Why is it difficult to explain spirituality to our close ones?

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

Questioner: Acharya Ji, I have noticed that people who know me since childhood are now facing difficulty in understanding what I am doing. For instance, it took me two years to convince my wife and relatives, etc., to even allow me to do what I am doing.

When I say, “What I am doing”, I am referring to my inclination towards Spirituality. Why do our close ones take so much time to understand us?

Acharya Prashant: It is because Abhilash (the questioner), they are close to you in an unspiritual way. So they will take a lot of time. And you will have to live with this fact.

Do not just say, “Some person is close to you.” Complete the sentence. Elaborate and clarify. When you say, “He is close to me”, how is he close to you? What do you mean by ‘closeness’? Closeness of what to what? When you say ‘close’, you mean — X is close to Y.

When do you say that somebody is close to you, kindly elaborate — what is close to what? The closeness itself is quite material, or co-incidental, or social, or physical.

They were close to you in a very-very unspiritual way. In the spiritual dimension, they were not close at all.