Isn’t life all about discriminating – how can we be nonjudgmental?
Answer Podcast
Transcript
This is an AI-generated transcript and may contain some errors.
Isn’t life all about discriminating about things? So if we say that we should not be judgmental, then how should we? Yeah, actually, certainly we all have to make choices. Every morning when we wake up, the whole day we have to make choices.
Should I do this or should I do that? And we use our intelligence to make choices. If we don’t use our intelligence, then we will be misled. So in that sense, discrimination is vital.
tasmāt śāstraṁ pramāṇam te kāryā kāryavastu ghyāntuvā śāstra-vidhānaṁ karma-kartumihārasya. In 16.24, Krishna says that, therefore, based on śāstra, know what is to be done, what is not to be done, and then live accordingly. So discrimination is fine.
It is, that is essential for, it’s like if a person is sick, then the sick person has to be always aware, OK, if I eat this food, this will worsen my condition. I have to take this medicine at this time. I have to take this at this time.
So that I should not take this or I should not go here. So a sick person has to discriminate between what is good for my health and what is not good for my health. So like that, as sādhakas, we do need to discriminate what is going to decrease my bhava-roga, decrease my material attachments and material disease, and what is going to increase the disease.
So when we are talking about judgment, not being judgmental, it is more in terms of the attitude rather than the principle. The principle of discerning is required, but the attitude with which it is done, that can be very alienating. So if I do it in a way which, where I don’t consider other people’s feelings, if I don’t consider other people’s feelings, then we can, we can hurt a lot of people.
So a simple, even in, even if I continue the medicine example, there also, say somebody has got an infectious disease, then the doctor has to, doctor may have to keep the person away from others. But then that also can be done in a respectful way. It is not that we deride and mock the person.
So just as there can be discrimination which is done, but it can be done in a sensitive way. It is not that, that has to be done judgmentally. Like in the past when people would have leprosy.
No, it was, leprosy is an infectious disease, so lepers need to be kept away from others. But it was almost like leprosy was seen not just as a disease, but it was seen as a sign of a moral deficiency. Where lepers would be looked down upon and mocked and all those things would happen.
So that is, that is the rock. So the principle of discrimination is essential, but the attitude with which you do it, that is also important. Otherwise, we may defeat our purpose.
Now, we have to speak the truth and truth involves, speaking the truth means telling this is right, this is wrong. But we have to speak the truth in a way that attracts people to the truth, not alienates people away from the truth. So if we speak things in a very judgmental way, then people just go away.
Does it address your question? It wasn’t exactly a question. Okay, it is a comment.