“I think we don’t understand freedom. True freedom consists of doing what is best for us as individuals and what is good for the society in which we live.  Today, freedom is understood as doing whatever we want.  If everyone were to do that, no society could exist.  Our freedom is subject to the needs of society.  We talk of free press – If the press is free to say whatever it wants, it wants society to be in a mess, as it is today.  But they have a responsibility to search for the facts before they present it to the public. If it was based on opinions only, then everyone will be confused as they are now. The citizens will act on that opinion that is presented as fact.  We don’t need a free press like that. You can go on with many aspects of society and you will see the same thing. Gandhiji said business should be run as a trust for society.  It seems foolish but it’s not.  Only then will they act responsibly.

We don’t understand personal freedom at all.  Vedanta says that only a person free of dependencies of all kinds is truly free.  All others will act in a distorted way.  Parents don’t teach this. Schools and colleges don’t teach this.  Thus, the new generation comes with a distorted idea on which they live their lives.  As individuals, the more and more you drop dependencies, the freer you will become. Keep this ideal as a goal and you will find both freedom and peace.”