Why we should review our lives in the time gone past

 

As we flip the calendar, we need to keep flipping our mind as well. Often, our diaries are filled with memories. See that you don't fill your future dates with past events. Allow the space for creativity to unlearn from the past and move on.

In the past year (and many of us rang in a new year just a few weeks back), how many days were you in sanyas? How many days were you struggling, being caught in maya? Turn back and remember the whole year.

Do not run away from anything. Do not reject anything. Do not go away from anything. At the same time, let your attention be on the self. This is a delicate balance. That balance is yoga.  

A poor man celebrates New Year once a year. A rich man celebrates each day. But the richest man celebrates every moment. How rich are you? If you celebrate every moment, you are the Lord of Creation.

Review the year while you celebrate. This is your homework. Compare your performance in the year before last and smile. This year is fortunate because you are living at this time. When you are living for the sake of the world, the world is fortunate.  

Let time celebrate your presence. You keep smiling as ever. When you let time celebrate you, you are witness amid celebration.  

The heart always longs for the old, the mind for the new. Life is a combination of both. Let the New Year bring into our life ancient wisdom and modernity, as life is incomplete without either of them.  

Don't feel shy to speak about human and spiritual values. The time has come now to call the whole world. Be ever new, happy you.

Taking time out for yourself

 

If for the whole day you are engaged in only gathering information, you do not take out time for yourself to think and reflect. A few quiet moments are resources for creativity.

Some time during the day, sit for a few minutes, get into the cave of your heart, eyes closed, and kick the world away like a ball. But, during the day, be 100 percent attached to the work. Eventually, you will be able to be both attached and detached. This is the skill of living, the art of living.  

Renunciation refills your energy. Creativity cannot happen only just through efforts. There is a beautiful story about Chhatrapati Shivaji. At one time Shivaji became so frustrated about ruling his kingdom that he went to his guru Samarth Ramdas and told him that he is fed up and that he just wants to renounce everything.  

Ramdas told him that he can renounce everything. Shivaji became so happy and relaxed at the very thought. Then Ramdas told him: “Now I am the king and you are my servant. Will you do whatever I ask you to do?” Shivaji replied: “For you I am ready to do anything.”  

Ramdas said: “Very good. Will you run this country for me?” Shivaji replied: “Yes, I will run the country for you.” Total renunciation has brought zeal and enthusiasm in him. Creativity springs up when you are relaxed.  

You have to renounce all work you have done the whole day, only then can you rest in the night. Though many times pain, struggle and frustration have brought out creativity in some people, these are not the only reasons for a person to be creative. Millions of people in the world are struggling or frustrated, but they are not creative.  

So, taking out some time for yourself improves the quality of your life.

Considering our past, present and future

 

When people consider past events to be the result of free will they are filled with remorse and regret. When they consider future events as destiny, lethargy and inertia set in. 

A wise person will consider the past as destiny and the future as free will. When you consider the past as destiny, no more questions are raised and the mind is at ease. 

And when you consider the future as free will, you are filled with enthusiasm and dynamism. Of course there will be some uncertainty and some anxiety when you consider the future as free will, but it can also bring alertness and creativity.

Now, how do we remove the anxiety? By having faith in the Divine and doing sadhana. Consider the past as destiny, the future as free will and the present moment as Divinity.

The art of creative silence

 

Creativity brings a new beginning to “time.” When you are creative, you break the monotony of time. Everything becomes fresh and alive. Creativity brings along with it a new round of enthusiasm. 

Both creative and procreative impulses in nature are associated with enthusiasm. When you are enthusiastic, you are closer to the creative principle of existence. 

Deep silence is the mother of creativity. No creativity can come out of one who is too busy, worried, over-ambitious or lethargic. Balanced activity, rest and yoga can kindle skills and creativity in you.

An insight into "ego"

 

Ego is an impediment for a leader, a wise man, a merchant, or a servant, but it is required for a warrior and a competitor. A warrior takes on challenges and commitments and stands by them. 

Ego makes you sacrifice yourself for a cause. Ego gives strength and courage and brings valor to meet challenges with endurance and perseverance. A strong ego will counteract depression. 

Ego is often considered selfish, but it is the greatest motivating factor for creativity and generosity. Ego propels you to venture into the unknown. 

There are three types of ego – sattvic, rajasic and tamasic. Tamasic ego is barbaric, blind and self-destructive. Rajasic ego is self-centered and causes misery to oneself and others. Sattvic ego is creative and has protective tendencies. If you cannot surrender, at least have a sattvic ego, as a sattvic ego is always ready to sacrifice.

Let time celebrate your presence

 

“Sound stretched is Music…

Movement stretched is dance…

Mind stretched is meditation…

LIFE stretched is celebration”

A poor man celebrates the New Year once a year. A rich man celebrates each day. But the richest man celebrates every moment. You don’t need money to celebrate life. If you just have the trust and faith that you will be provided what you need tomorrow, you start celebrating every moment. That’s the real sign of prosperity.

If you don’t know you are loved by the Divine, you will not be able to celebrate life. You will live in insecurity. With insecurity, greed comes. With greed, selfishness becomes strong. And with that comes anger.  With anger comes lust.  And with that comes all sorts of sadness, miseries one behind the other, like a chain.

Turn back and remember the whole year that has gone by. Do not run away from anything. Do not reject anything. Do not go away from anything.

At the same time, let your attention be on the self. This is a delicate balance. That balance is yoga. That balance is spirituality. Some people think being silent is spirituality. Some people think only celebration is spirituality. Spirituality is a harmonious blend of outer silence and inner celebration, and also inner silence and outer celebration!

The celebration that comes out of silence is real celebration. Celebration is the nature of the spirit. Any celebration has to be spiritual. A celebration without spirituality has no depth. Silence gives depth to celebration.

Every excuse to celebrate is good. In celebration, you are not just having a party, you remind yourself of the wisdom. If sacredness is attached to a celebration, that celebration is total, complete. It’s not just body and mind but also the spirit that celebrates.

The year 2022 was fortunate because you were living at that time! Let time celebrate your presence. You keep smiling as ever. When you let time celebrate you, you are a witness amid celebration. The heart always longs for the old, the mind for the new. Life is a combination of both.

Allow the space for creativity to dawn. The year that has gone has taught us many lessons; what we should do and what we should not do. Every pain that we went through in 2022 brought us some depth, and all the joy and pleasure gave us a new vision of life and hope the future.

“The year gone by saw plenty of rainy days. In 2023, let there be sunshine—both in our lives and in society. Let us all have a determination to create a violence-free, stress-free society. May your life be filled with peace, joy and happiness!

The art of living

Have a desire in your mind to experience the Divine Light. The higher goals in life can be realized only through a few minutes of meditation and introspection. 

A few quiet moments are a source of creativity. Some time during the day, sit for a few minutes, get into the cave of your heart, eyes closed, and kick the world away like a ball.

But, rest of the time, be 100% attached to your work. Eventually, you will be able to be both attached and detached. This is the skill of living, the art of living.

7 tips to tap the creative genius within

Creativity and innovation are important for any business to strategize and envision. Creativity brings a new beginning for “time”. When you are creative, you break the monotony of time. It is very important for us to probe into the source of thought. Often we are called great thinkers, but what is a thought? Where does it originate? Is there any way to improve the thought process? What is the source of creativity? Here are the 7 ways to tap into your creative genius:

Tap the source with Meditation

The more we relax into ourselves the more we bring out creativity and happiness. Creativity is already present in every point in consciousness and it can be evoked. It is like applying heat to pop the corn kernels. There is inherent creativity in consciousness. Anyone who has discovered anything or any creativity has sprung up in any mind is because it is already present in the field. We are tapping what is already there and taking the credit. Sometimes we are able to do this without any effort; Before we know, it has already come out of us. Whether it is a scientific discovery or an inspiration for great art, the source is unknown. Tapping this field within us, being with this unknown field is meditation.

Go beyond your comfort zone

Anything creative and dynamic can happen only when you stretch yourself beyond your comfort zone. You are often stuck thinking that you cannot do something. But if you make an effort and take that first step ahead, then you will find that you are not bound by your comfort zone. A good leader knows this.

Be effortless

The mind and body function on opposite laws. On the physical level, more the effort, better the result. Whereas on the mental level or the level of creativity, lesser the effort, greater the result. When the mind learns to let go and relax, then the ideas spring out. If you have forgotten something, the more effort you put to remember that, the longer it takes for you to remember. The sooner you let go, the faster the ideas come.

Be in the moment

If the mind vacillates between the past and the future, then it’s not sharp enough in the present. For creativity, all that is required is the sharpness of the mind, the ability to perceive better. Perception, observation, and expression -these three aspects which are integral to the success of any activity can blossom when our mind is well-rested.

Silence of mind

Balanced activity, rest and yoga can kindle skills and creativity in you.

Balance Imagination & Reality

Many inventions happened through certain imagination and linking that imagination to the present state of ground reality. If you are thinking only of the ground reality, then no creativity will come. And also if you base yourself purely on imagination, then there is no creativity. A balance is needed.

These simple tips on tapping into your creative genius will help you recharge your work and stay ahead.

Navigating turbulent times with wisdom

It was in turbulent times that the Bhagwad Gita came up…and we are still taking advantage of it! Isn’t it so? It was in the war field that Krishna started teaching Arjuna. He didn’t teach him, when everything was all right, nor was Arjuna ready to listen to anything, for he thought Krishna was just his friend. 

But when turbulent times came, knowledge and wisdom became essential, for that’s when it becomes necessary to have calmness, steadiness and the clarity of mind to perceive things the way they are and to act wisely. 

How to handle turbulent times?

First of all, we must recognise that it is a turbulent time and then, accept it. When we deny a turbulent time, we live in a utopia, and we are then unable to find a solution. So first is recognising, and second is accepting. The moment we accept that this time is turbulent, or that this situation is bad, then our emotions calm down. We don’t question, “Why is it turbulent?” Questioning the happening which is happening is of no use! It is like a post-mortem! It doesn’t help the situation in the present moment. So, accepting that this is so, brings calmness, brings steadiness in the mind. 

When the emotions are calm, you are able to think better because the same energy in us either functions as an emotion or as a thought process. So, if we exhaust our energy through emotions – in getting upset over turbulent times – we are unable to make use of that time for creative thinking and for finding a solution to the problem. So acceptance is the second thing. 

Once you accept, it cannot be passive acceptance: “Okay, let it happen. Leave it to God.” This type of passive acceptance will not work! You need action! You need clarity of mind, sharpness, presence of mind and creativity. What change do you want to make? How do you want to make good use of the situation?

In the Bhagwad Gita, we see the same situation. At first, Arjuna did not accept the situation. He sat on the floor and trembled. The super-hero, who had never cried in his life, wept in front of Krishna, saying, “No! I cannot!” So Krishna said, “Come on! Drop this weakness from your heart! Drop this emotional garbage you are carrying! Get up!” Krishna boosted Arjuna’s ego, saying, “You have the capacity to handle this situation. Come on, get up! What will people say about you?” 

Teenagers, youngsters, kids, when they fall, they start crying. But the moment you give them that confidence – “You know, you are Superman! Nothing has happened to you!” – they stop crying; that inner strength comes up. If you keep telling them, “Oh! You are useless! You are good for nothing!”, then that energy, that inner capacity, will not find expression. So we need to boost their self-esteem. 

What we lack today is self-confidence. If you don’t want someone to be creative, just take the self-esteem out of him (or her). He (or she) will become like a vegetable! Self-confidence, self-esteem, is something that brings creativity in turbulent times. Now, how does one bring about that self-confidence? Through simplicity! 

I will quote you an instance: A gentleman from England, a horticulture specialist, came to our ashram in Bangalore. He said, “Guruji, I am going to make a flower garden!” He brought various different seeds and saplings, many pots, and all the manure required. He spent a lot of money, and he worked sincerely, but even after 3-4 months, hardly any plants came up. A villager from Kanakapura took some of those seeds, just “threw” them on the ground, and wonderful flowers came up very soon! In his anxiety, the specialist had put more fertilizer and more water than were actually needed. So the seeds, the soil, the situation, the environment became such that the flowers did not take root. But the simple villager, who was neither a gardener nor a specialist, could make those flowers blossom! 

Be ready to learn from simple things, from simple people – even from a child. The readiness to learn can bring up creativity and self-confidence in you. In turbulent times, the mind should not be turbulent. The time can be turbulent, but if mind is turbulent, it’s a big disadvantage. 

As the Bhagawad Gita says, this world is anithya (full of change). Everything in this world is changing. Don’t think that joy is here, in the object, in the substance, in the situation, or in the time. You are joy! Having attained this, go ahead, work, act. “Yoga” means skill in action. When everything is smooth, there is no need for skills, is there? When do you need skills? When things are not the way you want them to be, when things are not so pleasant. 

Finally, there is intuitive awareness, antargyan. If you lack intuition, you can’t be really successful. Intuition is not just dry thinking. It’s a combination of gut feeling, emotion and intellect. A little bit of music and logic are needed. When the balance happens in our lives, then we are able to develop our intuitive awareness. And, smile more! 

When you smile more, you will see that intuitive awareness, creativity, compassion, and the sense of belonging, all these virtues that you hold dear just come along.

Attachment to the Guru

See, if you try to possess the Guru then that is not possible and will only bring you pain. A Guru belongs to everyone and not just to a handful few people. And where there is intense love, there is bound to be intense longing also, and it does bring a little pain with it. But this is a different kind of pain, there is a certain sweetness in this pain. This kind of attachment to the Divine, or to the Guru, or to the entire world, is one and the same.

We all want to see the world as a better place. One becomes a Guru only when one is able to provide knowledge and help bring a positive change in the lives of others. I say that, when one experiences a profound transformation in life, that is when they become aware of the Guru and turn to him with reverence. People often say the exact opposite of this: they say that first you must make someone as your Guru, and only then will you experience change in your life.

How can you express your gratitude to the Guru? By helping with bringing the same transformation that you have experienced in your own life in the lives of many others. If you sincerely desire that ten people should be benefitted and live better lives, then that sincere intention surely works and manifests.

So love and longing are two sides of the same coin. This does happen, and our inner creativity blossoms because of this as well. This longing for the divine can bring our attention to the right path and away from negative things such as drinking alcohol, criticizing others, etc. When the mind turns away from such negativity and soaks in the nectar of love and devotion, then longing also comes and this does bring a little pain with it too.

How To Improve Your Creative Thinking?

It is very important for us to probe into the source of thought. Often we are called great thinkers, but what is a "thought"? Where does it originate? Is there any way that we can improve the thought process? What is the source of creativity? Thought is nothing but an impulse of energy and intelligence.

That impulse of energy and intelligence, for it to arise and a correct thought to come, you need 16 impulses to meet at a point in the cerebral cortex at a certain speed. In that short interval of time, all the 16 impulses in the cerebral cortex, when they meet, is what we call a correct thought. What do we do about it? We need to train our brain, our mind. There is always dialogue going on in your own mind.

We all have a filter in our mind through which we listen and we accept only what we already know. Something which doesn’t already fall within our belief system, we straightaway filter out. This tendency in the mind to take things which it already knows and reject that which it doesn’t know, is one of the main blocks of creativity.

The second aspect for creativity is imagination.

Many inventions happened through certain imagination and linking that imagination to the present state of ground reality. If you are thinking only of the ground reality, then no creativity will come. And also if you base yourself purely on imagination, then there is no creativity. A balance is needed. So, when such blocks come into us, there is a way to eliminate them.

How? By studying our own seven layers of our existence. What are they? 

The body, breath, mind, intellect, memory, ego and Self. Are you all breathing now? Many times we are not even aware that we are breathing. We don’t care to look into something that keeps our body alive. Our breath has great secrets to offer.

A little bit of knowledge of these seven layers of existence makes a big difference in our lives. We become so alive and childlike.

A Message on the occasion of Dattatreya Jayanti

Atri Rishi had no children, so he adopted Datta. Datta means given, taken or adopted. That is why when one adopts a child, they say – Datta Svikara. So Atri and Anasuya had adopted a child who was called Dattatreya. He was special as he had Brahma Shakti (creativity), Vishnu Shakti (skill to sustain or maintain) and Shiva Shakti (skill to bring transformation).

Many people have creativity but they cannot sustain what they started. This creativity is Brahma Shakti. If you have Brahma Shakti, you can create things but you also need to know how to maintain it – that is Vishnu Shakti, which is the skill to maintain.

There are many people who are managers. They can’t create but if something is created and given to them, they do an excellent job in managing it. So, Vishnu Shakti is important; it is the energy to maintain what you create.

Then there is Shiva Shakti which is bringing transformation or newness. Many can maintain but whenever a change is needed they don’t know how to bring a transformation; how to take it to another level. So Shiva Shakti is essential too! When you have all these three qualities that is Guru Shakti! A Guru or a guide has to know all the three Shaktis.

Dattatreya is a symbol of Guru Shakti. He had the power of the guide, creativity, the skill to maintain and bring transformation, all in one!

Dattatreya learned from everything. He observed the whole creation and learned some lesson from everything.

Observation brings wisdom and you need sensitivity to observe. If you are caught up in your own world, you become insensitive to the messages coming to you from those around you. When people are caught up in their own stuff, they don’t see the other person’s point of view at all. And such people also believe their perception is absolutely right, even though you know their perception is incorrect.

In the Srimad Bhagavatam it is said – it is so interesting how he (Dattatreya) looked at a swan and learned something from the swan, learned something from a crow, from the trees and also from an elderly woman. For him, knowledge was flowing from all sides. He was so open in his mind and heart to receive knowledge and amalgamate it in the life.

If you are intelligent, you will learn from life and celebrate. Today, drawing inspiration from Dattatreya, let knowledge take the front seat in our life.

Everybody has knowledge, but sometime it takes the backseat. It is not in the driving seat. When knowledge is sleeping, it is ignorance. When knowledge is in the driving seat, there is only joy and celebration. Then we celebrate in every situation for life is celebration.

When we are in awareness, then everything in Creation gives us a message, gives us knowledge. And the purpose of this knowledge is to uplift our energy and enthusiasm; it is to make life a total celebration. We need knowledge to maintain and uplift our spirit of enthusiasm and positivity.

Defining Spirituality

Spirituality to me, is very basic to life.

We are made of both matter and spirit. Our body is made up of carbohydrates, amino acids, proteins, etc., but our consciousness or spirit is made of joy, energy, enthusiasm, peace, happiness and all these beautiful qualities. Anything that uplifts the spirit, anything that brings more happiness, love, joy, creativity, compassion and enthusiasm in life is spirituality.

Now, is there a good spirituality and a bad spirituality?
I would like to ask you a question, is there a good doctor and a bad doctor? No! But some doctors do some bad things. So, in every field, there are some people who blemish that field. Similarly, if some people have brought a bad name to spirituality, it is not because of spirituality, but it is because of their individual greed.

For thousands of years, spirituality has been the guiding force behind humanity. Spirituality brings enthusiasm and energy to life. 

Spirituality should always stand the test of science. If spirituality doesn’t stand the test of science, then it is not going to appeal to the people of this generation. So, we need spirituality which goes along with science. In the Orient, unlike the Occident, science and spirituality never came into conflict. Scientists were never prosecuted in the far East. Only in the West and in the Middle East and beyond that, scientists were prosecuted.

In the East, we say, first experience and then believe. But in the West, it says first you believe then one day in the future you will get the experience, which is not the mode of science.

How to improve your creative thinking

It is very important for us to probe into the source of thought. Often we are called great thinkers, but what is a thought? Where does it originate? Is there any way that we can improve the thought process? What is the source of creativity?

Thought is nothing but an impulse of energy and intelligence. 

That impulse of energy and intelligence, for it to arise and a correct thought to come, you need 16 impulses to meet at a point in the cerebral cortex at a certain speed. In that short interval of time, all the 16 impulses in the cerebral cortex, when they meet, is what we call a correct thought. What do we do about it? We need to train our brain, our mind.

There is always dialogue going on in your own mind. 

We all have a filter in our mind through which we listen and we accept only what we already know. Something which doesn’t already fall within our belief system, we straightaway filter out. This tendency in the mind to take things which it already knows and reject that which it doesn’t know, is one of the main blocks of creativity.

The second aspect for creativity is imagination.

Many inventions happened through certain imagination and linking that imagination to the present state of ground reality. If you are thinking only of the ground reality, then no creativity will come. And also if you base yourself purely on imagination, then there is no creativity. A balance is needed. So, when such blocks come into us, there is a way to eliminate them. How? 

By studying our own seven layers of our existence. What are they? 

The body, breath, mind, intellect, memory, ego and Self. Are you all breathing now? Many times we are not even aware that we are breathing. We don’t care to look into something that keeps our body alive. Our breath has great secrets to offer.

A little bit of knowledge of these seven layers of existence makes a big difference in our lives. We become so alive and childlike.

Innovation and creativity spring from within us and spirituality — study of our Self, is the technology to tap that source.

Spirituality begins with amusement

Bangalore, May 23:

Q: Guruji, can spirituality be explained by science? Sometimes I get amused by this creation which is yet to be explained by science. Do the Vedas have a solution?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Yes, amusement is the preface for Yoga. When you are amused then you start enquiring into the nature of truth and then your journey begins. So, it is perfect. ‘Vismayo Yoga Bhumika,’ spirituality begins with amusement and then it is like being in an amusement park all the time. You get surprised, wow! What is this? What is this world? So many different varieties of trees, plants, flowers, leaves, vegetables, fruits, people, what is all of this? When such a thought arises, then knowledge begins.

Q: Guruji, if we accept situations the way they are then how would one be creative?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: You must have understood this in the course (Art of Living’s Part One course), right? Acceptance does not mean inaction; acceptance is actually acknowledging the present situation.

You know, every child should know that they are a part of all the traditions in the world. Pakistanis’ ancestors were Hindus, Buddhists, Jains; many of the ancestors were from all these ancient traditions. Some were Parsis. The children in Pakistan should have been taught Upanishads, a little bit about Yoga and meditation. Yoga was born in Pakistan; born means it was taught and preached in what we call Pakistan today.

Hundreds of people follow all sorts of preaching because they don’t have access to spiritual knowledge, they don’t know about it. That is why it has become a very important duty for all of us to educate people about spirituality. Don’t you think so?
So we have got to be more active now and see that any sort of fanaticism is transformed into compassion and fanaticism is changed into a commitment to do good work in society, isn’t it. So we all have to work for it, yes!

Q: Dear Guruji, can Sudarshan Kriya change the DNA?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Yes

Q: Guruji how do I make myself strong to accept criticism?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: See, whether you accept or not, the criticism has already happened, isn’t it? You are left with no choice. Only after someone has spoken, you find that they have criticized you, right. How do you know before they speak? Before someone criticizes you, you don’t know. After they have criticized you, it is already done. What is the option you have? Okay, don’t accept it, what will happen to you? You will become more miserable. So if you are intelligent you will accept it, if you don’t want to be intelligent you can suffer for some time. That is the only way you can do it.


Q: Guruji, I have seen that there is a lot of your grace on me. Whatever I want or whichever desires I have, you give them to me. It has never happened that I have not gotten what I wanted but desires are such that they never end and now I have started to feel ashamed of myself, what to do?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: See, now you have become aware of this, right? So you are now on the right track. The car has taken a ‘U’ turn. Ask for something big. Why are you asking for something small? And don’t ask only for yourself, ask for everyone. What you ask for, you will get.

Q. Sometimes, I am not happy with the school that my child is attending. Should I remove him from school and let him be at home?  
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: No, just because the school environment is not good enough, to remain at home is no good. Then children will become dull. We have to improve the systems in schools and this work is happening. That is why we are opening so many schools; we have opened around a 100 schools here in India.

Q: Dear Guruji, my mother-in-law does not distribute the prasad to people from other religions. Her logic is that those who don’t understand the importance of prasad won’t benefit. How can I get her to think otherwise?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Does not matter if she does not do it, you give it to everybody. Prasad is mostly nice eatables, people will appreciate. You know, everybody has got their individual opinions. Let them have, you have your own opinions, there is no conflict. You do what you want to do.

Q. What is more important: Vedanta, knowledge or love? 
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Yes, Vedanta, knowledge and love are always together.  Sometimes one is given more importance and at another time the other is given more importance. So you have to go with both. Good!

© The Art of Living Foundation

Life becomes pure when there is dedication.

Continued from the last post..

Q: Guruji, what importance, if any, should we hold on to what the Pundits, Astrologers and the Psychics say about our future and its course?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Take it with a pinch of salt. Take it lightly, everything will change. You know, what your Astrologer says, you don’t have to believe one hundred percent. Astrology is a science, but not all astrologers are scientists. You have to take it with a pinch of salt. It can change also.

Q: Beloved Guruji, I have been practicing to give a percentage of my income to uplift the society for the last twenty years. Would you please elaborate on the idea and power of charity as a spiritual practice? Love and Gratitude!

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Ya ya, giving something back to the society is very important. You know, there is a proverb that says, “Rice is purified by a drop of ghee on it”. You know ghee, butter, a little fat. It was a practice in India, but we didn’t see any scientific basis for it.

Lately, when we spoke to a scientist doctor, he said it is good to have a spoon of ghee, the clarified butter, on rice, because that prevents one from having diabetes. You know why? Rice or any food, starch or carbohydrates quickly gets digested, but it takes a little longer to digest that if it has a little bit fat. Then there is less chance of you getting diabetic or heart problems. So, a cardiologist said, “it is necessary to have a little fat in carbohydrates so that it becomes complex to digest it”. I said, “look, this was said some thousands of years ago. They said, ‘rice gets purified with a drop of ghee.’ ”.

In the same way the money gets purified by charity. When you give a portion of what you have earned for a good cause then the rest of the money that you have is pure money. Similarly, the mind becomes pure by meditation, body get pure by bathing, by a shower; mind becomes pure by prana, pranayama and meditation; Intellect becomes purer by knowledge, by wisdom. See, what we are listening make us pure. There is something that happens in you when you are listening to knowledge or read Yoga Vasistha. Right? You listen to Ashtavakra and that wow sprouts from within. Knowledge makes the intellect pure. And life becomes pure when there is dedication.

Q: Dear Guruji, many of us who are on the spiritual path desire self-realization not only for ourselves but for society at large. Has such an enlightened human society ever existed on this planet, and is it utopian for one to desire this for our society in the future?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: You should desire for utopia, you should have dream. You know, what you think impossible, you should really dream for it and make it possible. We did one village like that in India. There was a notorious village, notorious in the sense that nobody would go into the village after five or six o’ clock, because of robbers, thieves, full of crime and a lot of problems. This village was adopted by one of our teachers, and you know, what he turned that whole place into in three months? Unbelievable! He took this village and made everyone do the course. Now, everybody in the village, Young and old, sing and dance in the satsang everyday. They have made a rule that anybody, who smokes or drinks or any substance abuse, will be fined. So, the village is free of smoking and drinking, the entire village has become organic, and they have a shop without a shopkeeper. I have also brought a CD of this village.

In my last trip, Swami Pragyapalji told me that we have such a village, and that there is a shop without any shopkeeper but the shop runs very well. People take the needed stuff and put the money in the basket there. People were all astonished that the village has been running like this since the last two and half years. A shop without a shopkeeper and nobody steals. And they have removed locks from all the doors. No door has any locks, no house has any locks and it has become the most self-sufficient village. It has pure drinking water and the entire village is painted in pink color. Everybody chose to have pink color on their walls as a symbol of unity. Both the government of India and government of Maharashtra gave this village cash awards calling it the most ideal village. So, one teacher, if you could imagine something that is thought of as utopia, made it possible.

After seeing this, 180 villages are on the way to become ideal villages.

In New Delhi, few volunteers thought to clean the Delhi for Asian games are coming. In India, there is lot of garbage here and there, and people don’t keep streets clean. They would take things out and dump those in streets. So, they started with this idea to clean Delhi.

They thought to forget about government for everyone keep blaming the government. You cannot imagine what a group of few ‘Art of Living’ volunteers have achieved? They inspired one million people to come up and take the brooms, take the plastic bags and segregate the garbage, and clean the whole city. They could gather one million volunteers in a city of 15 million people, and they are doing this from 12th of September. The Delhi government, who was never cooperative with the ‘Art of Living’, in the sense they never came to any of our functions, suddenly woke up and decided to help them. Now, the government is announcing the great job done by the ‘Art of Living’ volunteers.

So, you should think, plan and dream what you really want. It may not happen immediately but you can achieve that.

Q: How do I overcome and move beyond the physical desires?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: It depends on what is your age. If you are a teenager or just out of teenage, then it is quite but natural. There is nothing you can do about it. Keep yourself busy. If you have too much free time, only sex will occupy the mind. Have you noticed in your exam times, or when you are too busy, or you have to take a challenge, or you are going on a sports trip, or when your mind is occupied and engaged, then sex is not a big issue, it is not so compelling. But when you are too free, that is when it takes over the seat. Now, sex is not bad, but the obsession is horrible. One type of sex is when you try to satisfy, and if you do not get satisfied, there is another type that starts happening.

So many different distortions and tendencies would come up in the mind. The best thing is to do pranayama. Pranayama helps. Then, watching your food will help. If you eat too much, so much energy is there, and it needs an outlet to go somewhere. And if you are not creative, then it definitely takes the other route. So, a little bit say on the food. It is said if you cannot control your tongue, you can never control your genitals, because your tongue and genitals are connected. Sex and food are very much linked. So, your obsession can be controlled if your food is lighter and moderate in amount.

Pranayama can help you to control excessive tendencies. Music and dance will help. Some creative art, painting, writing story, and appreciating beauty will help. When you are more happy, inclination towards sex is less. But if you are miserable, restless and unhappy then inclination towards sex is much more. So, by all these things and keeping yourself busy, you can sail through the tough time. Because when you indulge in it, later on you don’t like it, and not going into sex makes you completely nuts. So, you are in a limbo sort of state. This is very difficult in teenage time; there is no way out of it other than keeping someone very very busy.And then the middle age crisis! I am analyzing all these different age groups when one has to overcome these hurdles. Still, if none of these works, just wait for the time. As you grow older, it will simply disappear. You know, time will take care of it. When you are 60, 70 or may be 80, sometime it has to drop of you. Mind, sometime, will become cool. At least then, something will wake up from within.

Q: Why do we experience death and rebirth again and again? What does it do for us?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Well, Ground hug day!

“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

‘Meditation will help you to go ahead in spite of failures’

H.H. Sri Sri Ravi Shankar inaugurated the MILK (Meditation and Inspiration Center for Living and Kindness) at the Great Lakes Institute of Management, Chennai, India on November 26, 2009.
Later, students had an interactive session with Sri Sri.
Following are some of the excerpts:

While taking a look at the proposed plan of the meditation centre at the Great Lakes Institute of Management, Sri Sri said, “Management is all about just going along with what exists. Not making something new but going along with what is there already.”
On Vishnu shakti
“Vishnu just rests on a snake, doesn’t have to do much. Brahma takes care of the rest. Brahma does the creation. Vishnu does the maintenance whereas managers do both creation and maintenance.”
Youth and a paradigm shift
“Youth have a great opportunity and can create a new world as the world is now looking for a paradigm shift. The world is currently facing some kind of stagnation. A new paradigm shift is needed and will emerge only from India.
Monetary prosperity is not actual prosperity. Inducing life, the spirit, spirit of enthusiasm – this is what India gave to the world.
Life is enthusiasm, life is love, life is compassion, life is creation and if these things die out in you then a corpse would just come out of you.”
Sri Sri laid emphasis on the need for innovation and creativity. He stressed on inculcating creative ideas rather than confining ourselves to managing what already exits.
One world family
“The whole world is a big family - Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam. We never thought in those terms of being different. We believe in Viswamanav. We learnt teamwork from Japan, etiquette from the British, marketing from the Americans, technical skills from Germany and India gave human values to the world.
I’ll tell you an anecdote: “I asked all my devotees to do something creative as creativity is a reflection of the consciousness. Three months later, all came up with some great projects. One team came up with egg-less ice cream and started proving that their ice cream is the best in the world. Similarly, some other teams also started proving the same thing. One lady, who was very fragile, came with one project i.e. making handkerchiefs. She spoke about 17 points about how it is the best in the world. All points were logical. ”
“You see, marketing skills in the US are better than their products. We, in India, have great products but we lack marketing skills. “
India
There are 7 points that India can be proud of and that have not been explored yet.
Food: There are so many varieties of food in India. Tripura, a small place in India, has more than 200 varieties of food. North Indians don’t know the different kinds of South Indian dishes. Even South Indians don’t know the dishes from North India. We don’t market ourselves properly. We have the greatest varieties possible in the world, yet we don’t project ourselves.
Tourism: We have a great part of history which we don’t capitalize.
Music & Dance: There are so many types of dance and music which we haven’t even projected so far.
Dress & Jewelry: The Indian dress is appreciated the world over. We have no pride of what we wear. Places like Thailand and Indonesia are very proud of their dress and jewelry. We are not. We don’t feel good about ourselves. Low self-esteem is eating our attitude and culture.
Information Technology: This will take India to new heights.
Ayurveda: There are 280 kinds of flora and fauna available in India which is not available anywhere in the world. We don’t pay any attention to that. These are going to be the future medicine of 21st century.
Triphala: Foreigners have taken this formula and patented it. Similarly, things are happening all over the world.
Indian Spiritual Values: The yoga market is valued at $27 billion in the United States itself. 99% of local US people dominate this market. They started preparing materials for yoga which is a product of India and our gift to the world. People are invited to do mantra and chanting in some building in New York. All across India, in temples if someone is chanting, we don’t even bother to look at them.
Question & Answers:
Q. Do we have to be interdependent and do we need to look for interdependency?
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: You don’t have to be interdependent. It is just that you need to realize it. The word ‘independent’ is obsolete. It is nature that we are interdependent on. We have one nature, one ocean, one air, one earth and everyone is dependent upon it. People are one! We are interdependent!
Q. Why do we meditate with our eyes closed though we have to live our life with our eyes open? Is it possible to do meditation with eyes open?
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: That is the second step. The first step is to go where the mind is involved – once the eyes are closed, once the mind is centered – then you can go ahead with the other ways as well. There are different kinds of meditation like walking meditation. Your every action comes from a meditative state.
Q. Guruji, you said life is simple, yet why does it turn so complex? It is very difficult to make decisions. Why can’t we avoid things which are complicated?
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Life is simple while people are complicated. Why can’t we avoid things which are complicated? We have too much time in life so we make things complicated.
Life is very simple and life is very complicated! Both exist depending on the circumstances and our perception at that point of time. Life is a combination of both.
Q. According to Raj Yoga, it is said that practicing meditation is meant for people who are reclusive and follow a strict and definite approach to reach salvation. Meditation is difficult for a person with much responsibilities. You said everyone should meditate. What are the implications of this on a normal person?
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: There are different forms of Yoga. Raja Yoga is Royal Yoga. In some forms, they spend a lot of time in practice. Some forms are for people like the prince who has so many responsibilities such that they can do the practice in a short span of time. Meditation is useful for people in all walks of life.
Q. You have highlighted the importance of innovation and creativity, but with that comes a lot of risk and uncertainty. It’s only after numerous failures that a successful new technology or product is evolved. So how should one manage the failures that come as a by-product of striving for innovation? How to rise up after each failure and restart the journey to discover something new?
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Failure is a part of the process. Meditation will help you to go ahead in spite of failures. Innovation without failure is possible if you are able to use your intuition perfectly. Both should act perfectly to achieve zero failure in innovation. If intuition is not in proportion then failure occurs more often.
Q. In the Bhagwad Gita, Lord Krishna says that one must not care about the result of his work. But if we do not think about the fruits that follow our hard work, then what will motivate us to do that hard work?
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: There is no control over the fruit of action. If the attention is only on the end result, then you can’t perform.
Let us take a runner - if he starts looking behind at who is running, and not looking at the path he needs to run on, then ultimately he will lose, no matter how good the runner may be. You have to follow your own track, to complete the run whether you lose or win. Lord Krishna is utterly practical in his advises. Lord Krishna tells Arjuna: This is complex, but these are the ways to do it.
Q. There are so many practices, so many paths. Which one should I choose?
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Yoga is everything together. Everything comes along with it.
Sudarshan Kriya will help. This suits today’s young minds that are very busy with schedules all around, and can’t work with too many conditions. In a short time, with deep experiences and no side effects.
Q. Is it good to practice religious practices? As of now, I am on the path of meditation and sometimes don’t feel like practicing them.
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: It’s a matter of culture. It creates an atmosphere with a sense of joy. There is nothing wrong in celebration, fire crackers etc. Traditional practices help and bring a sense of belongingness to family and children.
In the houses of Maoists, there are no pictures or lamps. When children grow up (in such an environment), they grow up with a lot of emptiness.
In Russia, there was no religion for 40 years. There was a destruction of cathedrals and they built a swimming pool on that. Now, after that catastrophe, they re-built the church. If people don’t practice religion, they start feeling the vacuum. And finally religion helps them understand this.
For spirituality – there is no need of religious practices.
Q. Guruji why is it that Sanskrit language that originated in India finds its second reference in Chicago? This is still the case.
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: You are asking my question! We are giving away our ownership over Sanskrit..
You know Dr. B.R. Ambedkar asked that Sanskrit be made our national language.It was seconded by Nasiruddhin Ahmed.
Malayalam contains 80 % of Sanskrit, Telugu 70%, Kannada 70%, Tamil 30% and Hindi 80%. Even many words in foreign languages are similar to Sanskrit: Swasa – Sister, Duhita – Daughter. However, we have lost the link somewhere and failed to establish the reputation of Sanskrit. You know what rain is called in Italian? Piyorja! The Sanskrit word is parjanya. They are so similar in many aspects.
Q. There are some schools of thoughts that say that you must always be aware of what your competitors are doing. Because if you don’t see your competitors, you will be like a bridled horse. You will end up making the best calculator of the world when the world has moved to computers. So how do you reconcile the two schools of thoughts?
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: The challenge is to manage the two contradictions - that is the job of the youth.
One should be aware of the competitors. At the same time, one should have an eye of Arjuna. Be aware of what’s happening around you and one-pointedness towards the goal.
Over ambitiousness will not lead to anything.
Improve your intuitive ability, enthusiasm, relaxation.
It will give you everything that you need to.
“That which you cannot express is Love.
That which you cannot reject/renounce is Beauty.
That which you cannot avoid is the Truth.”
~ H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar



© The Art of Living Foundation for Globalizing Spiritualiyt

'When we are joyous with ourselves, then nothing from outside can seem boring to us'

What H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankarr said today:
'When we are joyous with ourselves, then nothing from outside can seem boring to us'
India (Art of Living International Center, Bangalore), September 8:
Q. Why is it difficult to get focused on things that I don’t like to do?
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar : If you don’t like something, then your focus is all the more on it. If you like something, then you focus on it. When you’re neutral about something, when there is no aversion, then there is no focus.
Studying the nature of mind is itself is an amazing phenomena. You will be thrilled knowing and learning more and more about your own mind. When I say mind, I don’t mean just mind. I would rather say the consciousness because the mind is one function of the consciousness. The perception is what we call the mind. The perceptible aspect of the consciousness is called mind. The judgmental aspect, the intellect.
The study of consciousness is the most difficult. And with time and maturity, everybody gets it.
Q. Can we aspire for something higher like enlightenment at the age of twenty one?
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar : Definitely. You should aspire for enlightenment and enlightenment is unconditional happiness, unconditional love and a life in which you are in the driver’s seat. You must aspire for enlightenment. Right from when you recognize to aspire anything in life. Go to the highest first and all the good things will come along, you don’t have to make an effort for it.
When I say you don’t have to make an effort, I mean you don’t have to sit and worry about it. When you aspire for the highest, your action will be spontaneous and in the spontaneity you will see things have started falling into place.
Q. What is a self referral attitude?
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar : Being in touch with your very center. When you worry there is a tendency to lose that focus or centredness. It is the same when you are tired or too busy. Self referral means coming back to yourself, to your center again and again. The core value within you.

Q. Are there any plus points of doing a job other than earning money
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar : Money and experience. That’s all and some discipline. If you have to do a job you have to discipline your life in a certain fashion.

Q. Is there a gene for knowledge, any nadi (channel for energy flow) that has to be opened for creativity?
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar : Definitely and you all have it. And it opens whenever you listen to knowledge.

Q. How does it feel to be so Divine?
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Absolutely natural.

Q. We are not supposed to marry in our own gotra (family tree). Scientifically, what does a gotra mean?
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar : Gotra is a family tree, like you know if you marry your own siblings, or cousins, they say the genes will not develop properly, children will not develop. The family trees go back to some rishis in the past. And they say that gotra means we belong to this (a particular) family. Today what the scientists say about blood groups was known to people thousands of years ago. Yet people from the same gotra have spread. If you marry in the same gotra the children will not be too healthy. That is the main thing. It’s better to avoid.
But those were the thoughts from some thousands of years ago but now since we have gone so far away and the population has spread so much, it has become so vast. I don’t know how relevant it is. But (marriage within) gotra is better to avoid.
Q. Many times parents out of over attachment, prejudiced opinions and being football of the relatives opinions stop us from doing seva. Can we make seva our career?
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Yes.

Q. What is beauty and how to enhance it within and around us?
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: First of all you should know you have a beautiful mind. The mind is free, it is loving, beautiful, satisfied and not feverish. So when the spirit is centred or your mind is centred, that beauty shines through.

Q. Could you speak a little bit about Sanskrit and its greatness? I would like to take it as one of my Ph.d topics.
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Yes, do it. Sanskrit is the mother of all languages. Whether it is English, Russian, German or Italian, there is a lot of Sanskrit in it. Of course, Sanskrit is the base of all Indian languages.

Q. Every day, in different corners of the world, people ask you the same questions. Don’t you get bored? I am very inspired by your patience.
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar : My consciousness is nitnutan (new every moment). First we get bored with ourselves and then bore others or get bored from others. When we are joyous with ourself, then nothing from outside can seem boring to us.

Q. How do we gear up for enlightenment?
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Wanting it, itself is half done. The rest is a little discipline and you should know that you will get it. It will be given to you. That’s why you have the path, the guru. You will just get it. Shama jali hai tere liye, tujhko kuch nahi karna hai (The candle is lit for you, you don’t have to do anything). You don’t have to do anything just be hollow and empty from inside.

Q. I have a habit of recalling the pleasant memories of life again and again, as it gives a glimpse of the same pleasure as I felt in the past. Is it something to be cautious of, can it hinder my growth?
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: It’s alright, don’t make an effort to sit and go on remembering the past. I think you have too much free time. Get busy and start working. There are so many things to do in the world. Where is the time to live in the past, recollect all the past. Right? The world is new every moment. Go with it. Don’t turn back and keep looking back. Move forward.

Q. Why does everyone not aspire to serve the society, in their youth?
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: It must be there. There is no heart that does not get affected at the sight of misery. This we assume. At one time, everyone should desire to do seva. This we cannot say.

Q. What is the essence and secret of life?
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar : Essence and secret! It will be whispered into your ears when you go into meditation. Do (Sudarshan) Kriya and meditation.

Q. Why is that we are unable to understand the mind- which is the most powerful thing in the world?
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:  Have you begun to understand it? (reply: No) then start from somewhere and then we will see whether it is fully understandable or not.
(From the Office of His Holiness Sri Sri Ravi Shankar)

© The Art of Living Foundation