I am responsible for my happiness!

I am responsible for my happiness. I will not let anybody bring down my happiness. You go with this determination and see what happens. 

Remember one thing, you are responsible for your happiness. Come what may, whoever says whatsoever, you protect your mind, and keep yourself happy. You be determined, ‘I am not going to let my happiness be taken away by anybody! Even if God comes and yells at me, I will tell God, ‘Thank you, this is your gift to me.’’ Make this determination today.

~ Sri Sri Ravi Shankar

Let us live 'in joy'

Just be in the simple and innocent state of ‘‘I don’t know!’’ This life is a beautiful mystery. Just live it! When we live this mystery of life so totally, then joy dawns.

You are Loved

 

So, the message from the Divine is that - you are so dear to the Divine. You simply have to recognize that you are so loved.


You cannot imagine how much you are loved by God. There is so much love. Just like how a mother loves her baby, irrespective of what the kid does. The kid may create a mess, but the mother doesn’t mind. She smiles, cleans up the mess and then once again continues to love the child. Similarly, you are most dear to the Divine. This is what we must keep in our minds. I am here just to tell you this, and nothing else! If you understand this, then my work is done!

Listen to these words that the Divine is telling you, that he or she loves you very dearly. He will never allow you to sink. Have the faith that, I will never be allowed to sink.
I may be in water up to the nose, but not above the nose.

‘I am so dear to the Divine’, and ‘The Divine is here, right now’, these are the two things to remember.

When the I in us dissolves and remains only as energy, that is when happiness wells up. Otherwise you think, ‘I want to get enlightened’ or ‘I want to experience this.’ And it is that I which makes you miserable.

And when doubt enters the I then that is the worst thing.

In the Bhagavad Gita, Lord Krishna says, ‘When doubt enters into the heart of an individual, he is totally lost, and he becomes miserable’.

So, make sure that you recognize that you are most dear and the most loved by the Divine. That is it. Seal it! No more doubt about that, or no more self doubt.

No questioning whether I am loved or not. You should not be questioning.

First God tells you, ‘You are very dear to me’, and then the devotee says, ‘Yes, I love you too!’

So, first listen to these words that the Divine is telling you, that he or she loves you very dearly. He will never allow you to sink – this is the first thing.

The second is the faith that, I will never be allowed to sink. I may be in water up to the nose, but not above the nose.

And third thing is that we must keep our mind happy and contented. Come what may, we have to keep a contended mind.

A discontentment or grumbling mind, even if it gets everything on this planet, still it will remain miserable.

Nothing whatsoever in the universe can ever give you contentment. You have to bring it to yourself. And when does that happen? It happens when you let go and understand.

Purity, Clarity, and Contentment, is the formula for happiness.

There is a proverb in the Bible as well that says, ‘Those who have will be given more, those who do not have, whatever little they have, will also be taken away.’

That is very true. In the mind, if there is lack of contentment and you are complaining and grumbling, then you should become aware of it and snap out of that state. You must take responsibility for that, it is very important.

Contentment and happiness! Do everything happily. Walk, talk, sit happily; even if you complain against somebody, do it happily.

I think we do that here in the ashram quite a bit! (Sri Sri laughs)

Do you know, the day before yesterday, the person in the purchase department called me in the middle of the night and said, ‘Gurudev, there are a few little things that we need to buy for tomorrow.’

I said, ‘What?’

And he said, ‘We need 3000 kilos of sugar and 2000 kilos of moong daal to make pudding.’

And I said, ‘What? (Surprised), you said you need a few little things.’

So, the purchase department rushed to the wholesale market, woke up the people from sleep in the middle of the night, and got everything delivered at 2:00am.

They had to wake up several shop owners, take them to their shops, open the godowns, and bring the items. But they were all happy.

The seller was also happy, the buyer was also happy, the cook was happy and those who ate were also happy.

Come what may, we have to keep a contended mind. A grumbling mind, even if it gets everything on this
planet, still it will remain miserable.

Nothing whatsoever in the universe can ever give you contentment. You have to bring it to yourself.


You know, this whole act could have become very stressful.

The person was telling me this at the last minute. Where do we go at the last minute?

There could have been a lot of grumbling and complaining, and they could have come back saying, ‘Oh no, it didn’t happen.’ But that was not the case.

See, where there is Sattva and positivity, challenges are also sweet.

That is why happiness and contentment is very important.

See, if it was a small little thing, then it is okay. You can go and open one shop. But you can’t get 3000 kilos of sugar from one shop.

So in everybody’s life, there are many such things that happen which we sometimes consider impossible. Do you know why? It is because we don’t recognize our self.

Do you know why the elephant got so scared when she came here (Yagyashala)? (Referring to Indrani (Ashram Elephant) who was brought to participate in the Chandi Homam)

She got scared because she saw herself on the screen, and she thought there was another elephant standing. She didn’t realize that it is her own reflection. So we had to put off that screen.

At that time I thought, she has taught us a big lesson today. This is what is happening with people, they don’t recognize themselves. Everybody is only a reflection of you.

When you don’t recognize yourself, or you are so scared of looking at yourself, that is where the knowledge helps to reflect, to recognize this.

Look within yourself, what is there, what is bothering, what is pricking?

If you see that there are some negative tendencies in you, I tell you, don’t worry about them, because you cannot get rid of them. There is somebody to take care of it. This is the message!

In the Durga Saptashati ,it is said, ‘Ya Devi Sarva-bhutesu Bhranti-rupena Samsthitha Namastasyei Namastasyei Namastasyei Namo Namaha.’

Oh Mother, you are present in all beings as peace and as disturbance; as knowledge and as delusion. I adore and bow down to you!

So the Divine is also present as disturbances.

Look at all the beings on the planet, they are so disturbed. The elephant was disturbed for a little while.

What was that? It is the consciousness; the pure energy that is present in the form of delusion, and in the form knowledge, and in the form of ignorance.

That is why, adore everything holistically. Take them all together. Don’t try to choose or separate, take them all completely and then you will be at peace; absolute peace.

This is the whole essence. Then freedom from misery, attainment of peace, exuberating love and joy, devotion and freedom in the mind - these are the things that are brought up.

Contentment and happiness! Do everything happily. Walk, talk, sit happily; even if you complain against somebody, do it happily.

The whole universe is just one consciousness. Didn’t you all feel today? It is like there are so many bodies, but just one mind.

One body in spite of so many bodies, one being in the entire field.

We are all part of that One - this understanding comes up as a deep experience.

Now don’t ask, ‘When will that come to me Guruji? I want it now.’ Just relax! Do nothing!

Just know that you are dear to the Divine and the Divine is here, right now, in you.

And that is it for today.

We usually doubt something positive

Wisdom can only blossom in a homely atmosphere, where we are informal and at home with each other. Do you all feel at home with each other right now?


Why not we all just take a moment to greet the person next to us, behind us and in front of us? A formal atmosphere is not very congenial for wisdom. You need to be informal with each other for a heart-to-heart talk, and that is what wisdom is. It is not head-to-head.

Now keep everything aside and just look at your own life. What is that you want from your life? Have you ever sat and thought about it, ‘What do I want in my life? ' And, ‘Who am I? ’
Someone told us something and we learnt that. We have studied and gotten educated, but ‘Who am I? What do I want?’ These questions seldom come to our mind.

In a head-to-head communication there can be many arguments. But from heart-to-heart there is only one language - One World Family.

Now keep everything aside and just look at your own life.

What is that you want from your life? Have you ever sat and thought about it, ‘What do I want in my life?'

We seldom get time to do that. And, ‘Who am I?’ – That too we do not think about.

Someone told us something and we learnt that. We have studied and gotten educated, but ‘Who am I? What do I want?’ These questions seldom come to our mind.

If you see your life of 60, 70 or 80 years, do you know how you spend those 80 years?

You spend 40 years of your life sleeping. You spend about eight years of your life in bathrooms and toilets, and about the same numbers of years are spent in eating.

10 to 15 years are spent in traffic, in making journeys, and in working. Hardly two to three years of our life are spent in what we call a ‘happy’ life. Is it not?

And is it not that which you want – Happiness?

All the scriptures of the world, from the ancient times to the recent times; they all talk about great happiness. Is it not? Because the scriptures know that men and women want happiness.

Happiness is not a commodity that you can buy somewhere. It is present where you are, right here and right now. And the way to find that happiness is meditation.

Meditation improves our health, our state of mind and brings more happiness.

Whatever we are seeking here and there, is right here, within us.

My purpose of coming here is to tell you that whatever you are looking for is deep within you, and that Light, that Spirit loves you so much. So do not worry.

Give me all your worries. I have come to carry them away. Drop all the worries here, be happy, and spread happiness.

Shouldn't this be our goal in Life?

What should be our goal?

Shake everyone up and tell them, ‘Hey! Wake up! Laugh and Smile.’

You should make people happy.

You know, when we have, then also we are unhappy, and when we don't have, then also we are unhappy.

I want to tell you a story.

An Indian-African immigrant from Kenya was in London; this was a long time ago when I went there. This gentleman came up to me and said, ‘Gurudev, I wish to own a BMW car. Please bless me’.

I said, ‘Okay, God willing you will get it.’

Six months later he came and met me. He was happy and he said, ‘Gurudev, I got it (the car). But the streets of Birmingham are so small that I find it so inconvenient to park it here and there without it getting a scratch on it. What to do?’

You know, in Birmingham the streets are smaller than they are here.

Few months later, he said, ‘Gurudev, it is becoming a difficult thing for me to have this car. Now I am miserable. I want to sell this car off but there is no buyer’.

You didn’t have it and you were unhappy. Now you have it and you are unhappy.

There is something seriously wrong with the way we look at life. This is where we have to have that wisdom, to turn it around and see that happiness is not related to what we have or what we don’t have. It is simply our state of mind.

Happiness is not related to what we have or what we don’t have.It is simply our state of mind. Happiness is not a commodity that you can buy somewhere. It is present where you are, right here and right now. And the way to find that happiness is meditation. Meditation improves our health, our state of mind and brings more happiness.

Do you know, 30% of Europe is depressed.

This figure is from the census of the last decade, now it is even more. And a small country like Bhutan is known for its happiness. Even Bangladesh has got more happy people.

I don’t know where South Africa comes in this list, but I have a hope that all of you here today will take this determination to be happy and spread happiness.

Is this a good idea? (Audience nod in agreement saying, 'Yes')

A violence-free society, disease-free body, stress-free mind, inhibition-free intellect, trauma-free memory and a sorrow-free soul are the birth-right of every human being.

(Gurudev briefly looks outside and listens to the loud music coming from outside the venue)

Distractions are there to see how keen you are to catch the wisdom.

In Sanskrit there is a saying, ‘Shreyansi Bahu Vighnani’, which means, if there is something very precious then there are many obstacles or distractions that come with it (from the Uddhava Gita. This quote is part of Lord Krishna’s discourse to his devotee Uddhava).

If there are a lot of distractions that come for something, then it must be very precious.

If you want to do something wrong, there will be no obstructions for that. But if you want to do something good or pick up something precious, many distractions may come.

This world is made up of five elements. This is what the scientists today have said, and this is what the Rishis (wise enlightened seers) also said in the ancient days.

The five elements are – Earth, Water, Fire, Air and Ether. That is why it is called Prapancha in Sanskrit. Panch means five, and Prapancha means a specific combination of five elements, of which this Universe is made of.

The same also goes for our body. Our body has 60% water element. The heat in the body represents the Fire element. The physical body itself symbolizes the Earth element, and the empty space represents the Space element. So these five elements make up our whole body, and everything in this Universe.

So we will do a short meditation, and after meditation, we will have a small Yagya.

Yagya means uniting the principles of the Universe.

This universe has got millions of rays coming into it. The macrocosm and the microcosm are connected. Every little butterfly here fluttering its wings has an impact on the clouds. Have you heard about this?

A butterfly in the Amazon forest can have an effect on the entire forest, and on the clouds in China.

If one monkey does something, it has an effect on several other monkeys. Have you heard about this in Africa?

We call it the ‘Big Five’ in Africa; the land of the ‘Big Five’ (a term used in African hunting which refers to the five most difficult animals in Africa to hunt on foot – Lion, African elephant, Cape buffalo, Leopard and Rhinoceros).

Each animal brings with it a certain vibration; a cosmic electromagnetic vibration with it on Earth. They channel this from the Universe to the Earth.

Every animal brings a particular vibration to planet Earth. And that is why every animal is very important.

The ancient Rishis in the Vedic times knew about this. A particular bird, even a particular type of seed has a particular vibration associated with it. So everything is connected from one to another. Like in our body, though we are born of one cell, that cell has 33 different chromosomes. And those different chromosomes in the DNA of the cell are responsible for forming different parts of our body.

This Universe has got so many different types of vibrations that come from its different parts.

Most of all we need to have that inner contentment. If we have inner contentment, we gain a unique ability to bless others. Not only will we be able to fulfil our own desires, but we will also be able to fulfil the wishes of others. The human spirit can possess that gift if it gets into a state of contentment.

So the macrocosm and the microcosm are united in a very unique manner. That is what the ancient people said. So when we go from Ether to Air to Fire to Water and then to Earth element; this is how the Creation has happened.

Therefore they designed Yagyas (to mimic and represent this process in a reversed direction – by offerings of sacred herbs (Earth element) and offerings of ghee (Water element) into the sacrificial fire (Fire element, in presence of the Air element), from where the vibrations are transmitted into space (Space element)) .

Yagyas are designed to bring peace.

What is the purpose of a Yagya? The first is Swasti – good health; then prosperity, peace of mind, happiness, a sense of togetherness with everybody, and to remove negativity from the atmosphere.

Every time you are negative, you transmit those negative vibrations of anger, jealousy, greed, frustration, and hatred. Yagyas are meant to neutralize and nullify all of them. That is why this time I thought that I should take this to South Africa as well.

I heard of the recent unfortunate incident in Africa where so many minors passed away. So, to bring happiness, peace and prosperity to all the population we will do a small Yagya by means of Vedic chanting and by offerings specific herbs, as it was done in the ancient times thousands of years ago. So you will witness that as well.

It is like a short Pooja in which we pray to the One Almighty to give us peace, prosperity, happiness, contentment, a sense of togetherness, a sense of belongingness and care for each other.

Most of all we need that inner contentment. You know, if we have inner contentment, we gain a unique ability to bless others.

Not only will we be able to fulfill our own desires, but we will also be able to fulfill the wishes of others. The human spirit can possess that gift if it gets into a state of contentment.

So we will do a short Yagya in which they will chant the ancient mantras which are 10,000 years old. During the chanting, we just close our eyes, listen and bathe in it chants.

(Gurudev guides everyone into meditation).

Q: Jai Gurudev! Thank you for this once in a lifetime opportunity. Please tell me, how do I know if I am on the correct path in life and that I am fulfilling my purpose here?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: There is something called Gut Feeling. Something deep inside you tells you, ‘This is right', and when you choose it, you really feel good about it.

I tell you, doubts usually come to you when you choose the right thing.

Doubt is always about something positive. Have you noticed this? We always doubt the honesty of a person; we never doubt the dishonesty of a person.

We ask our dear one, ‘Do you really love me?’

If someone tells you, ‘I love you’, you say, ‘Really?’

But if someone says, 'I am angry at you', you never say, ‘Really?’

Similarly, we always doubt our capabilities but we never doubt our incapability.

When someone asks you if you are happy, you say, ‘Well, I am not sure.' But you have never said the same when you are depressed. You are so sure of your depression.

You are so sure of negativeness, but you always question the positive things in life.

So doubt also indicates that there must be something good.

Just look within you, how many negative points you have, and how many positive points you have? How can you improve, this is what you need to think, and what you can do. How others should improve – for now, leave it to them.

Q: How do we get salvation in this life time, and how do we get rid of negative people that live with us?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: I said to leave all your problems here, but do not leave your family members who are troubling you! (Laughter)

Once it so happened, I said the same thing in the Ashram, ‘Leave all your problems here.'

One lady said, ‘My mother-in-law is my biggest problem, so can I leave her here?'

I said, ‘Let me ask your mother-in-law, she will say the same thing about you.'

See, challenges are there in life. Challenges come, people with different mindsets come, but when you expand your vision and see your life from a broader perspective, you will let go of all these small little issues that seem to be so significant to you right now. You have to broaden your vision.

If you find some people are negative, keep them at a distance that is number one.

The second thing is, know that they will not be like that forever. With time, they will change. And the third option is to think, ‘Okay, let them be. They are going to bring out better skills from within me.' They bring out greater skills of communication, skills of being positive in your foothold.

The last thing is to leave it to the Almighty. Leave it to Divinity to resolve.

We sing this in Mahatma Gandhiji’s favourite song, ‘Ishwar Allah Tero Naam, Sabko Sanmati De Bhagwaan’ - Let everyone’s mind and intellect be pure and be channelled in the right direction.

This is what is in the Gayatri Mantra also, ‘Dhiyo Yo Nah Prachodayat' - Let the Divine inspire my intellect. Let my intellect not come up with the small and silly little ideas, and thoughts. Let this intellect reflect the will of God, of the Almighty.

The Gayatri Mantra is one of the most beautiful mantras that human society has ever gotten which also says the same thing: Let the Divine will reflect in my will and thoughts; intellect. Let my intellect be aligned with the Divinity.

Q: If a loved one passes on, the common adage to those losing the loved one is, ‘He/she is always there with you.' Is that really true? Is that loved one who has passed away really there with you and is guiding you in life?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Why don’t you leave them some free time? They have had enough in this world and they have gone. Let them take some rest and do something else that they want to do. Let them have some fun. Why should they be guiding you all the time? (Laughter)

What is there to guide? It is like sitting in a train. You are going to get down when the train stops. The goal is fixed. Everybody is going to die one day. When you die you will see the other dimension as well. So don’t worry.

If you are happy and peaceful, your peace transcends this world and reaches the other shore as well. If you are full of love and devotion, a portion of it, a ray of it reaches them as well and they feel happy.

When you do some good service, that service brings merit and the merit also helps those who have passed away onto the other side.

Q: Jai Gurudev! I would like you to talk on youth and spirituality.

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: We are made up of both matter and spirit.

Our body is made up of carbohydrates, proteins, amino acids, vitamins, etc., and our spirit is made up of generosity, love, compassion, energy, expansion, integrity, honesty, truthfulness, intelligence, sensitivity; all these qualities.

Any acts that nurtures these inner qualities (beauty, love, etc.), they are Spirituality. Meditation, singing, chanting, serving, etc., are all part of spirituality. And it is this spirituality that keeps the youthfulness in you. It brings you energy.

You know, right now I am coming straight from India on a 15 hours flight. I just arrived, changed my clothes and in half-an-hour I had to rush here. Do I look jet-lagged and tired? (Audience respond saying ‘No’)

Someone asked me, ‘Gurudev, if we take a flight to Cape Town, we feel so jet-lagged. Don’t you feel jet-lagged?’

I said, ‘When the mind is fresh and when the mind is connected to the Source, there is always freshness.’

Youthfulness is that connection to the source and youthfulness is the ability to connect with everybody. And only Spirituality can bring this in the youth.

Challenges are there in life. Challenges come, people with different mindsets come, but when you expand your vision and see your life from a broader perspective, you will let go of all the small little issues that seem to be so significant to you right now. You have to broaden your vision.

Q: A person who is very close to me continuously lies and cheats. It is like second nature to him. And the lies are expressed with a straight face.

Why do people do this and what will become of them? Please help, I want to put my mind at rest.

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: You should remember that God loves fun.

If everybody would have been like you, you all would be like the Ford Company. The world is not a Ford company, producing only one type of car. Even they change the model every year. God loves fun and He puts all kinds of people around you.

Just look within you, how many negative points you have, and how many positive points you have?

How you can improve, this is what you need to think and what you can do. How others should improve – for now, leave it to them.

If you can, educate them, but do so with compassion.

Or take them to one of the Art of Living teachers nearby. The teacher can help them change. And if you are too compassionate, pray that his life becomes better, and that he becomes more honest.

But as I said earlier, all specimens are needed on this planet. They make the world more colourful. Got it?

They push certain buttons in you and evoke certain emotions in you, and see how you act or react to it.

Q: You are awesome! How does one eliminate procrastination?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: I will give this answer next year (Laughter).

Just imagine, you have given a tailor a garment to stitch for Diwali, or maybe your wedding. Now you go a week before your wedding to the tailor, hoping it will all be ready, and the tailor procrastinates and tells you, ‘I will give the dress six months later', how would you like it? What will be your state of mind?

Let us say, you are in need of a doctor because your tooth is aching, and your doctor tells you, ‘Come after three months and I will see if something can be done or not’, what would you do?

You do not want your doctor to procrastinate, or your tailor to procrastinate, and any of your essential services to procrastinate. You want every one of them to be spot on and deliver the service in the designated time.

Even for the questions you ask, you want the right answers right away! Correct?! But you want to procrastinate? Come on, wake up! Wake up now!

Is life governed by free-will or destiny?

Q. Is life governed by free-will or destiny?
Sri Sri: Life is a combination of both. If it’s raining outside, it’s destiny; you have no control over the weather. But to be wet or remain dry is your free-will. 

Take the past as destiny, future as free-will and be happy in the present. A foolish person looks at the past as free-will with regret, future as destiny and is miserable in the present.

The purpose of life is ..

Being useful is the purpose of your life

In life there are two situations: One is when you are comfortable and happy. Another situation is when you are upset and unhappy.
So what is needed to maintain this comfort and happiness is a willingness to do service.
When we are happy then we don’t serve. Usually the mind doesn’t go in the direction. When you are happy you just want to enjoy and don’t th

ink about care, share or service at that time, and that is when it is very much needed. When you are happy and you do service then happiness will remain.
What we need to ask for is the willingness to do seva when we are happy, and the ability to let go and turn inward when we are unhappy. We need to ask for this, ’Give me the strength to let go and turn inward when I am unhappy.’
And learning to let go of the world when we are still here, in it, enjoying it, is wisdom.

Once an elderly lady in one satsang asked a question, ‘Why did God make this world so miserable?’

The answer was, ‘Yes, he has made it like that for you. Even when it is so miserable you don’t let go of it and turn towards God. Otherwise you will never turn inward.’...sri sri

Meditation makes you feel light like a flower

April 21, 2012

Secrets of Meditation, California

Meditation is the journey from sound to silence, from movement to stillness, from a limited identity to unlimited space.
Last night, I said that there are five ways through which meditation happens. Let us recapitulate.
The first is by physical manipulation. Yoga, Tai-Chi, all these come under that. By stretching and contracting the body, the mind experiences a state of awareness that you can call meditation.

The second is through breathing exercises and pranayama, the mind becomes quiet and still.

The third is through any of the five senses and sensory objects; one can experience a state of no-mindedness, no thoughts, calmness, serenity and inner beauty.
If you observe a child, a baby enjoying a lollypop or a toffee, you can see how the child is engrossed totally in enjoying that piece of candy. You ask the baby, ‘What is your name?’ It won’t answer. They are fully into it. Being 100% engrossed in a particular sensory object brings you to a state of meditation.
On a free day, just lie down and keep looking at the sky, a moment comes when the mind becomes still, there are no thoughts and you don’t know where you are, but you know you are. An experience of the center everywhere and circumference nowhere. Limitless awareness can happen through just watching an empty space, because our mind is also space; consciousness is a space.
You listen to music and then a moment comes when you are completely engrossed in the music and you snap out of it. You no longer hear the music, but you know you are and yet you have no boundaries. In the language of Yoga, it is called Laya Yoga, which means dissolving in it. That leads you to meditation.
Any wonderment or astonishment also leads you to that state. Whenever a ‘Wow!’ arises in you, there is no mind, there are no thoughts, but you just are.
Sense of touch, smell, taste, sight and sound can all lead you into meditation, provided you do it in the right way. It needs a certain skill to experience that.

Emotions can lead you to a state of meditation; both positive and negative emotions, not only positive. A state of shock can also take you into meditation. Again, it is a little risky.
You know, when you feel utterly hopeless, you say, ‘I give up!’ When you are very angry, what do you say? ‘I give up!’ It means, ‘This is it. I can’t take it anymore.’
During those moments, if you don’t slip into frustration or depression or violence, you will find that there is a moment where it snaps and there is no mindedness. So, whether it is positive emotions or negative emotions, like fear, the mind stands still, it stops. It can lead you into that spot.

The next is intellectual stimulation, through knowledge, through awareness you can go into meditation. This is called Jnana Yoga.
If you have been into a space museum, you are in a different state of consciousness when you come out of the museum. There is a different context, because you have seen yourself in the context of the universe. Who are you? What are you? Where are you? How are you in reference to the unfathomable, infinite universe?
If you have studied Quantum physics, you start to see that everything is just atoms, just a wave function, just energy. If you really listen to Quantum physics and then you study Vedanta or the Art of Meditation or Yoga, you will find striking similarities. You will find that the same language is being spoken.
Adi Shankara said, ‘All that you see doesn’t exist’.
One of the top scientists of our times, Dr. Hans-Peter Durr said, ‘I studied matter for the last 35 years, only to find out that it does not exist! I have been studying something that does not exist’. So, through knowledge also you can experience a state of meditation.

I won’t go into the benefits of meditation. You can go to google and find out. There are greater minds that have done a lot of research on meditation and have put it there – what are all the benefits of meditation. Any meditation has some benefits. But the secrets of meditation, that is what we are interested in. We are inquisitive about this – what are the secrets?!

There is a difference in the Orient and in the occident when it comes to secrets. In the occident, anything that is shameful is kept a secret. In the Orient anything that is sacred is kept a secret. I find a startling difference between the two.
If you say something is very secret, it must be very sacred. That is the attitude in the orient. In the orient, a shameful act is never kept a secret, it is always confessed. There is nothing to hide there. But what is to be secret is one’s mantra– a sound which is kept very secret in the mind.
Why is it kept secret? It is said that mantras are like seeds and seeds sprout in secrecy. You put the seed under the ground and cover it with mud and then the seed sprouts and becomes a tree. Of course the sprouts you eat are different. The ancient concept of mantra is a sound which is kept very secret in you grows from inside; means it resonates inside you. Anything that you keep to yourself as a secret does not leave you but it takes you deeper and deeper to the subconscious layers. That is one of the reasons for confession also.
Why do you confess and say something out? This is so that it does not go deep into your consciousness. A mistake or sin that you did, once you confess, it just goes out. It no longer goes in and bothers you. But the mantra; a sound which has been given, and that too by one who is deep into meditation, one who has mastered it, helps you go deeper. The sound (mantra) is given to another person, a student saying, ‘Keep it to yourself, it is your personal mantra, and let it grow.’
Here the meaning of the sound is not important, just the vibration is important. Understanding the meaning is superficial compared to the vibrational aspect of any sound.
It could be the same sound which everybody knows.

In olden days they used to do four days of celebration to give a mantra. They would call all the relatives and friends when the child was going to be initiated. They would bring horses and put the child on the back of the horse and have a procession.
This was the ancient way of doing it.
Spiritual journey is considered very sacred, very personal and yet a matter of pride. You are getting a secret sound and that is a big pride because it is sacred.

Meditation happens in transition. Actually meditation happens, you can’t do it. You can only create a congenial atmosphere for it to happen.

Somewhere in the teenage the mind starts drifting. It doesn’t happen before teenage. Before the hormones become active in our body it does not happen. A child’s mind is always focused on something and it sticks there. But as the hormones in our body starts functioning more and more, the mind starts swinging and wavering, and that focused attention becomes less and less.
In earlier days, before this happened, before someone gets into their teenage, they used to train him or her in yoga and meditation. So all through the teenage when the mind is swinging and going here and there, already a youth is trained how to handle the mind. It is a very good age to start, at eight or nine years old. Just before the hormonal changes start appearing is the right time to initiate one into meditation, yoga and all the martial arts. Body is ready and is flexible and mind is ready.
This is most ideal, but any time is good to start meditation, any age is okay. But the most ideal is to start at eight or nine years old.
Today, even eight and nine years old kids have such a wavering mind. So many things influence the child. Like food has an influence on the mind, environment has an influence, lifestyle has an influence. So many things have an influence. But all those influences are minor.

Let us understand, meditation is uplifting the energy and spreading it out. Uplifting the mind and spreading it all out. Sound does this to meditation. Sound uplifts you and sound can also shrink your consciousness. How? Okay I will give you an example, whenever you experience pain, what is the sound that comes out of you? You say, ‘Ha’.
This is all over the world, from Mongolia to Tierra Del Fuego. You go anywhere and ask any kid or anybody, what does one say when they experience some pain, they say, ‘Ha’. Nobody says, ‘Ho’, when pain happens.
The sound ‘Ho’ comes when there is astonishment.
Now when you say, ‘Ha’, where is the prana? You will see it is on the lower portion of the body.
Now when you say, ‘Ho’, the prana is in the middle portion of the body, the thorax region. This is when there is surprise or astonishment; ‘Ho! I didn’t know.’
We say, ‘Wah!’ This is when there is even more astonishment. Then the prana is high in the throat and upper region. The life force is higher.
And then when you laugh, what is the sound that comes out? ‘He he he he.’ There is a ‘He’ sound in every genuine laughter.
When you say, ‘He’, what is happening? A sense of genuine expansion happens. See whenever you have been happy, that happiness has been associated with a sense of expansion. And whenever you have felt miserable, that has been associated with a sense of shrinking or contraction. There is something in you which expands when you are happy and contracts when you are unhappy. But we never pay attention to what is contracting and expanding. We are only keeping our attention outside.
We see the reason outside, but that is really not the reason. We have not paid attention to the reason. There is something inside that is expanding and that is contracting.

One of the sages of the past, Gaudapadacharya, he has said, ‘There is something in you that is expanding that is worth knowing.’
Even a glimpse of this consciousness, this energy inside you, can make the smile on your face so strong that nothing whatsoever can take it away from you. Nobody can make you miserable; nobody can take away the joy from your life. Life assumes another dimension suddenly; just a glimpse of this, an idea about that something inside us that is expanding. So this expansion is always connected with laughter, joy and the sound ‘He’.

If there is a ‘Ha’ in one’s laughter, that is a villain’s laughter.
‘Ha ha ha ha! See I told you. You fell because you didn’t listen to me. Look what happened!’
Just by listening to the laughter you can find out what type of laughter it is. Whether it is sarcastic, it is teasing or it is out of arrogance or anger.
Even angry people laugh but it is a different kind of laughter. The sound is different. A genuine child like laughter has a ‘He’ in it.

So, today we are going to meditate using two sounds. We are going to say ‘Ho’ six times with full force and energy. And then the seventh time we are going to say ‘He’. We have seven energy centers in our body corresponding to the endocrine system. Again these are sacred centers.
Don’t confuse this to be a mantra meditation, no! This is a guided meditation. Guided meditation is good to give you a glimpse of meditation. When you want to do it on your own, it is better you take a mantra meditation – Sahaj Samadhi. Of course sometimes you can put on a CD and just sit and do guided meditation also. Time to time, but not every day; mantra meditation you can do every day and anywhere. Sit and take your mantra, let go and be with it.

Okay! Ready?! So buckle up.

Sit comfortably, spine erect and body relaxed.
You know, sometimes people sit with their body so stiff for meditation. The whole time they will be so body conscious and what comes out of them is only anger later on because they put so much effort, and that effort and stiffness doesn’t really bring in that meditative quality.
If you have meditated, you should feel light like a flower, where your inside feels so soft, beautiful, delicate, delicious and comfortable. But if you feel uptight, angry and upset inside then mediation has not happened. Now don’t sit and think, ‘Oh I have to feel very soft and gentle, and whatever Guruji said. This has to happen.’ It is not going to happen because the anxiety itself will be a block for that to happen. That is why I said it is a very delicate situation. You cannot expect things to happen, you simply have to be. Just be!

Experiences come, they change and they go. Everyday there will be different experiences, never mind, just the procedure needs to be correct. Procedure is what, not being uptight and at the same time not being loose in the body. If you start with your body being loose then it doesn’t work. If you start with lying down on your coach with your legs up, thinking you are meditating, you are fooling yourself. It is not going to work. It is not like the way you watch television, with a bag of potato chips. ‘Oh, by eating also you can get into meditation. Guruji has said it’, no! Your spine erect but body relaxed, your shoulders relaxed, you start like that. Not stiff but your shoulders are relaxed and head is straight. Then you close our eyes and let go.
During meditation if the head goes down, it is okay. Your head may go down or go to the side, whatever position it takes is fine. But you don’t start with that.
The best example is how a coat hangs on a hanger. Like that the body is hanging, just the spine is erect.

(Guruji guides the audience into meditation)

Q: Why is it that 10 minutes of meditation gives me more energy than 8 or 10 hours of sleep? 
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: That is how it is.
Meditation gives you a different kind of energy. Food gives you a different kind of energy. Sleep gives you a different kind of energy. Exercise gives you a different kind of energy. Knowledge gives you a different kind of energy, and meditation definitely tops them all.

Q: When we sit for meditation, do we necessarily experience a moment of transcendence and peace for a few minutes in every meditation? 
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: There are no criteria I tell you. It can happen anywhere, anytime, or it may not even happen.
If you have eaten the wrong food or you feel very agitated then sometimes it may not happen. But never mind, sitting for meditation is important. Even if you sit for twenty minutes or half an hour, just sit then definitely you will find it is better than not sitting at all.
See, when you are happy anyways you can easily meditate. It is when you are agitated, that is when you cannot meditate, and that is when it is more needed for you to calm down. That is when you have the resistance not to do it.

Q: Sometimes my transition from meditation to work is really hard to adjust to. At times I get agitated and I react and regret later. Please guide me for a smooth transition from meditation to activity. 
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: A little bit of yoga, pranayama, exercise and some singing and chanting, all these will help bridge that gap and will bring inner peace and external activity.

Q: I have heard that in the long run meditation has an effect on the body and even on the composition of our DNA. 
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Of course, mind has an impact on the body.
Again, search using Google and find. There are many scientific researches that are there on how meditation affects the mind and body.

Q: Guruji, you have said that prayer is speaking to God and meditation is listening to God. What can I do to hear the answers to questions and prayers in meditation? 
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Just relax! If you are keeping an intention or desire, or holding on to it, you cannot meditate. Only if you drop it you can go into meditation. Let go of all intentions or prayers

Be Open Minded

July 09, 2012

Bad Antogast, Germany

 

Q: Dear Guruji, what is the real meaning and importance of Rudra Pooja? And what happens to the people or the place?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Rudrabhishek is an ancient chanting which was downloaded from the Aakasha (space). When the ancient sages and Rishis sat in meditation, they heard, and what they heard, they started transferring to other people. The effect of Rudrabhishek is it creates positive energy and removes negative vibes. And a lot is said about the Rudrabhishek. When Rudrabishek happens nature flourishes, nature becomes joyful, happy.

Main thing is the vibration, that is it. If you ask me, ’Do you know the meaning of all the chants? I will say, ’I also don’t know.’ It’s the vibration of the chants that is important and then the meaning.

There are two parts, the first part says, ’Namo, namo, namo, namo!’

Mana, means mind. The word mind in English comes from Sanskrit word Mana.

Nama is the reverse of the mind. The mind going to its source is called Nama.

When the mind goes outside to experience the world, it is Mana. So Nama. is the mind going back to its source.

When it goes to its source, what does it find? Everything is made up of one consciousness.

Now, what do the scientists today say? God Particle – by which everything has been made. Thousands of years ago the Rishis said the same thing, that everything is made up of one thing, and that they called Brahman. – that which is neither male nor female. It is nothing but a Tattva. Tattva means principle. A great principle by which everything is made of, they called it Bramhan. And when that Bramhan becomes personal, it is called Shiva Tattva – the innocent Divinity; that is in everything. That is why we say, ‘Namo, namo!’

In the trees, in the greenery, in the birds, even in the thieves, and in a dacoit, everywhere, it is the same one principle.

A great principle by which everything is made of is called Bramhan. And when that Bramhan becomes personal, it is called Shiva Tattva – the innocent Divinity; that is in everything. In the trees, in the greenery, in the birds, even in thieves, and even in a dacoit; everywhere, it is the same one principle.

Then, the second part will say, ‘Chame, chame, chame, chame.’ You have heard this, isn’t it?! This means, everything is in Me.

‘Me’ in English comes from the Sanskrit word ’ Ma’, which means Myself.

‘Ma Ma’ means ’ For Me’, ‘In Me’. So, everything is in terms of ; myself;. The second part is everything is for me and everything is in terms of me.

Even for numbers they say, ‘Ekaachame’, which means, one, two, three, four, they are all my form; Myself. Like that, ‘Sugamchame’, happiness for me!

‘Abhayanchame’, fearlessness, happiness, health, all the good things in the universe, let them all come to me, and they are all part of me. That is it.

And as this is being chanted, usually milk and water runs through the crystal, drop by drop. This is the ancient method. It is done with water or in fire as well.

What they do is they keep a fire and they put different herbs for the different chants. Or you allow a string of water to keep falling on a crystal and you listen to this chanting – this is the ancient method.

And done on Mondays it is even more special. Monday is the day of the moon and the moon and mind are connected. Mantra, mind, moon, they are all connected somewhere. So, in India, it is a tradition, they have this chanting going on in the Ashrams. So in our ashram also, every Monday, we have this.

All the five elements are used in pooja. Pooja means honoring all the elements, born out of fullness. So, fire, water, incense sticks, fruits, flowers, rice, whatever nature has given to us, those things are used and the chanting goes on.

There is a lot of depth and meaning to it. You can go and do some research on it, more and more things will come out.

Mainly, it creates more positive ions, more so when people are meditating.

Just doing it as a ritual is not that effective because it is said that the Veda Mantras are effective when people are awake from within; for them, these mantras have more meaning. So, they help you to go deep into meditation.

Q: I can understand the truth of your knowledge. I can enjoy pooja, bhajans and all the Indian customs as well around you. But, when I am together with my friends, it is very difficult to speak about all this; especially, listening to a Master. In our country, we learn to follow our mind and not any Masters. What can you suggest to make Art of Living more acceptable?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Do you know, 30 years ago, when we first started The Art of Living then also it was very difficult. Teaching yoga means only someone who is out there, someone who is crazy, would do yoga. But today people like yoga.

I want to tell you one thing. You don’t have to talk about pooja, chanting and all that to one who does not know. Just talk about meditation, Sudarshan Kriya, Part 1 course, this is good enough. And I tell you, today people are much more open than before.

There are big programs happening around the world. The Buddhists do the Mandala Pooja, and everybody flocks to see the ritual. Buddhism has similar chanting and people love to listen to the chanting.

So, sometimes, it is our mind only that put the blocks.

In a city like New York, there are a number of classes for chanting; Sanskrit chanting. And these classes are full, there is no place available.

Our own center in New York has three to four shifts for Kriya and for meditation. Everyday there are so many people visiting.

So today, West is not West and East is not East. You will find agnostics, non-believers in the East also. And you find believers in the West also. So people are more open and their prejudices are lesser than before. If you find they have prejudices, tell them, ‘Hey, you should not be prejudiced. You should be a global citizen. You should be open to multi-culturalism and multi-cultural religious festivals; otherwise you are in the middle- ages, dark ages. You are not open-minded. Your mind is very closed. And whenever there is any good thing anywhere, you should accept that.’

You don’t need to say, ’I follow a Master’, and this and that.

I make everybody leaders. I am in the back giving you a push to go forward. A coach is essential everywhere, whether it is sports, or music, or cooking. Unless you have a coach who helps you learn how to be a good cook, you cannot get certified. So, for yoga, for exercise, even soccer you need a good coach, isn’t it?

So similarly, for spirituality, which is very abstract, you definitely need a coach, someone who trains you.

A Master never tell you, ‘Shut your brain and don’t think’, no! He encourages you to think freely. This is what you need to know.

The Art of Living encourages Reasoning and Faith, both. Faith and Reason, they may appear to be conflicting. It has happened in the past like that. That is how the Spanish inquisition happened. In the past if the Church said something you should never question it. So, the entire revolution in Russia about Communism started because reason was shunned. But in the East that never happened. East always said, ‘Honor your reason.’

In the Bhagavad Gita, Lord Krishna gives Arjuna the entire knowledge, and then finally he says, ‘You reason, if it appeals to your intellect then you accept it. Whatever I said, if your intellect does not accept it then you need not accept whatever I have said.’

Buddha said the same thing, ‘You must have Reason and Surrender as well. Have faith.’ This is what Lord Buddha said.

If you say, ‘Let me first learn swimming then I will get in to water’, a real coach will say, ‘Get into the water and I will tell you how to swim.’

So it is not one after another, yes! As you get into water you have to swim immediately. You have to learn simultaneously. That is why Reason and Faith, they both are essential in life. You can’t learn swimming in the air first and then get into the water. Then you will not learn swimming. When you get into the water only then you will learn how to swim, correct! And there is a life jacket around you. The Master is like the life jacket. He teaches you to swim and once you start swimming then you know the value of it, isn’t that so?

Rudrabhishek is an ancient chanting downloaded from the Aakasha (space). The effect of Rudrabhishek is it creates positive energy and removes negative vibes. Mainly, it creates positive ions, more so when people are meditating.

So, how to answer people? You need not answer every question that anybody asks. Sometimes just smile. You don’t know the value of it, but just taste it and then tell them. Someone might say, ’Oh! Why are you listening to chanting?’

‘Oh! You don’t know the value of chanting. It is so wonderful. Just do it. Just listen to it once and you will see.’

That is what we want to share. We want to share what is best with everybody; with everyone. Not that in India everything is good or everything better, no! There are many hopeless things also. But we have picked the good things and are sharing it with the world.

Similarly, every religion, every culture has something very beautiful. That we should share. Not the fanaticism and not the small mindedness.

What do you say? We take the good things from everywhere, we do it and we promote it. We see that everyone gets the benefit of those things. Isn’t it?

There are many things even in yoga that they do which are not that scientific. In Hatha Yoga, they pierce the body with a needle. They do things that are not really in the scriptures, but people have been practicing it. Now, we don’t encourage those things. And then people torture themselves in the name of meditation and yoga. So, we say no for these things because these are all not authentic!

Similarly, for rituals also, they add so many things that are not completely authentic, and are not in the scriptures. It is not even necessary but by practice people are using these things. That is where you need the discrimination of what is right and what is not right. Take only that.

Q: Guruji, what can I do for you?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: I would like you to keep this question and from time to time do whatever is necessary. There can’t be just one answer for this. This is like a path on which we tread many times.

Right now, I want you to be happy. Be immersed in this knowledge and share this with other people.

Q: Guruji, I feel so alone in this world. How can I find my soul mate to live with and share all the joy of life?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: I am thinking of opening a matrimony site here in Germany and Europe as well. May be you can take this seva. You can start this.

We will start Sri Sri Matrimony. There are many men who want to get married, who are in the same boat as you, and so many ladies who are in the same boat as well, so we will just connect. Each of you choose and pick and come to me and I will bless.

Q: Dear Guruji, sometime ago, we were sitting in a small group around you and you were saying that you have shared only kindergarten knowledge so far and that you are waiting for us to become ready for the more upgraded knowledge. Are we ready now to receive this upgraded knowledge? And to be honest, I am really curious and thirsty to know what this highest knowledge is all about. Please share with us.

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Yes, dose by dose. Sure!

Blessing course is there. How many of you have become blessers? Is it working, yes! How many of you have not taken the blessing course? You have to take the blessing course.

You will find every day so many miracles happening with you.

Q: Guruji, are you concerned about the rise of certain technologies, especially machine implants in the human body, which could possibly modify the human thought process? Do you think that future machines will become one with nature?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: You are a machine yourself, yes! Your body is the most amazing machine. Your mind is even better and so is the intellect. You should only know how to operate them better.

I am more concerned about the operator than the machine.

Q: Guruji, how can one have peace if one has made mistakes in life? Tell us how to deal with mistakes in life.

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: You know in the beginning days of The Art of Living, one of my first trips was to Switzerland, and I stayed with a few people. Now, one of the ladies I stayed with had this trouble of relating to two realities.

A group of people, all of them thought that KGB (Committee of State Security – Russia) has implanted some mike in their brain and they were recording all their thoughts. And they would say, ’Is it safe to talk here?’

I would look around and say, ‘This is your own house. Why would you not think it very safe to talk here?’

They would say, ’They are hearing in Moscow.’

Those were the days of the Cold Era. The Cold War was still on. The Berlin wall was very much intact, it had not fallen apart. And Russia was not Russia; it was USSR and there was so much paranoia in them all.

When someone goes away, it may be their own friends or their own relatives, they would say, ‘Do you know that guy (pointing at their friend or relative) who went is a KGB agent.’

‘So, he is your own brother.’

‘No! KGB has implanted a mike in his head.’

And the whole 15 to 20 of them, who ever had come, all of them were like this. They were all on some medication.

They were in two realities – Schizophrenic, Bi-Polar, some defects they all had.

I just sat there and thought, ‘Oh my God! Where have you brought me?’ Completely different world I tell you. It was a world which was so different because their thoughts were so different. Their beliefs were completely different, and they sincerely believed that the KGB was recording their thoughts. Only two of them thought CIA was doing it for them; it was most hilarious.

A coach is essential everywhere, whether it is sports, music, or cooking. Unless you have a coach who helps you learn how to be a good cook, you cannot get certified. So similarly, for spirituality, which is very abstract, you definitely need a coach, someone who trains you.

And this lady built one room for me upstairs because I was coming, it was a big thing. So I had a separate room, everything new, everything separate, everything for me, and in the middle of the night, at 1 o’clock or so, she comes and knocks at my room and says, ‘I have to write this house in your name now. I have to gift this to you.’

I said, ‘My dear, you go sleep, tomorrow we can talk about it.’

She said, ‘No! I have to do it right now!’

I said, ’You see, I don’t accept any gifts. If it is in your name, it is as good as being with me, you go rest now.’ In those days, I was not accepting any such gifts.

And she was all worked up and she went to clean the bathroom. And she was cleaning, cleaning, cleaning, cleaning, for five hours, and the water ran all over the house. She opened the taps and the water ran through the entire house, everywhere, and she was still cleaning.

Of course next day we had to call the doctor. She could not rest.

She would make little, little, nice gifts. She needed to do something, she could not sit quiet. She and her friend they would make nice little paper bags with biscuits, and make gifts for all. If there were 20 people, she would make gifts for 200 people, because she had to keep doing something.

I would say, ‘Rest! Relax!’

‘How can I rest? I want to do this.’

‘Okay do it.’ Very interesting! But very nice people, with a good heart.

In one sense they are very intelligent, but they cannot connect to this reality. They cannot bridge the two realities.

You know, usually when the saints were told that somebody got enlightened, they would first ask, ‘Have they gone crazy?’ That is the question they would ask.

That is why the people who say, ‘Oh, I am bringing up your kundalini, you just do this’, you should stay away from all these people. They can just trigger some points in you or some energy in you and you may feel good for one or two days and then the fuse goes. Then you become completely crazy. You can’t relate to reality.

So, if any one promises, ‘Oh! I am going to awaken your kundalini’, and all that, then just tell them, ‘I am quite awake, I don’t want to go there.’

So, you should stay away from all these kind of people.

This is the best thing; see how step by step we move forward. Just look back and see before Sudarshan Kriya, what was your state of mind? And what it is now? See how much you have progressed. And then with Hollow and Empty Meditation, step-by-step, a natural blossoming of life is happening. You are finding yourself more and more happier. Isn’t it?

How many of you agree with that? (Everyone raises their hands)

See, this is the way we must go. Naturally!

You have every right to be happy

When you are part of the master, you have every right to be happy. You have every right to Knowledge, happiness and the whole Universe ~ Sri Sri ♥♥♥♥

No Explanations and No Complaints

 We need to create waves of happiness in Holland. Don’t you think so?

Do you know, if we think only about ourselves then our life shrinks. But when we think for the whole society, for everybody then there is more joy. Yes, there are challenges in it.

Everyone wants to be happy, right? Is there anyone who doesn’t want to be happy here? Every human being, every animal, every creature wants to be happy. Now, what is the way to be happy? It is by sharing happiness. When you spread happiness, it grows. When you don’t spread it and keep it to yourself, it starts to dwindle and then finishes. This is what people don’t know. They want to be happy, but they don’t know how to share it with everybody and to expand their family. And that is what The Art of Living is. It is the education to expand one’s happiness and to expand one’s family. So, are we all committed to do this?

We need many centers where the Sudarshan Kriya can happen; many places where people can congregate. I would say, as many places as there are McDonalds, we need that many centers. That would make a big difference.

There is an old Sanskrit proverb, which says, ‘The real worship, the real prayer to God is to create happiness in others.’ It has challenges, no doubt about it. All individuals have challenges. One may have challenges about their job, husband, wife, children, brother, sister, mother, father, family, health, etc. All these challenges surround us, right? There has never been a time in anybody’s life that challenges don’t come. If not yours, you are bothered about your friend’s challenges. If not your friend’s, you are bothered about your relatives’ challenges. If nothing, you have the world to bother about!

Greece is going for election today. Everybody is in tenterhooks, thinking, ‘Oh! We don’t know what will happen.’ If Greece sinks, it will have a huge impact on the Euro and Europe. This fear is there. So, everybody has something or the other to be bothered about, right?

Now, in spite of all these tough situations, if we surge ahead, move ahead, open our arms, open our wings, and start working for a happy world, I tell you, we will be successful. Got it?

You know, when I first came to Holland in 1988, I gave a talk in a small room. There were about fifteen people. Among those people, there were about five or six Suriname Indians. They said, ‘Holland is very tough. They don’t like to do anything with spirituality. Please don’t waste your time’.

I just smiled and listened to them. Then, I was taken to a small temple in the Suriname community. They requested me to give a talk there. The next day, they said that there is another temple, where they wanted me to come.

I said, ‘Okay, I will come there, but I want to reach out to everybody, the whole population.’

They said, ‘You know, the people here are not interested in anything related with India, the people will not like it; prejudice is there’.

I said, ‘No, it does not matter.’ I just smiled through, and said, ‘The whole world is my family and every community belongs to me, not just one. Not just the Dutch, or the Suriname, or the Indian community.’ Here, there were separate temples, one for the Indian community, the expatriate Indians, and one for the Suriname community. I went to both the temples and then I went to a church. There was a small gathering in the church. They also enjoyed meditation. So, I just taught a little bit of meditation, a little bit of Sudarshan Kriya, and said, ‘One day, there will be a lot of people in Holland who will learn the Sudarshan Kriya.’

And I kept moving from then on. If I had stayed in the comfort of Bangalore, nice weather, beautiful place, all types of comfort, I would have remained in my comfort zone.

In those days, it was very difficult to travel outside India. It was very expensive. It was very cold in those days when I came here. It was dark and cold. I was in a small apartment with just one room. And from that room, once you come down through a small little staircase, you are in front of a canal.

I am used to sleeping with the window open. I don’t like the window closed. So, when I opened the window, there was a cold breeze coming through it all night. But I enjoyed it all, because I had a mission to reach out to the people of Holland. I wanted them all to gain the benefits out of this and enjoy this beautiful gift.

Afterwards, I came here several times and many others joined later. But still, we are not going at the pace we should go. Don’t you think so? We are going in a very slow car, in the last lane. We have to shift our lane to the fast lane and reach out to people throughout Holland and create a wave of happiness in the country.

We can ask people to gather and we can give them a little bit of bhastrika and a little meditation, just a small sample of it.

Come on, let us sing, dance and share with each other. Life is so short! We came into the planet crying but we don’t want to go back from here crying. At least when we go from this place, let us be smiling. Yes, this body gets sick.

Sickness has been part of this world since ages. Take care of the body. We should provide food, shelter, and whatever we need (for the body). But, sitting and worrying about it, is unwarranted. Do you get it? Worrying is unnecessary.

Q: Dear Guruji, people sometimes give me the feeling of being invisible. What to do about that? Please give my family a blessing.

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Invisible, meaning people don’t recognize you? Never mind. That is even better. When nobody recognizes you, nobody has any demands from you. You know, being a Guru is a very big job. So many demands are there! You have to be watchful and alert every minute, and be available every minute. It is good that you are invisible. Happy-go-lucky! Never mind.

To improve family relations you need two things - No Explanations and No Complaints. Asking explanation from others is a foolish thing. And explaining to others thinking they would understand is another foolish thing.

Q: Can you explain how it is possible that all people in my country Holland create beautiful things? We are materialistic, but there is no awareness of consciousness. How is this possible?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: I don’t think so. There is consciousness in people. There is so much kindness in people. People in Holland have lot of values and they are very much willing to support and do service. You simply need to give them a chance and channel them, that is all.

Wherever there is a disaster, aid from Holland goes there first. When there was tsunami, people from Holland supported them. A big load of clothes arrived, and our people distributed them. A lot of help comes from Holland. People from Holland have very big hearts. Don’t under estimate them. They are like tulips.

Q: Dearest Guruji, I am a yoga teacher and I work hard. I keep myself busy but I know I could do a lot more. I would like some advice.

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: I need more volunteers. We have four centers here. We need a lot of volunteers to work in these centers. So, sign up as volunteers. Even if you give two days in a month, that would be very good.

You come for two days in a month, for three to four hours. Do whatever work we need. How many of you would like to volunteer like this? You know, volunteering is doing what you can. All that you need to do is to come and spend three to four hours and go. Just come to the center for a few hours, answer a few phone calls, say a few nice words to people who come to the centers and help them out.

Can we not do this?

You know, five centers are not enough for a country this big.

Do you know how many satsang groups are in New Delhi? 280 satsang groups. Sudarshan Kriya happens in all these places.

In Bangalore, though the ashram is there, there are 195 centers, where people from every locality have a place to do the Sudarshan Kriya, meditate, share, sing and eat together. You know, for places like Amsterdam and Hague, we need many places where the Sudarshan Kriya can happen; many places where people can congregate. I would say, as many places as there are McDonalds, we need that many centers. That would make a big difference in the country.

Q: How do I improve family ties?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: To improve family ties, don’t try to improve it. Don’t try to get over the misunderstanding. If there is a misunderstanding, just overlook that.

Educate and ignore. Move forward. Don’t do postmortem, i.e., sit and dig, ‘Why did you say that?’, ‘You don’t love me’, all this garbage is such a waste of time. We dwell into so much emotional garbage. We should throw them all out and have bubbling enthusiasm. You should move with enthusiasm.

If someone lacks enthusiasm, push them into enthusiasm, and do not go on complaining or asking for explanation from people.

To improve family relations you need two things - No Explanations and No Complaints. That’s it. Got it?

Asking explanation from others is a foolish thing. And explaining to others thinking they would understand is another foolish thing. It doesn’t work both ways. The best is to just move forward.

If you are at ease with yourself everyone will be at ease with you

Celebrating Silence Blog: April 06, 2012 -Bali, Indonesia 

Contentment and happiness are very important. Other things come and go. We have come on this planet so many times, we will come again. Life is continuous; it is coming and going, coming and going.

Q: How do I keep my spirit high all the time?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Just remember why you are disturbed, it is because of small things and know that it will all be alright.

So when you see all these things come and go and everything will be alright, then you say, ‘I am not going to be disturbed by this. I am bigger than this.’ Yes!

Just that thought in the mind – I am bigger than this. Then the spirit is uplifted higher.

So I am not the body; body is undergoing so many changes all the time. Sometimes I feel tired, sometimes I feel strong. I am much bigger than the body.

People think mind is inside the body, this is wrong, body is inside the mind.

The mind is like a candle, there is a wick and there is flame above the wick. If you close the candle with a lid, it will burn only as long as there is oxygen. In the same way, if you put somebody in the room and close it, they will be alive only till oxygen is there in the room. So the mind is like the glow that lives on oxygen, on consciousness. So first there is the body and then there is the mind, so the mind is much bigger. When you remember this, that the mind is like a flame, it is much bigger then there is peace. Still if something bothers you then breathe (referring to Sudarshan Kriya). With fast breathing and Bhastrika, it becomes better.

Q: Guruji, why do relationships take away our freedom?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: If there is wisdom in relationships, it does not take away freedom. If there is no wisdom, then there is no freedom. It is not the relationship that gives you or takes away freedom. It is lack of wisdom.

Q: Dear Guruji, what is my duty?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Listen to your heart. You heart will tell you what your duty is.

Q: Jai Gurudev, are the bad things in our life also grace?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: If you look from a broader perspective, you will see, those incidences which were painful has given you some depth and made you more mature. So the painful incidences give you depth and maturity. Whenever you are unhappy you should surrender. Usually when you are angry you say, ‘I give up!’

So you should have the power to drop things when you are unhappy, and power to do service when you are happy. Service in happiness and renunciation in unhappiness.

Q: Guruji, I want to make a difference in the world in a massive way. How do I discover the way to make that difference?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: I want people like you who have this spirit to make a big difference in the world. Come and I will send you to different places where you can go and do a lot of work. You already have a ready-made platform. You don’t have to do it from scratch which would take another thirty years to do. You have a ready-made platform, take a jump from here and take it to another level.

See, I want to do something, is one thing, but another is, what is needed in the world we need to do that. I want to make a difference is different from we need to make a difference in the world. What is needed for the world let us all do that. This is the spirit that we should have.

Q: Dear Guruji, fear bothers me a lot, what to do?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Why fear, when I am here. You belong to me and I belong to you. When you feel that you are alone and you have nobody, only then you fear. Fear is when you feel loneliness, when you feel that you are not connected. Fear is love standing upside down. Never mind, just do some ujjayi breathing and attend satsangs, and it will change.

Q: Guruji, I think I am addicted to sex. I have no self control when it comes to sex. I try very hard, but I can’t control myself.

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: I think you have too much free time. If you are busy and you work hard and then you get so tired that you are waiting to hit the pillow, the moment you hit the pillow you will fall asleep.

Either you have too much free time or you are eating too much, then obsessions and addictions come up. It is always related to too much food and too much sex.

Q: On the spiritual path is it bad to marry and have children?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: No, you can marry and you can have children.

That is why I have started the department Sri Sri Matrimony, so that all the single girls and bachelors can put their names in it, and then one day we will have a swayamvar. Then you can choose whom you want to marry.

We have that already, it just needs to be developed a little. Someone needs to put a little attention into it; someone who is good at match making.

Q: Guruji, after all these years, I am still struggling, why? Love you Guruji!

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: You love me and then you are struggling. Struggling for what?

You are struggling for money, then don’t sit and day dream, do hard work. If one business does not work, choose another business and do it.

You can only struggle with two things, a job or relationship.

If you are not getting married, you have been too choosy and so things are not working. And if you are already in a relationship and then you are struggling, then of course the knowledge point comes here, accept people as they are. So you try to accept them more and more, but your mind says no. Know that it is because of the knowledge that you are able to sustain and survive. Do you see what I am saying? Somehow you are making things work.

So don’t think nothing works for you. I don’t think that is a fact.

The third issue could be health. There is no fourth issue. And being in The Art of Living always helps you to somehow manage all the three.

Don’t sit and day dream and only think about miracles to happen. Miracles do happen, but if you crave for miracles then they will take a back seat. Nature wants you to be dynamic.

There are people who have asked me, ‘Guruji, please give me some numbers for my lottery ticket. I just want to win a lottery so that I don’t have to do anything. Just do sadhana all the time and some seva.’ No ways!

First of all, decide what it is that you want from life.

Struggling with what? With money?!

You know money is something that you will always find people short of money. Always!

You can see for example, the richest country, the only super power on this planet is USA and it is under heavy debt; trillions of dollars of debt. You take big companies; many of them are in debt. The richer a person gets, the more expenses he has to do. At the same time, there are poor people who are contributing towards charity, poor people who take time to do service, which is amazing. They feel so much abundance.

The other day in India, a gentleman comes to me. He has a small shop; a small little kiosk for himself, and he had inherited two plots of land. So he comes to me and offers me one plot of land. He says, ‘I want to give this plot to you’, he insisted. He came with his whole family, his wife, his mother and said, ‘I have two, I want to donate one and keep the other one.’

The plot is in a very expensive location of the city and he could make a big fortune from it. But look at the heart in that guy.

I said, ‘Okay, I will take it, but it will be in your name only. You should keep it for me and you build your shop here. Sell the other plot and with the money that you get, do business.’

I could not say I won’t take this to him because he will feel hurt, so I said, ‘Yes this is mine, but it will be in your name and you should have it.’

Look at the broad mind of that person.

Another day, a very poor lady comes, and she had just one gold chain that she inherited. I was going in the car and she comes running and gives me an envelope in my hand.

Usually people give me envelopes with letters in it of some problems. So I took the envelope, and in it I found a gold chain. Then I told some people to go and find this lady and give the chain back to her saying, Guruji sent you blessings.

Do you know, during our silver jubilee, there is a beautiful story that happened! I came down from the steps on the last day and a small boy comes running to me with tears in his eyes and he gives me an envelope. I take the envelope and it had Rs. 5000 in it. I looked at that boy and I said, ‘What do you do?’

He said he is a laborer.

The money in the envelope that he had given me had two months of his earnings, and he said, ‘Please take this.’

He said, ‘I can’t tell you how much my life has transformed. Please accept this.’

I took just Rs.100 from that and returned back Rs. 4900. I told him, you know this Rs.100 is so precious for me, this is enough. I will take this.

2 months of his salary; someone who is a laborer who does manual work, he comes and offers. Such a big heart is there in people.

What I am saying is you too should feel abundance. You don’t have to be very rich to feel the abundance. In fact many rich people don’t feel abundance at all, they feel lack. They are not generous. But poor people are very generous; they have that feeling, that art.

Don’t imagine a situation where you will become super rich one day and then you will start doing some seva, no, nothing like that. You can feel abundance at any point of time. And the moment you start feeling abundance, you will see things will get better, got it!

Similarly, don’t be feverish about a relationship, just relax and you will find your relationship with people will improve and become better. If you are like a leech, clinging on to somebody in a relationship and bugging them, even though you say all nice words, that person will run away from you because they can’t handle it.

One aspect is to give love, and another is to know how to handle love, receive love as well. It needs only a centered, enlightened person. Now don’t expect that type of behavior from everybody.

You have to be very much at ease with yourself. If you are at ease with yourself, everyone will be at ease with you.

Q: Guruji, I want to fully surrender myself to you.

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: No, don’t do it at all. Why do you want to surrender? Why do you have to surrender? No need. Just relax!

Your wanting to surrender becomes such a big work for you and for me; headache! You don’t need to surrender, just relax. What do you need to surrender? Your heart, mind and soul? No way, it already belongs to me. Everything belongs to me.

Someone was singing, ‘Oh, you stole my heart.’ Why should I steal something which is already mine? Why would I steal your heart? I feel everybody on the planet belongs to me already, got it! I don’t need to steal and you don’t need to surrender. You already belong to me. So just relax!

You know this word surrender helps when you have a load of negativity on your head. If you have negativity or hatred then you surrender that. You don’t need to surrender any good qualities or anything that is nice because it is already mine. What is not mine is all the negativity, and if you seem to have it, just give it up.