Question & Answers with Sri Sri Ravi Shankar
Q:
What happens between the time of death and next birth?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
What happens between the time when you are awake and asleep? Same thing happens – you are dormant. When the consciousness is back, when the time comes, it will come back.Q:
The women in our epics seem to have done so many extraordinary feats, it is difficult to believe they are true!
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
Let us take gandhari for eg, she produced a 100 children from pots.Test tube babies is exactly what she created. One embryo and 100 pots! We did know what the science behind is! Unless proven otherwise it is a fact. Like nobody believed that dinosaurs existed but you have the proof. Jatayu, a dinosaur bird existed and carried Sita. There are facts that Lord Krishna existed. The way it is presented is usually a little mixture of imagination and facts. Like a poem is facts and imagination mixed. If you read the biography of Abdul Kalam, Jawahar lal Nehru, Indira Gandhi, you will find they add things.Q:
Can you talk about how one should be with mentally retarded people?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
They have come here to take service. Simply serve themQ:
How to do samarpan (surrender) in bhakti(devotion)?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
In the same way how we have sweetness insugar.
Q:
Whatis the fastest way to feel belongingness and unity?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
When you are free fromstress, you have a sense of belongingness and understanding. This is whathappens when people undergo The Art of Living program. It happens so naturally.Q:
Should yoga become an integrated subject in school, especially iftraining/practicing can help our students to achieve something higher?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
Yes, certainly. Inseveral countries, they have already made yoga compulsory in schools.Q:
What shall we do to always be happy, because as I know your concept is to relaxand attain happiness by that?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
What to do to always be happy? First, drop the feverishnessto hold onto ALWAYS and you will find yourself happy. And then, if some momentsof unpleasantness creep into life, accept that also.Q:
You have a very big dream in bringing world peace. If, in our lives, we meetpeople who follow orthodox and rigid ideas and are ready to die and harm otherpeople, how should we deal with it?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
We need to deal with suchpeople with patience and we have to educate them, it’s not an easy task. First,we should begin from prisons. When one amongst them joins us in spreading peace,it is much easier.Q:
What is the visualization of God in ancient India?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
In ancient India, they described God as beauty. A discipleonce asked what God is. The Master replied – Truth, beauty and love. That isGod. Is God sitting in heaven giving a little finger? No, it is only in thepainting. God is truth, beauty and love. It is that field and energy present inthe entire creation. When can you appreciate beauty? And what doesn’t allow youto appreciate? When mind is bombarded with worry, anger, hate and tension, youcan’t even smile from your heart.Thoughyou are sitting in a ballet, but you can’t appreciate if you are angry. You canonly appreciate when you are in the present moment.
Q:
What do you say on the rumors of destruction of the world in the year 2012?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
I want to tell you a story. In 1999, when I was in NorthAmerica, there was a rumor that everything will shut down in 2000. People soldhomes and stored food for six months - Milk powder, dry vegetables etc. Oh myGod! Then also I told that there would be no disaster and everything would beas usual. Now again, I am assuring you that it is only in the movie. The worldwill continue. In fact, transformation will be there from greedy materialism tohumanism. Children will be more aware of spirituality. There is a bright futurefor the world. Don’t think of any disaster. A disaster is already happening.This is because we have exploited the planet. We have put so many dynamites totake minerals, and hence earthquakes have become dominant. The weather! Russianever had such hot temperatures. So we have to care for the planet Earth. Planttrees and do all that is needed to reduce human greed. What do you think?