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.
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