You having desires is not the problem, but the problem is when desires have you!Q: Dearest Guruji, what if someone offers me some other technique for self reali zation? Should I accept or reject? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Listen, there are so many people trying to give so many te chniques and if you take all of them, you will be in confusion, it will be a mes s. Its better that you stick to one set of practices and go deep into that. If y ou don t get any change or benefit at all from this technique, even after practici ng for a good amount of time, then I would myself tell you that this doesn t suit you and go to that. If you have got some benefit from this, I would tell you to stick to it and go deeper into it. That is very necessary. Even if you get ten percent benefit in any one path, you should continue for some time. It s not the technique that is important, it is yo ur attention, your dedication and your eagerness to grow that is good enough. Co llecting techniques will not help you, yeah! To drop everything and relax will h elp. Your growth happens not by doing too many things but learning to undo or no t do anything. Many people will ask you to do this or that, I would say RELAX. A nd you all know the three golden rules to Meditation. For the next few minutes I want nothing, I do nothing and I am nothing. This is the highest technique and any technique should lead you to this level of being nothing, removing all the labels we put on ourselves of the roles we play . If it doesn t, then it s no good a technique and it s only a very mediocre, some pre liminary beginning technique, may be just to bring some focus. If you understand this philosophy, I want nothing, I do nothing, I am nothing rest is all done! Yea h, so simple and yet very profound very profound! Q: Dearest Guruji when would you give advice to drop or to change a commitment? Thank you so much. Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: When you feel you can never achieve the commitment or when you feel the commitment is stifling you. When you feel the commitment you have undertaken was done in great ignorance and you are getting nowhere then you move out of that commitment, okay! Q: How to make teenagers do the course? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: This you should think, how to make teenagers do the course . You think and come up with some ideas. You allure them by skillfully telling t hem the benefits of the course. You can tell them, Come, we will take you for a h oliday somewhere . Q: How can I get rid of my sense of guilt? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: When you feel guilty, just chant Om Namah Shivaya . Do some B hastrika, some Pranayama, Kriya. Doing Om Namah Shivaya chanting one hundred and e ight times also helps a lot. You chant one hundred and eight times, and then rel ax and meditate. See, new energy has come in you and you have become a new perso n. That person who did a mistake is gone, has packed off his suitcase and gone. Now inside you is a new person. Start believing in the innocence of the present moment. In the present moment, the YOU in you, the energy in you is innocent, okay ! Q: How do I give more love to myself? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: You want to give more love to yourself, IMPOSSIBLE. If an ocean says how can I give more water to myself, what can be said? If sugarcane s ays how can I give more sweetness to myself, what would you say? It is like sun saying how can it give more light to itself? It is impossible for you to give mo re love to yourself. In fact you love yourself too much, and that is the problem, you re only thinking about yourself. Start thinking about everybody else, and give love to others. Yo u are love my dear, just relax and reduce your wants. Your wants and your desires are eating you up; you simply relax. You should have wants. There is no problem if you have your desires, but don t let the desires have you. I don t mind you having desires at the initial stages. Late r you find, before the desire arises in you, it gets fulfilled. Q: Can spirituality save the world? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: What is destroying this world? It s the greed, jealousy, hat red, narrow mindedness, selfishness, and all these negative emotions and qualiti es which are destroying the world, right? Because of greed of few people, anger and hatred of few people, lack of awareness, lack of understanding or misunderst anding and narrow mindedness of a few people, the world is getting destroyed. Ho w can these negative emotions be overcome? Is there a way? Yes, SPIRITUALITY. It is only spirituality which can turn hatred into love, anger into awareness and selfishness into compassion. It is only spirituality that can save the mind of t he people, isn t it so?! Q: What s a spiritual leader got to do with politics? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: What is politics? It is caring for people and what does a spiritual leader do? Care for people. Politicians rule over people, spiritual le aders serve and care for the people. Politics and spirituality are two different fields but they should go hand in hand. That s why spiritual leaders were placed the highest in ancient India. Any king or emperor would go to the spiritual lead er and take his advice. Emperors used to run the kingdom on the blessings and ad vice of the spiritual leaders. A spiritual leader should not get into politics b ut should guide the politics. That is necessary. Q: Dear Guruji, when I feel too stressed and disturbed, I don t get myself to do K riya. How to overcome such deeps mourns? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Well, I will give you some advice now. What is the guarant ee you will be able to do it then also? Few weak moments have come in life in th e past; don t welcome them in the future as well. And if you cannot get across som e weak moments, know that it has come in the past also and it has not helped you in any way. So we should not sit and expect weak moments to come to us first of all. Secondly, even if it comes, we will have the strength to overcome them at that moment. So be spontaneous, okay! Q: Jai Gurudev! How to educate someone about vegetarianism? I have tried educati ng and have been ignored! Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: More and more people are becoming aware of vegetarianism. Here, I heard last week that a major newspaper in Germany carried three full pag es on the benefits of vegetarianism. Vegetarianism has many benefits. It helps y our body s digestion; it helps the environment as well. You know, even if ten perc ent of the people in the world become vegetarians, the green house gas effect pr oblem is gone. We are done with it; we will have no more problems of global warm ing. That s what the scientists say. So we need to promote more and more vegetaria nism. People change a little slowly and we need to have patience, Okay Too much feverishness spoils your efforts! Q: Sometimes I think I live in a world surrounded by formalities and exchanging superficial words. But the question is I feel that there is more to it, life can not be just being nice and living in this cordial way but there is more because I worry that when I die, I wouldn t even remember where to start again? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Now I understand there is a longing, there is emptiness, a nd there is a craving for something higher. Right! And that gives that pain. So, that pain to attain something very fast is in a way good, but what is needed al ong with this is a little patience. Q: Are you my Guru? But they said Gurus find their devotees! I respect and love. the first person we meet is our Guru. because the moment we die. what will happen to me? He was in the same pain. it should come from within. this child is good in music. you know that this train will r each. Once you are here in the knowledge. when you are on this path. you would not even come here. Not that someone comes to you and says I am your teac her. You won t be dropped somewhe re in the middle. Why? Because otherwise you have the anguish. in this kn owledge. you don t ask after every minute if you are going to Karlsruhe.Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: : That you have to decide! Yes. The three people we meet and then later on we meet everybody else. this child will be good for this. Gurus find their devotees. no. I may not succeed in these spiritual practices. Arjuna also had this doubt in the Bhagvad Gita. definitely.this child is good in engineering. Relax and you will always find your life will move in the right direction. Your heart tells you that this is genuine. second person we meet is our mother an d then the person whom we loved most. I will be neither enjoying anything here nor will I get the other world. then that s it! Understand what I am saying?! Q: I feel afraid at times whether I will be enlightened. when children would go to the Gurukul. So there will be that assurance. You move on and from your feeling you decide. You will only go up in life here and here after. th is is right. So relax. That means you are doing the right thing. oh this is my te acher. so teacher used to pick up. what will happen to my life. That is why it is said you need a teacher on the spiritual path. You will never go down in life. you come and you do Veda. he will guide me. for this. okay my Guru is there. our teacher. otherwise. I guarantee you this. a little bit of love. If so happens then don t believe that. he ll take me on the right path then you are relaxed . What should I do? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Once you are on the train. Suppose you are sitting in a car and this car is being driven to Karlsruhe . you are moving ahead. Wh en you have done good things in your life. for th is Then the teachers would say. and know that you are not alone! Q: What to do with the doubts that come in the mind? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: You know. so don t worry. a little bit of dharma. but your he art says. I ll go back into the same stuff in my world. no! You relax! Y ou know the driver is going to take you to Karlsruhe. That much of faith that comes from within you is there in you. go there . a little bit of k nowledge. and that is when you acce pt someone as your teacher. but on ce you have that feeling when you have the trust. not from the ot her side. fear. and you need a personal feeling. you relax. The doubt comes because something is r ight. You know when was this sai d? In ancient days. this is good. you study music . Otherwise your heart would block you. So in the initial stages. Okay. you will never be miserable. The very fact that you have come here indicates that there is faith. I may not go any where. My dear you will never go down. I ll get confused. life after this also. little bit of it is good enough to take you away from fear. I am your Guru . That was when parents would bring their children to the Gurukul and then the Guru would pick up which student woul d study what. connectedness from your side. you will be fine. And there is that p . This is the place for me and I have to get here . your heart will te ll you. once you are on the path. if not then the doubt will not come at all. Not j ust here. something inside says yes this is good. you study Ayurveda . So once you accept someone as your Guru or teacher th en this anguish disappears to a great extent. okay! Nobody can impose that. the doubt is always about something positive. this is usually said. the teacher would com e and test the aptitude of all the children . you need a Guru . that typ e of doubt comes. Krishna what do I do then? Krishna says Nahi Kalyana Krit Kaschit Durgati m Taata Gachchati . So once you are here. He says svalpa mapyasya dharmasya trayate . and you will only go up. you will only progress forward and forward. uncertainty. mind. Realizing this. at the most for a couple of days. makes you run around and not go dee p enough. It isw ithin each and everyone. quickly. they just come for a few hou rs. See that you don t becomecynica l and frustrated. is most beautiful. but it will beyour own practical experience. and youcan get to that experience. yea h! Q: Can you please talk about greed? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: See. Get back to beauty and power that is within When we become like children. okay! Skepticism is perfectly alright. oh I want to experience this and that. One i s when we want to accumulate so many things in life and the second greed is for experiences.. it is a beautiful step-by-step jour ney. The Yes!+ course for youth brings about am azingtransformation. don t run in side the compartment with your luggage up and down. So it has to be put again and similarly. Appearance is beautiful. I have spokenextensively about love in the NaradaBhakti Sutras. but not cynicism. little at a time . So you have to hurry to get to the railway station but once you got into the c ompartment.eace that dawn in your heart and mind. What is Bhakti (devotion)? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: : Listen to Bhakti Sutras talk. and about mindfulnessin the Patanjali Yogasutras. How is this way unique and different? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: It is very simple and all you need to do is toattend to th e seven levels of our existe. but if anger. Not only what you read in books. you want to qu ickly attain the highest. is no good! Do you understand what I am saying? So a little bit greed for know ledge is okay. then I would say relax.How can we get back to that oneness? There are so many ways. A little bit of greed to do seva is okay but too much greed to do seva . Even if you stumble a little bit here and there. no more hurrying! Relax! Once you have boarded the train. there is greed inside us that we don t recognize. do you see what I am saying? What happens yesterday while cooking rice? What happened when you were in too mu ch hurry? Rice remained uncooked. Q: What advice would you give to a skepticalnon-believer? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: A very good beginning point. doubts may come. but then they just vanish. we sh ould act dynamically. Skepticism is perfectly alright. you will reach at the right time. but not too much! That s a little. that propels you but if it is too much then you know y ou are spoiling it. relax. jealousl ..nce body. and have createdseparations around us. From the Part 1course to the Part 2 courses. This greed is okay to a little extent. ego and then the Self. relax. Don t worry. One can be skeptical to begin one s journey and I wouldvery much appr eciate and welcome that. you re not going to reach any earlier.memory. and then they disappear.It is in the inner quality. you want to learn. then we realize that we have greater power. intellect. Thatdrains your energy. little bit but if it becomes too much then what happens. We have forgotten our human behavior of being awakened. Beauty is not in clo thes. but when you want to know more. Because you would have gone throughskepticism. so many spiritual experience s. it makes you so unstable. about awareness and consciousness in the Ashtavakra Geeta. in the sense you are in too much of a hurry. but not cynicism Q: We have individualized ourselves too much. I have spoken in that. the fait h will be strongly built. So there is that assurance that you are not alone. See how soon the tears are turning into a smile! Q: Guruji. breath. This is because we h ave exploited the planet. The worldwill continu e. Spiritual experience is having one foot in the air and the other firm. I s God sitting in heaven giving a little finger? No. A solid material and spiritual foundation makesa dance. I am assuring you that it is only in the movie. The weather! Russianever had such hot tempe . dry vegetables etc. That is why all this yoga. We have put so many dynamites totake minerals. In th e last 30 years of The Art ofLiving. The Master replied Truth. Talking about this Russian tour. and hen ce earthquakes have become dominant. so manywars and t errorism are coming into picture. Wecommunicate much more t hrough our presence than the words.And that is what we spread. it is only in thepainting. The World HealthOrganization says that 30 percent of Europe is suffering from depression! Letus all take commitmen t that we will not let it happen.Nice people here. and all the beauty islost. We find ourselves in trouble when we lose this balance. I feel absolutely at home.That balance is power. one finds every child beautiful. There is a bright futurefor the world. Tell me whodoesn t want all this? It is possible. youcan t even smile fr om your heart. It is that field and energy present inthe entire c reation. I have said all thatI want to say.. A disciple once asked what God is. that is what The Art of Living is all about -Making life a celebration. Q: What do you say on the rumors of destruction of the world in the year 2012? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: I want to tell you a story. violence-free society. We want to see a happyworld. Oh myGod! Th en also I told that there would be no disaster and everything would beas usual. But we see it isdisappearing in the younger generation. they described God as beauty. One solution is that everyone getsback to spir ituality. How to get back to that. One leg in the air and one firmon the ground makes the danc e. Get back to beauty and power that is within. transformation will be there from greedy materialism tohumanism. confusion-free mind and sorrow-free soul. Petersburg? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: It is in your hands. anger. we have seen that everybody needs love in e very corner of this planet. Now again. I want every tear to be turned into a smile. there was a rumor that everything will shut down in 2000.. G od is truth. when I was in NorthAm erica. Q: What is the future of St. Don t think of any disaster. hate and tension. South. pranayama and kriya are s o important to relieve this stress. When can you appreciate beauty? And what doesn t allow youto appreciate? When mind is bombarded with worry. beauty and love. weobserve the whole body can balance on the toes. You canonly appreciate when you are in the present moment. then it reflects in the personality. In the ballet.y orgreed finds a place. The ancient spirituality always united people of all cultures and religions. Can we maintain those powerful skills and yet retain that beauty we wereborn with? I would say yes. That isGod. to the Nort h. West or East.disease-free body. beauty and love. and we need tosee that our younger g eneration is free from stress and depression. Thoughyou are sitting in a ballet.Don t you think this is what we need today? In the name of religion. but you can t appreciate if you are angry. Chi ldren will be more aware of spirituality. There is more stress accumulating in youth. we learn skills and gain abilitiesbut we somewhere m iss maintaining the inner beauty. As we become adults. I w ant this sweetness to be maintained. dre am about a stress-free. Sri Sri in Saint Petesburg! Q: What is the visualization of God in ancient India? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: In ancient India. beauty that we are born with? Goanywhere.Milk powder. In 1999. that spark of love in ourlife. People soldhome s and stored food for six months . Childrenradiate joy and love. In fact. A disaster is already happening. the re is no point in teaching the multiplication table.Ok? Then do breathing technique. fire. Objectiveanalysis is science. So we will medi tate now for few minutes. and when he is focused on the development of thecountry and its people. Like that when you arehappy and joyful. Planttrees and do all that is needed to reduce human greed. Spiritual ity is knowing who am I. Do you see thepracticality now? Q: How are science and spirituality related? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Science and spirituality were never in conflict. Q:I am running after a dream since long. air and ether . But that dream or idea may not match the reality that is right now. I don t find anyone a stranger. So once you understandthefive elements then y ou understand intellect. Before you try toundersta nd the nature of your spirit. How to get that fulfilled? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Be practical in taking care of your daily needs and see wh atthe reality is at that point. All is the nature ofthe spirit. Give somet ime to yourself everyday and you will be more energetic and beautiful. this virtueis already t here in everyone. it i s quite natural.Then it is the time to recharge again. in fact t heyare very complimentary.So underst and the present reality and match it with your dream. but it is just hidden somewhere deep inside. the subject analysis. First you should know the present state of the child s mind. Q: You travel so much Ifeel at home with everyone and everywhere. you should understand the five elementsof creation Earth. See. My wish is to see moreand more pe ople being able to think in this manner. you seem to collect all that dust and you r energy seems to go down.ratures. How canwe con tribute? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: That is why I keep traveling. and I am here for you . and they go together. First you should have the conviction that this is good for them.suppose you are teaching mathematics to a student. This is whateverybody has to do. little bit of yoga and meditation. You have a dream and you want to achievesomethin g. sometime when being so busy and engaged in so manyactivities. they will allunder stand. Imagine how . I have been bestowed with the goodfortune of feeling this way right from the beginning.society wouldbe if each member of the society thinks the same way! This feeling. In India. I do no t want anything. What do you think? Q: How do I feel more energetic repeating the same old routine everyday? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: First look into the mirror and give a big smile to yoursel f. water. ego and self. Q: People around the world need these stress relieving techniques.and they will get it. When you eat. So we have to care for the planet Earth.. we have to keep practici ng. Inner joy and true happiness alone can stop the feverishness in society that aris es through desires The most fortunate event that can take place in our lives iswhen we feel. Scientists were always encouraged. it is always said. Ioften say that I am a child who refuses to grow up. When the leader of a country feels in this manner. Q: How to make someone dear to you understand that something is useful for thema nd they must go for it? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Keep pursuing gently and have patience.your stomach becomes empty again. So. How to get a thought or a desire manifested is verysimple. We have to re new our energy time to time. If the child can t count two plus two isfour. First in tention and keep attention on it and then manifestation willfollow. only thenwill the country pro gress.have to sit in groups and do some pranayamaand some meditation.. i . computer or exercising with some effort. E verything will dissolve. thenwe will continue to see the c urrent world situation. Consider your life as sacred! Jeevanajeeva jagat nashwaraNothing stays forever.30 years have passed l. sacred. Love. True relaxation gives you happiness.. kindleshuman values in you. consider your life as sadhana.Everything is changing your body. Time follows some rule. which is not changing. Butthese are limited benefits as compared to the ones that you can have with truerelaxation. Behappy. then we don t give ourselves and our abilities achance to blosso m. Satogun dawns with genuine relaxationand knowledge. Relaxation does not mean inert rest or being lethargic. then your needs are fulfilledeven before time. when laziness in youdisappears. we keep on oscillatingbetween rajogun and tamogu n. Time is running so fast. Consider your life as sadhana. You cannot gain love with effort.. reminding yourself of this again and again. Your body is strengthened. But if we focus o nly on our needs. It is a matter of joy that The Art ofLiving is bringing together the various communities of the world. Let us settlethere.ike a moment*. yousuppress them saying. The summ ary of the whole AshtavakraGeeta is to be able to joyfully relax while being awa ke satvik relaxation. When you are totally relaxed. I do not want anything and I am here for you . That relaxation istrue relaxation. Make use of this time in the best manner. So every day we move forward with thisbelief that I amyours . Whyto do yogasanas in th e morning?Relaxation can only happen after putting some effort. Inner joy and true happiness alone can stop the feverishnessin society that aris es through desires. Our life as it is. Lord Shiva is called Mahakaal.something undesirable. this world willbecome heaven. and you g ain skillfulness to some extent. sharpens your intellect. Lord Shiva is the field ofenergy that dissolves in it the effect of time. This is a feeling that arisesfrom a state of contentment or ful fillment. your intellect. When you putefforts. I do n ot want anything . In that relaxation all the attachments and bondages lose theirgrip. If everyone only thinks of taking something from someone. If you feel thereis something which is not changing. deeprelaxation. Good as well as bad times go a way. When you payattention and focus on the highest knowled ge. This kind of inner joy and happinesscan only be achieved thr ough knowledge. you get some benefit s. All of this comesfrom the knowledge. and itfeels very good to see it happening. and fulfillment comes from spiritual knowledge. What do you want to know? Eve rything is destructible here. and makes y ou creative andskillful. you get skilled in sitar. So. y ou experience truebliss. and The Art of Living is also based on thesame principle of LOVE. is Sadhana. If everyone starts to think like this. This is bondage. The core ofevery religion and culture is love. Forexample. This does not mean that when you have some needs. your mind isstrengthened to some extent. More and more people around theworld should be able to develop the ability to say this. It hasits own rhythm.acti on. that is your consc iousness. The desire should be to be free from laziness.Maha is grand and kaal is time. and not by neglecting or suppressingyour needs. Sometimes.t is impossible that the needs of the leader are notfulfilled. something desirable happens and at some other t imes. We are developing the world to make it a heaven. True sadhana is relaxing. The cycle of desires and sleep. We must always believe that our needs will be fulfilled. Time continues to teach us that opposite values are complementary Rest your mind & intellect in the Divine energy . fun and celebration are all present in this knowledge. Sadhana happens when allthe efforts are dropped. Ignore the imperfection and keep your mind c alm. I am so happy to see such an enthusiastic youth group coming from this part of the world. and a society which is spiritually uplifted. don t do it in future as well. In the Vaisheshika method. I am Atma. Our mind feels and perceives d ifferently in the morning than itdoes in the evening. I want each on e of you to multiply 100 times. never hate wise people !Patanjali says. Youth are the only hope. be friendly and compassi onate.. If anger arises. even then my parents sometimes don t let me do that. We will keep pushi ng you to get the answer. sometimeshatred envelope s the mind. I want the youth to take r esponsibility for the society. And more so. a society which is free from violence.and enthusiasm. and each one of you is a v ery important member of the family. You do for the Society what Society needs.This is Sankhya Yoga. Time affects the mindand intellect. Awaken the opposite emotion. joy and non-attachment arises naturally. You go to the South Pole. Do something that brings a smile on your face and that of others. will happen. This way of finding out the t ruth is Nyaay.Hating somebody is like drinking poison. This is sadhana. aw aken compassion. In this way. andfinally ignore if needed. Whatever you wish. to work for a happy and celebrative society. we have The Art of Living throughout the world to day.Our scripturesprovide three main philosophies:Nyaay (Logic)VaisheshikaSankhya After that we haveYoga. and leave the rest on me. We have such a big family. It s a very precious question! Q: When I do something good. place and time are alsoconsidered as objects because of their cha racteristics. When your faith isshaky. The second goa l is that we need an intoxication-free society.the chemical process changes immediately. pr atipaksha bhavanam. Friendliness. This is all that you need to do. You go towards the North Pole. you will find The Art of Living there. we understand andanalyze how correct it is . don t leave the question. Nyaay: What we learn. What is Bhakti? Resting your mind and intellectin Divine energy. Until you don t get the answer. This is why we remember the Guru . otherwise we can never progress. It is natural for different waves of emotions torise in the mind.compassion and ignoring.I a m separate fromall this. To calm the mind. and leave the rest to the Divi ne. Contemplating onthis is the sign of intellig ence. Once you haveconsidered the changing objects. Sometimes faith arises in the mind. the object and itscharacteristics are analyzed. reach out to schools and colleges and make life a celebration. God is a lively and loving consciousness deep inside each one of us! The youth of India have inherited this great country. Do yoga. Vitarka badhane. Q: What is it that I should do in the future? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Whatever you did in the past which was not to be done. You have a family which is spread across the whole globe. and we have a res ponsibility too.. work and knowledge. Q: What is my existence? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: The same question you would have to ask yourself again and again. cure it by taking blessings from elders. tip of Argentina. . . And be assured that your needs will be taken care of. would you still call itsugar? Objects have characteristics . rest your mind in that which never changes. You will see. We want a corruption-free society. I f sugar is not sweet.Analyzing the difference between what we hear and whatwe infer. You should know. your nee ds will naturally start getting fulfilled.The placement ofplanets als o affects the mind. and you will find The Art of Li ving. and a new chemicalprocess will be initiated. It s very necessary that you (the youth) take this step right away! Focus on studies. but being strong. to understand the Sou rce and Base of the whole world is spirituality. you should attend to your exams. That is why. There is corruption in bureaucracy. That is no goo d. Q: I feel sad and sometimes outraged looking at the corruption around. M ain motive in life should be to see a better nation. only now is the time. Q: What is the most important thing in a student s life? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: A career is important. there is corruption in media. but be strong at the same time. your soft words have effect. and they refused t o pay any bribe. you have to come across as a nice person. If you fail also. There is no end to it. Some are on ly into career. That is what happens in the DSN (pr ogram). At the same time. Have such a skillful conversation that they get agree to whatever right you say. you won t feel that satisfaction. You know some of our children wanted a license for a factory. examination is not the only thing. and onl y a wave of spirituality can cure this. but you should also study. The skill to feel connected with everybody and to know the Truth is spirit uality.How to go ahead in such a situation? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Take this as an opportunity to bring out that skillfulness in you. Is it not about something more? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: What do you think? (The person replies) I think it is because of our parents attitude that we think so. And qualification not only for certification but for gaining knowledge. they say this is only the wave function. Though. th en forget about that. But from a scientific perspective. achievement also happens. Q: What should be one s main motive in a student s life? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: The main motive is in life. La cking in any one. you have to flow with the system. take both along Qualification as well as personality development. But students are time bound. there is corruption in the entertainment industry. Q: When can I be like the Divine? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: You are already now. But if corruption goes on increasing like this only. and along with that the development of the overall personality is very important. Intuitively knowing the DNA of the flower is spirituality. They said that they follow spirituality. and they are not going . That doesn t mean you should take some stupid steps. Most of all. it will not happen in 2060 as well. Both go hand in hand. In quantum ph ysics. Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Yes. a better world. and then that lightness of heart and s mile that comes from the depth of your heart should be there. Any way. then de finitely it will happen. Q: What is spirituality? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Being able to feel a connection with everybody is spiritua lity. Nice doesn t mean being goody goody. It makes you so strong and unshakable from within. Similarly. but patiently deal with them wit h your skill. Education is very importan t. You don t run. So. th en never mind. When will we have a Divine society to live in? What should be done? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: When people like you will collectively move ahead. and a multi talent ed personality. and some are only into personality development and no career. this flower is ma de up of molecules. Q: Is education all about passing examination and getting good marks. It is like if cloth has been tangled in a bush. you need certain skill to gradually remove it from there. the molecules are further made up of atoms. Of course. Like this flower is matter. When you ha ve love for your nation. atoms of sub ato mic particles and those further are made up of only wave function. take it as a challenge. then that becomes an accept ed norm. feel something? Is there anything after death? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Yes. I f society is corrupt. you put in y our 100 percent. Those who have interest in spirituality. What do I do? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Having a sense of belongingness doesn t mean to flow emotion ally. When you know. We can achieve a lot when we do something together. Please guide. Do only that what you can do. Come up with your ideas. That is why we all have to work togeth er. you get that confidence. Q: How to change the system? Sometimes I feel very outraged and I don t get to und erstand how to stand up against that. There sho uld be an independent agency. and it gets fu lfilled. 30. Floa t your ideas. it is boring. The agency where they can check any corruption. I will somehow finish this subject . At least the effect of worl dly memories remain up to one year. When the wave is o n the surface. When some mean people get into power. If people of the society wi ll be on the right path. When you make your mind strong. lots to do. then officers will automatically start following you. Q: Do the ones who have died. you are right. The path is long. have you ever met with G od? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: First tell me. when you take this conviction to be not corrupt. Even if you don t know swimming. That is why. Q: How to have focus while studying? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Do at least something. But when it identifies itself with the depth of the ocean. 50 times if nee ded. even if you don t feel like doing. it is a wave. Isn t it? Like if you are thrown in an ocean. and I am confident that you people can do it. Q: Is it ok to ask God helping us in exams. desires get fulfilled. Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Yes. those who have human valu es should run the country. the officers are also corrupt. The who le point is to relax the mind in that soothing consciousness. They confidently agreed to come back ten. Seva/Service and Satsang. When the min d is totally relaxed. it relaxes in the Divine. but when you participate in a marathon. Like if you cannot walk. Then nobody will be able to practice corruption. who is God according to you? Somebody sitti ng up in the heaven! No! God is that from which nothing can escape. Q: I was once told that Yogis do not meet with the God. Q: How does one experience that blissful divinity with in? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Meditation. it merges in the Divine.then it creates problem for the whole nation. you continue swimming. and then it fades away slowly in next two th ree years. God is a very lively and loving consciousness. We will have to choose the right people. The path is long. you can do that. What you cannot do. it happens for some time. until you don t find the shore. Use your intelligence. n obody will expect that from you also.to pay any bribe. there are so many people with you. an agency that is independent of the government so that it can also check corrupti on at the government level as well. Sometimes a little pain is also goo d. people also change. . to get us through the examination? D oes it happen? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Whatever you need to wish. Would you leave in between even if you are tir ed? So. it becomes the ocean. Q: (A boy discussed some personal problem) I find it difficult to have that sens e of belongingness with everybody. but they got the license the very next morning. you get to learn that in water. and you will all have to w ork for it. God is love and it is inside each one of us. Inside every culprit is a victim crying for help. you accept him as your Gur u. you further bisect in 100 parts a nd then take one out of those. whether it s the crime that s being done either in Kosovo and Serbia or Bosnia or Sri Lanka or anywhere. Nobody teaches you how to ma nage this mind by which we do all our actions. who gives you medici ne. your concepts and prejudices overri de your action. everybody else is. themselves. We don t have to go to outer space to feel that the earth is very small. are the victim. then also it is alright. So. The one. Even much. our frustration and our rage. and normal people . So. Everything is centered around wellness of the society! I m going to talk to you about another dimension of space. So when the owner barges in. look at our own thought patterns. because they feel they. and you take one out of those. So when the feelings override your actions. is that we seldom take time to look at our own emotions. and you go to a doctor. the doorkeeper just gives way. but the emotions are the owner of the home. The difficulty with us human beings. and somebo dy gives an answer. And this is exactly what we need to do. what you get is a molecule. normal human beings. In wrong company. the culprit disappears. simply. our anger. There may be rules. And even repeating the same process. at what s hap pened inside. Neither at home nor at school. We act before thinking. that we all belong to each other. are caught up in some Utopian or nasty concepts then you behave that way. then yes. a puppet. but when your emotions rise high. much smaller than that is an atom. we . you need such company which motivates you. Inner rules are just like the watchman. of which you are. If some people do not feel the need. if you bisect one hair vertically into 100 parts. but what makes normal people do abnormal crimes is the lack of education about their emotions. that whatever I am. They re normal people. you become a victim of your own emotions. Find out. You should take it as a challenge I won t be de-motivated come wh at may. we act before even resolving our feelings. If your thought pa tterns are prejudiced. the doorkeeper. that is. the inner spac e: the space that rules your life. we are all one. Even subtler than that is ego and that which is more subtle than that also is themahatattva/grand element. time to time crimes are bound to happen in society. he is called Mahatama. The one whose ego has been totally dissolved.Q: Does everybody need a Guru? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Do you need an answer? If yes. the one who gives you the answer anyway plays the role of th e Guru. Q: Why do I feel de-motivated sometimes? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Because you are into so much of television and newspaper r eading. You need medicine. When you ask a question. becomes a doctor. one that is subtle th an the spirit is God. whatever rul es are there. If you just talk to any criminal anywhere they will either justify their action or they feel completely helpless. are any of us taught how to manage our greed. If we attend to the victim. According to ancient science. Q: What is the difference between spirit and the Universal consciousness or God? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Like an atom is inside the molecule. And this is exactly what happens. It s the people who do th at. The connection is even more subtle than that between a mol ecule and atom. the space from which all thoughts and emotion s emerge. Similarly who gives the answer. observe. We can w ake up here when we attend to our inner space. our jealousy. as the honorable speaker mentioned just a few minutes ago. So I often say. one fee ls de-motivated. If the wellness is at stake no other factor will suffic e for the society to be uplifted. Gross Domestic Happiness factor. You may have enough food and enough things to eat.Who cares what you feel? Throw your feelings into the ocean. they are gone. everything is centered around one fact: welfare of the society. You k now what happened in the Middle Ages. There s nothing like a society that can become literate. So meone puts a doubt in your head and then they forget but you hold on to it. wake up to the truth of the present mo ment. And moment does not mean fleeting moment. Feelings are fleeting. This awareness. So. Yoga is being established in the moment. but you suffer fr om diabetes and depression and heart problem. now! Wake up NOW! Everything else is stupid. The moment has the dep th of infinity. And ethics forms one of the backbones of wellness and business forms its wings.wiped out! All the things that you felt are gone. Similarly. A little sensation or discomfort arises. a disaster to society. our feelings and words g row apart.are all part of one human family. we need to consider this. Have a combination of both sensitiveness and strength! Q: How can I not see ugly feelings behind ugly words? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Sometimes people say words and they really don t feel that w ay. in the Medieval period. They all have proved to be disasters. education in handling oneself. in doing what you want to do. now. One day they feel good. So. but from very different fields. what we are facing in the business community today sort of low morals and somehow we re lost we don t know what to do. the nature of our emotions. As somebody recently said. This is yoga. As we grow older. prejudices that overrule our civilization today. cultured society. So in these situations. it s all an individual who forms the unit of a culture. the purpose of life. it has all the past and all the future. So. Don t both er about this. Good or bad. we h ave a literate society. So whether it is economy or politics. wellness of the society. that is.Look at the present moment . the nature of mind. next day they don t. and in a large spectrum. you say things that you don t really mea n. that the GDP of a country should be now measured with GDH. I m happy that we re all on the same page here. corruption. Don t you do it sometimes? As children. A culture i n the society. whic h country is happier than the other. Without business. it s the individual who forms the unit of a society. wellness cannot happen. ar . Having a big bank balance and being depress ed for the whole life is not prosperity. an introspection and understa nding about human nature. So we need to look into that. Divinity is in the present moment. Your entire past . Sometimes their feelings change but your feelings remain the same. knowing oneself. in the name of some dogmas. It s superstitions. social entrepreneurship or any act ivity. That doesn t count to be a healthy s ociety. So if individuals are educated. either in the Span ish Inquisition or the witch hunting. this awakening has to happen within each one of us. Our being angry that someone is feeling bad doesn t m ake sense. and education will make people overcome these ills. don t worry about what other people are fee ling. or the caste s ystem in the East. They are not the same. within each individual on the planet and t his is where individual education will lead to a collective culture. Everything disso lves into emptiness. The same is with senior citizens who complain but then forget while you hold on to t he complaint. Kids usually say things they mean. You should see which state is happy. l iteracy has to happen through individuals. has to happen individually and that will have to lead to a collective phenomenon called a civilized. pondering on something that would make a breakthrough in the crisis of today. You should have the mind to enjoy that prosperity. Who cares? Are you doing what you want to do? And. human species.now. Simply acknowledge that that person is not feeling good and that they are here to work on it. And similarly. Now. All that has happened has gone into emptiness. dogmas. don t create a co nflict and confusion in yourself. But it has reached all nooks and corners of the world. I tell you. Now each of you must think abo ut how you want The Art of Living to blossom. your focus improves.The effect of past actions is limited. I did so much for my children and now they are dissociating from me. and even spouse. So pitta must be treated. But don t brood over it. The best combination is being sensitive and strong. There a re two points that are important for alertness and focus of the brain . Whenever someone is nasty towards you. This knowle dge was systematically erased. You will suddenly find there is a shift happening. as they are called. combinations are refe rred to as yoga . when two herbs are put together it is called yoga. Q: How do you initiate your disciples? Do you choose your disciples? . It s amazing! They are faster than computer s. Either it is very entertaining or it is s uch a pain and so miserable! You can t take it. do something so nice that i t takes them by surprise.Shathavadhanis. get a ticket. Don t say. If it does not happen also it is fine. Sec ond stage is made for each other. They focus on the tip of the nose. Oh it will happen anyways! But prayer d oes not have to happen by compulsion. Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Just be natural. See it was not too long ago that cell p hones were introduced. It describes dincharaya (d aily routine) and ritucharya (seasonal routine). rajas and tamas). they can multiply 100 numbers (avadha n). So you are innocent every moment you are awake. even the consequences you fear will not happen. When you wake up. If you keep your attention on the tip of the nose. Bei ng oversensitive and very weak and being like a bulldozer are both not correct. It is like a photographic memory. That is the unfortunate part. you drive fast. Too many thoughts indicates high pitta (one of the three doshas). Wake up. It s for you to think about. but same with employers. Wh y? Because. In ayurveda.The wo rld is a very funny place. The moment we acknowledge our mistake. it is useful. there are four stages of marriage. you do so much for some one and they turn their back and do things that harm you.this knowledge is useful and it will spread. Sometimes. Q: Some days I feel so much love for the Divine. In the Jain tradition. People who follow th is technique. breath. Not just with par ents. The fourth s tage is mad because of each other. and you have to pay. Past actions defin itely affect you e. ayurv eda helps one to meditate deeply. When prayer is happening. I feel like praying for desires. The mind has an impact on the body and all its doshas and gunas (three qualities of nature: sattva. Other days. we ar e forgiven. the mind. Q: Please tell us what is so special about the tip of this nose? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: All the sensory nerves end in the tip of the nose. Get thr ee tickets and you have to surrender your license. They are the marma points. Today.e you keeping the delicacy of your consciousness or are you being like a bulldoz er (I will do whatever I want)? Being like a bulldozer is being insensitive. how to handle one s emotions . Third stage is mad at each other. At least you have done something good. Similarly.they are all linked. no doubt. Q: What does ayurveda have to do with meditation? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Ayurveda is a complete science. This is wisdom and this is w hat we have to work on. For example. Q: Where do you see The Art of Living 25 years from now? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: I leave that vision to you. friends. can tell you what date was Tuesday in 1700. The Art of Living is all over the world. Similarly.g. siblings. Y ou will be forgiven in that moment. Avadhan is the technique of holding memori es in your consciousness. First stage is mad for each other. S o that concept of yoga is similar to meditation and to ayurveda. These are the secret point s.the ear lobes and tip of the nose. Avadhanis. espec ially for children. Many parents say. So. herbs . Dinacharya includes meditation for balancing of the three doshas (mind or body type). the knowledge of how to connect to one s mind . Speaking of s pouse. Now! Now! Now!Take t he challenge. or move to Florida! Q: I have been on the path for so long.Each failure is a step towards succes s. to get rid of any weakness. enhance your ability. and relaxing your mind for some time . that s trong conviction of achieving some good is there. with enthusiasm in action a nd peace in heart. theydidn'tget any money. Like. Don t think that you are more evolved because you are a teacher. an d say some words here and there.g. arrangements. you don t eventhink of dropping. Get people to move ahead withyou. E. no disciples exist. it s about patterns when you recognize that this is your pattern. What can I do? The attraction is almost irresistible. wa ke up and say. even if you face failure inspite of that. It is in your mind. the power is in the team. don t give it a name. To get rid of one s weakness. Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: What can I say? Go for it! It will be beneficial to the ne arby doctors and hospitals if you keep breaking parts of your body with violent partners! See. or should Idrop that? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: There is one proverb in India. if you go for interview. this is not in hands of a single person. Q: How does one come to embrace nature? Especially the terrible rain. which comes first? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: See. And then he continues to play again and againwith the wish to win. So. Awaken that intellige nce in people for that. Intuition works in relaxation! Q: If one faces failure in some task again and again. if you do the Sudarshan Kriya. and not with the material . Secondly. See. or you didn t keep faithful people with you. In The Art of Living. step by step. people kept fighting for freedom for twocenturies. right conduct. sattogun doesn t let your enthusiasm to shatter . Every failure is a step towards success. just relax. The ones who were fighting for freedom. you are initiated. look for the reason of failure. Allthese reasons could be there. For a master. I will not be a victim of this pattern! You have that strength! You will be given that strength. sattogu n should rise. Self weakness like s omeone is not able to present the workproperly. Even duringsome failure. snow in th is country? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: I enjoy this weather. But for a disciple. so analyze what did you learn out of this? Did you flow with the emotions? Yo u didn'tconsult those who are already into that profession? Youdidn'ttrust them. People say that it is the peak of kalyuga . in order to get something done. they didn t steal anything. It s good to become a teacher because th en you can teach others and there is so much joy. So. enhance yourabilities."Sanghe Shakti Kaliyuge "In kalyuga. should I continue to do th e same. the Master exists. from a little experience knowledge develops. and this conviction will be th ere when you have thatdedication for the task. Like if corruptio n is to bechecked.So. They are all intertwined. When you are confused.This is first. Ac cept it. Lik e if gambler wins once. You still hold the same status whether you are a teacher or not. and go into the depth of know ledge of thefield in which you wish to move ahead. but I still get attracted to violent and non sattvic partners. and then faith happens. then interviewer develops a doubt if you would beable to do that or not. onedoesn'tget job because of one s weakness. And what does one do to increase Sattogun?With right food. and when that driving force is still there. Maybe you should go to the Sahara de sert and see how nice it is to be in such a cool country. can you fight alone? Be with the group. One reason can be some weaknes s inoneself or some weak point in the system. Let love be love. Now. and even when some failure is encounte red.Second is to amend the system or arrangements. we say first exp erience and then you go up. hedoesn'teven think of dropping in between.Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Don t limit our relationship. but did they leavethe drive?And third factor. experience or faith. But don t think you must become a teacher. Task gets accomplished with the Sattva. he develops that taste to win. Q: Does one have to become a teacher to progress on the spiritual path? Knowledg e. youdidn'tget success.If you feel like that. that joy you are looking for. Rely on it. then it isOK. Q: What should one do when one is faced with conflicting choices? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Every confusion is a sign of growth. Be in the world to get more people along. how to deal with it? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: It is quiet natural to go towards violence for survival it is a natural instinct. That is why Sri Krishan told Arjuna to be a Yogi an d then fight Q: What is the crux of Life? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: What is the crux of life? At least. then only you actually enjoy the object of senses. if selfconfidence and vision is instilled in such a person. How can we do this? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: This is a skill! If there is no feverishness. some happiness. you will definitely get success in your tas ks. Q: Should we follow Bhagat Singh or Mahatma Gandhi? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Bhagat Singh was also supporter of non . Have peace of saint in heart and s trength ofwarrior in action. be a Saint Sipahi. Fol low Sri Guru Gobind Singh.I have spoken about all these in a book called Celebrating Silence . And you get that joy when you look within. But. In such case. Takesome other work in your hands. Meditat ion is such a joy! When the tiredness cracksaway. even then. Inrelaxation your intuition works..more in the other. What should we do an d how should we deal with such people? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Ya. then you will find that the person walks with a vision in self confidence without the fear of survival problem. An adult does not have this feverishness.Don t get upset because you were upset so metimes in the past. and it is as if truth has taken a backseat. When such feverishness for the objects is missing. it happens. Have you seen how a child behaves when he sees chocolates? He eats a couple. Sri Ravi Shankar's Daily Sutras and Knowledge Sheets When our needs are less we are able to take up bigger responsibilities. Q: There is a big threat to Us our lives from some people who have their own con cepts for which they are ready to die andkill other people. and then you will always be happy.. thatthey had to take such steps.. we need to deal with them with patience and will have to educate them. Toenhance capability. Taking along both the fields. Take some people along and then see if the task gets accomplished or no t. The child i s in a frenzy. But don t run away if you face failure for the first or second time. relax there. you would have to do something yourself. But the y were encountered with one such situation. Q: What should we do to always be happy? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: First be more and more happy and then if some moments of u npleasantness creep in life. go within your self. then work in a team. Where you feel happiness. you get that relaxation. tena tyaktena bhunjitha enjoy the world by renouncing. You can read that if you wish to. it would be easy.accept them. every time a pattern is broken. just relax.If you have given all your trials.and be with yourself to gain abil ities. put in your 100 percent and if. . b e atpeace there. Q: In the Isha Vasya Upanishad it is said.violence. Q: When people adopt violence for surviving. the n stuffs some in one pocket and tries stuffing . It is not an easy task butperhaps we should do it by inviting t hem and when one among them joins to spread peace. first you start explor ing within for that adventure! What should Itell you beforehand? The whole life is in search of some juice. solaced. what will happen to me? They have dedicated th eir lives to build schools and colleges and to bring education to millions. but not with anger. Hawaiians also say that different stones have different genders! They can identify those. You have to come back. But what follows is desire. The Shilpa Shastra or Book on Sculpt ures elaborates on this. everything to bring education to poor people. A terrorist does with hatred. the righteousness. that s why I appear peaceful to you.computer engineers and highly qualified people. You should have your dreams but remain grounded. If you were not beautiful then you would know nothing about my beauty. The object is only a reflection. with ignorance. Q: What s the value of sacrifice on the spiritual path? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: It is essential. it is necessary for a bigger cause. When you realize that joy is within and not in the object outside then only you can enjoy. w hat you see in me. hatr ed. what would you say? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: These are completely different situations and you cannot m ix them up. but a policeman does it for a different reason and a terrorist does it for an en tirely different reason. Do it to protect the dharma. right? You cannot take a policeman or an army man and a terrorist as same. They both shoot with guns. but without craving for it. S ome things fall under the neutral gender too. You could bl ame the teacher. the parents and everything else and finally yo u blame yourself.There are 3 genders. In fact. Oh. Q: They say we must dare to dream big. When our ne eds are less we are able to take up bigger responsibilities. become be autiful. Q: Krishna tells Arjuna . But if you get l iberated. life. there is a whole scriptur e on the gender of stones as well as trees. the state of mind. They ve sacrificed thei r whole career. So. If you are born out of compulsion then it's the same old story again and again. is totally different. They re doing service day and night. What is stopping you? Become that. Q: Is there a masculine and feminine side to everything? Then why do we categori ze things as male or female? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Yes! There is a neutral gender also. take that as your own. On the spiritual path you need to have th at zeal and enthusiasm for sacrifice. then you have the choice and the will to be born when you want. Q: Should the student take the whole responsibility for not scoring good marks? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: It is better if he takes full responsibility. Q: Does the cycle of life and death never end? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: The whole world is like that. Sacrifice brings a bigger joy! It doesn t redu ce your joy. If a terrorist also gives you the same reason in the name of their faith or religion . knowing that the joy come s from within you. That is the happies t life! Q: Guruji. only that gets projected onto the world outside. They re not thinking. They re not wishing anything for themselves. the environment. This is little profound and it clicks to a mature mind.all youn g people . how come you radiate so much peace and serene beauty? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Because you are beautiful too. It s all spherical: everything moves in cycles.You experience. our responsibilities are less. That is why Arjuna was told. jealousy or greed. It s better to take responsibility than go on a blame game. to do servic e in society. But it doesn t matter. How does one handle this desire? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: With discrimination! Desires just come up. When our needs are more. you enjoy.they re already dead.Don t think you re killing them . or the Spirit is beyond gender. Fight the war for justice. If you don't feel beautiful. but you have a choice. When y . W hatever quality you have. Just today I met several swamis . The Self. So. The intention. But after two and a half days.. one uni t of time. Similarly ifyou are on the planet S aturn. that is 12 years of earthly time.There is only one truth. S pace and time are connected. the Shiva. What should we do to increase the sattwa of a place? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Keep working.ey h ave said the same thing. morning from 4. for a soul whi ch has departed our whole year is one day. does choosing a Guru means one can t follow theteachings of other maste rs? Can one have more than one Guru? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Oh! It s so hard to manage one Guru.So. The same with the thirddimension that is mind! The mindless. it c an continue for two and a half daysat maximum. every two hours it s called alagna. you cannot ha ve the same emotion with thesame intensity. Jupiter takes 12 years to go around the sun. 30 years is one year! Similarly. if you are upset. Youknow the astrologers. the sun sposition. In Jupiter if youhave to experience one year. Kala. usually . Manah. those masters and their blessinghas brought you here.. Ok? It s just that if you keep trying everything. One day on this planetEarth is already many days on another in the moon. Time and mind are synonymous. pr inciples. Brahma muhurta! And then. Switches! It is a great. t ranscendental consciousness is calledMahakala. ya! Time and mind are connected. one huma n year is only one month. And again this is connected with the moon s position. It s called Mahakala. It s just a matter of time.Honor everyone and you will see. great science. Beautiful science of mind. see one in all and all in one as a principle. all the masters have said the same thing. Everywhere it is possible to mak e a change. with thi s conviction you move forward. Q: Is it true that some places have negative and positive vibes? I have experien ced that our group working in our suburb doesn t get the success it does outside. it is joyful. Manah . Kanada all t hese people have said.You should know this. So. Desha. which means. Desha is space. There are eight substances:Vaisheshika. Theno mind is great time. just before sunrise.the mind. like one feelslow in night time. our human one yearis one day for them. the fourth state of co nsciousness.30. It s called the time-space curve. It rises to a peak anddrops. In moon. not only the time or hour of the day affects the mind. I would say.You have served those paths . Every two an d a half days. Honor everyone and follow one path. so.how mind. pitras. Q: Guruji. and the no-mind. is there any connection with the mood and thetiming of the day? Why d o we feel different at different times. Deshaand kala are connected. Impossible! It changes. it doesn t have to be two and a hal f day. So our six months is only one night and six months is oneday.They are all tatvas. the mind changes! Themood of the mind! So. Jyotish shastra has a lot of insight into this. but the methods aredifferent as per the needs of the ti me. keep doing. it is different. if you are on Jupiter.30 to 6. There aredifferent times and differen t space in different dimensions. Respect everybody but follow one path. beforedawn. mood an d time are connected. You don t have conflict when you are on this path. it s called the mo st creative time. Kala is time and. time and spaceare connected.how can you ! (laughs) It s not easy. people who have died. mood and time Q: Guruji. those teachers. Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Ya. you get soconfused! So. So. And this unit of time corresponds to thestate of mind. t hey have blessed you and that s how you have come here.ou come back liberated. th. So. There are so many aspects ! Ten different aspects influence the mind. means great time.So. also the quality ofthe days affects the mind. Whicheverpath you were there. And all these principles are connected. will nullify the negative influences of the mind andthe time. opinions. you take a pot of water and ask them to blessthe water. in the pressure cooker. Oh. All that bad time isgone. loving. Dawn and dusk areconsidered very good for mediation. in India it is a very common belief.uplifting and benevolent . S o. He took a bottle of water and kept blaming it and then tooka microscopic picture of it. it s too generic andit s just a money-making thing that they do. and it s gone. The pr inciple that the mindand time are connected is correct. this thing (Guruji shows the small silver cymbals in thehands) has silver molecules. everything is made up of consciousness. all these weekly column astrologers say. It s obviously visible. when read from the ot her side. they do this a lot.the subtle thought vibration hasgone into the water. when the mind goes towards the basicsubstratum of cre ation. Om Namah Shivaye. ideas. They generalize thos e things. and Namah iswhen the consciousness goes inward. when youare cooking. An d. the more powerfulthe things are. he said some pleasing wordsand you can see the diff erence..whenever you meditate. You takea pot of water. When you break the silver molecules down. You will . not yours or someone else s. The mantras aresupposed to be absorbed into the water.. they become morepowerful. this process is called Abhimantra. It is an old tradition in India. And it is nice of you to think that way .Manah is when consciousness goes outside in the world . when you b ecome subtler and subtler. t he Shiva tatva! So.Though. If you are born on this timethen this is good for you and you do this. As long as there isconnection. So. you meditate. or whenever the bad time is there. thoughts. The subtler we go. You will always receive bliss and unwanted things will justdrop off. Manah . the fourth state of consciousness. Theself is Shiva tatva. the subtlest aspect of theexistence. How can we give garbage tothe most precious ones? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Never mind. Tha t consciousness deep within you which is caring. This entire universe is made upof consciousness. Among the sindhi commun ity. Later hehas used the same wate r for prayer and then after prayer he has took aphotograph. Consciousness is stronger than matter Q: The more and more my love blossoms for the Divine theharder I find it to give away my pains and worries. subtler you go.the re is always give and take. He kept a little water in a bottle and took a photograph. you getinto atomic particles. there is attention . good for ma king money. then it can change all that into more benevolent experience. whenever there isbad time just say.uplifing. But it is not hoax. all thesethings that we collect. place your hand on top and then chant mantras. this and that! They write thosethings (laughs!). and.which is minuter than the minutes t. it becomes Namah. wh en you break them you get sub-atomic molecules. Whenyou go to any holy man or saint. Q: Could you please explain how consciousness is stronger thanmatter? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Well. . You can see the impa ct of prayer . The underlying base has truth. towards the Shivaprin ciple. You find something pricking the mind. Namah. there is aniota of truth in it.. In India. Shivaye.alwaysreceive blessings. Whenyo u meditate you go off the influence of the mind and go into the self. caring. O f course. With another bottle. Shiva tatva means. loving. Today I was watching a research done with water in Japan bya gentleman. just seeit as garbage. no mind is meditation. Divine will take it. it becomes more and more powerful. when th ere is more pressure how is it built up? Water vapor! Andis that more powerful t han water or not? So. In this level of consciousness. drop this identity ofgarbage as part of you o r yours.good for relationships.it also shows thelevel of consciousnes s. Are they not powerful? Which is powerful this cymbal is powerful or the atom i s powerful? Atom is powerful. He llsnatch it from you if you don t want to give it. Mind means moods. Now. always benevolent. Neither about relationshi ps but something much deeper! Remember your age? Whatever it is 25. because 70% of our body is water. Q: Dear Guruji. Each animal brings certain cosmic vibrations on the planet. Karma is like an ocean.30 years! Where were you before these 25-3 0 years? Where would you be after 50-60 or say 100 years :) Mumbai existed befor e you were born. the life force. In the Rudrabhisheka. Stone (Pathar) has 1 unit of Prana Water (Pani) has 2 units of Prana Fire (Agni) has 3 units of Prana Air(Hava) has 4 units of Prana Ether (Akash) has 5 units of Prana Animals and trees have 6 . Lord Krishna has highest units of Prana 16. . they turned into positive ions. That is why it is s aid gahana karmanogati . That water is very charged and it helps to upliftthe atmosphere.hasa huge impact on the water. Similarly a gentleman from Russia came and conducted anexperiment in Mahabalipur am. In manylifetimes. g. Tamil Nadu when they were doing the Aarti. Peacock descends to the planet the vibrations of Goddess Saraswati (The Godde ss of knowledge). It doesn t click to the intellect. That is why He is referred to as fully blossomed being You often see that every GOD/ GODDESS travels on an animal. so we reap.This Abhimantra . Do you remember how you entered your mother s womb? Do you remember how you came out in this world? Until the age of five the child remembers his past birth. Whichkarma has sprouted from which seed and wh at fruit this karma will give is verydifficult to pin point. but this is so scientific. we have done so many actions and they all have repercussions. This is not one lifetime. Why it happens? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Karma! The ways of karma areunfathomable. Unfathomableare the ways of karma.water is made to fall on a crystal lingam while a particular chanting is beingdone and then it flows down .. The same is the case with the use of fire. It is the positive ionswhich bring changes. this whole universe is a play of Prana. many lifetimes. Act with conscience! World is a play and display of Prana/Life force Today we will not talk about stress and stress relief. However. Duringfire ceremonies. E. the units of Prana differ.But many instances we s ee that a person is going through bad times. The child recognizes c olors or says certain things but elders tend to overlook that. even if wedon t see any major fault d one by him or her.7 units of Prana Human Being has 8 units of Prana.mantra chanting on the water . Hence he is called as ASHTAVASU. the changesthat happen by these pra ctices. when they put the mantra with the intention. All these things are meant to create the positive ions. That s whydon't worry about the karma. Because it is not just one lifetime. tobring the required changes. wehave done many things and we don t know which kar ma sprouts when. Everything her e has some life force. just be active and follow your conscience. I believe in this: As we sow. this Ocean existed then too. You know.He took the pictures and found tha t all the negative ions in the atmospheresuddenly disappeared. But humans ar e born with a possibility to blossom into a fully blossomed state. Bull's body radiation brings Shiva Consciousness (The transfor . Goddess Durga riding on a tiger! It seems so imaginative.. there is aqualitative change that happens in the atmosphere. Now it is visible in the microscopic images. My rules are decency and respect. isn t it just another step away from nat ure s law? I am a man and I would like to treat a woman as a woman. Kurdistan everywhere they celebrate NEW Y EAR in the month of March. Go deep in meditation to experience all t his. Right now all Devtas are here in this consciousness. Sanskrit was the ONLY Original language that was prevalent in the universe in the start. Oh I know them since ages. Don t blame yourself or blame you r partner. They are asking the me n to be treated equally. you are already losing it. myself. And I would li ke to be treated like a man. Q: How not to lose my mind and stop comparing myself when my partner is attracte d or in love with someone else? I am losing myself completely in this kind of si tuation and it feels so painful. When you are a sking this question I think what s bothering you is the feminist movement where th ey think the world is dominated by man. You always want new fashion. there should be equal rights and I know in some parts of the world education is needed. Got it? When you become older. so what? Then t hat attraction is not going to destroy your commitment and your relation. they are all derived from SANSKRIT. What is the latest fas hion. Don t ask a man to give you rights. Isn t everything el se obsolete? Of course. Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Just wait. See from this angle. December. all different energies are in this consciousness. these repulsions. Do you permit ME to remove the cap now? (GURUJI was wearing a beautiful cap at t he start of the talk and lots of people had objected/ requested HIM to keep it o n) (The Satsang ends with a joyful 10 15 minutes of meditation vaporizing in few se conds and concluding soothing bhajans) Wisdom once learnt remains with you like a solid rock Q: Jai Gurudev Guruji. In some less affected parts of India as well! So Dece mber (DASH + AMBAR: 10th sky) makes the 10th sky. Feb is referred to as "Fag End" March means "To Go Ahead". They are not totally wrong also. a m attracted or in love with someone else? Please help. Sometime in life it will come to you. I think that debate is a bit twisted. November. But they are demanding rights. Iraq. How not to lose my commitment when I. February . All the mantra s invite these auspicious vibrations. Time will tell you. you l l grow over these attractions. That s . Do you know the meanings of the months? January. Iran. Okay. You are older than the names of month. You all keep saying the months and you do n't know the meaning! SEPTEMBER (SAPT + AMBAR): 7th sky NOVEMBER (NAV + AMBAR): 9th Sky Do you know which languages these months belong to? Audience: English Sri Sri : No. Yo u take it. When the numbers change.mational and meditative aspect of nature). I would say. Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: You know. With love and thanks for everything you are doing. Assume you have it and you move on. who is to give you rights? You have it. you ll not change. the women rights activists sometimes forget that they have rights and they fight for that which they already have. Else keep it in back of mind that I am much older than my age. it is correct. When you are asking for it. you ask. But when you are in love you say. Remember what your age is n ow.. Most of the times. you are getting attracted. Why is it that nature has made man and woman so different ? If it is so important to have equality. This m uch you must make sure because the mind always goes for something new but the he art longs for something old. But in the western world. You will s ee this wind just blows and then the sun rises back again. this and that.my old love. lack of enthusiasm or the initial high or joy you felt suddenly disappearing somewhere. I don t feel the connection to knowledg e or to you or to myself. just go for it. Similarly. But no o bstacles can stay forever. old love. Don t doubt yourself whether you are ready or not. the spiritual energy in the world goes down and people become more gross. Sometimes you feel it. You were not connected. The Christian tradition speaks about the dark night of th e soul where a spiritual seeker suddenly finds that all that he has been doing i s useless or has not taken them any further. When you fee l a sort of vacuum. That doesn t mean it has disappeared f rom the surface of the planet. suddenly you feel the connection. Move away from all the principles of the Art of Living. couple of them in my mind. part of the path. Yo u will feel the thirst. they disa ppear. elevated. If it is not visible now. interest or spirituality or sort of dullness creeps in life. your connect . Or eight hours later .it will come to the horizon. the path and then some or the other ailments come. fever. Then you ll notice the c onnection. when the Jupiter is at the lowest energy. Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: You are ready. If there is no sun. Self do ubt. When a cool wind blows on a hot summer s day. Q: There are quite a few questions about how do I feel more connected with you o r how do I feel the connection. it give s you certain elevation. You ll be fine. Wisdom once learnt remains with you like a solid rock. This type of a feeling had dawned i n Mother Teresa also. know that you are already connected. So don t keep looking whether I am connected or not connected. again and again. cough. You should fee l that you are connected. When is one ready to do TTC and become a teacher? With Love and Gratitude. your love is always t here. Drop your pranaya ma. know that it s only the mind s work but your heart knows. a bl ossoming of your personality. is there air around me? Am I breathing or not? Is there air around me? My dear. But it is only for a short period of time. Even if you are not ready. In N orway. In Patanjali Yoga Sutras. Especially they say. For knowledge. heart always longs for that old connection. It will be visible just in the matter of time. you will be cooked very well and made ready. Then you will see. So this feeling of being connected often happens in contr ast. It gives you a contrast. everything for one week. sudden ly you feel connected. Still try to get out of it for sometime and see. my ancient love. But it s only a short period of 11 m onths or even shorter. When you want to do is some practice y ou ll get cold. cosmologically. So don t worry. Don t look for it. the earth would not exist. Are you connected to air? Do you say. you ll not see the sun for two months. just smile and be centered. Q: I would love to become an Art of Living teacher. In the same way. So when you are going for n ew. When you don t feel the connection. You see what I am saying? Okay. Sometimes astrologically. it is visible a nother six hours later. You are ready. These types of questions are there. doubt about the knowledge. It is amazing. you feel that contrast. your connection. disease or mental dullness can come over you. You always connect. 10 days. there is! Is there a sun in the universe? There is! I don t see the sun. The sun is always the re. the sense of lack of enthus iasm. You don t feel uplifted. All this knowledge will pop up in your life time and aga in. Some physical discomfort. Sometimes. The processes are such in the teacher s training. Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Certain things you should take for granted. These are the nine obstacles you can get doubts will come. doubt about the teacher. it is explained how to overcome such obstacles in the path of Yoga. Especially when you didn t feel connected. singing. They all come for a short time and they go. go back to the ages because the heart longs for the old and the mind wants the new. lack of love. But I am not sure if I am re ady. you have to have the opposites. These sorts of nine different types of obstac les to get perfection are also part of the knowledge. You can t get away from wisdom. Vedic astrolo gy speaks about a particular time in one's life where this could happen. meditation. He sent me Diwali greetings and I sent him Christmas greetings. World is going to end in 2000? In Canada people had stored milk powder. with the universe is all intact. There will be no change. In 1999. Yes. Just relax. Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: When you are in the train. Wherever I go. Birth and death i . Many people sold their homes. They went to Colorado a nd build their homes there! Nothing is going to happen and we ll continue. Let us be more smart. Before it goes down and we have to get into the boats to come up to Colorado. I wo n t say it has gone totally. They are right. It s a continuous process on this planet. It was not a dignified thing to sit in the lotus position or stretch your legs and hands and knees and sit on the floor. Interfaith dialogu e is the talk of the world today. They will be inclined towards spirituality. Thi s is a promise. we all have to work togeth er in the world to do a great job to uplift the human consciousness. Then people asked me the same th ing. I w ant to run faster and faster . that s when Jupiter comes to Aries. Read and study Ashtavakra and Yoga Vasishta. don t carry your bag on your back and keep running thinking. Isn t it? Q: I really want to find and go the way of truth. Q: How can I stop hurting myself physically when I feel guilty? Sri Sri Ravi Sha nkar: When you feel guilty. with the teacher. in the Parliament of the World s Religions. Cellar and basements were stuffed with food st uff. some calamity happens all the time. He addressed me saying. people will be more spiritual. It is happening even now. They say it will happen in 2012. I was recently in Australia. started respecting each other s faith. We had the biggest course in Europe where 2000 people on the beaches of Italy were welcoming the New Year . do bhastrika. Just sit and relax. you don t keep running inside the compartments.10 years ago exactly. Today s advertisements show people sitting in the lotus pose. California is going to go underneath the water.when they want to depict relaxation . Q: There is a lot of information about the transition of human consciousness. Not normal. Today many companie s . Spirituality will b e the fashion and it will become the necessity. What will happen in 2000? I said everything wi ll be business as usual. Just relax. Let s go now to Colorado. of diffe rent faiths. Paradigms have changed. Just imagine you have to run to catch the train. You are in the right path. This was the fear. Do satsang. wh ich is part of evolution.they make someone sit in a yoga postur e. Have your tea. So the world is changin g already. but has reduced to a great extent. This was the idea. and there were people from all over the world. But once you are inside the train.ion with your Self. the first point of Aries. Please teach us to see it. Can you comment on it ? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: As I said. rat ion everything in their basement. Today they h ave recognized there are all other faiths and many ways. Prejudice has reduced. I am repeating the same thing what I said in 1999. Really! Many peopl e sold their homes and property from the West because they said there was going to be a big earthquake. we were in Italy. Holiness. e verybody asked the same question. People s thinking has changed. Let us be the welcoming party for the sinking people. just sing and dance. the evolution of human consciousness is a conti nuous process. People will start walking the pa th. 600 people. In the next two years. The world is not going to come to an end. 2012. You ll not reach any faster running to the front comp artment.Because the world is going to crash and there will not be any food items for next six months till people find a way out. It will j ust blossom once again. Maybe three times you do bhastrika. What s goi ng to happen in 2012? Silly question. You will reach your destination. This time I receiv ed a greetings letter from the Pope. I remember in 80s and 90s people doing Yoga were considered to be little out there. Some earthquake. No. That is why it is said that while it takes a moment to break a flower stem. it will be provided in the future. I have had everything I need to have. All this is the balloon. Don t worry. Today so many people are dying and today so many are b eing born. How can I get out of it? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Right now are you happy or sad? Just be happy. So having attained this. The balloon has air outside and inside it. So.If there is some point in their comment s. nature has given. This is what the ancient Vedic science says. Content. If the wave asks. You do your part. there were rakshasas (demons). Even in the satyuga. If th is body needs anything more. not with lack. The doom s day or whatever day is not going to come. a woman went to a saint and asked. There are 14 earths like our earth in our Galaxy. In the past. So I get disturbed. Is it for your improvement or is it the impre ssion that you have created? You doubt compliments. So don't blame time. Q: I feel unhappy very often. That is why the Lord is not somebody separate. Welcome the criticism.Earth is spherical . Ancient Vedic times. We read that Galileo was t he one who said the Earth is spherical. With a feeling of contentment. Whatever is needed for the body. The inside space is jeeva. the Divine can be realized in a fraction of that moment. there is space and o utside there is space as well. Where is the ocean then what to say? The wave itself is the ocean.the outside space is br ahma. So doubt the criticism as well. Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: For how long does this happen?For some time right?So. aversion. You have to only realize t his. There is sun every moment on this planet somewhere shining and there is sunset happening all the time and sunrise happening the who le time. I have had all the pleasure that the world can give me. If you think you shouldn't get disturbed. We need to instill values. And millions of universes are there. it s a lright. If more is needed. So. It is much bigger now. Q: I cannot accept criticism.s a simultaneous process. Instill values in children. When belongingness expands to include everyone. spirituality has grown! Q: How to bring up children in a competitive world? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: The world has always been competitive. T he disturbance doesn't stay for all time. Bhugola . Khagola the universe is spherical. the ans wer is within you. Everyday is a day of resurrection bec ause the world is spherical. It s not going to be one day that everybody is going to be born and one day everybody is going to die. I have had enough food. nature is going to give me. Q: What is the difference between jeeva (individual consciousness) and brahma (i nfinite cosmic consciousness)? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Jeeva is a part of Brahma. how will you leave a world full of happiness? . compet ition was present on a smaller scale. The jeeva is desire. this universe is huge and unfath omable. craving. relax in the peace of your heart. what I am. Everyday is a dooms day. but it is. Toni ght go to bed with a smile on your face. With this faith and with this understanding. just repose in your Self. No. then you get more disturbed. Why is the world so sad? If you can t leave the world when there is unhappiness. they have said it. Once. I am happy with it. take it. Inside a vessel. will never go into Naxal activities. ask those who c an to contribute for those who don t have enough. Q: What is spirituality? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Do you feel belonging? That is spirituality. Such development cannot be done by the government alone. These are people who have wrong education. Just look at the world. In every village. When people in the village will come together. Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: The mind carries the samskaaras. Just look at all th e faces (here)they are so happy! In life. The poorest of the poor can ea rn and not stay hungry. Are yo u happy? And we say. then the fe eling of Dalit and non Dalits will be removed. This is the real communism. Q: What carries the samskaara through different lifetime? The body dies and the consciousness is pure. If pe ople can elect us. there s 20 percent sadness and 80 percent happiness. This education turns people towards violence. How do we find a solution for that? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: One of the main reasons for poverty is alcoholism. A poor man cannot lif t a gun or make a bomb. there is no sadness.) How do you know? (Sri Sri addresses the audien ce in general) Our doubt is always about something positive. then spirituality has grown . Well I am not sure. . they can bring us down also. Youngsters in rural areas are now dealing with this problem. did Mao or Stalin ask? They feel that they should come to power on their own power. Once you learn how to go inwards the world doe sn't seem sad. Where is the sadness? I only see beauty in the world. wherever alcohol has stopped. Do you get a pain in yo ur leg? (The girl nods her head. Q: There is a lot of poverty. Everyone should come together fo r one meal in a week. They say. If you thin k they are poor. then from where have they got toddy? Villages have risen above the poverty line just by closing the toddy shops. (A girl from the audience asks) Q: How do you know if you really love somebody? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Suppose you sit for four five hours. where is the sadness? Birds are chirping. That is why spirituality is most important.People who walk the path of spiritu ality. who know history. Q: Could you please comment on the Naxalite issue? Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: The Naxal problem is not of poverty. But our mind makes t he 20 percent into 2000 percent. Many villagers spend 60 percent of their earnings in the toddy shop. Just turn inwards to the Source. See Me in all and all in Me . They are ignorant o f spirituality. You have never doubt your depression. When this belongingness expands to include everyone. Krishna said.You will be in a great loss if you can t let go of the world.the river is fl owing. NGOs have to initiate this change. Someone asks. People of all castes should celebrate together. Did Napoleon ask anyone for a vo te. That is why I often say Krishna was the first communist.