Question & Answers with Sri Sri Ravi Shankar
Even after chanting the name of God, the mind is not contented and happy. What to do?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
That is why we have the Art of Living Course. When you will do Sudarshan Kriya then in the very first sitting itself you will experience so much of contentment and the mind becomes so peaceful. Just experience it.
That is why so many thousands of Muslim people have done the course in Pakistan, and then called me there. Why? Because they did Sudarshan Kriya and they felt connected. They started feeling good, they experienced completeness and a change happened in life. So you also do the Kriya.
Gurudev, I want to become like you. Is it possible?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
Definitely! Do seva, sadhana and satsang.
There is no difference between you and me. You are what I am. When we came here we were all the same. When children are born they are all the same. Just that I didn’t lose my childlike nature, but you probably got lost somewhere. But you can come back, there is no problem.
I consider myself as a boy who hasn’t grown up yet.
Can you please speak about Kaal Bhairava?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
Kaal Bhairava is the Lord of Time. Time itself is the Divinity.
Do you know what the vehicle of Kaal Bhairava is? It is Shwana (Dog). Shwa means Yesterday or Tomorrow, Na means Not. So, Shwana means, not yesterday, nor tomorrow; which means Now.
So, where does Kaal Bhairava reside? In the now.
Gurudev, it might sound silly but it is a genuine question from the heart. How does one begin to love oneself more?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
There is an anecdote. Someone was trying to catch a black cat in a dark room which was not there.
First of all, you think there is a cat and then you try to catch it. The first assumption that you don’t love yourself is itself wrong. You ARE Love. When you think I don’t love myself, and make so much effort to love yourself, it results in total failure. I tell you, you cannot make an effort to love, either yourself or anybody. You simply have to relax and realize that you are love. Got it?
Even the person who wants to commit suicide and thinks he doesn’t love himself, loves himself much more. He loves pleasure so much that he is unable to go through a little discomfort. That is why people commit suicide.
By committing suicide you will not get out of discomfort. It is like removing your jacket when you are feeling so cold. You are feeling so cold and you remove your jacket. How does it help? Simply realize that you are love. Don’t try to love yourself, just relax. The best way is pranayama and mediation. Breathing exercise and meditation.
Gurudev, ego, misunderstandings and doubts have destroyed my relationship. What is the secret of loving relationships?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
Just be natural and accept people. Love is always about giving. Know that you have come here (on the planet) to only give love and not demand love from anybody.
I am not sure about what I want to do in life. I want to ask you but I don’t even know what to ask and what exactly I want. I get bored doing anything in very little time. I find myself being very moody. I am not satisfied or happy doing anything. How can I live my life with this kind of mental state?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
You want comfort too much. Get out of your comfort zone. You are only thinking of your comfort and pleasure; that is when you get into this sort of stage or state.
You are here to be useful to somebody else. You are here to do something useful to someone. How can you be bored? Even if you are bored, you have to do that, because what you do is useful to someone else. If you are self-centered, and you think, ‘If I like it only then I will do it’, then that is not seva. That won’t bring you satisfaction. Do you see what I’m saying?
‘I don’t like meeting people’, but you are meeting people for your sake or for their sake? If you are meeting people for their sake, then your life is fulfilling.
You may say, ‘Guruji, you can do this, but what about me? I cannot do this.’ At least do something! You don’t have to do what I am doing; at least do a portion of it, maybe ten percent or five percent. See, I am very free, but yet I am not free. Every day of mine is bound. Do you see what I am saying?
You have all come here to be in satsang with me, I will say, ‘Oh, I don’t feel like being here. I feel moody. I want to go somewhere, to Shawinigan, Trois-Riveres’, and I take a car and just walk away and you are sitting here, waiting for Guruji, where is Guruji?
I don’t want to do this but I am doing it all the 365 days. I am answering the same questions; people are saying, ‘Will you find a husband for me?’ ‘Will you find a wife for me?’ or ‘Get me a job’, or do this, or do that, or take a picture with me, ‘You don’t care for me’, ‘You care for me’; all these stories. Do I feel bored? I have been doing this for 30 years now; more than 30 years, even before The Art of Living too, for 40 years!
I can’t say I want to go somewhere for a ride. So, do something that is good for others. I need so much of your time, your work. Don’t worry about whether you like it or not, just do it and see. Sometimes you don’t like doing things in the beginning, but later on, you will reap the fruit of that action. Any seva you do will always take you up; it will always bring you benefits, beyond your imagination. So don’t underestimate that. Do you see what I am saying?
Otherwise, if you are doing everything to satisfy your own self, you will be bored, because nothing in the world can satisfy you. And you are lucky in a way that you are getting so bored so quickly. You are so lucky; you are the right person as a seeker, you have the right ingredients to grow because you get bored with all these material things. That is good.
One very good thing with the kids these days is that they get bored with everything very soon, but instead of getting frustrated, they should move that whole energy in another direction of evolution, to go higher.
Guruji, we are unable to resolve the problems of daily life. How do you manage to resolve such huge problems with such ease? Tell us the secret.
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
This secret itself is the Art of Living. You do the camp, do meditation, and get involved in seva and satsang. Get engaged in seva work, you will see, you will also be able to accomplish big tasks. One should be joyful. There should be contentment in the mind, and for the country, one should be ready to serve the nation.
In this world of stress, violence and corruption, what is your message for youths starting out in business?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
We must know that not the whole world is corrupt. There are a few people who indulge in corruption.
We must also remember that corruption begins where the sense of belongingness ends. This is what we should note. Nobody can do corrupt practices with those whom they think belong to them. Wherever there is sense of belongingness, corruption becomes simply impossible.
Corruption begins where sense of belongingness ends. So you need to educate people in values where the sense of belongingness is extended. This is what I call spirituality.
Spirituality is that which enhances the sense of belongingness among people, so there is that natural tendency to be honest and to care for each other.
Corruption simply becomes impossible in these cases.
What is the ultimate and greatest truth of life? Is it to be happy, or to make one’s family happy, or to serve humankind, or to reach the Divine?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
The ultimate journey starts with one step. Just do not sit and dream about the ultimate. Instead, begin your journey towards the ultimate.
Take small steps towards the Truth; towards this inquiry into life – “What is the goal of life?” This very inquiry can take you far. Everything has some significance in life.
Just eating alone is not the goal of life. Yet eating is essential for sustaining life. Isn’t it? Similarly, sleeping is not the goal of life. But can you discard sleep altogether? No, you cannot. In the same way, you have to be happy and you also have to make others happy. This is the journey towards the Ultimate.
What is the ultimate Truth, or the ultimate purpose of life? I tell you, one who really knows will not tell you, and anyone who does tell you, simply does not know. That is the secret.
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
That is why I say that it is important to instill the three types of trust in your children – trust in oneself, trust in the goodness of others, and trust in the Divine. A little bit of moral and spiritual values, and the way you treat your parents and ask them to treat their grandparents can make an impact on them. From a young age, tell your children to take care of their grandparents. They will start being sensitive this way.