Friday, August 19, 2011

You don’t need to bring me any gift, you are a gift yourself!

August 05, 2011

Q: Dearest Guruji, what is the way to be able to feel, love and revere the Guru in the form as well as in the formless?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: You know, you cannot force love on yourself. Love is spontaneous, it just happens, just relax! You can’t try to love someone or try not to love someone. It is just a spontaneous happening. And remember love is not just an emotion, love is our existence.
Q: When I was in the doubt mode I could ask you any question Guruji. But after I have started having faith in you asking or rather confronting you with my questions have become very difficult. As fear and respect come my way. How to tackle the situation?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Just be natural, ask any question you want to ask. All questions are anyways foolish. I don’t mind and I know you don’t mind as long as the answers are not foolish. And from here I cannot give you foolish answers for sure. This is just an intellectual stimulation, that’s all. Questions and answers are what? Intellectual stimulation. Music is what? Emotional stimulation and silence is what? Stimulation of the spirit, of the soul. So we need all these in our life. And exercise is physical stimulation. And you do yoga, exercise. Seva is stimulation of activity. You do an action without expecting anything in return is seva. Stimulation of activity is through seva. So you need all that - physical stimulation through exercise; intellectual stimulation by knowledge, discussion; emotional stimulation through music and the stimulation of spirit through silent meditation.
Q: Dear Guruji, what are the characteristics or features of longing with dispassion?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Where dispassion is not dry and where longing does not turn into anger or hatred. You know if you have only longing, the longing can turn into anger or hatred. And if you have only dispassion, the dispassion will become so dull and boring and can even get into depression. So longing and dispassion together makes it so interesting, so complete, so juicy, so alive.
Q: Dear Guruji, can we call intention as unmanifested Karma? If it is still karma it should create bondage. Please explain the relation of intention, karma and bondages created by them.
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: See, the karma which is done not for gain but for a larger good, in the larger interest of the society, which is good for mankind, does not become karma. That’s why that type of karma is called Yagna. So 'nyatra loko 'yam karma-bandhana’, other karmas are bondage. But karmas done for the betterment of society or service of God does not become karma, they are called Yagna.
Q: Dear Guruji, how can I cultivate more humility and acceptance? I am known for being arrogant, rude and short tempered.
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: You in the right place. Do the silence program couple of times. Two, three silence courses will melt you down. And don’t judge yourself too much. Sometimes we judge ourselves too much. Either we judge others and get angry at others or you judge yourself and get upset about yourself. It is best not to do this; these two acts appear to be different but are the same. Either we blame others or we blame our self. Self blame is as bad as blaming someone else. That is what this knowledge is all about. It takes you from the blame culture to a joy culture. You are happy, you make others happy. And when you are happy, anyone who comes into contact with you, they are happy too. Have you noticed some people in your office are very enthusiastic? They say, ‘hey, come on, let’s go’, ‘hey come on, let’s do this’, ‘hey, this will happen’. Very positive, enthusiastic and even if there are problems, they say, ‘okay, let’s manage it’, they crack jokes. And there are others who in the best of situations are upset, angry. They say, ‘all has gone well, but what will happen from this? One day it will all be finished, then what?’ At least this one day, whatever you are doing, why don’t you be happy? ‘It’s all a one day show, then what?’ This type of pathetic pessimism is not life supporting. Nor does it support anyone around you. Sign of life is not depression, sign of life is celebration, is upliftment. You should bear this in mind. Whenever you tend to do that, whenever you tend to go in the negative cycle, immediately remember,' oh Guruji has said that, let me switch my mode. Like in your cell phone, you switch modes, from cell phone mode to sms mode or phone mode or email mode. Like that you should be able to switch and you have the ability to do that.
Q: Dear Guruji, what kind of people do you like to keep near you? Can I become one among them?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Yes, yes. I like to keep all types of people. All collections are with me. World collection of all specimens, one from every fish. I like variety you know, so you are welcome.
Q: Dearest Guruji, I am extremely shy and rigid because of my very strict upbringing. How can I become more expressive and loving?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Okay, you want to really change? You start right away. First of all you remove this label that you have put on your head.' I am shy and rigid', who said you are shy and rigid? Come on, you don’t know yourself, accept it. If you think you are shy and rigid, your own thought is making it a reality. You are sowing the seeds - I am shy, I am rigid. So the seed you have sown will make you become that. So, right now, from today, you admit you don’t know your mind, you don’t know yourself. You were shy and rigid in the past, but no longer, not this moment. You must take this step. Remove this label that you have put, ‘shy’ and ‘rigid’. Leave it label-less for some time and see what happens.
Q: Dear Guruji, I am stuck in-between wordly things and the Divine. The longing does not let me focus on my work but I have to work to fill my family’s stomach. Please guide.
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Look, don’t think they are in contradiction. You have to work. At the same time, you can spend some time for yourself. Twenty minutes to yourself. When you are driving, listen to some knowledge. There are so many knowledge sheets, CDs. Listen to some bhajans and when you come back home after work, sit and meditate for a little while. You leading a normal worldly life in no way contradicts your spiritual progress. You can do both together. See here. So many people drive all the way from the city with all the traffic. How much time it takes? 2 hours. They drive all the way, one and a half hours after their work and sit and then they go back another one and a half hours. So when you want to do, you don’t have to do it every day. Some of you do it every day. You come once, two or three times a week for satsang because satsang is also an addiction, just addicts you. You feel so good, isn’t it? How many of you feel so good? How many of you feel when you enter the ashram you energy level changes? They all have that experience.
Q: Guruji, it is true that God is present every moment but why do we feel sometime separation or duality?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: That’s a game!

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