You having desires is not the problem, but the problem is when desires have you!

Q:
Dearest Guruji, what if someone offers me some other technique for self reali
zation? Should I accept or reject? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Listen, there are so many
people trying to give so many te chniques and if you take all of them, you will be
in confusion, it will be a mes s. Its better that you stick to one set of practices
and go deep into that. If y ou don t get any change or benefit at all from this
technique, even after practici ng for a good amount of time, then I would myself
tell you that this doesn t suit you and go to that. If you have got some benefit
from this, I would tell you to stick to it and go deeper into it. That is very
necessary. Even if you get ten percent benefit in any one path, you should continue
for some time. It s not the technique that is important, it is yo ur attention,
your dedication and your eagerness to grow that is good enough. Co llecting
techniques will not help you, yeah! To drop everything and relax will h elp. Your
growth happens not by doing too many things but learning to undo or no t do
anything. Many people will ask you to do this or that, I would say RELAX. A nd you
all know the three golden rules to Meditation. For the next few minutes I want
nothing, I do nothing and I am nothing. This is the highest technique and any
technique should lead you to this level of being nothing, removing all the labels
we put on ourselves of the roles we play . If it doesn t, then it s no good a
technique and it s only a very mediocre, some pre liminary beginning technique, may
be just to bring some focus. If you understand this philosophy, I want nothing, I
do nothing, I am nothing rest is all done! Yea h, so simple and yet very profound
very profound! Q: Dearest Guruji when would you give advice to drop or to change a
commitment? Thank you so much. Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: When you feel you can never
achieve the commitment or when you feel the commitment is stifling you. When you
feel the commitment you have undertaken was done in great ignorance and you are
getting nowhere then you move out of that commitment, okay! Q: How to make
teenagers do the course? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: This you should think, how to make
teenagers do the course . You think and come up with some ideas. You allure them by
skillfully telling t hem the benefits of the course. You can tell them, Come, we
will take you for a h oliday somewhere . Q: How can I get rid of my sense of guilt?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: When you feel guilty, just chant Om Namah Shivaya . Do some B
hastrika, some Pranayama, Kriya. Doing Om Namah Shivaya chanting one hundred and e
ight times also helps a lot. You chant one hundred and eight times, and then rel ax
and meditate. See, new energy has come in you and you have become a new perso n.
That person who did a mistake is gone, has packed off his suitcase and gone. Now
inside you is a new person. Start believing in the innocence of the present moment.
In the present moment, the YOU in you, the energy in you is innocent, okay ! Q: How
do I give more love to myself? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: You want to give more love to
yourself, IMPOSSIBLE. If an ocean says how can I give more water to myself, what
can be said? If sugarcane s ays how can I give more sweetness to myself, what would
you say? It is like sun saying how can it give more light to itself? It is
impossible for you to give mo re love to yourself. In fact you love yourself too
much, and that is the problem, you re only thinking about yourself. Start thinking
about everybody else, and give love to others. Yo
u are love my dear, just relax and reduce your wants. Your wants and your desires
are eating you up; you simply relax. You should have wants. There is no problem if
you have your desires, but don t let the desires have you. I don t mind you having
desires at the initial stages. Late r you find, before the desire arises in you, it
gets fulfilled. Q: Can spirituality save the world? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: What is
destroying this world? It s the greed, jealousy, hat red, narrow mindedness,
selfishness, and all these negative emotions and qualiti es which are destroying
the world, right? Because of greed of few people, anger and hatred of few people,
lack of awareness, lack of understanding or misunderst anding and narrow mindedness
of a few people, the world is getting destroyed. Ho w can these negative emotions
be overcome? Is there a way? Yes, SPIRITUALITY. It is only spirituality which can
turn hatred into love, anger into awareness and selfishness into compassion. It is
only spirituality that can save the mind of t he people, isn t it so?! Q: What s a
spiritual leader got to do with politics? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: What is politics?
It is caring for people and what does a spiritual leader do? Care for people.
Politicians rule over people, spiritual le aders serve and care for the people.
Politics and spirituality are two different fields but they should go hand in hand.
That s why spiritual leaders were placed the highest in ancient India. Any king or
emperor would go to the spiritual lead er and take his advice. Emperors used to run
the kingdom on the blessings and ad vice of the spiritual leaders. A spiritual
leader should not get into politics b ut should guide the politics. That is
necessary. Q: Dear Guruji, when I feel too stressed and disturbed, I don t get
myself to do K riya. How to overcome such deeps mourns? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Well,
I will give you some advice now. What is the guarant ee you will be able to do it
then also? Few weak moments have come in life in th e past; don t welcome them in
the future as well. And if you cannot get across som e weak moments, know that it
has come in the past also and it has not helped you in any way. So we should not
sit and expect weak moments to come to us first of all. Secondly, even if it comes,
we will have the strength to overcome them at that moment. So be spontaneous, okay!
Q: Jai Gurudev! How to educate someone about vegetarianism? I have tried educati ng
and have been ignored! Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: More and more people are becoming
aware of vegetarianism. Here, I heard last week that a major newspaper in Germany
carried three full pag es on the benefits of vegetarianism. Vegetarianism has many
benefits. It helps y our body s digestion; it helps the environment as well. You
know, even if ten perc ent of the people in the world become vegetarians, the green
house gas effect pr oblem is gone. We are done with it; we will have no more
problems of global warm ing. That s what the scientists say. So we need to promote
more and more vegetaria nism. People change a little slowly and we need to have
patience, Okay Too much feverishness spoils your efforts! Q: Sometimes I think I
live in a world surrounded by formalities and exchanging superficial words. But the
question is I feel that there is more to it, life can not be just being nice and
living in this cordial way but there is more because I worry that when I die, I
wouldn t even remember where to start again? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Now I understand
there is a longing, there is emptiness, a nd there is a craving for something
higher. Right! And that gives that pain. So, that pain to attain something very
fast is in a way good, but what is needed al ong with this is a little patience. Q:
Are you my Guru? But they said Gurus find their devotees!
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: : That you have to decide! Yes, Gurus find their devotees,
this is usually said. You know when was this sai d? In ancient days, when children
would go to the Gurukul, the teacher would com e and test the aptitude of all the
children - this child is good in engineering, this child is good in music, this
child will be good for this, for this, for th is Then the teachers would say, Okay,
you come and you do Veda, you study Ayurveda , you study music ; so teacher used to
pick up. That was when parents would bring their children to the Gurukul and then
the Guru would pick up which student woul d study what. Once you are here in the
knowledge, once you are on the path, your heart will te ll you, This is the place
for me and I have to get here , and that is when you acce pt someone as your
teacher. Not that someone comes to you and says I am your teac her, I am your
Guru . If so happens then don t believe that, okay! Nobody can impose that; it
should come from within. Your heart tells you that this is genuine, th is is right,
this is good. So once you accept someone as your Guru or teacher th en this anguish
disappears to a great extent, and know that you are not alone! Q: What to do with
the doubts that come in the mind? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: You know, the doubt is
always about something positive, if not then the doubt will not come at all. The
doubt comes because something is r ight, something inside says yes this is good. So
in the initial stages, that typ e of doubt comes. You move on and from your feeling
you decide, oh this is my te acher, I respect and love, then that s it! Understand
what I am saying?! Q: I feel afraid at times whether I will be enlightened. What
should I do? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Once you are on the train, you know that this
train will r each. Suppose you are sitting in a car and this car is being driven to
Karlsruhe , you don t ask after every minute if you are going to Karlsruhe, no! You
relax! Y ou know the driver is going to take you to Karlsruhe. You won t be dropped
somewhe re in the middle. That much of faith that comes from within you is there in
you; otherwise, you would not even come here. The very fact that you have come here
indicates that there is faith. Otherwise your heart would block you, but your he
art says, no, go there . That means you are doing the right thing. So once you are
here, you relax. Relax and you will always find your life will move in the right
direction. Not j ust here, life after this also, definitely, because the moment we
die, the first person we meet is our Guru, our teacher, second person we meet is
our mother an d then the person whom we loved most. The three people we meet and
then later on we meet everybody else. So there will be that assurance, you will be
fine, you are moving ahead, so don t worry. Arjuna also had this doubt in the
Bhagvad Gita, what will happen to me? He was in the same pain, I may not succeed in
these spiritual practices, I may not go any where, what will happen to my life, I
will be neither enjoying anything here nor will I get the other world. I ll get
confused, I ll go back into the same stuff in my world, Krishna what do I do then?
Krishna says Nahi Kalyana Krit Kaschit Durgati m Taata Gachchati . My dear you will
never go down, you will never be miserable, I guarantee you this. You will never go
down in life, and you will only go up. Wh en you have done good things in your
life, when you are on this path, in this kn owledge, you will only progress forward
and forward. You will only go up in life here and here after. He says svalpa
mapyasya dharmasya trayate , a little bit of k nowledge, a little bit of love, a
little bit of dharma, little bit of it is good enough to take you away from fear.
So relax. That is why it is said you need a teacher on the spiritual path, you need
a Guru , and you need a personal feeling, connectedness from your side, not from
the ot her side. Why? Because otherwise you have the anguish, uncertainty, fear,
but on ce you have that feeling when you have the trust, okay my Guru is there, he
will guide me, he ll take me on the right path then you are relaxed . And there is
that p
eace that dawn in your heart and mind. Even if you stumble a little bit here and
there, doubts may come, but then they just vanish, they just come for a few hou rs,
at the most for a couple of days, and then they disappear. So there is that
assurance that you are not alone. See how soon the tears are turning into a smile!
Q: Guruji, What is Bhakti (devotion)? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: : Listen to Bhakti
Sutras talk, I have spoken in that, yea h! Q: Can you please talk about greed? Sri
Sri Ravi Shankar: See, there is greed inside us that we don t recognize. One i s
when we want to accumulate so many things in life and the second greed is for
experiences; oh I want to experience this and that, so many spiritual experience s.
This greed is okay to a little extent, little bit but if it becomes too much then
what happens, it makes you so unstable, makes you run around and not go dee p
enough. A little bit of greed to do seva is okay but too much greed to do seva , is
no good! Do you understand what I am saying? So a little bit greed for know ledge
is okay, but when you want to know more, you want to learn, you want to qu ickly
attain the highest, that propels you but if it is too much then you know y ou are
spoiling it, in the sense you are in too much of a hurry, do you see what I am
saying? What happens yesterday while cooking rice? What happened when you were in
too mu ch hurry? Rice remained uncooked. So it has to be put again and similarly,
we sh ould act dynamically, quickly, but not too much! That s a little, little at a
time . So you have to hurry to get to the railway station but once you got into the
c ompartment, no more hurrying! Relax! Once you have boarded the train, don t run
in side the compartment with your luggage up and down, you re not going to reach
any earlier; then I would say relax, relax, relax. Don t worry; you will reach at
the right time, okay! Skepticism is perfectly alright, but not cynicism Q: We have
individualized ourselves too much, and have createdseparations around us. We have
forgotten our human behavior of being awakened.How can we get back to that oneness?
There are so many ways. How is this way unique and different? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
It is very simple and all you need to do is toattend to th e seven levels of our
existe...nce body, breath, mind, intellect,memory, ego and then the Self. I have
spokenextensively about love in the NaradaBhakti Sutras, about awareness and
consciousness in the Ashtavakra Geeta, and about mindfulnessin the Patanjali
Yogasutras. From the Part 1course to the Part 2 courses, it is a beautiful step-by-
step jour ney, and youcan get to that experience. Not only what you read in books,
but it will beyour own practical experience. The Yes!+ course for youth brings
about am azingtransformation. Q: What advice would you give to a skepticalnon-
believer? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: A very good beginning point. See that you don t
becomecynica l and frustrated. Skepticism is perfectly alright, but not cynicism.
Thatdrains your energy. One can be skeptical to begin one s journey and I wouldvery
much appr eciate and welcome that. Because you would have gone throughskepticism,
the fait h will be strongly built. Get back to beauty and power that is within When
we become like children, then we realize that we have greater power. It isw ithin
each and everyone. Realizing this, is most beautiful. Beauty is not in clo thes.It
is in the inner quality. Appearance is beautiful, but if anger, jealousl
y orgreed finds a place, then it reflects in the personality, and all the beauty
islost. How to get back to that... beauty that we are born with? Goanywhere, to the
Nort h, South, West or East, one finds every child beautiful. Childrenradiate joy
and love. As we become adults, we learn skills and gain abilitiesbut we somewhere m
iss maintaining the inner beauty, that spark of love in ourlife. Can we maintain
those powerful skills and yet retain that beauty we wereborn with? I would say yes,
that is what The Art of Living is all about -Making life a celebration; dre am
about a stress-free, violence-free society,disease-free body, confusion-free mind
and sorrow-free soul. Tell me whodoesn t want all this? It is possible. In th e
last 30 years of The Art ofLiving, we have seen that everybody needs love in e very
corner of this planet.And that is what we spread. Talking about this Russian tour,
I feel absolutely at home.Nice people here. I w ant this sweetness to be
maintained. But we see it isdisappearing in the younger generation. There is more
stress accumulating in youth, and we need tosee that our younger g eneration is
free from stress and depression. The World HealthOrganization says that 30 percent
of Europe is suffering from depression! Letus all take commitmen t that we will not
let it happen. We want to see a happyworld. I want every tear to be turned into a
smile. That is why all this yoga, pranayama and kriya are s o important to relieve
this stress. In the ballet, weobserve the whole body can balance on the toes. One
leg in the air and one firmon the ground makes the danc e. A solid material and
spiritual foundation makesa dance. Spiritual experience is having one foot in the
air and the other firm.That balance is power. We find ourselves in trouble when we
lose this balance. The ancient spirituality always united people of all cultures
and religions.Don t you think this is what we need today? In the name of religion,
so manywars and t errorism are coming into picture. One solution is that everyone
getsback to spir ituality. Get back to beauty and power that is within.
Wecommunicate much more t hrough our presence than the words. I have said all thatI
want to say. Sri Sri in Saint Petesburg! Q: What is the visualization of God in
ancient India? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: In ancient India, they described God as
beauty. A disciple once asked what God is. The Master replied Truth, beauty and
love. That isGod. I s God sitting in heaven giving a little finger? No, it is only
in thepainting. G od is truth, beauty and love. It is that field and energy present
inthe entire c reation. When can you appreciate beauty? And what doesn t allow
youto appreciate? When mind is bombarded with worry, anger, hate and tension,
youcan t even smile fr om your heart. Thoughyou are sitting in a ballet, but you
can t appreciate if you are angry. You canonly appreciate when you are in the
present moment. Q: What is the future of St. Petersburg? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: It
is in your hands. Q: What do you say on the rumors of destruction of the world in
the year 2012? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: I want to tell you a story. In 1999, when I
was in NorthAm erica, there was a rumor that everything will shut down in 2000.
People soldhome s and stored food for six months - Milk powder, dry vegetables etc.
Oh myGod! Th en also I told that there would be no disaster and everything would
beas usual. Now again, I am assuring you that it is only in the movie. The
worldwill continu e. In fact, transformation will be there from greedy materialism
tohumanism. Chi ldren will be more aware of spirituality. There is a bright
futurefor the world. Don t think of any disaster. A disaster is already
happening.This is because we h ave exploited the planet. We have put so many
dynamites totake minerals, and hen ce earthquakes have become dominant. The
weather! Russianever had such hot tempe
ratures. So we have to care for the planet Earth. Planttrees and do all that is
needed to reduce human greed. What do you think? Q: How do I feel more energetic
repeating the same old routine everyday? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: First look into the
mirror and give a big smile to yoursel f.Ok? Then do breathing technique, little
bit of yoga and meditation. Give somet ime to yourself everyday and you will be
more energetic and beautiful. Q: How to make someone dear to you understand that
something is useful for thema nd they must go for it? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Keep
pursuing gently and have patience, they will allunder stand. First you should have
the conviction that this is good for them,and they will get it. How to get a
thought or a desire manifested is verysimple. First in tention and keep attention
on it and then manifestation willfollow. Q: You travel so much Ifeel at home with
everyone and everywhere. I don t find anyone a stranger. Ioften say that I am a
child who refuses to grow up. Q:I am running after a dream since long. How to get
that fulfilled? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Be practical in taking care of your daily
needs and see wh atthe reality is at that point. You have a dream and you want to
achievesomethin g. But that dream or idea may not match the reality that is right
now.So underst and the present reality and match it with your dream. This is
whateverybody has to do. See,suppose you are teaching mathematics to a student.
First you should know the present state of the child s mind. If the child can t
count two plus two isfour, the re is no point in teaching the multiplication table.
Do you see thepracticality now? Q: How are science and spirituality related? Sri
Sri Ravi Shankar: Science and spirituality were never in conflict; in fact t heyare
very complimentary. In India, it is always said, Before you try toundersta nd the
nature of your spirit, you should understand the five elementsof creation Earth,
water, fire, air and ether . So once you understandthefive elements then y ou
understand intellect, ego and self. All is the nature ofthe spirit. Spiritual ity
is knowing who am I, the subject analysis. Objectiveanalysis is science, and they
go together. Scientists were always encouraged. Q: People around the world need
these stress relieving techniques. How canwe con tribute? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
That is why I keep traveling. So, we have to keep practici ng,have to sit in groups
and do some pranayamaand some meditation. We have to re new our energy time to
time. When you eat,your stomach becomes empty again, it i s quite natural. Like
that when you arehappy and joyful, sometime when being so busy and engaged in so
manyactivities, you seem to collect all that dust and you r energy seems to go
down.Then it is the time to recharge again. So we will medi tate now for few
minutes. Inner joy and true happiness alone can stop the feverishness in society
that aris es through desires The most fortunate event that can take place in our
lives iswhen we feel, I do no t want anything, and I am here for you . I have been
bestowed with the goodfortune of feeling this way right from the beginning. My wish
is to see moreand more pe ople being able to think in this manner. Imagine how
...society wouldbe if each member of the society thinks the same way! This feeling,
this virtueis already t here in everyone, but it is just hidden somewhere deep
inside. When the leader of a country feels in this manner, only thenwill the
country pro gress; and when he is focused on the development of thecountry and its
people, i
t is impossible that the needs of the leader are notfulfilled. But if we focus o
nly on our needs, then we don t give ourselves and our abilities achance to blosso
m. We must always believe that our needs will be fulfilled. This does not mean that
when you have some needs, yousuppress them saying, I do n ot want anything . This
is a feeling that arisesfrom a state of contentment or ful fillment, and not by
neglecting or suppressingyour needs, and fulfillment comes from spiritual
knowledge. When you payattention and focus on the highest knowled ge, then your
needs are fulfilledeven before time. Inner joy and true happiness alone can stop
the feverishnessin society that aris es through desires. This kind of inner joy and
happinesscan only be achieved thr ough knowledge. It is a matter of joy that The
Art ofLiving is bringing together the various communities of the world. The core
ofevery religion and culture is love, and The Art of Living is also based on
thesame principle of LOVE, I do not want anything and I am here for you . More and
more people around theworld should be able to develop the ability to say this. If
everyone starts to think like this, this world willbecome heaven. If everyone only
thinks of taking something from someone, thenwe will continue to see the c urrent
world situation. We are developing the world to make it a heaven, and itfeels very
good to see it happening. So every day we move forward with thisbelief that I
amyours . Love,acti on, fun and celebration are all present in this knowledge. All
of this comesfrom the knowledge. Consider your life as sacred! Jeevanajeeva jagat
nashwaraNothing stays forever. Good as well as bad times go a way. Behappy,
reminding yourself of this again and again. Our life as it is, is Sadhana. True
sadhana is relaxing, deeprelaxation. What do you want to know? Eve rything is
destructible here.Everything is changing your body, your intellect. E verything
will dissolve.30 years have passed l...ike a moment*. Time is running so fast. If
you feel thereis something which is not changing, that is your consc iousness. Let
us settlethere, which is not changing. Make use of this time in the best manner.
Consider your life as sadhana, sacred. When you putefforts, you get some benefit s.
Your body is strengthened, your mind isstrengthened to some extent, and you g ain
skillfulness to some extent. Forexample, you get skilled in sitar, computer or
exercising with some effort. Butthese are limited benefits as compared to the ones
that you can have with truerelaxation. Sadhana happens when allthe efforts are
dropped. When you are totally relaxed, y ou experience truebliss. You cannot gain
love with effort. True relaxation gives you happiness, kindleshuman values in you,
sharpens your intellect, and makes y ou creative andskillful. Relaxation does not
mean inert rest or being lethargic. Whyto do yogasanas in th e morning?Relaxation
can only happen after putting some effort, when laziness in youdisappears. The
desire should be to be free from laziness. The cycle of desires and sleep, we keep
on oscillatingbetween rajogun and tamogu n. This is bondage. Satogun dawns with
genuine relaxationand knowledge. The summ ary of the whole AshtavakraGeeta is to be
able to joyfully relax while being awa ke satvik relaxation. That relaxation istrue
relaxation. In that relaxation all the attachments and bondages lose theirgrip. So,
consider your life as sadhana. Lord Shiva is called Mahakaal.Maha is grand and kaal
is time. Lord Shiva is the field ofenergy that dissolves in it the effect of time.
Time follows some rule. It hasits own rhythm. Sometimes, something desirable
happens and at some other t imes,something undesirable. Time continues to teach us
that opposite values are complementary Rest your mind & intellect in the Divine
energy
Our scripturesprovide three main philosophies:Nyaay (Logic)VaisheshikaSankhya After
that we haveYoga. Nyaay: What we learn, we understand andanalyze how correct it is
- Analyzing the difference between what we hear and whatwe infer. This way of
finding out the t ruth is Nyaay. ... In the Vaisheshika method, the object and
itscharacteristics are analyzed. I f sugar is not sweet, would you still call
itsugar? Objects have characteristics . In this way, place and time are
alsoconsidered as objects because of their cha racteristics. Time affects the
mindand intellect. Our mind feels and perceives d ifferently in the morning than
itdoes in the evening.The placement ofplanets als o affects the mind. Sometimes
faith arises in the mind, sometimeshatred envelope s the mind. It is natural for
different waves of emotions torise in the mind.I a m separate fromall this, I am
Atma. Contemplating onthis is the sign of intellig ence. Once you haveconsidered
the changing objects, rest your mind in that which never changes.This is Sankhya
Yoga. What is Bhakti? Resting your mind and intellectin Divine energy. This is all
that you need to do. When your faith isshaky, cure it by taking blessings from
elders. Do yoga. Friendliness,compassion and ignoring. To calm the mind, be
friendly and compassi onate, andfinally ignore if needed. Ignore the imperfection
and keep your mind c alm.Hating somebody is like drinking poison. And more so,
never hate wise people !Patanjali says, Awaken the opposite emotion. This is
sadhana. If anger arises, aw aken compassion, and a new chemicalprocess will be
initiated. Vitarka badhane, pr atipaksha bhavanam. This is why we remember the Guru
- the chemical process changes immediately,and enthusiasm, joy and non-attachment
arises naturally. God is a lively and loving consciousness deep inside each one of
us! The youth of India have inherited this great country. I want the youth to take
r esponsibility for the society. We want a corruption-free society. The second goa
l is that we need an intoxication-free society, otherwise we can never progress.
Youth are the only hope. It s very necessary that you (the youth) take this step
right away! Focus on studies, work and knowledge, and leave the rest to the Divi
ne. I am so happy to see such an enthusiastic youth group coming from this part of
the world. You should know, we have The Art of Living throughout the world to day.
You go to the South Pole, tip of Argentina, and you will find The Art of Li ving.
You go towards the North Pole, you will find The Art of Living there. You have a
family which is spread across the whole globe, and each one of you is a v ery
important member of the family. We have such a big family, and we have a res
ponsibility too, to work for a happy and celebrative society, a society which is
free from violence, and a society which is spiritually uplifted. I want each on e
of you to multiply 100 times, reach out to schools and colleges and make life a
celebration. And be assured that your needs will be taken care of. You do for the
Society what Society needs, and leave the rest on me. You will see, your nee ds
will naturally start getting fulfilled. Whatever you wish, will happen. Q: What is
it that I should do in the future? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Whatever you did in the
past which was not to be done, don t do it in future as well. Do something that
brings a smile on your face and that of others. Q: What is my existence? Sri Sri
Ravi Shankar: The same question you would have to ask yourself again and again.
Until you don t get the answer, don t leave the question. We will keep pushi ng you
to get the answer. It s a very precious question! Q: When I do something good, even
then my parents sometimes don t let me do that.
How to go ahead in such a situation? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Take this as an
opportunity to bring out that skillfulness in you. It is like if cloth has been
tangled in a bush, you need certain skill to gradually remove it from there. You
don t run, but patiently deal with them wit h your skill. Have such a skillful
conversation that they get agree to whatever right you say. Q: What is
spirituality? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Being able to feel a connection with everybody
is spiritua lity. The skill to feel connected with everybody and to know the Truth
is spirit uality. Like this flower is matter. But from a scientific perspective,
this flower is ma de up of molecules, the molecules are further made up of atoms,
atoms of sub ato mic particles and those further are made up of only wave function.
In quantum ph ysics, they say this is only the wave function. Similarly, to
understand the Sou rce and Base of the whole world is spirituality. Intuitively
knowing the DNA of the flower is spirituality. Q: Is education all about passing
examination and getting good marks. Is it not about something more? Sri Sri Ravi
Shankar: What do you think? (The person replies) I think it is because of our
parents attitude that we think so. Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Yes, but you should also
study. Any way, you have to flow with the system. Though, examination is not the
only thing. If you fail also, th en never mind. That doesn t mean you should take
some stupid steps. That is no goo d. At the same time, you should attend to your
exams. Education is very importan t. Q: When can I be like the Divine? Sri Sri Ravi
Shankar: You are already now. Q: What is the most important thing in a student s
life? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: A career is important, and along with that the
development of the overall personality is very important. Both go hand in hand.
Some are on ly into career, and some are only into personality development and no
career. La cking in any one, you won t feel that satisfaction. So, take both along
Qualification as well as personality development. And qualification not only for
certification but for gaining knowledge, and then that lightness of heart and s
mile that comes from the depth of your heart should be there, and a multi talent ed
personality. Most of all, you have to come across as a nice person. Nice doesn t
mean being goody goody, but being strong. Of course, your soft words have effect,
but be strong at the same time. That is what happens in the DSN (pr ogram). It
makes you so strong and unshakable from within. Q: What should be one s main motive
in a student s life? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: The main motive is in life. But students
are time bound. M ain motive in life should be to see a better nation, a better
world. When you ha ve love for your nation, achievement also happens. Q: I feel sad
and sometimes outraged looking at the corruption around. When will we have a Divine
society to live in? What should be done? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: When people like you
will collectively move ahead, then de finitely it will happen. But if corruption
goes on increasing like this only, th en forget about that, it will not happen in
2060 as well. There is no end to it. That is why, only now is the time. There is
corruption in bureaucracy, there is corruption in media, there is corruption in the
entertainment industry, and onl y a wave of spirituality can cure this. You know
some of our children wanted a license for a factory, and they refused t o pay any
bribe. They said that they follow spirituality, and they are not going
to pay any bribe. They confidently agreed to come back ten, 30, 50 times if nee
ded, but they got the license the very next morning. If people of the society wi ll
be on the right path, then officers will automatically start following you. I f
society is corrupt, the officers are also corrupt, then that becomes an accept ed
norm. When you make your mind strong, when you take this conviction to be not
corrupt, people also change. Q: How to have focus while studying? Sri Sri Ravi
Shankar: Do at least something. Sometimes a little pain is also goo d. Like if you
cannot walk, but when you participate in a marathon, you put in y our 100 percent.
Isn t it? Like if you are thrown in an ocean, until you don t find the shore, you
continue swimming. Would you leave in between even if you are tir ed? So, even if
you don t feel like doing, it is boring, take it as a challenge, I will somehow
finish this subject . Even if you don t know swimming, you get to learn that in
water. Q: (A boy discussed some personal problem) I find it difficult to have that
sens e of belongingness with everybody. What do I do? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Having
a sense of belongingness doesn t mean to flow emotion ally. Use your intelligence.
Do only that what you can do. What you cannot do, n obody will expect that from you
also. Q: How to change the system? Sometimes I feel very outraged and I don t get
to und erstand how to stand up against that. Please guide. Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
Yes, you are right. That is why we all have to work togeth er. We can achieve a lot
when we do something together. When you know, there are so many people with you,
you get that confidence. Come up with your ideas. Floa t your ideas. Those who have
interest in spirituality, those who have human valu es should run the country. When
some mean people get into power,then it creates problem for the whole nation. We
will have to choose the right people. There sho uld be an independent agency. The
agency where they can check any corruption, an agency that is independent of the
government so that it can also check corrupti on at the government level as well.
The path is long, and you will all have to w ork for it. The path is long, lots to
do, and I am confident that you people can do it. Then nobody will be able to
practice corruption. Q: I was once told that Yogis do not meet with the God, have
you ever met with G od? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: First tell me, who is God according
to you? Somebody sitti ng up in the heaven! No! God is that from which nothing can
escape. When the min d is totally relaxed, it merges in the Divine, it relaxes in
the Divine. The who le point is to relax the mind in that soothing consciousness.
When the wave is o n the surface, it is a wave. But when it identifies itself with
the depth of the ocean, it becomes the ocean. God is love and it is inside each one
of us. Q: How does one experience that blissful divinity with in? Sri Sri Ravi
Shankar: Meditation, Seva/Service and Satsang. Q: Is it ok to ask God helping us in
exams, to get us through the examination? D oes it happen? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
Whatever you need to wish, you can do that, and it gets fu lfilled. God is a very
lively and loving consciousness. That is why, desires get fulfilled. Q: Do the ones
who have died, feel something? Is there anything after death? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
Yes, it happens for some time. At least the effect of worl dly memories remain up
to one year, and then it fades away slowly in next two th ree years.
Q: Does everybody need a Guru? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Do you need an answer? If yes,
then yes. If some people do not feel the need, then also it is alright. When you
ask a question, and somebo dy gives an answer, the one who gives you the answer
anyway plays the role of th e Guru. You need medicine, and you go to a doctor. The
one, who gives you medici ne, becomes a doctor. Similarly who gives the answer, you
accept him as your Gur u. Q: Why do I feel de-motivated sometimes? Sri Sri Ravi
Shankar: Because you are into so much of television and newspaper r eading. So, you
need such company which motivates you. In wrong company, one fee ls de-motivated.
You should take it as a challenge I won t be de-motivated come wh at may. Q: What
is the difference between spirit and the Universal consciousness or God? Sri Sri
Ravi Shankar: Like an atom is inside the molecule, one that is subtle th an the
spirit is God. The connection is even more subtle than that between a mol ecule and
atom. According to ancient science, if you bisect one hair vertically into 100
parts, and you take one out of those, you further bisect in 100 parts a nd then
take one out of those. And even repeating the same process, what you get is a
molecule. Even much, much smaller than that is an atom. Even subtler than that is
ego and that which is more subtle than that also is themahatattva/grand element.
The one whose ego has been totally dissolved, he is called Mahatama. Everything is
centered around wellness of the society! I m going to talk to you about another
dimension of space, that is, the inner spac e: the space that rules your life, the
space from which all thoughts and emotion s emerge, of which you are, simply, a
puppet. There may be rules, but when your emotions rise high, you become a victim
of your own emotions. If your thought pa tterns are prejudiced, are caught up in
some Utopian or nasty concepts then you behave that way. The difficulty with us
human beings, normal human beings, is that we seldom take time to look at our own
emotions, look at our own thought patterns, at what s hap pened inside. We act
before thinking; we act before even resolving our feelings. So when the feelings
override your actions, your concepts and prejudices overri de your action, time to
time crimes are bound to happen in society, whatever rul es are there. Inner rules
are just like the watchman, the doorkeeper, but the emotions are the owner of the
home. So when the owner barges in, the doorkeeper just gives way. And this is
exactly what happens. If you just talk to any criminal anywhere they will either
justify their action or they feel completely helpless, because they feel they,
themselves, are the victim. So I often say, Inside every culprit is a victim crying
for help. If we attend to the victim, the culprit disappears. And this is exactly
what we need to do, whether it s the crime that s being done either in Kosovo and
Serbia or Bosnia or Sri Lanka or anywhere. It s the people who do th at, and normal
people , as the honorable speaker mentioned just a few minutes ago. They re normal
people, but what makes normal people do abnormal crimes is the lack of education
about their emotions. Neither at home nor at school, are any of us taught how to
manage our greed, our anger, our jealousy, our frustration and our rage. Nobody
teaches you how to ma nage this mind by which we do all our actions. We don t have
to go to outer space to feel that the earth is very small, that we all belong to
each other. We can w ake up here when we attend to our inner space. Find out,
observe, that whatever I am, everybody else is. So, we are all one, we
are all part of one human family, human species. This awareness, this awakening has
to happen within each one of us, within each individual on the planet and t his is
where individual education will lead to a collective culture. A culture i n the
society, it s all an individual who forms the unit of a culture. So, it s the
individual who forms the unit of a society. So if individuals are educated, we h
ave a literate society. There s nothing like a society that can become literate; l
iteracy has to happen through individuals. And similarly, education in handling
oneself, knowing oneself, has to happen individually and that will have to lead to
a collective phenomenon called a civilized, cultured society. It s superstitions,
dogmas, prejudices that overrule our civilization today. You k now what happened in
the Middle Ages, in the Medieval period, either in the Span ish Inquisition or the
witch hunting, in the name of some dogmas, or the caste s ystem in the East. They
all have proved to be disasters, a disaster to society, and education will make
people overcome these ills. Similarly, corruption, what we are facing in the
business community today sort of low morals and somehow we re lost we don t know
what to do. So in these situations, an introspection and understa nding about human
nature, the nature of mind, the nature of our emotions, and in a large spectrum,
the purpose of life. As somebody recently said, that the GDP of a country should be
now measured with GDH, Gross Domestic Happiness factor. You should see which state
is happy, whic h country is happier than the other. Having a big bank balance and
being depress ed for the whole life is not prosperity. You should have the mind to
enjoy that prosperity. You may have enough food and enough things to eat, but you
suffer fr om diabetes and depression and heart problem. That doesn t count to be a
healthy s ociety. So whether it is economy or politics, social entrepreneurship or
any act ivity, everything is centered around one fact: welfare of the society, that
is, wellness of the society. If the wellness is at stake no other factor will
suffic e for the society to be uplifted. So we need to look into that. And ethics
forms one of the backbones of wellness and business forms its wings. Without
business, wellness cannot happen. So, we need to consider this. I m happy that we
re all on the same page here, but from very different fields, pondering on
something that would make a breakthrough in the crisis of today.

Have a combination of both

sensitiveness and strength!

Q: How can I not see ugly feelings behind ugly words? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
Sometimes people say words and they really don t feel that w ay. Don t you do it
sometimes? As children, you say things that you don t really mea n. Kids usually
say things they mean. As we grow older, our feelings and words g row apart. They
are not the same. Now, don t worry about what other people are fee ling. Feelings
are fleeting. One day they feel good, next day they don t. Don t both er about
this. Simply acknowledge that that person is not feeling good and that they are
here to work on it. Our being angry that someone is feeling bad doesn t m ake
sense. Sometimes their feelings change but your feelings remain the same. So meone
puts a doubt in your head and then they forget but you hold on to it. The same is
with senior citizens who complain but then forget while you hold on to t he
complaint.Look at the present moment - now, now, now! Wake up NOW! Everything else
is stupid. All that has happened has gone into emptiness. Everything disso lves
into emptiness. Your entire past - wiped out! All the things that you felt are
gone. Good or bad, they are gone. So, wake up to the truth of the present mo ment.
Divinity is in the present moment. This is yoga. Yoga is being established in the
moment. And moment does not mean fleeting moment. The moment has the dep th of
infinity; it has all the past and all the future.Who cares what you feel? Throw
your feelings into the ocean. A little sensation or discomfort arises. Who cares?
Are you doing what you want to do? And, in doing what you want to do, ar
e you keeping the delicacy of your consciousness or are you being like a bulldoz er
(I will do whatever I want)? Being like a bulldozer is being insensitive. Bei ng
oversensitive and very weak and being like a bulldozer are both not correct. The
best combination is being sensitive and strong. This is wisdom and this is w hat we
have to work on.The effect of past actions is limited. Past actions defin itely
affect you e.g. you drive fast, get a ticket, and you have to pay. Get thr ee
tickets and you have to surrender your license, no doubt. But don t brood over it.
Wake up. When you wake up, even the consequences you fear will not happen. Y ou
will be forgiven in that moment. The moment we acknowledge our mistake, we ar e
forgiven. So you are innocent every moment you are awake. Now! Now! Now!Take t he
challenge. Whenever someone is nasty towards you, do something so nice that i t
takes them by surprise. You will suddenly find there is a shift happening. If it
does not happen also it is fine. At least you have done something good.The wo rld
is a very funny place, I tell you. Either it is very entertaining or it is s uch a
pain and so miserable! You can t take it. Sometimes, you do so much for some one
and they turn their back and do things that harm you. Many parents say, I did so
much for my children and now they are dissociating from me. Not just with par ents,
but same with employers, friends, siblings, and even spouse. Speaking of s pouse,
there are four stages of marriage. First stage is mad for each other. Sec ond stage
is made for each other. Third stage is mad at each other. The fourth s tage is mad
because of each other. Q: Some days I feel so much love for the Divine. Other days,
I feel like praying for desires. Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Just be natural. When prayer
is happening, don t create a co nflict and confusion in yourself. Don t say, Oh it
will happen anyways! But prayer d oes not have to happen by compulsion. Q: Please
tell us what is so special about the tip of this nose? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: All
the sensory nerves end in the tip of the nose. There a re two points that are
important for alertness and focus of the brain - the ear lobes and tip of the nose.
They are the marma points. These are the secret point s. If you keep your attention
on the tip of the nose, your focus improves, espec ially for children. In the Jain
tradition, they can multiply 100 numbers (avadha n). They focus on the tip of the
nose. It s amazing! They are faster than computer s.Shathavadhanis, as they are
called. Avadhan is the technique of holding memori es in your consciousness. It is
like a photographic memory. People who follow th is technique, Avadhanis, can tell
you what date was Tuesday in 1700. This knowle dge was systematically erased. That
is the unfortunate part. Q: What does ayurveda have to do with meditation? Sri Sri
Ravi Shankar: Ayurveda is a complete science. It describes dincharaya (d aily
routine) and ritucharya (seasonal routine). Dinacharya includes meditation for
balancing of the three doshas (mind or body type). The mind has an impact on the
body and all its doshas and gunas (three qualities of nature: sattva, rajas and
tamas). So, the mind, breath, herbs - they are all linked. Similarly, ayurv eda
helps one to meditate deeply. Too many thoughts indicates high pitta (one of the
three doshas). So pitta must be treated. In ayurveda, combinations are refe rred to
as yoga . For example, when two herbs are put together it is called yoga. S o that
concept of yoga is similar to meditation and to ayurveda. Q: Where do you see The
Art of Living 25 years from now? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: I leave that vision to you.
Now each of you must think abo ut how you want The Art of Living to blossom. It s
for you to think about. Today, The Art of Living is all over the world. See it was
not too long ago that cell p hones were introduced. But it has reached all nooks
and corners of the world. Wh y? Because, it is useful. Similarly, the knowledge of
how to connect to one s mind , how to handle one s emotions - this knowledge is
useful and it will spread. Q: How do you initiate your disciples? Do you choose
your disciples?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Don t limit our relationship. Let love be love, don t give it
a name. For a master, no disciples exist. But for a disciple, the Master exists.
See, if you do the Sudarshan Kriya, you are initiated. Q: Does one have to become a
teacher to progress on the spiritual path? Knowledg e, experience or faith, which
comes first? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: See, from a little experience knowledge
develops, and then faith happens. They are all intertwined. In The Art of Living,
we say first exp erience and then you go up, step by step. It s good to become a
teacher because th en you can teach others and there is so much joy. But don t
think you must become a teacher. You still hold the same status whether you are a
teacher or not. Don t think that you are more evolved because you are a teacher. Q:
How does one come to embrace nature? Especially the terrible rain, snow in th is
country? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: I enjoy this weather. Maybe you should go to the
Sahara de sert and see how nice it is to be in such a cool country. It is in your
mind. Ac cept it, or move to Florida! Q: I have been on the path for so long, but I
still get attracted to violent and non sattvic partners. What can I do? The
attraction is almost irresistible. Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: What can I say? Go for it!
It will be beneficial to the ne arby doctors and hospitals if you keep breaking
parts of your body with violent partners! See, it s about patterns when you
recognize that this is your pattern, wa ke up and say, I will not be a victim of
this pattern! You have that strength! You will be given that strength. When you are
confused, just relax. Intuition works in relaxation! Q: If one faces failure in
some task again and again, should I continue to do th e same, or should Idrop that?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: There is one proverb in India, Task gets accomplished with
the Sattva, and not with the material .So, in order to get something done, sattogu
n should rise. And what does one do to increase Sattogun?With right food, right
conduct, and relaxing your mind for some time - This is first. Secondly, even if
you face failure inspite of that, sattogun doesn t let your enthusiasm to shatter ,
and when that driving force is still there, you don t eventhink of dropping. Lik e
if gambler wins once, he develops that taste to win. And then he continues to play
again and againwith the wish to win, and even when some failure is encounte red,
hedoesn'teven think of dropping in between. Even duringsome failure, that s trong
conviction of achieving some good is there, and this conviction will be th ere when
you have thatdedication for the task. Like, with enthusiasm in action a nd peace in
heart, people kept fighting for freedom for twocenturies. The ones who were
fighting for freedom, theydidn'tget any money, they didn t steal anything, but did
they leavethe drive?And third factor, look for the reason of failure. Every failure
is a step towards success. One reason can be some weaknes s inoneself or some weak
point in the system, arrangements. Self weakness like s omeone is not able to
present the workproperly. E.g. if you go for interview, an d say some words here
and there, then interviewer develops a doubt if you would beable to do that or not.
So, onedoesn'tget job because of one s weakness. To get rid of one s weakness,
enhance yourabilities.Each failure is a step towards succes s, so analyze what did
you learn out of this? Did you flow with the emotions? Yo u didn'tconsult those who
are already into that profession? Youdidn'ttrust them, or you didn t keep faithful
people with you. Allthese reasons could be there. So, to get rid of any weakness,
enhance your ability, and go into the depth of know ledge of thefield in which you
wish to move ahead.Second is to amend the system or arrangements. Now, this is not
in hands of a single person. Like if corruptio n is to bechecked, can you fight
alone? Be with the group. Awaken that intellige nce in people for that. Get people
to move ahead withyou."Sanghe Shakti Kaliyuge "In kalyuga, the power is in the
team. People say that it is the peak of kalyuga
, and it is as if truth has taken a backseat.If you feel like that, then work in a
team. Take some people along and then see if the task gets accomplished or no t.
Toenhance capability, you would have to do something yourself, go within your self.
Be in the world to get more people along,and be with yourself to gain abil ities.
Taking along both the fields, you will definitely get success in your tas ks.If you
have given all your trials, put in your 100 percent and if, even then, youdidn'tget
success, then it isOK. Takesome other work in your hands. But don t run away if you
face failure for the first or second time. Q: What should we do to always be happy?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: First be more and more happy and then if some moments of u
npleasantness creep in life- accept them.Don t get upset because you were upset so
metimes in the past, and then you will always be happy. Q: There is a big threat to
Us our lives from some people who have their own con cepts for which they are ready
to die andkill other people. What should we do an d how should we deal with such
people? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Ya, we need to deal with them with patience and will
have to educate them. It is not an easy task butperhaps we should do it by inviting
t hem and when one among them joins to spread peace, it would be easy. Q: When
people adopt violence for surviving, how to deal with it? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: It
is quiet natural to go towards violence for survival it is a natural instinct. But,
if selfconfidence and vision is instilled in such a person, then you will find that
the person walks with a vision in self confidence without the fear of survival
problem.I have spoken about all these in a book called Celebrating Silence . You
can read that if you wish to. Q: Should we follow Bhagat Singh or Mahatma Gandhi?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Bhagat Singh was also supporter of non - violence. But the y
were encountered with one such situation, thatthey had to take such steps. Fol low
Sri Guru Gobind Singh, be a Saint Sipahi. Have peace of saint in heart and s
trength ofwarrior in action. That is why Sri Krishan told Arjuna to be a Yogi an d
then fight Q: What is the crux of Life? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: What is the crux of
life? At least, first you start explor ing within for that adventure! What should
Itell you beforehand? The whole life is in search of some juice, some happiness.
Where you feel happiness, solaced, b e atpeace there, relax there. And you get that
joy when you look within. Meditat ion is such a joy! When the tiredness cracksaway,
you get that relaxation, that joy you are looking for. Q: What should one do when
one is faced with conflicting choices? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Every confusion is a
sign of growth, every time a pattern is broken. In such case, just relax.
Inrelaxation your intuition works. Rely on it.

Sri Ravi Shankar's Daily Sutras and Knowledge Sheets When our needs are less we are
able to take up bigger responsibilities. Q: In the Isha Vasya Upanishad it is said,
tena tyaktena bhunjitha enjoy the world by renouncing. How can we do this? Sri Sri
Ravi Shankar: This is a skill! If there is no feverishness, it happens. Have you
seen how a child behaves when he sees chocolates? He eats a couple, the n stuffs
some in one pocket and tries stuffing ...more in the other. The child i s in a
frenzy. An adult does not have this feverishness. When such feverishness for the
objects is missing, then only you actually enjoy the object of senses.
You experience, you enjoy, but without craving for it, knowing that the joy come s
from within you. The object is only a reflection. When you realize that joy is
within and not in the object outside then only you can enjoy. This is little
profound and it clicks to a mature mind. Q: Krishna tells Arjuna - Don t think you
re killing them - they re already dead. If a terrorist also gives you the same
reason in the name of their faith or religion , what would you say? Sri Sri Ravi
Shankar: These are completely different situations and you cannot m ix them up. A
terrorist does with hatred, with ignorance, right? You cannot take a policeman or
an army man and a terrorist as same. They both shoot with guns, but a policeman
does it for a different reason and a terrorist does it for an en tirely different
reason. The intention, the state of mind, is totally different. That is why Arjuna
was told, Fight the war for justice, but not with anger, hatr ed, jealousy or
greed. Do it to protect the dharma, the righteousness. Q: They say we must dare to
dream big. But what follows is desire. How does one handle this desire? Sri Sri
Ravi Shankar: With discrimination! Desires just come up. You should have your
dreams but remain grounded. Q: Is there a masculine and feminine side to
everything? Then why do we categori ze things as male or female? Sri Sri Ravi
Shankar: Yes! There is a neutral gender also.There are 3 genders. S ome things fall
under the neutral gender too. In fact, there is a whole scriptur e on the gender of
stones as well as trees. The Shilpa Shastra or Book on Sculpt ures elaborates on
this. Hawaiians also say that different stones have different genders! They can
identify those. But it doesn t matter. The Self, or the Spirit is beyond gender. Q:
Should the student take the whole responsibility for not scoring good marks? Sri
Sri Ravi Shankar: It is better if he takes full responsibility. You could bl ame
the teacher, the environment, the parents and everything else and finally yo u
blame yourself. It s better to take responsibility than go on a blame game. Q: What
s the value of sacrifice on the spiritual path? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: It is
essential. On the spiritual path you need to have th at zeal and enthusiasm for
sacrifice. Just today I met several swamis - all youn g people - computer engineers
and highly qualified people. They ve sacrificed thei r whole career, life,
everything to bring education to poor people, to do servic e in society. They re
doing service day and night. They re not wishing anything for themselves. They re
not thinking, Oh, what will happen to me? They have dedicated th eir lives to build
schools and colleges and to bring education to millions. So, it is necessary for a
bigger cause. Sacrifice brings a bigger joy! It doesn t redu ce your joy. When our
needs are more, our responsibilities are less. When our ne eds are less we are able
to take up bigger responsibilities. That is the happies t life! Q: Guruji, how come
you radiate so much peace and serene beauty? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Because you are
beautiful too, that s why I appear peaceful to you. If you were not beautiful then
you would know nothing about my beauty. W hatever quality you have, only that gets
projected onto the world outside. So, w hat you see in me, take that as your own.
If you don't feel beautiful, become be autiful. What is stopping you? Become that.
Q: Does the cycle of life and death never end? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: The whole
world is like that. It s all spherical: everything moves in cycles. You have to
come back, but you have a choice. If you are born out of compulsion then it's the
same old story again and again. But if you get l iberated, then you have the choice
and the will to be born when you want. When y
ou come back liberated, it is joyful. Q: Is it true that some places have negative
and positive vibes? I have experien ced that our group working in our suburb doesn
t get the success it does outside. What should we do to increase the sattwa of a
place? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Keep working, keep doing. Everywhere it is possible to
mak e a change. It s just a matter of time. Beautiful science of mind, mood and
time Q: Guruji, does choosing a Guru means one can t follow theteachings of other
maste rs? Can one have more than one Guru? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Oh! It s so hard
to manage one Guru,how can you ! (laughs) It s not easy. Respect everybody but
follow one path.Honor everyone and you will see, all the masters have said the same
thing.There is only one truth, so, th...ey h ave said the same thing, but the
methods aredifferent as per the needs of the ti me. You don t have conflict when
you are on this path. Whicheverpath you were there, t hey have blessed you and that
s how you have come here.You have served those paths , those teachers, those
masters and their blessinghas brought you here, with thi s conviction you move
forward. Ok? It s just that if you keep trying everything, you get soconfused! So,
I would say, see one in all and all in one as a principle. Honor everyone and
follow one path. Q: Guruji, is there any connection with the mood and thetiming of
the day? Why d o we feel different at different times, like one feelslow in night
time. Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Ya, ya! Time and mind are connected.You should know
this. Time and mind are synonymous. There are eight substances:Vaisheshika, Kanada
all t hese people have said, Desha, Kala, Manah. Desha is space, Kala is time and,
Manah - the mind.They are all tatvas, pr inciples. And all these principles are
connected. Deshaand kala are connected. S pace and time are connected. One day on
this planetEarth is already many days on another in the moon. In moon, it is
different.So, if you are on Jupiter, one huma n year is only one month. In Jupiter
if youhave to experience one year, that is 12 years of earthly time. Jupiter takes
12 years to go around the sun. Similarly ifyou are on the planet S aturn, 30 years
is one year! Similarly, pitras, people who have died, our human one yearis one day
for them. So our six months is only one night and six months is oneday. So, for a
soul whi ch has departed our whole year is one day. There aredifferent times and
differen t space in different dimensions. So, time and spaceare connected. It s
called the time-space curve. The same with the thirddimension that is mind! The
mindless, t ranscendental consciousness is calledMahakala, the Shiva, the fourth
state of co nsciousness. It s called Mahakala, means great time, and the no-mind.
Theno mind is great time. So, morning from 4.30 to 6.30, just before sunrise,
beforedawn, it s called the mo st creative time. Brahma muhurta! And then, every
two hours it s called alagna; which means, one uni t of time. And this unit of time
corresponds to thestate of mind. And again this is connected with the moon s
position, the sun sposition. There are so many aspects ! Ten different aspects
influence the mind.So, not only the time or hour of the day affects the mind, also
the quality ofthe days affects the mind. Every two an d a half days, the mind
changes! Themood of the mind! So, if you are upset, it c an continue for two and a
half daysat maximum; it doesn t have to be two and a hal f day. It rises to a peak
anddrops. But after two and a half days, you cannot ha ve the same emotion with
thesame intensity. Impossible! It changes. Switches! It is a great, great
science,how mind, mood an d time are connected. Jyotish shastra has a lot of
insight into this. Youknow the astrologers, usually
, all these weekly column astrologers say, Oh,good for relationships, good for ma
king money, this and that! They write thosethings (laughs!). They generalize thos e
things, If you are born on this timethen this is good for you and you do this. O f
course, it s too generic andit s just a money-making thing that they do. But it is
not hoax; there is aniota of truth in it. The underlying base has truth. The pr
inciple that the mindand time are connected is correct. Mind means moods, thoughts,
opinions, ideas, all thesethings that we collect. An d, no mind is meditation. Dawn
and dusk areconsidered very good for mediation. S o,whenever you meditate, or
whenever the bad time is there, you meditate. Whenyo u meditate you go off the
influence of the mind and go into the self. Theself is Shiva tatva. Shiva tatva
means, always benevolent, caring, loving,uplifing. Tha t consciousness deep within
you which is caring, loving,uplifting and benevolent , will nullify the negative
influences of the mind andthe time. So, in India it is a very common belief,
whenever there isbad time just say, Om Namah Shivaye, and it s gone. All that bad
time isgone. Manah , when read from the ot her side, it becomes Namah.Manah is when
consciousness goes outside in the world , and Namah iswhen the consciousness goes
inward. Shivaye, towards the Shivaprin ciple, the fourth state of consciousness,
the subtlest aspect of theexistence, t he Shiva tatva! So, Namah, when the mind
goes towards the basicsubstratum of cre ation, then it can change all that into
more benevolent experience. Consciousness is stronger than matter Q: The more and
more my love blossoms for the Divine theharder I find it to give away my pains and
worries. How can we give garbage tothe most precious ones? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
Never mind. Divine will take it. He llsnatch it from you if you don t want to give
it. As long as there isconnection, there is attention - the re is always give and
take. You will ...alwaysreceive blessings. You will always receive bliss and
unwanted things will justdrop off. And it is nice of you to think that way - it
also shows thelevel of consciousnes s. In this level of consciousness, drop this
identity ofgarbage as part of you o r yours. You find something pricking the mind,
just seeit as garbage, not yours or someone else s. Q: Could you please explain how
consciousness is stronger thanmatter? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Well, in the pressure
cooker, when youare cooking, when th ere is more pressure how is it built up? Water
vapor! Andis that more powerful t han water or not? So, subtler you go, the more
powerfulthe things are. Now, this thing (Guruji shows the small silver cymbals in
thehands) has silver molecules. When you break the silver molecules down, you
getinto atomic particles, and, wh en you break them you get sub-atomic
molecules,which is minuter than the minutes t. Are they not powerful? Which is
powerful this cymbal is powerful or the atom i s powerful? Atom is powerful. The
subtler we go, it becomes more and more powerful.Though, everything is made up of
consciousness. This entire universe is made upof consciousness, when you b ecome
subtler and subtler, they become morepowerful. Today I was watching a research done
with water in Japan bya gentleman. He kept a little water in a bottle and took a
photograph. Later hehas used the same wate r for prayer and then after prayer he
has took aphotograph. You can see the impa ct of prayer - the subtle thought
vibration hasgone into the water. It s obviously visible. He took a bottle of water
and kept blaming it and then tooka microscopic picture of it. With another bottle,
he said some pleasing wordsand you can see the diff erence. In India, this process
is called Abhimantra. You takea pot of water, place your hand on top and then chant
mantras. The mantras aresupposed to be absorbed into the water. It is an old
tradition in India. Whenyou go to any holy man or saint, you take a pot of water
and ask them to blessthe water. Among the sindhi commun ity, they do this a lot.
This Abhimantra - mantra chanting on the water - hasa huge impact on the water,
because 70% of our body is water. In the Rudrabhisheka,water is made to fall on a
crystal lingam while a particular chanting is beingdone and then it flows down .
That water is very charged and it helps to upliftthe atmosphere. Now it is visible
in the microscopic images, the changesthat happen by these pra ctices. Similarly a
gentleman from Russia came and conducted anexperiment in Mahabalipur am, Tamil Nadu
when they were doing the Aarti.He took the pictures and found tha t all the
negative ions in the atmospheresuddenly disappeared; they turned into positive
ions. It is the positive ionswhich bring changes. All these things are meant to
create the positive ions; tobring the required changes. The same is the case with
the use of fire. Duringfire ceremonies, when they put the mantra with the
intention, there is aqualitative change that happens in the atmosphere. Q: Dear
Guruji, I believe in this: As we sow, so we reap.But many instances we s ee that a
person is going through bad times, even if wedon t see any major fault d one by him
or her. Why it happens? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Karma! The ways of karma
areunfathomable. Karma is like an ocean. This is not one lifetime. In
manylifetimes, we have done so many actions and they all have repercussions.
Whichkarma has sprouted from which seed and wh at fruit this karma will give is
verydifficult to pin point. That is why it is s aid gahana karmanogati .
Unfathomableare the ways of karma. Because it is not just one lifetime, many
lifetimes, wehave done many things and we don t know which kar ma sprouts when.
That s whydon't worry about the karma, just be active and follow your conscience.
Act with conscience! World is a play and display of Prana/Life force Today we will
not talk about stress and stress relief. Neither about relationshi ps but something
much deeper! Remember your age? Whatever it is 25- 30 years! Where were you before
these 25-3 0 years? Where would you be after 50-60 or say 100 years :) Mumbai
existed befor e you were born, this Ocean existed then too. ... Do you remember how
you entered your mother s womb? Do you remember how you came out in this world?
Until the age of five the child remembers his past birth. The child recognizes c
olors or says certain things but elders tend to overlook that. You know, this whole
universe is a play of Prana, the life force. Everything her e has some life force.
However, the units of Prana differ. Stone (Pathar) has 1 unit of Prana Water (Pani)
has 2 units of Prana Fire (Agni) has 3 units of Prana Air(Hava) has 4 units of
Prana Ether (Akash) has 5 units of Prana Animals and trees have 6 - 7 units of
Prana Human Being has 8 units of Prana. Hence he is called as ASHTAVASU. But humans
ar e born with a possibility to blossom into a fully blossomed state. Lord Krishna
has highest units of Prana 16. That is why He is referred to as fully blossomed
being You often see that every GOD/ GODDESS travels on an animal. Goddess Durga
riding on a tiger! It seems so imaginative. It doesn t click to the intellect, but
this is so scientific. Each animal brings certain cosmic vibrations on the planet.
E. g. Peacock descends to the planet the vibrations of Goddess Saraswati (The Godde
ss of knowledge), Bull's body radiation brings Shiva Consciousness (The transfor
mational and meditative aspect of nature). Right now all Devtas are here in this
consciousness; all different energies are in this consciousness. All the mantra s
invite these auspicious vibrations. Do you know the meanings of the months?
January, February .. November, December. You all keep saying the months and you do
n't know the meaning! SEPTEMBER (SAPT + AMBAR): 7th sky NOVEMBER (NAV + AMBAR): 9th
Sky Do you know which languages these months belong to? Audience: English Sri Sri :
No, they are all derived from SANSKRIT. Sanskrit was the ONLY Original language
that was prevalent in the universe in the start. Feb is referred to as "Fag End"
March means "To Go Ahead". Iraq, Iran, Kurdistan everywhere they celebrate NEW Y
EAR in the month of March. In some less affected parts of India as well! So Dece
mber (DASH + AMBAR: 10th sky) makes the 10th sky. You are older than the names of
month. Go deep in meditation to experience all t his. Else keep it in back of mind
that I am much older than my age. Sometime in life it will come to you. Do you
permit ME to remove the cap now? (GURUJI was wearing a beautiful cap at t he start
of the talk and lots of people had objected/ requested HIM to keep it o n) (The
Satsang ends with a joyful 10 15 minutes of meditation vaporizing in few se conds
and concluding soothing bhajans) Wisdom once learnt remains with you like a solid
rock Q: Jai Gurudev Guruji. Why is it that nature has made man and woman so
different ? If it is so important to have equality, isn t it just another step away
from nat ure s law? I am a man and I would like to treat a woman as a woman. And I
would li ke to be treated like a man. My rules are decency and respect. Isn t
everything el se obsolete? Of course, there should be equal rights and I know in
some parts of the world education is needed. But in the western world, I think that
debate is a bit twisted. Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: You know, the women rights activists
sometimes forget that they have rights and they fight for that which they already
have. When you are a sking this question I think what s bothering you is the
feminist movement where th ey think the world is dominated by man. They are not
totally wrong also. Most of the times, it is correct. But they are demanding
rights. They are asking the me n to be treated equally. I would say, who is to give
you rights? You have it. Yo u take it. Don t ask a man to give you rights. When you
are asking for it, you are already losing it. Assume you have it and you move on.
Q: How not to lose my mind and stop comparing myself when my partner is attracte d
or in love with someone else? I am losing myself completely in this kind of si
tuation and it feels so painful. How not to lose my commitment when I, myself, a m
attracted or in love with someone else? Please help. With love and thanks for
everything you are doing. Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Just wait. Time will tell you.
Remember what your age is n ow. When the numbers change, you ll not change. Got it?
When you become older, you l l grow over these attractions, these repulsions. Don t
blame yourself or blame you r partner. See from this angle. Okay, you are getting
attracted, so what? Then t hat attraction is not going to destroy your commitment
and your relation. This m uch you must make sure because the mind always goes for
something new but the he art longs for something old. You always want new fashion.
What is the latest fas hion, you ask. But when you are in love you say, Oh I know
them since ages. That s
my old love, my ancient love. You always connect, go back to the ages because the
heart longs for the old and the mind wants the new. So when you are going for n ew,
know that it s only the mind s work but your heart knows, heart always longs for
that old connection, old love. Q: I would love to become an Art of Living teacher.
But I am not sure if I am re ady. When is one ready to do TTC and become a teacher?
With Love and Gratitude. Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: You are ready. Don t doubt yourself
whether you are ready or not. You are ready. Even if you are not ready, you will be
cooked very well and made ready. The processes are such in the teacher s training.
It is amazing, a bl ossoming of your personality. So don t worry, just go for it.
Q: There are quite a few questions about how do I feel more connected with you o r
how do I feel the connection. Sometimes, I don t feel the connection to knowledg e
or to you or to myself. These types of questions are there, couple of them in my
mind. Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Certain things you should take for granted. You should
fee l that you are connected. Are you connected to air? Do you say, again and
again, is there air around me? Am I breathing or not? Is there air around me? My
dear, there is! Is there a sun in the universe? There is! I don t see the sun. If
there is no sun, the earth would not exist. If it is not visible now, it is visible
a nother six hours later. Or eight hours later - it will come to the horizon. In N
orway, you ll not see the sun for two months. That doesn t mean it has disappeared
f rom the surface of the planet. Similarly, your connection, your love is always t
here. Sometimes you feel it. When a cool wind blows on a hot summer s day, it give
s you certain elevation. It gives you a contrast. You were not connected, sudden ly
you feel connected. So this feeling of being connected often happens in contr ast.
Especially when you didn t feel connected, suddenly you feel the connection, you
feel that contrast. For knowledge, you have to have the opposites. When you don t
feel the connection, know that you are already connected. Don t look for it. You
see what I am saying? Okay. Move away from all the principles of the Art of Living.
Drop your pranaya ma, meditation, singing, everything for one week, 10 days. Then
you will see. Yo u will feel the thirst. All this knowledge will pop up in your
life time and aga in. Wisdom once learnt remains with you like a solid rock. You
can t get away from wisdom. Still try to get out of it for sometime and see. Then
you ll notice the c onnection. Sometimes astrologically, cosmologically, the sense
of lack of enthus iasm, interest or spirituality or sort of dullness creeps in
life. Vedic astrolo gy speaks about a particular time in one's life where this
could happen. But it is only for a short period of time. Especially they say, when
the Jupiter is at the lowest energy, the spiritual energy in the world goes down
and people become more gross. You don t feel uplifted, elevated. But it s only a
short period of 11 m onths or even shorter. The Christian tradition speaks about
the dark night of th e soul where a spiritual seeker suddenly finds that all that
he has been doing i s useless or has not taken them any further. This type of a
feeling had dawned i n Mother Teresa also. In Patanjali Yoga Sutras, it is
explained how to overcome such obstacles in the path of Yoga. These are the nine
obstacles you can get doubts will come. Self do ubt, doubt about the teacher, doubt
about the knowledge, the path and then some or the other ailments come. You ll be
fine. When you want to do is some practice y ou ll get cold, cough, fever, this and
that. Some physical discomfort, disease or mental dullness can come over you. These
sorts of nine different types of obstac les to get perfection are also part of the
knowledge, part of the path. But no o bstacles can stay forever. They all come for
a short time and they go, they disa ppear. So don t keep looking whether I am
connected or not connected. When you fee l a sort of vacuum, lack of love, lack of
enthusiasm or the initial high or joy you felt suddenly disappearing somewhere,
just smile and be centered. You will s ee this wind just blows and then the sun
rises back again. The sun is always the re. It will be visible just in the matter
of time. In the same way, your connect
ion with your Self, with the teacher, with the universe is all intact. It will j
ust blossom once again. Q: How can I stop hurting myself physically when I feel
guilty? Sri Sri Ravi Sha nkar: When you feel guilty, just sing and dance. Do
satsang, do bhastrika. Maybe three times you do bhastrika. Q: There is a lot of
information about the transition of human consciousness, wh ich is part of
evolution. They say it will happen in 2012. Can you comment on it ? Sri Sri Ravi
Shankar: As I said, the evolution of human consciousness is a conti nuous process.
It is happening even now. They are right. In the next two years, 2012, that s when
Jupiter comes to Aries, the first point of Aries, people will be more spiritual.
They will be inclined towards spirituality. Spirituality will b e the fashion and
it will become the necessity. People will start walking the pa th. I remember in
80s and 90s people doing Yoga were considered to be little out there. Not normal.
It was not a dignified thing to sit in the lotus position or stretch your legs and
hands and knees and sit on the floor. Today many companie s - when they want to
depict relaxation - they make someone sit in a yoga postur e. Today s
advertisements show people sitting in the lotus pose. Paradigms have changed.
People s thinking has changed. Prejudice has reduced. I wo n t say it has gone
totally, but has reduced to a great extent. Interfaith dialogu e is the talk of the
world today. I was recently in Australia, in the Parliament of the World s
Religions, and there were people from all over the world, of diffe rent faiths, 600
people, started respecting each other s faith. This time I receiv ed a greetings
letter from the Pope. He sent me Diwali greetings and I sent him Christmas
greetings. He addressed me saying, Holiness, we all have to work togeth er in the
world to do a great job to uplift the human consciousness. Today they h ave
recognized there are all other faiths and many ways. So the world is changin g
already. Isn t it? Q: I really want to find and go the way of truth. Please teach
us to see it. Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: When you are in the train, you don t keep
running inside the compartments. Just imagine you have to run to catch the train.
But once you are inside the train, don t carry your bag on your back and keep
running thinking, I w ant to run faster and faster . You ll not reach any faster
running to the front comp artment. Just sit and relax. Have your tea. You will
reach your destination. Thi s is a promise. Just relax. You are in the right path.
Read and study Ashtavakra and Yoga Vasishta. What s goi ng to happen in 2012? Silly
question. The world is not going to come to an end. I am repeating the same thing
what I said in 1999. In 1999, we were in Italy. We had the biggest course in Europe
where 2000 people on the beaches of Italy were welcoming the New Year - 10 years
ago exactly. Then people asked me the same th ing. World is going to end in 2000?
In Canada people had stored milk powder, rat ion everything in their basement.
Cellar and basements were stuffed with food st uff.Because the world is going to
crash and there will not be any food items for next six months till people find a
way out. This was the fear. Wherever I go, e verybody asked the same question. What
will happen in 2000? I said everything wi ll be business as usual. There will be no
change. Just relax. Really! Many peopl e sold their homes and property from the
West because they said there was going to be a big earthquake. California is going
to go underneath the water. Let us be more smart. Before it goes down and we have
to get into the boats to come up to Colorado. Let s go now to Colorado. Let us be
the welcoming party for the sinking people. This was the idea. Many people sold
their homes. They went to Colorado a nd build their homes there! Nothing is going
to happen and we ll continue. Yes. Some earthquake, some calamity happens all the
time. It s a continuous process on this planet. Birth and death i
s a simultaneous process. Today so many people are dying and today so many are b
eing born. It s not going to be one day that everybody is going to be born and one
day everybody is going to die. No. The doom s day or whatever day is not going to
come. Don t worry. Everyday is a dooms day. Everyday is a day of resurrection bec
ause the world is spherical. There is sun every moment on this planet somewhere
shining and there is sunset happening all the time and sunrise happening the who le
time. This is what the ancient Vedic science says. We read that Galileo was t he
one who said the Earth is spherical. No. Ancient Vedic times, they have said it.
Bhugola - Earth is spherical . Khagola the universe is spherical. And millions of
universes are there. There are 14 earths like our earth in our Galaxy. So, this
universe is huge and unfath omable. So having attained this, relax in the peace of
your heart. Content. Toni ght go to bed with a smile on your face. With a feeling
of contentment, not with lack. I have had everything I need to have. I have had
enough food, I have had all the pleasure that the world can give me. Whatever is
needed for the body, nature has given. I am happy with it. If more is needed,
nature is going to give me. If th is body needs anything more, it will be provided
in the future. With this faith and with this understanding, just repose in your
Self. When belongingness expands to include everyone, spirituality has grown! Q:
How to bring up children in a competitive world? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: The world
has always been competitive. In the past, compet ition was present on a smaller
scale. It is much bigger now. We need to instill values. Even in the satyuga, there
were rakshasas (demons). So don't blame time. You do your part. Instill values in
children. Q: What is the difference between jeeva (individual consciousness) and
brahma (i nfinite cosmic consciousness)? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Jeeva is a part of
Brahma. The balloon has air outside and inside it. Inside a vessel, there is space
and o utside there is space as well. The inside space is jeeva,the outside space is
br ahma. The jeeva is desire, aversion, craving. All this is the balloon. That is
why the Lord is not somebody separate, but it is, what I am. If the wave asks,
Where is the ocean then what to say? The wave itself is the ocean. You have to only
realize t his. That is why it is said that while it takes a moment to break a
flower stem, the Divine can be realized in a fraction of that moment. Q: I cannot
accept criticism. So I get disturbed. Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: For how long does this
happen?For some time right?So, it s a lright. If you think you shouldn't get
disturbed, then you get more disturbed. T he disturbance doesn't stay for all
time.If there is some point in their comment s, take it. Welcome the criticism. Is
it for your improvement or is it the impre ssion that you have created? You doubt
compliments. So doubt the criticism as well. Q: I feel unhappy very often. How can
I get out of it? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Right now are you happy or sad? Just be
happy. So, the ans wer is within you. Once, a woman went to a saint and asked, Why
is the world so sad? If you can t leave the world when there is unhappiness, how
will you leave a world full of happiness?
You will be in a great loss if you can t let go of the world. Just turn inwards to
the Source, there is no sadness. Once you learn how to go inwards the world doe
sn't seem sad. Just look at the world, where is the sadness? Birds are chirping;the
river is fl owing. Where is the sadness? I only see beauty in the world. Just look
at all th e faces (here)they are so happy! In life, there s 20 percent sadness and
80 percent happiness. But our mind makes t he 20 percent into 2000 percent. Q:
Could you please comment on the Naxalite issue? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: The Naxal
problem is not of poverty. A poor man cannot lif t a gun or make a bomb. These are
people who have wrong education. They say, If pe ople can elect us, they can bring
us down also. Did Napoleon ask anyone for a vo te, did Mao or Stalin ask? They feel
that they should come to power on their own power. This education turns people
towards violence.People who walk the path of spiritu ality, who know history,will
never go into Naxal activities. They are ignorant o f spirituality. That is why
spirituality is most important. That is why I often say Krishna was the first
communist. Krishna said, See Me in all and all in Me . This is the real communism.
Q: There is a lot of poverty. How do we find a solution for that? Sri Sri Ravi
Shankar: One of the main reasons for poverty is alcoholism. Many villagers spend 60
percent of their earnings in the toddy shop. If you thin k they are poor, then from
where have they got toddy? Villages have risen above the poverty line just by
closing the toddy shops. The poorest of the poor can ea rn and not stay hungry,
wherever alcohol has stopped. Youngsters in rural areas are now dealing with this
problem. People of all castes should celebrate together. Everyone should come
together fo r one meal in a week. When people in the village will come together,
then the fe eling of Dalit and non Dalits will be removed. In every village, ask
those who c an to contribute for those who don t have enough. Such development
cannot be done by the government alone. NGOs have to initiate this change. Q: What
carries the samskaara through different lifetime? The body dies and the
consciousness is pure. Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: The mind carries the samskaaras. Q:
What is spirituality? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Do you feel belonging? That is
spirituality. When this belongingness expands to include everyone, then
spirituality has grown . (A girl from the audience asks) Q: How do you know if you
really love somebody? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Suppose you sit for four five hours. Do
you get a pain in yo ur leg? (The girl nods her head.) How do you know? (Sri Sri
addresses the audien ce in general) Our doubt is always about something positive.
Someone asks, Are yo u happy? And we say, Well I am not sure. You have never doubt
your depression.