Interests never arise from individuality || Acharya Prashant (2014)
Speaker: What is the relation of interest and talent with individuality?
Interest and talent as we know them are just acquired personalities. What we normally call as interest, what we normally call as talent, are nothing but acquired states of mind. Born in India there is a great chance that you would be interested in Cricket. Born in Brazil you would not be interested in Cricket. There is nothing special about interest.
Individuality is not about pursuing your interests because your interests are anyway conditioned. Man is physically conditioned to chase women. Women are physically conditioned to be attracted to men. What is so great about interests?
Lion is interested in flesh, rabbit is interested in grass. You are physically conditioned. Hindus are interested in temples, Muslims are interested in mosques. You are socially conditioned. Born in an actor’s family you are interested in acting. Born in a doctor’s family you are interested in becoming a doctor. So first all of this notion that one must live life according to one’s interest must be dispensed with.
Your interests are just an expression of your conditioning. No regard can be given to your interests. Then comes the issue of talent. What do you mean by talent? In the usual sense in which we use the word ‘talent’, it just refers to a socially approved skill. What is a skill? Something that you acquire through repetitive practice. Whatever gets repeated becomes a skill.
