8 Jan 2013 - QA 1

Is there anything common between communism and spirituality?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Yes. What is Communism? The essence of communism is all are equal and spirituality says the same thing.
Lord Krishna was the first communist. He said, ‘Yo mam pasyati sarvatra sarvam ca mayi pasyati tasyaham na pranasyami sa ca me na pranasyati’.
The one who sees me in everybody and everybody in me, he is the intelligent one.
Saman sarveshu bhuteshu tishthantam paramesvaram parishati’, means the one who sees everyone as equal.
Shuni chaive shavpakech pandita sam darshina. Who is a yogi? Sam darshina, one who sees everything with equanimity is a yogi.

If you open the Bhagavad-Gita, you will realize it is full of this knowledge. See everybody as equal; that is the essence of communism. Spirituality also teaches the same thing. In fact, in spirituality, it becomes practical, otherwise it simply remains intellectual.
This question arises, ‘Why should you see everybody as equal?’ A spiritual person knows the answer, because it is one divinity which is present in everybody. So, if you are hurting anybody, you are hurting God. If you love God, then you should not hurt anybody. So, you see equality in everybody.

Values find their true strength only with spiritual knowledge. Otherwise, we only talk of values, but it really does not go in. Our heart should open up.
It is spirituality which makes you sincere, makes your heart open up. It is lack of spirituality that makes people go to drugs or alcohol or other vices.