Belongingness changes your perspective

 

Whether you win or lose an argument with your Guru, your Master, you still laugh. 

Normally what happens to you when you lose an argument? You are sad and upset, hurt and angry. But when you lose or win an argument with me, you are still happy. Why? 

Because you have a total sense of belongingness; your love is more important than perfection, comfort and desires; you are able to put your Being before a happening; and you have confidence in the ultimate good. 

When there is a total sense of belongingness, real play happens. Winning or losing is irrelevant. Can you have this same attitude with everyone?

Learning the path to yourself

 

Become God to each other. Do not look for God somewhere in the sky, but see God in every pair of eyes, in the mountains, in water, in trees and in animals. How? Only when you see God in yourself will this happen. Only God can worship God. 

To recognize Divinity, there are three dimensions – time, space and mind. For seekers, it is necessary to honor time and space so they can experience sacredness in their minds. When you honor time and space, your mind becomes alert. But for the one who has transcended the mind, either sacredness has no meaning or all times, every place and every mood is sacred. 

Precious moments are few in life. Catch them and treasure them. Place, time and the mood of your mind are factors that influence celebration. Snatch every opportunity to celebrate. Then you will feel great and full. Then celebration infiltrates your mind in all moods and space, and celebration is inevitable. 

Celebration reminds you of the fullness of the moment. The moments spent in the company of knowledge – the master – are the most precious moments in your life. Treasure them. Treasuring them, you transcend the mind, time and space. That is true celebration.

What gratitude means, for one on the spiritual path

 

When you are on a spiritual path, you are not thankful or obliged to anyone. In the Bhagvad Gita, Krishna says, “na abhinandati na dveshthi” – he is dear to Me who neither goes on thanking people nor hates anyone. Thanking and feeling obliged indicate that you believe in someone else’s existence rather than in the Divine who rules everything. When you feel obliged, then you are not honoring the principles of karma or the Divine plan. 

Appreciate people for what they are; do not thank them for what they do. Otherwise your thankfulness is centered around ego. Be grateful, but do not be grateful for an act. Be grateful for what is. 

As every individual is nothing but a puppet of the One, thanking and feeling obliged simply demonstrates ignorance. Everything is ruled, controlled and managed by one Divinity. That consciousness has to shine forth in every act of yours; you do not need to make a mood of it. 

So, what should you do when you are grateful to the master? When you have a total sense of belonging, then gratitude does not become an obligation. Such gratitude is for the Divine only and this gratitude enhances your strength.

Know how good you are at handling blame

 

When someone blames you, you feel a heavy load, and when you talk about it, the unpleasant feeling is spread to all around you. At that moment wake up and see you are the Being and nothing can touch you. This is all just a drama which you have created. You have gone through this over and over again. All the accusations you face in your life are your own creation. Knowing this, you will feel free and light. 

Taking responsibility for all the experiences in life makes you powerful and will put an end to grumbling, retribution, explanations and a host of other negative tendencies. Taking full responsibility makes you free. 

When someone blames you, directly or indirectly, what do you do? 

• Do you register it in your mind and get emotionally upset? 
• Do you dismiss it altogether without taking a lesson from it? 
• Do you talk about it with people, wasting everyone’s time? 
• Do you pity yourself and blame your shortcomings? 
• Do you blame the other person? 
• Do you generalize and eternalize the problem?

When these happen, you are not living up to this knowledge. You need to do the Art of Living introductory course at least six times and read all the weekly knowledge. 

However, if you: 

• Laugh at it and not even take notice, 
• Treat it as a non-event, not even worth talking about or taking any action, 
• Treat opinions and accusations as passing clouds and more of an entertainment, 
• Discourage dwelling on unpleasant and negative moments, 
• Are non-judgmental and absolutely unshaken in your space of love, 
• Remain centered and calm, and do not take pride in your growth or wisdom, 

Then you are a source of pride to your tutor – the Master. 

Awareness of the Self - II

 

The five senses and the four inner faculties, mind, intellect, memory, ego, all lament when they lose sight of the self. Then the master comes and shows you that you are the tenth. Count, but never stop until you find the tenth. Finding the ever-present self, inside, makes everything truly joyful. Are you evolving? If you are evolving, you are not in the Self. But you are not out of the self, because nothing can exist out of the self.

There are 6 distortions that do not exist in the self: 

 1.Expansion - Prasarana: Expansion implies there is something into which to expand. That which expands cannot be the basis for expansion. 

2. Contraction - Akunchana: Contraction means something shrinks from something else. Self does not withdraw or shrink from anything, so contraction does not exist in the self. 

3. Evolution - Vriddhi: Evolution is the process of becoming something that does not already exist. Self is always the same, so it cannot evolve. 

4. Decay - Ksaya: There is no devolution or decay in the self, it does not get old or stale. That is why when you are close to your Self, you do not feel that you are aging. 

5. Beginning - Anaadi: Self has no beginning. If God has a beginning, then He is not God. 

6. Lack - Abhava: Self has no lack. Whatever lacks something is not complete. Self does not lack anything, it is complete. Lack indicates the existence of something outside itself that does not exist for the self. So if you feel you have not grown at all, do not worry, you are close to the self. 

When your mind is with the Self, then you do not worry about evolution. If you think about evolving, then you are stuck in the mind. Mind is part of matter, and matter evolves and decays. That is how the experience of contraction and expansion is all play and display of the mind. Mind expands and contracts. But when it expands, it comes close to the truth, which has no expansion. Are you still evolving? Good luck :).

How do you become centered? By shifting your awareness from the experience to the experiencer. All experiences are on the circumference, and they keep on changing. The unchanging experiencer is at the centre. Again and again come back to the experiencer. 

If you are frustrated, instead of spending your time on the experience of frustration ask, “Who is frustrated?”

If you are unhappy ask, “Who is unhappy ?” 

If you think you know something ask, “Who is it that knows?” 

If you think you are enlightened ask, “Who is it that is enlightened?” 

If you think you are ignorant ask, “Who is ignorant?”

If you think “poor me”, “Who is ‘poor me’?”

If you think you are highly devoted ask, “Who is it that is devoted?”

Shed all your faces and face the I. Then you have truly come to me. Life without wisdom is incomplete. Wisdom that does not give rise to feeling is incomplete. Feeling that does not translate into action is incomplete. Action that does not give rise to fulfillment is incomplete. Fulfillment is returning to the self. 

Give me not thirst if you cannot give me water. Give me not hunger if you cannot give me food. Give me not joy if I cannot share. Give me not skills if I cannot put them to good use. Give me not intelligence if I cannot perceive beyond it. Give me not knowledge if I cannot digest it. Give me not love if I cannot serve. Give me not desires if they do not lead me to you. Give me not a path if it does not take me home. Give me not prayers if You do not want to hear them. 

When the master prays, to whom does he pray? To oneself. In prayer the mind goes to its source, the self. God, the master and the self are the same. 

Feel the connection with the Master

 

Someone asked me, when you play little games with us and push us away, how can we feel close to you? I say, you should feel more close if you are scolded or ignored, because to ignore somebody takes a lot of effort. When a Master does not even ignore wrapping paper or a flower in a vase, how can he ignore a walking, talking, breathing human being who is connected to him? Once you understand this, you immediately feel close.

You are with the master to share the joy of the Master, to share the consciousness of the Master. For that, you have to empty your cup of what is already in it. The Master is ready to share. You only have to share from your side.

Your friends tie you to the world, to matter. The Master ties you to the divine, to the spirit. When you are part of the Master, you have every right to be happy. You have every right to knowledge, happiness, and the whole universe. In the presence of your satguru, knowledge flourishes, sorrow diminishes; without any reason, joy wells up, lack diminishes, abundance dawns and all talents manifest. To the degree you feel connected to your guru, these qualities manifest in your life. 

Sit with your eyes closed and feel your connection with the Master. My Lord, Lord of Creation, My Master, Master of the universe, My soul, soul of all living beings, To him, my gloriously radiant Master, I bow down.

Closeness to the Master

 

What does it mean to ‘see through the eyes of the Master?’ Just this every situation that you face, you are thinking – If this situation comes in front of the Master, how would he handle it? If this complication comes to the Master, how would he take it? If someone blames the Master, what would he do? 

The key is to feel the presence of the Master. The Master is the presence, not a relationship. Relationships can be broken, mended, and broken again. There is craving and aversion in every relationship. 

This is the wheel of samsara, the misery of the world. All relationships go topsy turvy, whereas the Presence is vast, infinite, stable and centered. Don’t make the Master a worldly relationship. “Oh, he looked at me”. “He didn’t look at me”. “Oh, he said this”. “He didn’t say that”. “Somebody else is close, I am not close.” All this garbage comes into it. Just enter the door of the Master and come home. Only the presence of the Master will bring fulfilment to your life – and to all your relationships.

If you say that you have no one in this world, then you are disowning me. And if you disown me, then I cannot do anything for you. If you are not feeling close to the master, it is because of you, because of your mind, because of your ego concepts. Just being on the levels of formal and informal communication cannot make you feel close. 

“How are you?” “Where are you going?” “How have you been?” Stop these formal and superficial conversations with the Master. Speak with your heart what is deep in your life, what is important and intimate to you. Don’t just say, "Oh! How much the squash costs, 30 cents", or whatever. 

Share what you have and don’t judge, “Oh, this is garbage”. The Master is ready to accept garbage of any extent. However you are, he will embrace you. Do not feel shame, shy, or judgmental about yourself. If you do not feel close to the master, there is no point in having a master. It is just another burden to you and you have enough burdens already. Just say, “Goodbye”.

See the world through the eyes of the Master

 

There are 3 Sanskrit words: sukha (pleasure), dukha (sorrow) and sakha (companion). These have one thing in common ‘kha’ which means senses. The self experiences the world through the senses. When the senses are with the self that is joy, or sukha, because the self is the source of all joy or pleasure. 

When the senses are turned away from the self, or dukha in the mud, lost in the object that is dukha, misery. Mud, misery, mind, they are all connected. 

Sukha is the nature of self. And all the sense objects are a diving board to take you back to the self. You close your eyes during any pleasant experience as you smell a nice flower, or as you taste or touch something nice. Sukha is that which takes you to the Self. 

Dukha is that which takes you away from the self. Sorrow means that you have been caught up in an object that has pulled you off your Self which is nonchanging. 

Sakha is the companion who is there in all experiences of dukha sorrow and of sukha pleasure. Knowledge is your companion, and the master is the embodiment of knowledge. If you are stuck in an object, his wisdom pulls you out and leads you back to yourself. 

Eakha (sa kha) also means he is the senses. Sakha is one who has become your senses. It means you get Knowledge through him, he is your sixth sense. As you trust your mind, so you trust him. Usually a friend is an object of your senses, but a sakha has become your senses. Sakha means, ‘He is my senses, I see the world through his wisdom’. Your head will be in the mud in a few years; in the meantime, don’t put mud in your head while you are still alive. See through the eyes of the Master and you will see the whole world as divine. 

Do not follow me. In fact, you cannot follow me, because I am behind you to push you forward. You have to leave everything behind and move ahead. All your experiences, your relations everything is a part of the past. Drop everything. Leave the whole world of your memories behind, including me. Stop looking for more, be free. Then compassion will flow from you. 

When people do not follow anyone, is it usually not out of fear or rebelliousness? One kind of ‘do not follow me’ comes from fear or rebelliousness. Another kind comes from a heightened awareness. You cannot follow me because I am behind you and I am in you. For too long you have been a sheep, now it is time to be a lion. 

How do you feel if someone praises you? Shy, happy, great, embarrassed; it does something to you, doesn’t it? But it doesn’t do anything to me. When you praise the moon, the mountains, Lake Lucerne, the Black Forest, it doesn’t do anything to them. They remain the same. Just like that, I’m part of nature. If you enjoy praising me, you may do so. In fact, you have no choice. You can do with me whatever you like, I’m there for you. You are lost on the street. There is rain, thunder, wind and cold, you need shelter. You look around and you find a door. You come to the door because it is more inviting, more charming, more joyful than anything out on the street. 

When you enter the door of the Master, you come home. You see the world from a new perspective. From inside you can still hear the thunder and see the rain,but it no longer disturbs you. Inside there is warmth and security.

The world looks much more beautiful, not a nasty place, a place filled with love, cooperation, compassion. Your fear drops away. When you can see the whole world through the eyes of the Master, it is a sign that you have come to the Master, you have entered the door. This is the purpose of having a Master. If you are still seeing the world as before, then you have not yet come to the Master, you are still standing out in the street, cold and wet, you are only looking at the door, you have not yet entered in.

What is the use of knowledge?

 

You walk until you come to the ocean. You don't walk or run in the ocean - you float and swim. Like this, once you come to the Master, seeking stops, blossoming begins. You seek until you come to the Master. 

Seeking is a desire. Desire is a thought. Thoughts are in the mind. The mind is in the big mind. The big mind in me is love. Emotions are ripples in love. Love is all knowledge. Every atom of the big mind is crammed with knowledge. Knowing this, you stop seeking. You are knowledge. Every atom in you is shimmering with Knowledge. 

In Sanskrit, this is called go. Go has 4 meanings: 

1. Knowledge 

2. Movement 

3. Achievement 

4. Freedom or liberation 

Pal means friend or protector - one who takes care of you. Be a Gopal (go-pal), be a friend in knowledge. Often you become friends by: 

1. Gossiping about negative things 

2. Complaining 

3. Similar cravings or aversions 

4. Common enemies or common problems 

5. Common goals or common addictions 

You become friends with someone because you have something in common. But coming together in knowledge is rare. Be a friend in knowledge. Uplift each other in knowledge. All satsangis are gopals - reminding each other of the knowledge, coming together for knowledge. That is Gopal. Be a protector of this knowledge. 

Knowledge is a burden if it robs you of innocence.

Knowledge is a burden if it makes you feel you are special. 

Knowledge is a burden if it gives you an idea that you are wise. 

Knowledge is a burden if it is not integrated into life. 

Knowledge is a burden if it does not bring you joy.

Knowledge is a burden if it does not set you free.

Knowledge must be properly digested and assimilated. 

Indigestion of Knowledge leads to: 

1. Development of a subtle ego which has no cure. Subtle ego gives rise to habits that are not life supporting.

2. Adamancy 

3. Tendency to preach 

4. Using knowledge for one's own small ends. Familiarity without depth or understanding; flakiness. 

5. Disinterest, taking for granted, lack of awareness.

6. Heart burn.

Finding freedom through bondage

 

One who has given everything has also given freedom. Honour the freedom first and make good use of all things given to you. To think fresh, you need to be free of all impressions. Let go of all impressions right this moment and be hollow and empty. 

When you hear a word, the sound instantaneously conveys the meaning. Similarly, the knowledge that you are sitting, standing or talking needs neither confirmation nor proof. An intention to be free makes you free right away. Realising that freedom is your very nature brings enormous shakti, energy. 

Forget about this knowledge note and be free. The full moon of Raksha Bandhan is dedicated to the seers the rishis. Bandhan means bondage, raksha means protection. This is a bondage that protects you. Your bondage to the knowledge, to the master, to truth, to the self, all save you. A rope can be tied to either protect or strangle you. The small mind and mundane things can strangle you. The big mind and knowledge save you. Raksha Bandhan is the bondage that saves you. 

You are saved by your bondage to satsang. Your bondage to the master, to truth, to the ancient knowledge of the rishis is your saviour. Bondage is essential in life. Only let the bondage be to the divine, in a life free from bondage.

Six levels of relationship with the Guru

 

The first and the highest level of relationship between Guru and shishya (disciple) is called para sambandh. It means that there is no difference between Guru and shishya. There is no two, there is only one, soham, meaning ‘you are that’. That unity of consciousness is no relationship at all. It is simply a realisation of the highest, wherein there is no difference between Guru and shishya, there is only one.

Then comes mahan sambandh – that is recognising the greatness and where the master doesn’t see any imperfection in the student nor does the student see shortcomings in the master. It is the greatness kind of relationship, when you do not see any shortcomings in the other. It is almost like the relationship between a mother and a child. There is total alignment.

The third level is called antaraal sambandh, where there is a gap. The master speaks from one level and the student understands from another. There is no perfect alignment, only some degree of understanding between the two. In this relationship, there is an effort from the side of the master and the student to make each other understand their points of view.

The fourth level of relationship is called divya sambandh. Here exists a divine connection that comes with a blend of different emotions.

The fifth is divyadivya sambandh. In this connection, the student is there to get something from the master, lives in his own world, and reels in faultfinding beyond a healthy measure. There are people who come to the spiritual path not for spirituality, but to get something else, or just to be seen as being spiritual. They use the knowledge for some trivial goals and purposes. This is divyadivya sambandh.

The last is called adivya sambandh. You cannot escape a guru in your life. You even learn from others’ mistakes. Someone made a mistake, you saw that and learnt that you don’t want to make a mistake like that. They have taught you something. There is a proverb in Sanskrit that says, ‘Durjanam Pratamam Vande, Surjanam Tadanantaram’, meaning I salute the wicked one first, then the good, because he taught me what I should not do.

As part of divya sambandh, you go through different emotions. Sometimes you are angry, happy, sad, and sometimes furious at the master. Because these emotions are part of your life, you just move within these emotions. You are yet to go beyond them. When you go beyond them, there is antaraal sambandh where you see the differences, but you begin to align. And then one step beyond that is mahan sambandh, great relationship, where no questions exist. There is no want. You are simply blossoming, as you radiate bliss, beauty, and positive energy, fully soaked in joy and wisdom of the Master.

In all this, what is important is connection, your connection to your Self. The Self, the Master, and divinity are not different. You are divine. That’s what is meant by ‘Tat Tvam Asi’.

Connection between Buddha, sangha and dharma

 

The Buddha or master is a doorway. When you are out in the street in hot sun or if you are stuck in rain and thunder, you feel the need for a shelter or a doorway. Have you noticed that then the doorway is so inviting and charming? It is more joyful than anything else in the world. 

Similarly, the closer you go to the master, the more charm, more newness and more love you feel. Nothing in the world could give that peace, joy and pleasure. You will never be tired of the enlightened one. It’s like a depth without a bottom. This is a sign that you have come to the master.

Once you come to the doorway and enter the door, the world looks so much more beautiful; it is a place filled with love, joy, co-operation, compassion and all virtues. Looking through the doorway there is no fear. From inside your home, you can look at the thunder, you can look at the storm and the bright sun too; yet be relaxed as you are in the shelter. Such a sense of security, fullness and joy comes. That is the purpose of having a master.

The second factor is sangha, the group. The group is very charming from a distance, but the closer you get, it brings out all the unwanted elements from within you. If you think a group is very good or very bad then that means you are not yet completely with the group. When you are totally part of that group, you will find that some bickering will come up. But you are the one who makes the group – so if you are good, your group will also be good. 

Sangha has a reverse nature to Buddha. Buddha makes your mind one-pointed; sangha, because it is of so many people, can scatter your mind, fragment it. Once you are used to it, it loses its charm. This is the nature of sangha. 

Still it is very supportive. If it were repulsive all the time, then nobody would be part of the sangha. Do not crave or be averse. Often you crave for Buddha and are averse to the sangha, and you try to change; but by changing sangha or Buddha, you are not going to change.

The main purpose is to come to the centre deep within you, which means to find your dharma. This is the third factor. What is dharma? Dharma is to be in the middle. Not going to the extremes is your nature. 

Your nature is to be in balance, to smile from the depth of your heart, to accept this entire existence totally as it is. Knowing that this moment is what has been offered to me, and that is how I take it. A sense of deep acceptance for this moment, for every moment, is dharma.

Guru Purnima celebrates love and devotion

 

What is the significance of Guru Purnima? Guru Purnima is called the day of the Master. Actually, it is the day of the devotee. 

As a student you probably went to primary, middle and senior school. You collected information; you learned about the mind, about computers, mathematics, how two plus one is three. A student collects information. Information, however, is not knowledge; it is not wisdom.

Then there is the disciple who follows the example of the Master. But a disciple is with the Master to imbibe wisdom to help improve his life, for the sake of attaining enlightenment. He has a purpose, a cause, so he is not just collecting information. He goes a little deeper. He is trying to bring about transformation in his life. He wants to make sense of his life. That is a disciple. A disciple is still centered on himself, so he grows gradually and one day might get enlightened.

Then, there is the devotee. A devotee is not there for wisdom only. He is simply rejoicing in love. He has fallen deeply in love with the Master, with Infinity, with God. He doesn’t care as to whether he gets enlightened or not. He doesn’t care as to whether he acquires a lot of wisdom or not because every moment he is immersed in divine love: That is enough for him. A devotee is difficult to find. Students, there are in abundance, disciples are a few, but devotees are rare.

Everything is God, who is present in everything, so it is great to become a devotee. Do you see this? Everything, whether you want it or not, is already God, but when love and devotion has flowered in you totally, you become a devotee. Attraction is everywhere, love is somewhere, but devotion is rare. Devotion is beautiful. A student comes to the Master with tears in his eyes. There is so much pain and when he leaves, he is carrying the same tears, but the quality of the tears is different, they are of gratitude, of love. Entire creation is longing for only one thing, the transformation from salty tears to sweet tears.

The Buddha’s disciple Sariputra, got enlightened. The Buddha told him, “Now go ahead, go into the world and preach, teach and do the same work I do. Carry on my work”. Now Sariputra left, but he was crying and people asked him, “Why are you crying when you are enlightened?” He said, “Who cares about enlightenment, it could have waited, I would have waited. I didn’t even bother about it or ask for it because the joy of being at the feet of the Buddha was so great. Being a devotee was so great, now I am missing it. I would have preferred that to enlightenment”.

When Krishna was leaving his body, he spoke to his friend Uddhava with tears in his eyes. “These Gopis are so beautiful and I cannot bear the amount of devotion they have for me. Go and tell my devotees that only they can free me of their gratitude and of their love”. He rejoices, “Go tell them that where my devotees sing, I am right there”. Love is something that even the Divine rejoices in. Infinity longs for you as much as you long for it. It is waiting to receive you. God is as anxious as you are to be close. So when a devotee flowers on this planet, God is happy. That is why Guru Purnima is the day of the devotee.

On Guru Purnima 2021

 

Guru Purnima is celebrated with this idea in mind that you do a revision of your own wisdom, knowledge in your life - how much life is filled with wisdom and how much it is not, where we have integrated the wisdom in life, and how we have not. Do an assessment of how far you have progressed in life.

Now don't be scared, what appears to be a failure is not a failure at all but every failure is a step towards success and success is just nothing, it is just a concept. In the big picture you will see that life is much more than what you consider as success. You know you think something is success because you find yourself small, life is smaller than your achievement. So any time you feel that you have succeeded know that you have much bigger potential, you are much bigger than anything that you have done or you have achieved, because your being, your self, your life, yourself is much more powerful than anything else.

You just have to recollect these words and think several times, sometimes it may just go above the head. Oh, why is Gurudev saying success is nothing? When you realize your potential every success appears to be very small and if you are proud of your success that simply means you are not aware of your potential. The master is a part of you and you are a part of the Master, this is what you have to know, realize--like the air within the body is part of the air all around you, like our body is part of this earth, you are part of your mother, you are part of  your father.

Similarly wisdom, your consciousness, is a part of the big mind. Our small eye is part of the big eye that encompasses the whole existence and that is what the Guru principle is, a Master is. A Master is ekum (the only one), nityam (eternal), vimalam (pure), achalam (unshakeable), sarvadhi saakshi bhutam (a witness to all types of thoughts, all types of emotions, all types of intellects), i.e. it is much more than just thoughts, concepts, emotions, concepts like right or wrong, good or bad, it's much beyond all that is relative and even beyond that, that is pure consciousness.

That is what consciousness is. That is what I am and that is what you are and this is when you realize I am not just this little mind which has cravings, aversions, likes, dislikes and all sorts of things, I am much more than this. I am part of the universal consciousness - thou art that - that is the ultimate wisdom. You are that consciousness, you are that infinite potential and that is what a Guru is and that is what you are.

So on Guru Purnima day a student or disciple does not feel he is separate from the Guru, he is a part of the Guru and he makes life a celebration, only then can life become a celebration. In Sanskrit there is a proverb that says there is no joy in small things, joy is always there in something that is much bigger, greater and lovely and that is what you are. We need to remind ourselves of that again and again and again.

See, we don’t realize we are breathing most of the time right? We realize only when we are climbing a hill or too many steps and when we start panting then we know. Nowadays people have started realizing the importance of  deep breathing, how important it is to breathe more. In the same way we don’t realize, even though we are in it, it is just out of sight because we are so busy running all the time in the rat race for the accessories of life. So Guru Purnima is the time when you relax.

It is good to see thousands of people who are doing a silence program this week to take a few days, not weeks to go deep within and be in silence. It does so much good, it removes all the cobwebs in the mind and the witness consciousness wakes up from within.

Once such awakening happens then it is irreversible, you can not just be gloomy again. The gloomy mindset can be overcome by gratitude, by feeling grateful. In the world, in activity, when we are busy, when we are interacting with people it is quite natural to feel drained or when gloominess sticks to you which may be due to others doings and not your own we can snap out of it when we realize that this is all just part of the whole game, part of life. We should realize that life is much much larger, bigger than events whether pleasant or unpleasant and meditation is the key for it. Silence and meditation is necessary. At some point you will not have to make an effort to meditate at all. Even now there is no effort in meditation, even with eyes open while talking, walking and while doing your work you are meditating, you remain in a meditative state.

Today everything is happening from a different place - satsang is happening in a different place, I am talking to you from a different place and you are watching from a different place but still we are all in one place, that is here (the heart).

The greatest fortune in this world

 

The greatest fortune in this world is to be a disciple or a devotee. Those who have become a disciple or a devotee alone know the value of it.

A disciple in Sanskrit is called antevasin. Antevasin means one who dwells inside the Guru. It is not just the master who is in the heart of the devotee, the devotee also dwells in the heart of the master.

There is nothing other than the Guru. Everything around you is Guru. You dwell inside the heart of the Guru all the time. The love of the master is surrounding you at all times. The one who realizes this, is a disciple or a devotee. 

What else would you want once you realize that you are surrounded by unconditional divine love all the time? No lack remains in life. It is all bliss.

Observing Prana

You should sit and watch the breath; there are so many things about it. What you do on the Advanced Program is already very helpful and useful; the Hollow and Empty Meditations are about polishing and observing the breath.

The breath has been burnt down due to excess usage of our body externally; too much food, sex, sleep (even lack of it), too much watching; too much of anything burns down the Prana. And when the Prana is burnt, then you can’t find yourself; it is as though there is a crowd inside, and you feel you don’t exist there. The purpose of all these different meditations that you are doing is to help your Prana become healthier, stronger and tangible. How many of you feel that your Prana is more tangible? When you do a little bit of meditation, at least you can find it flowing in one line, otherwise it is all broken, and you can’t find it at all!

Sometimes, time can also do this. At some specific times, celestially, suddenly you feel a cloud of negative energy getting onto you. You feel a sense of heaviness, dullness, and the brain doesn’t seem to function. That heaviness, restriction, contraction, and the feelings of getting solidified and constrained are associated with such energy. Sometimes one would feel like getting it out, but you don’t know how to do it! How many of you have had such an experience?

A few minutes of chanting, pranayama, and I don’t think there is anything better than the Sudarshan Kriya can help you get it out. Sudarshan Kriya can quickly put you back on track. Ujjayi breathing, meditation and chanting also helps. And your connection to the Master helps; whomsoever you think of, that’s what your brain immediately catches on. You can think of a very negative person, immediately your whole psychology and brain cells start behaving like them. Hasn’t this happened to you? How many of you have experienced it? That is why enlightened masters are called pratah smarami in Sanskrit, which means they have to be remembered in the morning as soon as you wake up, so that your whole day, your whole system is tuned to them. Good or wise people are called pratah smarami, worth remembering in the morning. The reason one remembers them first thing in the morning is because the whole day goes with what you start with.

What made the disciple angry and the master happy?

Once upon a time, there lived a Master and disciple and they were doing a lot of social work helping the poor and caring for the needy. On rainy days when they could not travel, they would go to their small hut and rest. One day, after finishing their work, they returned home. When they arrived, they found that a big storm had damaged it and only a little portion was left, where they could hardly sit.

When the disciple saw this, he became very angry with God. 

He prayed and asked God if He could not have saved one small hut for them. That they had not asked Him for anything! They just had that one hut for shelter and He did not even save that! He further said that they had told everybody that God was very compassionate but now he would have to take back all his words since he did not feel that He was compassionate at all! And he had stopped believing in what he had been preaching. He asked his guru how he had said that God was all-merciful. Where was the mercy? He was making them suffer. He had said that they were the children of God. Was He really taking care of them?

The Master’s reaction was the exact opposite. He was so happy. He started dancing and singing more bhajans. He said that God was so beautiful! He had saved a little portion of the hut for them. The storm had been so severe that the whole hut could have been destroyed. At least God had preserved a corner for them. At least, both of them could sit there. God was so kind and wonderful. He was ever so grateful to Him. So the Master felt even more grateful and started dancing.

Gratefulness is that deep quality in our very nature the has to be enlivened by us. Stop thinking about enlightenment. Just start being grateful.

Find every little opportunity to be grateful and then you will see that you will abide in your Self. This is enlightenment. And all the other things –knowledge, etc. would follow. You will find yourself present all over. But the first step is ‘being grateful’. We can’t take everything for granted. If you start taking things for granted, gratefulness will die in us. To be grateful is our very nature.

Sooner or later, disciple and master are bound to meet

Once upon a time, Gautam Buddha visits a town. The entire town gathers and is waiting to listen to him, but he goes on waiting. He keeps looking backwards at the road, expecting a little 13 year old girl to come. He happened to meet her on the road and she had told him – “Wait for me. I am going to give this food to my father at the farm, but I will be back in time. Don’t forget, wait for me!”

Finally, the elders of the town said to Gautam Buddha – “For whom are you waiting? Everybody important is present, you can start your discourse.” Buddha replied – “But the person for whom I have come so far is not present yet and I have to wait.”

Finally the girl arrives and exclaims – “I am a little late, but you kept your promise! I knew you would keep your promise because I have been waiting for you since my first memory as a child, when I first became aware… I think I was four years old when I first heard your name. Your name was enough to ring a bell in my heart. And since then for ten long years…I have been waiting!!!”

Buddha responded – “You have not been waiting in vain. You are the person who has attracted me to this village.”

At the end of his discourse, that little girl was the only one who goes to him and says:  “Initiate me. I have waited enough, and now I want to be with you.” Buddha replied “You have to be with me because your town is so far out! I cannot keep coming again and again. The road is long, and I am getting old!”

In that entire town not a single person came up to him be initiated into meditation, other than that little girl.

At night as they were getting ready to sleep, Buddha’s chief disciple Ananda asked Buddha “Master, before you go to sleep I want to ask you one question. Do you feel a certain pull towards a certain space… just like a magnetic pull?”

Buddha replied, “You are right Ananda. That is how I decide my journeys. When I feel someone is thirsty…so thirsty that without me, there is no other way for them… I have to move in that direction.”

Master moves towards the disciple and the disciple also moves towards the master. Sooner or later they are bound to meet. The meeting is not of the body, the meeting is not of the mind. The meeting is of the very soul!

It is like when you bring two lamps close to each other; the lamps remain separate but their flames become one.

Five Types of People

See, the Native Americans of North America had this system. The king was also the judge, but there was also a shaman in every community who would give them the judgment. In India also, there was and still is the Panchayat system, where five people who are administrators of the village resolve disputes. Why five people? If you take a society, there are 5 type of people there,

1. Those who are fun-loving and full of enthusiasm. They don’t mind any obstacles. They dare obstacles and they get things done. This is the first type.

2. People who just maintain things. They’re not go getters, they’re not innovators, they’re not risk takers, but they just maintain the thing as they are. They take measured steps and move very carefully. They are usually conventional and traditional.

3. People who want to bring transformation, who are drastic, rebellious and want to completely change things. They’re good at demolishing things.

4. People who are very brilliant. They are sharp, they have brilliant ideas and they are very creative.

5. People who brings everyone together. They have a lot of compassion. Wherever there is problem they go and cement the gaps, solve the problems and bring people together creating a sense of belongingness. They are sort of peacemakers.

These are the five different types of people are there in the world in every society. The last type, the ones who would bring everyone together are usually women; who are compassionate and who have deeper understanding. Whenever something erupts she goes and calms them down and brings them together. Working towards prosperity and education in a woman’s role.

Among the Devas also, these are the five devas called panchayatam. Panchayat is what we have in the villages and panchayatam refers to the five different forms of Gods. There is only one God, but in that one God, it refers to the five different forms (or attributes).

1. Ganesha (first deva or attribute) - fun loving, remover of obstacles and full of enthusiasm. So there are people who have these attributes. Everywhere in every society you’ll find at least one such person.

2. Vishnu (second deva or attribute) - just maintaining things, not very creative.

3. Shiva (third deva or attribute) - one who just like a bull in a China shop, they just charge in and do drastic things. Bringing transformation is their job. Whatever state of affairs are there, demolish that and leave space for new things.

4. Surya (forth deva or attribute) - very sharp, intelligent, creative type off people.

5. Devi (fifth deva or attribute)- the feminine energy. Women create, they come up and solve things and bring everyone together.

In an individual's life also, you can see these five different tendencies come at different times of life. Usually when you’re young you’re very enthusiastic, and then as you grow a little older you have rebellious tendencies. You want to change things and all that. When you get older, you just want to lie down and rest. You come into the Vishnu mode. So these three modes people anyways have.

The ancient people knew this, so they put the village administration as panchayats. They chose 5 people, together all of them should be impartial. All of them have to hear any case of injustice or any grievances, and give the judgment.

A Master (Guru) has all these five qualities at once, that’s why we say, "Guru Brahma, Guru Vishnu, Guru Devo Maheshwara..."

Your luck increases when you do service

Rishikesh, India
14 march 2010

Q: Apart from the joy one gets in service, is there anything else also that one gets?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: You get what you call good luck. Doing service increases your luck. But doing service in order to enhance luck will be cheating. You do service because you cannot live without that.

Do whatever you can in your capacity.

Q: I often talk to you in heart. How do I satisfy myself that my words have reached you?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: My job is not to satisfy you but to make you restless to get the Highest knowledge. In that restlessness you achieve awareness.

Q: I cannot think of moving away from the ‘Art of Living’. Is it attachment or restlessness of soul?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Once you have learnt a language and started to converse in it, you cannot forget that language. Same way once you have acquired knowledge, there is no question of losing it. It gets solidified in you.
Ancient people of India were so intelligent that they kept Laxmi(goddess of wealth) on lotus, and Saraswati(goddess of knowledge) on stone. Lotus does not remain stable on the surface of water and it moves as the water moves. But a stone is solid and stable. Once you get knowledge, it becomes part of you, not only for this lifetime but also for lifetimes to come.

Q: Is religion necessary to get deep into spirituality?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Religion is different from communism. Being religious means being compassionate, honest and not treating others as you do not want to be treated as.

Q: I feel fear of you leaving me. What can I do?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: When Earth, air, Sun, stars cannot leave you, then how can I do that!

Q: Does time and mind have any relation?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: You should read the book ‘Celebrating Silence’ or ‘An intimate note to the sincere seeker’.

Q: How do I know that I have acquired knowledge?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: How do you know if you have some pain in the body? How do you know that you love somebody? How do you know you are feeling fear? It is inbuilt. Same way you get to know. When you get knowledge joy, happiness, cleanliness, sweetness, sincerity, integrity, all reflect by itself.

Q; How should be a disciple’s relation with the master?


Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: What relation you want to have with yourself? A relation in which you are natural and without any hesitation.

Q: What is the difference between rest and laziness?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: What you get after doing work is rest. Doing nothing and keep lying down is not rest. You feel restless in this state.

Q: Present moment is inevitable. In spite of this knowledge the mind oscillates between past and present. What to do?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Is it better than before? Once you are here it will continue to get better.

“That which you cannot express is Love.
That which you cannot reject/renounce is Beauty.
That which you cannot avoid is the Truth.”

~ Sri Sri Ravishankar

© The Art of Living Foundation For Global Spirituality