:45:36what do you expect to get from religion? And you will be surprised. Most people will not say that from
00:45:45religion, we expect to get clarity or peace,
00:45:56liberation, no? Yeah, we talk about small desires, like we should get this, get that.
00:46:02What do you expect from religion? In fact, a lot of people will say, is something to be expected from
00:46:08religion. It's just a code to be followed, right? Are we supposed to have any expectations? They won't even know.
00:46:18That religion is supposed to deliver something.
00:46:22That even with religion, we must have service level agreements.
00:46:27religion too is accountable. If you are into something, there has to be a purpose, a quality check
00:46:39and delivery level.
00:46:45So, for most people then religion is just about doing something. It's a deed.
00:46:51It's a thing of practice. A daily practice. A daily practice, outer or inner. Inwardly,
00:46:59I practice my beliefs. Outwardly, I practice certain routines. Outwardly, routines and inward beliefs.
00:47:07That's what one usually practices as religion. There is not even the expectation
00:47:15that religion should lead to freedom from suffering. There is not even that expectation.
00:47:21So, when religion is just beliefs and routines for me,
00:47:30then I look at you as well and you do not happen to follow my label of religion, let's say.
00:47:40Then I look at you and all that I see is your practices and your beliefs.
00:47:46And they will never conquer.
00:47:48That's where the conflicts arise.
00:47:50All you have then is a conflict. Whereas, if you can look at the core of religion,
00:47:56you see, okay, all this paraphernalia, all these things on the circumference, they exist to give
00:48:08give clarity to the one at the center. And that clarity is important. That center is important.
00:48:15Now, you are no more respecting the things on the periphery. Now, you know that the things on the periphery
00:48:24are just media, are just methods to honor the one sitting at the center. So, when I look at you
00:48:34again,
00:48:35I'll have the sense to see that all that you have on your periphery as belief or ritual is just
00:48:45the periphery.
00:48:48At the center, you want the same thing that I do. You want freedom, so do I. You want the
00:48:54truth, so do I. You want clarity, so do I.
00:48:56Right? You want to be relaxed. I do want to be relaxed. And now, this relationship is center to center.
00:49:06And the centers are all one.
00:49:09At least in their potential. At least in what they deserve to be. At least in their purest form. The
00:49:17centers are all one.
00:49:20But, the peripheries will always be different. If you identify with your periphery and I identify with mine, then we
00:49:29will clash.
00:49:31The goal is to reach the center of the person. If you reach your center.
00:49:35But it's hard to do that. Irrespective of what your periphery is. You may have one brand of periphery
00:49:40coming from Erivia. I may have another brand of periphery coming from Africa.
00:49:47But you reach your center. I reach my center. Then we can talk to each other.
00:49:51And then we find that Arabia and Africa are not just talking to each other, but just melting into each
00:49:59other.
00:49:59They are actually the same.
00:50:00They are actually the same. Nice.
00:50:06So, yeah, on that, just one thing came to mind. I think in one of your Geeta sessions, you are
00:50:13talking about
00:50:14a mathematical equation, e raised to x. And you are expanding it.
00:50:27In its infinite factorial series. So, on that, actually, after the session, some thoughts came to mind.
00:50:35And you heard about the God equation, e to the power i pi plus one equal to zero.
00:50:41So, that is one equation which has all the mathematical constants. And it ends at zero.
00:50:50So, I sort of pondered and some thoughts came in mind where the derivation of that equation
00:50:56led to a good spiritual journey which ends at zero or shivoham, like we say.
00:51:01So, I'm trying to write a book on that, actually. I'd like to share with you.
00:51:07So, basically, i part. So, e raised to x is our state. Our x is very like the labels that
00:51:15we follow
00:51:16in our life. And outwardly, we have infinite desires. That's the factorial series expansion.
00:51:21And then we realize that that's not fulfilling us. So, then we try to develop a belief or i that
00:51:29is
00:51:29irrational, some irrational belief. And then we realize that each belief is taking us around
00:51:35in circles. Like you said, it's a daily routine that we do. We feel good for some time. And then
00:51:40we go about our day and then back to square one. That's when we discover pi, which is the fundamental
00:51:45of a circle. And then, sort of, that's how I've used some kind of analogy to lead to zero. Like,
00:51:53a kind of play on words there. There is a… not just play on words. There is a lot of
00:52:04clarity that just observation of physical nature of which… It's very intriguing that
00:52:10these are mathematical constants. And they are called also transcendental numbers, pi and e.
00:52:17So, it made a fun fact like I built from the session that you had. And…
00:52:27Maths is the language of the universe. Yes, yes. And
00:52:34Prakriti is the gateway to the transcendental truth. So, insight into mathematics
00:52:48can become insights into the human being.
00:52:54Yes, definitely, definitely. It's very much possible. In fact,
00:53:00that should be the proper purpose of mathematics. To not just take us to the
00:53:09geometrical nooks and corners of material, physical reality. But also show us a mirror
00:53:20to who we are. Because maths, you can see, measure it and prove it. Especially physics
00:53:26as well. Now, if you see quantum physics, you can actually prove that the universe is dual in nature.
00:53:35So, I took your advice. I think one advice you gave was that you mentioned that you read two,
00:53:41three books at a time of very different domains. And suddenly, one chapter starts making sense in
00:53:48one another. And I think that's what happened with me. I was reading some math lectures. I was reading
00:53:54Puranas and physics. And some things came to mind. And then, just try to connect the dots there. And
00:54:01it just starts making sense. So, I think that's what drew me to your teachings.
00:54:05And that also disrupts the ego. Because the ego wants to compartmentalize everything.
00:54:15This belongs to this region and that belongs to that region. And it's all one actually.
00:54:22Yes. The moment it starts converging, the ego will have to cope with it
00:54:30by reducing or by redefining itself. And that new definition, it's still the ego. It's still
00:54:40not dissolved. But the new definition is a better one. Better one in the terms of being less rigid,
00:54:49less narrow, less divided. So, helps to look at many things all at once. And if one can see the
00:55:01connection between this and that. A connection between a mathematical equation and a poem.
00:55:09A connection between a man-made building and a natural structure, some hillock maybe or something in a jungle
00:55:28helps drop the boundaries. Ego loves the boundaries. If you can see through the boundaries,
00:55:40that helps you get wider.
00:55:46Yeah. And it's very fascinating how small things can teach you a lot. Like, I remember another kwan,
00:55:51I think you mentioned, where raw fruit, if you pluck it, it takes a lot of effort and it
00:55:58damages the branch. But when the fruit is ripe, the teacher will just give a push and it gets plucked
00:56:04out.
00:56:04It drops nicely. So, small things matter. The physical things that you observe can teach you a lot.
00:56:10I think that's what I've learned as well, to just observe things, try to… The reason is,
00:56:15the ego too is some kind of a physical product, even though it is unreal. Yet, even that unreal
00:56:26construct arises out of this physical infrastructure.
00:56:33So, laws of physics as well as observations about physical universe
00:56:41this physical nature, they all apply to the ego.
00:56:47That's the reason you can have beautiful wisdom tales and koans and all these both stories.
00:56:55Because by looking at something physical outwardly, they point at the ego inwardly.
00:57:07And that kind of mapping is possible only because the dimension outside is much the same as dimension
00:57:13inside. You have laws of physics, laws of prakriti, all operating outside. They are operating inwardly as well.
00:57:24The difference is not much. Just that there it is optically visible.
00:57:28In our senses are outward.
00:57:29In our senses are outward. Inwardly, it is subtler. But much the same thing is happening there. There is an
00:57:35outer clock,
00:57:35there is an inner clock as well. It takes time for the fruit to ripen before it can just fall
00:57:46from the twig.
00:57:46So, similarly, if you see,
00:57:50Ashtavukhar Gita you mentioned.
00:57:51I am reading it right.
00:57:52You are reading it right now. One of the verses will talk of praodh virakhti.
00:57:59Praodh virakhti. And what does praodh mean? Ripe, mature, paripakwa.
00:58:06So, even detachment is of two types. That's what Rishashtavukhar is saying.
00:58:15Immature detachment and mature detachment. Immature detachment meaning you are detached
00:58:22only from the objects that you look at.
00:58:26Not internally. And mature detachment would mean I am bold of myself.
00:58:34Then the right action happens. Otherwise, I can say I have detachment towards this, this, this, this.
00:58:43But I remain attached to my own being. I am. I am. I am. And I love that. I like
00:58:51that. I am.
00:58:53So, the ego remains attached to itself while claiming detachment from so many other objects.
00:58:59Now, that's not. That's not going to solve the problem. That's not. So, Ashtavukhar would
00:59:03categorically talk of praodh virakhti or praodh virakhti. Meaning
00:59:11the ego has to get separated from itself.
00:59:17Hmm. Just as the product of the tree gets separated from the
00:59:25Root. Like the root tree. Yeah. From the tree itself.
00:59:29Where is the, where is the fruit coming from? From the tree itself.
00:59:34But in that sense, the tree itself is getting separated from the tree. Hmm.
00:59:38Because the fruit is coming from the tree. The fruit is the tree.
00:59:43Similarly, the ego has to get separated from itself. That's praodh virakhti.
00:59:49And that insight you can get not just by closing your eyes, but by opening your eyes and looking at
00:59:54the
00:59:54mango tree. That's the drashta bhao that we talk in the yoga sutras and all that. Hmm.
01:00:01So, when the intent is right, when you genuinely are, are considering your inner situation
01:00:12and want to sincerely be relieved of bondages, even a, even a simple sight,
01:00:20like a ripe mango fruit on a, on a mango tree, hmm, in the summer season,
01:00:31can be very liberating. It turns into a koan.
01:00:35Yes. A visual koan. Definitely. Wonderful.
01:00:41On the other hand, if you are not ready, even the most determined teacher can't help you.
01:00:47The teacher can try not just teaching, but actually drilling it into you. And it would still not suffice.
01:01:00Yeah. So, Acharya Ji, last two, two questions, which are kind of like, uh, dilemmas I have as, uh,
01:01:06so firstly, as a vegan athlete who believes in the concept of ahimsa, like not a belief,
01:01:14that's a philosophy that is needed. Um, the first time, the moment I pick up a cricket ball,
01:01:22I see that it's made of cow leather. And, uh, the more I start delving into supply chains of
01:01:33the various products, not just limited to the sport, now life in general, we try our best to,
01:01:42like, be conscious, but it's a big rabbit hole where the entire society is deeply conditioned
01:01:52to have cruelty embedded in the supply chain. So how do we deal with it? I mean, I love the
01:01:58game I
01:01:59play. It's given me so much, uh, but, and so many things in life. Uh, but if, if cruelty is
01:02:07deeply
01:02:07embedded in everything that we do, how do we tackle it at an individual level? And what is your
01:02:14perspective on that? Like, it's a, I don't have an answer for it. No, that cruelty is not an object
01:02:24that's embedded in an external process. It's not an external object, um, intervening, interfering,
01:02:32uh, dominating, uh, doing things of its own. No. That cruelty is there in the subject that is
01:02:42determining and running the process. So irrespective of how you draw and, uh, define the process,
01:02:52if the doer is cruel, there would be cruelty in the process. Because I, I am running the process,
01:03:04no? I am running the process. And if I happen to be cruel, I'll run it in a, in a
01:03:09cruel way. Otherwise,
01:03:11uh, getting rid of these cruelities would not even take months. Exactly. Or not even months,
01:03:24maybe weeks. Now we have so much good tech to actually easily replace. Easily replace. I mean,
01:03:31uh, we, we have rockets and their noses withstand temperatures of, of thousands of degrees.
01:03:43Right? We have steel technology and the bombers are flying over thousands of miles.
01:03:50And their cross section is smaller than or that of the smallest bird.
01:03:54Uh, we know material science. We also know manufacturing. We can't manufacture a damn cricket ball without
01:04:04using animal products. It's impossible. It's impossible. Hmm? What are all our labs for?
01:04:16Tell me one thing that would be, uh, needed in a nation's war effort.
01:04:22Right? And see how the labs just get together to produce it in no time.
01:04:30Hmm. So it's the intent then? It's the intent. It's a choice. It's a choice.
01:04:37The way we are going,
01:04:41if an animal species goes extinct, won't we find a replacement for its products?
01:04:48We would. We would. But as long as the poor species manages to stay alive or is kept intentionally alive
01:04:57by forced breeding or something, uh, we won't put any money in R and D. We would say if it
01:05:04is so easily
01:05:05available, just skin the animal and obtain the leather and use it in whatever product you want.
01:05:13Think of tennis rackets for example. The strings were called guts for such a long time. Yeah.
01:05:21Yeah. All that is largely gone now. Hmm.
01:05:23Hmm. In fact, uh, most of the sports, uh, involved animal cruelty, products, uh, coming from there,
01:05:36even musical instruments. But now there are substitutes available because technically it was
01:05:43never difficult at all. All that was needed was the intent.
01:05:50It's just that effort, if you're talking, uh, software terms to migrate a legacy system into a
01:05:57next-gen technology, there is effort to... There is effort.
01:06:00I mean, we don't want to take that effort. We don't want to take that effort.
01:06:05Even though the legacy system is cumbersome, inefficient... We still stick to that. Yeah.
01:06:11Yeah. But we would say Kobol would do. Just because somebody has done it and it seems to be running.
01:06:21Hmm. Yeah, I did see an ad for a fall leather like cricket ball. I hope it, it catches on.
01:06:30Uh,
01:06:30So I'll be following that. So that was one thing that really means a lot to me.
01:06:35In fact, uh, leather, uh, is to some extent going out of fashion. Uh, these days if you go somewhere
01:06:50and they tell you this is leather, you must categorically ask, is it animal leather? And they'll
01:06:57tell you no. It's some other leather. Yeah. So leather, I don't know the exact stats. Maybe
01:07:04somebody can illuminate me on that. But leather to a significant extent has already gone vegan.
01:07:11We still call it leather. That's another thing. But, uh, I mean, for example, the seats in most of
01:07:17the cars is for leather. Uh, in fact, premium brand, even Mercedes, since the last three years,
01:07:25they have dropped, uh, animal leather altogether. Uh, that's what, uh, we come to hear. Uh, dress,
01:07:32can you check that? There was many important, uh, uh, car manufacturers. They are not using animal
01:07:39leather anymore. Uh, what does it say? Vegan leather market growing at the CAGR of 11%.
01:08:00And we are already in the middle of the forecast period. So the prediction seems to be
01:08:08holding true. How much is this out of the total leather products market? I mean,
01:08:15if it's even 10%, uh, I would not be disappointed. Yeah, Tesla has four leather. Yeah. In fact, it has
01:08:27started, uh, sounding, uh, a little, uh, regressive and, uh, brutal. If you demonstrate animal products
01:08:45on your body or in your surroundings or as your positions. It hasn't reached food yet to that level.
01:08:53Okay. Okay. But it has, it's slowly becoming a part of culture and consciousness. You know, if you,
01:08:59if you, uh, shoes, shoes, so many brands, they first introduce, uh, vegan leather experimentally.
01:09:10Now, most of what they have is vegan leather because it's relatively inexpensive also.
01:09:15Uh, belts, uh, belts, waist belts. Again, it's, uh, easier to find a vegan waist belt now.
01:09:24And it's easier to convince the people also because they're not, uh, foregoing their sensual pleasure
01:09:30for that. Right. Right. Like, food is hard because taste is the... Yes, yes.
01:09:34Mm-hmm. Food is hard because the industry is much, much bigger. Mm-hmm.
01:09:43And the corporate interests at stake are deeper, way deeper. Otherwise, even food can be challenged.
01:09:52Uh, if, if, if, uh, if, uh, tastes are not changing, it's not so much because of, uh, uh, uh,
01:10:02individual
01:10:02resistance, but because of, uh, corporate stakes. Mm-hmm.
01:10:08And determined corporate, uh, resistance.
01:10:22Oh, wow.
01:10:23What is 6%?
01:10:24Traditional leather is 5.7 to 7. This is Gemini and this is Grok as well.
01:10:40That's good to hear then. That's, that's very encouraging. Very encouraging.
01:10:45Okay. I'm glad. Okay. That's good to hear. So it's coming to the cricket ball soon.
01:10:50Yeah. Okay. Hope so. It's coming to the cricket ball.
01:10:54Yeah. Acharya Ji, last one, um, being in, uh, tech field, I work as a database, uh,
01:11:02software engineer. I work in search technologies and I've seen the boom of basically people wanting
01:11:11a sub second result on the search. Now they're asking for 50 milliseconds, 10 milliseconds, 20
01:11:19milliseconds, but, and LLMs and who, which are people don't realize while searching a query or
01:11:28asking a question to the amount of heavy lifting that goes on in the backend for the amount of compute,
01:11:36the amount of data
01:11:38replication that happens. And that all that is translating into a physical data center somewhere in the world, which is
01:11:46using
01:11:47tangible physical resources, a precious resources of the earth. So where do we draw a line in terms of,
01:11:56but at the same time, this podcast and great content also comes on the same platform.
01:12:03Where do we draw a line that we're good enough for now? Let's focus on the quality of the content
01:12:10that
01:12:10we spread on the internet versus trying to unnecessarily over optimize or overkill for
01:12:18as compared to the resource usage.
01:12:20We must know the value of something, real value. And this is the way the equation must proceed. I must
01:12:30know
01:12:30what I need, truly need, not a conditioned need, not a flimsy need, not an impressed need, my real need.
01:12:41And what I really need is what must be taken as valuable. So need determines value and value must determine
01:12:53price.
01:12:58What I really need, what I really need is valuable. And if it is valuable, that must reflect in the
01:13:06price.
01:13:07In the price. In the price. And that which is not needed,
01:13:15but being supplied. And over optimized for.
01:13:19And over optimized. Must not be allowed to hold a price.
01:13:29Or hold a market. Hold a market. Hold a market.
01:13:35Therefore, economics has to be intelligently used.
01:13:39There has to be the right kind of taxation.
01:13:49Why am I being allowed to use something, first of all, that I don't really need?
01:13:58Secondly, being allowed to use it without bearing the full cost of it?
01:14:05Cost of it, exactly. Because first we used to have storage, hard disks and all that. So we knew that
01:14:11space is getting used. Now we take 10 photos easily. Each of them is going to be replicated 5 to
01:14:1710 times.
01:14:19And it's high resolution. And the problem is not that, not fundamentally,
01:14:23that the photo would be occupying X space and then 10x space.
01:14:29The problem is, I am not being made to pay for it. If I really know myself, if I really
01:14:36know myself,
01:14:36and I really think that that particular pick holds so much value, that I must pay $100 for it, then
01:14:46fine.
01:14:47Then fine. The thing is, I don't even really need it. But I am using it, because it is being
01:14:54provided to me,
01:14:56free of cost or at a highly subsidized rate. And whenever there is a subsidy,
01:15:02there is somebody bearing the brunt of that subsidy. And right now, who is it?
01:15:08The planet. The planet. And the other species. And among human beings, the underprivileged ones.
01:15:15The poor are subsidizing the rich. The animals are subsidizing human beings.
01:15:22The forests are subsidizing the cities.
01:15:27That's how the equation is running. And it's a very, very unfair equation.
01:15:32Yeah, that makes sense. If we are made to pay for it, we will automatically start using it.
01:15:38If I am being made to pay for it, and I still think it's a genuine need.
01:15:42You'll still do it.
01:15:43Yeah. Then I'll do it.
01:15:45Then I'll do it. And then all the nonsensical usage will stop automatically.
01:15:52Yeah, that's a good solution, I guess. Yeah, I agree with that.
01:16:03Yeah, I guess that's all I can think of right now. I'm really grateful for this opportunity to
01:16:11get to talk to you.
01:16:15I had a golden opportunity to meet in person and attend Acharya Ji's session in person.
01:16:24And I can confidently say that my entire perspective towards life has transformed.
01:16:32And it has immensely benefited me both in my career, in my personal life and every aspect of life.
01:16:41And I've started viewing life in a Vedantic sense, in an Advait sense.
01:16:48And there's no more disconnect anymore in between what science and technology teaches you versus
01:16:56what true philosophy teaches you. And it helps me unite both these aspects and
01:17:05be in a pursuit of seeking instead of believing one thing and living a different practical life.
01:17:13So specifically talking about the connecting the teachings to my sports, my cricket career,
01:17:20I've started seeing every cricket game or every tournament as an opportunity to learn life lessons.
01:17:29I've viewed the sport in a Vedantic sense now, where I get to experience the failures,
01:17:37the success and I get to observe how my body reacts to success and failure and an attempt to
01:17:44to remain calm through all of that and focus on the essence of observing myself, observing my desires and
01:17:58instead of being goal oriented or judging myself based on the outcomes of the matches or tournaments.
01:18:06And I'm trying to get better as a human being every day and that's the shift that has happened from
01:18:13from just being goal oriented and stats oriented. That's the sport sense.
01:18:20In the personal relationship front, I've started having much more deeper and philosophical conversations
01:18:28with my wife, my family, and that has helped me understand their inner state of mind.
01:18:36And we've been now able to help each other deal with our own doubts. And in turn, we engage with
01:18:45more of the teachings and
01:18:48yeah, it's an iterative process that we are continuously discovering our own flaws and helping each other out.
01:18:55So it started that process of deep thinking and observing everything that we do in our daily life.
01:19:02So I would say the teachings unite every aspect of life and it unites all cultures, all religions and it
01:19:12can help bring everybody together under one umbrella.
01:19:16Hence, I strongly recommend everybody to connect with the community and to start their own journey with the teachings.
01:19:23Thanks. Thank you.
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