Q. Guruji, when I get bad thoughts, I am able to subdue them through the intellect.
But is it possible not to have bad thoughts at all?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:This is the skill. How you manage bad thoughts. Lots of thoughts come if there are impurities in the body, if there is aavaran (artificiality) in the mind.
Having too many thoughts indicates some weakness in the body. Consult an ayurveda physician and take herbs to cleanse the body. Through pranayam, the mind is purified. Through meditation, the consciousness gets purified. Sometimes the thoughts come because of the surroundings or company. Do not be afraid of bad thoughts. These thoughts are similar to the dark clouds that come and pass away.
Q: Could you please tell us something about prakriti and parmatma?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:There are two things – prakriti and parmatma. Prakriti moves according to rules. Parmatma is free. Human being is a combination of both. With the increase in the parmatma element, man experiences more freedom. An increased level of prakriti means one is no different from animals, birds or trees.
In the human being there is a glimpse of the parmatma and there is prakriti also- it’s a precious combination.
Q: Guruji, these days when we are talking of saving the planet from pollution including our water bodies, is it wrong to throw the puja materials in the water?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:If you put natural things, then there is no pollution. They are bio degradable. If you put soap or plastic, it harms the water. Since centuries, in the forest so many leaves and fruits fall in water, but the water is not contaminated. But when we throw artificial things, the water gets contaminated.
When we put bowls made of leaves, and garlands made of real flowers into water, it doesn’t get polluted.
It is interesting , one who is familiar with the real stuff, to him even the fake thing seems real.
And to the one who is familiar with the fake thing, even the real appears as fake. This is maya. What is real and what is unreal has to be found out. Therefore you need an inward eye (antar drishti). This is possible through yoga and meditation.
Q. Guruji, what’s the difference nihilism and advaita?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:One is nothing and the other is complete. Truth has two aspects - we keep saying it’s nothing and then experience the completeness. Therefore in Yoga Vashishta, Maharishi Vashishta says in beginning, that the consciousness is empty like the sky and full like an ocean. We start with saying, “I am nothing” and move to “I am in everything”.
Q. What is swadhyaya?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:Do either of the two things:
Become such a devotee like Yudhishthir, who gets Lord Krishna who is full of cleverness or else become clever, awaken that element in you.
The world thinks you to be better than you actually are. The world thinks you to be less worse than what you actually are. If you think like this, then what you want, will happen. Whatever kind of sankalpa you release in the universe that kind of result will come to you.
Realize this now or later after a decade. Once you realize it, you will bow down to this Universal Self. Otherwise you will blame the world and become sad making yourself blemished. Some people indulge in self pity, “I am very good but people do wrong with me.”
Who says people did wrong? Who asks you to be stupid and be swept away in emotions? Some fall in love crazily, they talk so much and the other person doesn’t know how to handle it.
Wise know how to accept love and give. But everyone is not wise. We want everyone to behave like the wise but we behave like an ignorant.
a look at yourself. This is swadhyaya study of oneself. Swa – means self, adhyaya – means study. Swadhyaya doesn’t mean turning pages of books.
Q. Guruji whenever any problem comes, we keep aside all Gods and pray to one particular God. Don’t you think the other gods will become angry?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:There is a shloka - Sarve deva namaskara, keshavam pratigachchati.
Like all the water ultimately goes to the ocean, whichever God or Goddess you pray to, it goes to the One only. Don’t worry God won’t be angry.
Q. Guruji I want to increase my faith…
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Stop the struggle to strengthen the faith. Assume you have faith, if it shakes, pray to God to make it strong.
Q. Guruji, in night we see stars, does it mean to see truth we have to live in darkness?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Is the sun, during daytime, not visible to you? Don’t you see the moon in the evening?
It’s only in the absence of the sun and the moon that the stars are visible. Then you run behind the stars. Only those who haven’t seen the sun and moon of their own Self run behind the stars.
Opposite values are complementary. If there is a question, there is an answer.
Q. Guruji, some people have assumed that they are Radha, but there are so many Radhas, what to do?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:The real Radha doesn’t see anyone other than Krishna, how did you see other Radhas?
Q. Guruji, I have lot of weaknesses and I feel bad about them. When will I become like you?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:You have realized that you have weaknesses. That’s the first step. Now, do you want to remove the weakness or not? The very pinch of having the weaknesses will help you to come out of them. If you simply accept them and say I am an ordinary person only etc…. you will continue to have them.
Someone is there to take away your weaknesses. Have this faith. Ok, you slipped once, twice, thrice, doesn’t matter, keep moving ahead. People say take vows never to commit them again. Breaking the vows makes it worse. Surrendering is better.
Q. Please explain the meaning of seva (service).
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:One is our job, the other is seva. Both are different. You do your job for livelihood. Seva means seva- Doing like Him. God has given you everything, whether you remember him or not. He wants nothing in return. Do work and be in the way that will make the other person happy. The reward of seva comes only when when you want nothing in return.
Q. Guruji, in life we see good people suffering a lot. It seems God is hard on the good people. Why?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:No no, it only seems so. It’s not real. A person who seems successful and happy despite doing wrong actually is restless in the heart. He can’t sleep peacefully, can’t eat with joy and his fall will be greater than his rise. Have faith that if I am doing good, then good only will happen. If you think otherwise, it is an illusion. But being good doesn’t mean one should be stupid, use your intelligence. One’s heart should be clean.
Q. Guruji many people don’t donate eyes thinking that they will be born blind in next life. Can you clarify?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:It is not true that if you donate eyes in this life, you will be born blind in next life.
Q. Dear Guruji, in my prayers I keep asking the Divine for my wishes to be fulfilled, is it selfish?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:No no, keep asking, if you don’t ask the Divine where else will you ask? But remember, you will only get when the time comes.
Q: When will matter be united with the spirit?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:When were they separate? Who is listening to my answer? Is it matter or spirit? Matter listens or the spirit?
Reply from audience - don’t know
A dead body also has ears, the sound hits it. But does it hear? Who is listening?
When this small ‘I’ relaxes, it gets in touch with the Universal Spirit, and that is meditation.
Posts
0 comments:
Post a Comment