Question & Answers with Sri Sri Ravi Shankar
Q:
Could you please explain why we pray to Shiva, even though Shiva is called the destructor?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
Shiva is not just the destructor; Shiva means the transformer, the consciousness which is advaita, which is non-dual, the one consciousness, Mahadeva. The Shiva pooja- Rudrapooja is the most ancient yagya which unites all the five elements, through chanting and using the five elements. This ceremony is done to uplift the human consciousness.Q:
How to be rid of jealousy while still being competitive?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
It is better to compare yourself with your own self. How you were ten years or five years ago and what you can be yet tomorrow, compare with yourself. Second thing is you know, create a sense of belongingness with all those who are making progress.Q:
Inspite of the fact that ten thousand people became enlightened in the time of Buddha, why is it that Buddhist meditation techniques are not so popular?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
Who said it is not popular? It is very popular. What Buddha said not just stayed only in India. It went far and wide to Vietnam, Korea, Japan, China and Indonesia, it spread all over the East. From Afghanistan to China to Bahamians Buddhas. Recently, till ten years ago the Bahamians Buddhists statues were there. So people had carved huge statues of Buddha on a mountain, it must have been very popular there.Now today it is very popular in the West. In America so many people are appreciating Buddhism. In India, Buddhism got absorbed in Hinduism because it is the same thing. So Buddha became the ninth avatar or aspect of the same philosophy. Buddhist teaching is the same as Upanishad teaching, there is not too much difference. It’s quite popular.
Q:
What is the meaning of the shloka- akhanda mandal akaram, vyaptam yena characharam, tad padam darshitam yena tasmai shri guruve namah?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
The Guru who gives us the experience of the eternally present consciousness – we bow down to that Guru.Q:
If I am you and you are me, then when will my mind become your mind?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
All the difference is only on the gross. The subtler we go, we see there is only one consciousness.Q:
How to behave with people who have hurt me in the past. Even though I have forgiven them, I don’t know how to interact with them. I don’t want anyone to take away my smile.
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
Good. This very intention to move on will help you. Hold on to that. Then, have compassion on those who have hurt you, that they don’t have as much awareness or knowledge as you have. They never had the opportunity to learn, the way you have learnt.Q:
How do we know who is a true master and who is pretending to be so?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
Well, I never spent time looking for one! You know, your heart tells you. There is something called as the gut feeling. Your heart tells you that you are in the right place. Second is, any teacher, any master, anybody, even you as a friend, what do you want from your friend? Do you want something from your friend, other than their own happiness?If you expect something from your friend or your student other than their own progress and happiness then you are not a good teacher or a friend. In friendship you expect your friend to be grateful to you but a teacher does not even expect that. So want nothing from anyone other than their own happiness. In the Upanishads, it is said there are five signs of a Master. The Upanishads have said that there are five signs of being with a Master:
1. Knowledge flows
2. Sorrow diminishes
3. Joy wells up for no reason
4. Talents come up
5. Lack start disappearing, abundance dawns
Q:
Should we chant the mahamrityunjaya mantra while doing puja?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
It is good, there is a lot of praises for mahamrityunjaya mantra. It feels good when you say it. Sugandhim pusti wardhanam, make your body and senses healthy, such a prayer is very good.There is gayatri mantra and mahamrityunjaya mantra which have their special mahima (highness). Chant Om Namah Shivay - it has everything. Om encompasses everything. There are different vibrations for Om Namah Shivay, Om Namho Bhagwate Vasudevaya.
That is why Om Namah Shivay has been called the maha mantra. Na (earth element), Mah (water element), Shi (fire element), and va (air element) – ya (sky element ) it includes all the elements. So the Master of these five elements is Om Namah Shivay.
Q:
We do everything for appreciation from people. How to get rid of the craving for appreciation from others?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
First start doubting the appreciation. Are they genuinely appreciating or trying to fish something out of you? When you doubt the appreciation then you will lose the craving for other’s appreciation.Q:
If the goal of every soul is moksha (liberation), can one be thankful towards the parents who were responsible for bringing one back into the circle of life and death?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
You have to thank your parents as they gave you an opportunity to come into this beautiful world. Moksha is possible only in this world.