Question & Answers with Sri Sri Ravi Shankar
Q:
I often talk to you in heart. How do I satisfy myself that my words have reached you?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
My job is not to satisfy you but to make you restless to get the Highest knowledge. In that restlessness you achieve awareness.Q:
Dear guruji, I am profoundly grateful for the beautiful knowledge that you bring to us. I am very curious to know from where these insights come from. When I meditate, I sometimes become calmer and more effective afterwards, but the secrets of the universe do not reveal themselves. Instead I seem to be either stuck in the same dramas or in some kind of self-hypnosis. The path is good for me. I am certain. But I feel so impatient. I found your words about the divine and nature to be the nectar for which I am hungry. Can you please elaborate on that theme. I used to feel a stronger connection with nature. I feel like a bit of a robot these days. Did I fall from grace or something?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
No, no. I think you have too much time in hand. You sit and think too much about yourself. Get busy. You know, the more good work you do, you create positive atmosphere and vibes around you. And when you create positive vibes, that helps you go deep inside. It is necessary to care for others and share with others. Do it in whatever manner you can. Involve in some projects. Do some meditation. Don’t sit and worry, ‘Oh, what experience I had today, what I will have tomorrow?’ No. They will come and they will go! You are more than all those experiences put together. For a seeker, what you do for any experience that comes, you simply have to say Hi and Bye. One hand you say Hi, and the other hand you say Bye. Don’t forget to say bye after saying Hi. And don’t forget to say Hi, and only saying bye. Then you are in trouble. If you are only trying to say bye-bye, then you are trying to resist them. If you say only Hi, then you are trying to hold on to them. That is why you are given two hands, you know! Hi and Bye. (Gestures hi and bye with hands.)All these experiences come and go, no big deal.Q:
In what ways and to what extent should we oppose the few people who violate rules and regulations? If we don’t get the result after opposing then what should be done? Just because of fear we are not doing anything. What should be done?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
Sanghe shakti kalyuge means – only unity has power in this era. We need to stand in a group. Stand against whatever you feel is wrong. Write articles, make people aware about the happenings. Even today we have many ethical people. Include them all and take action together.Q:
How do you know when to forgive someone?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
When something starts to bother you too much.Q:
What brings about the misuse of power?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
Misuse of power is immaturity. Someone who is not mature misuses power. Such power do not stay long because it’s not power at all. It is only an illusion of power.Q:
When one achieves higher levels of consciousness, what is the effect on the body and how does the use of the body change?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
There’s this proverb. ‘You chop wood and carry water before enlightenment and you chop wood and carry water after enlightenment.’ Our consciousness impacts our body and our body impacts our consciousness. It is a very dear relationship.Q:
I read books on knowledge. How do I know that knowledge is only at intellectual level or is actually realized by me?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
It is very simple. You go to a restaurant and you read the menu card. By the time you have eaten it, you know you have eaten it. Experience is so irrefutable. Reading about back pain in a book and actually having back pain are different. So, it is very obvious. Your experience is what is most important.Q:
After the course, you came thrice in my dream. The second time you came in my dream, the dream was that you are no more in the world.
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
It is ok, does not matter – there is still lot more time for that to happen!Q:
How do we know what we have to do in life?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
First, see what you should not do. The purpose of life is not to be miserable or to make others miserable. With this guideline, move on. Go by your gut feeling. Anything that gives you short term happiness and long term misery is not wise.Q:
Does the soul leave the body after death immediately? What happens in case of unnatural deaths and accidents etc?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
It is a wonderful relation of body and soul. This is a profound topic. We shall discuss it sometimes later.
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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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