August 5th, 2010 - Woburn, Massachusetts, USA
What do you do when you are stuck in traffic? (Audience lists out suggestions) You can honestly pray to God to clear it. You can enjoy the music playing in the car. You can take the nearest exit. You can just enjoy the traffic or chant a mantra. Now what should we not do? Complain. Just stop this and you will be able to keep your enthusiasm. We come into the world with it but somewhere along the way it is lost. As we grow up, we switch from positive over to negative mode. So just see the traffic jam as an exercise in testing this, in pushing those buttons.
Every event is an opportunity to deepen your wisdom. An unpleasant event somewhere kindles the deep wisdom we are born with. Whether positive or negative, every event kindles this in us. If an event overpowers us, we lose our emotions and intellect. Then we need help. That is where communion comes in. We sit together and sing and the load is lifted off. Everyone must take some time in life to dwell on the truth. This is satsang, to be in the company of truth. Keep on encountering truth in our lives. Just a few moments can bring such peace, stability and strength.
People think this is something boring. They feel knowledge is so serious. I say follow knowledge and fun follows you, but follow fun and only misery will follow. Self-knowledge is that which makes you lighter and like a child again. It brings enthusiasm from within. That is exactly what spirituality is.
Realize that everything is ok. All is well. Then you can go inward and meditate. When you meditate, everything is ok. When you come out of meditation you find that everything is not. You become aware again of all the problems in your life, in the world. You must do something about this. Meditation is smiling within and service is bringing the smile to others. So first you must go inward and be in the space of “all is well.” Know that you are protected and being taken care of. This confidence has to come. That is meditation.
Then when you come out, in action you can see what is not right and work for it. Do not do so out of obligation. Let it come as your very nature rather than as a duty. If you feel duty, there is no beauty. Just serve and smile. Smile and serve. Often we don’t smile in service. People get burned out and start irritating others in the name of service. And often people who are happy do no service! Both kinds of people are walking on just one foot. You need both qualities, inner richness and outer dynamism.
CATCH THE QUESTION ANSWER SESSION IN THE NEXT POST..
© The Art of Living Foundation
What do you do when you are stuck in traffic? (Audience lists out suggestions) You can honestly pray to God to clear it. You can enjoy the music playing in the car. You can take the nearest exit. You can just enjoy the traffic or chant a mantra. Now what should we not do? Complain. Just stop this and you will be able to keep your enthusiasm. We come into the world with it but somewhere along the way it is lost. As we grow up, we switch from positive over to negative mode. So just see the traffic jam as an exercise in testing this, in pushing those buttons.
Every event is an opportunity to deepen your wisdom. An unpleasant event somewhere kindles the deep wisdom we are born with. Whether positive or negative, every event kindles this in us. If an event overpowers us, we lose our emotions and intellect. Then we need help. That is where communion comes in. We sit together and sing and the load is lifted off. Everyone must take some time in life to dwell on the truth. This is satsang, to be in the company of truth. Keep on encountering truth in our lives. Just a few moments can bring such peace, stability and strength.
People think this is something boring. They feel knowledge is so serious. I say follow knowledge and fun follows you, but follow fun and only misery will follow. Self-knowledge is that which makes you lighter and like a child again. It brings enthusiasm from within. That is exactly what spirituality is.
Realize that everything is ok. All is well. Then you can go inward and meditate. When you meditate, everything is ok. When you come out of meditation you find that everything is not. You become aware again of all the problems in your life, in the world. You must do something about this. Meditation is smiling within and service is bringing the smile to others. So first you must go inward and be in the space of “all is well.” Know that you are protected and being taken care of. This confidence has to come. That is meditation.
Then when you come out, in action you can see what is not right and work for it. Do not do so out of obligation. Let it come as your very nature rather than as a duty. If you feel duty, there is no beauty. Just serve and smile. Smile and serve. Often we don’t smile in service. People get burned out and start irritating others in the name of service. And often people who are happy do no service! Both kinds of people are walking on just one foot. You need both qualities, inner richness and outer dynamism.
CATCH THE QUESTION ANSWER SESSION IN THE NEXT POST..
“That which you cannot express is Love.
That which you cannot reject/renounce is Beauty.
That which you cannot avoid is the Truth.”
That which you cannot reject/renounce is Beauty.
That which you cannot avoid is the Truth.”
~ Sri Sri Ravishankar
© The Art of Living Foundation
