Bangalore ashram, Jan. 05:
Love is present everywhere. It is the intelligent who keep the love from being distorted. Love when distorted becomes greed, jealousy, fear and hatred.
When a person is involved– it gives rise to moha – obsession. Anger comes out of love for perfection.
Behind every emotion, positive and negative, there is love. There is no existence without love. We want love, pure love without misery, which brings joy and peace. Pure love turns into bliss. The spiritual path keeps the love away from greed and puts you on the other side - bliss and joy. This is the usefulness of these practices.
Q: Guruji, can you speak on the power of words?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Thoughts are energy, have power. When you are confused, your words don’t have an impact. The clearer you are in your mind, the more power your words get. If you are in confusion, the power of words is very feeble. Pranayam, meditation makes the mind clear. So the thoughts that come out of it are straight and clear. One who is content, their words have power. In India we have a custom of going to our elders for blessings. They are supposed to have a serene state of mind. From that space, when you give a blessing, it is more effective. For wedding cards, blessings are taken from the oldest member of the family. The same tradition exists in North America, Australia and New Zealand among the native people. All over the world, native traditions have the custom of respecting the elders. Without this, people above 50 are getting depressed. That has to shift. Parents should also become more happy and vibrant.
Happier as you grow older! The older you are, the bigger your smile – satisfied, fulfilled. You have led a good life. Now you only have to bless people of the coming generations. That is maturity. That is satisfaction. This comes when you become detached from day-to-day things. Wash your hands off anything that makes you unhappy. Take on your responsibility. Act for it but don’t worry for it. People who act don’t worry and those who worry don’t act. This shift has to come. Otherwise, you keep complaining, so and so doesn’t listen, daughter-in-law doesn’t listen.
You should not go to your grave with complaints. Do only what you can. Stretch yourself little by little. Like this we need to re-orient ourselves. Either we are complacent or complaining. Either is no good. Then you remain without doing any action. On the other hand, till the last breath, if you find fault with others, that is also no good.The more we violate the laws of nature, the body experiences pain. These things should not bother you. If at all you have to be bothered, be bothered about the world.
Q: When we say accept situations, how we can we accept something like a robber entering your house?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: When a robber enters your door, you start shaking, shivering, questioning, it’s of no use. Why did robber rob you is a useless question. It’s his job! Accept he is a robber. Somebody cheats you. When you are caught up in asking why did he cheat? You become upset, and you can’t take action. When you accept the robber, then you call the police, etc. you can take action. Parents get upset over the child not studying. Accept. Then you can act better. If you don’t accept, emotions rise, intellect is clouded and actions become regrettable.
Q: How is meditation important for disaster victims?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Relief from trauma comes only through meditation. Counseling is only at the surface. The source of joy is deep within. Events are impermanent. You will not allow any event to stick on to the mind mirror. You are unfazed by events. Keeping the mind like a clean mirror – that is what yoga is all about. People not on the spiritual path never feel fulfilled.
“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
