Stand separate from your chemistry

Following is an excerpt from a samvaad (dialogue) session with Acharya Prashant.

Questioner: Namaskar Acharya Ji, in ‘Listen Little Man’, ‘great man’ tries to expose the problems of the little man and help him understand them. But ‘little man’ continuously rejects ‘great man’, and does not even put thought towards what is been told. I find it difficult to agree if someone tries to expose my littleness and help me, especially if it is coming from people close to me. What does it take for the ‘little man’ to understand his littleness and to grow from it?

When somebody is trying to show that pettiness in me, immediately I try to move back. I mean, I don’t feel like accepting it right away, it takes some time. Over a period of time only, I will try to think over it. But at that moment, I don’t feel like giving it a thought.

Acharya Prashant: That’s alright. It takes some time, yes. Remember that the first reaction comes from that which is prone to react. Consciousness is not reactive. Consciousness can wait. Chemicals are reactive. This body is made of chemicals, they react. A certain word falls upon your ears, and there is an instant reaction. Is there not? Your entire body can get heated up. One word falling on your ears can raise your temperature by two degrees within two minutes. Is it not a chemical reaction?

This body is a bunch of chemicals and they immediately show their chemistry. That is bound to happen! Yes. You have to wait because you are not merely the chemicals or the body. Let the chemicals and the body proceed with their chemistry. Why can’t you wait? It is the mark of the wise person to not go by her own reactions, especially if you know about yourself that your system is highly reactive. And the experience will tell you that. You will know that there are a lot of free radicals inside, a lot of highly reactive ions, a tonne of sodium sitting here (Pointing to the head). All it requires is a sprinkling of water and a thousand kinds of other glands, hormones, secretions; that is what the body is all about. Correct?

It is actually just a chemical reaction that keeps happening within us as we go through the various situations in life. And the poor chemicals have no choice, so do not ask me how to stop the reaction. It is almost like asking; “How to…