Monday 14th November 2011

/(Below is the transcript of Satsang with Sri Sri Ravi Shankar.You can watch the Live webcast <http://www.artofliv ing.org/satsang> of future satsangs)/

There are three type of knowledge or information we get. One is through the five senses. You see and you get some knowledge, you listen and you get knowledge, you smell and you get information, through taste you get information, and through touch. The five senses bring you some knowledge, isn’t it? Most of our knowledge is gained by these five senses. Now this is one type of knowledge.

The second is through the intellect. The knowledge gained through intellect is superior to knowledge gained through the senses. Science is knowledge gained through intellect. See, what all you see from your eyes is the sun is setting, but what you learn through science is sun doesn’t

set. It is the earth which revolves. You have not seen earth revolving through any of the five senses, but through intellect you understand that the earth is revolving and that it is revolving around the sun. This is the intellectual knowledge through intellect which is superior to the senses. Like in a beaker of water you keep a pen, what do you see? The pen is bent. That is the perception, but the intellect says no it is not bent it is an optical illusion. This is the knowledge through intellect.

Now these two levels of knowledge is much inferior to a third level of knowledge. That is intuitive knowledge. That is knowledge from the spirit that comes from silence. It cannot be verified by the senses or the intellect. Knowledge which comes beyond these two is another

level of knowledge. So life begins when we tap into that level of knowledge.

(Guruji laughs)

Till that time it is existence.

Now how would you tap into this level of knowledge? The level of knowledge which is not through the senses, nor through the intellect, is the question. For that you have to let go of the knowledge of the senses and the intellect and relax. The moment you let go then what you gain

through senses, the cravings and aversions they stop. All of our cravings and aversions are about the five sensory perceptions. It cannot be anything beyond that. Are you with me?

For some time you say, ‘now I don’t want to see anything, I don’t want

to hear anything, I don’t want to smell anything, I don’t want to taste anything, I don’t want to touch or know anything; I’m just going to be.’ Then intellectual concepts, judgments, decisions, to all that you say, ‘I don’t even need to know anything, I don’t care for anything.’

Letting go of concepts is the second step. How this should be? How that should not be? Things should be like this and things should be like that and blah blah blah and blah blah blah… all these intellectual perceptions.

Or am I doing the right thing? Am I on the right path? Am I on the right track? Should I go on and blah, blah, blah… All these things you drop it

and then silence begins and when silence begins then the knowledge from the third level dawns and that knowledge is called Ritambhara knowledge. The true knowledge that comes from beyond the intellect and that is the intuitive knowledge.

Everyone has got this ability and you have experienced in your life this gut feeling, knowledge from somewhere, which you cannot really make out what it is. How many of you have ever experienced? See everybody. Somewhere you feel this is the right thing to do and something happens in your tummy. And that knowledge comes up at that time but then we

don’t honor it. Many times we stick onto the intellect or sensory perceptions.

Sometimes your intellect says this is wrong what I am doing, but you don’t listen to the intellect you keep doing the wrong things. How many of you have this experience? What you do? You stick on to the sensory and ignore the intellectual knowledge. And then what happens? You sometimes go beyond your intellect. Your intellect is saying something

but your inner gut feeling is saying something else. And you’re feeling

says no, there is something different, something more. And we ignore that and we stick onto the intellect. That’s how many times your judgments have found to be a failure.

How many of you feel your judgments have been wrong? But sometimes, beyond your judgments you have seen and you have taken a step and have been happy about it. In spite of your intellect saying ‘no’, something

says ‘yes’. Something else triggers and that is what happens when there is faith and that’s when the faith comes up you know. Sometimes your mind says no I want to quit doing all this spiritual practices, I don’t care for that, I don’t care for hopes. Many people do this, try to quit but something deep inside, the impressions, samskaras, some good karma, they just make you keep going and then you are back on track. And then you are happy. You feel, ‘good thing I didn’t do it, I didn’t walk on my impulse.’ How many of you have this experience? I’m sure. Those are the moments when something beyond your intellect has taken over and worked.

When we started Art of Living, in the very beginning I could see that there are a millions of people going to come on this. I was just 22 or 23, something like that; just out of my teens. I said, ‘no I don’t want to start’. My intellect would say ‘no, so what? Someone else will come and do all this and take care of everybody’. I had no ambition, no desire to start any movement at all. I was happy, I’m happy now also, but I thought why would I take some headache, I don’t want to. I was a little shy also but my intellect was always saying ‘oh no’. But then everything kept happening because when the TM movement was there and they very much wanted me to be there. And they were all very friendly

with me. So it was difficult for me to say no to my friends, and then all the elders there, and everybody so, I was sort of attached. I said no, I don’t want to start the Art of Living; fought and fought.

I had everything, I didn’t need anything. I had no lack and I have everything. I was flying around in helicopters in those days also. I had seen all the wealth I could see those days. And if I have to start something from the scratch, the intellect was saying ‘no’. But something beyond that was saying ‘yes’. So I was in the railway station, it was in

Hubli somewhere. There were two trains going, one to south and one to north. If I take the train to south that means I will not start this. In the same way, I was in the platform and on one side was this train and

on another side the other train. I had tickets for both. (Laughter) I had committed for a program in north. If I go there north then it’s for sure that I’ll continue in the Art of Living. Start this whole thing. That was the most confusing time, conflicting time for me to get on to this train or that train. Then I jumped into the train which went to the north and let go of everything of the past; for no apparent gain. It’s not that I never thought what I will gain from this, no. In fact I thought, you are not gaining anything you are collecting more problems, trouble. There you could just be like a prince, very comfortable, somebody does everything for you.

Why I’m saying this? This is the levels of knowledge, the intuitive knowledge which is beyond intellect. Everyone who knew me those days thought I am gone mad, crazy. Here I’m going to be put as a successor or heir to a huge organization, empire. Everything was there, and I am just washing it all off and getting on to something which has no form, no idea. Not even an organization was there, nothing was there. Only I had 200 kids to take care of and a school which would go with me. I had no money; nothing, no resource, I had never worked and I had no skills. And people say these days it is difficult to take care of two children in a house. Those days India was undergoing a lot of crisis too. Many types

of crisis and here I land up with 200 kids or 250 kids to feed and to educate; all these responsibilities. Intellectually it was completely insane even to think about it for anyone who has some sense. But there

was another knowledge, which I totally honored and depended upon and I took the step. Do you see what I’m saying? (clapping) Otherwise there

was no way we would have a Montreal ashram or I would be sitting with you and talking to you.

This possibility is not there at all. So this is the third level of knowledge, that gut feeling, or intuitive knowledge. Now, many times,

with your emotions, with your own cravings and aversion you can think, ‘oh this is my gut feeling, this is my knowledge’, no! This is called maya; yogmaya, don’t get into that. When can you honor the knowledge of the spirit or the soul? It is when you are absolutely still. Got it? So in the beginning it works for others, it doesn’t work for you because with you always there are some cravings, some aversions. Some cravings, some aversions and so you may get confused. So these hollow and empty meditations you do are all are very, very useful in getting to that level of knowledge, which is beyond the senses and beyond the intellect. Now how can you explain this to anybody? That’s big trouble, very difficult to tell somebody, ‘oh there is one level that’s beyond your logic’. If you say that they will think you are crazy or denying intellect but it’s neither. Neither are you crazy nor do you deny the intellect. You go simply one step beyond and recognize something beautiful. This is the area where the entire cosmos works. All the knowledge in the cosmos is present there. Every invention has happened from this area.

The initial intuitive invention comes from that. Then intellect plays on it and develops it further. Every one of those great music or poetry has

come from that area; every one of them! So one practical benefit from this is you now understand your intellect is judgmental and you don’t depend on it too much. Got it? One of the steps is you see, ‘oh yes my mind, it goes on saying something or the other and I don’t care, I don’t mind that’. You don’t get swept into these mind games. You become a witness to them all. Have you noticed it’s already happening with you?

At home when there is some argument, or among the friends there is some argument, something happens. Sometimes you take one step back and say, ‘oh come on, I have seen many of this. It’s not going to let this affect me.’ How many of you have started noticing this happening to you? There is a gradual progression for that. It’s happening in everyone’s life. Just this awareness, it will happen even faster. It will happen faster, just awareness about it. Good!

*Q: Can I fast for karva chauth? I will drink water and eat fruits. **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* Okay, fine you can do that. Tomorrow, those who are doing karva chauth you can fast no problem. Drink water at least that is necessary. For some people, day after tomorrow is a festival in India where women fast day on the 15th yes. They fast the whole day and eat only in the evening after they see the moon. So I mean they eat in the night. Whole day they fast for the well being of their sweethearts. Yes, good luck and long life of their husbands. Women do this.

*Q: What happens after enlightenment? Is it going to take me away from you? I haven’t experienced enlightenment but I have seen you experienced your presence, don’t want to go away from you.**Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* Yes, yes, yes, just don’t worry. Enlightenment will make you very natural and be what you are, yes!

*Q: How can I increase my will power? I am listening to knowledge and doing sadhna. Anything else, please advice.**Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* Will power, just relax! You know it’s lethargy that makes you feel I don’t have will power, isn’t it? You everyday decide, yes I’m going to wake up at 6am and do my pranayama and in the morning you say, ‘oh it’s so cold, I’ll do it from tomorrow or tonight.’ It’s just because your system is tired, your mind is tired, body is tired and you eat the wrong things. Now I give you some idea even to do that you will be so lethargic, why I should give an idea. At some time you get fed up and you jump out of your own bed and start doing exercise. So I feel that is better than giving you any advice, you be as lazy as much as you can afford. One day you’re sure to get fed up about being lazy. It can’t go on forever, got it? Anything else said will be another burden and you will feel guiltier. You are lazy and someone says ‘hey there is a fire’, and then how the fear of fire can take away all the laziness. Urgency takes away laziness. Or some knot in your heart gets opened, love comes welling up inside of you, then also laziness disappears. You are passionate about somebody or something, how you have no laziness then, you are suddenly awakened. So either through love or fear or through greed you can overcome laziness. I don’t know the fourth thing, if you have any idea you tell me. So if you are in deep love with something, laziness doesn’t come to you. In lack of these three things,

you will procrastinate, that’s how it is. So if you procrastinate, fear will come sometime. Then out of fear you will start functioning. Or greed can come but I prefer being in love more than these two things. So that’s why there is a tradition of promising someone who you love very much. You promise them something and you will see you follow it

through. Say, you have promised your brother that you will pick him up or your

niece that you’re going to meet her at the airport. Even though you feel so lazy in the morning to get up, you will just get up and run and go and greet them in the airport, even if it is in the middle of the night. These days I have found a plane to go to India that reaches there in the morning at 9:30 you know. Bombay I don’t go at all; in Delhi when I go in the middle of the night the flight lands at midnight. By the time I come out it is 1:30am and there’s a huge crowd waiting at 2am at the middle of the night; elderly people, nursing mothers with babies. I just

said my god why did you come?! In just 2 minutes they’ll see me getting in the car, that’s it. And in the airport it causes so much of a ruckus, so many people at the airport. Now I found a flight that reaches there 9:30am so I don’t feel so uncomfortable. I feel uncomfortable because they’re all standing there. An elderly couple, who are in their 80’s are standing there every time I go. If one night is disturbed like that, they must have such several nights where their sleep cycle is broken. Like this there are so many people, three to four thousand people. I have stopped going to Mumbai because one day it took me two and a half hours to get out of the airport, giving darshan to everyone in line there saying come, come, come. And the securities were paranoid; the

police had a headache, and of all those granite benches and tables at the new airport were all broken. Our organization had to pay some $30,000 bucks for damaging the airport with our own crowd. Yes, they broke the outside, chairs were broken, granite slabs were broken, and

doors were broken. So I have said I will not land in Mumbai. This was in the middle of the night at 2 o’clock. Why I’m saying this? When there

is love there is no lethargy.

*Q: If the ultimate truth is that everything is consciousness why focus on any other knowledge? Shouldn’t this truth be enough?**Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* And consciousness is everything. When everything is consciousness every level of knowledge has its significance. And this don’t misuse and mis-quote. Knowledge at every level has its importance.

*Q: Why did you pick this place as your ashram? Someone had told me

Arjuna meditated here many years back, is this true? What’s the story?**Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* Well, any place I pick you will ask the same question. Why did you pick this place? You just pick it, that’s it. The gentlemen who was working on this land and making the roads and keeping this place, he also didn’t know why he was doing all this, you know. When he sold it to us he was happy that what he had done for so many

years is used for some very good purpose. Well, it’s a nice place and when we all sit and meditate the vibrations even becomes higher, very

nice. Isn’t it? I was talking on Ashtavakara in India, before that I was here in Montreal also. Then I said, ‘one year I am not going to come out of India but when I come back, we should have our ashram here.’ Then there was Ganesh, and Janice they went around looking for it and then

they found this place. And when I came back they said we have found a place Guruji and have made all arrangements. Several people bought one plot and then we could get the whole land. Then Janice and Ganesh

said you should come to Montreal and I said okay I will come. So when we came we had just some tents here. In fact we stayed in Florabelle and came here to do the course. And then I said, ‘no, I should stay here.’ Then just Andrew and a couple others, they built that cabin; what’s it called? Sumeru cabin. A little cabin, I use to stay there. We had no water, we had nothing but then everything happened. We were walking around and we said yes in this area we should have a meditation hall. And it took quite a while to manifest that. But now we should use this more, even when I’m not here. You don’t say okay Guruji comes only then, no! You all should come here and bring your friends. We should put better use of this place.

*Q: Can you please talk about how some marriages are made in heaven? Can two souls who’ve met in previous lives unite in their next lives as husband and wife?**Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* Oh! Know that if everything is going well, it is a match made in heaven (laughter). If things are not working the way you wanted then it’s a matter of serious concern. It could have been made somewhere else, (laughter) certainly not in heaven.

*Q: Dear Guruji, all the masters in the holy tradition dress in orange. You dress in white and sit on an orange asana. Can you explain this? Why?**Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* Not all. One who does not wear clothes is also there (laughter). So, yes white has all the colors in it so… okay, done! Usually the tradition is if you put on saffron you’re not supposed to go out of India, cross the ocean. But today many don’t follow that. It’s only a few people who follow that particular tradition. You can’t cross the ocean. Today they’re all doing it, everybody is and that is good in a way. These rules were made once upon a time when there was only ship. And they had to go in ship and they could not take bath every day.

They cannot do their meditation in the ship. Small boats were there, not even ships. And the boat would sail and take so many days. Anyone who would go on the boat when they come back they had to do some cleansing and all that. In the scriptures that is what was written. So they said no, you shouldn’t go on the on the boat. Today it is not the thing. It is a home, it is a city inside the ship. So, those are irrelevant for today. This is what you have to see you know. Certain rules which are written, you should not just go literally on it. Same in Judaism, it is said the day of silence is Saturday, Sabbath, means don’t do anything, rest. Seven days you work, one day you don’t do anything. You just relax, rest, prayer, meditation because deeper rest you take better qualified you become. The quality of life improves; quality of your mind and consciousness improves. So for all this reason they said you should rest well one day. God rested for a day so you are also made in the image of god so you also should rest one day, Sabbath. But that is not what is happening. You should not work means you should not press the button in the lift suppose you are staying in hotel. 20 floors on Sabbath day, you

cannot press the button you simply go on the elevator and it stops on every floor and it goes up to your 20th floor. I was in Jerusalem this Sabbath day, nobody presses any button in the lift and it stops like a passenger local train at every floor. I said you cannot sign also? On Sabbath you cannot sign also, you cannot touch a pen. These are all obsolete rules. But you are still so busy and engaged. You are talking, and talking and talking and arguing and fighting also on Sabbath day but you cannot sign or press a button. It’s absurd! This is where wisdom is

needed. You need to look into that common sense. We must induce common

sense in all religious practices as well, it is important. Many times in the name of religion you shut off your common sense. How many of you experience this thing happening? It’s unfortunate; we need to changes

these things but it will happen, people are more understanding.

*Q: Dear Guruji, does the devotion to a person to a guru get carried on to his next life? And does an enlightened soul also have devotion to his

guru? If not then I don’t desire enlightenment. **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* Yes, devotion is your nature it won’t leave you.

Devotion is abiding in your own nature. So like sweetness cannot leave sugar, the coolness cannot leave ice, the nature to flow does not leave water right! You can’t call it water and it does not flow. Similarly devotion is there in your nature; don’t worry about it, okay.

You know it is not important how high we sit, how low we sit, as long as we are so clear in our heart and in our mind. That is what is important. Usually when we have the conference of religious leaders, it’s a big headache who will sit high and whose seat should be how high. All these protocols, my God! Usually I tell them, if sitting high is the sign of enlightenment, crows sits on top of all the trees. Crows should be the highly enlightened persons. I’ve seen there have been big fights and arguments about seating arrangements. Even in the UN Conference of Inter-Religious Dialogue; where that bishop should sit, where this priest should sit, where that Imam should sit; my goodness! The world

is fragmented with so many small minded, narrow ideologies, concepts and fights. We need to make a difference, don’t you think so? Bring a shift,

be simple, natural and feel connected to everybody in the world, doesn’t matter what their religion is, what their culture is. Basically everyone is part of one large human family, one beautiful divine family.

Yesterday, I said about three types of knowledge. Three type of knowledge with the three levels. Today I want to tell you about three type of space. One is the external space, in which all the five elements, four elements are there. Then there is the second type of space that is inner space, where thoughts come and emotions come. That’s inner space. When you close your eyes what do you? That is inner space. And then there is the third space. That is the space of energy where there is no thought, no emotion but you just feel energy. In deep meditation you experience that, isn’t it? Or after kriya you experience that space, there are no thoughts, nothing but space. The three types of space exist. One is called the Bhut Akash the outer space, second is Chit Akash the space where thoughts and emotions all these come and

third, Chid Akash space of consciousness. Consciousness itself is another space deep within us. Three type of spaces.

So we seldom understand; pay attention to these three different spaces. Whenever you are frustrated what do you say? ‘Give me some space.’ That is it, ‘I want my space. I want to be by myself.’ It’s very important. All inventions come from these three types of space. In the Chid Akash, in the consciousness it’s already there. All knowledge there comes to Chit Akash through thoughts and emotions. Songs come as emotions,

science comes as thoughts and ideas and then they get manifest in the

outer. Meditation is recognizing these three spaces. So that’s why sometimes you sit and watch the vast space, put your attention there so the mind also becomes blank. For how many of you it has happened? On a nice day cloudless sky, when there are no clouds at just bright stars are there. Just lie down and just keep gazing at the sky. When you gaze at the sky what happens? That space gets created inside too. A sort of emptiness and you get into a meditative state. So, all the thoughts, ideas, everything we do remains in this space. Maybe in the future sometime someone will come with the device to try to tap the Akashic record. You can find out what happened in 2010, 2011. What knowledge came, where and who was thinking what all that can be recorded sometime in the future because time has inscription of all ideas.

See, in a cell phone you send a message, how does it go and reach another cell phone? So far away and exactly the same words and the same font get printed there. From the time you press the button here to send, it reaching there, how did it travel? In the space! So the space in which all your telephonic conversations travel, all the messages travel

was recognized some thousands of years ago.

So the nature of space is knowledge and sound. ‘Shabda gunaka mahakaasha’, a Sanskrit saying; nature of light is sight, sight is connected with light; sound is connected with space, taste is connected with water and touch is connected with air. You know when you have to feel the touch air has to be present. Inside water you do not feel the touch, have you noticed it? It’s different. Inside water you can’t feel

it soft or hard, you can’t feel it. Rather whatever is the temperature of the water you can feel. Touch is related to the air element, and sound is related to space. So in the space everything is there. Like objects you’re thinking is there in the space. Sometimes you go to a place and you get thoughts and you wonder, ‘oh why did I get these types of thoughts’, do you see what I am saying?

There is a beautiful story. There was a small hill in a garden and it was situated in one of the very well known famous cities of those days. So it was a beautiful garden with fruit trees, lots of fruits and flowers. And there was a gardener in that garden and the gardener would go on top of that mound and he would invite everybody to come. From

there he could see the people walking in the streets. This was in a town called Ujjain and he would invite everyone, ‘hey come, we have so many fruits, all of you come. Why don’t you enjoy the beautiful flowers and fruits? Please come and take. I just want to give them away, come.’ And the people would come and he got down that hill his mind would change and he would chase them away and say, ‘how dare you come to me, this is trespassing’, and he would chase them away. The people would get shocked and they would go and he goes back to the mound and again he begs, ‘oh please come, please come’, and he would apologize, whatever it is. But again same story, he would chase them away after going down the hill. So people in the town who knew him they termed that he’s a crazy guy. He’s not sane because his behavior didn’t sound like he was sane. But then

the wise people in those days what they use to do is whenever someone is insane or would do something wrong, they would get together and find out in what space is he in? So then one wise man said, dig the mound and let us see what is inside. So he got the order from the king to dig up that mound. So when they dug the mound they found a big throne, a golden throne that belonged to a king called Vikarm Aditya. This king was such a generous king. Even today the era in India is in his name Vikram Samvat. So it is the 2068th year now, about 50 years ahead of the Christian era. It is 50 years ahead of AD, means he was 50 years before Christ. So today in India it is not 2011, it is 2068 or something like that.

So this Vikram Aditya was such a pious, such a generous king of such good character that he was sitting in that throne for as long as 50 to 60 years. He ruled the country sitting on that throne and so the vibrations still existed. And so whenever the man went on top he became so generous. He got into the generous space. And when he came down he became nasty. So the space you are in matters.

You may have noticed in your own life, some places you get jittery and

angry. How many have experienced this? What has happened? In that space there are people who have been angry or agitated. So you move into that space and it affects your whole behavior. And when you’re in good company what happens? You feel so much lighter, uplifted inside, totally at ease and at peace. Hasn’t this happened to you? How many feel this

has happened, tell me? So the company matters, really matters. That doesn’t mean you should avoid people because they are not good company. You also should be strong and instead of running away from negative influence you must positively impact any negative environment. And sitting and doing your meditation hallow and empty, these long meditations will help you be very strong and stable in that space. So wherever you go you carry your space and you make an influence rather than you get affected. Not be a ping pong ball but be the bat so you can influence the space around you. (Clapping)

This you must strongly know so that you don’t run away from a situation unless or until it is so bad that it is swallowing you. Then you gently move away, don’t run away. Are you getting what I am saying?

So when children are playing the space is beautiful. When you are singing and everyone is singing the same tune, that space generated is harmonious and serene, especially the ancient songs, the old songs. The Sanskrit chants have an added influence because these have been in the Akashic record for the last 20,000 to 50,000 years. Maybe more, you don’t even know since when it was there. So those vibrations make it very benevolent and have a strong influence on the system.

I heard that Hasan and Ali had written that the first book of wisdom was written in India. I was invited to address a Shia conference. There they had put that Hasan Ali say, ‘the first word of wisdom was written in India’. Wisdom is same, whether it is India, North America, South America, Australia, or Germany it doesn’t matter. In all different languages, wisdom is the same, as long as it is there. You do yoga, whether in South America or Mongolia, if you do the same pranayama

it’s going to impact you wherever you are. So this universal knowledge is not limited to a particular culture, religion or tradition. It is simply universal. Unfortunately people started forgetting that and they say, ‘this is not mine and this is no good. This against my religion and this is all just ignorance’. Anything that is Divine is always universal. Are you getting what I am saying? Yes! Culture is different, religion is different, ways of dressing is different, music is different, different places, but the space is the same. The inner space is the same. And it is amazing that this science was known thousands of years ago. Good, good, good!

So many of you have just come today and you must be just relaxing. How many of you feel that as soon as you entered the ashram already you feel lighter? A different experience, a different space; you could feel that right! It’s obvious; even in Bangalore ashram, because there is meditation happening there everyday people say, ‘I just come in and wow, I already feel lighter. My mind is clearer’. It’s interesting how the universe functions, very good!

(After a Native/First Nations dance/music) That’s so nice they have preserved their tradition, their culture. Very nice! You know that is what we need to encourage. Every part of the world has its specific flavors, specific cultures, and specific traditions. As a global family we must honor each one of them and encourage them. Even if one’s culture is lost, it is a loss for the whole world, isn’t it?

Some have just come today. They live in such harsh climates up in the north, very difficult place to stay and still they maintain everything of their tradition. It is so amazing if you see the tribal people in India, in Arunachal Pradesh, in Tibet, in New Zealand, there is such a striking similarity. So it seems around the world, once upon time there

was a similar culture. It is really amazing. They honor all the four directions, honor Mother Nature. It’s very important to honor Mother Nature. In the native culture they’re so close to nature, there is certain innocence in them, but unfortunately this community is facing such hardship. There is so much suicide happening, alcohol is so prevalent. So our teachers are doing a lot of work to get them out of alcoholism and bring more hope and life into that community, it’s very nice.

*Q: Jai Gurudev, please talk about mental and physical addictions to something. Say tobacco, alcohol or marijuana. How to break free even if it feels like past the point of no return? **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* Pranayama and Sudarshan Kriya. It has helped

millions of people.

*Q: Dear Guruji, you have said that the present moment is outside time and space and has great depth. I think you’ve said the past, present, and future are all in that depth. Since there are different dimensions perhaps other realities, can the present moment be entered like an access point to different dimensions of existence since they all exist here?**Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* Absolutely, everything exists in the present moment. What exists is only the present moment, yes.

*Q: Dear Guruji, I know this sounds a little funny, but I’m having some

difficulty relaxing. You’ve mentioned this word a lot in meditation. Can you please expand on it a little? I’m having trouble relaxing. **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* You are having difficulty in relaxing? Then tense more and more and more. How long can you be tense? Some point you have to give up. That’s relaxation. So if you have difficulty in relaxing take a deep breath and don’t breathe out, hold on! You will know when to let go. And when you let go and breathe out, relaxation

happens.

*Q: Dear Guruji, I have a big problem. I’m not able to handle the hatred that I have for one person in my life. I have to be in touch with this person all my life because she’s currently related to me. Every thought of her moves me away from my centeredness. How can I tackle this hatred? **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* This is a challenge you need to work on, this itself is your sadhana. Just see that person as a rag doll. A battery operated doll. And how does a battery operated doll function? It has a definite program and so that’s how it functions. Why do you want them to change? In fact she can increase your ability to tolerate, your ability to accommodate you know, which is amazing. You should know that they are in bringing more skills into your own life. Yes!

*Q: Dear Guruji, are there many levels of truth that unfold on enlightenment. Do people get enlightened at different degrees, or is it

just like in a flash; the one and only truth is revealed? **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* Both are possible. Some people suddenly get a

flash, some people gradually they move into a space where they are happy all the time, nothing shakes them, nothing disturbs them. That type of thing spontaneously comes.

*Q: Yesterday you shared the insight about how intuitive awareness comes from letting go of the mind and the intellect. Is this something that just happens or can we do something to allow it to happen faster? **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* What you’re doing here is exactly what you should be doing. Taking some time off and doing some deeper meditations and sitting in satsang. This is all good enough.

*Q: My desire is to drop my work and to devote the rest of my life to bringing you comfort and furthering your purpose in the world. Is this

possible? If so when? **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* What’s that? Yes, yes, you can do a lot of things. If you have no other responsibility you can take bigger responsibilities. More work on a bigger cause. You can do that.

*Q: Dear Guruji, how can one be both attached and detached in a relationship. When I say detached I mean not too entangled but still caring. Please talk more on this as a lot of our course participants are going through serious relationship problems for various reasons. Thank you. Jai Gurudev.**Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* You know what? Now you be detached to this question. Let’s have one or two bhajans singing and see how you can be detached for a little while from the answer to this question. Got it? We’ll sing couple of songs then we will talk more.

Sunday 27th November 2011

Q: When should we listen to the head and when should we listen to the heart?Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: While doing business listen to the head. To leadlife, listen to the heart.

Q: Basavanna (a great Kannada poet who lived a few centuries ago) has said,’Compassion is the starting point of Dharma’. What is your opinion aboutDharma?Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Whatever supports and uplifts life and human valuesis Dharma.

Q: What are your thoughts on the Caste system?Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Classifying people based on their birth is incorrect.All human beings are one!

Q: What do we need to do to increase faith?Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: There is no need to put effort. Faith comes by itself.There are 3 types of faith:1) Faith in ourselves2) Faith in the society3) Faith in a supreme power that governs us allIf we have faith in any one of these, we can progress in life.

Q: Guruji, you say that we should give all our problems to you. When wefind it difficult to handle one problem, how do you handle all our problems?Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Yes, give me all your problems. I have my own waysfor it!

Q: Guruji, my mother says we should not eat rice on Ekadashi, otherwise ournext birth won't be good. Is this true?Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: No, nothing like that. Some people take a vow to faston Ekadashi day. It is purely individual choice.

Q: Guruji, many times due to work I have to eat outside in a restaurant ora hotel. Is there any way to reduce the impact of that food on the mind?Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: You know the impact of food doesn't stay for toolong. Minimum it stays for 24 hours and maximum for 3 days, that is it andthen it goes away. Don't worry about it.

Q: Guruji, at work I have to face certain political situations where peopleare against me. How do I stay centered and calm at that point of time?Later when I come home and do my kriya and think of you, I get thatcalmness.Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Suppose you had not done the course, how would youhave reacted to the same situation? Just take a look.There are two issues in life, one is life before Art of Living and theother is life after Art of Living. So gradually you will grow into thatcenteredness. Even though you feel a little shaky at that time, never mind,you continue your practice.One day you will suddenly find that you are happy come what may. Nothing istaking your happiness.That type of awareness will come one day.

Q: Guruji, we have learnt that we have to accept people and situations asthey are. My question is, up to what extent?Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: You accept and your acceptance brings calmness in themind. When the mind is calm, you can act. If you don't accept you are sojittery and agitated. Whatever action you take, you will regret about it.That is why acceptance is essential.

Q: I have a psychological problem called Schizophrenia since 4 years. Ihave been taking medicines but there seems to be no improvement. Doctorshave asked me to continue the medication, but I don't have faith that I'llbe cured by them. I'm experiencing a lot of difficulty due to this.Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Continue the medication. Once you start themedication, you must not stop it. Medicines take effect slowly. Once

youstart taking these allopathic medicines, it should not be stopped in themiddle.

Wed 23rd November 2011

*Q: In Ashtavakra you say to drop sense objects if you wish for freedom. Sometimes human values like compassion, love, etc., depend on sense

objects. Should I drop this also? **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* Yes, don’t hold on to anything, let go! Compassion and love is your nature, those will remain in you.There is a saying in Hindi, ‘neki kar kue mein daal’.If you think, ‘I am so good and everybody is bad’, that will make you sad. This attitude is what you should drop.

*Q: Beloved Guruji, in the world if we are in love with someone we have to cry. But if we are in love with you, then too we have to cry. What to do? **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* ‘Kabira hasana door Kar, rone se kar preeti, bin roye kyon paiye, prem piyara meet.’If some tears of love and of longing are shed then that is good, makes life worthwhile.

*Q: Jai Guru Dev, whom so ever I have loved whether my family or friends all have betrayed me and whatever I do for them goes wrong. I want to do something different and prove myself to them. *

*Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* What is the use of trying to prove yourself to them? If you attempt to prove something to them, it will only lead to a waste of energy. Leave it and move on.Instead do what you want for yourself.If you something good to prove to others, anyways no one will be happy seeing it. They will only become jealous. What will we gain by creating

more jealousy? It will only increase animosity. Therefore, forget about

others and focus on your own life.The thirty to forty years of life left do what you want to do, earn how much you want to earn, do as much service in society as you want to do and then relax.

*Q: But what about people who have betrayed me? **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* Leave them and don’t be concerned. Uproot them from your heart. If they have betrayed you that is their karma, and your karma was to get betrayed and now it is over. The score has been settled.

*Q: Guruji, how do I know that I am doing what you expect me to do? Am I on the right path? At times I feel very weak and cry a lot. How can I stop my tears? **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* When you feel weak I am with you as your strength, you are not alone. Whenever you feel weak, know that you are not alone.Be clear with what you want in your life and what you want to do. Then plan and move on those plans.Sitting and crying being emotional is not going to help. Wake up and see this is the world and the world has its own metrics. See how you can

move forward.

*Q: Why do we get attached and how do we get over the feeling of attachment? It is very painful when the person whom we are attached to chooses to leave us. **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* Remember, whatever is yours will always be yours. Whatever is not yours will come for a little while and then go.Wake up! Go deep in knowledge.

*Q: I am good at making friends but bad at maintaining friendship, what do I do? **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* You have identified the problem. Now the solution is to be friendly, but don’t try to be over friendly. Just be yourself and focus on yourself. Don’t go and log on to your friends all the time and think how to impress them and what their opinion of you is. This is such a strain on your mind. Never get into this.How many years are you going to live? One day you have to leave everything on this planet. You have to leave your good company, bad company, everybody and everything.When this is the truth you should come out of the ashes of the slumber that you are in and wake up!

*Q: Guruji you have said feelings are emotional garbage. Should we not share our feelings with our loved ones? **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* Yes, you can share your feelings but don’t dwell on them too much.Observe if by you sharing your feelings whether you are doing any good to yourself or your love ones. Suppose you are not feeling good and you keep telling your friends that, are they going to help you in anyway?If you have fever, and you share that with a doctor, he will give you

some medication. But if you just keep telling your mother, grandmother and your friends who are not doctors, it is not going to help you in anyway.Share those feelings that uplift people. Don’t share those feelings for which no one can help you. Share them only with those who can help you, someone elderly or someone you can trust. With them you can share and take guidance.That is why with a teacher, a guide or a Guru you can share all your feelings.

*Q: What is Prayaschit? **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* ‘Prayas’ means become young again. ‘Chit’ means your mind becoming young again. Your chitta, mind or consciousness becomes old when it is bogged down by regrets. To remove the regrets becoming new and young again is what Prayaschit is.I did a mistake, never mind now I am going to chant ‘Om Namah Shivaya’ and do my pranayama. Pranayama is the best prayaschit and when you do pranayama all that energy that is bogged down wakes up.

*Q: I have seen the Bhagavad Gita and it is a fat book. How did Lord Krishna explain all the 700 shlokas in the Bhagavad Gita on the battle field? **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* Sometimes you don’t need so many words to communicate. Communication happens faster, but when written it becomes longer. In those days wars would go on for many days. Mahabharata war also went on for many days and the preparations were for many days. So it is possible that Lord Krishna spent one whole afternoon in brainwashing Arjuna. Since Arjuna thought he knew everything, Lord

Krishna had to talk to him and convince him in many different ways. So it is not an impossibility.

*Q: Guruji, in the name of devotion some people pierce needles on their tongue and other parts of the body. Is it right to torture ourselves in the name devotion? **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* No, this is not correct. Nowhere in the scripture does it say that you should do these torturous things. The Divine dwells in every heart and no one should torture oneself in order to please the Divine.

*Q: Guruji, if we have to marry, why not marry the Divine. How to make that possible? Please guide. **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* Marriage is a commitment. It is an internal thing, an internal bondage with the Divinity. Be in your house and continue doing what you are doing and in your mind your attachment is towards the Divine, that is it!If you are already married see the Divinity sitting in your own husband’s heart.

*Q: Guruji, I have heard that the soul chooses its path. Somehow if you get deviated from that path and do something else, the Universe kicks

you back on to that particular path that you are supposed to be on, is that true? **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* That is if you are lucky! If you are unlucky it takes you long time to get back to your path.

*Q: Lust, desire, anger, attachment and greed, are all these created by human beings or God? **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* God has put these tendencies in our lives for

us to rise above them. Without this there is nothing else in life to do.We have also been given the wisdom and the tools to rise above them. So the solution has been given first and then the problem and we need to fit the right solution to the problem.If we don’t see the solution but remain caught up in the problem then that is ignorance.

*Q: If we give blessings to someone, or pray intensely for their wishes to be fulfilled, are we going against the Universe? **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* No. This feeling to pray has also been put in your heart by the Universe.

*Q: Are bad dreams okay? **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* Bad dreams are okay and good dreams are also okay. Consider bad dreams as something negative leaving you and good dreams as indications of something good about to happen.

*Q: Guruji, what is right and what is wrong? **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* That which gives you a little trouble in the beginning but happiness for a long time is right and that which gives you temporary pleasure but long term misery is wrong.

*Q: Can you elaborate on the number 7, like there are 7 days in a week, the 7 continents, the 7 chakras and so on. **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* Every number is associated with something sacred and has sacredness to it.That’s why when the Rudrabhishekam is done, all the numbers are said.

Number 1 and 2 are very sacred. Number 3 is also sacred. Number 3 is associated with so many things, Brahma, Vishnu and Mahesh; Satva,

Rajas and Tamas; Vata, Pitta and Kapha; Morning, Afternoon and Evening; Present, Past and Future. So number 3 is very sacred.Then number 4 is more sacred. The four directions; the four Vedas has so much sacredness attached to it. The most sacred of the symbols Swastika has four corners.Then number 5, the five elements which are very sacred; the five organs of senses; five organs of perceptions; five organs of action. Pancha Devata, there are five important categories of Devatas. A village panchayat has only five members and so 5 is very sacred.Then comes 6, Shad Darshanas, the six systems of Hindu philosophy; Shadangas, the six angas are very important. Then the sixth sense, you say the mind is the sixth sense.Then 7; seven Swaras, seven Chakras, seven days of the week, seven planets…8 has its own sacredness, Ashta Dikpalakas, are the eight divine entities ruling eight quarters or the universe, Ashtadhatu, eight metals which are very essential for the body. Ashtalakshmi, the eight types of

wealth. So 8 has its own significance.Coming to 9, Navagrahas; Navaratna, nine gems; Navaratri, nine nights. In nine months a child is born. There are nine types of bhakti.10 and 11 is also sacred. No number is left which is not sacred. In the West number 13 is considered unholy, but in India no number is considered unholy or unlucky. All the numbers are good numbers. Every number has some significance, some glory attached to it.

*Q: Jai Gurudev Guruji. What is moun and how to follow it? What are things that we should avoid during moun? **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* Moun means silence. You are mixing English

and Hindi.How to be in silence? First, by not talking and second is antar moun, quieting the mind.For that when you sit in an advanced course a number dharanas or pratyahara are given. A number of techniques are given to quite the mind.In silence it is better to look at the creation. Look at the trees and birds and less at peoples’ faces. You look at peoples’ faces and you feel like talking, expressing or doing something. If you observe the creation it brings quietness to your mind. Nature can evoke thoughts inside you. It can bring out some poems, some poetry, or some new ideas but only human beings evoke more thoughts in you.This mind constantly is on the run, to quite that down doing pranayama, observing nature, being conscious of every step you take, eating less food and drinking plenty of water, all of this will work. Some good sleep and satsang music too is good.

*Q: Beloved Guruji, I pray to you, I want to marry. You have given your blessings to me as well. Please make the person you have asked me to

consult agree too. I have come under your care and shelter. I pray daily to you, will you answer my patient prayers? **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* See, whenever we pray it is necessary that we must follow it up with one sentence.‘May my wish be fulfilled or if there is something better for me may that be fulfilled’.How do you know what is best for your well being? So always add this

line to your prayer, that if there is anything better for me may that happen.Whatever is needed and is best for you only will happen. Remember these two things always. For a devotee only the best will happen. This does

not mean you keep rejecting everyone who comes your way thinking something better is yet to come, this is also wrong. Listen to your inner voice.

*Q: Gurudev, often in the name of modernity we give up tradition. At other times in the name of tradition we don’t accept modern technology. What is the correct mix of tradition and modernity? **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* Vivek is the right mix. That is where you use your intellect, where tradition does work and where modernity is essential. We have to bring these two together.

Like in tradition there is the Ayurvedic system. The Ayurvedic system says you do this and it will help your body, which we need to adopt. But if there is an emergency you have to go to an allopathic doctor as well. You should not say, ‘no I am not going to a hospital, I am only going to

an Ayurvedic doctor.’ We need to take both.You don’t need to pop in antibiotics or an aspirin every time you have a headache. There are many things in Ayurveda which are very beneficial, utilize them.

*Q: Guruji, when will the corruption which is spread in every street of Delhi end? **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* When you and I stand up against it, then it will

remain neither on the streets nor in Delhi.I am already standing against it, now you too have to raise your voice.

*Q: Why has God been give thousands of names to describe the physical aspect when God is in the form of energy and doesn’t have any form? **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* There are two things you must remember.

One is the Quantum Physics: everything is made up of atoms, everything is wave functions.The other thing is the Classical Chemistry: any particular thing has only a particular effect.For example, if you have a cold or sore throat you can’t just pick up any leaf. You have to pick only Tulsi (basil) leaf that works on that part of your body.If you have a stomach problem, only Bilva fruit will work for that. Specific plants are for specific aspect of our body.Similarly, specific sounds work on specific parts of our body. The ancient masters knew, out of the many forms, some form would evoke a particular type of energy in you.

In fact it is not about the form so much but the name of the form that is important. When you sing ‘Om Namah Shivaya’, it creates a different energy. When you sing ‘Om Namo Narayana’, it is a different energy. Since the sounds are different, each sound has a different impact but in total all are the same. Every sound is going to uplift you, but they are only a little different in quality.It is like you going to an ice cream parlor and saying, what is the difference between strawberry ice cream and vanilla ice cream. These are just flavors but the substance is the same. In the same way people in the past have just created different flavors to make life more colorful, that is all.It is not necessary that you have to go through all the forms. Any form, any name is good enough.

*Q: Gurudev, is it true that different Devatas are residing in different parts of the body? **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* Correct! Different parts of the body have got different types of energy.

*Q: Guruji, who is a Yogi?**Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* One who is not a Bhogi. One who is not always

harping on things outside.A Yogi is one who is resting in the being; uniting with the self. One who is equanimous come what may. When pleasant things come a yogi does not get too excited and jump to the sky and when unpleasant things happen he doesn’t drown into the ditch. He just remains equanimous.A Yogi is also one who is skillful; who has skill in speech and in action. Who knows the skill to retire and be quiet and the skill to be in activity with dynamism.

*Q: Should I fear telling the truth especially against a person I respect very much? **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* If you respect someone it is only but natural that you speak the truth to them. Just adulation or sweet talking is not

respect. Truth means expressing yourself with simplicity and naturalness, whatever is in your heart. Not with arrogance, anger or aggression. If you have any doubts you can simply ask. No one will say

no to you. If you speak what you understand is the truth, first find out whether what you assume is actually true or not.

*Q: Guruji, what is Maya? How to understand it? **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* That which changes, which is not constant, which does not appeal, is Maya. That which changes every moment and that which you can measure is Maya.That which you cannot measure, which does not change is truth.

*Q: Guruji, in old movies when people meditated, Indra’s friends or Indra would come and disturb them. Nevertheless many crossed these

obstacles and became emperors of heaven. Is Indra the ego and his friends the levels of existence? *

*Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* Indra is collective consciousness, one with a thousand eyes. He has eyes all over his body. The collective consciousness, impressions or ideas of a whole city or town is Indra. Whenever an individual raises high, the collective consciousness gets disturbed and it comes to try to influence the individual. When the individual becomes stronger his influence on the collective consciousness becomes greater.

*Q: Guruji, what is the difference between feelings and intuition? **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* Intuition is a very deep feeling and feelings can just be emotions which are on the surface.

*Q: Guruji, do enlightened people also have a time limit for their state of enlightenment? **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* There is no warranty and guarantee time limit.

Once you learn how to cycle, you have learnt it for your lifetime. Like that once you are in your being that is it. That is the end of the story.

*Q: Guruiji, when we are here, you don’t even turn to look at us. Why is this? **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* No one can escape my sight. If you are looking

at me I don’t need to look at you. When you look somewhere else, then I look at you.

*Q: Guruji, when you impart knowledge, it appears to me that I have understood it but after that I forget everything. How do I make sure that the knowledge assimilates and gets internalized and comes up whenever I need it? **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* This is happening. When needed the knowledge will come up by itself.

*Q: When I am in the Ashram I feel so happy, how to continue this when I

go out? **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* You have to be well founded in the knowledge.

Keep going for your follow-up sessions and get involved in some seva project. All of this will help.

Only speak Knowledge. Don't repeat anything that someone tells you or opinions about anyone that someone states -- "That so-and-so said such-and-such about you." If someone comes to tell you such things, discourage them. Don't believe it.If someone blames you directly, know that they are taking away your bad karma and let it go. Don't believe in it, and if you're one of the Guru's close ones, you will take all of the blame of the world with a smile.Conflict is the nature of the world; comfort is the nature of the self. Amidst the conflict seek the comfort.When you are bored with the comfort, get into the games of the world. When you are tired of the games of the world, get into the comforts of the Self. If you are one of the Guru's close ones, you do both simultaneously. Trying to end conflict prolongs it. Face the conflict by seeking the comfort of the Self.God is alive in the world and has been putting up with all the ongoing conflicts throughout the ages. If God can put up with all the conflicts, you can too. The moment you agree to be with the conflict, the conflict disappears.People who love peace do not want to fight, and those who fight do not love peace. Those who want peace want to run away. What is needed here is to be peaceful within and then fight. The whole message of the Gita is to be peaceful yourself and then fight. Krishna tells Arjuna to fight but be in peace at the same time. Does this ring a bell?In the world, you resolve one conflict and another one comes up. For example, Russia is solved and then Bosnia arises. You make one better, and then another starts up. Your body gets a cold, then you get better; then your back hurts, then it gets better. Your body gets better, and then the mind goes. The world runs like this, isn't it?

Without any intention, misunderstandings happen. It's not up to you to try to resolve them. Ignore them and be alive.

- Sri Sri

|| Jai Guru Dev ||

Monday 21st November 2011

*Q: I long for the divine so much. Does the divine also long for me? Does the divine long to merge with me as much as I long to merge with the divine? **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes!

*Q: Dear Guruji, in the discourses that we saw on advanced course you talked about emotions in different parts of the body. When I go back home if I feel a strong emotion in my body like greed what can I do to move it out of the system?**Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* Emotions come and go, why you have to bother so much. Even if I tell you something, when the emotions come you will forget all about that. It’s useless to be preparing for it. You know they just come and they go, just relax. I don’t want to give you suggestions and ideas which you can’t implement and later on feel guilty about it. Already you have one problem, on top of it you will have another problem of feeling guilty. Guruji said it and I didn’t do it. No, I don’t like to put more trouble; you have enough (laughter). So, just relax and know that you are on the right path. That is all you need

to know, you are on the right track, relax and things will continue.

*Q: Guruji, why is the bowing down process so powerful? I never think of

angels in my daily process yet this process has uplifted me each time I

have done it.**Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* Yes, you’re wondering about it, right. Yes that’s why I put it in the advance course.

*Q: Gurudev, do you ever get concerned about some of your followers that get too fanatical about being close to you? It seems to me that they’re willing to pass on their enlightenment in order to be with you.**Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* Listen, now focus on yourself. Why do you focus on what others do? There are so many people that do so many things in the world. It’s my headache and their headache, now why do you want to make that as your headache also? I keep telling them don’t bow down and don’t bend down, but it is a cultural thing. In India they always do like that. When the person in the front bows down the people in the back don’t see it so they bow down. Then one above the other they keep falling. Sometimes they grab my feet and then bang their head so hard on my feet. Sometimes I have to scream for them to stop. I have many marks that devotees have put on me. I have tried educating people and it doesn’t work. You don’t have to copy them I tell you. And don’t be bothered by others I tell you. Otherwise you find that person is behaving this way and this person is pushing, this person is running, why shouldn’t all this be corrected? How much will you correct? You know I see millions of people and everywhere is the same story. Do you see what I am saying? If you bring too much discipline where everybody is

strict, people feel so suffocated. So I always preferred a middle path where it is not too much restriction and where it’s not free for all. It’s not the situation where it’s free for all; everybody jumps

everywhere and does anything they want, no! It’s the big problem and

issue for me but we have to deal with it. Certain things are cultural things; certain things are peoples’ emotions. You know sometimes people see me, they come from a long distance and they want to shake hands with me, some want to come forward, you can’t blame them too. Some of them want a picture so they push everybody and they don’t see anyone, they just want to have picture. I’m not just talking about here you should see what happens in India, or here, or South America or Mongolia for example. I go to Mongolia, in the middle of the night at 2:30 in the morning, there is such a huge rush, everybody trying to get inside the airport. Security people were startled, what is this? But what do you do, I have not asked people to pull and push and just go forward. And if I say too much also it’s a matter of someone’s feelings, someone’s emotions, isn’t it?! Someone has come with a flower, a lady from a remote area in Mongolia and she just wants to give the flower into my hand. She must be in her eighties and I am so concerned someone will

push her down. Sometimes they light candles and then the people are walking around with all their garments and I say, ‘look out, light, light, light’. I was so concerned, they put the lights all along the stairways and people are just not aware. They’re in such joy, they’re in so much joy you know they lose track of their surroundings. They are sort of ecstatic and they don’t care about what’s happening to their garments, whether it’s catching on fire. So I am very careful, put off the lights and this and that. So peoples’ behavior is very different. I cannot control peoples’ desires and nor can you. So why do we get stuck with other people’s behavior all the time? Whether it is good behavior or bad behavior, there are people who blame you for nothing. What do you do? Nothing. There are people who show negative emotions, I do

nothing and they show positive emotions, and I do nothing because it is a way for them to express themselves so l let them be. As far as possible I will make some security arrangements. Here also people sat hold everybody with a rope but it does not work for five minutes. In five minutes later only outside my kutir I already see there are lots of people. Now I don’t blame them. I want to tell you one incident. I was going to Lucknow, the city in the north of India. So when I went there the chief of police came to me and said, ‘Guruji, there was chaos!’ There was chaos in the airport, a stampede but thankfully nobody got hurt or anything. But there were so many crowds. The police officer came and said, ‘Guruji I don’t know what effect you have. Till the time you came we had all agreed that we would all be in line in a row and we’ll be disciplined and you’ll be allowed to get into your car very smoothly. But the moment you come out, I was the first one to break the plan and everyone broke all the plans and had gone haywire.’ There was so much chaos I could hardly get into the car. My shawls were torn. Well but I was not upset, I am not at all upset. I’m not upset with these things because I know. I said, ‘I don’t blame anyone, it’s my responsibility.’ I know wherever I go the chaos begins. I don’t even have to go to a place, just the news that I am going to a city is good enough to create chaos. And many of you know this, who will host me there will be a fight on that, who will drive me there will be another fight on that, I have come to terms with it now. I just accept it; there is no point in getting upset for it. And bliss comes out of chaos and wherever there is bliss some chaos does happen. This is a natural law; do you see what I’m saying?! So you better focus on yourself and your knowledge. You don’t need to do what others are doing, you be yourself and you move on. If you can help others then help, otherwise finding faults in others, ‘why are they doing like this’, and saying, ‘why don’t you educate them?’

How much can you educate? Who to educate, how many can you educate, tell me. We gave the technique for everyone to practice and to be happy and that is good enough, you know. But there should be some freedom for people to express their emotions. That of course, don’t you think so?!

*Q: Jai Gurudev, personally I have a hard time connecting to concepts like the Divine or Supreme Consciousness or God. Can agnostic or atheist become an Art of Living teacher? **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* Definitely, don’t worry as long as you acknowledge there is form and there is formless and the world is an interplay of form and formless. You did this meditation, did you all enjoy? Was it good? You don’t have to see God with a nose, with hair, with a beard sitting somewhere up in heaven, there is no such God. If you believe in Godliness then that is good enough. If you think God is an energy that is good enough. You don’t have to see God as a person,

telling you or talking to you or something. Like there is an electric field, biometric field there is also a field of love. If you acknowledge that then that is good enough. And the highest goal of a human life is to grow and feel connected with the entire cosmos. That is why Lord Buddha never talked about God. Also Pantanjali, when he described Yoga, in only one place he mentioned God, other than that he only talked about the consciousness, the mind. You know the Jains, they only talk about the self. They didn’t say there is a God up there somewhere. So even those who talked about God they said God is love. Jesus said God is love and love is God.

*Q: Guruji what is the best technique for cultivating self love. I find it easier to kinder to others than to myself. When I start to praise myself and feel joyous, I come into contact with others who are not

happy and I feel guilty for feeling happy.**Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* See, self is love. You think you don’t love yourself and then you try to love yourself and that is the biggest blunder. Who says you don’t love yourself? It is just a concept when you think you don’t love yourself, and it seems to be very real. Just relax, drop this whole concept of self love and love for others. Love is not just an emotion, so just relax and be at ease yes. Don’t judge your actions too much. When you go on analyzing and judging your actions too much, this is where you’ll end up. Either you’ll feel guilty or you feel upset and then you feel angry and all this paraphernalia comes along. That’s why the concept of surrender is so useful. The concept of belonging to the Divine, belonging to a tradition or a master is so useful. The devotee can say, ’if I have some lack then it is for the Guru to make me right, that’s not my business.’ It’s like you’re on a massage table and if there is some twist in your muscle somewhere, it is not your job, it is the job of the masseuse to straighten your knots. You don’t do anything about it. In this way, you’re on the table and trying to do something with yourself, you get so stuck. So trying to repair the emotions, correct the emotions, this is all a useless phenomenon and it only makes it worse. Do you see what I’m saying? There is a saying in Sanskrit; suppose you have a wound and you go on scratching the wound, it’s not going to get better. Every time you scratch it you make it worse. This is exactly what we’re doing, you try to get rid of this thing or that thing or feel better about yourself, love yourself or not love yourself. All this is useless. What you are doing here is the best, do yoga, meditate, become hallow and empty and everything else gets taken care of. There is a story about Lord Buddha. One disciple came to Buddha and said, ‘my mind is all so much turmoil. I feel so guilty, I feel so bad, I feel so this and that’, and he just said a lot of things. And Buddha just told him to go and get some water

from a pond. So he went there and saw the pond was so muddy. He said, ‘Lord the water is so muddy, I can’t get it.’ So Buddha just smiled and so this man went on and on again. A little while later Buddha told him again to go get some water. He said, ‘but it was all muddy’. Buddha said, ‘no, go and get the water.’ So when Buddha insisted he had no other choice but to just go. When he went there, by that time the water had already settled and it was clear. He brought the glass of water and gave Buddha. Buddha looked at the disciple and smiled away and the disciple got the answer. So when your mind is muddled, don’t try to do anything more. Just give it some time, leave it alone and it will settle, it will become clear. Unfortunately we have so many books written, so many concepts on how to love yourself and make this mind and make the guilt go away and blah, blah, blah. I don’t think it will help in the long run, even if it has for a short time. I would say do Sudarshan Kriya, pranayama, and meditation. And keep doing it other than that, don’t try to love yourself.

*Q: (A member of the audience asked a question and it was not audible) **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* You know it’s there for a purpose. See many people come to the path because they have some pain but not all. Some people come to the path out of curiosity. Some come seeking knowledge. Quite a bit of the population wants relief from pain so they come to the path. And then they are on the path and realize, ’wow! Life is much more than I thought it was’. Do you see what I’m saying? It opens new doors. Mediation and all these courses and satsangs and everything we do is reducing pain and suffering in the world. We are already doing that.

You want me to with a magic wand remove everybody’s pain then it is not fair. They have to do something in their life to clean up, yes. There is purpose.

*Q: (A member of the audience asked a question and it was not audible) **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* And you’ve already taken a step. You’ve asked this question, at least in that you are not that shy. One thing I want to tell you. Don’t think in your mind what will Guruji think about me, whether he will think this or that. Don’t try to impress me. I never get impressed by anybody’s behavior nor do I get unimpressed by anybody’s behavior because I see you one step beyond your outer behaviors. Now do you get it? You can ask some of the senior teachers they will tell you. I don’t care about how they behave what they do. But I feel connected to everybody irrespective of their behavior. But that doesn’t mean you should not be sane and civilized in your behavior. I like people sane and civilized in their behavior but I don’t mind you being you. Okay, but don’t tell this to everybody.

*Q: Guruji I very much enjoyed the hollow and empty meditations on the advance course, but I have a question. Why we are not allowed to do them at home? Why can’t we have home CDs of hollow and empty meditations? **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* There are a number of other CDs which are good enough to do at home. Number of CDs I have made. I’ve even spoken in many languages; I’ve spoken in Mongolian, spoken in Russian. In my free time this is what I do. I learn those languages, Mongolian, Russian, and German. French I have not made, no. Have I made in French? Yes?

One or two CDs maybe. It’s very tough to make a French CD but German I have made more.

*Q: Dear Guruji, in a marriage one person is on the path and the other

person is not. Does this end up being an impediment to the spiritual growth of the person who is on the path? This is my situation and sometimes I’m not able to do as much for the Art of Living as I would like to.**Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* No, gently keep influencing your partner skillfully. First influence the close friends of your partner. You know sometimes as a spouse if you directly tell your spouse to do this then the block comes, ‘no I won’t, who are you to tell me. I don’t want to and I don’t want you to tell me what I should be doing.’ That resistance is there, especially among the men they don’t want to be told what they should be doing by their once upon a time honey. So in that situation you have to catch hold of their close friends. Make them do and then the partner will come along. It has happened to many, many people.

*Q: Guruji, I’ve been confused about the purpose of my life. I’ve heard

over and over again that the sole purpose of life is to become one with

God. But then how does family, friends, work, and many other things fit into this framework?**Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* It’s everything. Take that, take this, and take everything. You know keep the longing burning alive and continue doing your duties, this is necessary.

*Q: Dear Guruji, I am a young girl from India and I am gay. What can you

tell me about the state that I am in and how do you suggest I act?**Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* First of all your identity is more than a gay or a straight person. Straight you call it? Straight! (Crowd laughs) You are part of the Divine remember that. You’re part of Divine and you are beautiful, very good human being. This identity must be brought forth,

first and foremost. And then these tendencies come and they go. So you have the tendency to be gay that is okay. That is a tendency that is there. You don’t know whether it will stay for your lifelong, or it may change anytime. The people who are straight, suddenly after sometime and after several years of marriage and kids they find themselves that they

have gay tendencies. So these things happen; you know it is a very low identity. First you must identify yourself as a part of the light, part of the spirit, part of Divinity. Once that identity is strong, the other tendencies come and they go, that you don’t need to worry; do you understand what I’m saying? Don’t label yourself, keep yourself open.

*Q: Dearest Gurudev, I once read about a devotee who asked his guru to take away some of his negative qualities like anger and lust because they were obstacles on his path. Guru asked him to chant mantras and one day the devotee became the closest devotee to his guru. I have been asking people in Art of Living how to get close to you? They say I already am in one sense. I want to be your closest devotee like Dronacharya was to Adi Shankara. **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* Yes, yes, yes, you are close. Keep working, do something to spread the knowledge yes! Bring this joy to more peoples’ lives in whatever manner, but keep working.

*Q: Dear Guruji, if god is present equally in everyone then why is that people flock around you? Can we all see you in everyone and serve

each other just like we serve you in your form?**Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* Yes you should do that, that’s what I’ve been telling.

*Q: Beloved Master, as a young woman I was very focused on my education and my career I wanted to be independent and enjoy the benefits of the women’s liberation movement. So when I became pregnant I decided to get an abortion. Now I feel differently and think about the soul and what I

did. Can you tell me what effect did this have on the soul of the baby and can you please give some advice to the young and lovely women in the audience who might have to confront a similar situation? **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* Drop the past and move ahead, okay. The world is revolving, life is revolving. It’s all changing colors, okay. It goes back and forth, back and forth with all the changing colors so be with the flow and move ahead. Don’t sit back and think back all the time and regret, move on.

*Q: I am hoping to have children one day. Can you provide prenatal advice to expecting and wanting to be expecting mothers? What should we follow in terms of our spiritual routine, our food, and lifestyle? **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* Just don’t see horror movies, the crime movies. Don’t see them; especially pregnant women should keep their mind relaxed and happier, more in state of contentment rather than getting stressed and having the shocks of their life watching horror movies. What is it, HBO? Horror movies, stay away from that.

*Q: Dear Guruji, is daily yoga enough exercise to keep the body and mind healthy?**Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* I think so. It is okay you can do some treadmill, some other hard exercise also. I am for exercise; I used to do quite a bit now I don’t do as much.

*Q: Gurudev, at work I am told I am not as aggressive as my other colleagues. You ask us to relax. Sometimes when I relax my mind in the midst of action, I am not perceived to be as sharp or smart as others at work. What to do?**Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* Sometimes sure you show some aggressiveness, you can act. See if you’re playing a part in a movie or in a theatre you can’t say I can’t do this, I can’t do that. If the act demands you to be a villain you have to act like a villain but not be a villain. Do you see the difference? You don’t have to think, okay everything will happen. No, not that way, instead you should think, ‘okay let’s do it’. Go with the spirit of enthusiasm, with the spirit to do something. Never talk philosophy in the workplace if they don’t understand that. You know that everything is changing and everything will get done. But if someone says fix the electricity and you say, ‘oh don’t worry things will happen in their own time, anyway I am not the doer. Just have trust god is taking care of everything,’, then that is no good. There is no water in the tank, ‘water will come’. The bulb is fused, ‘oh the fuse is gone it will come, so what!’ Don’t talk like that. The secret of non doer-ship should be kept within you but don’t talk to others about it. When you’re in action, put your 100% and act but don’t speak like that especially with people who don’t understand. Even with satsangis, you will irritate them. Even with people on the spiritual path, if you speak like that they get irritated, isn’t it? Just imagine, you need ten volunteers in

the kitchen, ‘oh you know someone will do it, anyway you are not the doer so why bother’, just imagine someone with that attitude, what would you feel? ‘Come on get to work’, right? So, even within the path this attitude will irritate people. Now just imagine those who know nothing about non doer-ship, those who know nothing about meditation, those who know nothing about hallow and empty, what will happen to them? They will think okay he is a little cuckoo, right! So be very normal and do your work. Also keep smiling and dancing. One gentleman went to a funeral program or ceremony of his close relative. He said, ‘Guruji’, and he started dancing singing, ‘Radhe Govind’ ‘Guruji said everything is impermanent, so people die and they go and it’s all normal. We should

just celebrate!’ And he started dancing. Because he is a man of little height, people could not say anything to him or shut him down. But they got thoroughly irritated they said, ‘Guruji, what is this guy doing? He’s quoting you. He said keep smiling all the time’. I said keep smiling, I didn’t mean you go and give a big smile when somebody’s funeral ceremony is happening. Others are crying and he’s smiling, ‘oh good, good, good, everything happens for good, everything happens for purpose.’ Don’t you think this is too much? How many of you think this is too much? This is something called discrimination, wisdom, you should use that. Yes it’s obvious, somebody very elderly passed away, that’s okay. But you should be sensible, sensitive to others’ feelings, others demands, others needs, yes. In the same way, your office thinks you need to be aggressive you show them, be aggressive if you can. If it cannot happen at all, you give 100% then you just tell them it is just not in my nature. If someone tells me to use foul language and scold at

somebody I will tell them it is impossible for me, I can’t. All these 56 years I have not uttered a single foul word, never! I never made any effort, it just never came. It never has come even in the worst moment. The worst thing I have said is, ‘you stupid’, that’s all that has come out of me. I can count on my fingers, six to seven times or eight times I might have said that word. Once one of my teachers was misusing the trust people had kept on him and he tried to exploit them financially and this and that and I said, ‘you stupid, you better don’t do this, you are not going to teach, you’re not representing me’. So someone said you should use language and you should be strict with these people and I said I can’t. So similarly if they say you have to be too aggressive then you simply say I can’t, it’s not in my nature. That’s it!

*Q: As a biologist I believe that both our genes and the environment affect who we are for generations. What’s the connection between DNA, spirituality, our practices and enlightenment? **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* Yes, the connection between matter and spirit is very strong, very dear, and definitely very deep. You know one Dr. Fari, he’s doing research on DNA. Dr. Fari in Oslo University is doing research on the affect of Sudarshan Kriya on DNA and he found some very startling results. One of them that he says is there are 300 chromosomes in the body which cause cancer, which cause some serious illnesses. And pranayama and Sudarshan Kriya have found to suppress these chromosomes. They get suppressed by them, they don’t become active. That’s one the reasons why remission doesn’t happen in many people who got it. That’s what he was all saying. More details, Ronnie Newman.

*Q: Dear Guruji, all my desires are dropping one by one without any effort. But one desire that I don’t want to drop is to keep progressing on the path of spirituality, do lots of seva and be with you always. Is it okay to hang on to this one desire? **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* Yes, yes, yes! Good to hang on to one desire. Hang on to one desire you need in life. I hang on to the desire, let the whole world be smiling, I want everybody to be happy. More and more

people rejoicing the spiritual path, becoming compassionate, non-violent, vegetarian, and caring for nature. These are so many such good desires which are there. Catch one of them and keep it. You need one desire in life to move on. You don’t need to drop everything. But you need to drop everything at the time of meditation. When you come to action you hold onto one desire. It’s like when you go out you put on the show but when you go to bed you don’t go to bed with your shoes on. Does anybody do that here? Or when you go for a shower you remove your shoes. Nobody takes a shower with their shoes on. So when you meditate, when you are in the course, when you’re doing practices that time drop the desires. But later on when you are working in the world, pick and hold on to one desire of welfare, or one world family, beautiful planet, the coming generation, anyone, okay! Jai Gurudev!

*Q: Guruji, can you give some advice for pregnant women.**Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* Keep yourself happy and don’t see horror movies. Watch pleasant things and keep your mind pleasant, don’t stress out. Relax more.

*Q: Guruji, how to connect to the source?**Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* Don’t see the source as something far away and try to connect to the source. Just relax! Whenever you relax you are the Source. In the spiritual plane only relaxation, doing nothing connects you to the Source. Mind and body works on completely different laws. Body works on effort. To build muscles you will need to do effort. But to improve your memory the more effort you put, you will drain your memory power. For memory power what do you have to do? Relax more, rest more.So the mind works on relaxation and effortlessness and the body works on effort. And this is the beauty, this is the combination.Mind is infinite, body is finite and life is a combination of finite and infinite.

*Q: Guruji, how to balance between wisdom and emotion? Often my emotions dominate my wisdom and I get into depression.**Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* When you feel you are getting into depression it is wisdom that takes you out of it. It is emotion that sinks you into depression and it is wisdom which takes you out of the depression. At least you had this intention to ask the question. Wanting to know the answer itself shows there is some wisdom there. Often depressed people don’t talk at all. They don’t answer, they don’t ask questions and they don’t want to do anything. But this is good, you have this much wisdom that you wanted to ask this question. You wanted to get out of depression. You are already out of it, okay! Do Sudarshan Kriya and some more advance courses and you will easily come out.

*Q: Jai Gurudev. I have just done the part 1 course for the first time and since the past few days I have been getting back pain. What

should I do?**Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* You talk to the teachers and doctors here they will tell you what to do. Are you sleeping on a hard surface? (Answer –

yes I do sleep on a hard surface but since I have come here I am sleeping on a bed) Yes, that is it. You use a soft bed you will get back ache. I have seen many times they keep such thick pillows in hotels and other places. You put your head on the pillow, the next day your shoulders and neck aches. Most of the people have this experience that is why I started carrying my pillow. A very soft pillow is no good for your head. And once our cranial gets disturbed, the spine gets disturbed. That is why it is there the cranial sacral treatment. The cranium and the sacrum, the whole thing needs to be taken care. You have to sleep on a hard surface, have the right thickness of pillow which will suit you and make you feel comfortable. A hard pillow, not the foam ones, those soft pillows are the worst. It should be not too hard like a rock and not too soft like foam but somewhere in-between, like cotton pillows. The old system is the best! Or there is this new pillow that has come and that’s also good. Yes, but we don’t want to do any more pillow marketing here. Take care of your sleeping postures and in the morning do some Yoga asanas, that would help and shavasana will help.

*Q: Is atma and jeevatma the same and where is the atma?**Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* Yes it is the same. Where are you in the body? Everywhere! And that’s how the atma is. Atma is like space.

*Q: Guruji, you always say accept the people and situations the way they are but if my mind cannot accept the situation then what do I do?**Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* If you cannot accept then don’t accept, let it be.

*Q: But then Guruji I feel very sad and get depressed. If you could show be the right way.**Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* This is the right way. If you feel sad then what to do, just accept it. Do what you find easy to do; don’t do what you find very difficult. If it is hard to accept the situations then don’t accept. If not accepting the situation is easier, then do that. Whatever is easy for you to do, you do that and be happy, okay!

*Q: How should we increase our intuitive powers for being successful?**Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* Meditation, knowledge and going inward. The inner silence helps to improve intuition.

*Q: Guruji, when will my parents and family start following you? The more I talk of you, the more they think they don’t need spirituality in their life. I want my parents to also know you and become part of the Art of Living.**Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* Don’t overdo anything. First you talk to the friends of your parents, your uncles and aunts or the close friends of your parents. They may listen to you more than your own parents. This is simple human psychology. Sometimes a man doesn’t want to listen to what the wife wants to say. But if it comes from some other friend of his, they immediately do it. But if wife says, they say, ‘no’. They think if I do everything that wife says I will be called henpecked. That’s the psychology in the mind. Similarly parents don’t want to listen to the children; they may listen to their friends better.

*Q: Jai Gurudev. It is said only when your time comes do you meet your Guru. And it is said that the Guru chooses the disciple and not the other way around. Can you talk about this? **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* Never mind whomsoever has chosen, once they are there it is okay, right. It can be this way or it can be that way, never mind.

*Q: Jai Gurudev Guruji, since I have come to the Art of Living there is one question that is troubling my mind, ‘who am I’? **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* This is a very good thing. You are fortunate that this question is troubling you. Now have a little patience. Keep asking yourself, ‘who am I’ and do seva.

*Q: Why is India called as Karmabhumi?**Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* Karmabhumi means where you are here to do action. You come here to get rid of all your karmas. And how do you get rid of the karmas? Through knowledge. Every part of the world has some specialty. You go to a Scandinavian country and that is known for skiing. You can’t ski in Bangalore. Bangalore is known for Chow Chow, you know the bulb type vegetable which they cook here. It is so delicious; you don’t get it anywhere else in the world. So nature has put some specialty everywhere. India has been a spiritual land for a long, long, long time, from millenniums. Spiritual knowledge has gone to the world from India. Spiritual knowledge always relieves you from karma and brings freedom and so it is called Karmabhumi. But if there is no spiritual knowledge it will no longer be a Karmabhumi. You know Switzerland is known for watches and chocolates. But if other countries are making better chocolates and better watches, Swiss will lose its charm for chocolates and watches. Similarly Canada is known for maple syrup. You can’t get maple syrup anywhere else in the world. Do you know maple syrup? Many of you have not even heard about it, because we have never heard about maple syrup in this country. Even if you go to Kashmir where there are maple trees, but nobody knows about maple syrup. So

every part of the world has some specialty and India has been endowed with this special gift of spiritual knowledge. That’s why Jesus came here and stayed for twelve years in Mylapore area and learned spirituality. And then went back to teach people. And Muhammad said, ‘I get cool breeze from the east’, from India. So from ages spirituality has found its roots in this country but it fast vanishing. We need to water it and keep it up, okay!

*Q: Guruji, why is God neither created nor destroyed.**Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* God is neither created nor destroyed because God is not a linear function. Anything linear has a beginning and an end but a sphere does not have a beginning or an end. You got it? Tell me which is the beginning point of a tennis ball? Is it easy to know where does the tennis ball begin? You answer this then I will answer your question. Simple thing I am asking you, show me the beginning point of a tennis

ball or a cricket ball.

*Q: Guruji, I love you. What happened or what will happen in Europe after the big celebration in Berlin in July?**Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* People became more aware of Art of Living, isn’t it? We got a very good coverage in the press. More people are doing the course and a change in the subtle has happened. There is more positivity is what I feel.

*Q: Dear Guruji, I love you and I feel so much of love only thinking of your presence. And I feel complete and I don’t feel the need to come

and talk to you. But my stupid and poor mind wants your attention when you are around and then gets trapped in stupid things, please guide.**Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* Never mind! And yes come and talk to me. I know many questions are anyway stupid but never mind, just come and talk to me anything. See when our connection is much deeper, then just a little bit of talking doesn’t hurt at all. I don’t base my judgment on what you

say, what you talk, not at all. You know in all these 56 years I have never said any bad thing about anybody, never once; have I? Anybody who knows me will know, no never do that. It is not that I did a great thing, it is in my nature, I can’t. If at all I something negativity about somebody to somebody, if I feel they are getting entangled or it is not going to be good for them, then I say, ‘you know, he is not so focused’, that’s all I would say. ‘And this person is not suitable and he is not doing well and he is telling too many lies’, if he is telling lies only, otherwise I won’t say that. But I have not done any special thing to have this; this is just there from the beginning, nature. What I am saying is you don’t judge yourself too much, just be natural. If you just feel like saying hello or hi, just come and talk. And you if feel it is not needed then no need, okay. And don’t just keep these things, ‘oh, Guruji looked at that person and patted him on his back, he hugged that person, but he didn’t look at me’, these are all immaterial. Whether I look at you and say hi or no, we are all connected from a very deep level. How many of you feel that way? See, so many!

*Q: Can you help me find the balance?**Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* You are balanced, take it from now, I am telling you are balanced and move with that. If you think you don’t have the

balance, then you struggle more, got it? Look back and see how much you have grown, there is so much balance that has come in your life, yes. Very good! Okay now, people the way they are we simply need to accept them. Some are incorrigible, some people you cannot correct them. Some come and some go and I give them a long rope; I give them enough chances to reform. If they don’t then it is their problem and why should we get

upset over it; are you getting what I am saying? Yes, and so from your side feel that inner freedom but don’t shut your door to anybody, keep

interactions, what do you say?!

*Q: Yesterday you said whatever you do or don’t do the world will be the same. So actually I was wondering by doing what we are doing here how are we making it a better world if the world will be the same all the time.**Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* Yes, this is the balance. When you get too concerned, ‘oh I have to improve the world; that is not ok, this is not ok, that is not ok’, and then what is happening? Your mind gets too much caught up in that and you are losing your energy, your strength, your balance, everything. Then you are not going to make the world a better place. At that time you should remember, okay I will make seven million people good in the world now, but then what? After a hundred years there will be a different seven million people. You can’t correct them, you won’t be here. So when you are getting tired then you should know, well the Divine is taking care; I am not going to impact a change. Then you

are able to be calm and strong. So there are two attitudes, one is pravritti action, when you find this is not ok, this is not ok and that is not okay and then you act. And then nivritti action when you say everything is okay, everything takes its time, everything has its one role. Then it is Nivritti, then you retire and when you retire, when you get into your being you get energy. Then you are able to meditate, you

are able to tap into your source by doing nothing. So the act of doing nothing is as important as the act of doing something out there. So these two attitudes you need to balance, everything okay and nothing is okay. Is it clear?! When you are in this world you have to do something, and you are given a job to improve this world that you have to do. But don’t think you are the person who is going to bring the perfection and keep it forever, that is what I am saying. You cannot keep the perfection. You cannot keep this hall clear forever, but you have a duty to clean this now, correct! So similarly we need to improve our world, definitely. It is our sacred job, but at the same time, suppose you are not there, somebody else will improve it. So don’t feel the burden on your head, ‘oh I have to improve it’, but at the same time be responsible, ‘yes I need to improve it’. Do you get the balance? Is it clear now? You are assigned a job to improve this world, definitely. At the same time, whoever has assigned they know if you cannot do it, they will assign somebody else. That supreme power will know. See, suppose you are a head of a team, you give the job to somebody and that somebody does half job and then they are so tired that they become sick, and then what do you do? You say, ‘no, you go rest I will send someone else to do the job’. But as long as they did the job they had been very committed to it. In the same way you have been assigned a job, you have to do it. At the same time don’t feel that mental pressure because the boss is

taking care of it, yes! As long as you know there is a boss and you are connected with the boss you feel you can tell that I can do this much and I cannot do this much. Not like the modern day bosses who don’t care for people working under them. What I am saying is the Divinity, the nature itself is your boss, the Divine is the boss and that knows, okay you can do this much, then do this much, otherwise rest. There is compassion, think of a compassionate boss who says, ‘okay if it is difficult, never mind, don’t worry’, okay. Good!

*Q: Dear Guruji, where do thoughts originate from? What is the source of thought? **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* You first look within you and see from where they are coming, and sit and ponder.The moment you look, I don’t want to say what is going to happen. There are some things which you need to experience yourself. I can give you an answer but that will become another thought, another concept. You have to find this answer on your own, you have to do it.You may not get the answer right away in one sitting. You will have to look at it again and again.

*Q: Dear Guruji, I am not able to surrender. I am not happy and I am not peaceful. Due to some bad events that occurred in my life, I have become restless and I am not able to find a solution for this. **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* So you think I can give you a solution?Answer: Yes!That’s good enough then relax.That is what surrender is. Surrender means a confidence. You go to a doctor and you are confident the doctor is going to give me the right medicine.

You have come here and you are confident that Guruji is going to give me the right solution. Then you relax. That is all surrender means.

*Q: Guruji, how do I control my thoughts? **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* You don’t control your thought, you drop them

and relax! When we try to control the thoughts that is when it becomes a problem.

*Q: Dear Guruji, I just did the basic course which was wonderful. But as I am growing older my happiness is eroding and some unknown fear is

coming. What do I do? **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* That is the purpose of sadhana and satsang. It will take away the fear from you and give you inner peace, confidence,

joy and happiness back again.See the joy and happiness in everybody here.

*Q: Dear Guruji, what is difference between laziness and relaxation? **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* When there is something important to do and you don’t do it that is laziness. Relaxation is when you have done your work and you are at ease.

*Q: Dear Guruji, two years back I asked for blessings. You blessed me and things changed. I got so busy with my job that my wish to work for the Art of Living is not being fulfilled. **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* When the tree is full of fruits and you start enjoying the fruits, you forget to water the roots. It is good you remembered, so now water the roots every day. Be engaged in some seva project.

*Q: Dear Guruji, This is the first time I am doing the course. After Sudarshan Kriya my tears kept flowing and my mind became silent. I went for a walk to understand what was happening in my mind. Can you tell me? **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* When your mind becomes silent it gains energy, it gains intuitive capacity. So this is a very important thing you have learnt. A new dimension added to your life.

*Q: Guruji, I want to know the purpose of life. Why am I here? **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* You are very lucky that you have got this intense desire to know who you are and what you want to do. Keep this desire burning and continue to do your practices and listen to more knowledge. Do the advanced course; you will understand a lot more about yourself.

*Q: I am not a person who cannot read books and assimilate the knowledge. I am able to learn only through experience. When I face a problem then I understand what is happening. **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* Don’t make concepts. Keep an open mind because you don’t know much about your consciousness. You know very little about your mind. What we know of our mind is only one tenth of its whole. Our mind is so huge; our consciousness is so vast that whatever we know is only the tip of the iceberg. If we realize this then there is scope for knowing more. If you think you know everything about your mind then the door is closed, no more knowledge.

*Q: Jai Guru Dev, if we are all nothing but waves which go back to the ocean then what is the significance of energies like Yamaraja and

Chitragupta in time and space? **Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:* This is a very deep understanding about Chitragupta.Our consciousness has records of all that is happening, what we call akashic records.Now, in this place, there are one thousand television channels right here. If you take a very powerful television channel and put a booster you can get all the channels of the world right now in this place.That means the empty space which we think is empty is not empty. It has records of all that is going on, of all that has happened in the past and all that will happen in the future, now in this moment.It is a very fascinating aspect of consciousness.Read Yoga Vasistha and you will understand the three types of aakasha (space); Bhoot Aakasha, Chidakasha and Chittakasha.