Question & Answers with Sri Sri Ravi Shankar
Q:
In a world full of jealousy and hatred, how do I go on a path of humbleness and serenity?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
Don’t label the world. Some people are this way, but don’t pay too much attention to them. Just move on. Let them get cooked in their jealousy. It is alright. That which you put attention on, will grow. Manifestation follows intention and attention.In the 55 years of my life I have never said a bad thing about anyone. It is my nature. At the most I would have said stupid. I never said or wished bad. If your intention is clear, I tell you, you will move on. If someone is jealous, what do you do? Just move on. Your attention should be on something higher, on the blossoming.
Q:
Some of my colleagues talk ill of the ‘Art of Living’. I don’t like this but I ignore them. Can you please guide what should I do?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
What is it that they can talk bad of us? There is nothing. That is all their imagination. You keep on doing what you can. They will also realize. This had also happened with so many saints in the past. Some people liked them and got benefited after getting the knowledge, and some others didn’t like them. How does it matter?We are teaching. One thing that some people say is why the ‘Art of Living’ courses are paid. ‘Art of living’ is an education. Do you think education should be free? Will people value free education the same way? If education should be free, then all education like medical, engineering, journalism should also be free. If all others are not, why should spiritual education be free? There was concept of Dakshina in the past also. Unless you give dakshina, your education is never complete. And we do so much work in society with the money left after course expenses.
Also this shows how much more work we need to do to improve the society.
Q:
How do I come out of negative patterns in my life?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
Once you see yourself acting in a pattern, you are already stepping out of it.Q:
After coming on the path I find it difficult to fulfill religious rituals. I don’t understand should we continue doing that or leave that. Please guide.
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
There is a couplet by Saint kabir:karka manka chod kar,
Manka manka fer.
It is best to do meditation. But I don’t say one should completely abandon rituals. You perform some rituals on festivals. A little bit of rituals are good. But don’t be too much stuck with the rituals. E.g. if you had resolved to perform a ritual and due to some circumstances you were not able to fulfill that, then there is no need to think that God will be angry with you or you have acquired some sin. I give you guarantee. Maharishi Narada has also said ‘ God is total love’.
Devotion and surrender are greater than any ritual. A little bit ritual is necessary for two reasons. Children are introduced to religion and spirituality through the rituals. Secondly, performing rituals also purify the atmosphere at home. E.g. when all family members come together and do Pooja on Diwali, the atmosphere of our home changes. It is same when you offer Ardas in Gurudwara.
There is no need to be afraid of or feel guilty if you couldn’t keep up with the ritual due to any reason.
Q:
Dear Guruji, we have come here to appreciate silence more and more. I love it here but there are times when I would rather be alone and stay in silence. When I go to office or any social place like that, do you think too much silence is a bad thing?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
Balance! Balance in life. Anything too much is no good. Too much talking is no good; too much silence is not for you now.Q:
How do I learn not to be selfish? Can I learn to act without a lot of self-doubt?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
You are already not selfish! You are already out of it, my dear. Just know that you are not selfish. That’s it. Why? Because when you feel you are selfish, something irritates you, you don’t feel comfortable. You feel comfortable when you are at home and in your element. And that is already being generous. You can never cultivate virtues. You simply have them. You have to assume that you have them; then virtues will grow.You know what is doubt? Doubt is always about something that is positive. Isn’t it? If someone tells you, ‘I love you so much’, you say, “Really?” Yet someone says, ‘I hate you’ and you don’t say this. We never doubt when someone says, ‘I dislike you.’ ‘I too dislike you’, immediately it comes. ‘If you dislike me, I hate you more!’ But if someone says, ‘I love you,’ we say, “Really?” We doubt someone’s integrity. We question someone’s honesty. We never question their dishonesty. We doubt our capabilities. We never doubt our incapabilities or weaknesses. We take our weaknesses as the gospel truth. Similarly when someone asks if we are happy, we say we are not sure! We are never sure about unhappiness but this is never said in regard to depression. If someone asks you if you you depressed, will you say, ‘Well, I am not sure I am depressed.’ No? So sure about your depression! We are certain.
We doubt love. We doubt someone’s honesty. We doubt sincerity. Someone may be sincere all their life and be insincere in one incident. We believe in that insincerity more than their sincerity. Isn’t it? It’s the nature of doubt. That’s why we doubt the existence of God also. God is all truth so we doubt. He may be there or not. When we know the nature of doubt and go through the doubt, something starts to wake up within you. That is what I would call trust.
Trust in yourself. Trust in people around you and the law of nature. This will keep you healthy. Otherwise paranoia takes over the mind. If you can’t believe anybody, you can’t believe your spouse, your children, your neighbors, your friends, your brother. You will find everybody is a cheat and out to get you. Everybody wants something from you. This sort of paranoia shrinks our personality. Peace and spirituality ,I say, are the AC. Just as this room is air-conditioned so that you can feel comfortable sitting here, the spirit and mind function similarly and absolute comfort is called spirituality. AC for the spirit!
Q:
I have finished my final year engineering exam. I want to study, I want to pursue higher studies, but I cannot concentrate when I sit to study. I want to study, what should I do?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
If you are not getting concentration in your studies, watch for these three things(i) Your diet, watch what you are eating. Diet makes a big difference.
(ii) Do you do any physical exercises? If you just keep sitting on a couch watching TV, or keep sitting on computer with internet etc. then the circulation is less in your body. Then you tend to become lazy and will not feel like studying. So, it is necessary to do a little bit of physical exercise, yoga, pranayama, meditation and also participate a little in singing etc. Doing all these, whatever is the need for your system will be furnished, and then you can grasp more in studies. Also your learning and retaining capacity will increase, and you will be able to study as well as gain much more in shorter time.
Go for higher studies if you want to. Choice is yours, blessings are mine!
Q:
Today is my second day of silence. My mind is a devil’s workshop, it keeps having thoughts endlessly!
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
Sing, observe nature, and observe your thoughts. Look at nature as though you are looking at it for the first time – look at the trees, and look at the birds.When you observe these things, your mind becomes calmer. Observe your thoughts. Silence makes you observe. As you observe, your thoughts will reduce.
The thoughts were always there, but only in silence can you observe them!
Q:
You are amazing. Just a few minutes with you and all my worries are gone. Thank you for everything. How do you fit with Jesus and his message?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
His message was love. The ’Art of Living’ is also about the same. Jesus said to serve people, and the’Art of Living’ is about service. It fits in 100 percent. It may not fit with the methodology of the church, but it definitely fits with the ideals of Jesus. Jesus never said, ”you are a sinner”. In the old times, when people were crude, the church used guilt and fear in its methodology, which is perhaps not suitable for this age. For today’s age we are sophisticated and friendly, we do not have to carry guilt and sadness. We fit 100 percent with Jesus’ philosophy. The first priority is not to blame others or yourself. If you do, you will never be able to settle your mind, you will want to run away from people, and you’ll run away from yourself as well. Stop blaming yourself and others too.Q:
If something bad happens to a person we say that the previous birth karma is responsible. Will you please speak about that?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
‘Paap kya punya kyat tu bhulade’Karam kar phal ki chinta tu mitade’Forget what is sinful and what is noble. Be free from the desire of the fruit of action. Don’t sit and worry too much about all this.I have spoken more on this in Celebrating silence (a book written by Sri Sri Ravi Shankar Ravi Shankar).
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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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