Question & Answers with Sri Sri Ravi Shankar
Q:
You spend so much time for reducing terrorism; do I need to become a terrorist to get your time and attention? It would be nice to be transformed through you.
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
A terrorist use gun to shoot, but you shot arrows of your devotion! Your devotion and love are much stronger.I remember an incident when I was in Rishikesh. A devotee fainted and fell down. Everyone's attention was attracted by this. I knew that it was just a drama to attract attention. First I kept on walking, but when the drama continued for a long time, I went to that place. When I asked, she said, 'You don't look at me, so I had to do this.' You don't have to do such a thing to catch my attention! How do you know I don't look at you? When you are looking elsewhere, I look at you for sure. The goal is only one - to center your mind and consciousness in one place. When your mind is centered, calm and you are smiling, I look at those whose mind is still racing here and there and is not centered.
Q:
I feel contented when I am alone. But mind stucks to the outside events and people while interacting with others. Is there any way that I can experience the serene solitude even when I am with people?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
You are at the right place. We will see in sometime how it is possible. (Ashtavakra Talk continued the session)Q:
If we are dispassionate in life then we won’t remain ambitious in life. To what extent is this true?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
I don’t use the word dispassion much because it has been distorted so much. I have seen so called dispassionate people who have no glow or happiness on their face. Dispassion means absence of any kind of feverishness but a joy is there. Adi Shankaracharya has beautifully said that there is no joy which dispassion cannot give you. Dispassion means - You don’t run after joy but you are joyful from within.Q:
What do you think of religious scandals? How can you avoid such scandals?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
If somebody has made such a mistake, he/she should simply admit it. There are such people in every field who don’t speak the truth. Don’t blame the field for it. There are doctors who steal kidneys and sell it for a price. Some people are scared of being operated. But you cannot doubt all the doctors. Noble professions like medicine and education are becoming corrupt. There is a fine line between being cautious and being paranoid, and prejudice occurs when you cross the line.Q:
What do we mean by being a Yogi?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
Yogi means being like a child again. Same is what Ashtavakra is saying: No craving, no aversion, no attachment can cover self knowledge.Q:
How can parents raise responsible children and make the experience joyful for both?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
Teach them how to make one new friend each day. Don't give them all these violent video games to play with. There is an ‘Art of Living program’ for children - Art Excel '(All Round Training in Excellence). Children really enjoy the program as they learn through games. In Europe it is known as NAP, Non Aggression Program. Children who are very aggressive become happy and friendly. For parents we conduct a program called “Know Your Child.”Q:
Guruji, I just completed the Yes Plus course. I am so grateful to you for this course. I want all my friends, whom I care for, to experience this joy that I am experiencing.
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
Yes, many youths have benefited from the course. There are 43 universities in America where there are Yes Plus clubs, and students also get some credit in some universities if they do the course.Q:
Dear Guruji, you talk about dispassion. Then what about passion? I think that people follow a career, business or profession just for money, and then money becomes their passion. Don’t you think that youth should follow their heart, passion and dreams?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
You should have a dream and passion. You should follow that, but not with the feverishness. If you want to go to Niagra falls, you go. Who said not to go? You make the necessary arrangements and visit the place. But if that deeply gets into your head , and you keep on thinking about it all the time, then you will end up landing somewhere else. With this feverishness, your mind loses clarity, and you don’t get right ideas or thoughts. Having passion and dispassion are complementary. Dispassion brings you centeredness, settles you down, and you become calm. When you have passion, and you are acting, it drives you to things that you want to have. Deep rest and dynamic activity are complementary. How can you be dynamically actice if you have not given deep rest to your mind and body? Someone who has never slept cannot feel energetic at all. Sameway, if you are not dispassionate, you cannot be passionate. You will only be feverish with desires and cravings in your mind, with no ability to act.Q:
What do you advice to farmers?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
The crops which were produced in abundance in India are now being imported and hence their prices have also been raised manifold. Earlier three crops were grown in one field and even if the yield of one crop is destroyed, the others would give the farmers a living. So this system of growing multiple crops would never let farmers be in debt. But with the hybrid crops you get a good yield only in the first one or two years and then it decreases the soil fertility. It leads to depletion of essential salts in the soil. So I suggest to all to adopt the ancient methods of farming. Multiple cropping yields a good profit.We have also started a seed bank in Maharashtra. 1 kg seeds have been given to 50 farmers this year. 1kg seeds will give them a yield of 40 – 45 kg and next year they would be returning 2 kg seeds. This way 100 farmers can get free seeds next year. It will be good if such banks are started in Punjab and Haryana also. Farmers will be happy and we will also get a good crop. Otherwise the crops which we get with chemical farming cause pain and other illnesses in the body here and there. So multiple cropping and chemical free farming are the best solutions.
Q:
Please tell us what we should do for our nation to feel grateful to our nation.
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
For showing your love and gratitude for your country, you will have to do a lot of work in the society so that our villages develop and become self helping. To make a society which is void of corruption, violence, all have to put effort whole heartedly, OK.