Your attachment to action is the problem

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

Questioner: Sir, I read a quote which said, “By beliefs the mind becomes strong, and Samadhi gives the being the wonderful knowledge, and he attains salvation after destroying sinful and holy actions.”

How can the actor destroy his own actions?

Acharya Prashant: Your attachment to action is the problem.

When you (emphasising on the word ‘think’) think that a particular action can help you attain salvation, then that action becomes very important for you; you become the actor.

Destruction of action means — destruction of the actor, destruction of doership itself.

Q3: And the destruction should happen despite it being called ‘sinful’, or ‘holy’; both kind of actions?

AP: What is being said is that, there are many actions per se that are considered holy, pious, for example, religious ceremonies. The author of these lines is insisting that nothing is of use to you, if it does not fulfill the basic criteria. The basic criteria is — Is it making your daily life better?

Just calling a particular activity as ‘virtuous’, or ‘holy’, or ‘religious’ will not suffice. You have to ask: “What am I getting out of it?” You have to be…