Question & Answers with Sri Sri Ravi Shankar
Q:
Can you throw some light on Bhakti Yoga?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
If you sit in the Ganga aarti in the evening, you will find everybody singing so beautifully and a wave of devotion. Bhakti yoga is seeing the Divine as mine and oneself as belonging to the Divine, and all that exists belongs to the Divine.Q:
My heartiest gratitude to you. Who are you Gurudev?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
: First, you know yourself. Why are you putting your effort in knowing me? You don’t know who you are. First, know that how many times have you come in this world? When you know yourself, it will be very easy to know me.Q:
Under your guidance, there is no discrimination on the basis of religion, then why are there different religious symbols displayed here (in The Vishalakshi Mantap, meditation hall)?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
They are on the pillars and not in the mind and heart. If someone says he is a Hindu, Jain etc, we would tell them to hang it on the pillar and be free from within!Q:
What made God alive? When did you start believing in God? Have you seen God? What does God look like?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
This same question was asked 10,000 years ago by a little boy of 8-9 years old to his father.The boy to his father: What is God and how does God Look like?
His father takes him by hand and brings him out of his house, and asked him what was there at the place of their house before it was built.
The boy said ‘Space’.
Father: Where is the house built?
Boy: space.
Father: What will exist and what will remain when this house will demolish?
Boy: space.
Father: That is God.
God is not a person sitting somewhere. It is so depicted in paintings only. God is love, God is the space in which everything exists, from which everything has come into existence, and in which everything dissolves. God is the space, joy, and love, which is all pervading. The space around you is not the dead space. It is filled with energy and intelligence. That energy and intelligence is divinity. It is everywhere –your inside as well as your outside.
Most of the native cultures of the world have the same concept. They say God is in the mountains, in the rivers, in the flowers, in the trees, in the animals, and in the human beings. God is love. You can feel it but cannot see it. You can experience that enormous energy when you go deep in meditation.
Q:
Will you please talk about animal sacrifice?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
Animal sacrifice (bali pratha) needs to be stopped. It is not written in any scripture to kill helpless animals. It means to surrender any animal tendencies that you find within yourself. You can explain this and make othersunderstand too.Q:
Why do negative feelings like regret and frustration exist? Has anything productive ever come out of them? And if not, what is the way to turn these emotions into productive one?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
You should read ‘Celebrating Silence’. I have answered all these questions there.Q:
Can we achieve a goal within time? Please tell a way so that we may achieve a hundred percent result.
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
There is a sukti in Sanskrit - Kriya siddi bhavati mahta, kriya siddhi bhavati satve mahta . An act is perfected by satva. The higher the satvaguna rises in us, an act is achieved easily and without hurdles. When rajoguna and tamoguna are increased, then it takes longer to complete a work.Thus, to increase the satva, follow a satvic diet, meditate, do satsang, pranayama and yoga. With all this, sadbuddhi (good sense) is developed.
Q:
How much freedom is to be given or restrictions are to beput on teenagers?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
You have forgotten because you havecrossed that stage and you don’t remember what turmoil they are goingthrough. There are so many hormonalchanges taking place in their body. Shake hands with them and gently guide themthrough this.Teenage feverishness is only for few years. Not onlyphysical but mental and emotional turbulence is so high in them. After the ageof three, children begin to experience all these emotions like jealousy,possessiveness and these continue till teenage. Some people don’t come out ofteenage at all. Mental turbulence is huge for them.
Teenage is a tough time. It needs great patience to dealwith teenage children. So with greatpatience, like a friend and philosopher, give them some space and at the sametime put your foot down and say ‘No’. Don’t be too loose at that time.
Q:
Spiritual path involves many sacrifices of material things and worldly pleasures, all which seem to take away the joy from life. Is it so?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
No, in fact it gives you the joy.Q:
How do we stop depression?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
Doing pranayama (stress elimination breath techniques) and yoga regularly. Stop thinking about yourself only, “Oh, what about me?” This is a technique to get depressed, if anyone wants to get depressed they should only have one question, “What about me?” Come on. Think about the world, about other people around you, what you can do for the world. You have a big picture around you about what you can do, then depression will run away from you. So two things:1. Is to do your practices and
2. Is set up a goal for yourself, do something in the world that would be useful to many more.
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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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