Wisdom from Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Questions

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Knowledge feast: Short Questions extracted and complied!

Q: These days most Gurus have long hair and long beard. Is it a dress code?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: 'Yes, you can call it as dress code. The long hair is like an antenna to receive messages from God and the long beard is like an earthing to transmit those messages to the people.

Q: Guruji what is Shanti(peace)?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: We must make you sit in a closed small room and play loudspeaker 24 hrs. And not some good music, some heavy music. Then after 24 hrs, when we switch it off you will come to know what is Shanti. (Laughter!!!)

Q: Dear Guruji, when we take responsibility, how can we tackle obstacles?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: The test of your peace is only when there are obstacles. Be thankful for obstacles

Q: Do you get stressed?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: The product really works well! Just last week I went to Kerala. They had organized 19 appointments in a day. I cancelled some of them before I went there. Yet, I ended up attending 22 appointments. I thought I would get irritated, but I surprised myself and didn't. Each one of us has tremendous energy within us. One single cell can light up the entire city of Bangalore for 24 hours.

Q: Can you talk a little about the Soul - the self or Atma?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: It is step by step experiential understanding. Before going to atma, the self, you have to know the five elements of creation. What are the tatvas? Prithvi, ap, tej, vayu, and akash - Earth, water, fire, air and ether. Then comes the mind, buddhi (intellect), memory, ego, and maha tattva (self).

Q: How does God see the world?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: God cannot see two. For God there is no you and I! He can only see himself in everything and everyone!!

Q: Guruji, telling the truth causes problems outside and telling lie creates problems inside? What to do?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Solve the problem. Problems are to be seen as challenges. Someone who is brave like challenges and you are brave, I tell you.

Q: Sometimes it seems all this is untruth, we running after things knowingly or unknowingly. Sometimes I feel I am compulsorily driven away with the flow and that distresses me. What is it that doesn’t change? What is the truth?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Truth cannot be spoken. Only in Silence, in deep meditation you can experience the truth!

Q: Why aren’t you hitting the world just like that? Why so slow?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: You all need a job too!

Q: Is there such a thing life after death? If there is no life after death what is the meaning of our existence?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: It is good to have some suspense!

Q: Are there fixed number of souls? If yes, then how come so many people are getting reborn on the planet? Why is population increasing in the world?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Hmm! There are so many animals getting extinct also!

Q: What advice would you give to a skeptical non-believer?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: A very good beginning point. See that you don’t become cynical and frustrated. Skepticism is perfectly alright, but not cynicism. That drains your energy. One can be skeptical to begin one’s journey and I would very much appreciate and welcome that. Because you would have gone through skepticism, the faith will be strongly built.

Q: Guruji, I appreciate the Sun and the Moon and the Nature, why can’t God appreciate when I do something good?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: He doesn't appreciate you, because he knows you can do better. If he starts appreciating you every moment, then your desire to perform better will not be there.

Knowledge Byte:Truth is that which does not change. Examine your life and identify all that changes as "not truth." With this outlook, you will find that you are surrounded by only untruth.
When you identify untruth, then you will become free from it. When you do not identify the untruth, you cannot become free from it. Your own experiences in life make you identify your own untruth.
As you mature in life, you find everything is untruth - events, situations, people, emotions, thoughts, opinions, concepts, your body - everything is untruth. It is only then that Satsang – the company of truth - happens in the real sense. A mother cannot see the child as untruth until the child becomes an adult. For a baby, sweetness is not untruth, and for a teenager, sex is not untruth.
Knowledge is untruth if it is only words. But as existence, it is truth. Love as an emotion is not truth; as existence, it is truth.

Questioning mind stops when true happiness dawns

Bangalore Ashram, India

Q: Effect of one life’s karma is carried on to another lifetimes. How do we understand this?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: You sow a coconut tree two years back and it has grown today. Same way, until the impression of your previous done karma is there on your mind, that karma manages to exist. That impression can only be erased through meditation, pranayama and service. You are freed from that karma when the impression is erased. All this is there on the mind only. Karma is nothing but an impression on the mind. When you wake up and see that mind is a part of you and it is your mind, but you are not your mind, and you have an untouched existence which is much greater than your mind, then all karma automatically dissolves.

Q: You said that violence ceases to exist around ones who are fully established in non – violence. Does that mean Lord Krishna was not fully established in violence for a huge war took place in his presence?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: The secret behind this is existence of different circumstances. One is individual karma and one is collective karma. One is karma done for the sake of whole world. When sin and injustice reached its peak, He had to take a step. It is like different dosage of medicine is given under different circumstances. For a minor headache, the dose is different. And it is different for a severe headache.
Gahana karmo gati – The movement of karma is very deep and not easily comprehensible.

Q: I had so many questions in mind before meeting you. But now, all the questions have vanished. I know that you are incarnation of Lord Shiva. Am I right?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Let us leave at least one question in your mind.
When happiness dawns, all questions automatically dissolve.

“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

Truth is never afraid of doubt

26 May 2010,
Bangalore Ashram, India

Q: Are you really enlightened? I won’t go from here if you don’t give me a direct answer.

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Every question is not answered on the spot. Once a couple went to a Master and expressed their wish to ask two questions. The Master said, “You will get your answers if you do service for two years”. The more precious is the question, more effort is to be done to get the answer. I will give answer to your question, but I will also put a condition if you are putting a condition.

Q: How does one know whom to trust and whom not to especially, after Swami Nityananda incident?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Trust in yourself. Have faith in your choice of actions and the path you would be following. If you don’t trust yourself, how can you trust the Master? It is enough to have faith in yourself.
A Master or a Guru does not remove the doubt, but He creates more doubt. The more you burn in the fire of doubt, the more strong you come out to be. Truth is never afraid of doubt, and truth can never hide.
There have been so many saints in ancient India like Vishavamitra, Valmiki, Gautum, and you will deprive yourself of knowledge if you start doubting all of them.
If you put your attention on the real and authentic, you would doubt the fake. But if all your attention is on the fake, you would start doubting the authentic also.

“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

Meditation is to be in a 'YES' mind

Bali,

2 APRIL

Q. At times I feel totally disheartened. What should I do?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Sometimes we feel like giving up, frustrated. It is because of stress. That time do not take any decisions. You may regret it. Come back to yourself first.

Q: How can I get close to you?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Assume that you are close to me. It is you who thinks you are not close.

Q: Is there life on other planets?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: There is plenty of life on this planet. Let us handle this. Then we can move to other planets!

Q: How do we know what to do in life?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: First know what not to do. It’s easier. Purpose of life is not to be miserable and make others miserable. It is a gut feeling. Chose which gives you long term happiness even if it gives short term misery. Choosing that which gives you long term misery and short term joy is not wise.

Q: last night you told me that choice is mine blessing is yours. Does that mean whatever I decide, your blessing is there?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: You are putting me in a tough situation. If it is related to your profession then choice is yours, blessing is mine. If it is a relationship, then also choice is yours and blessing is mine.

Q: What is the significance of asking if all the answers come from within?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: What if I don’t answer? What is the purpose of all answers? So that the mind says YES! The purpose of all questions and all answers is to bring our mind to YES consciousness. That is meditation - to be in YES mind!

Q: I feel like I am not doing enough service as compared to the blessings I have received.

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Keep going!

Q: Is homosexuality wrong and to be changed or is it life’s variety?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: It is a tendency. Many times it changes. So don’t label it. It is there now. It may not be there later. You are a combination of your mother & your father. We have genes of your mother as well as father. Sometimes male tendencies dominate, and sometimes female. Preferences may be stronger for some. Don’t feel guilty or blame yourself. Rise above it. You are not only flesh. You are light around the wig of flesh. Shift from gender to genderless spirit, it gives you such ease.

Q: I have seen people blessing the food. What is the significance of blessing food?

Sri Sri Ravi Shanakar: The carrots, noodles, salad that you ate yesterday are now listening to me. They are sitting here. Everything is alive in this universe in some way or the other. So today, when you have lunch, look at the food and welcome it to satsang tonight, to sing and to dance. Ancient people knew this and that is why they said to bless the food. Thought is nothing but a quantum of energy and consciousness. Food absorbs thought. So, bless the food today for lunch. Don’t think negative while eating. That is where the negative cycle begins. It is very scientific.

“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

‘Live in surrender, surrender leads to Samadhi’

Bangalore ashram, Jan. 21:

Q: What is significance of time when everything is happening in the present moment?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: (After a pause of a minute) It (the past minute) is past now. Present is ever present. Past and future are also present. This whole creation has no significance, nor does the time and nor does the space.

Q: What is the connection between the thought and the action?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: You should never do thoughtless action or you will be in trouble. There are two dimensions of our life. Sometimes you act without thinking and sometimes you only think and don’t act. Source of both - thought and action - is you. Knowing who you are, your thoughts get streamlined and actions become perfect. Your thoughts and actions are aligned.

Q: Freedom comes from knowledge of the material world yet ‘Advaita’ says there are no two, all is one. Which to follow?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Both are correct. They all have their place. When you understand one single substance, you are liberated. The substance tells you that there are no two substances. A great scientist of our times, Dr. Hans Peter Durr is 81 at present and said ‘I have been studying matter for the past 70 years; matter which never existed.” This is higher physics. It is very interesting.

Q: How to learn from experience? Often we keep doing the same thing but don’t learn.

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: If you keep doing the same thing again and again, knowing that it brings you misery, you really don’t understand it brings you misery or you think it brings you some pleasure. Craving for pleasure and non-awareness that it is going to cause you misery are two things which makes you commit the same mistake again and again. That’s why they’re called habit. Habits don’t give you pleasure but they inflict pain by not following them.

Q: Guruji, yesterday you talked about prana level. You said for human beings it is between 7 and 16. How do one find out?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: All that you have to do is increase your prana level and you are doing it. Pranayama, meditation - all this increases your prana level.

Q: Adi Shankara says, ‘Kasya sukham na karoti viraga’ (What pleasure can dispassion not give!) It is also said, tivra samvega nam asannah (When you have a great desire, intense longing – everything becomes easy). How to be in that state of mind and yet be dispassionate?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Truth is contradictory. Completely opposite values together form the truth. This is also true and that is also true. Intense longing will take you to the goal and at the same time dispassion also takes you there. Dispassion gives you happiness.

Q: Why are dreams there if they don’t turn to be true?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Because those are dreams.

Q: Guruji how come you have so many disciples?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Somebody asked me, ‘How come you have so many followers?’, I replied, ‘I keep on running ahead of everybody.’(Laughter) People continue to come behind me. Then he asked, ‘How do you do it?’ to which I replied, ‘It’s very easy. You keep running ahead.’(Huge laughter)

Q: Turiya avastha (state of Samadhi) of chetna (consciousness) is shiv tattva. How to achieve shiv tattva?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Nirvikar (without any blemish)and prayatna rahit (without any effort). Dropping all efforts and all vikar in the mind, you relax.

Q: How do we ensure that a good soul is born? Do we need to follow some rules?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Just be happy and keep your heart clean and soft. When you doubt, when you are angry or frustrated, your heart and feelings get hardened. With the knowledge and wisdom, your heart remains soft and supple. Otherwise you say everybody else is wrong and only you are right. You don’t see how wrong you are. You do so many mistakes you don’t look at that but when somebody else does mistakes, your heart gets hard. Isn’t it so? There is a saying in India of saint Kabir which says ‘Bura dekhan main chala, bura na milya koi’ which means ‘I wanted to search a bad man but I couldn’t find one but when I looked at myself I couldn’t find anybody worse than me.’ This is coming from a saint. So seeing mistakes in others hardens your feelings. I don’t agree so much with the other line. If you keep on looking at your own mistakes, that will also not make your feelings soft and brings guilt. So I only use the first line of this.

Q: If we do something wrong with somebody and that person does good to us, do we have to bear fruit of that karma (action)?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Don’t do so much of analysis. The karma that you need to go through, you will. And the karma which you don’t need to go through, you won’t. That karma which is to be finished with sadhna, pranayama will be finished. By surrendering to God, we get new life all the time. Don’t think too much. Live in surrender, surrender leads to Samadhi.

Q: I can’t think of more questions. Please tell me some question to ask?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: That’s good. My job is not to tell you or give you questions but to take away your questions.

“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