Question & Answers with Sri Sri Ravi Shankar
Q:
What do you expect from us?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
A lot. You live in knowledge, you keep smiling, you keep serving, you keep connected. I don’t expect - I know you will do it. Only I am impatient. I want you to do it quickly.Q:
Guruji, I am physically handicapped. I was thinking, how can I contribute tosociety? Now I am working with the Divine Karnataka Project, presently, in theSheshadripuram slum (in Bangalore). I am feeling very confident.
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
We have to work a lot in slums. We have to make them literate and we have to eradicate castism from slums. For that we all have to work together. In Bangalore alone there are 400 slums and Art of Living is working in 105 of thoseslums. People in slums are addicted to alcohol and we have to stop this. Those very places and countries have lost their culture where people were too much into alcohol. People in these areas earn good money but they spent more than half of that onalcohol. How can we stop them? By giving them an alternative source of intoxication, by bringing them to satsang and making them experience intoxication and the joy of meditation. Do you feel intoxication in meditation and satsang? (‘Yes’ from theaudience) So, you feel change after doing all this. All DKP yuvacharyas (youthleaders) have to go to slums and work in these places. You may face some obstacles but walk ahead and keep working. A member of the audience shares an experience:“I did the basic course three months ago in Andhra Pradesh. The happiness I haveexperienced in the last three months, I didn’t experience in the last 26 years of my life. I am very thankful to you.”Q:
Guruji you arrive and the entire atmosphere changes. What can we do to achieve the same?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
It is your responsibility to transform the atmosphere wherever you go. You can do it too. By doing meditation and practices, our body produces such vibrations that everybody around us gets the benefit, not just us alone.Q:
You once said that forgiveness is a cure. Is forgiveness the formula to make peace between Israelis and Arabs?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
Let go of the past and find a new future. From independence to inter-dependence. That is what we have to understand. Independence was a slogan of the past era. Everyone wanted to be independent so that they could be prosperous, but today prosperity does not come from independence it comes from understanding the inter-dependence. This needs to be educated to people. There is also an identity crisis. A person thinks ‘I am a Muslim’ or ‘I am a Christian’ or ‘I am a Hindu’ or ‘ I am Buddhist’ and those who are not, do not belong to me. They look like an enemy.They need to shift this type of thinking to: - first and foremost, our identity is that we are all human beings. Then, we belong to a certain gender of either male or female. The third identity is that of religion and then finally to a particular nation. If the priority of identity is in the right place I think conflicts can be resolved very quickly.
Q:
I would like to have self realization. I have come to the advanced meditation course. At what stage and in what course will my desire get fulfilled?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
It’s good. This is the highest desire, the only one worth pursuing. Whether you acknowledge this or not, everyone has come to this planet with this desire. If you have recognized this it’s very good.Q:
How to decide the right time and place to start something?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
You have an intellect. Why don’t you use it? Use your viveka (discretion) and buddhi (intellect). Who answers you always? For how long can someone tell you what to do! If you have to take a very big decision, then you may go and consult someone senior. Otherwise take your own decisions – even if you make a mistake in the first few instances.Q:
Can I carry this bliss with me forever?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
Establish God in your body, and then you will experience Divinity. While doing Puja, (when you say keshavaya svaha etc... ) know that Keshav, Madhav (Forms of the Divine) are in the body – and that you accept this offering for them. Meditate, and sit quietly. You may offer flowers, if you have, but it is not necessary.It is important that the mind is clean, and calm, and completely immersed in the puja.
Q:
How do you recognize that somebody is your real guru and for you? How do you know if someone is a true disciple?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
I don’t test anybody nor do I let anyone test me. If anyone will ask me, I will say, “No!” and move on! Divine really doesn’t test anybody. We think we are very good people and when difficulties arise we assume that the Divine is testing us. We don’t get into trouble because of our goodness: it is because of our foolishness. Some things are your karma. Some difficulties teach you lessons. Look back and see all those problems you have come out of. You will see that you have become stronger. This is what you should recognize.Q:
We sing bhajans, kirtans, and hymns to praise the Divine. Why does the Divine like praise, just like our seniors?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
You praise God, not for God, but for yourself. Those who do puja, don’t do it for God, but for themselves. If you praise someone, it’s not for their happiness, you do it for your own happiness.Parents usually praise their 2 or 3-year-old children, however the child doesn’t understand a word of their praise. So why do they praise? To uplift themselves! Not because they expect something from the child.
This is the difference between praise and prayer. Stuti (repetition of God’s name) is that which raises our chetana (consciousness). We do stuti to raise our own consciousness, not to make God happy.
Q:
How important is prana (life force energy)? One, of course, is it gives life. How does one improve one’s prana?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
Prana is present in everything. In fact, we are floating in air, in prana, an ocean of prana. When the unit of expression varies, it makes a difference. Stones have got one unit of prana. Water has got two units of prana. Fire has got three units of prana. Air has got four units of prana. Plants have got five units of prana. Animals have got six units of prana. Human beings are capable of holding from seven to 16 units of prana. The expression of prana is the whole universe. When prana is lower than one, that’s when you feel depressed. When prana goes further low then you feel suicidal. When prana is normal, you feel normal. When prana is higher, you feel enthusiastic. When prana is very high, you feel energetic and blissful. That is why when people are depressed, low just giving counseling doesn’t work, what needs to be done is to raise the level of prana. When prana is high there is joy, vibrancy, understanding. When prana is low, then the mind starts complaining, depression, lethargy, suicidal tendencies arise. All is play and display of prana.
Displaying 5741 - 5750 of 7928
Founded in 1981 by Sri Sri Ravi Shankar,The Art of Living is an educational and humanitarian movement engaged in stress-management and service initiatives.
Mehr