Showing posts with label Silence. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Silence. Show all posts
Sunday, August 23, 2009
'When action and meditation are balanced then life blossoms naturally'
11:54 PM |
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What H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar said today:
'When action and meditation are balanced then life blossoms naturally'
India (Art of Living International Center, Bangalore), August 20:
Q. How to live without expectations?
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: If you know that joy from expectations is lesser than unexpected joy, that is sufficient. You need not try to achieve this, it happens effortlessly.
Q. What is atma (soul)?
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar : Who is asking this? Because you have life, you are asking. Since you have a mind you are asking this question and since you have a body, the mind asks.
One way is neti neti ( I am not the body, I am not the mind). The other way is ‘I am all’ (I am the mind, I am the body, I am the life force). Atma (soul) is the ocean, the life force is the wave.
Who made this beautiful body? The atma has to create, sustain and destroy. Just like how the water becomes vapor, then forms a cloud. The cloud then gives rain. The power to move from the form to the formless is there in every cell.
Q. How to attain moksha (liberation)?
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Through knowledge. If there is bondage, there is liberation. To be free from ignorance you need knowledge. The mind should turn inward. Silence takes the mind inward and helps to recognize ‘Who am I’.
Q. How to attain silence?
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: That is why you have come here. As your interest grows then silence deepens. Knowing what is permanent and what is changing is viveka (discretion). Thoughts are changing but the knowledge (learning) is with us.
In a shop you buy a vessel. The vessel is permanent but not the milk, or the rice which you fill in it. Houses will stay but the people change. The people who built the Tanjore temple have gone but the stones remain.
In our life some things are permanent - love, vairagya (dispassion) are like this. Knowing this difference is viveka.
Q. What makes a habit good or bad?
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: If you see those who smoke, are they in bliss? No, but if you tell them not to smoke, their face shows anger and hatred. There is no joy in smoking but there is sorrow without it - this is a bad habit.
Those practices which bring short term effort but long term happiness are good practices. Knowing this is viveka.
Q. It is said that women cannot study Vedas (scriptures). Why is it so?
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: At some point of time some selfish people said this. Some Brahmins made this mistake. Women from all castes can studythe Vedas. But you must convey it properly. Traditionally, if the rituals we follow are useful, then continue them. If they are foolish, drop them.
Q. What is the importance of rangoli*?
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar : It is our practice. Keep clean, take bath, and make a rangoli. Those who come to see you, even before they enter your home, they see something beautiful. The environment looks beautiful. Little ants and insects enjoy the food that is used to make the rangoli. Look at the villages where the practice is not there - the roads look messy. These little practices energize the body also.
Q. Why is discipline so important?
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar : Discipline brings freedom. When we have discipline in some areas, we have freedom in them too. Bhakti (devotion) is beyond this, it transcends this. You don’t need to practice discipline where there is devotion. You need discipline only for what is not close to your heart. You need discipline to exercise, not to play cricket. When we have a sankalpa (intention) and we do it, it is good for us. If we don’t do, nothing happens to God, only we feel the pinch sometimes.
Q. Can mantras change what astrologers predict?
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar : Mantras have power. It is good to chant. That is not to say that what astrologers say is not true. We should practice dana (charity), yagna (vedic ritual) as good vibrations come to us then.
Q. What is karma? Why are some people happy, some poor etc?
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: You will understand the law behind all this, when you explore your depth.
Q. How to make this life blossom?
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar : Life blossoms in rest. Two things are important in life- when we are in Nivriti (meditation), we have to see everything as ok and believe that it is all being done by God and He is watching over. When we do this, strength, wisdom and devotion increase and then Pravritti (action) comes up automatically.
When we come to Pravritti and see fault in everything, then we can correct it but if the fault-finding tendency stays forever then we get frustrated. Thus we need a balance of both - ‘It is ok’ and ‘It is not ok’. We should also have the strength to correct what is not ok.
Pravitti is knowing that if it is not correct, we can and will correct it. The belief that everything is ok, will be ok in the future and ‘I am ok the way I am’ is Nivriti.
When Pravitti and Nivriti are balanced, then life blossoms naturally.
Q. What is the purpose of dreams?
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar : There are five kinds of dreams:
1. Dreams in which old experiences repeat in the consciousness.
2. The ones that display your desires and fears.
3. Intuitive dreams - that foretell what is going to happen.
4. The dreams which are not related to you but to the place where you are sleeping. For instance, if you are sleeping in China you may see dreams in Chinese.
5. This type is the mixture of all the other types.
99 percent of the dreams that you have belong to the fifth category, so it is wise not to give much importance to them. The wise believe this world itself to be a dream. Whatever we experience through the sense organs is the impression of the world on us. What you did a few hours ago is just like a dream in the present moment. It’s a memory. There is not much difference between a memory and a dream.
*Traditional colorful floor decorations
(From the Office of His Holiness Sri Sri Ravi Shankar)
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Saturday, July 25, 2009
‘Truth cannot be spoken’
11:49 PM |
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What H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar said:
Bad Antogast, (Germany) July 22: It is said, when you speak, you distort the truth. Truth cannot be spoken. Silence conveys a lot, even more than a speech. So, for a few minutes we sit in silence and see how all the questions just drop.
© The Art of Living Foundation
‘You are something beyond your positive and negative qualities’
11:44 PM |
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What H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar says today
Bad Antogast (Germany) July 21:
Q: Can I practice silence and meditation by myself at home? For how many days?
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Yes, you can practice meditation. Silence might be difficult at home. Keep as much silence as you can, but there is no need really. You come here (ashram) and practice silence. Once in a while, you can do it for one day. You can say: ‘Ok, I will be in silence for one day per month’. Unless there is such a congenial atmosphere at home, it is not possible and then people will also get confused and will wonder what has happened to you.
Q: When I am so stressed, how can I get it out of my system?
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: When you are so stressed, you begin thinking: ‘Oh, I want to get this stress out of the system.’ This hurry in getting it out becomes an even bigger stress. It doesn’t go. You know, when you are stressed, just embrace the stress and relax.
Q: How can I get rid of my fear of failing? I can’t engage or start some project because of my fear of failure. How can I help myself? Thank you for all that you have done for me.
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Accept: ‘Ok, I am going to fail. So what? I still want to do it.’ It's like a game you play, whether you win or lose, you play the game. Correct? If you are playing soccer, you just play, no matter if you win or lose, you just play. In the same way, don’t be afraid of failure. If you fail, never mind, still do it. Ok?
You need to take some risks in life.
Q: I want to love and accept myself but it seems difficult. Please, maybe you could really advise me on how to get through it. Thank you.
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: My dear, you are love, don’t try to love yourself.
Don’t say: ‘I want to love myself; I want to love myself…’
There is a movement here in the Europe. They get up at 3 o’clock in the morning, sit on their beds, look into the mirror and for two hours keep repeating: ‘I love myself, I love myself…’
A couple from this movement was in Switzerland at the same time that we had a course. A couple from our Art of Living course met them in a coffee shop. So, both couples started talking and shared about what they do. So, our Art of Living couple said: ‘You know, we simply love ourselves.’
The wife of that gentleman that does the process every morning said: ‘No, we get up at 3 am and for two hours we repeat: ‘I love myself; I love myself.’ So, the Art of Living couple said: ‘Why don’t you just do our course? It will make a difference.’ So they did the course and afterwards the wife said: ‘Oh, it is such a relief. Now, my husband doesn’t have to get up in the morning, and sit on the bed.’ She would get a headache while he kept doing this practice. She had become miserable. Finally, their relationship was at the edge of breaking. After the Art of Living course, they are now a happy couple.
You are love. Forget about loving yourself. You, anyways, love yourself. There is no need for you to go on repeating it. You should take certain things for granted. Like if you say: I am in Germany. You know you are, you don’t have to repeat it to yourself.
How do I know I am in Germany? And someone comes and tells you to repeat every day: ‘Oh, I am in Germany; I am in Germany…’ If you keep reminding yourself, then you would be taken to a mental hospital.
You know that you are in Germany.
Similarly, take it for granted that you love yourself. You love positive or negative qualities, however you are. You are beyond the qualities, you are not your positive or your negative qualities, you are something beyond both of them. When you acknowledge this, just know that this is it.
Some people say: ‘Oh, I don’t look beautiful.’ Who cares whether you look beautiful or not? Why are you bothered so much?
Q: My wish and will for my spiritual growth is not consistent. Sometimes it is not very strong? How to be more aware of myself; how to see more and stop the chattering in my head for longer periods?
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Just drop this more. I want to be more; I want to be more… Relax. Love for growth in the field of spirituality and mind is deep relaxation. All positive qualities are already within you. When you go deep in meditation, they unfold naturally. We can’t say: ‘I want this flower to blossom quickly. What do I do? Should I open the petal?’
If I want the flower to blossom, just allow, let it be. Pour some water; in time it will blossom.
Q: How can we make a change in the economic system when the capital and big corporations control the world today?
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: You think about it, let me also think about it. One thing is for sure, make people more human. When people become more human, business develops the human touch. When greed disappears from the field of economy and business, a better system will definitely evolve.
Q: Guruji, many times after satsang I find it difficult to sleep. Is there something that can help me to sleep?
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Yes, sometimes, the energy is high so you find it difficult to sleep. Tonight, try a cup of milk, maybe. Don’t drink tea before going to bed. Do you fall asleep in satsang? Find that out.
Q: I am a vegetarian, can I take non-vegetarian medicines?
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: What you are asking me is about the gelatin capsule. It is ok. Vegetarian capsule is preferable. At times, if the medicine is non-vegetarian, it’s ok. Don’t make a big fuss about it. If it is not available, then it is ok.
Q: I know you are talking about desires in the Part 2 course but still I don’t understand how one can move away from thoughts about something that you really want. If you force yourself to forget it, it comes strongly. If you allow the desire sometimes, it wins you. And what comes instead of the desire, if it flows away? Thank you.
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Just by thinking a lot, you are not going to achieve what you want. Suppose, you want something - you want to go to Munich and the whole night you are repeating: I want to go to Munich; I want to go to Munich… You will lose your sleep. Or when you are driving to Munich from Frankfurt and saying: Oh, I want to go to Munich…You will end up somewhere else, you will lose the way. Just by repeating, the desire is not going to be fulfilled. You need to let it go. Letting going is the art. And that is very, very important. That is what the meditation is about.
Q: I want to ask about beliefs and doubts.
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Doubts are good to have. You should have a doubt: no doubt! Yet if doubt enters your heart and remains in your nature, it is a disease. It is called paranoia. If you doubt everything, including yourself, that is called lack of self confidence. If you doubt everyone around you, that is called paranoia. If you don’t doubt the existence of a natural or Divine power or some higher consciousness and Self, then you are called an atheist. So, an atheist doesn’t have doubts about the supernatural, he thinks there is nothing beyond what he knows. Nor, does he have any faith.
People with paranoia don’t believe anybody and they don’t trust themselves. That is another mental illness. So, a little bit of doubt is good, but if doubt becomes your nature, you will have neither success in the world, nor in spirituality. The whole world is on some degree of trust. Isn’t it? You keep the money in the bank, you trust the bank. And the electricity board gives you electricity, trusting that you are going to pay the bill. The telephone board gives you a telephone connection, trusting that you will pay the phone bill at the end of the month. If nobody trusts anybody, how will any business happen in the planet? Can it happen?
When you want to buy a house, you give the money to the seller even before buying the house. He takes the money and then gives you the house. If you tell him: ‘You first give me the house, only then will I give you the money’, he will say: ‘You first give the money, then I will give you the house. If you both say: ‘I don’t trust you’, then no transaction will happen. Right?
So, you know this person is going to give you a house, then you give him the money. And he knows you are going to pay the money, so he gives you the keys of the house.
The whole world runs on mutual trust. Isn’t it? And all your activity happens with self confidence, the trust in yourself. So, I would say, just know yourself. Nobody says: I don’t believe what I am saying. If I say: I don’t believe in anything’, at least I believe in that I say. I believe in myself saying that ‘I don’t believe in anything.’ Who is this ‘I’ that you believe? Know that I. That is what spirituality is.
Q: I pick up garbage for Seva and I see we produce a lot of garbage every day. We are throwing away society. What can we do in our everyday life to diminish the amount of garbage? We want to take care for the environment, for our planet, for our future generations.
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Yes, less waste is better. If you see the forest, you will realize that all the animals leave the forest very clean. There is an ecological balance. There is never a disaster in the forest. They keep the forest clean. You don’t find dead bodies of animals everywhere in the forest. Right? Nature takes care of them so well.
Similarly, we should also adopt more organic methods. All the organic dispose should be more organically composted. So, such garbage, which can be put in the compost, is not the problem. Our problem is plastic, which must go to recycling units.
Q: I am so lazy that I always have a lot of things to complete. I never take the remote control in my hands. It’s never like how it should be. I am happy, but everything around me makes me lonely. When am I going to be fulfilled?
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: I think you think a lot. Just sing, dance, meditate with your 100 percent. Anything that you do, put in your 100 percent. I will tell you a story.
Once, some tourists stayed at a motel in a village. When they were leaving, several from the group found that their things were missing. They complained to the village head who confidently declared that the thief was someone from the group of guests. “It’s not someone from the village,” he said.
A gentleman who lost everything, except the dress that he was wearing said: How can you be so sure? The village head replied: ‘If it were someone from our village, they would have taken the pants that you are wearing as well. You see, they do everything 100 percent. If they steal, they steal everything.’
So, when we do everything 100 percent, we feel satisfaction. Otherwise, if are a little bit here, a little bit there, we are definitely looking for something.
So sing, dance, meditate. Ok?
© The Art of Living Foundation
Bad Antogast (Germany) July 21:
Q: Can I practice silence and meditation by myself at home? For how many days?
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Yes, you can practice meditation. Silence might be difficult at home. Keep as much silence as you can, but there is no need really. You come here (ashram) and practice silence. Once in a while, you can do it for one day. You can say: ‘Ok, I will be in silence for one day per month’. Unless there is such a congenial atmosphere at home, it is not possible and then people will also get confused and will wonder what has happened to you.
Q: When I am so stressed, how can I get it out of my system?
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: When you are so stressed, you begin thinking: ‘Oh, I want to get this stress out of the system.’ This hurry in getting it out becomes an even bigger stress. It doesn’t go. You know, when you are stressed, just embrace the stress and relax.
Q: How can I get rid of my fear of failing? I can’t engage or start some project because of my fear of failure. How can I help myself? Thank you for all that you have done for me.
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Accept: ‘Ok, I am going to fail. So what? I still want to do it.’ It's like a game you play, whether you win or lose, you play the game. Correct? If you are playing soccer, you just play, no matter if you win or lose, you just play. In the same way, don’t be afraid of failure. If you fail, never mind, still do it. Ok?
You need to take some risks in life.
Q: I want to love and accept myself but it seems difficult. Please, maybe you could really advise me on how to get through it. Thank you.
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: My dear, you are love, don’t try to love yourself.
Don’t say: ‘I want to love myself; I want to love myself…’
There is a movement here in the Europe. They get up at 3 o’clock in the morning, sit on their beds, look into the mirror and for two hours keep repeating: ‘I love myself, I love myself…’
A couple from this movement was in Switzerland at the same time that we had a course. A couple from our Art of Living course met them in a coffee shop. So, both couples started talking and shared about what they do. So, our Art of Living couple said: ‘You know, we simply love ourselves.’
The wife of that gentleman that does the process every morning said: ‘No, we get up at 3 am and for two hours we repeat: ‘I love myself; I love myself.’ So, the Art of Living couple said: ‘Why don’t you just do our course? It will make a difference.’ So they did the course and afterwards the wife said: ‘Oh, it is such a relief. Now, my husband doesn’t have to get up in the morning, and sit on the bed.’ She would get a headache while he kept doing this practice. She had become miserable. Finally, their relationship was at the edge of breaking. After the Art of Living course, they are now a happy couple.
You are love. Forget about loving yourself. You, anyways, love yourself. There is no need for you to go on repeating it. You should take certain things for granted. Like if you say: I am in Germany. You know you are, you don’t have to repeat it to yourself.
How do I know I am in Germany? And someone comes and tells you to repeat every day: ‘Oh, I am in Germany; I am in Germany…’ If you keep reminding yourself, then you would be taken to a mental hospital.
You know that you are in Germany.
Similarly, take it for granted that you love yourself. You love positive or negative qualities, however you are. You are beyond the qualities, you are not your positive or your negative qualities, you are something beyond both of them. When you acknowledge this, just know that this is it.
Some people say: ‘Oh, I don’t look beautiful.’ Who cares whether you look beautiful or not? Why are you bothered so much?
Q: My wish and will for my spiritual growth is not consistent. Sometimes it is not very strong? How to be more aware of myself; how to see more and stop the chattering in my head for longer periods?
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Just drop this more. I want to be more; I want to be more… Relax. Love for growth in the field of spirituality and mind is deep relaxation. All positive qualities are already within you. When you go deep in meditation, they unfold naturally. We can’t say: ‘I want this flower to blossom quickly. What do I do? Should I open the petal?’
If I want the flower to blossom, just allow, let it be. Pour some water; in time it will blossom.
Q: How can we make a change in the economic system when the capital and big corporations control the world today?
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: You think about it, let me also think about it. One thing is for sure, make people more human. When people become more human, business develops the human touch. When greed disappears from the field of economy and business, a better system will definitely evolve.
Q: Guruji, many times after satsang I find it difficult to sleep. Is there something that can help me to sleep?
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Yes, sometimes, the energy is high so you find it difficult to sleep. Tonight, try a cup of milk, maybe. Don’t drink tea before going to bed. Do you fall asleep in satsang? Find that out.
Q: I am a vegetarian, can I take non-vegetarian medicines?
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: What you are asking me is about the gelatin capsule. It is ok. Vegetarian capsule is preferable. At times, if the medicine is non-vegetarian, it’s ok. Don’t make a big fuss about it. If it is not available, then it is ok.
Q: I know you are talking about desires in the Part 2 course but still I don’t understand how one can move away from thoughts about something that you really want. If you force yourself to forget it, it comes strongly. If you allow the desire sometimes, it wins you. And what comes instead of the desire, if it flows away? Thank you.
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Just by thinking a lot, you are not going to achieve what you want. Suppose, you want something - you want to go to Munich and the whole night you are repeating: I want to go to Munich; I want to go to Munich… You will lose your sleep. Or when you are driving to Munich from Frankfurt and saying: Oh, I want to go to Munich…You will end up somewhere else, you will lose the way. Just by repeating, the desire is not going to be fulfilled. You need to let it go. Letting going is the art. And that is very, very important. That is what the meditation is about.
Q: I want to ask about beliefs and doubts.
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Doubts are good to have. You should have a doubt: no doubt! Yet if doubt enters your heart and remains in your nature, it is a disease. It is called paranoia. If you doubt everything, including yourself, that is called lack of self confidence. If you doubt everyone around you, that is called paranoia. If you don’t doubt the existence of a natural or Divine power or some higher consciousness and Self, then you are called an atheist. So, an atheist doesn’t have doubts about the supernatural, he thinks there is nothing beyond what he knows. Nor, does he have any faith.
People with paranoia don’t believe anybody and they don’t trust themselves. That is another mental illness. So, a little bit of doubt is good, but if doubt becomes your nature, you will have neither success in the world, nor in spirituality. The whole world is on some degree of trust. Isn’t it? You keep the money in the bank, you trust the bank. And the electricity board gives you electricity, trusting that you are going to pay the bill. The telephone board gives you a telephone connection, trusting that you will pay the phone bill at the end of the month. If nobody trusts anybody, how will any business happen in the planet? Can it happen?
When you want to buy a house, you give the money to the seller even before buying the house. He takes the money and then gives you the house. If you tell him: ‘You first give me the house, only then will I give you the money’, he will say: ‘You first give the money, then I will give you the house. If you both say: ‘I don’t trust you’, then no transaction will happen. Right?
So, you know this person is going to give you a house, then you give him the money. And he knows you are going to pay the money, so he gives you the keys of the house.
The whole world runs on mutual trust. Isn’t it? And all your activity happens with self confidence, the trust in yourself. So, I would say, just know yourself. Nobody says: I don’t believe what I am saying. If I say: I don’t believe in anything’, at least I believe in that I say. I believe in myself saying that ‘I don’t believe in anything.’ Who is this ‘I’ that you believe? Know that I. That is what spirituality is.
Q: I pick up garbage for Seva and I see we produce a lot of garbage every day. We are throwing away society. What can we do in our everyday life to diminish the amount of garbage? We want to take care for the environment, for our planet, for our future generations.
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Yes, less waste is better. If you see the forest, you will realize that all the animals leave the forest very clean. There is an ecological balance. There is never a disaster in the forest. They keep the forest clean. You don’t find dead bodies of animals everywhere in the forest. Right? Nature takes care of them so well.
Similarly, we should also adopt more organic methods. All the organic dispose should be more organically composted. So, such garbage, which can be put in the compost, is not the problem. Our problem is plastic, which must go to recycling units.
Q: I am so lazy that I always have a lot of things to complete. I never take the remote control in my hands. It’s never like how it should be. I am happy, but everything around me makes me lonely. When am I going to be fulfilled?
H.H Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: I think you think a lot. Just sing, dance, meditate with your 100 percent. Anything that you do, put in your 100 percent. I will tell you a story.
Once, some tourists stayed at a motel in a village. When they were leaving, several from the group found that their things were missing. They complained to the village head who confidently declared that the thief was someone from the group of guests. “It’s not someone from the village,” he said.
A gentleman who lost everything, except the dress that he was wearing said: How can you be so sure? The village head replied: ‘If it were someone from our village, they would have taken the pants that you are wearing as well. You see, they do everything 100 percent. If they steal, they steal everything.’
So, when we do everything 100 percent, we feel satisfaction. Otherwise, if are a little bit here, a little bit there, we are definitely looking for something.
So sing, dance, meditate. Ok?
© The Art of Living Foundation
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