Question & Answers with Sri Sri Ravi Shankar
Q:
What is the difference between God (Parmatma) and Devta?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
Parmatma is the sun, devta is its ray. Without the sun, there is no ray and without the ray, there is no sun. A ray has all seven colors, these all different devtas. God is the combination of all the seven colors. God is certainly not made of one color. When all colors combine, white is obtained and that is Parmatma. You can understand this like different organs - eyes, ears, nose, all combine to form you. Your eyes are different from ears, your nose is different from tongue but all is part of you. The totality of the whole creation, with all the energies is given a name and it is called Parmatma, Parampita (supreme father). In ancient terminology, God is called Parmatma, Parampita.Why only Parampit , He is also Parammata (Supreme mother).Why should God be called father only? God is also the mother. God is father, mother and God is also the Self. All Gods, goddesses are like rays of the sun, one sunlight and all the rays together is God but these are all different aspects of God. All are different aspects of the one Divine like in one human being, one cell somewhere becomes the eyes, somewhere the ears, somewhere the nose, and all this has happened from one fertilized cell, embryo. So, God is the sum total of all Divine elements and in the Vedic times, ancient rishis identified all these elements and called then devtas. They designated 33 types of Divine energy and called them devta and they tell how these are connected with the cosmos, like the eyes are connected with the sun. They established connection between the micro cosmos and macro cosmos. …It is very amazing analysis, amazing science of unity of the universe. It is not too many Gods, it is aspects of God. Though you are one, you have different functions. When you sleep you are different, when you smile you are different, when you eat, you are different. Crore means category, 33 crores means 33 categories of devas. Crore is also a number, 10 million but here it is not referred to as a number. 33 crore means 330 million and so people started taking that way.
Q:
Guruji, the world knows you as a spiritual leader. Would you please share your experiences of your knowing that you are endowed with such spiritual power?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
What do you want to know? I am like this from the beginning and I will continue to be like this in the future also. Usually, people come to the spiritual path when they get some disappointment. This is not the case always, but usually it is such. People take sanyas (renounce the world) when they have had failures in their love lives, or some problem or another. Nothing like that, at all for me. In fact, every child is born with spiritual knowledge but when you grow up, you start losing that. A yogi is becoming a child again, getting in touch with your pure essence.Q:
Dear Guruji, our brain is more than a computer. Scientists say that we use very little of our brain. Einstein is said to have used 32 percent of his brain. If we want to use 40 – 50 percent of our brain what efforts do we need to put? What will be its consequences if our brain becomes overactive?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
That’s a problem. So we need to first learn how to calm our mind down. Only a calm mind can come up with collective thoughts. Disturbed and chaotic mind will give rise to chaotic thoughts only and chaotic thoughts are coming in abundance. How to streamline the thoughts is an art in itself, the art of silence. How can you do it? With meditation, the mind becomes calm and collective, thoughts become focused, meaningful, purposeful and focused.Q:
What does a Guru want from a disciple and what does a disciple want from his Guru?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
A Guru only wants the disciple to progress, to blossom, not to be unstable, just be happy, unselfish and serve people. And whatever a disciple wants from Guru, Guru keeps on bestowing that. Initially, a disciple asks for little things and then asks for great things. The Guru sometimes give him the little things he wants and sometimes doesn’t. (laughter)Q:
What is significance of time when everything is happening in the present moment?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
(After a pause of a minute) It (the past minute) is past now. Present is ever present. Past and future are also present.This whole creation has no significance, nor does the time and nor does the space.Q:
How to learn from experience? Often we keep doing the same thing but don’t learn.
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
If you keep doing the same thing again and again, knowing that it brings you misery, you really don’t understand it brings you misery or you think it brings you some pleasure. Craving for pleasure and non-awareness that it is going to cause you misery are two things which makes you commit the same mistake again and again. That’s why they’re called habit. Habits don’t give you pleasure but they inflict pain by not following them.Q:
Adi Shankara says, ‘Kasya sukham na karoti viraga’ (What pleasure can dispassion not give!) It is also said, tivra samvega nam asannah (When you have a great desire, intense longing – everything becomes easy). How to be in that state of mind and yet be dispassionate?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
Truth is contradictory. Completely opposite values together form the truth. This is also true and that is also true. Intense longing will take you to the goal and at the same time dispassion also takes you there. Dispassion gives you happiness.Q:
Turiya avastha (state of Samadhi) of chetna (consciousness) is shiv tattva. How to achieve shiv tattva?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
Nirvikar (without any blemish)and prayatna rahit (without any effort). Dropping all efforts and all vikar in the mind, you relax.Q:
If we do something wrong with somebody and that person does good to us, do we have to bear fruit of that karma (action)?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
Don’t do so much of analysis. The karma that you need to go through, you will. And the karma which you don’t need to go through, you won’t. That karma which is to be finished with sadhna, pranayama will be finished. By surrendering to God, we get new life all the time. Don’t think too much.Live in surrender, surrender leads to Samadhi.Q:
Guruji, the other day you talked about effort and effortless. But it needs lot of effort to be effortless.
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
It’s worth doing it.