ART OF LIVING ARTICLES n VIDEOS

Benefits of Meditation Take a few moments every day for doing nothing. It really brings a lot of energy and uplifts the spirit. I think this is what is needed today. Our brain is bombarded with so much information, and so we need to recharge from time to time. Isn't it so? So a few moments of conscious relaxation will make a difference. There are two types of relaxation: One is unconscious relaxation, which is absolutely essential, and which we do every single night; probably in the day time also. But there is a rest which is different from sleep, when we are conscious and still relaxing. That is what is meditation. You must have heard about a research paper which has been published recently, that if someone meditates for two months, i.e., eight weeks, the structure of the brain changes; the grey matter increases. So, there are many benefits of meditation: It just gives you more alertness It gives you a very relaxed and happy feeling from inside It helps you create a s...

In the field you throw so many seeds. Not all seeds sprout. Some sprout, some don’t. When you sow saplings, not every sapling grows. Some do, some don’t. In a tree, not all flowers become fruit. Some fall when they are not even ripe. That’s why you put your effort and then you give up (here meaning surrender). Giving up without putting any effort is foolishness and after putting all your effort, not giving up is also foolishness. Put all your effort and give up. Not putting all your effort and giving up is also foolishness. What makes you free? Putting your effort and giving up makes you free. If you say, 'I give up', without putting effort, it doesn’t make you free. You say, 'I give up', but you have not really given up because of that tendency of wanting to do. That will hold you back from being free. The secret of freedom is, put your effort and give up. Not putting your effort and giving up doesn’t free you. And, putting all your effort and not giving up will ...

Yoga: Stilling the mind There is a new icebreaker in the international diplomatic circuit. The Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s call at the UN General Assembly for declaring an International Yoga Day has gained support from several quarters – many representatives from Congress and President Obama as well have shown keen interest in yoga. From being an ancient spiritual pursuit for those seeking enlightenment, yoga has been absorbed into mainstream lifestyle by people from all cultures and backgrounds across the globe. And now it has also arrived in the global political arena. Good governance and administration require multi-faceted skills and yoga brings skill in action. In fact, it was called Raja Yoga because it was practiced by kings and princes in the ancient days. Yoga became popular in the west as a solution to lose weight or as a physical exercise and people also found relief from many ills such as stress, anxiety, professional burnout, addictions and insomnia. In add...

Medical findings about the Sudarshan Kriya taught in Art Of Living course: A world conference on science, consciousness and spirituality held in New Delhi noted the key findings of research conducted on the Sudarshan Kriya . Below is a simplified synopsis: 1. Less depression, more elation Dr Richard Brown from the USA has postulated that Kriya contributes to a state of alert calmness through its effect on the vagus nerve. The vagus nerve is crucial in social bonding, empathy and love; it is the centre of our gut instincts and is crucial to our ability to perceive, observe and make complex decisions. Impaired vagal activity is found in people with depression, anxiety, panic disorders, irritable bowel syndrome, violent adults, post traumatic stress disorder, early Alzheimer’s and obesity. 2. Sleep like a baby `Stephen Porges suggested that the different rhythms of breath in Kriya stimulates different fibers of the vagus nerve. This makes SKY unique and likely to have a much wid...

Q: Why is your photo everywhere? What about the ego? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar : I in fact, don’t want my photo to be everywhere. I tell people, but they do the same things, they bring it. Dr. Lawrence Carter also made a portrait of me in Atlanta (laughter). A huge big portrait and put it in the hall of fame there, in the university. I want to tell you one incident. I was once travelling in a plane and there was a politician, a minister travelling in that same plane. When we got d own, the politician was trying to come out, but there were about 200 people trying to give him a garland, and he was refusing. He was running around saying, 'No, no, don’t give me a garland. I am a simple man, don’t honor me'. And the whole drama happened for about half an hour. In his refusing the garland, he made it into a big scene. I said, 'If they brought it with so much love, you should have just taken it and moved on!' The whole thing would’ve finished in 2-3 minutes. In Ashtavakra Gita i...

Gurudev, I have heard this couplet: 'Sadguru pura je mile, paiye rattan upaar; Mann dije Guru aapne, paiye moksh dwaar' (One who has a Sa dguru receives wealth greater than the rarest gems, and one whose heart is devoted to the Sadguru finds liberation effortlessly). How can a seeker surrender himself wholeheartedly to the Sadguru? What does this couplet mean? Sri Sri: This is what I just explained, isn’t it? I gave you the answer even before you asked me this question! (Laughter) What does a Guru want from you? Just your heart, isn’t it? So dedicate your heart to the Guru, and be free! Giving your heart to the Sadguru means that you feel that ‘My Guru belongs to me, and is taking care of everything’. Just have this faith. See, the mind can get clouded with doubts and a million other thoughts. At first you doubt yourself, then you doubt the others around you, and then you doubt the whole world around you. This doubt slowly consumes your mind. Doubt is responsible ...

Q: How can we remove the physical desires that harm us and our relationships? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: By enhancing your prana (energy). When there is lust, there is a feeling of wanting to grab. When there is love, there is a feeling of wanting to give. How can the feeling of lust be transformed to love? By raising the energy level in our system. When energy is stuck in the lower chakra (two-three inches above the base of the spine), there is a feeling of lust. However, when the energy channels open up, the energy rises. Then there is more love, compassion, awareness. All these other beautiful, finer emotions also get opened up. Then violence disappears from the system.