Question & Answers with Sri Sri Ravi Shankar
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
A pleasant equanimous state of mind. A blissful life without sorrow.Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
(Jokingly) Ok, somebody didn’t smile at you and was smiling at himself being adjacent to you, is that your problem! (laughter) The world is like that, some people don’t smile at you, you don’t smile at someone. Leave others. Are you smiling? We maintain our smile that is good enough.Everybody has one’s own set of problems and if that much compassion has arisen in you then you go and ask, ‘What is your problem? Why are you not smiling? Do you need any help?’ But then see whom are you asking (laughter) and in case you are slapped by someone, then give them your second cheek too. (Huge laughter) If that compassion is there, then ask everyone, ‘Why are you not smiling?’
Once in Switzerland, we were waiting for some conveyance and we saw that nobody on the road was smiling. I thought, everything is here and still people are not smiling. I had so many flowers with me and so I asked the devotees who were accompanying me to give flowers to those who were not smiling on the road and ask them to smile. That was such a fantastic program. After that we raised a wave called ‘Spread your smile’ in Netherland, France, Germany, Switzerland where people give flowers and said, ‘ Please smile and make others smile by passing on this flower’. Some people were shocked initially that nobody till that day bothered about their smile and suddenly somebody coming and asking them to smile.
But if you are in India, take care before giving flower to anybody. (laughter) Be a little cautious before giving a flower here in India. In India, if a girl smiles at a boy it is taken in a different sense. It is not normal, and a boy giving a flower to a girl is not taken as a very nice gesture. (Huge laughter) But in Europe, it is not considered bad. (Somebody from audience asked, ‘Let’s start this in New York also’.) Yes, we are doing there also, something called ‘A Rose of friendship, Pass it on’.
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
This could also be a dream. Are you sure this is not a dream? (laughter). Whenever something nice happens, it appears to be a dream.Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
It’s a matter of culture. It creates an atmosphere with a sense of joy. There is nothing wrong in celebration, fire crackers etc. Traditional practices help and bring a sense of belongingness to family and children.In the houses of Maoists, there are no pictures or lamps. When children grow up (in such an environment), they grow up with a lot of emptiness.
In Russia, there was no religion for 40 years. There was a destruction of cathedrals and they built a swimming pool on that. Now, after that catastrophe, they re-built the church. If people don’t practice religion, they start feeling the vacuum. And finally religion helps them understand this.
For spirituality – there is no need of religious practices.
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
Don’t love them. Just accept them. First accept and then see the culprit not as a culprit but a victim. Due to circumstances they did so. If they would have had wisdom they wouldn’t have done it.Just a few days ago, a lady came to the ashram. She has three children and her husband was killed by Maoists. Later she became an Art of Living teacher and when she went back, she taught the Maoists Sudarshan Kriya and pranayama. Maoists were so amazed. They asked her: ‘You are not angry with us, we killed your husband?’ She said, ‘No, you didn’t have knowledge of what you were doing. I want you to be in knowledge’. They all did Sudarshan Kriya, pranayama and left the path of violence. They were crying in front of her like babies. The way she described brought tears in everybody’s eyes. All those 2000 people present had tears in eyes.
This is the power of wisdom. It unites people of all roles and attitudes.
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
Don’t get frustrated, at least you be strong. Have hope. Things will change.Yesterday night I was watching on CNN about a problem on how young girls and children are being sold in Nepal and India and all these places. Why don’t we all do something? We already freed 600 girls from going to Bombay for prostitution - teaching them and making them economically strong. I think we can duplicate that in all these places. We can raise more funds in that irection and help so many women and save them from financial crises.
We should all focus on doing something about that problem.
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
You move according to your way and let others move in their own way. It is not necessary that all paths should be the same.Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
You don’t have to make it an experience. You simply have to wake up and see that life is a game. Wake up this moment as I am speaking. Whatever happened till now, is it not like a dream? You had dinner this evening, meditated in the morning, did yoga in morning and went to bed last night, and if you go over your own memory there were good / bad events, you had profit, you had loss but right this moment it’s all gone. Wake up this moment and you will see that tomorrow, the next 10 years is also like a dream! When you realize this whole phenomenon, that has happened in the past and future, it's all like a play, a game. You don’t have to think this is a concept and I have to experience it. My dear, memory is memory. Your thinking that you have to experience memory is a concept and your thinking that you don’t have it is again a concept. You simply have to realize right away that it is all a dream. This could be a dream. That very moment you feel a sense of relief. A soothing wave overtakes you. Don’t wait till someday you will experience - it’s all a game.May be after you leave the body you will experience one day. Then also you will realize I could have done that much before.Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
See, forget all sin and merit, when you come here. Punya brought you here, and sin is all gone. Washed off.Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
You can see that the world is not permanent.
