Friday, November 4, 2011

Everyone should aim at enlightenment, ‘I just want total freedom’

October 12, 2011

Q: Guruji earlier you said that the casual body has to wait for the divine will to get liberated. Does the presence of a Satguru in one’s life take care of that? You are the divine for me.
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: You know always like the physical, the subtle and casual, all the three bodies get affected, definitely there is, But dropping the casual body that has its own time. That you don’t worry about it. Relax!
Q: Dear Guruji, what happens to the mind after the lifetime when enlightenment happens? Since enlightened souls have returned, it seems they must still reside somewhere in the consciousness. Can you explain this?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Yes, that’s the casual body not the mind. There is no mindness, but the casual body comes back.
Q: Is there a plain somewhere in the universe that we would know as hell? Is the concept of hell a valid concept?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Its right here! See, its right in your mind! See, when you’re dreaming what is happening? Where does all those things in dream come from, somewhere else? Right here when your eyes are closed you are dreaming. You are in the train and the train is suddenly in a boat and the boat has turned into a horse, all those things happen, isn’t it. You are sitting on a horse suddenly you find it is a donkey and you think it’s a donkey, suddenly you find it’s a dog. So you find all these things happening right here, in the same way hell happens in your own mind. The negativity, tensions, stress, all those impressions causes hell right here. Don’t worry there is no place where you will be fried like potato chips (laughter), no! These days they don’t use deep fried even in heaven, they are more health conscious. So they are worried about cholesterol in heaven also and in hell also, so they don’t used the deep fried human beings. That too dirty human beings, why would they?!
Q: Dear Guruji, it’s almost half way through the course and I still don’t feel much deep inner silence. I’m doing everything that I’m instructed to do including lots of seva. What else can I do in the remaining few days? Please help me.
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Just relax. Meditating should be like lying on a massage table. So when you are taking a massage what do you, you just lie on the table and that’s it, and the masseur takes care of everything. In the same way when you are here you just sit and know that your meditation will be done for you. You wanting to do something in the meditation is the biggest problem. There is a teacher, there is a guide, there is the Guru, and the Guru does the work for you. And you should have this right in the head first okay. The Guru is going to do meditation not me and relax, and see how it happens. Got it? Otherwise its like you lie in the massage table and you keep jittering, throwing your hands and legs, doing tantrums there on the massage table. Then what will a masseur say? He’ll say, ‘hey, keep quiet, don’t move.’ Suppose you are taking acupuncture treatment and you are not still what will happen? You are moving all over the place, getting up and running and again lying down. So, just relax.
Q: Guruji, when I meditate with you here, my experience is rock solid. Otherwise it goes pretty slow. Can I take this grace home with me, how can I feel you staying with me after this course?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: That’s why I keep coming back and that’s why this hall is been made. Keep coming back until you know. And its gradual growth, it is already there and continues. Even if I am not here you should sometimes come and sit here. Sometimes places and environment can make a difference you know. To have your strong foundation you should keep coming back here. Even if there is no course here, never mind. If you feel your energy is low, down, or something or you just want to have a little kick, to get a kick just go to Montreal ashram and do some seva. Have some food, and rest then there for a while. There are enough chalets here, enough rooms when there is no course. You don’t have to stay in any hotels at that time you should just come. Even if there is nobody, there are always few basic people here, always some food, knowledge and always there will be meditation.
Q: Dear Guruji, how can I live by divine will? My will is pretty strong and seems to over shadow the divine will quite often. Please bless me with your guidance.
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Just relax, when you’re here just relax and just be aware of your craving and your aversions. And see if you’re on this path over a period of time it is already reducing. It reduces and reduces and reduces, isn’t that happening already to you? How many of you feel like that your cravings, your aversions are coming down? So many, that’s good!
Q: Jai Guru Dev Guruji, how and when do we know that our consciousness is expanding?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: It’s a natural phenomenon whenever you are happy your consciousness expands, when you’re relaxed and aware. When you’re relaxed and gone to sleep of course the inertia dominates. But if you are aware and relaxed consciousness is expanding. And whenever you feel hallow and empty consciousness is expanding. It’s obvious; it’s like asking how I know I have pain. If you have pain you know it. Got it?
Q: Dearest Guruji, can you please speak a little on Kundalini Shakti?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Kundalini simply means the energy in your body. Unless it is awakened there is no life. And in the very first kriya you do it is already awakened. It doesn’t have to be dramatic. There are three types of kundalini shaktis, one is sattvic. The most harmonious, gentle awakening of the kundalini shakti. And you don’t even know that it’s awakened, automatically you start being very happy, generous, large hearted, big minded, compassionate, intuitive. All these things keep happening spontaneously. Second is the rajasic type where you find this jerk and all this drama happens. A lot of dramatic intense experiences come, this is the rajasic way. There is no tamasic way of developing kundalini. If at all some people consider tamasic the people who use some powers and black magic and this and that sort of thing. But I don’t consider it as tamasic kundalini at all but it is some spirit powers you know. You appease some lower spirits and get some powers from them. And then you dance for some days and then you collapse, that’s what people do. So don’t run after some of this so called magic and miracles, many of them are from these lower spirits. They appear to be doing something to you and then you feel miserable later. So sattvic are the most harmonious, best type of kundalini and it is what happens already in Sudarshan Kriya. Doesn’t it happen? Tingling and every cell of the body wakes up. Does it happen or not? Remember the very first Sudarshan Kriya you did, everything awakened?! That’s it! Did you have peaceful meditation? Did you start feeling I am not the body but I am the spirit? Did you get that experience? That’s already happening. If you have no experience in kriya, you have so much dullness all the time, then you have to watch your food. You must be stuffing yourself with too much food, number one. Or you must have indulged in too much sex that there is no energy in your body to experience anything else. Then also it doesn’t happen, I tell you. Someone has been very very busy day and night and didn’t have good sleep, enough rest then there is no way that they can experience any kundalini shakti. So these are some of the criterias, got it? When your energy is conserved then you find that elevation. And if good meditation is happening you should know it is already functioning. If when meditating, inside you feel the expansion, a calmness, a serenity, it is all sign of kundalini shakti.
Q: Guruji, you have said that meditation helps our ancestors. When we start mediating the first thing we do is we pay off a debt for our ancestors or give them something. Can you explain this a little further?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Yes, see like your DNA, your body is connected to your parents or to your very close friends. Haven’t you experienced this? Someone very close to you has some problem and you start feeling it in your body. How many have experienced this? So, on the physical level you are connected and more subtle than that is your subtle body. You’re connected to ancestor’s, to your parents. How many of you keep getting dreams of people who have already passed, who have crossed over to other side? So, your mind and your consciousness are linked. So there is a constant energy exchange. Every time you meditate you are generating energy and that energy goes that way also. When you have cleared all these debts, that’s when you’re called a monk, a sanyasi. A real term monk means all debts are cleared, everything is settled. I am totally free. But that is one state, everybody doesn’t have to get there, you can continue the way. But sometime if you are getting very old, in the Vedic terminology after 75 you are suppose to have that at least. When you become 75 then you are cleared of every debt of everybody and you are totally free. You have no cravings, no aversions, no wants, no desires; totally satisfied. That’s the last stage of life. That’s good to have, at some point of time, ‘oh says I am free, I have done everything’. Do you see what I am saying? Like when you have taken a loan you cleared the debts. If you have taken loans for your education what do you do? You keep clearing your debt for your education in the same way when you meditate for some time that debt is getting cleared from those who have given you the body, mind all of that. It’s only for short time.
Q: Dearest Guruji, last night you said the casual body requires a physical body to get cleansed and that with both divine grace and meditation one can become free. Once free, where does the casual body go? Back melting into larger consciousness? And what about enlightened beings in other places, on other planets do they also have casual bodies?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Correct! You can’t do anything about the casual body, it automatically takes shape and form as the universal spirit, consciousness wants it and that’s how things work.

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