Q: Dear Gurudev, how and when did the twelve Jyotirlingas (literally
meaning ‘pillar of light’, a sacred divine shrine of Lord Shiva) come into
existence? Please shed some light on this.
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: See, every Jyotirlingam has a different story behind
how it came to be. There is a Sthala Purana (local folklore or legends)
attached to each. For example, Lord Rama went to Rameshwaram and
established the Jyotirlingam there by worshipping Lord Shiva.
he aim was to unite all the people of India by one single thread of
devotion.
Different people in India speak different languages. In Kashi (now
Varanasi) there is a different language, in Rameshwaram there is a
different language.
In ancient times, people were told to visit Rameshwaram, and then from
there they were told to go on a pilgrimage to Kashi and bathe in the holy
Ganges. After that they were told to bring back with them the holy water of
the Ganges from Kashi to Rameshwaram and offer it to the Jyotirlingam
there. And after that, they were told to take the offering back to the
Kashi Vishwanath temple.
The intention behind doing this in the olden times was to bring a sense of
national unity (by visiting these holy shrines situated in different parts
of the country).
It is not that Lord Shiva requires your offering of holy water. What would
Lord Shiva do with it? All the water in creation belongs to Him.
Taking holy water of the Ganges from Kashi to Rameshwaram has no meaning or
importance to Lord Shiva. Yes, but there is a certain significance in it
for the country.
When people undertake pilgrimages together to different parts to the
country, they establish bonds of friendship with one another.
See, people from South India go on a pilgrimage to the Amarnath Shrine in
North India. So this pilgrimage becomes a medium to connect and unite the
people from Kanyakumari in the south with the people from Kashmir in the
North. The pilgrimages become a medium to do this.
And whenever we do anything with a sense of sacredness and purity, our
entire consciousness starts blossoming. That is why all the twelve
Jyotirlingas were never kept in one place or one state. Some were in the
north, some in the south, some in the west – they were distributed all over.
And in those days, all those places were very difficult places to travel
to. It used to be so difficult to reach there. One had to go through dense
forests, dangerous valleys, city ruins; or on the top of high snow capped
mountains, etc., to reach the shrines.
For example, Kedarnath shrine is situated deep in the Himalayan range.
In this way, by establishing Lord Shiva through His sacred shrines in
different parts of the country, the holy sages and saints of those days
built a unified nation.
Also, it is said, ‘Tatropajagmur bhuvanam punana mahanubhava munayah
sa-sisyah prayena tirthabhigamapadesaih svayam hi tirthani punanti santah’
- Shrimad Bhagavatam (Canto 1, Chapter 19, Verse 8)
This means that wherever a holy saint sits, that place itself becomes a
holy place of pilgrimage. So many saints have visited these holy places,
meditated there and have done Tapasya (penances), and that is how the
sanctity and glory of these places has grown over time.
However, today you find that these places are unclean and mismanaged.
Nowadays, so much milk and other offerings are offered carelessly in a
wasteful manner at these places, without the sense of devotion or faith.
They just rush you through the rituals and the oblations. This is not
Pooja. Worship which is done mindfully, with a sense of devotion and in a
meditative state becomes Pooja in the true sense.
If you just do Pooja to fulfil your own selfish desire or appetite, or to
fulfil some monetary obligation, then you are only fooling yourself. So one
should not do that, you should do it with a feeling of devotion.
When the Rudram (a series of verses recited in praise of Lord Shiva) is
being chanted and the Shivalingam is being bathed with water, we should
simply close our eyes and sink within, into our own Self. We should go deep
into meditation. Then that is meaningful.
We should experience that eternal vastness of the Shiva Tattva (Tattva
means principle or element) which is manifest everywhere as the blissful
Chidakasha (the Space of Supreme Consciousness).
Q: Gurudev, is it necessary to visit temples if one has a direct connection
with the Guru?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Visiting temples is more of a cultural and
sociological phenomenon. Of course there is a spiritual flavour to it also.
But that is not essential.
You can sit at home and feel the temple where you are.
For the sake of keeping the culture and tradition alive, and to bring a
sense of sacredness to our children and our youngsters, it is good to take
yatras (spiritual pilgrimages), and go to temples also, once in a while. It
is not because there alone you can seek God, but to keep traditions alive.
That is why we have celebrations, and pilgrimages are kept to unite people.
So it is more for a social cause.
You can do your meditation and sing bhajans (devotional songs) at home, but
when you come here, to the Ashram, and we meditate together, sing bhajans
together, then there is a rise in the collective consciousness. Your
collective energy rises, and it has a different flavour.
At the same time if someone asks, ‘Can we not just meditate at home?’ I
say, definitely you can. You should sit and meditate at home as well, and
sometimes you should come here as well. It is the same for temples also.
Q: Dear Gurudev, why is the path of spirituality so difficult and trying at
times? Sometimes I feel life was much simpler when I was ignorant.
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Spirituality is difficult? (Sri Sri smiles)
Who says so? If it is difficult, how could you be smiling?
Before you were insensitive, now you have become sensitive, that is it!
When you are thick skinned, nothing matters at all. You do not feel
anything. You just simply carry on with your life. But when you become
sensitive; when the cloth becomes pure and white, even a small stain or dot
appears big, that is all.
Spirituality is not going to bring you misery at all.
It is said, ‘Heyam dukham anagatam’. It is the principle of Yoga, the goal
of Yoga; the aim of Yoga is to stop the misery that is yet to come.
Q: Dear Gurudev, can you please speak about bondage? Why does the soul feel
trapped, and what are the causes of bondage?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Ignorance is the cause of bondage. And why there is
ignorance? There is no answer to that.
Why has the Divine first created this ignorance and then the means to get
out of it? That is why it is called Leela (a game or play of the Divine).
It is like asking, ‘Why do we have a football match? Why are there two
courts with some coaches and some players on one side, and some on the
other side, pushing the ball from this side to that side? Why do they not
have their own balls and stay in their own courts?’ Then there is no play!
So because of ignorance there is a play, there is the game. That is why the
whole world is called the Leela of the Parampurusha (the Supreme Divinity).
Q: Gurudev, there is a saying that a seeker should not mistake
understanding for realization, and realization for liberation. Can you
please explain this?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Who said this? I do not have the habit of commenting
on someone else’s sayings.
Understanding is intellectual. Experience is subtler than that. And beyond
experience is liberation – when you know you are not the experience but the
experiencer.
That is why it is said in the Bhagavad Gita, ‘Nastibuddhi rayuktasya nacha
yuktasya bhavana, Nacha bhavayata santihi asantasya kutah sukham’
(Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 2, Verse 66).
If your individual mind is not united with the Universal self that is deep
within you, you will neither have intellectual sharpness, nor will you have
emotional lightness and clarity.
Q: Gurudev, please talk about the sound vibrations and how do they operate
through thoughts? Like how in meditation we take our Mantra.
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: It works! That is it! How it works, we do not know.
See, nowadays there are sensors on different objects, and when you touch
them, the light comes on. Just your touch can open the locks.
Your telephone works by a simple touch of yours. Your laptop and iPad works
this way as well. All this happens just with a touch, isn’t that so?
So, all the five senses – touch, smell, taste, sight, and sound, they are
nothing but electromagnetic vibrations. Science can explain this very well.
Q: Dearest Gurudev, I realized that I am but a small speck amongst your
ocean of devotees. Yet I feel confident that you love me and are aware of
my needs. Is that my ego that makes me feel that I am special to you?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: No, it is perfectly alright. You should feel special.
That is why it is said – Anupama (unparalleled, wonderful), Advitiya
(unique, without a second), Aprameya (incomparable, immeasurable). These
are the qualities of the Atman. The Self is incomparable.
So you can feel very special about yourself – no problem. But do not place
any demands. As long as it remains at the level of feelings within you, you
are safe and everybody else is safe. But if you say, ‘I am very special, so
give me this privilege’, then it will be very difficult.
I want you to feel special.
Q: Gurudev, sometimes what we fear the most is the very thing that can set
us free. So why has God put this fear in us? There was no need for fear.
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Fear is just love turned upside down. So when there
is love, a little bit of fear also comes.
Knowledge, Vairagya (dispassion), Wisdom – these are the things that can
help transform the fear back into love again.
When love turns into attachment that is when fear pops up. So through
dispassion and wisdom, keep love in its pure form.
Q: My dear Gurudev, is failure in worldly life important to get back the
focus on the spiritual path?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: No. You do not need to fail in order to get the focus.
Do not put such a sankalpa (impression or resolve) in your mind. It is not
a necessary thing.
Q: Gurudev, you are very generous. You have fulfilled all of my wishes, but
I have not fulfilled all the commitments I made to you. I want to know
whether, will you punish me, or will you keep fulfilling my further wishes.
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: (Laughter) Why should I reveal it to you now? I will
leave you guessing about it.
You better fulfil your commitments before you wish for something more. I do
not want to make you a greedy person. Otherwise you will become so greedy.
When you know that your desires are getting fulfilled, you should desire
for bigger things, not just things for yourself. Have desires for the
nation, for the world, for humanity.
If your desires are for achieving something bigger, and bringing this
knowledge to the people, then that is more meaningful. Then you are growing.
You should take a sankalpa, ‘Let the knowledge of Vedanta reach thousands
of people; let Yoga reach thousands of people.’ You should cultivate such
desires in you.
Actually you cannot cultivate a desire, but this is the right direction for
desires.
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Thursday, December 12, 2013
wisdom from guruji
Q: Gurudev, in the fifteenth chapter of the Gita, there is a description of
a tree which is upside down. The branches are in the ground and the roots
are in the sky. Can you please explain the significance of this?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: This is a symbol to signify that your origin is the
Divinity; the consciousness. That is your roots.
The mind and all its paraphernalia are like the branches. And all the
different types of rhythms in life, all the different emotions, etc., are
like the leaves. They don’t stay permanently, they wither away.
So, if you are focusing on the leaves, and you forget to water the roots,
then the tree will not remain.
So, it says, ‘Asvattham enam su-virudha-mulam asanga-sastrena drdhena
chittva’
(Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 15, Verse 3).
Notice that you are not these different emotions, these different aspects
of life. Feel the distance from all these branches and retrieve back. That
is what it is saying.
Otherwise we get so immersed in the outer, that we forget the main root.
You need to prune the tree otherwise it goes here and there. So prune all
that, and know that your origin is somewhere up.
Adi Shankaracharya has said this beautifully, ‘Suramandirtarumoolanivaasah
sayyaa bhootalamajinam vaasah sarvaparigraha bhogatyaagah kasya sukham na
karoti viraagah’
He is saying, ‘My original place is in heaven, I have come here just for
few days; just to have fun. Today I have just come for the purpose of
relaxing, but this is not my original place, it is somewhere else.’
The thought itself – My home is somewhere else, I have just come to visit,
creates a distance inside you.
This world is a transit lounge.
You know, in airports and railway stations there are lounges, and in a
lounge what do you do? You keep your luggage and start eating. You use the
bathroom and everything, but you don’t open your suitcase and hang your
clothes all over the place. You don’t do that in a transit lounge. You keep
your things packed.
So this world is just a transit lounge. Don’t mistake it to be your home.
Q: Gurudev, out of the Ashtalaksmi’s there is one by the name
Vijayalakshmi. You said that we need Vijayalakshmi. It is the energy to win
or succeed in anything. Can you please elaborate on this?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: I think I have spoken enough on all those eight
Lakshmis.
The intelligent people don’t elaborate on anything too much. They only give
little clues as essence.
It is said, ‘Alpaksharam asandigdham sara-vat visvato-mukham.’
Alpaksharam means, just a few words.
Sutras are like that; it has the essence and is multi-dimensional. It has
many dimensions. And that is how intelligent people communicate, with just
a few words.
Only the less intelligent will give long explanations for nothing.
Some of the books that you read, they go on for pages after pages after
pages. I tell you, all that they need to write is one line. That is it!
All the ancient Rishis, that is what they did.
‘Heyam dukham anagatam’; that is it, finished!
‘Tada drastuh svarupe vasthanam’; finished!
Q: Gurudev, is being in the state of love higher than enlightenment?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Higher and lower, all these dissolves even much
before.
There is nothing higher or nothing lower; this ladder disappears.
Just imagine you are in space, in the universe. Where is up and where is
down? Where is east and west? There is nothing. There is no higher or lower.
Q: Gurudev, where do emotions arise from? Are they of the body or of the
mind?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Emotions are in the mind, but there is a
corresponding hormone or sensation in the body. So it is a combination of
both.
If your adrenal gland starts working very fast, then you feel fear and
nervousness. All those emotions rise up.
So different hormones or different glands produce different emotions. It is
neither this or that, it is everything together.
Q: My son has been diagnosed with bipolar for five years. He is my only son
and I have been suffering every moment of his pain. I was a very happy
woman before this but now I am on 150mg of anti-depressants.
Now, I want you to assure me there will be no sicknesses like manic
depression or any other sicknesses that are incurable.
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Yes, I understand your pain.
Sometimes a little depression comes and a person is given heavy doses of
medicines and then it becomes worse. I have seen this happening.
Small simple depression turns into manic depression and then they put them
on Lithium. The whole medical fraternity is so confused about this issue.
That is why mental health is so important.
All of you here, you should put your children and your friend’s children
into the Art Excel, YES and YES+ programs. Somehow make them do pranayama
and meditation.
Do you know how this happens? First there is a little stress in the mind,
and then that starts building up and building up and then it becomes so big
that it snaps all the important connections in the brain. That is how the
whole thing starts.
We need to attend to this at a very early stage. Prevention is better that
cure. And to prevent this you need to keep your children happy and teach
them how to handle their negative emotions and the negativity in them. This
is very important.
Q: Gurudev, for a seeker, what is the importance of good company? And if
such company is not available, then what should one do?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: If you feel you are strong enough and you can
influence your company, then change them. Make them to be like you. But if
you are not that strong, then move away from bad company. You are free to
do that.
Q: Gurudev, is it auspicious to have a Peepal (Bodhi) tree at home?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Yes, it is very good and very auspicious. Having a
Bodhi tree in front of your home is like having God himself standing there.
This is what Lord Krishna says, ‘Among the tree, I am Ashvattha’, (Peepal
or Bodhi tree).
The Bodhi tree is so significant because all 24 hours a day, it gives out
only oxygen. So it is very good to have this tree in front of your home.
There are people who say that it is not very good to have a Tamarind tree
in front of the house. I don’t know what vibration it has, but this is what
is said.
Now if there is a Tamarind tree in front of your home, I would say, don’t
cut it down, just plant something else around it.
Q: Even though we have received so much wisdom from you, I am not able to
live it fully?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: At least if you are able to live it partially, I am
happy. Even that will do. You will keep moving up, inch by inch.
a tree which is upside down. The branches are in the ground and the roots
are in the sky. Can you please explain the significance of this?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: This is a symbol to signify that your origin is the
Divinity; the consciousness. That is your roots.
The mind and all its paraphernalia are like the branches. And all the
different types of rhythms in life, all the different emotions, etc., are
like the leaves. They don’t stay permanently, they wither away.
So, if you are focusing on the leaves, and you forget to water the roots,
then the tree will not remain.
So, it says, ‘Asvattham enam su-virudha-mulam asanga-sastrena drdhena
chittva’
(Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 15, Verse 3).
Notice that you are not these different emotions, these different aspects
of life. Feel the distance from all these branches and retrieve back. That
is what it is saying.
Otherwise we get so immersed in the outer, that we forget the main root.
You need to prune the tree otherwise it goes here and there. So prune all
that, and know that your origin is somewhere up.
Adi Shankaracharya has said this beautifully, ‘Suramandirtarumoolanivaasah
sayyaa bhootalamajinam vaasah sarvaparigraha bhogatyaagah kasya sukham na
karoti viraagah’
He is saying, ‘My original place is in heaven, I have come here just for
few days; just to have fun. Today I have just come for the purpose of
relaxing, but this is not my original place, it is somewhere else.’
The thought itself – My home is somewhere else, I have just come to visit,
creates a distance inside you.
This world is a transit lounge.
You know, in airports and railway stations there are lounges, and in a
lounge what do you do? You keep your luggage and start eating. You use the
bathroom and everything, but you don’t open your suitcase and hang your
clothes all over the place. You don’t do that in a transit lounge. You keep
your things packed.
So this world is just a transit lounge. Don’t mistake it to be your home.
Q: Gurudev, out of the Ashtalaksmi’s there is one by the name
Vijayalakshmi. You said that we need Vijayalakshmi. It is the energy to win
or succeed in anything. Can you please elaborate on this?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: I think I have spoken enough on all those eight
Lakshmis.
The intelligent people don’t elaborate on anything too much. They only give
little clues as essence.
It is said, ‘Alpaksharam asandigdham sara-vat visvato-mukham.’
Alpaksharam means, just a few words.
Sutras are like that; it has the essence and is multi-dimensional. It has
many dimensions. And that is how intelligent people communicate, with just
a few words.
Only the less intelligent will give long explanations for nothing.
Some of the books that you read, they go on for pages after pages after
pages. I tell you, all that they need to write is one line. That is it!
All the ancient Rishis, that is what they did.
‘Heyam dukham anagatam’; that is it, finished!
‘Tada drastuh svarupe vasthanam’; finished!
Q: Gurudev, is being in the state of love higher than enlightenment?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Higher and lower, all these dissolves even much
before.
There is nothing higher or nothing lower; this ladder disappears.
Just imagine you are in space, in the universe. Where is up and where is
down? Where is east and west? There is nothing. There is no higher or lower.
Q: Gurudev, where do emotions arise from? Are they of the body or of the
mind?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Emotions are in the mind, but there is a
corresponding hormone or sensation in the body. So it is a combination of
both.
If your adrenal gland starts working very fast, then you feel fear and
nervousness. All those emotions rise up.
So different hormones or different glands produce different emotions. It is
neither this or that, it is everything together.
Q: My son has been diagnosed with bipolar for five years. He is my only son
and I have been suffering every moment of his pain. I was a very happy
woman before this but now I am on 150mg of anti-depressants.
Now, I want you to assure me there will be no sicknesses like manic
depression or any other sicknesses that are incurable.
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Yes, I understand your pain.
Sometimes a little depression comes and a person is given heavy doses of
medicines and then it becomes worse. I have seen this happening.
Small simple depression turns into manic depression and then they put them
on Lithium. The whole medical fraternity is so confused about this issue.
That is why mental health is so important.
All of you here, you should put your children and your friend’s children
into the Art Excel, YES and YES+ programs. Somehow make them do pranayama
and meditation.
Do you know how this happens? First there is a little stress in the mind,
and then that starts building up and building up and then it becomes so big
that it snaps all the important connections in the brain. That is how the
whole thing starts.
We need to attend to this at a very early stage. Prevention is better that
cure. And to prevent this you need to keep your children happy and teach
them how to handle their negative emotions and the negativity in them. This
is very important.
Q: Gurudev, for a seeker, what is the importance of good company? And if
such company is not available, then what should one do?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: If you feel you are strong enough and you can
influence your company, then change them. Make them to be like you. But if
you are not that strong, then move away from bad company. You are free to
do that.
Q: Gurudev, is it auspicious to have a Peepal (Bodhi) tree at home?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Yes, it is very good and very auspicious. Having a
Bodhi tree in front of your home is like having God himself standing there.
This is what Lord Krishna says, ‘Among the tree, I am Ashvattha’, (Peepal
or Bodhi tree).
The Bodhi tree is so significant because all 24 hours a day, it gives out
only oxygen. So it is very good to have this tree in front of your home.
There are people who say that it is not very good to have a Tamarind tree
in front of the house. I don’t know what vibration it has, but this is what
is said.
Now if there is a Tamarind tree in front of your home, I would say, don’t
cut it down, just plant something else around it.
Q: Even though we have received so much wisdom from you, I am not able to
live it fully?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: At least if you are able to live it partially, I am
happy. Even that will do. You will keep moving up, inch by inch.
BLESSINGS
BLESSINGS
- Make your home God's home and there will be light, love and abundance.
- Make your body God's abode and there will be peace and bliss.
- Feel your mind as a toy of God and you'll watch and enjoy all its games.
- See this world as play and as a display of God Himself and you will
repose in the Non-Dual Self.
Blessing comes to you in many forms:
- If you are generous, blessing comes to you as abundance.
- If you are hardworking, blessing comes to you as happiness.
- If you are lazy, blessing comes to you as hard work! (Laughter)
- If you are pleasure loving, blessing comes to you as dispassion.
- If you are dispassionate, blessing comes to you as knowledge of
the Self.
|| Jai Guru Dev ||
- Make your home God's home and there will be light, love and abundance.
- Make your body God's abode and there will be peace and bliss.
- Feel your mind as a toy of God and you'll watch and enjoy all its games.
- See this world as play and as a display of God Himself and you will
repose in the Non-Dual Self.
Blessing comes to you in many forms:
- If you are generous, blessing comes to you as abundance.
- If you are hardworking, blessing comes to you as happiness.
- If you are lazy, blessing comes to you as hard work! (Laughter)
- If you are pleasure loving, blessing comes to you as dispassion.
- If you are dispassionate, blessing comes to you as knowledge of
the Self.
|| Jai Guru Dev ||
wisdom from guruji
Q: Gurudev, who did you learn all this from? Who taught you meditation?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Do you ask a poet or a writer whom did they learn
from? They write it by themselves, isn’t it?
If a poet or a writer copies content from here and there, can they call it
their own creation? Similarly, when one goes into meditation, all these
come intuitively from the same source.
Q: During a few festivals, we give all kinds of grains as donation. Why is
it said that one should not give salt as donation along with the grains?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: This is just a practice. It has not been mentioned in
the shastras. Do not worry about it.
There is no dish that does not have salt in it. Everything contains salt in
some quantity. Everything that is offered during a ritual contains some
salt in it. Coconut water contains salt. It is said that even fruits
contain salt. The air that you breathe has salt in it.
There is just a saying to not hand over oil, salt, Chilli (green/red
peppers) and water directly to someone. That is why they used to place it
on the floor. There is a belief that the vibrations of one person go to the
other person if they hand over these items directly.
In case you feel affected by the vibrations of another person, sing bhajans
or chant Om Namah Shivaya and do pranayama. All the negative effects will
go away.
Q: I have a question from the Yoga Vasishta. Shukracharya, the son of
Bhrigu Maharishi, brings a dead person back to life by sprinkling holy
water and chanting mantras. Is this possible?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: The stories in the Yoga Vasishta have a lot of deep
hidden meanings. It is not enough to read it once. As you read it again and
again, you will start understanding the secrets hidden in the book.
Q: When we chant mantras, how do they affect the surroundings, people and
the whole world?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Everything in the universe affects everything else.
So, when you chant, when you do havan, the impact of that is very positive
on the surrounding. It also brings good vibrations to you and it also
enhances positive ions in the whole atmosphere.
Q: Dakshinamurthy (an aspect of Shiva as a Guru) is said to be
Samavedapriya (one who likes the Samaveda). Why is it so?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: It must have been written by people who are
associated with the Samaveda. If people from the Rig Veda write it, they
would call it Rig vedapriya. People associated with the Yajur Veda will say
that it is the greatest of all Vedas. Lord Krishna has said
‘Vedanamsamavedosmi’ (Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 10, Verse 22). It is because
the Samaveda gives importance to devotion and music.
In the two hemispheres of the brain, the left is logic and the right is
music. Since the Samaveda contains both logic and music, it is possible
that these words came from there.
Q: Why is the Kannada language compared to Kasturi (musk)?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: If you want to compare it with Jasmine, you can!
Poets called it Kasturi Kannada. You cannot ask why they named it so.
For example, a beautiful woman is called ‘Chandramukhi’, meaning the one
whose face is like the moon. Now, the moon has a lot of spots in it. So,
why is the face compared to the moon?
There is a saying where it is mentioned that the moon looks like a Holige
(a round pancake-like sweet dish in Karnataka) for one who is hungry.
Musk has a very good fragrance. So, poets have described Kannada as a sweet
language.
Q: Nowadays, our country is facing lots of droughts. If we join the Ganga
and Kaveri rivers, it would help in irrigation. Can you please speak to the
politicians to take up this matter seriously?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Scientists say that if we construct dams for all the
rivers in our country and prevent water from going to the sea, we can
ensure that the whole of India is covered with two feet of water (referring
to the quantity of water available for irrigation).
A lot of water from rivers is going waste by being drained into the sea. We
need to use water from rivers properly. There is no dearth of water. India
receives the second highest amount of rainfall in the world. However, we
are not storing this water properly.
Form groups and construct check dams to save rain water.
Q: The number of women suffering from thyroid problem is increasing. What
is the remedy for this?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: I feel that it is due to the pesticides and chemicals
in our food.
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Do you ask a poet or a writer whom did they learn
from? They write it by themselves, isn’t it?
If a poet or a writer copies content from here and there, can they call it
their own creation? Similarly, when one goes into meditation, all these
come intuitively from the same source.
Q: During a few festivals, we give all kinds of grains as donation. Why is
it said that one should not give salt as donation along with the grains?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: This is just a practice. It has not been mentioned in
the shastras. Do not worry about it.
There is no dish that does not have salt in it. Everything contains salt in
some quantity. Everything that is offered during a ritual contains some
salt in it. Coconut water contains salt. It is said that even fruits
contain salt. The air that you breathe has salt in it.
There is just a saying to not hand over oil, salt, Chilli (green/red
peppers) and water directly to someone. That is why they used to place it
on the floor. There is a belief that the vibrations of one person go to the
other person if they hand over these items directly.
In case you feel affected by the vibrations of another person, sing bhajans
or chant Om Namah Shivaya and do pranayama. All the negative effects will
go away.
Q: I have a question from the Yoga Vasishta. Shukracharya, the son of
Bhrigu Maharishi, brings a dead person back to life by sprinkling holy
water and chanting mantras. Is this possible?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: The stories in the Yoga Vasishta have a lot of deep
hidden meanings. It is not enough to read it once. As you read it again and
again, you will start understanding the secrets hidden in the book.
Q: When we chant mantras, how do they affect the surroundings, people and
the whole world?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Everything in the universe affects everything else.
So, when you chant, when you do havan, the impact of that is very positive
on the surrounding. It also brings good vibrations to you and it also
enhances positive ions in the whole atmosphere.
Q: Dakshinamurthy (an aspect of Shiva as a Guru) is said to be
Samavedapriya (one who likes the Samaveda). Why is it so?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: It must have been written by people who are
associated with the Samaveda. If people from the Rig Veda write it, they
would call it Rig vedapriya. People associated with the Yajur Veda will say
that it is the greatest of all Vedas. Lord Krishna has said
‘Vedanamsamavedosmi’ (Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 10, Verse 22). It is because
the Samaveda gives importance to devotion and music.
In the two hemispheres of the brain, the left is logic and the right is
music. Since the Samaveda contains both logic and music, it is possible
that these words came from there.
Q: Why is the Kannada language compared to Kasturi (musk)?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: If you want to compare it with Jasmine, you can!
Poets called it Kasturi Kannada. You cannot ask why they named it so.
For example, a beautiful woman is called ‘Chandramukhi’, meaning the one
whose face is like the moon. Now, the moon has a lot of spots in it. So,
why is the face compared to the moon?
There is a saying where it is mentioned that the moon looks like a Holige
(a round pancake-like sweet dish in Karnataka) for one who is hungry.
Musk has a very good fragrance. So, poets have described Kannada as a sweet
language.
Q: Nowadays, our country is facing lots of droughts. If we join the Ganga
and Kaveri rivers, it would help in irrigation. Can you please speak to the
politicians to take up this matter seriously?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Scientists say that if we construct dams for all the
rivers in our country and prevent water from going to the sea, we can
ensure that the whole of India is covered with two feet of water (referring
to the quantity of water available for irrigation).
A lot of water from rivers is going waste by being drained into the sea. We
need to use water from rivers properly. There is no dearth of water. India
receives the second highest amount of rainfall in the world. However, we
are not storing this water properly.
Form groups and construct check dams to save rain water.
Q: The number of women suffering from thyroid problem is increasing. What
is the remedy for this?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: I feel that it is due to the pesticides and chemicals
in our food.
Spirit of Enquiry
There are six types of people who asks questions.
The first type of person who asks questions is one who is sad or unhappy.
Unhappy people ask questions but they do not listen to the answers.
This is a fact, have you not experienced this? How many of you have
experienced this in your life? (Many raise their hands)
Old people, especially when they are old and at home, suffering, they say,
‘Oh I have this problem, why has God been so unkind to me? Why this
problem?'
They keep asking these questions for which they are not even expecting an
answer from you. Remember?!
They simply ask questions, 'Why am I suffering. I did everything good, why
this suffering for me?'
So, sad or unhappy people ask questions, but they are not expecting an
answer. And if you give an answer then you are foolish.
You should keep quiet. Just smile at them. You just being with them is good
enough for them.
When a death happens in a family, people keep asking questions, 'Why this
happened?' And you have nothing to say. Do you have anything to say? No,
there is nothing to say. So your simple presence is good enough. Do not try
to answer their questions, got it?!
Also, do not be an advocate for God or make them against God.
Usually people say, 'God has been unkind to you, nature has been so unkind
to you, this should not have happened', and all these things. It does not
help them in any way.
So when sad and miserable people ask questions, you should simply keep
quiet.
Second type of people who ask questions are those who are angry; who feel
injustice has happened them. They are very angry and they ask questions.
They are not ready to listen to any answer, because when a person is angry,
the mind is already closed. The intellect is not functioning. Emotion has
taken over.
In that situation it is better to let them calm down and not go on
answering their questions. An angry person’s questions are useless to
answer.
The third type of people who ask questions are those who ask questions just
to make their presence felt, they are not interested in an answer.
'I am here, do you recognize me', that is all they want to know, they are
not at all interested in the answer. If you answer their question, they
look somewhere else, or they may be doing something else. Because it is so
compelling for them to make their presence felt they ask a question.
This is the third type of people.
If you are a school teacher you will have this experience. A college
teacher has written about this, that in the college, sometimes people get
up and stand just to show-off that they are intelligent and they are
present in the classroom.
How many of you here have experienced this? Doesn't this happen in IIT all
the time? Someone just stands up and questions.
The fourth type of people are those who think they know the answer but they
just come to test whether the other guy knows the answer or not. As if to
say, 'I know all the answers, but I want to test this guy, whether he knows
the answer or not.'
It is useless to talk to such people.
The fifth type of people who ask questions are those who have a deep
experience and they want to understand that.
'I meditated and I felt all these sensations happening. What was that? I
want to know more about it. '
'When I meditated I saw light and there was this beautiful fragrance. I
want to know about this. I want to understand if I am doing the technique
correct. What is the meaning of this experience? '
Asking questions after having an experience, because experience and
understanding has to go together.
When some people have experiences for the first time then they want to
understand it and so they ask questions.
The sixth type of people who ask questions are called Jigyasu.
There is a burning desire deep in their mind to know the truth, to know the
reality, and they have faith in whom they are asking the questions to, that
this person knows the answer, and so they go and ask them.
You do not ask a question relating to medicine to the maid servant.
Someone is sweeping your floor and she is washing the vessels in your home,
you wouldn’t go ask her what medicine should you take because you know that
she may not know.
When you are sick, you will go to a doctor and ask him because you know
that he knows.
So when you have confidence that the person knows the answer, and you want
to ask your question to that person, then you are ready to take the answer.
A situation in which - you do not know, you want to know and you are sure
that the person whom you want to put the question to knows the answer.
When these three factors are there, then there is Jigyasa - The real spirit
of enquiry.
You do not ask a sweeper how to go to the airport.
You do not go to a gardener and ask the gardener how to drive a car, or how
to administer a medicine. You know that they will not know because you have
an idea of what they know.
When you go to a gardener and ask them a question in their field, then you
know they know the answer.
So, knowing that this person knows the answer, and I do not know the answer
and then asking - that is a genuine seeker.
This is the sixth type of people who ask questions.
All our Shastras, all our scriptures in India have begun with a question.
Which type of question? Not the first type, nor the second, nor the third,
nor the fourth, nor the fifth, but the sixth type of question - I do not
know, I want to know, and this person knows so I ask him the question.
All the knowledge from the scriptures have started with a genuine spirit of
enquiry, through questions.
Once somebody was standing in a railway station and kept asking the ticket
collector about every train that came and went. The ticket collector
answered him three to four times and finally he got so tired that he said,
‘Come on gentleman, just tell me where you want to go.'
The man said, ‘Nowhere , I just want to cross over to the other side.'
So if you just have to cross over to the other side, it is futile for you
to keep asking questions which are irrelevant. This is what most people do,
ask irrelevant things just to spend time.
So, whatever I have said, ponder over it. Think about it again and again!
Once in Canada, during a satsang, I said, '2+1=0'.
There was debate over this for two hours. There were all the top professors
from places like IIT.
It was such fun for everyone - how can Gurudev say this, 2+1=0.
See, it also depends upon who says it. If a child says, '2+1=0', then we
can say it is wrong. But if a great professor says, '2+1=0', then we cannot
say, 'No, this is not correct.' You have to ponder over it. You need to
think about it. There could be some secret behind it and that is why he has
said it. He is not a fool to just say it like that.
On the surface when you look at it, you might feel that this is impossible,
but there is some possibility in every impossibility. It is when you sit
and ponder that many new possibilities open up.
So that day so much of knowledge opened up by just thinking how 2+1=0.
With this we had one complete tape. It was hilarious, everyone was laughing
throughout the whole two and a half hours.
It depends on who is giving the knowledge, who is saying it.
If a very intelligent person says, '2+1=0', you cannot dismiss it. You have
to go into it, and contemplate. This is what is called Koan (a puzzling,
often paradoxical statement or story, used in Zen Buddhism as an aid to
meditation and a means of gaining spiritual awakening.) In Hindi it is
called Paheli (riddle).
See, life is like a puzzle and many times knowledge also comes to us in the
form of a puzzle. Using the sharpness of the intellect we need to
contemplate and chew on the knowledge to understand the secrets hidden
inside; the meaning hidden inside.
In India, there have been many great intellectual teachers like that, and
these teachers used to convey everything in the form of puzzles to the very
intelligent ones. So for them to receive the knowledge, they had to first
think and solve the puzzle. Then they would receive the knowledge.
You must have heard about Vikramaditya and Betal; there are so many puzzles
like that in our country which are very beneficial for children. It
sharpens their intellect, and their thinking faculty also becomes very
sharp.
Even Lord Krishna, after giving all the knowledge to Arjuna, he said, 'I
have said all that I needed to say, now you think over it. Go deep into it,
contemplate and if you think it is right, then you accept it.'
So after listening, you need to contemplate. Just listening is not enough,
digesting it is also important. Think over it again and again. Understand
the meaning behind the meaning. And without contemplating over it, you
should neither accept it nor reject it.
If you reject it, then that is wrong, and if you just accept it and sit,
that is also wrong.
You have to listen, contemplate and then accept. Then the knowledge will be
established inside you.
If you accept it immediately after you listen, then there is no chance to
ponder over it. And if you immediately reject ii saying, 'No, this is
wrong', then also there is no contemplation.
So first listen, accept and then contemplate over it. And after
contemplating over it, accept it.
The first type of person who asks questions is one who is sad or unhappy.
Unhappy people ask questions but they do not listen to the answers.
This is a fact, have you not experienced this? How many of you have
experienced this in your life? (Many raise their hands)
Old people, especially when they are old and at home, suffering, they say,
‘Oh I have this problem, why has God been so unkind to me? Why this
problem?'
They keep asking these questions for which they are not even expecting an
answer from you. Remember?!
They simply ask questions, 'Why am I suffering. I did everything good, why
this suffering for me?'
So, sad or unhappy people ask questions, but they are not expecting an
answer. And if you give an answer then you are foolish.
You should keep quiet. Just smile at them. You just being with them is good
enough for them.
When a death happens in a family, people keep asking questions, 'Why this
happened?' And you have nothing to say. Do you have anything to say? No,
there is nothing to say. So your simple presence is good enough. Do not try
to answer their questions, got it?!
Also, do not be an advocate for God or make them against God.
Usually people say, 'God has been unkind to you, nature has been so unkind
to you, this should not have happened', and all these things. It does not
help them in any way.
So when sad and miserable people ask questions, you should simply keep
quiet.
Second type of people who ask questions are those who are angry; who feel
injustice has happened them. They are very angry and they ask questions.
They are not ready to listen to any answer, because when a person is angry,
the mind is already closed. The intellect is not functioning. Emotion has
taken over.
In that situation it is better to let them calm down and not go on
answering their questions. An angry person’s questions are useless to
answer.
The third type of people who ask questions are those who ask questions just
to make their presence felt, they are not interested in an answer.
'I am here, do you recognize me', that is all they want to know, they are
not at all interested in the answer. If you answer their question, they
look somewhere else, or they may be doing something else. Because it is so
compelling for them to make their presence felt they ask a question.
This is the third type of people.
If you are a school teacher you will have this experience. A college
teacher has written about this, that in the college, sometimes people get
up and stand just to show-off that they are intelligent and they are
present in the classroom.
How many of you here have experienced this? Doesn't this happen in IIT all
the time? Someone just stands up and questions.
The fourth type of people are those who think they know the answer but they
just come to test whether the other guy knows the answer or not. As if to
say, 'I know all the answers, but I want to test this guy, whether he knows
the answer or not.'
It is useless to talk to such people.
The fifth type of people who ask questions are those who have a deep
experience and they want to understand that.
'I meditated and I felt all these sensations happening. What was that? I
want to know more about it. '
'When I meditated I saw light and there was this beautiful fragrance. I
want to know about this. I want to understand if I am doing the technique
correct. What is the meaning of this experience? '
Asking questions after having an experience, because experience and
understanding has to go together.
When some people have experiences for the first time then they want to
understand it and so they ask questions.
The sixth type of people who ask questions are called Jigyasu.
There is a burning desire deep in their mind to know the truth, to know the
reality, and they have faith in whom they are asking the questions to, that
this person knows the answer, and so they go and ask them.
You do not ask a question relating to medicine to the maid servant.
Someone is sweeping your floor and she is washing the vessels in your home,
you wouldn’t go ask her what medicine should you take because you know that
she may not know.
When you are sick, you will go to a doctor and ask him because you know
that he knows.
So when you have confidence that the person knows the answer, and you want
to ask your question to that person, then you are ready to take the answer.
A situation in which - you do not know, you want to know and you are sure
that the person whom you want to put the question to knows the answer.
When these three factors are there, then there is Jigyasa - The real spirit
of enquiry.
You do not ask a sweeper how to go to the airport.
You do not go to a gardener and ask the gardener how to drive a car, or how
to administer a medicine. You know that they will not know because you have
an idea of what they know.
When you go to a gardener and ask them a question in their field, then you
know they know the answer.
So, knowing that this person knows the answer, and I do not know the answer
and then asking - that is a genuine seeker.
This is the sixth type of people who ask questions.
All our Shastras, all our scriptures in India have begun with a question.
Which type of question? Not the first type, nor the second, nor the third,
nor the fourth, nor the fifth, but the sixth type of question - I do not
know, I want to know, and this person knows so I ask him the question.
All the knowledge from the scriptures have started with a genuine spirit of
enquiry, through questions.
Once somebody was standing in a railway station and kept asking the ticket
collector about every train that came and went. The ticket collector
answered him three to four times and finally he got so tired that he said,
‘Come on gentleman, just tell me where you want to go.'
The man said, ‘Nowhere , I just want to cross over to the other side.'
So if you just have to cross over to the other side, it is futile for you
to keep asking questions which are irrelevant. This is what most people do,
ask irrelevant things just to spend time.
So, whatever I have said, ponder over it. Think about it again and again!
Once in Canada, during a satsang, I said, '2+1=0'.
There was debate over this for two hours. There were all the top professors
from places like IIT.
It was such fun for everyone - how can Gurudev say this, 2+1=0.
See, it also depends upon who says it. If a child says, '2+1=0', then we
can say it is wrong. But if a great professor says, '2+1=0', then we cannot
say, 'No, this is not correct.' You have to ponder over it. You need to
think about it. There could be some secret behind it and that is why he has
said it. He is not a fool to just say it like that.
On the surface when you look at it, you might feel that this is impossible,
but there is some possibility in every impossibility. It is when you sit
and ponder that many new possibilities open up.
So that day so much of knowledge opened up by just thinking how 2+1=0.
With this we had one complete tape. It was hilarious, everyone was laughing
throughout the whole two and a half hours.
It depends on who is giving the knowledge, who is saying it.
If a very intelligent person says, '2+1=0', you cannot dismiss it. You have
to go into it, and contemplate. This is what is called Koan (a puzzling,
often paradoxical statement or story, used in Zen Buddhism as an aid to
meditation and a means of gaining spiritual awakening.) In Hindi it is
called Paheli (riddle).
See, life is like a puzzle and many times knowledge also comes to us in the
form of a puzzle. Using the sharpness of the intellect we need to
contemplate and chew on the knowledge to understand the secrets hidden
inside; the meaning hidden inside.
In India, there have been many great intellectual teachers like that, and
these teachers used to convey everything in the form of puzzles to the very
intelligent ones. So for them to receive the knowledge, they had to first
think and solve the puzzle. Then they would receive the knowledge.
You must have heard about Vikramaditya and Betal; there are so many puzzles
like that in our country which are very beneficial for children. It
sharpens their intellect, and their thinking faculty also becomes very
sharp.
Even Lord Krishna, after giving all the knowledge to Arjuna, he said, 'I
have said all that I needed to say, now you think over it. Go deep into it,
contemplate and if you think it is right, then you accept it.'
So after listening, you need to contemplate. Just listening is not enough,
digesting it is also important. Think over it again and again. Understand
the meaning behind the meaning. And without contemplating over it, you
should neither accept it nor reject it.
If you reject it, then that is wrong, and if you just accept it and sit,
that is also wrong.
You have to listen, contemplate and then accept. Then the knowledge will be
established inside you.
If you accept it immediately after you listen, then there is no chance to
ponder over it. And if you immediately reject ii saying, 'No, this is
wrong', then also there is no contemplation.
So first listen, accept and then contemplate over it. And after
contemplating over it, accept it.
Wisdom from guruji
THE DANCE OF THE DIVINE
Q: Dear Gurudev, can you please tell us more about the lineage of the
masters?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Well, we do not know when it exactly began, since it
goes back many thousands of years.
The knowledge of Yoga, Meditation, and the knowledge that the whole of the
universe is created by One energy, has been passed down through the
tradition of the Masters.
Usually when you create something, the creator is separate and the object
is separate.
For example, if you were to create a candle, you would think - this candle
is different from me, and you would keep it apart and away from yourself.
You would think, ‘It is my creation but it is not me.'
So, this is usually what people think, the Creator and this Creation are
two separate things. But if you say God is omnipresent, meaning present
everywhere, he must be present inside the Creation as well.
Where is the space for something to exist outside of it, if something is
omnipresent? Isn't it?!
If I am all powerful, can there be something else which is more powerful
than me? Not possible.
So the Creation and Creator are not two different things. There is only One
thing.
Now, how do we understand this, that the Creator and the Creation are one?
Through the example of a dance and the dancer. Can you separate a dance
from the dancer? No! It is impossible.
If you have to see the dance, you can only see it through the dancer.
A painter and his painting are different. A painter can paint a painting
and move away, and there will still be a painting. But a dancer cannot move
away from his dance.
So the Creation and the Creator are like the dance and the dancer.
That energy, which we call God, or Love, or Light, is permeating the whole
of creation, and every particle of the universe.
This is the essence of the ancient knowledge, and this is exactly what
modern science, and quantum mechanics explains as well.
The whole world is made up of One field; One energy.
This solves so many riddles of the theologians.
Q: How can we turn thoughts of lack into thoughts of abundance?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: The very thought that you want to do it, means you
have already started moving in that direction.
Look at what your requirements are and you will see that they will always
be met. Whatever you need always comes to you. But do not take it to an
extreme and say, 'Let me just do nothing and let everything come to me',
no, that is not correct.
You have to put in your efforts, and you have to have courage. These two
things bring you wealth.
There is proverb in Sanskrit that says, ‘Udyoginam purusha-simham upayati
Lakshmi.'
It means that great wealth comes to one who has the courage of a lion and
who puts in all his efforts. Therefore put in all your efforts, and be like
a lion.
Do you know, the lion is the laziest animal. It is the lioness who hunts
for the prey and presents it to the lion. The lion just goes and eats the
prey. The lioness does the work.
The lion does not even do the work of hunting the prey. He is lazy, yet he
is the king of the forest and has the confidence.
So this is what you need to have - confidence and the sense of majesty of a
lion.
Then you must put in your 100% efforts, and that is when wealth comes to
you.
Do not be feverish about it, just take up a project and do it.
Later on, you will see that you will get wealth as well, along with it.
Q: Dear Gurudev, you said there are different types of prana, could you
please talk a little bit more about that?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: There are ten types of Prana (the subtle life force
energy). Of these, there are five major and five minor kinds of Prana.
Today let me just talk about the five major types of Prana.
The first major type of Prana is called Prana which arises from your navel
upwards to the top of the head.
Then there is another type of Prana that goes downwards from the navel, and
it is called Apana.
When the Prana level is too high, you cannot sleep; you can get insomnia
and you feel very jittery. However, if the Apana level is too high, you
feel so dull that you do not even want to get off the bed.
Have you had this experience? Sometimes you feel so heavy, gross, and dull.
This is due to the imbalance of Apana.
The third type of Prana is Samana which is present as the digestive fire in
the digestive system, i.e., in the stomach. It is the agni or the fire that
helps digest the food.
Samana is that which helps indigestion, and it also helps other bodily
systems. It helps in balancing the system.
Then there is Udana Vayu or Udana Prana which is somewhere near the heart
region and is responsible for emotions.
In Sudarshan Kriya, people cry or they laugh, and you find that all these
emotions well up. This is due to the Udana Vayu. So this Udana Vayu is
responsible for all the emotions.
Then the fifth type of Prana called Vyana which is responsible for all the
movement in the body. It is spread all over the body.
In Sudarshan Kriya, you feel some tingling, some energy all over the body.
Have you all experienced this?
What happens in Sudarshan Kriya is, all the five Pranas get balanced, and
that is why you cry, or you laugh, and you feel a tingling all over the
body. That is the specialty of Sudarshan Kriya.
You also tend to feel very hungry after the Kriya, is it not so?
So, these five Prana in the body run our lives.
If Samana is imbalanced, then it gives rise to digestive problems, and you
cannot digest the food properly, or you may experience nausea. All this
happens because of an imbalance of the Samana Prana.
When Udana Prana is stuck, you feel an emotional block that also affects
your thinking and your mind.
When the Vyana which is all over the body is imbalanced, then you have
joint pain, or movement trouble, and either you become too jittery and
restless, or you may feel like you do not want to do anything.
Moving around anywhere in such a state gives discomfort and creates
restlessness in the body. All this is caused by the Vyana imbalance.
After Sudarshan Kriya, you would have noticed that all these imbalances go
away. Has this not happened to all of you?
All earlier discomfort in the movements of the body, or its circulation, or
some pains due to Vyana imbalance, all disappeared after Sudarshan Kriya.
So these are the five different Pranas.
There are five other sub-ordinate Pranas as well, but that we will discuss
that another time.
Q: How compatible are love and dispassion for a life companion?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: You need both, passion and dispassion in life.
Usually we think, ‘When I have passion, how can I have dispassion? If I am
dispassionate, how can I be passionate about anything?’
This is what the normal concept is in the minds of people. I tell you, it
is not that way.
It is like, breathing in is passion, breathing out is dispassion and
in-between the two, is compassion. You need all three.
You need to be passionate about something in life, otherwise you will go
into depression.
Be passionate about knowledge, be passionate about doing seva, be
passionate about thinking; or about anything. Some passion definitely needs
to be there in life. You can have a passion for wisdom as well. So passion
is essential!
Dispassion is essential as well. Without dispassion there is no joy; no
happiness. You will be miserable if you do not have any dispassion.
And of course, compassion is needed in life. So all three are essential.
Q: What happens if we do not make it to liberation this time around. Can we
be with you in our next lifetime?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Yes, of course. Do not worry about it.
Q: Dear Gurudev, I wonder why so many couples cannot get children. What is
happening in the Western World?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Well, that you have to ask the doctors. They will
give you the right diagnosis.
We cannot generalize about this. Of course one of the reasons is alcohol
and the use of intoxicants. That is no good.
People start drinking alcohol right from their college or schooldays. That
is no good. This world would be a far better place if people keep away from
intoxicants.
Q: Dear Gurudev, can you please tell us more about the lineage of the
masters?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Well, we do not know when it exactly began, since it
goes back many thousands of years.
The knowledge of Yoga, Meditation, and the knowledge that the whole of the
universe is created by One energy, has been passed down through the
tradition of the Masters.
Usually when you create something, the creator is separate and the object
is separate.
For example, if you were to create a candle, you would think - this candle
is different from me, and you would keep it apart and away from yourself.
You would think, ‘It is my creation but it is not me.'
So, this is usually what people think, the Creator and this Creation are
two separate things. But if you say God is omnipresent, meaning present
everywhere, he must be present inside the Creation as well.
Where is the space for something to exist outside of it, if something is
omnipresent? Isn't it?!
If I am all powerful, can there be something else which is more powerful
than me? Not possible.
So the Creation and Creator are not two different things. There is only One
thing.
Now, how do we understand this, that the Creator and the Creation are one?
Through the example of a dance and the dancer. Can you separate a dance
from the dancer? No! It is impossible.
If you have to see the dance, you can only see it through the dancer.
A painter and his painting are different. A painter can paint a painting
and move away, and there will still be a painting. But a dancer cannot move
away from his dance.
So the Creation and the Creator are like the dance and the dancer.
That energy, which we call God, or Love, or Light, is permeating the whole
of creation, and every particle of the universe.
This is the essence of the ancient knowledge, and this is exactly what
modern science, and quantum mechanics explains as well.
The whole world is made up of One field; One energy.
This solves so many riddles of the theologians.
Q: How can we turn thoughts of lack into thoughts of abundance?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: The very thought that you want to do it, means you
have already started moving in that direction.
Look at what your requirements are and you will see that they will always
be met. Whatever you need always comes to you. But do not take it to an
extreme and say, 'Let me just do nothing and let everything come to me',
no, that is not correct.
You have to put in your efforts, and you have to have courage. These two
things bring you wealth.
There is proverb in Sanskrit that says, ‘Udyoginam purusha-simham upayati
Lakshmi.'
It means that great wealth comes to one who has the courage of a lion and
who puts in all his efforts. Therefore put in all your efforts, and be like
a lion.
Do you know, the lion is the laziest animal. It is the lioness who hunts
for the prey and presents it to the lion. The lion just goes and eats the
prey. The lioness does the work.
The lion does not even do the work of hunting the prey. He is lazy, yet he
is the king of the forest and has the confidence.
So this is what you need to have - confidence and the sense of majesty of a
lion.
Then you must put in your 100% efforts, and that is when wealth comes to
you.
Do not be feverish about it, just take up a project and do it.
Later on, you will see that you will get wealth as well, along with it.
Q: Dear Gurudev, you said there are different types of prana, could you
please talk a little bit more about that?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: There are ten types of Prana (the subtle life force
energy). Of these, there are five major and five minor kinds of Prana.
Today let me just talk about the five major types of Prana.
The first major type of Prana is called Prana which arises from your navel
upwards to the top of the head.
Then there is another type of Prana that goes downwards from the navel, and
it is called Apana.
When the Prana level is too high, you cannot sleep; you can get insomnia
and you feel very jittery. However, if the Apana level is too high, you
feel so dull that you do not even want to get off the bed.
Have you had this experience? Sometimes you feel so heavy, gross, and dull.
This is due to the imbalance of Apana.
The third type of Prana is Samana which is present as the digestive fire in
the digestive system, i.e., in the stomach. It is the agni or the fire that
helps digest the food.
Samana is that which helps indigestion, and it also helps other bodily
systems. It helps in balancing the system.
Then there is Udana Vayu or Udana Prana which is somewhere near the heart
region and is responsible for emotions.
In Sudarshan Kriya, people cry or they laugh, and you find that all these
emotions well up. This is due to the Udana Vayu. So this Udana Vayu is
responsible for all the emotions.
Then the fifth type of Prana called Vyana which is responsible for all the
movement in the body. It is spread all over the body.
In Sudarshan Kriya, you feel some tingling, some energy all over the body.
Have you all experienced this?
What happens in Sudarshan Kriya is, all the five Pranas get balanced, and
that is why you cry, or you laugh, and you feel a tingling all over the
body. That is the specialty of Sudarshan Kriya.
You also tend to feel very hungry after the Kriya, is it not so?
So, these five Prana in the body run our lives.
If Samana is imbalanced, then it gives rise to digestive problems, and you
cannot digest the food properly, or you may experience nausea. All this
happens because of an imbalance of the Samana Prana.
When Udana Prana is stuck, you feel an emotional block that also affects
your thinking and your mind.
When the Vyana which is all over the body is imbalanced, then you have
joint pain, or movement trouble, and either you become too jittery and
restless, or you may feel like you do not want to do anything.
Moving around anywhere in such a state gives discomfort and creates
restlessness in the body. All this is caused by the Vyana imbalance.
After Sudarshan Kriya, you would have noticed that all these imbalances go
away. Has this not happened to all of you?
All earlier discomfort in the movements of the body, or its circulation, or
some pains due to Vyana imbalance, all disappeared after Sudarshan Kriya.
So these are the five different Pranas.
There are five other sub-ordinate Pranas as well, but that we will discuss
that another time.
Q: How compatible are love and dispassion for a life companion?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: You need both, passion and dispassion in life.
Usually we think, ‘When I have passion, how can I have dispassion? If I am
dispassionate, how can I be passionate about anything?’
This is what the normal concept is in the minds of people. I tell you, it
is not that way.
It is like, breathing in is passion, breathing out is dispassion and
in-between the two, is compassion. You need all three.
You need to be passionate about something in life, otherwise you will go
into depression.
Be passionate about knowledge, be passionate about doing seva, be
passionate about thinking; or about anything. Some passion definitely needs
to be there in life. You can have a passion for wisdom as well. So passion
is essential!
Dispassion is essential as well. Without dispassion there is no joy; no
happiness. You will be miserable if you do not have any dispassion.
And of course, compassion is needed in life. So all three are essential.
Q: What happens if we do not make it to liberation this time around. Can we
be with you in our next lifetime?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Yes, of course. Do not worry about it.
Q: Dear Gurudev, I wonder why so many couples cannot get children. What is
happening in the Western World?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Well, that you have to ask the doctors. They will
give you the right diagnosis.
We cannot generalize about this. Of course one of the reasons is alcohol
and the use of intoxicants. That is no good.
People start drinking alcohol right from their college or schooldays. That
is no good. This world would be a far better place if people keep away from
intoxicants.
KNOWLEDGE SHEET - DIVINE MUSIC HAPPENS WHEN ALL 7 LAYERS OF EXISTENCE
After tuning the seven strings of Veena, Sri Sri said, “This is what needs
to be done before playing an instrument – tuning the instrument, and that
is what we have been doing here – tuning the seven layers of existence to
connect to the cosmic energy. Body, Mind, Breath, Intellect, Memory, ego
and Self - When the seven strings are tuned, music happens.
Every creature on this planet brings down a particular electromagnetic wave
on the Earth. And even if one creature goes missing, the Earth would not be
able to sustain itself. There is pig, snake, mouse, lion, cat, fish and so
many others, and all play an important role in maintaining the balance on
the planet. That is what scientists say today.
According to the laws of nature, everything radiates energy. In Indian
mythology, every god or goddess is associated with a vehicle in the form of
animal or bird. The outlook behind this is that that particular animal or
bird brings down the associated vibration on the Earth. For example,
through the means of tiger, the vibrations of mother Divine or Goddess
Durga descends to the Earth. Crows carry the vibration of God Saturn (God
Shani), bull descends the vibrations of Lord Shiva, and Mouse that of Lord
Ganesha. The Nature has created these animals according to its own rules.
Wherever these animals may be, the corresponding vibrations are available
to us through those. And this is the logic behind various native cultures
worshiping different animals and birds, connecting divinity with
everything. Of course, we can’t specifically say which animal brings down
which vibes, because a lot of research needs to be done on this.
These are all so important things and we hold on to all unnecessary
superstitions and forget the basic essence. The superstitions and distorted
knowledge is forwarded, but the main essence is not sent to the next
generation. We cannot understand the full essence totally but, when we have
some experience then a little understanding follows. The knowledge is
infinite and we cannot totally understand it but a little thirst for
knowledge should be there.
We should not be totally one sided – neither condemn the rituals nor get
too much stuck with them. It is so beautifully said in the knowledge of
Bhagwat Gita, “न कर्मणामनारम्भान्नैष्कर्म्यं पुरुषो अश्नुते। न च
सन्न्यसनादेव सिद्धिं समधिगच्छति ॥”. The middle path is the Golden key!
Neither with action, nor with money and not even with prosperity, but by
getting established in one’s inner self, one can connect to the infinity.
Devotion is the primary requirement, and what to do to have devotion? Yoga,
Meditation, Mantra chanting and Music. God is delighted by your devotion!
There are two kinds of karma:
Nitya karma – things that you do every day, such as kriya, introspecting on
one’s origin, feeding birds and animals, preserving plants and spending
sometime in contemplating on knowledge.
Anitya karma – things that you do once in a while. When you participate in
the homas during Navratri, it takes care of your Anitya karma
|| Jai Guru Dev ||
to be done before playing an instrument – tuning the instrument, and that
is what we have been doing here – tuning the seven layers of existence to
connect to the cosmic energy. Body, Mind, Breath, Intellect, Memory, ego
and Self - When the seven strings are tuned, music happens.
Every creature on this planet brings down a particular electromagnetic wave
on the Earth. And even if one creature goes missing, the Earth would not be
able to sustain itself. There is pig, snake, mouse, lion, cat, fish and so
many others, and all play an important role in maintaining the balance on
the planet. That is what scientists say today.
According to the laws of nature, everything radiates energy. In Indian
mythology, every god or goddess is associated with a vehicle in the form of
animal or bird. The outlook behind this is that that particular animal or
bird brings down the associated vibration on the Earth. For example,
through the means of tiger, the vibrations of mother Divine or Goddess
Durga descends to the Earth. Crows carry the vibration of God Saturn (God
Shani), bull descends the vibrations of Lord Shiva, and Mouse that of Lord
Ganesha. The Nature has created these animals according to its own rules.
Wherever these animals may be, the corresponding vibrations are available
to us through those. And this is the logic behind various native cultures
worshiping different animals and birds, connecting divinity with
everything. Of course, we can’t specifically say which animal brings down
which vibes, because a lot of research needs to be done on this.
These are all so important things and we hold on to all unnecessary
superstitions and forget the basic essence. The superstitions and distorted
knowledge is forwarded, but the main essence is not sent to the next
generation. We cannot understand the full essence totally but, when we have
some experience then a little understanding follows. The knowledge is
infinite and we cannot totally understand it but a little thirst for
knowledge should be there.
We should not be totally one sided – neither condemn the rituals nor get
too much stuck with them. It is so beautifully said in the knowledge of
Bhagwat Gita, “न कर्मणामनारम्भान्नैष्कर्म्यं पुरुषो अश्नुते। न च
सन्न्यसनादेव सिद्धिं समधिगच्छति ॥”. The middle path is the Golden key!
Neither with action, nor with money and not even with prosperity, but by
getting established in one’s inner self, one can connect to the infinity.
Devotion is the primary requirement, and what to do to have devotion? Yoga,
Meditation, Mantra chanting and Music. God is delighted by your devotion!
There are two kinds of karma:
Nitya karma – things that you do every day, such as kriya, introspecting on
one’s origin, feeding birds and animals, preserving plants and spending
sometime in contemplating on knowledge.
Anitya karma – things that you do once in a while. When you participate in
the homas during Navratri, it takes care of your Anitya karma
|| Jai Guru Dev ||
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