Sri Sri: We never compel anyone to take up a Sankalpa. And you are never asked to take a Sankalpa for small things. Your small wishes and desires anyway get fulfilled, is it not?
Everything does happen anyway. So when things are happening, instead of keeping small ambitions, you should aspire for something bigger. You should think for the nation and think of the betterment of the world. This is what it is.
Usually you just have small little desires for yourself. You should take up a bigger Sankalpa, one that is beneficial for everyone. This is what is said in the Sanatan Dharma (another name for Hinduism from the ancient days), ‘Tanme Manah Shiva Sankalpa Mastu’, which means, may my mind always have a Sankalpa that is beneficial for everyone.

Sri Sri: You have desire to know more, that itself is good enough.

Sri Sri: Do you play cricket?
Now why do you play it? It is so pointless to run with a bat in your hand from one end of the pitch to the other! Why waste so many hours on that? All you do is throw the ball from one place to another on the field. What do you really get by doing this? (Ans: Gurudev, it is a source of entertainment.) Yes! Just as you play with the bat and the ball for your entertainment, this entire Creation too is for God’s entertainment. This is why the entire Creation and everything in it is said to be God’s Leela (a game or a pastime of the Divine).

Sri Sri: What is it that you have to surrender? Anyway everything belongs to the Divine already. But when you think that something belongs to you, then I say, ‘Let go’. When you are holding onto something so tight, that is when I say, ‘Hey, relax’. Relaxation is called surrender; it is nothing else.
If something is bothering you in your head, offering that botheration is surrender. It is just like offering aahuti (the act of making prayerful offerings to the sacred fire). So whatever bothers you or troubles you, offer that as aahuti to the Divine. That which you cannot handle by yourself; that which has become a burden for you; that which you are tired of carrying on your head, just put it down and let go! That is what is meant by surrender.
Otherwise what is there to surrender? Your body belongs to God. Even your mind belongs to God. Everything belongs to God. But you think it belongs to you. So just let go, relax and smile. Letting go, relaxing and smiling is what the meaning of surrender is. In Buddhism, it is said ‘Buddham Sharanam Gachhami’, which means whatever burdens you cannot handle by yourself, offer it to Lord Buddha, or offer it to God, or offer it to the Guru, or offer it to anyone who is dear to you. This is for you to feel that there is someone who belongs to you and is very dear to you, and you are very dear to them. I will give you an example.
A child, when it knows that mother is at home, it feels so comfortable. The child will roam about here and there and play happily. But when the child does not see the mother, and mother has gone somewhere, then it starts looking for her and starts crying.
Though nowadays the children actually become happy when they find that mother is not around! (Laughter) Then they can do even more mischief. But this happens when the children grow a little older.
Small children often keep a watch to see whether mother is around, isn’t it so? One eye will be on the mother. This is because the child feels comforted to know, there is someone for me, who is sitting there. Nowadays parents leave their children sitting in front of the television (to distract the children so that they do not bother the parents). This is very harmful. Children should not watch television because it is very taxing to their brain.
Often parents put on some cartoon show on the TV and make their children watch. This is not good because it causes so many impressions to be formed on the child’s mind, that the child becomes so dull. Many children are not able to count, and develop disorders like the Attention Deficiency Syndrome. It is common in America today.

Sri Sri: Now that is hard to tell. No one knows for certain when it started, and so no one knows when it will end. As long as you are a part of this leela, just enjoy yourself. When we land up in a problem that is when we ask, ‘When will this end?’ But when we are having fun or enjoying ourselves, we never question, ‘When will the enjoyment end?’
Do we do that? No. So when life appears burdensome and a bondage, only then do we think to ourselves, ‘When will we be free from this?’
Do not think that you will become free sometime in the future. You are free this very moment. Just take this for granted and move ahead.
All this is just a game and events keep happening. Many thoughts come and go in the mind. You would be surprised at the kind of thoughts that come to your mind. You become so nervous due to some thoughts of your mind. But you should know that thoughts come and go. So it does not carry any meaning. We are far greater than our thoughts. So just know this and relax.

Sri Sri: Yes, you be happy and make everybody happy. There is so much work you can do in this world. Spread knowledge, spread smiles and spread happiness. This knowledge is so beautiful and so relevant. See to it that this knowledge reaches many more people.

Sri Sri: If you have unshakeable faith on the Guru Tattva, then there is no need for anything else. But if you feel that you should perform certain rites and rituals, then that is fine too.
Also, doing anything without faith in the Guru Tattva, does not bring any benefits. Without the presence of the Guru, there will be no use of practicing any Tantra (an ancient school of spiritual practices) or mantras. And if you have surrendered yourself completely to the Guru, then there is little need for all these methods. But if you wish to practice that too, there is no problem in that.
For this, you have to find someone who can perform these rites and rituals correctly (as prescribed by the scriptures). And sometimes you should actually engage in some Karma Kaand (rituals and holy practices as mentioned in the scriptures) also; maybe once or twice a year. You need not over do them.
Do some puja, light a lamp before the deity at home once in a while, and sit silently in meditation sometimes. Meditation is the best among all practices.
If there is love, meditation and a sense of surrender, then everything else simply follows. Sometimes, you may place a Toran (a traditional Indian door ornament believed to be auspicious and ward off ill omens) to decorate your doors in the house. That is the significance of the Toran. But if there are no doors, what is the point in placing a Toran then?

Sri Sri: Subtle ego is when you have the feeling that ‘I have no ego’. When you feel that ‘I am the most down-to-earth and humble person alive’, then that is the subtle ego.
See, if you find that there is some ego in you, never mind, just keep it in your pocket. If it is there, let it be there. It is alright. Why do you want to get rid of it?
If you try to get rid of the ego, then that will become another big problem for you. Because then you will say, ‘See, I have overcome my ego!’ Then that is the subtle ego. You cannot overcome ego by destroying it. Just be natural. Ego dissolves in the naturalness of your being.

Sri Sri: See, different people in different languages use different names for the same one God. In different religions they understand Him differently. Did you understand this?
There is only one God that is what we always say.
There is a saying that goes, ‘Ekam vipra bahuda vadanti’ (meaning, that which is One is called by many names by the learned and the wise). This is what our understanding has always been. This is why whichever race came to India was welcomed, for we knew that whatever be the name, it is the same One God.
We never discriminated amongst people. We never said that only our God is true, and those whom others worship are false. Those who say this and convert other people into their religion are doing the wrong thing. Such people mislead others by saying that, ‘Only my God is the real true God, all other Gods are false and you should remove their pictures from your homes.’ This is very wrong.