Question & Answers with Sri Sri Ravi Shankar
Q:
How do you know when to be in activity (Pravrati) and when to be in non-activity/rest (Nivrati)?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
How do you know when to sleep, and when to eat? When you get tired, you know you need sleep, when you get hungry, you know its time to eat. Like that everyday take a break to be in meditation then you become recharged and can work better.Q:
First, there was silence. Then an impulse came and manifested as word. Please tell us the mechanism by which yesterday’s impulse becomes today’s thought.
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
Have you all heard about Anadi and Anant? That which has no beginning, nor an end. Nobody knows when it started. It is present from millions of years. If we don’t know how it started, how can we know when it will end? Children often ask, ‘What is above this sky? How far does the sky go? We want to go above this sky.’ They speak this in ignorance. They say that this sky is a curtain and we want to see beyond it. Sky is ananta. It has no end.Q:
I made a promise to someone but now I know that it was not right. How do I get out of my promise?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
If the promise you made gives peace to someone then you must fulfil it. If it causes pain both, to you and the other person then just move on. A promise made in ignorance has no importance.Q When will India have a good government and when will we be free from terrorism?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: All of you take interest in that, usually people say that once you are in the spiritual world you should not get into politics at all, it is not like that. You should work towards providing justice to the society. Atheism and communism increased in our country because the spiritual people did not work against the injustice. They kept quiet.
Therefore, people lost their faith. In big states like Tamil Nadu, atheism spread because of the inaction on the part of the believers. There was a lot of injustice that happened against the dalits but the spiritual, religious people did not do anything.
Q:
Guruji any particular message you want to give us, anything at all?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
Have a vision. Move with confidence. I am with you. Move with that vision inyour life and share this joy with others. The happiness that we have got, we need to bring this joy to more and more people around us, don’t you think so? How many of you feel your lives are transformed?
Audience: Yes
It is our duty to share and spread the happiness that we have got.
Q:
I am a college student. After following spiritual practices, all the excitement in me seems to have been spent. Now I am only calm. Am I making a mistake?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
Absolutely not. Though you are calm, you are also enthusiastic, and happy. Isn’t it? Then it’s fine.Q:
My friends want to come to the ashram, but don’t have the money.
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
Don’t worry. Those who cannot afford must come. They have to come.Q:
How do we free ourselves from bad karmas of previous births?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
Sri Sri sings “Paap kya punya kya to bhulade, kal kal kal ki chinta mitade” Forget what is bad karma, what is good Karma, be free from the worries of tomorrow. There isnothing greater than Pranayama which can make you free from your past impressions. Seva, Satsang & Sadhana
(Service,Dance & Celebration and spiritual practices) will help.
Q:
How to overcome fear?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
Through sadhana, Kriya , meditation.Q:
What is the purpose of satsang?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
The purpose of satsang is laya yoga. When everyone sings with one heart, and sound, then your heart becomes immersed in the sound. It then becomes ‘laya yoga’ - getting absorbed in the sound. If you become a spectator and just watch, it becomes difficult. You should also sing, then only the energy in you, the chaitanya will grow.Q:
When someone loves another human being, and feels wonderful, and at peace about it, what is the fine line between attachment, and surrender?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
When you feel attachment, go inward, and when you move inward, you feel surrender spontaneously. Love, and surrender are linked. When you love, there is surrender. It is best not to analyze these emotions. You love the person, just move through that. Success or failure, change or non-change, that's how it is. It is inevitable.
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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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