Question & Answers with Sri Sri Ravi Shankar
Q:
How can I sustain the peace of meditation, the “all is well” feeling?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
How do you sleep at night? You simply drop everything. When you wake up, you are fresh and have the energy and dynamism to deal with the situations. It is the same with meditation. You will see the contrast if you don’t meditate for some time.Q:
Guruji, what is Nirvana? Or better, give it to us right now!
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
Nirvana is bringing the balance and having no feverishness for any desire. Desire means a lack. When you say, I want nothing, I am content, that is nirvana. But that doesn't mean you shun your duties. You perform your duties well but you are with your center. Even craving for enlightenment is an hindrance to enlightenment.All emotions are linked with people, objects and events. Catching on to objects, people or relationships hinders freedom, liberation. When the mind is free from all impressions and concepts, you are liberated. The state of nothingness is called Nirvana, enlightenment, Samadhi. Nirvana is getting back to me from mine. Who am I?
When you go deep inside you, layer after layer, that is nirvana. It is like peeling an onion! What do you find in the center of an onion? Nothing!
When you know that everything is changing - all relationships, people, body, feelings - suddenly the mind which clings on to misery comes back to you. The return from mine to me, gives you contentment and freedom from misery. Reposing in that state of contentment is nirvana.
Q:
How to do samarpan (surrender) in bhakti(devotion)?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
In the same way how we have sweetness insugar.
Q:
After some ‘Art of Living’ Courses, I have felt so happy. I thought I would explode. After a while, I realized that it was not only happiness, but also feverishness. Then I got depressed. It was like an emotional roller-coaster. How can I handle feverishness?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
You have already become a witness to it. You have observed that you are on a roller-coaster. You observe these emotions are coming and going. Notice, earlier too the emotions were there. But now it is reducing. Before you were not aware, at least now you are aware of it. Just persistence on this path, in this knowledge makes you stronger, hmm!Q:
The global warming issue is so serious now days, disasters happen everywhere. As a resident in this planet what should we do? I feel sad when I see people suffer, what can I do more?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
We have to create awareness. Join the ‘Art of Living’ band wagon, we are everyday going and planting more trees, creating awareness about plastics, creating awareness in people. To check global warming, more and more people need to turn vegetarian. You know, what they say is even if 10 percent of the population turns vegetarian, 10 percent more; the issue of global warming will be completely gone.The methane that is produced in the slaughter houses is so much responsible for global warming. With the price and the energy spend to produce one pound of meat, you can feed four hundred people. So more and more people should turn vegetarians, and that will bring change in the environment.
Q:
Dear Guruji, it is easy for me to shut my mouth, but it is difficult for me to shut my thoughts. How can I do it? Please help me.
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
You don’t need to do anything. Everything is done here for you. Hiren is giving all the courses, he will lead you at different times to different types of meditations and processes, and it’ll happen. That’s why you need to be here. If it’s your first Advanced Meditation Course, you may find it a little difficult but when you continue, you will definitely find it very useful.Q:
How do we know that we are working on our life’s purpose and we are not doing somebody else’s job?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
Okay! How do we know we are doing our life’s job? What is that we have come here to do? See whether you are happy and making people happy around you. Are you doing whatever you can do for people around you? Are you sharing your love and gaining knowledge? Whatever knowledge you have, can you share that with people? You have to ask these questions and you know, sometimes we shouldn’t doubt ourselves too much; sometime self doubt arises – ‘Am I doing this right?’ Just be spontaneous. In every action, there is something good and there is something wrong. There is no action that is totally perfect. The field of action has some imperfection, maybe one percent or two percent. So there could be imperfection in every action.Similarly every word that is spoken could be imperfect. But what could be perfect is our intention, our feeling. Do you see what I am saying? You have no ill intention towards anybody, and that is done. You know, I have never uttered any insulting word from my mouth all these years. At the most the word that has come out of my tongue is ‘stupid’. When I get really angry, I raise my voice and say ‘You stupid!’, but I have never cursed anybody and that is how I am made. I can’t take credit for it because I didn’t make any effort. I didn’t go to any course or school and try to make myself not to curse people, or not to blame anybody. To yell, shout or get upset is not in my nature at all. And all these bad words simply don’t come up.
Q:
As a woman how can I fully liberate myself without being angry in the so called Man’s world?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
Lessen your dependency. What do you call independence? First you think you are bound, and then you try to come out of that. You find freedom when you have a say over your emotions and when you are in wisdom.Nobody is completely independent. Even nations are not completely independent. The word is interdependent. Among nations and communities we are interdependent. We live in an interdependent world. Man depends on Woman and Women have to depend on man.
So it is paradox – independence and interdependence. Try to be independent as much as you can understanding the need for interdependency.
Q:
Can I be a part of that?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
Definitely. Most welcome.Q:
Whatis the fastest way to feel belongingness and unity?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
When you are free fromstress, you have a sense of belongingness and understanding. This is whathappens when people undergo The Art of Living program. It happens so naturally.
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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.
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