AUG 03RD 2014
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar in Satsang today
(Someone asks a question without the mike on)
#SriSri: Switch on the mike. See this is what happens. You keep shouting in life, but you forget to switch on the mike! In the same way when you put life’s switch on, then you gain energy in life. You go on in life with no energy, without the mike on. You keep talking and no one can hear you. Even our prayers are the same. Prayer done without meditation does not reach where you want it to reach. When you pray through meditation, then it is like switching on the mike. No matter how far God is sitting, he will definitely hear you!
Ques: Why does depression comes in life?
#SriSri: Because of ignorance. Ignorance is the cause. You don’t know who you are, you don’t know how much potential you have. You don’t know what is the goal, what is the path. So depression comes in life. But once you are here, then no depression, right?
Ques: Because of health reasons I am not able to Sadhana, Seva, Satsang. What do I do?
#SriSri: There are many instances you see where people with no hands, no legs are able to do something. Someone with no legs at all is swimming! Your health is a very relative term. There are people who are not able to speak, get up from the bed, at least you are able to walk around and come here. So you cannot just make an excuse that you are not healthy… Sickness should not be taken as an excuse for laziness.
For more Satsang photos and updates follow us on:
Google+: http://gplus.to/TheBangaloreAshram
Twitter: https://twitter.com/BangaloreAshram
AUG 03RD 2014
Q: How do we know what our capabilities are and how can we enhance them?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: See, sometimes we become aware of our own capabilities, and sometimes we come to know about them when someone else speaks about them, or when we hear about it from some third person.
For quite some time, Lord Hanuman was not aware of his strengths too. Someone had to tell him that he was endowed with so much strength and so many abilities.
Sometimes we also get to know about our capabilities from others. Now, what should you do to know more about them? When you think, 'I am able to do only this much', then just take one step further and see for yourself how you fare. Do not stop by thinking, 'I am not able to do this'.Just think, 'Let me see how much more can I do', and take one more step ahead.
Yoga is what helps enhance and sharpen one’s capabilities. Yoga is not limited to doing Yogasanas and Pranayamas. Yoga means to unite totally with what you are doing; to become one with the Divine.
All these (yoga) practices enhance our capacity and capabilities. Do you see a difference between what you used to do earlier and what you are doing now? When you came to the path of knowledge, your capability increased, isn’t it? That is what it is.
Vastushastra June 27, 2014
It is okay to consult Vastushastra (the ancient Indian science of space and architecture) before you construct a new home. But if there is some dosha (here meaning an anomaly in the land or the type of construction), simply chant Om Namaha Shivaya. Chanting this one mantra is enough to remove any negativity and any type of problems you may face.
You know, being in devotion removes all obstacles in one’s way. By being sincere in your Seva, Sadhana and Satsang, all problems get removed, and negativity disappears.
This is why mantras like Om Namaha Shivaya and the Mahamrityunjaya Mantra are so great. They have the power to remove all your problems and any negativity that may come your way.
Gurudev builds bridges yet again ! June 26, 2014
Faith Can Solve All Doubts June 19, 2014
My name is Deepa Singh and I am a Yoga teacher. I stay in Mumbai. I have been into Art of Living for the past ten years and life has been a blissful journey since.
However, there is only one sad feeling that kept bothering me, which was that I have never gotten to meet my Guru face to face and talk to him. In all these years, I was only able to have eye contact with Him, as there are always so many devotee’s waiting to take his blessings. I always complained to myself, that when will I get to talk to Him properly. A part of me kept thinking, if I don’t meet Him, will He even know me?
Then one day, a relative of mine had come home and he told me that he had managed to get a meeting with Gurudev. He had sent an email to Him because he needed to talk about some important personal matters, and he got an appointment to meet Guruji in the Bangalore Ashram. While I was very happy for him, this made me even sadder.
Luckily for me, the very next day I got a call that Guruji is in Mumbai and that he will be staying at Sangeeta Jani’s place! I got so happy, I quickly went to meet Him. When I went, there were many devotee’s already waiting to meet Him, so I also joined them. Finally, when Guruji came I got to touch his feet and He also gave me Prasad. I was happy, but I still felt doubtful about whether he would remember me or not. So I quietly went and joined the next line as well!
When Guruji came and saw me again, He told me, “I just met you right? Don’t worry I remember and I will always be there.” When I heard this, I realized that He knew me and He understood everything that I was feeling. This gave me such joy. I realized that all our wishes get fulfilled after coming on this path if we have a strong sankalpa. All doubts get resolved, only faith is needed. We get immediate solutions and wisdom. Life becomes a celebration. We are all extremely lucky to have a Guru in our life.
JGD,
Deepa
Share your story with us
Secrets Unveiled.....
November 22, 2011 at 9:18am
Q: Guruji, sages have predicted our lives so accurately on palm leaves, Nadi Vidya. Is there really any role that I have in my life when everything already seems so predetermined? How does the path of sadhana change anything?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: See life is a mixture of accepting what is and wanting to make what you feel like having. It’s a mixture of both. You have an intention in your mind and that’s how you move on. See, you had an intention to come here and you came. But if you look into the past you say it is all determined, it is all destiny. That’s why I say a simple formula just listen to it. Look at the past as destiny so you will not keep regretting the past and see the future as free will so that you don’t procrastinate or become lethargic and say whatever, ‘god willing it will happen’. So you don’t become lethargic and do nothing if you consider the future as destiny. You should not say let’s leave it to destiny, no! The future is freewill, past is destiny and live in the present. This is wise way of living. Not so wise way is seeing the past as freewill and keep regretting about it, ‘oh I shouldn’t have done that’. Even after you became a medical graduate you say, ‘oh I should have taken engineering, I made a big blunder’. So you keep blaming yourself and keep regretting the past when you think the past was freewill. And you think future is all destiny, you want to leave everything to destiny and you just do nothing about it and you’ll be miserable in the present moment. This is the unwise way of living, got it?
Q: Dear Guruji, I understand from your knowledge that we have not one but several bodies. Can you please talk about subtle bodies and casual bodies? I’ve heard about them but I don’t know how or what they are.
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Yes, physical body in the waking state. In the sleeping state physical body is at rest, the subtle is active; in the dreaming state and that is why you get dreams. In deep sleep both of these go to sleep but the casual body is still there awake, aware. And casual body becomes cleansed in deep meditation. And in enlightenment the casual body is completely free, yes. So when one dies what happens, physical body separates, the subtle body remains with all its impressions. The subtle body and casual body they both go like a balloon and remain and look for a right opportunity, a right womb to get into. So when the soul finds that the couple is having union and depends on the energy level and harmony between the couple and the energy level of the soul, at that moment it comes into that, so that type of parents. Sometimes the soul brings two people together. A soul chooses I want this lady and this man as my father and mother. So they bring those two people together and they will have terrible attraction, unbearable attraction. So the moment the child is born, you’ll find suddenly the attraction between those two people is gone totally, completely gone. This happens, and after the first child many people divorce. How many of you have seen this happening? This happens that intense feeling of separation comes and then you should know that the soul made this thing happen. It is so amazing; all these things are so interesting. On one hand it is amazing on another hand if you are not so much in the present moment you’ll go crazy, seeing how many subtle worlds we live in simultaneously.
Simultaneously how many things are happening in the universe, it’s very interesting! So you come into the physical body to cleanse the subtle body. There is no way you can cleanse the subtle body hanging in the space. So you come to human body so that you get rid of all those impressions. Once you have gotten rid of the subtle impressions in the subtle body then the casual body with the divine grace also becomes free, that is called Nirvana. No more craving or aversions, nothing, totally hallow and empty. Wanting nothing and totally satisfied. Anytime you feel that I am total, I am complete, death can come this moment I welcome it. If you say that, if you feel that rather than saying it then that completion is Nirvana. That has touched the casual body; the casual body gets relieved not by your effort but by just the Divine will and Divine grace. The universe decides that whether the casual body should be there or should be removed, should be dissolved. It’s amazing, you can work on the physical, and you can work on the subtle that’s all you can do. The rest you can only wait, but this itself is a great job, this itself is good enough.
Q: Guruji, when we die the body and breath are left behind and our mind, memory, soul are still together with the impressions. Do the intellect and ego also still stay with us? Can we use our intellect to calm our mind then?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: The impressions of the intellect and the cravings and aversions of the mind go with the subtle body. So when you die what happens is for sometime the soul is in confusion, it does not know. It has just come out of the body but it does not know what to do. It doesn’t want to get into the body because the body appears like very gray matter, very dark and completely unbearable. So it doesn’t want to get into it, it feels very bad and averse to its’ own body most of the time. Sometimes they go in. So the soul is out there and very peaceful, the soul is totally at peace. They see people crying, wailing. It tries to tell them, ‘hey I am okay, don’t worry’, but they cannot communicate. There is a tradition to keep the light burning at the bedside of the body. It’s in Christian tradition as well, right? It’s in the Hindu tradition as well. Why you keep a light burning near the head so that when the soul suddenly looks at that light and knows that it is light. Let it be reminded that it is light, if it is still craving for something. Just to remind the soul that the nature of the soul or spirit is light, a lamp is kept or a candle is kept burning near the body. It’s not for us, it’s for the soul because the soul can still see, and smell. It has lost the sense of touch but smell and light are still there; smell, sight and sound all three will be there. So the ancient tradition is just before cremation the son or daughter; son usually, takes the head of the person into his lap and in the ear he says, ‘you are light, you are soul, you are not the body. Drop all your attachment to this body’, he tells them. And then the body is given a bath and then taken to cremation. These words are all in Sanskrit, and people simply repeat it in Sanskrit without knowing it because the priests tell them to say these things. To tell the departed in his ear that, ‘the five elements will go back to five elements. You are not just these five elements you are light, you are soul, you are spirit, you’re free and you move on now.’ This is what you say in the ear of the corpse, in case the soul is still hanging around and it does. It does hang around because it doesn’t know what to do. So it takes nearly ten days for the soul to get use to this other plain where it has gone. And once it reaches that plain of ancestors, one day there is one year for us. Our one year is just one day and one night for them in that realm. So there are three levels or lokas there also; one is Vasuloka, second is Rudra, and then Aditya. Three lokas are there and so they remain in this for some time. And there are three different Devas, they take them to those places. Someone who is a pious and died in a very good life they are taken direct to these lokas and three angels called Pururava, Ardrahva, and Vishvadeva. Three different Devas come and take the soul according to the level. It’s interesting! So in a yearly ceremony that is done, the day you remember the ancestors. First you invite these angels to bring them to you, for you want to honor them. These angels, they are the custodians. So you tell them ‘Visvadeva you bring my father, my mother or my grandfather or grandmother for this ceremony. Bring them for I would like to honor them.’ Ancient people knew all these so well, they had access to those realms. Even today people do this, they do the ceremonies and they do all this.
http://wisdom-dawns.blogspot.com/2011/11/secrets-unveiled.html
DEC 25TH 2013
On Christmas Eve...
DEC 25TH 2013
This holiday season unwrap the present of Life. The Wise know how to enjoy the gift inside while the ignorant get stuck to the wrapper.
- Sri Sri
DEC 25TH 2013
Christmas Special Satsang with Sri Sri Ravi Shankar from Boone Ashram, US!!
26 December 2 am IST - www.artofliving.org/webcast
DEC 25TH 2013
Guruji celebrating with Welma Cooper. Welma was the first person from North America to have done the Art of Living Course in 1982!! Guruji called her "the mother of Art of Living in North America"
Wishing everyone Merry Christmas....
DEC 24TH 2013
Gurudev from Boone!
"The ancient people said when there is satva, inner harmony, then success comes. That's why we should not run after success – “I want this and that.” Just be stable and content and success comes. No one sends a dinner invitation to a beggar, but to a person who has plenty.
Similarly in life, when you feel abundance, settled and content, then things simply start coming your way. You should see and experiment with that…but it's a delicate balance. It’s not being lazy or laid back, but you should be dynamic and at the same time content; you have passion to do something, but are not feverish about the result."
- Sri Sri
DEC 24TH 2013
" One of the most desired qualities of a true leader is the courage to listen to critics, taking failures with as much equanimity as successes. These days leaders are defensive all the time, explaining their shortcomings or justifying their wrong actions. A true leader will neither complain nor explain, and is open to learning all the time.
Admitting past mistakes and creating space for others with completely diverse viewpoints can make a leader more acceptable, universal. A leader does not pass the buck."
- Sri Sri
DEC 24TH 2013
"The root cause of so many diseases and conflicts is : We don’t know what should go in the mouth and what should come out of it!"
- Sri Sri
DEC 23RD 2013
Laugh as much as you Breathe
and Love as long as you Live......'
- Rumi
DEC 23RD 2013
ESSENCE OF 'SOHUM' shared by Sri Sri
Sohum is the natural sound of breath. When you breath out the hum is there. Sohum is the natural sound. If you read it the other way round, it is Humsa. Humsa is that which uplifts, that which floats, that which discriminates. That consciousness which discriminates right from wrong, from the permanent to impermanent, from the beautiful to ugly - discrimination.
Sohum does not mean ‘I am God’, it is ‘I am that’. What is the ‘that’? ‘That’ could be love, ‘that’ is truth, ‘that’ is love, ‘that’ is the beautiful space,‘that’ is what I really am! First I think I am just the thoughts, the emotions, the mind, but the true realization, I am not the thought, I am not the body, but I am that! What is that? It is the experience that is beyond words!
That truth which is beyond comprehension! That beauty which is beyond any imagination. That reality which you cannot totally catch. That love is what I am! And if love is God or God is love and I am love then I am God too!Jesus said love is God! And said, I am love! I am that, I am. This is there in the Bible also. I am that I am. Thou art that! All this is there.
But it is not the meaning that is important. What is important is the vibration of the sound. The sound Sohum, has some definite vibrations in the cosmos and that helps our spirits to blossom and that is what is most important.
DEC 22ND 2013
OVBI presents Big Ideas for a Better India, an event that will witness a confluence of powerful speakers & over 400 delegates from across 25 major cities in the U.S. Join us in the conversation to create the India of our dreams.
Speakers include:
* Business Executive and Entrepreneur Naveen Jain.
* Founder of the Infinity Foundation Rajiv Malhotra.
* Lawyer and Entrepreneur Sheela Murthy.
* Founder of the Art of Living Foundation His Holiness Sri Sri Ravi Shankar.
Visit this Google Plus event online to view the Big Ideas for a Better India LIVE webcast. RSVP and share this event with all your friends and family.
More info: www.overseasvbi.org.
The Big Ideas event will be webcast LIVE today from 930 PM IST / 11 AM EST
Watch it here : http://tiny.cc/BIBILIVE
DEC 22ND 2013
You must come to the stage that when you go out from here, you remain effortlessly marinating inside your being all the time. Outwardly, there may be activities, but internally, you remain the unchanging peace and serenity.
It is only then that weary and tired beings can take rest in your presence.
If you are easily set on fire and agitated because of the events around you, you are not sufficiently established in the Self so that others can take rest in your presence or recognise themselves in your reflection.
The sage's presence and being is the light of the world.
Of course, all this is not your job, it is simply your joy.
~ Mooji
DEC 22ND 2013
To a chorus of thunderous applause, Pope Francis stated “because Muslims, Hindus and African Animists are also made in the very likeness and image of God, to hate them is to hate God! To reject them to is to reject God and the Gospel of Christ. Whether we worship at a church, a synagogue, a mosque or a mandir, it does not matter. Whether we call God, Jesus, Adonai, Allah or Krishna, we all worship the same God of love. This truth is self-evident to all who have love and humility in their hearts!”
http://diversitychronicle.wordpress.com/2013/12/05/pope-francis-condemns-racism-and-declares-that-all-religions-are-true-at-historic-third-vatican-council/
DEC 22ND 2013
Gurudev's US Tour... 2013
Credits: Prabu Vijayan
DEC 22ND 2013
Mesmerised by the beautiful shadow of the moon in the lake, we begin to assume that the moon is in the lake. Likewise, mesmerised by the razzmatazz, glitter and pleasures of this false world, we begin to assume that this is permanent. We get the impression that we are permanent here and worldly comforts are everything and ever lasting..
It seems that the moon is somewhere in the lake. But as soon as something falls in the lake, there are ripples and the moon's reflection is disturbed. And as soon as it is morning, the shadow will not appear even if the water in the lake is static. Likewise, we get immersed so much in this world's lures that we assume that the attractive world is permanent for us. We begin to wrongly think that we are permanent here and everything around us will remain the same. We presume that the world as we see it is the reality.
The Guru throws a pebble in the lake, creating ripples, and we are awakened from the slumber to realise that it was the shadow of the moon. This refers to the fact that the Guru guides us that the world as perceived through the five senses gives a very skewed picture of things. He shows us that all this is temporary. The charm of the materialistic joy is transitory and ephemeral. It will end in sometime.
As we are gazing in amazement at the moonlike-charm of the worldly pleasures, the Guru arrives and throws a pebble in the lake to demonstrate that the thing that we are staring at is not the moon but its shadow in the lake. He explains to us that enjoy the shadow of the moon but do not assume it to be the moon. Also, he details that this shadow of the moon is till sunrise (death) so why waste time in something which isnt permanent? The Guru gives us a reality check. The pleasure and picture of the beautiful moon is good to enjoy but one must be so engrossed in it that all else is forgotten.
As we walk on the way shown by the realised Master, the become aware of the true reality in contrast to the perceptual reality of old. We find out that the moon is in the sky. The lake is just the medium for its image to be reflected temporarily. We also notice that the sky is dark for only a finite period. The moon and its shadow will perish as soon as it is daytime. Applying the analogy to our lives, we find out that this world is merely a place to attain spiritual realisation by giving unconditional love to everyone. We realise the transience of the worldly joys, relations and comforts. The Guru also guides us that there is more to life than eating, sleeping and working. The Guru directs us towards our real soul agenda - that of Nirvana through sadhna, sewa and sankirtan.
- Avdhoot Babaji
DEC 22ND 2013
"Life gives you both positive & negative. Focus on the good & move ahead with commitment."
- @SriSri
DEC 22ND 2013
Guruji was explaining something while holding the mic in one hand. Someone then got a mic stand..He put the mic there and said :
"Aahh now both my hands are free..Now I can express myself better..
When your hands are free, You are free, then you are able to express better."
DEC 22ND 2013
"Silence is something that comes from your heart, not from outside. Silence doesn't mean not talking and not doing things; it means that you are not disturbed inside. If you’re truly silent, then no matter what situation you find yourself in you can enjoy the silence."
~ Thich Nhat Hanh
DEC 21ST 2013
We need to develop the habit of sharing our joy with others.
If you are happy, infect others with your happiness; don't just keep it to yourself.
Any action done with this idea is Service and the best form of service is uplifting someone's state of mind.
- Sri Sri
DEC 21ST 2013
"Think that 'I am only the instrument in the Lord's hands and my reward is in the mere fact that I am being used by him in His lila'."
- Swami Chinmayananda
DEC 21ST 2013
You will not find happiness in other things, people or situations.
Happiness can only be found inside of YOU.
Remember – your external world is a reflection of your internal one. So work on what’s going on inside of you FIRST and the rest will follow :)
DEC 20TH 2013
Check out the blog for the Review of The Hobbit 2 - The Desolation of Smaug
http://bawandinesh.name/the-desolation-of-smaug/
It will a perfect weekend movie to watch, if you have not already seen it!
See it in 3D and on as big a screen as possible!
DEC 20TH 2013 - Khurshed Batliwala
I came across this really superb little video ...
T'was the night before Christmas...
Do watch
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zIEIvi2MuEk
DEC 20TH 2013
Gurudev is in US.....
DEC 20TH 2013
His Holiness Pujya Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar ji Twitter handle is now @SriSri ....
It was formerly @SriSrispeaks Please spread the news
DEC 20TH 2013
Gurudev is in Germany.....:)
DEC 19TH 2013
Q. Is Sympathy close to Compassion? (or is compassion another form of sympathy?)
A. Sympathy is born out of fear. You feel sympathetic because you are going thank God I am not in this situation.
Compassion is a function of Love. In Compassion, your heart goes out to the other person and you simply want to be of some use to them and help them because they "belong" to you and you "belong" to them.
DEC 19TH 2013
"Life teaches you hard lessons if you don’t respect wisdom. Know that life goes with commitment, not moods. Mood is very unstable, they come, they change. But commitment and wisdom always brings the best results."
- Sri Sri
DEC 19TH 2013
Ashtavakra Gita: The Highest Knowledge
Q: Gurudev, I am confused as to what is it that I really want. I come to the Ashram to ask for material things that I desire, but I end up asking for bliss and take it home. Bliss is good, but does that mean I won’t get material things in life?
Sri Sri : Many times you say that you want something, and then you cut your own wants, by saying, ‘No, I don’t want it!’ Your own sankalpa (an earnest wish or firm resolve) gets cut by your own vikalpas (doubts). When you really want something to happen, it will definitely happen. When you ask for blessing, it happens.
In the Mahabharata war, Lord Krishna went three times to Duryodhana to tell him, ‘Don’t fight, let us not have this war. Come for peace negotiations. Let us sit, let us agree.’ Lord Krishna knew that the war was going to happen, and the Gita is going to come out of it, still he went three times to make peace. Why? Because you need to keep doing what should be done at one level. Suppose, in the Mahabharata, Duryodhana had agreed to Lord Krishna to give five villages to the Pandavas and no war was to happen, just imagine such a situation. There would have been no Gita! Even the Mahabharata script would never have come!
When someone asks, ‘Why are you doing this when you know very well that this action is not going to bring results?’ The answer is, ‘There is a bigger purpose for every action, and it is not related to the fruit of the action. What do I get from this is not the question; did I act in the situation or not is the question.’
In the hospital, doctors put all their effort to cure a patient knowing very well many times that the patient will not survive. The moment the doctor knows that the patient will not survive, will they stop caring for him? No! As long as the heart is beating, the breath is moving, the doctor takes care of the patient, even though he knows there is no use in it. So there could a small example of the cosmic phenomenon, when things are supposed to happen the way it should happen, but we cannot say, ‘Let it happen; anyway everybody is born, everyone will die. Sick or healthy people will die anyway, so why should anybody take care of anyone? Let us keep quiet!’ This is not the right thing to do; we have to attend to it.
When the Tsunami occurred, Swami Sadyojatah and I went to Sri Lanka. Our Gulf centers had sent several shipments of clothes, and medicines, and our volunteers were also there. There was this one Sinhalese pilot, from the army who was helping us in the South Eastern region of Sri Lanka. He made a very sad confession to me. He said that he was asked to bomb a hospital and a school, on the Tamil side where 600 children were studying. He said, ‘My heart broke when I had to do this job, and I resigned from my job.’ Then, of course, he did the Sudarshan Kriya. After he resigned from his job, he dedicated his whole life to do seva (service), to make life better for children; he helped in orphanages. That one incident, where he had no option but to follow the orders of his superiors, changed his whole life. He is a Buddhist, and he knew violence is such a sin. It was so hard on him for so many years. When the Tsunami occurred, this man did so much seva with The Art of Living. It takes so long for someone to get out of such trauma, but with the help of knowledge, Ashtavakra Gita, Kriya and meditation, this man said, ‘For the first time I am able to smile; joy has returned in my life.’
This knowledge, this wisdom, is immensely valuable. It is immensely beautiful, and immensely powerful. It can take people out of such deep scars, guilt, hurt and misery; it can give a new light and uplift one’s spirit. It is so touching.
Earlier, the Ashtavakra Gita was not given to public. Even in India, we had only two to three sets of tapes in each center, and we used to conduct these courses only for people who were a little advanced. Then I decided that we cannot wait for people to get to that level. Whatever level they are in, wherever they are, even a few sentences can make a difference in people’s lives.
It is after this that everyone was permitted to listen to The Ashtavakra Gita; we opened it up. Ashtavakra Gita is high knowledge, it is like learning higher mathematics. You cannot do it without basic knowledge of mathematics. This was the argument that ancient people had. Quantum Physics cannot be taught in Primary School. However, lifting one from doership and seeing facts as they are, is very valuable knowledge from the Ashtavakra Gita.
DEC 19TH 2013
HURT
Q: How to keep on loving without expecting. How is it possible? In love expectations arise and if not fulfilled, it hurts.
Sri Sri: Yes, you will have to go through these gymnastics. If you have wisdom, you don’t have to go through the pain to learn. When there is lack of wisdom, you go through pain, but you will come out of it in sometime, don’t worry. This is why it is important for one to have a larger context to life. When you have a larger context, all these trivial things don’t really bother you. They are all like waves on the surface of the ocean, they rise and fall; like ripples in the lake, they rise when the wind blows, and when there is no wind, there are no ripples.
So, have a bigger context. That is atma gyaan (knowledge of the self); nothing can shake me, I am much bigger than the emotions, I am much bigger than the world around me, people around me. Their praise and their blame doesn’t matter. I am much bigger than all this!
This awareness uplifts us, then one does not drown in the ocean of emotions, and hurt.
There are four ways to look at hurt.
1. Someone who has hurt you is pained. They have scars, they are unhappy and miserable. They can only share what they have. They are hurt and they are sharing the hurt with you.
So with those people who are inflicting pain on you or hurting you, which you think they are doing purposefully, in fact it is because they do not have happiness inside them. They don’t have joy, they don’t have peace. They have pain and they are wounded so they are causing you hurt.
So, for a wounded person what is required? Compassion. So you have to be compassionate on those who hurt you, because they are hurt and wounded themselves. This is number one.
2. Those who are causing hurt to you are ignorant. They don’t have a broad vision of life. They don’t know themselves and they don’t know what they are doing. They are ignorant and arrogant. You can only feel sorry for them and hope that someday they will become intelligent. They don’t know that their actions are hurting others, and you wish for them to be more sensitive.
3. It is just karma. You had to get this hurt and if not this person then someone else would have given it to you. We must have caused some hurt to someone in the past so nature is bringing it back to us now. When you know that it's just the karma being repaid, you feel very settled. Isn’t it?
4. It is being done to make you strong. Nature is bringing this to you so that you become strong; so that you discover the strength and power within you.
Usually in the pandals (temporary shelters/structures made of fabric and bamboo poles). After putting a pole in its place they shake the pole to see whether it is strong enough or not. Hurt is just that, to see whether you are well established in yourself, whether you are in wisdom or not.
Every hurt is trying to shake you, to see whether you are strong or not. It tests your strength. It is to make you stronger. If you think a wise person or someone intelligent is hurting you, then you should be thankful because there is some purpose in that. They want you to be strong.
If your mother is scolding you, she is not doing it with a bad intention. If your father is scolding you, you can’t say, ‘Oh my father hurt me! My mother hurt me!’
Your parents are not hurting you; they are coming from a space of care and concern for you. We must recognize that they are doing things out of their limited understanding and love for you.
There are two major things that you feel when you are hurt - lack of communication and lack of understanding. Another reason for hurt, if you want to count is being over sensitive to irrelevant or ephemeral things. Events are all ephemeral, they are all moving. Everything is changing. You don’t need to become over sensitive, ‘Oh he said this thing to me, she said this thing to me!’
In Kannada, there is a proverb that says, ‘God has not put a bone in the tongue; the tongue rolls, moves in all directions.’ Never mind what words come out of people’s mouths.
This is a big issue in the world today. The root cause of so many diseases and conflicts is that we don’t know what we should put in the mouth, and we don’t know what should come out of the mouth!
People keep stuffing all sorts of things in their mouths. In this little hole, tons and tons of food goes in, and volumes and volumes of garbage come out; this is the misery of the world.
Again, a poet in Kannada said, ‘All the fun people have in the world, is only by words!’
Jokes and comedy happens because of words, all the conflicts and hatred is also through speech. It is speech that entertains, makes you laugh, and again, it is speech that creates divisions in the society, and hatred amongst people.
All different types of wealth come to you by your speech. Speech is a real gem in the world. So all hurt is only speech. Some words come out and someone says, ‘Oh, I am hurt!’
Now, if someone is trying to physically hurt you, you just be careful, equip yourself. I am not saying if someone comes to hurt you, you fall at their feet. No, you be intelligent, and protect yourself; especially ladies and girls, they should not go alone here and there.
DEC 19TH 2013
"Life and Guru are inseparable. When you throw light on life, and when the wisdom is there, honor the wisdom. Wisdom is the Guru tatva, Guru principle. So, within you the Guru Principle is there, wisdom is there. In each and every one there is wisdom. Throw light on that."
- Sri Sri
DEC 19TH 2013
"When you respect someone, it only shows your own magnanimity..
Respectfulness is a quality of refined consciousness."
- Sri Sri
DEC 19TH 2013
"The more you squeeze sugarcane, sweeter is the juice that comes. The more you cut a diamond, the more it shines. The more gold is hammered, put in fire, the more it shines. The more you grind sandalwood, the more its fragrance spreads.
Nature puts you through many different tasks and tests, and you come out shining from it all. You must remember that nature will not give you a burden which you cannot carry.
God first measures the tail and then puts it on the animal, so it can easily wag its tail. Just imagine if a rat had the tail of an elephant, which it cannot even lift!
Nature is very intelligent, it only gives you that problem which you can handle."
- Sri Sri
DEC 18TH 2013
Q. I don't know if its a problem with me or what? But (in art of living) these days i feel that every teacher/organiser talks/interacts with a some personal motive. i just feel too much of lack of innocent seva. I am not able to be myself when i get caught in such situation. what do i do?
A. Just always remember its all just a game. Keep coming back to the basics; I do Seva because i Love my Gurudev. And nothing in the world is bigger than my love for Him ... So I will continue doing Seva regardless of whatever attitude some other sundry people may have. It is when you are with the same old people all the time, then you start to see problems and faults in them. Start traveling, meet new people and do other Seva activities.
DEC 18TH 2013
"Things are not meant to be loved. They are meant only to be used. People are lovable and loving."
- Eknath Easwaran
DEC 18TH 2013
Jai Gurudev Dear Ones!
We Will Be Ending Our Art Of Living Satsangs with this Beautiful dedication posted below instead of jai jai radharaman hari bol !
You can listen to it In Bhanu Ma's voice In Album "Bhanu's Offering"
DEC 17TH 2013
Q. Recently i have seen that i get bored too fast. I start something new, do i brilliantly for a while and then get bored. Consistency is what i am lacking. what do i do?
A. When you start something new, you will have zeal and enthusiasm for it... but if the reason you started it is not clear or not strong enough, then if some obstacle either environmental or mental comes, you more or less just give up. So before you commit yourself to an activity, sit back for a bit and figure out the "why" of it .... mostly people only go as far as the "how" of it while they are planning. According to me its of paramount importance to know the why ... When the reason is strong enough, then the how comes much easier... and obstacles dont matter.
DEC 17TH 2013
Who is God?
What would you answer if an intelligent 8 year old asked you this question?
This short film is our answer!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rxibhzZGi0I
Watch it, like it, share it and subscribe to our channel ... And let us know what else you would like us to make films about
Jai Gurudeva!
love
Bawa, Dinesh Ghodke, Gowri, Abhi, Mayur and Prasanna
DEC 17TH 2013
Gurudev, are bodily diseases or disorders linked to our karmas?
Sri Sri: Yes, some of them are linked, but not all. Some are linked to your actions of the past, and some are a result of your own wrong deeds that you have done now. That is why it is called Prajnapradha (a wrong deed committed despite having the knowledge or discretion of right and wrong).
So when you are not fully attentive or in awareness, and commit some wrong deed, then your health also suffers due to that.
DEC 16TH 2013
“After all, spirituality is in our genes and people should have no problem in being humane and spiritual,” he said. Citing a research in Norway, he said the human body contained 300 genes, which caused diseases and these genes could be silenced by practising meditation.
On crime against women, he said as long as liquor was easily available, the crime against women would be on the rise and demanded total prohibition.
“Humanism will flourish only when there is total prohibition,” he said.
DEC 16TH 2013
"You are surrounded by gurus in all shapes and sizes, and everything you are attracted to, reject or fear in another may just be something that needs holding in yourself. Just maybe.
But that 'maybe' may be everything when it comes to love, and there are no wasted encounters here in this supremely intelligent, reflective universe."
- J Foster
DEC 16TH 2013
Gurudev performing Rudra Puja at Rameshwaram...
DEC 16TH 2013
"Health is the greatest gift, contentment the greatest wealth, faithfulness the best relationship."
~ Buddha
DEC 16TH 2013
"Our capacity to love depends on how deep and open we can be..When capacity to love is more ability to know and understand is more..
We limit ourselves..We become Something..
When we become Something our ability to love limits…"
- Sri Sri in Bhakti Sutras
DEC 16TH 2013
"You are the same always, eternally. You are that immortal soul. Nothing less than that. All other things are just temporary. That is what you call the highest knowledge."
- Swami Satchidanda
DEC 16TH 2013
"When Knowledge Matures... Ego Drops !! Simplicity Dawns.."
- Sri Sri
DEC 16TH 2013
Kashtasya Sukhasya na koapi daata...
"Everything in life moves according to some mysterious law of karma, according to some rule of nature.
Sometimes, the best of friends become your worst enemies, and sometimes your enemies become your close friends. All this happens due to some strange karma. These are the ways of the world.
So you should keep your friends and enemies aside and just move ahead in life. Do good work. For whatever time you are here on this planet, do some good beneficial deeds. This is the prayer you should make for yourself.
Who has the time to think and worry how so-and-so is feeling or thinking, or how you are feeling? Let people feel the way they want to feel. Do not get entangled in all this. Let them do what they wish. You do what you are supposed to do.
Now this does not mean that you stop caring about other people’s feelings, or hurt them. Do not do that.
From your side, do not hurt or bring misery to people around you.
See, from our side we do not wish to hurt someone. But despite that if they are miserable, then there is nothing that we can do.
It is not in your hands to make someone happy or miserable. Just know this. People experience happiness and sorrow by their own actions."
- Sri Sri
DEC 15TH 2013
"There is a proverb in English: "Familiarity brings Contempt..." If you are halfway in knowing something it brings contempt but when you thoroughly know about anything, Love arises..
Inside everything is Love.. Love is the core of the entire Existence.."
- Sri Sri in Bhakti Sutras..
DEC 15TH 2013
"When you strongly desire something, simply believe it is going to happen. Simply know that the Giver is so compassionate, and you will get what you desire if it is best for you.
This faith, ‘The Giver is going to grant me what is the best for me’, does the job."
- Sri Sri
DEC 15TH 2013
"The biggest disappointments in our lives are often the result of misplaced expectations. This is especially true when it comes to our relationships and interactions with others.
Tempering or moderating our expectations of other people will greatly reduce unnecessary frustration and suffering, in both our life and theirs, and help us refocus on the things that truly matter...."
- Unknown
DEC 15TH 2013
In love, the gopis never forgot the glory. Often, when one is in love, one starts demanding, one starts feeling jealous about the other. Jealousy, demand, anger, all these come when you do not keep your beloved on a higher pedestal. When you put the Divine on a higher pedestal, then there is a sense of surrender, then there is a sense of submission and there is a sense of unconditional love. That is called mahatmya, the greatest, the glory.
http://www.newindianexpress.com/cities/chennai/Putting-the-divine-on-a-high-pedestal-is-submission/2013/12/14/article1943993.ece
DEC 14TH 2013
“A diamond is just a piece of charcoal that handled stress exceptionally well.”
~ Unknown
DEC 14TH 2013
"Good Friendships precede Great Relationships ..."
- WD
DEC 14TH 2013
"Our deepest need is for the joy that comes with loving and being loved, with knowing we are of genuine use to others."
- Eknath Easwaran
DEC 14TH 2013
Goodbyes are only for those who love with their eyes. Because for those who love with heart and soul there is no such thing as separation!
~ Rumi
DEC 14TH 2013
Cow Slaughter must stop all over the world. When India got freedom, for every 100 people we had 400 cows but now we have only 20 cows for 100 people. @SriSriSpeaks
DEC 14TH 2013
"The only reason for Disappointments is Expectations...
Perhaps..
Give people the freedom to make mistakes and learn.. Don't be too hard on them.. Everyone deserves a chance..
No one is Perfect..."
- WD
DEC 14TH 2013
Complaints
Q: How come i am missing out so much in life?
Swami Sukhabodhananda: Having travelled widely and met a wide cross section of people from all over the world, i find that the one common factor that connects them all is their tendency to complain, nonstop! If people are asked to say a few words on their life, it will be lumps, bumps, what is missing, who and how got hurt and the unfairness of life. Only remarkably few people are grateful or feel they are lucky or ecstatic about what is happening in their lives.
A person came to a monastery to stay for a few days and learn spiritual practice. After the first day of stay when asked how his stay was, he said, “Pillow was bad”. On the the second day, he said, “Bed was bad”. At the end of the third day he said, “Food is lousy”. After the fifth day, he said, “I am leaving”. The head of the monastery said, “I knew right from the first day that you will quit, for you were in the world of complaints.”
Whosoever is lost in complaining has quit life.
A priest was teaching how to give a sermon and stressed on the importance of body language. “When you speak of heaven, your face should radiate heavenly joy, when you speak of compassion, your face should flow with compassion and when you speak of giving, your whole body should be reverberating with giving”.
“What about when we speak of hell,” a student asked.
“Your normal face is ok,” the priest replied.
Your face reflects the message that the whole world is bad. Please stop complaining and live with commitment.
DEC 14TH 2013
"The Divine rejoices in your being happy. God, or the Creation, is so happy when you are happy. When you dance, sing, and jump up and down happily, that is true prayer, that is true meditation.
Meditation is a fountain of joy, an ecstasy; and Divine enjoys that more. Divine is not fond of your suffering"
- Sri Sri
DEC 13TH 2013
"Whatever you may gain you will leave it all here..
You will go empty.. Keep your head empty.. Do not be greedy, but be active.."
- Sri Sri
DEC 13TH 2013
Path to the Divine..
The Divine can only be found in deep rest (meditation).
Do you know what the obstacles to deep rest are? It is the cravings and aversions in the mind. If the mind is filled with cravings and aversions, rest is not possible. And if there is no rest, the goal of Sadhana (spiritual practices) cannot be achieved. That is why we need to be free from the cravings and aversions in our mind.
So, how do we do that?
'I don’t need anything from anyone', this is what we need to keep in our mind. When we don’t need anything from anyone, we will not have cravings towards anybody. When there is no craving for anybody, there will be no aversion to anybody. Let’s look at our aversions. Who are we averse to? Only those whom we think to be bad, isn’t it?
Don’t think of anyone as a bad person. There is no bad person in the world. If people do something bad, it is because of their ignorance or lack of awareness, or because their mind has been hurt. So, don’t have negative opinions about anybody.
If others have a negative opinion about you, it is their problem, not yours. From your side, do not consider anyone as bad. By doing this, your mind will be clear and pleasant and your intellect will be sharp."
- Sri Sri
DEC 13TH 2013
Q:How can I be emotionally strong?
Sri Sri: By using your intellect a little more! Bring back the balance and see life from a broader perspective. Your emotions, either very pleasant or unpleasant are attached to the past. So when you see the world with a broader vision and don’t get stuck with past events, people or experience, you will be strong. Getting emotionally upset over something somebody said is limited vision. There are millions of people, millions of things happening in the world.
In the Bhagwad Geeta, Lord Krishna shows Arjuna the Cosmic Vision and Time swallowing everything. First, Arjuna got scared, then all his fear vanished. There was nothing to hang on to. That’s why Lord Krishna says, “I am here, don't worry, don't be afraid”
This way, all the emotional worries, and mess that one is in, one comes out of. Only meditation can give you wisdom and strength.
DEC 13TH 2013
Nothing stays forever.
Good as well as bad times go away.
Be happy, reminding yourself of this again and again.
- Sri Sri
DEC 13TH 2013
"What someone says or does is just a ribbon on the package. Take the ribbon off and look inside. Everybody is like a package. Some packages have firecrackers! Some have sweet candies or some other surprise. Don’t just look at the outside wrappers. Inside each one is a very precious gift."
- Sri Sri
DEC 13TH 2013
"Getting rid of people and things is not the answer, but dealing with them with skill is the answer. And silence is the mother of all skills - silencing this chattering mind with a few minutes of deep meditation. Then you will see that everything changes."
-Sri Sri
DEC 12TH 2013
Q: Should I forgive or take action?
Sri Sri: Forgiveness is in your benefit but taking action is essential so that injustice is it not repeated...
Sometimes you need to forgive & forget. Sometimes you have to stand up and fight back against injustice.
DEC 12TH 2013
"Why do you have to label yourself according to tendencies which arise temporarily and make yourself guilty and miserable?
DEC 12TH 2013
"Don't let past experiences cloud your present interactions..."
- WD
Lift yourself up and see you are the sparkling light of divinity, you are love, you are light, wisdom, the infinite consciousness, not just a mass of amino acid carbohydrates and proteins!"
- Guruji today
DEC 12TH 2013
"Broader vision is the only answer to handle envy and jealousy.
Education is all about Expressions, Communications and Handling Emotions. Its not just about gathering information...."
Forgive and then fight...
Mastishq mein gyaan aye toh hridaya shudh ho jaye. Yahi gyaan ka lakshya hai...."
- Guruji today..
DEC 12TH 2013
Breathing in Love ~ Osho
Be in love with existence! And let love be like breathing.
Love is always new. It never becomes old because it is non-accumulative, non-hoarding.
It knows no past; it is always fresh, as fresh as the dewdrops. It lives moment to moment, it is atomic. It has no continuity, it knows no tradition. Each moment it dies and each moment it is born again. It is like breath: you breathe in, you breathe out; again you breathe in and you breathe out. You don’t hoard it inside.
If you hoard the breath you will die because it will become stale, it will become dead. It will lose that vitality, the quality of life. So is the case with love — it is breathing; each moment it renews itself. So whenever one gets stuck in love and stops breathing, life loses all significance. And that’s what is happening to people: the mind is so dominant that it even influences the heart and makes even the heart possessive! The heart knows no possessiveness but the mind contaminates it, poisons it.
So remember that: be in love with existence! And let love be like breathing. Breathe in, breathe out, but let it be love coming in, going out. By and by with each breath you have to create that magic of love. Make it a meditation: when you breathe out, just feel that you are pouring your love into existence; when you breathe in, existence is pouring its love into you. And soon you will see that the quality of your breath is changing, then it starts becoming something totally different to what you have ever known before. That’s why in India we call it ‘prana’, life, not just breathing, it is not just oxygen. Something else is there, the very life itself....
DEC 12TH 2013
"Take a deep breath in and hold...You will know how & what it means to Let Go..."
~ Sri Sri
DEC 12TH 2013
When you have an argument or a fight with someone at home, don’t take too long for the smile to come back. Your fight should be like one of the modes on the cell phone, i.e., audio, video, camera.
Your cell phone cannot afford to be stuck in the camera mode for long, it should be able to switch faster, right?
In the same way, the mind can be in the fight mode, but the next minute, change the mode!
~ Sri Sri
DEC 12TH 2013
"Dont label yourself with different tendencies which may arise with time.
Recognize yourself at a fountain of love and energy.."
- Guruji today
DEC 12TH 2013
@SriSriSpeaks: When you radiate love.. even the animals drop their innate aggression @BangaloreAshram http://t.co/d1Lrx2P2xO
DEC 12TH 2013
"Broader vision is the only answer to handle envy and jealousy.
Education is all about Expressions, Communications and Handling Emotions. Its not just about gathering information...."
Forgive and then fight...
Mastishq mein gyaan aye toh hridaya shudh ho jaye. Yahi gyaan ka lakshya hai...."
- Guruji today..
DEC 11TH 2013
"Just as a river which flows stays fresh..
A society which has satsang stays pure.."
- Guruji today
DEC 11TH 2013
"If you want others to be happy, practice compassion.
If you want to be happy, practice compassion."
- Dalai Lama
There is No Other....Everything we do we do it to ourselves...
DEC 11TH 2013
Swami Vivekananda Story:
A skeptic held a live butterfly in his closed fist and asked swamiji if it was alive or dead.
If swamiji said alive, he would crush it and if swamiji said it's dead he would let it go... And so he would have cornered swamiji.
Swamiji smiled at him and gently said - It's in your hands! :)
DEC 11TH 2013
Swamiji (Swami Vivekananda) had said, give me 10 young men and women and I will change India. Such was his intention that now we have not 10 but 10,000 such men and women who have stood up to change the country!
Few people who have adopted the path of naxalism have forgotten our beautiful culture of spiritual heritage. They need to remember Swami Vivekananda who dedicated his life and set an perfect example of "Dev prem" and "Desh prem" both together ...
- Sri Sri now
Pic: Swami Vivekananda's rath... at Ashram
DEC 11TH 2013
"In any field of activity, conflict might arise. When they arise, be indifferent to them. That is the indication that your love is strong.
...Whenever any conflict arises in your devotion, your devotion to your work or family or friends or anywhere, don’t pick on it. Be indifferent.
...When you love something, you keep doing it. When you don’t love, that’s when the conflict arises. Love something which you do not know. That is called shraddha, faith.
Faith means what? Faith is to love something that you have no idea about."
- Sri Sri
DEC 11TH 2013
The centre focus of our life is spiritual growth, is peace, and then all other things will be around that. Your first and foremost commitment in life is to be with the Truth, to evolve in truth.
- Sri Sri
DEC 11TH 2013
"Doubt means that your Prana (vital energy) has not blossomed fully; it has not reached its peak. The Prana has gotten stuck somewhere in the body. When you are full of Prana, all doubts automatically disappear. That is why when you are very happy, there are no doubts in your mind.
When you are deeply in love, no doubts arise in you."
- Sri Sri
DEC 11TH 2013
Look into the Mirror and Give the most beautiful person on this earth an even more beautiful SMILE...
DEC 11TH 2013
"Getting rid of Karma means getting rid of impressions. Sanchita Karma manifests as a tendency or an impression in the mind. As human beings, we have the ability to erase impression and fear through meditation. Meditation is there to rectify painful Karma, at least reduce their impact or effect.
The inward journey (of meditation) nullifies our negative Karma. You are just washing out everything when you meditate. Then there is nothing. You become so hollow and empty that whatever fear is there will just dissolve and disappear and thin down all that is laid on the self. This is very precious."
DEC 10TH 2013
DEC 10TH 2013
"Find peace in yourself and then act dynamically."
- Guruji today
DEC 10TH 2013
"The higher we go, the humbler we should be..."
- Sri Sri in satsang
DEC 10TH 2013
"There is a formula to get depressed. Just sit and think of "What about me...What about me..." and you are bound to get depressed. But if you take a vow to bring smile and wipe the tears of every single person you interact with, you will be happy and there will be more happiness in society …"
- Sri Sri today
DEC 09TH 2013
Marriage is sacred. But for #thegirlchild it is scary. Give her a chance to grow up & make her choices. Pledge onhttp://www.thegirlpledge.org/
DEC 09TH 2013
"Our stress levels are directly proportional to Our expectation levels..."
- WD
DEC 09TH 2013
"Spirituality gives you strength; that inner strength to manage difficult situations and to keep you ever smiling.."
- Sri Sri
DEC 09TH 2013
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar ji in Satsang today explains one of the beautiful Sanskrit poems written by Swami Vivekananda in praise of his guru, Ramakrishna Paramahamsa
" ...The Guru is that Atom bomb which destroys the doubts that have the capability to destroy a person's mind.. "
DEC 09TH 2013
Question: Guruji logically there is no reason to be happy. But happy state of mind doesn’t follow any logic. Is happiness related to logic?
Guruji: (laughter) The whole exercise in life is to balance the head and the heart. When you are too much into head, you should just let go, and relax, sing and dance. You know your sleep is a gift to you. Do you know that? During sleep the mind gets so much of rest! But meditation is the ultimate rest to your mind.
DEC 09TH 2013
Love and Fear....
http://www.collective-evolution.com/2013/08/13/a-new-message-about-love-and-fear-in-the-universe/
DEC 09TH 2013
Niels Bohr, a Danish Physicist who made significant contributions to understanding atomic structure and quantum theory once said: “if quantum mechanics hasn’t profoundly shocked you, you haven’t understood it yet.”
Quantum physics has left scientists all over the world baffled, especially with the discovery that our physical material reality, isn’t really physical at all. “Everything we call real is made of things that cannot be regarded as real.”
http://www.collective-evolution.com/2013/12/05/the-illusion-of-matter-our-physical-material-world-isnt-really-physical-at-all/
DEC 09TH 2013
"See, no one is in an angry mood all the time! People do have good moods. When they are in a good mood then you can communicate. When they are not in a good mood, you can ask them, what is it that you can do for them. If they are in the worst mood, just move away from the scene.
So you have three options to win over people with love and skilful communication; Yes! "
Sri Sri
DEC 08TH 2013
"Knowledge does not come gradually, little by little. It shines forth instantaneously with the ripeness of practice."
-Sri Ramana Maharshi
DEC 08TH 2013
“When you are satisfied, when your heart is pure and clear, and you have no bad feelings for anybody, then you gain the power to heal and bless others. It is possible. Everyone can heal others, provided they can change their vibrations within themselves into totally positive energy.”
- Sri Sri
DEC 08TH 2013
"The reason we struggle with insecurity is because we compare our behind-the-scenes with everyone else’s highlight reel"
- Steven Furfick
DEC 08TH 2013
"You are always a winner. Sometimes you win; sometimes you make others win.."
"जो हार जीत से परे हैं, वे दूसरों को जिताने में आनंद लेते हैं."
- Sri Sri
DEC 08TH 2013
Do Not Be Serious by Swami Satchidananda
We cannot really save the world. We cannot even destroy the world. It is not in our hands. If that Supreme Power wanted to save the world, it wouldn't even take a second for it to happen. All of us could be saints and sages overnight. All He has to do is just think, "Come on all of you be saints," and that would be it. But He is not doing that. Instead, He is letting us be a little ignorant. That is His fun. You sometimes forget this and take life too seriously. At least when it gets too tough and you are really caught up in it all, at that point sit back and say, "It's all right." Don't be serious about anything, anything, anything. Just have fun.
Always keep this awareness of the Divine Leela or God's Play. If we just remember this, we won't be projecting our ego. How often we get caught in thinking, "I did it! I got it! I lost it!" For one week, try saying: "It's all God's fun. I'll simply do whatever He wants me to do." Have a sample week like this. You will feel very light. You will get the Light. Then if you like, you can continue. If not, take back your ego. It is always there.
DEC 08TH 2013
Amazing Read
http://fractalenlightenment.com/15116/life/the-effect-of-negative-emotions-on-our-health
DEC 07TH 2013
Guruji today:
"One intention and attention to it and then when it manifests is called Sankalpa but if you are attached to desires constantly then it is called feverishness.."
“Man hi sabse bada Manoranjan hai. Mind is the best entertainment.”
DEC 07TH 2013
Living Values...
A strong mind is cultivated by living moral values. All outer actions start gathering a dazzling polish, once your mental values change. A morally strong person spends less of his mental powers in facing the day to day problems of life.
Moral values and ethical principles adopted and accepted by you must be lived fearlessly, even in the face of death.
Never compromise, under any amount of pressure. You will find God's help coming to you, to pull you out from even the direst situation.
~ Swami Chinmayananda
DEC 07TH 2013
Guruji today:
We crave for others attention because we do not attend ourselves. We should change this habit of getting others attention. Once while in Rishikesh I was going for a morning walk and a lady suddenly fell down. I didn't give attention to her and people ran behind me calling "Guruji...Guruji...she fell down". I didn't pay attention because I knew she was acting. Then while returning back I caught her and told "dekho natak nahi karna"
DEC 07TH 2013
Guruji today
"Knowing that this whole universe including you is made of love makes you capable of receiving and taking the love..Knowledge about Self is essential to receive and reciprocate Love.
Q) Guruji I am very scared of success and happiness, but I want both of them. What to do ?
Sri Sri : Just relax. Fear is love upside down. What you love, fear will get attached to that and the way out is meditation and selfless service. "
DEC 07TH 2013
"The thought itself - My home is somewhere else, I have just come to visit - creates a distance inside you. This world is a transit lounge.
You know, in airports and railway stations there are lounges, and in a lounge what do you do? You keep your luggage and start eating. You use the bathroom and everything, but you don’t open your suitcase and hang your clothes all over the place. You don’t do that in a transit lounge. You keep your things packed.
So this world is just a transit lounge. Don’t mistake it to be your home."
- Sri Sri
DEC 07TH 2013
"We can live without religion and meditation, but we cannot survive without human affection."
- Dalai Lama
DEC 07TH 2013
"The purpose of human life is to find God. That is the only reason for our existence. Job, friends, material interests--these things in themselves mean nothing. They can never provide you with true happiness, for the simple reason that none of them, in itself, is complete.
Only God encompasses everything.
That is why Jesus said, "Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and all these things shall be added unto you." Seek ye first the Giver of all gifts, and you shall receive from Him all His gifts of lesser fulfillment."
- Paramhansa Yogananda
DEC 06TH 2013
Saints are one in their work as divine channels. They link us up with the source from which all bliss flows: love. They bake the unbaked pots and make them fit to receive the divine bliss.
They illuminate the path by removing all the darkness that holds us back. Their work does not end with the energizing or enlightening of some select few here and there. They also serve as the unflickering flame helping to light other candles. What bliss and joy Hanuman brought to his devotee Tulsidas!
And what bliss and joy Tulsidas himself has scattered to millions of other devotees, helping to rekindle their lamps, although he himself parted with his body long, long ago. This has been the case with many great saints and their disciples, from Guru Maharaj to Shyama Charan, from Ramkrishna to Vivekananda. Through them and their own disciples they live in the memory of many old people. The work of the saints goes on, whether we know it or not.
(Excerpt from The Near and the Dear by Dada Mukerjee)
DEC 06TH 2013
"Needy and wanting to be needed is both self centric. A flower does not have to take effort to spread the fragrance. Just BE"
- Sri Sri
DEC 06TH 2013
"- Fire is the closest visible symbol for life force is Agni. Fire is the doorway for the divinity
- By lighting a lamp or by prayer no disaster will come. It will certainly reduce the chances of it's happening
- Actions induced by fear can only cause sadness.
- Present moment is vast and deep. It's very powerful
- Needy and wanting to be needed is both self centric. A flower does not have to take effort to spread the fragrance. Just BE
- Dishonesty and ignorance, cunningness and ego are the demons to destroy."
- Guruji today
DEC 06TH 2013
In Satsang today...
Q) Guruji you said one meets guru when one passes away. But I have a question will I be able to meet u personally or will it be the same crowded like satsang
Sri Sri : My all time is for public meeting. There is a saying na "Khullam Khulla pyaar karenge"
Q) Guruji should I dependent on you or do you want me to be independent
Sri Sri : I would like that question to be with you but don't just keep on pondering. There are many things to do. I want you. I want you to be happy and grow in knowledge. Do some seva. Each and every person is required to contribute a bit to the universe
Q) Guruji, all the lords has taken birth to kill some or the other demon. You know my question which demon are you going to kill
Sri Sri : Ignorance
Q) Guruji kisiki ninda, chugli lene walo ko kya side effects ho sakte hai ?
Sri Sri : Upar upar se agar koi ninda karte hai toh karne dijiye. Lekin andar se koi ninda karta hai toh usiko pareshan karega. Lekin iska matlab yeh bhi nahi ki kisi ki ninda mat karo. Agar apple kharab hai toh use theek bolna bhi imaandari nahi hogi, karo magar apne bheetar dwesh bhav se na karo
Q) (A question from YES+ youth) Guruji, God has created us human beings then why he has created so many problems for us. Does god loves us ?
SrI Sri - I know you all watch movies. Just imagine a movie in which a man and women gets married and lives happily thereafter..Will you like that ? There has to be thrill, romance and all sorts of things. We call it "navras"… 9 types of tastes of fear, greed, anger, hatred all these complex things makes a movie interesting. And the world is nothing but a movie. A director creates such movie so that viewers can enjoy…
DEC 06TH 2013
Our only Problem perhaps is that "This Dream appears Real"
- WD
DEC 06TH 2013
A martial arts student went to his teacher and said earnestly, “I am devoted to studying your martial system.
How long will it take me to master it.” The teacher’s reply was casual, “Ten years.”
Impatiently, the student answered, “But I want to master it faster than that. I will work very hard. I will practice everyday, ten or more hours a day if I have to. How long will it take then?”
The teacher thought for a moment, “20 years.”
DEC 06TH 2013
Bawa shares:
The hard truth of life is that everything is changing and in few years 10, 15, 20, 30 years you will be alone again. People will put you on the pyre or under the ground and in a few days get on with their life.
What will stay with you is your mind and the impressions in it. All the anger, frustration, fear or the peace, love, serenity will come with you. And based on that bringing all that again with you, you get another birth. Another body.
Giving attention to the mind is of paramount importance.
DEC 06TH 2013
Put the Glass Down
A psychologist walked around a room while teaching stress management to an audience. As she raised a glass of water, everyone expected they’d be asked the “half empty or half full” question. Instead, with a smile on her face, she inquired: “How heavy is this glass of water?”
Answers called out ranged from 8 oz. to 20 oz.
She replied, “The absolute weight doesn’t matter. It depends on how long I hold it. If I hold it for a minute, it’s not a problem. If I hold it for an hour, I’ll have an ache in my arm. If I hold it for a day, my arm will feel numb and paralyzed. In each case, the weight of the glass doesn’t change, but the longer I hold it, the heavier it becomes.” She continued, “The stresses and worries in life are like that glass of water. Think about them for a while and nothing happens. Think about them a bit longer and they begin to hurt. And if you think about them all day long, you will feel paralyzed – incapable of doing anything.”
It’s important to remember to let go of your stresses. As early in the evening as you can, put all your burdens down. Don’t carry them through the evening and into the night. Remember to put the glass down!
DEC 06TH 2013
DEC 06TH 2013
"The right way of honoring Nelson Mandela is to take a pledge to work towards making Africa free of violence and poverty."
- Sri Sri
DEC 05TH 2013
Food Tips by Gurudev Today ...
#BalancedDiet
"Not that we do not have food. We do not have the sense of what to eat and what not to eat. Roti, rice, and potato they are all carbohydrates. We do not have the sense of what is amino acids, protein, and carbohydrates.
The traditional food system was the best. My grandmother used to be very particular what food should be served. They would have rice, ghee, and dal. Also there should be one item with yogurt, greens must be there, one bitter item like bitter gourd. Leaves of the neem should be had once every 12 days. To chase away malnutrition you do not have to invest a lot of money, just education is required.
In India we always had jaggery which has iron, zinc, magnesium. Instead of this we have switched to white sugar. Cane juice is very nutritious, it can solve many illnesses. At 95, my grandmother was so healthy, my mother was not. Because they followed the traditional food system. The leaves of drumstick are so good. When the ghee is made, they would put a drumstick leaf.
Have balanced food. If you have noticed, all fried food is accompanied by curry leaves. Curry leaves arrests bad cholesterol getting formed in the system.
Idli is the most nutritious food. Chuntney provides fiber. It has proteins, amino acids, carbohydrates, a little fat. Instead we take white bread and put butter on it and put it in our mouth. What does it have? Nothing.
Today's fashion is pizza. White sugar and white flour is not at all good from the nutritional point of view.
We need to educate people on proper food. What is good food? What to consume? How to keep your health and vitality? This knowledge is there in Ayurveda.
If you know what to eat, you will not get disease.
If you know how to talk, you will not get into a fight."
DEC 05TH 2013
"Do not be afraid to love. Without love, life is impossible."
Letting Go
Hearing the bell,
I am able to let go of all afflictions.
My heart is calm,
my sorrows ended.
I am no longer bound to anything.
I learn to listen to my suffering
and the suffering of the other person.
When understanding is born in me,
compassion is also born.
~ Thich Nhat Hanh
DEC 05TH 2013
THE GIRL PLEDGE CAMPAIGN A national campaign by The Art of Living with the support of UNICEF & MTV India December 1st - 31st 2013 Addressing the alarming abuse of girl child and women.
Take The Girl Pledge and join millions in a national commitment to Protect the Girl Child.
This campaign addresses five issues:
* Abuse and violence against the girl child
* Female foeticide
* Malnutrition of mother and child
* Lack of adequate education for girl child
* Child marriage
www.thegirlpledge.org
DEC 05TH 2013
"So you see, some people are like this. They find pleasure in fights and have no interest in anything else, and so they just create fights. That is why I said, whatever such people say to you, just agree with them. Win them over with love."
- Sri Sri
DEC 05TH 2013
Amazing....
Matthew Scharpnick from USA shares his experience of Sri Sri
Everyone may not understand the value of a having a bearded, robe-wearing Guru from India. It might not be crystal clear what the big deal is about meditation or wisdom from thousands of years ago. All of this might appear foreign and confusing.
But, when you are around Sri Sri Ravi Shankar you cannot miss seeing a person overflowing with laughter, wisdom, compassion and love - exploding with life itself.
Thank you to the most amazing person I have met on this planet, to someone who reminded me of the simple truths I knew as a kid, to the value of giving and my connection to everyone, who showed me the power of silence, and turned my attention away from the small and fleeting events to the incredible life inside.
Thank you for not hiding in a cave somewhere, content in your own bliss, but instead for choosing a life of non-stop work, teaching me and millions of other people the incredible tools that allow the life inside to grow and shine brighter, which has made my life more meaningful and joyful each year.
(source: http://www.artofliving.org/in-en/story-that-could-be-yours)
DEC 05TH 2013
Getting over Mistakes
"These are the four doors to hell - lust, greed, arrogance and anger. You would have committed a mistake out of these four things. There is no fifth thing. Drop these things. In the present moment you are innocent. Believe in your innocence in the present moment. Just remember this.
Give me your past, believe in your innocence in the present moment and move on with enthusiasm.
Lord Krishna in the Gita (scripture of the Hindu epic, Mahabharata) says the same thing to Arjuna, ‘Arjuna, you are trying to get rid of your sins. It is impossible. I will relieve you of your sins, you don’t worry about it.
Just drop your mind to me, I will take care of your past sins. Don’t grieve about your past’."
- Sri Sri
DEC 05TH 2013
Marriage and Choice
Q: I realize how attached I am to some of my desires and dreams, such as, having a family for example. Do I have to practice detachment to make it happen? Does the spiritual path involve detachment from all of our desires?
Sri Sri: Look, if you have too many desires that is a problem. it is too scattered. Focus on one desire at a time.
Do you really want to get married? Why didn’t you do it so far? Are you being too picky and choosy? When the time comes you don’t go ahead, and later on you think you cannot find anybody.
Once a gentleman who was in his 60’s came to me and said, ‘Gurudev, I am looking for a soul mate, but I haven't found one’.
I said, 'Wait for another 15 years, you’ll find her in heaven'.
You know, don’t be too fussy about it. Look for a good person and get married. Even if they’re not good, you can change them, make them better!
I want to tell you a story about the Shakespeare of India. Have you heard about him? His name was Kalidasa and he is called the Shakespeare of India because he wrote some of the most excellent work in Sanskrit literature.
If anyone wants to learn Sanskrit, they cannot miss Kalidasa. How he became Kalidasa is very interesting.
There was a great king, a very well known emperor of India. He had a daughter and his daughter was very beautiful. She was very intelligent, very smart and knew everything with perfection. So it was very difficult for the king to find a suitable match because she had to interview him.
See, in India, in the ancient times, women had all the power! It is the women who chose men, like Sita had her own Swayamvara. A Swayamvara is a ceremony where the woman can choose the person with whom she wants to get married.
So, the story goes, all the princes from the princely states were invited. Princes from many places flocked there because they had heard about her intelligence and her beauty. Some were very scared, as she would ask them a question and nobody could answer her questions.
So she rejected everybody, and year after year this kept happening. The king was a little worried but the prime minister was quite annoyed. She probably insulted him and the story goes that he was annoyed with her. The prime minister thought, ‘I have to teach this shrew a lesson, I have to tame her'.
So once he was passing by the forest and he saw a wood cutter who was sitting on the branch of a tree and cutting the head of the branch!. Suddenly an idea struck him and he said, ‘Hey come down!'
When he came down he said, 'You come with me'.
The woodcutter agreed and the minister asked him to be silent and only answer the questions with hand gestures. So he dressed the woodcutter up a little bit, and took him to the palace. He went to the princess and said, ‘I have brought a really brilliant guy for you’.
She said, ‘Okay, I will propose three questions to him’.
So she asked him, what is the truth of the world, he answered showing his index finger.
Then she asked, how the creation was created, and he answered by gesturing the number two with his hand.
The third question also passed in a similar fashion and she was very impressed. So she got married to him. When she got married, then she realized that he did not even know to write an alphabet. He was just a wood cutter in the forest. She felt cheated, but during those days in India, once you marry, that is it. You marry with all the five elements as a witness and then you are wedded for life.
Now she felt very cheated. She went to the temple and she cried before the Mother Divine. Then she realized how arrogant she was. She rejected so many people and caused pain to so many because she was trying to choose someone better, someone who could defeat her, but look what happened. She wanted to be defeated in a different sense, but she got defeated in another sense. She does this and she goes into deep meditation.
It is said, at that time, the Mother Divine came and asked this man, who was sitting there completely bewildered, to stretch his tongue out. So he stretched his tongue and she wrote Om on it. With this experience he immediately started reciting a poem called Smalaya Tandegam, and from then on he was known as the Kalidasa.
Kalidasa wrote the most exquisite of literature and wonderful poetry; such deep description, such intelligence, and so much pun in it. It is considered very beautiful.
So if you get somebody who is not up to your mark, I tell you, you have the ability to change them! This is the reason why I said this story. Believe in it (ability) and move on. If it doesn't happen over a few years, you have your way and they have their way.
DEC 05TH 2013
Satsang Today:
Q: My wife complains that I don’t say I love. But saying “I love you” is not in my nature. Is it necessary to express love?
Sri Sri: There are many different ways to say “I love you” so just say it somehow! if not in words then in actions.. Or just send an SMS with a smiley everyday (laughter)… We should always try to keep everyone happy.
DEC 05TH 2013
Getting over Mistakes
"These are the four doors to hell - lust, greed, arrogance and anger. You would have committed a mistake out of these four things. There is no fifth thing. Drop these things. In the present moment you are innocent. Believe in your innocence in the present moment. Just remember this.
Give me your past, believe in your innocence in the present moment and move on with enthusiasm.
Lord Krishna in the Gita (scripture of the Hindu epic, Mahabharata) says the same thing to Arjuna, ‘Arjuna, you are trying to get rid of your sins. It is impossible. I will relieve you of your sins, you don’t worry about it.
Just drop your mind to me, I will take care of your past sins. Don’t grieve about your past’."
- Sri Sri
DEC 04TH 2013
Handling Fear (Passion, Dispassion, Compassion)
You say when we are scared of something, we should face our fears. My question is where do I get the courage to face these fears?
Sri Sri: Know that you are not alone, and there is a universal power that loves you, and is with you. When you remember that you are being loved very dearly, fear vanishes. All your troubles begin because you don’t believe you are being loved very dearly. That is where the whole problem starts, and you start behaving in ways that pushes everybody away. You create a misery for yourself, because you doubt yourself; Am I good enough? Am I being loved? Does God love me or not? Do people love me or not? These sort of doubts.
Just take it for granted that you are loved and liked, even if you’re a buffoon. Even if you are a clown, you are loved and enjoyed. People like you however you are. Just move on, don’t sit and spend too much time worrying about yourself, examining yourself, and re-examining. Just take up a commitment and do what you need to do, and take deep rest with dispassion.
Three things are essential, Passion, Dispassion and Compassion.
When you have passion, you don’t worry. When you don’t have passion, that is when you sit and worry. Hesitation comes when you lack passion. Without passion life loses all its charm and you slip into depression. Passion is essential; invoke the passion.
Not only passion, dispassion is also essential. People tell you that you should be passionate, but I say you should also have dispassion. Dispassion is often thought to be a depressed state of affairs. People look very depressed and think this is dispassion. This is a completely wrong understanding.
Dispassion makes you centered. It keeps your smile and equanimity. It keeps the intellect sane and emotions balanced. When you have dispassion you will stop complaining about anything to anybody. The world is the way it is, you won’t complain about people or situations, and you won’t complain about yourself. This is dispassion.
Many times we complain about others, including the ones we love the most. We make the other person defensive, or make them give explanations. It is such a headache!
Initially I used to get swayed by this. People would say, ‘You don’t look at me’, or ‘You don’t talk to me’, or ‘Are you angry with me’, my goodness! These days I do not answer such questions. If you think so, let it be. So be it. Never mind! When you get beaten up a little bit by your own emotions, that makes you strong somewhere.
It’s all just a matter of wanting attention. You give attention and they are alright. Just like babies – if you don’t attend to them they throw tantrums just to draw your attention. Have you noticed this? When you have guests at home and you are busy talking to them, that is when the children want to show you their paintings. They have already shown it to you ten times. But when you are having an important discussion, they come and disturb you! You wonder that this child was quiet, what happened all of a sudden!
We have not grown up from that stage, we always want attention from people. And for this attention we create tension for the others.
So with dispassion, you neither have attention deficiency, nor do you have any tension. You won’t sit and crave for attention. Dispassion is essential.
One more thing that is really beneficial is compassion. When you have compassion it propels you, it motivates you. When you have compassion for those who do wrong, you don’t feel hatred or bitterness towards them. Compassion greases passion and dispassion, and balances them out.
DEC 04TH 2013
The Fear of the possibility of things not working out the way we expect, prevents us from Living Life fully...
Sometimes we look at people with mistrust.. Behind this is nothing but our own expectations of:
- How Life should be!
- How People should be!
- and How Things should be..!
What If things do not work out the way we Expect..!! Bothers us Continually..
Living in the Moment... and Acceptance of whatever Life throws at us is perhaps sometimes not so easy..Yet SURRENDER carries us through...
Master's Presence, Gratitude.... Grace...
- WD
DEC 04TH 2013
De-Link your Happiness from Fulfilment of Desires and Achievements..Don't postpone....
Happiness is Within....
DEC 03RD 2013
DOERSHIP
Q: How can I become free from the sense of doership?
Sri Sri: Just keep doing, don’t worry about it.
I think you have too much time to sit and think, 'Am I the doer or not'. Just do what you are suppose to do.
Every action has a reward; pleasant, unpleasant, or mixed. There are only three types of rewards. When you act, that action brings you some positive reward, or some negative reward, or some positive and negative reward. The effect of all these rewards stay only for some time. So the wise will not worry about it.
In every action there is something positive and there is something that is negative. An action cannot be 100% perfect. Focus on the positive things that develop out of an action. And don’t worry about the effect of the action, just keep moving.
If you have done a wrong action, that has taught you a lesson not to repeat it next time. If you have done the right action, it encourages you to do many more of the same right actions.
If you find that in the action you did, there are some things that you could improve, then you can always improve on that.
Just move on, don’t say, 'I am the doer', or, 'I am not the doer'. Anyway no one is a doer in one sense, and in another sense, yes, you are the doer, because inside of you there are two.
There is a beautiful story in the Upanishads which says, 'On the tree of this universe, there are two birds sitting, one is enjoying the fruit, the other is just watching, like a witness'. So, there is one aspect of you that is not doing anything, that is much bigger. And there is one aspect in you that is doing everything. Both are present in you.
Now you might ask, 'How?'
On one level, you find that you are changing. Your thoughts are changing, your emotions are changing, your body is changing. Yet at another deeper level, there is something in you that is not changing at all; it is the same. So it is not one or the other, it is both together simultaneously.
When guilt eats you up, or pride takes over your head, then you should understand that you are not the doer. Do you get it?
When you do something very good and you say, 'Oh I did it, I did it', that too makes you unhappy. Doing something good also make you unhappy because you do so much and then you say that nobody recognizes you, nobody listens to you.
So not being recognized for your good work makes you miserable, and if you do something wrong, that too eats up your spirit and creates a sense of guilt. When such things happen, know that you are not the doer. Be a witness then.
People who have committed the biggest crime on the planet, somewhere deep inside, they think, 'Hey, I didn’t do it, how did this happen'.
They feel surprised and shocked, and they feel that they are not the doer, it just happened. If you talk to the biggest criminals on the planet, you will see that they find themselves being caught by an (criminal) act. Same way, someone who has done some excellent work, they also feel that it just happened; everything fell into place. That non-doership is an experience in itself.
When you have to do things, then don't say, 'Oh, I am not the doer'. Don’t go into that mode. It will only tear you apart. If you have to focus on some work, focus and just do it.
I am not a doer, is an experience, sometimes it just dawns on you. And it is also a reminder to you when you are reeling in guilt, or in arrogance.
DEC 03RD 2013
Dear Gurudev, all our lives we seek for love in our relationships and yet this love is so temporary. What is ultimate love or the love that never goes away?
Sri Sri: You are made up of the stuff called love. What you are seeking here and there is what you are. Turn inward and repose. When you find that you don’t need love from anybody and you are the source of it, then you start giving. When you start giving in abundance, it comes back to you in abundance.
DEC 03RD 2013
Q: What is the best way to dissolve our karma?
Sri Sri: Just keep acting. Don’t worry, karma is past. Knowledge, awareness, meditation and good action, these things erase the past karma.
Being aware and knowing that the past is past, that it happened for whatever reason; the awareness of this knowledge itself erases the past karma.
Do good actions, do something good.
DEC 03RD 2013
" Love of God is the one essential thing. A true lover of God has nothing to fear, nothing to worry about. He is aware that the Divine Mother knows everything. The cat handles the mouse one way, but its own kitten a very different way."
- Sri Ramakrishna
DEC 03RD 2013
Sri Ramakrishna: "I" and "mine" indicate ignorance. Without ignorance one cannot have such a feeling as "I am the doer; these are my wife, children, possessions, name and fame".
Thereupon Keshab said, 'Sir, if one gave up the "I", nothing whatsoever would remain.'
Sri Ramakrishna: I am not asking you to give up all of the "I". You should give up only the "unripe I". The "unripe I" makes one feel: "I am the doer. These are my wife and children. I am a teacher." Renounce this "unripe I" and keep the "ripe I", which will make you feel that you are the servant of God, His devotee, and that God is the Doer and you are His instrument.
~ from "The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna", chapter 12 - 'The Festival at Panihati"' ->
DEC 03RD 2013
Marianne Williamson -
"Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us.
We ask ourselves, "who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented and fabulous?" Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God.'Your playing small doesn't serve the world.
There's nothing enlightening about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We were born to manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us, it's in everyone.
And as we let our light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others."
DEC 03RD 2013
Q: Why are we on earth? Is it to remove our karma or for something else?
Sri Sri - Give love, gain knowledge and remove karma – that is the purpose of life!
DEC 02ND 2013
"We're often tentative with love. We stop, hesitate. But love isn't tentative with us. It keeps returning, trying again. Love is persistent."
- Dr Brian Weiss
DEC 02ND 2013
Walk on the mud, but don’t let the mud touch your feet. Walk like a moving cloud.
- Sri Sri
DEC 02ND 2013
[Post # 626] - Narrated by Swami Shivananda:
"Swami Yogananda was a highly evolved soul. He was extremely handsome and had a manly body. Once he was travelling in Central Province, and he was alone in a train car. At a particular station when the train was about to leave, a beautiful courtesan hurriedly got into the same car with her luggage. As soon as her eyes fell on Yogananda, she was infatuated and begged him, "I offer my everything to you, please accept me." When Yogananda did not respond, she became impatient and threatened him, "If you don't listen to me right now, I shall pull the alarm chain to stop the train, and I shall complain to the guard that you had molested me." She was carrying a bottle of wine in her bag. She began to drink the wine to become more excited, but it had the opposite effect. She became so drunk that she passed out on her seat. When the train reached the next station, Yogananda got off the train unharmed. Look, what grace of the Master! Who else can protect except He?"
DEC 02ND 2013
DEC 02ND 2013
"The cultured give happiness wherever they go.The uncultured whenever they go."~ Swami Chinmayananda
DEC 02ND 2013
" If you are a taker of happiness you get misery, if you are a giver of happiness you get joy and love. "
- Sri Sri
DEC 01ST 2013
Unconditional Love
"The Love for someone just because They Are...
Not because they are great, not because they have wonderful qualities, not because they look very beautiful, not because they are kind to you and not because they did something good to you..
These are all BUSINESS.... not Divine Love..
I love you because you love me is a business..
I love you because you are so great is a business...
I love you Because...is a Problem!!
But Divine Love is Unconditional, guna rahitam, kaamna rahitam, no strings attached..not expecting anything in return...
That pure love emits from the core of your existence.. "
- Sri Sri
(Narad Bhakti Sutras - Love Cannot be Expressed)
"Money earned through corrupt means will not stay.You'll be responsible for children fighting over it."
- Sri Sri
"When you lose your enthusiasm, you lose everything else. Why does all this happen? It is because of Maya. This Maya is very intriguing indeed. It can catch hold of anyone and make them dance to its tunes! And the poor one caught up keeps dancing. The whole world is troubled because of Maya
But Lord Krishna says, ‘This Maya is full of Divine qualities, and is born from Me. So you must honour and respect it. This Maya is born from Me. It is I who propagates it, and only by My Divine grace can you overcome it. You cannot be free from it by your efforts alone, no matter how much you try. Only by taking My refuge can you cross the ocean of Maya’.
So only by going deep within your self can you overcome this Maya."
"If you don't have a relationship with yourself, all other relationships become shallow. And if your relationship with yourself is so profound and steady then you naturally develop the skill to handle any kind of relationship around you."
- Sri Sri
"Consciousness is peace. You are peace, you are truth, and you are energy, walking, moving, talking, sitting. The "self" is energy and the "self" is knowledge, the knowing and the knower. This consciousness is love, you are love.
Understanding and living this is the spiritual life. Life attains its richest form through the spiritual dimension. Without it life becomes very shallow and you are unhappy, dependent, depressed and miserable."
- Sri Sri
By remaining unhappy one cannot solve anyone's problems... But by sharing smiles one can definitely make others feel better...:)
Nearly 50 % of all sexual assaults, worldwide, are on girls under the age of 15 years. One out of every two girls in India becomes a child bride. Girls who are married young are more likely to face violence, abuse and exposure to Sexually Transmitted Diseases. And these are just some of the startling facts surrounding the Girl Child today.
Welcome to the Girl Pledge 2013. Our first step in making this world a gender-equal space.
Happy Thanksgiving.... Must Must read this beautiful knowledge sheet by Guruji..
Gratitude And Beauty
"You cannot be grateful and feel the lack. The two cannot exist at the same time. When you feel grateful, you feel full. When you feel lack, grumbling begins from some corner. If you feel grateful, gratitude will increase in you and you will be given more. If you keep on grumbling, the negativity in you will increase. Jesus said, "For those who have not, what little they have will be taken from them. And to those who have, more will be given. And more. And more." This is the law of the nature. For those who do not have this knowledge, there is no way to get out of their grumbling. It becomes a habit.
This applies to relationships too. If you love someone, know that nothing is lacking. Trust that they also love you very much. If you doubt someone's love, your doubt grows no matter what you receive from them. If you want to be close to someone, first begin to feel that person is already close to you. When you ask people, "Do you trust me?" you are doubting their trust. When you are in doubt about a trust, you grow in doubt -- and there is no limit to it.
Whatever is, that grows. If you sow a seed, that seed will grow. If the seed itself is lack, then lack is what grows. Today you feel a lack, and tomorrow you will feel some other lack, and then in a year, even if all these things are provided, still you will feel some lack. Observe carefully and see what you have been given. Then you become grateful. In gratefulness, everything that supports life grows. When people grumble all through life, their minds don't focus properly. Naturally, they tend to lose out. Even on the material plane, when consciousness is flooded with lack, lack grows. But if you feel you have plenty, plentifulness grows.
This understanding of consciousness is important. Consciousness is the power, energy, beauty and wealth that permeates all creation. This entire creation is full of life -- it abounds in the trees, birds, animals, rivers and stones. Without it, not a blade of grass can move. Without it, there can be no progress. Without it, there is no beauty.
One of the most precious faculties the human body possesses is recognition of beauty. The basis of creation is beauty. In the Vedic tradition, the entire creation is seen as nothing but waves of beauty. Truth is a quest of the intellect, but beauty is felt with the heart. Intellect analyses, is curious to know what is inside the flower, how it grows, what season it comes up in but the heart doesn't care about this detailed knowledge.
Beauty comes in many forms. Spring has its own beauty. In midsummer everything is green and full. And in autumn, the color of the falling leaves is spectacular. "Wow! This is so wonderful!" -- an appreciation of beauty wells up in the heart and takes over the whole being.
The very process of maintaining beauty is beautiful. Water rises as vapor and forms clouds on the Great Lakes -- and the Great Lakes flow into Niagara Falls. Without that process, the water would flow down once and the Falls would disappear. It would be like the fireworks on the Fourth of July -- they last for some time and then are over. But in creation, a rainbow comes and then it comes again and again and again. Underneath what has been created with so much beauty, there is a maintenance principle that sustains this phenomenon.
It is all pervasive, this beauty. Life cannot be a celebration, cannot be joyful, cannot be fulfilling, if there are no waves of beauty. This Thanksgiving, as you celebrate and rejoice with your loved ones, observe the richness in your life. Observe the wealth that nature has given you. Let the gratitude in you rise and let the waves of beauty wash you.
- Sri Sri
NOV 27TH 2013
Q: Guruji, how can we keep a smile in front of all despite all the difficult challenges in life?
Sri Sri : When you feel like that, give it to me. I am with you. Whenever you feel a challenge, remember me. Give me your challenges and know that you are not alone. You will sail through those difficulties that I guarantee you. Alone you may feel it is difficult.
Everyone smiles when everything is okay. The real achievement is your ability to smile when things go wrong. When everything falls apart and you still smile, then you are an Art of living member. You are well soaked in knowledge.
NOV 27TH 2013
Q: To the sincere seekers, I would like to give them a note -
Seek the Highest!
Seek life beyond what it appears to be, beyond the perception of our five senses. Look into the mystical aspect of life, which is prevalent in every one of us. You don’t have to go somewhere, you can simply see life in a bigger context.
Ask yourself, who am I? What am I doing? What do I want? What is this universe about? What is all this about? This enquiry within you makes you a seeker.
- Sri Sri
NOV 26TH 2013
How Meditation Happens!!
Meditation is the journey from sound to silence, from movement to stillness, from a limited identity to unlimited space. There are five ways through which meditation happens:
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.
NOV 26TH 2013
HURT
Many times you feel " I am so hurt" because you don't expect some reaction/situation. When you are hurt you start shutting down...
After this happens a few times,you're entire personality shuts down.You become so rude and angry.
There is another way to look at this. Each time you have been hurt, you have become stronger. A wise man will hurt you to wake you up.
If an ignorant man hurts you,show compassion.If a friend hurts you,take it as some karma being washed away.If elders or a wise one hurts Know that it is for you're own good. Karma is not just of this but of several lifetimes.
Some amount of hurt is essential.If a mother never scolds,corrects the child,he/she cannot withstand criticism in the world!
When you get hurt or miserable...
Grow beyond the events...
Learn from them & be strong ...
- Sri Sri
NOV 26TH 2013
"Don't waste today for what happened yesterday. Wake up and say, "I have the valor and the courage to overcome this."
- Sri Sri
NOV 26TH 2013
Despite threat from Taliban & other extremist groups, the largest meditation program in Pakistan happened with many standing up for peace.
NOV 26TH 2013
Ques: Can love and dispassion co-exist.. They seem to be contradictory.
Sri Sri: It should exist together, otherwise you will not be sane. Like breathing in and breathing out are totally contradictory but it has to go on together.
You cannot breathe in the same time you are breathing out but they should alternate. Similarly love and dispassion should alternate. Love is passion. Passion and dispassion are equally important...
NOV 25TH 2013
Happiness
Santosha (contentment) is a practice.
Being unconditionally happy is a practice.
Happiness is an attitude. If you are used to being unhappy, even in the best of situation you will still grumble and be unhappy. Then nothing can make you happy in the world. Do you see what I am saying?
You sell your happiness for peanuts. You sell your smile for pins. I tell you it is not worth it. The entire world is not worth your smile. Even if you are made the king or emperor of the world, it is not worth giving away your smile.
This is one of the rules of yoga: Santosha; (cultivating the practise of) being happy.
- Sri Sri
NOV 25TH 2013
Q: Dearest Guruji, What is a devotee? What does a devotee do? How does one become a devotee?
Sri Sri: Now don’t try hard to become a devotee. Love combined with commitment is devotion. Love with wisdom is devotion.
Love without wisdom can turn into negativities: Love today, hate tomorrow. Love today, jealousy tomorrow. Love today, possessiveness tomorrow.
Love combined with wisdom is bliss, and that is devotion. Devotion is a strong bond, a sense of belongingness. Everybody is born with it. It’s just like becoming a child again.
NOV 25TH 2013
Q: Dear Guruji, what is the meaning of being natural? Is it doing whatever comes to the mind and doing whatever one feels like.
Sri Sri: No it is not doing whatever that comes to your mind. Doing whatever comes to your mind without any attention, awareness or thought would be foolish. Whatever comes to your mind should pass through the test of intellect or wisdom.
Being natural is feeling at home; feeling at home even in adverse situations. You know when everything is good you feel at home but when things do not go your way you don’t feel at home and you want to run away. So feeling at home in every situation, yeah!
NOV 25TH 2013
What is your Relationship with Yourself!!
"If you know how to row a boat, you can row any boat. But if you don’t know how to row, changing boats isn’t going to help. Similarly, changing a relationship does not solve the issue. Sooner or later, you will be in the same situation in any other relationship. Most people look elsewhere for a perfect relationship, but few look within themselves, at the place from where we relate.
What is your relationship with yourself?
Who are you to yourself?
If your relationship is based on personal need it may not last that long. Once the need is fulfilled, on a physical or on an emotional level, the mind will look for something else and go somewhere else. If your relationship is from a level of sharing, then it can last longer. When you’re looking for security, love, and comfort from your partner, you become weak.
When you are weak, all the negative emotions come up and you become demanding. Demand destroys love. If we just know this one thing, we can save our love from getting rotten.
It’s the limited awareness of yourself and the limited experience of love that encapsulates you in a tiny compartment where you start suffocating. We can’t even handle the love we are asking for because we have never probed into the depth of our own mind; our own consciousness."
- Sri Sri
NOV 25TH 2013
Why don't you take everybody as your own.... :)
NOV 24TH 2013
What Do Sad people have in Common?
It seems...They have all built a shrine To the Past
And often go there And do a strange wail and Worship.
What is the beginning of Happiness?
It is to stop being So Religious Like That.
~ Hafiz
NOV 24TH 2013
"Praise and blame, gain and loss, pleasure and sorrow come and go like the wind. To be happy, rest like a giant tree in the midst of them all."
~ Buddha —
NOV 24TH 2013
Heaven on Earth....
NOV 23RD 2013
"When you face the light you don't see the shadows. When there is love and surrender then there is no room for fear."
- Gurudev today
NOV 23RD 2013
"During low tide, the water recedes and in high tide it comes forth in full force. Doesn't mean the amount of water in the ocean has changed...
The same is with Devotion. it rises like Waves... "
- Guruji today
NOV 23RD 2013
"The mind is constantly trying to figure out what page it’s on in the story of itself.
Close the book. Burn the bookmark. End of story.
Now the dancing begins......"
- Ikko Narasaki
NOV 22ND 2013
"Once the mind becomes aware that it is being observed, It becomes quiet..."
- Sri Bhagavan
NOV 22ND 2013
"Forgiveness, openness, and understanding ...flow naturally where there is compassion."
~Mooji
NOV 22ND 2013
GO OUT AND VOTE!!! EVERY VOTE MATTERS....
NOV 22ND 2013
Guruji in Satsang today
"The longing in you is very natural. As a child for toys, as a youth for gadgets, people and as an adult for fame, money. Even after getting these, you are still not happy. You long for something deeper. You are lucky. Observe this longing
When a fish is taken out of water, it is gasping for water.. that is similar to the intense longing. That longing itself is God.
Tadap hi Ishwar hai.."
"Best decisions are those thay are taken without cravings and aversions. Those decisions with even a tinge of these are not as satisfying.."
Q: Kya mujhe moksh milega?
Guruji : Chahiye? Toh milega!
Jab kadak dhoop hain, uske baad barish girti hain. Prakriti ka niyam hai....
(Will we get moksha?
#SriSri- do you want moksha? Its natures rule that you get what you ask for. The intense desire should be there.)
"People and situations are like flowing rivers. The same situation never comes again. Either you get stuck..or you move on..
In life, you have to be both Sensible and Sensitive . Balance the heart and the brain..."
Q: In life should we focus on uplifting others or ourself?
#SriSri -BOTH...
"Love never says enough! It is always infinity, not limited.
Longing makes love not-complete and love is incomplete without longing ....
A mother always wants to do more for her child.. she never says I done enough. That is love...."
"Be Brave, and be clear in your heart. Know that whatever is yours will always come back to you....
Be happy and make others happy. Know that you are protected by the divinity. There is plenty of seva to do!"
"A small part of the ocean you call a wave. The wave is 'atma' and the ocean is 'parmatma' "
"Ashtavakra says: You can be free right NOW if you realize that, 'I am not the body'.."
NOV 22ND 2013
Scientists are getting close to proving what yogis have held to be true for centuries -- yoga and meditation can ward off stress and disease.
NOV 22ND 2013
"Moments of inner quiet will burn out all obstacles without fail."
~ Nisargadatta Maharaj
NOV 22ND 2013
"When you go into meditation, you should consider everything irrelevant. Only then can you become quiet.
But do not think this when doing some activity. During activity, everything is relevant."
- Sri Sri
NOV 18TH 2013
Disciple ... Qualities
Guruji, you always say that you have a lot to give us, but we should have the ability to receive it. So what are the qualities of your dream disciple?
Sri Sri: A disciple should be hollow and empty.
At the same time whatever you have heard or listened, don’t take it for granted. Study the knowledge and read it again and again.
Know but be as though you don’t know. Don’t let that arrogance of knowing come into you. Just be your natural and simple self.
NOV 18TH 2013
The Purpose of Life
Q: Why are we born? We eat, drink, sleep, and watch television; we are in and out of relationships. What is the life?
Sri Sri: This is a very important question. One who knows the answer will not give it to you. Anyone who gives you the answer does not know it. Do you know why?
That is because this very question is like a vehicle, which will take you home. It is the fuel for your life. When you keep asking again and again, ‘What is the meaning of life? What is the purpose of life?’
Then all those things that are irrelevant will fall off, and things become clearer for you to move forward. So, it is better that I don’t give you the answer, but it is a very important question.
This very question sets you on the real journey of life. Before that, you only exist, whereas this question puts you on the spiritual track.
NOV 18TH 2013
Q: Can we still be enthusiastic when we are uncertain?
Sri Sri: Yes! In knowledge you can be enthusiastic even in uncertainty.
Often people who are uncertain don't act; they simply sit and wait. Acting in uncertainty makes life a game, a challenge.
Being in uncertainty is letting go.
Certainty about the relative world creates dullness. Whereas, Uncertainty about the Self creates fear. Uncertainty about matter brings certainty about consciousness.
NOV 17TH 2013
"Just as you wash your hands before eating, clear your mind before engaging with the world."
~ Mooji
Don't get into other people's mess...!! They themselves want to get out of it...
NOV 16TH 2013
Gurudev, you say that two questions will be asked in the end, how much love we gave, and how much knowledge we took? I have always taken love and given knowledge. What will be my fate now?
Sri Sri: At least you have understood this much!
All this time you have enjoyed giving knowledge, now start taking knowledge and giving love.
How much ever love you have received, give more than that to other, and you are done. The car has taken a 'U' turn then. It was going in the wrong direction, the driver realized his fault and changed the direction.
Does it mean that we stop sharing knowledge? No, there is no need to stop. Continue giving knowledge. Whatever you receive, you give that.
And give that knowledge with love. Don’t give it to inflate your ego. That person needs this knowledge, share knowledge with this intention.
NOV 15TH 2013
Misunderstandings happen on this planet because of distance, because there is no closeness, no one ever “sits next to” the other. In one house people live on different planets. In a town, people live in different galaxies. There is so much distance, and so there is no understanding.
- Sri Sri
NOV 14TH 2013
Q: In the choice between what your heart wants and your responsibilities.. What to choose?
Guruji: Fulfill your responsibilities first.
NOV 14TH 2013
Q: Guruji, why is there poverty and suffering in this world?
Guruji: So that your hearts can open and you can do some service. You can realize how fortunate you are and you can express your love and caring for others. Imagine there is no poverty and suffering anywhere.. then how can you ever express your compassion and your magnanimity? Think about it..
NOV 14TH 2013
"You can search throughout the entire universe for someone who is more deserving of your love and affection than you are yourself, and that person is not to be found anywhere. You yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe deserve your love and affection."
- Buddha
NOV 14TH 2013
'If you are not free, you cannot love - freedom is the first thing. So when you become free, you are able to love unconditionally. When you love unconditionally you will be skillful in your dealings.'
- Sri Sri
NOV 14TH 2013
"Remember, we are all affecting the world every moment,
whether we mean to or not. Our actions and states of mind matter, because we're so deeply interconnected with one another.
Working on our own consciousness is the most important thing that we are doing at any moment, and being love is the supreme creative act."
- Ram Dass
NOV 14TH 2013
Happiness is a Choice, a Decision, a Commitment to Oneself
"One thing we must determine, 'Whether things happen or not, let me at least not lose my joy! Let me be happy!’"
- Sri Sri
NOV 14TH 2013
You ask me why you don't feel stern renunciation. There is a reason for it. You have desires and tendencies within you. The same is true of Hazra. In our part of the country I have seen peasants bringing water into their paddy-fields.
The fields have low ridges on all sides to prevent the water from leaking out; but these are made of mud and often have holes here and there. The peasants work themselves to death to bring the water, which, however, leaks out through the holes.
Desires are the holes. You practise japa and austerities, no doubt, but they all leak out through the holes of your desires.... If there are no desires, the mind naturally looks up toward God.
~ Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa
NOV 14TH 2013
Krishna ka jeevan sangharsh se bhara tha, phir bhi ve sadaiv muskurate aur nachte rahe...
Tum bhi har sangharsh aur dwand ko hanste-nachte-gaate hue paar kar jaao, aur is sansaar ko apna yogdaan do...
- Sri Sri
NOV 14TH 2013
During Guruji's Visit to Gujarat, he was asked - Guruji log bahut taang kheenchtey hain!! Guruji humorously answered:
"Taang kheenchne ke liye bhi saamne wale ko jhukna padega.
Jaisey hi koi tumhari taang kheenche ke liye jhuke, usko aashirwaad de dena .."
WD's take - When people try to pull you down, they themselves have to stoop down. Behaving in a manner which does not befit them.. One can only have compassion for such people...
NOV 14TH 2013
"Do you know what the spiritual path is? It is retaining that child-like nature even after growing up. If we do this much and if we keep our hearts clean, all that we wish for will come true. Not only what we wish for but we also get the ability to fulfill the desires of others.
Our heart should respond like a child. All of us have a small child hidden in us. We should awaken it."
- Sri Sri
NOV 13TH 2013
Don't return this brain back to God unused ... Use it.. - Sri Sri
NOV 13TH 2013
"Guru is none other than the Self."
- Ramana Maharishi
NOV 13TH 2013
"If you don't believe in miracles, you've probably forgotten that you're one.."
NOV 12TH 2013
"Do you all have the memory of being a small child? Do you remember how your heart used to respond? If someone used to get hurt, was it not hurting you? If another person got hurt, it used to hurt us as well.
However, as we started growing older, how did we lose this? What have we become? It is a big question that we have to ask ourselves.
Do you know what the spiritual path is?
It is retaining that child-like nature even after growing up. "
- Sri Sri
NOV 12TH 2013
"If your mind is calm clear... you can connect with anyone in the world...
If a close one or relative or friend is unhappy, it affects you.. you start feeling it..If you are Centred you have this danger of feeling everybody's everything from everybody..
That's why nature has a safety valve.. it does not give you these abilities till you are so Centred..that nothing bothers you.."
Guruji in Kenopanishad...
NOV 12TH 2013
Pleasure!
The mind that is seeking pleasure cannot be centered. You either seek pleasure or come to me. When you are centered, all pleasures come to you anyway, but they are no longer pleasures. They lose their charm. The mind that seeks pleasure can never achieve the highest. If you are after pleasure, forget about Satsang. Why are you wasting your time? This is the Art of Living.
If you are enjoying your suffering, then you also cannot be centered and you are far away from the path.
- Sri Sri
NOV 12TH 2013
"You can go about creating problems by your non-acceptance for 'What IS'.. and keep seeking solutions..
But Life is Just Life...."
NOV 12TH 2013
"You can go about creating problems by your non-acceptance for 'What IS'.. and keep seeking solutions..
But Life is Just Life...."
NOV 12TH 2013
“Disciples and devotees…what are most of them doing?
Worshipping the teapot instead of drinking the tea!”
~ Wei Wu Wei
NOV 12TH 2013
Just wake up and see that all the past is only a memory. In the flow of time, all events are dissolving....
- Sri Sri
NOV 12TH 2013
The more you give, the more you will get. Then life will become a sheer dance of love.
- Sri Sri
NOV 12TH 2013
NOV 11TH 2013
"Sometimes you feel, "This is too much. I can't handle any more." I tell you, you will never be given anything you cannot handle. The water will come up to the nose, but it will not go beyond."
- Sri Sri
NOV 11TH 2013
On the Spiritual Path...the whole Life becomes a process of perfecting "Unconditional Love.."
- WD
NOV 11TH 2013
“You find peace not by rearranging the circumstances of your life, but by realizing who you are at the deepest level.”
~ Eckhart Tolle
NOV 11TH 2013
Let what comes, come.
Let what goes, go.
Find out what remains.
- Sri Ramana Maharshi
NOV 11TH 2013
On a lighter note...
NOV 11TH 2013
Good healthy relationships find their base in mutual respect and low expectations ... - WD
NOV 11TH 2013
There is nothing Certain here... Can you just enjoy this moment....Can you just BE with what is happening Now...!! ..
NOV 10TH 2013
If you correct your mind, the rest of your life will fall into place. -Lao Tzu
NOV 09TH 2013
"Moha main bina fanse...Gyaan aur Prem main rehna..
Yehi is Diwali ka sandesh hai..."
(To be in Wisdom and Love without being Attached..That is the message for this Diwali)
- Gurudev on Diwali ..
NOV 06TH 2013
"Just believe in God, know that He is there and He will take care of everything for you. He will protect you at all times. In the Bhagavad Gita, Lord Krishna says:
Ananyas chintayanto mam ye janah paryupasate |
Tesham nityabhiyuktanam yoga-kshemam vahamy-aham || (9.22)
Lord Krishna says that once you are surrendered to God, once you take His refuge, then He takes on the responsibility to provide you with all that you need, and also protect that which you already have.
This is why Lord Krishna says: ‘Yogakshemam Vahamyaham’. Here Yog- means to give you what you have yet to receive and kshema- means to take care of and protect what you have already received. Both are His responsibility. Lord Krishna says this very clearly. So just know this and relax."
- Sri Sri
OCT 31ST 2013
Diwali: Celebrating the Light of Wisdom
"Diwali in essence is celebrated to kindle the light of wisdom in every heart, the light of life in every home and bring a smile on every face. Diwali is the shortened form of Deepavali, which literally means rows of lamps.
Every lamp that we light is symbolic of a good quality. There are good qualities in every human being. Some have forbearance, some have love, strength, generosity; others have the ability to unite people. When all these qualities are lit, awakened, that is Diwali.
Don't be satisfied with lighting one lamp; light a thousand!"
Diwali is a time when you throw light on the wisdom you have gained and welcome a new beginning. When true wisdom dawns, it gives rise to celebration. Celebration is the nature of the spirit and every excuse to celebrate is good.
For the one who is not in knowledge, Diwali comes only once a year, but for the wise, Diwali is every moment and every day. This Diwali, celebrate with knowledge and take a sankalpa (vow) to serve humanity.
Light the lamp of love in your heart; the lamp of abundance in your home; the lamp of compassion to serve others; the lamp of Knowledge to dispel the darkness of ignorance and the lamp of gratitude for the abundance that the Divine has bestowed on us.
- Sri Sri
Wishing everyone a very Happy Deepawali... :)
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar in Satsang today
(Someone asks a question without the mike on)
#SriSri: Switch on the mike. See this is what happens. You keep shouting in life, but you forget to switch on the mike! In the same way when you put life’s switch on, then you gain energy in life. You go on in life with no energy, without the mike on. You keep talking and no one can hear you. Even our prayers are the same. Prayer done without meditation does not reach where you want it to reach. When you pray through meditation, then it is like switching on the mike. No matter how far God is sitting, he will definitely hear you!
Ques: Why does depression comes in life?
#SriSri: Because of ignorance. Ignorance is the cause. You don’t know who you are, you don’t know how much potential you have. You don’t know what is the goal, what is the path. So depression comes in life. But once you are here, then no depression, right?
Ques: Because of health reasons I am not able to Sadhana, Seva, Satsang. What do I do?
#SriSri: There are many instances you see where people with no hands, no legs are able to do something. Someone with no legs at all is swimming! Your health is a very relative term. There are people who are not able to speak, get up from the bed, at least you are able to walk around and come here. So you cannot just make an excuse that you are not healthy… Sickness should not be taken as an excuse for laziness.
For more Satsang photos and updates follow us on:
Google+: http://gplus.to/TheBangaloreAshram
Twitter: https://twitter.com/BangaloreAshram
AUG 03RD 2014
Q: How do we know what our capabilities are and how can we enhance them?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: See, sometimes we become aware of our own capabilities, and sometimes we come to know about them when someone else speaks about them, or when we hear about it from some third person.
For quite some time, Lord Hanuman was not aware of his strengths too. Someone had to tell him that he was endowed with so much strength and so many abilities.
Sometimes we also get to know about our capabilities from others. Now, what should you do to know more about them? When you think, 'I am able to do only this much', then just take one step further and see for yourself how you fare. Do not stop by thinking, 'I am not able to do this'.Just think, 'Let me see how much more can I do', and take one more step ahead.
Yoga is what helps enhance and sharpen one’s capabilities. Yoga is not limited to doing Yogasanas and Pranayamas. Yoga means to unite totally with what you are doing; to become one with the Divine.
All these (yoga) practices enhance our capacity and capabilities. Do you see a difference between what you used to do earlier and what you are doing now? When you came to the path of knowledge, your capability increased, isn’t it? That is what it is.
Vastushastra June 27, 2014
It is okay to consult Vastushastra (the ancient Indian science of space and architecture) before you construct a new home. But if there is some dosha (here meaning an anomaly in the land or the type of construction), simply chant Om Namaha Shivaya. Chanting this one mantra is enough to remove any negativity and any type of problems you may face.
You know, being in devotion removes all obstacles in one’s way. By being sincere in your Seva, Sadhana and Satsang, all problems get removed, and negativity disappears.
This is why mantras like Om Namaha Shivaya and the Mahamrityunjaya Mantra are so great. They have the power to remove all your problems and any negativity that may come your way.
Gurudev builds bridges yet again ! June 26, 2014
We are a mirror of the society. We get affected by whatever is in the collective consciousness of the society and we can make an impact on it too. Ukraine is going through a huge crisis and Art of Living is not unaffected by it. Of the several teachers doing great work in Ukraine, there was a conflict between two well meaning, well intentioned, dedicated teachers.
They both arrived in the German Ashram and didn't want to see each others faces. The signature smile of Art Of Living was replaced with anger and frustration.
To put it simply, they didn't look like happy people, let alone Art Of Living teachers!
All the efforts of our international coordinator, the international traveling teacher mentoring Ukraine,to mediate and make peace had failed. Any effort to bring them together only became worse.
In the German ashram, as elsewhere, Gurudev usually meets people in their country groups and listens to their issues and requests. In this case both these teachers did not want to see each other and be in the same room. They pleaded for a separate time with Gurudev.
They had intense interpersonal problems, and the mistrust, anger and hatred was very palpable.
Very patiently Gurudev invited one teacher to meet him first, then the next and then both together. What lasted for over an hour were conversations fraught with accusations, high emotions, tears, dis belief and mistrust. The way Gurudev handled it, at the end of the meeting both the teachers were hugging each other and promising each other of their support. Tears of sadness were transformed into tears of love and gratitude.
I got 5 very very valuable leadership lessons from the way Gurudev conducted this meeting.
1) Listen 100%
Though both the teachers kept talking about many minute details, some of which didn't make too much sense sometimes, Gurudev just listened. He didn't rush them,didn't interrupt them, didn't stop them or question them. He just let them talk and let off their steam. He just kept asking them to share more and listened intently. By the end of 15- 20 minutes that each of them spoke, they had nothing more left to speak and looked visibly relieved already!
Leadership learning - Expect differences of opinions and conflicts. When your team brings them to you, let them let out their steam. 50 % job is done already!
2) Don't judge or take sides
Not once in that one hour, did Gurudev judge either of the teachers or take sides. Even when what they spoke was totally opposite to each other, he did not think of one as good and the other as bad. One as right and the other as wrong. In fact, on a couple of occasions he appreciated each teacher to the other and the work they were doing. So both teachers could see that they were both doing good and important work for the organization .I could see, both teachers felt heard fairly and that itself kept the communication going!
Leadership learning- Don't judge or take sides in a conflict situation. A leader has to be neutral. By this, both sides will be able to bring their full case to the table, which is the only way the conflict can be potentially resolved.
3) Show that you care
Emotions ran high in this meeting. Gurudev, through his body language, concerned looks, compassionate approach showed how much he cared. He was passing around tissues, offering water, really being like a loving parent. Both the teachers were perfectly natural in their behavior and the warmth started blossoming between them too!
Leadership Learning- Even the best people in your team can have a bad day, a misunderstanding. If you show you care, they can overcome it.
4) Give a bigger vision
After listening and acknowledging their problems and challenges, Gurudev assured them of support and of finding a solution. He also gave them a bigger vision of how they have the responsibility of spreading happiness in their country and uplifting people. He said, people are waiting for you, so don't get caught in small little things. Think big, meditate. Things will resolve with time. He gave them such a big vision, that they themselves said that their disagreements felt like small things!
Leadership Learning- It is possible your team gets caught in small things and loses sight of the bigger goal. The biggest role of a leader is to keep uplifting his team towards this big goal !
5) Give Time
Despite being so busy, Gurudev spent over an hour with these two teachers! Not once did he rush them or let them feel what a tight schedule he has!
Leadership learning - Your team needs you, your time. Giving your time at the right time, can save many a disaster of later.
Two teachers who refused to be in each others company, left hand in hand with an inspiration for a better life. They left with strength, love and peace in their heart.I am so grateful to have been in the room to silently witness this amazing transformation. I learnt, what no book or professor could have taught me. Hope this note inspires you to take better leadership action too!
P.S – When I read this article to Gurudev, he actually suggested changes to it ! So not only did I get a leadership lesson, but also a lesson on how to write about it !!
Faith Can Solve All Doubts June 19, 2014
My name is Deepa Singh and I am a Yoga teacher. I stay in Mumbai. I have been into Art of Living for the past ten years and life has been a blissful journey since.
However, there is only one sad feeling that kept bothering me, which was that I have never gotten to meet my Guru face to face and talk to him. In all these years, I was only able to have eye contact with Him, as there are always so many devotee’s waiting to take his blessings. I always complained to myself, that when will I get to talk to Him properly. A part of me kept thinking, if I don’t meet Him, will He even know me?
Then one day, a relative of mine had come home and he told me that he had managed to get a meeting with Gurudev. He had sent an email to Him because he needed to talk about some important personal matters, and he got an appointment to meet Guruji in the Bangalore Ashram. While I was very happy for him, this made me even sadder.
Luckily for me, the very next day I got a call that Guruji is in Mumbai and that he will be staying at Sangeeta Jani’s place! I got so happy, I quickly went to meet Him. When I went, there were many devotee’s already waiting to meet Him, so I also joined them. Finally, when Guruji came I got to touch his feet and He also gave me Prasad. I was happy, but I still felt doubtful about whether he would remember me or not. So I quietly went and joined the next line as well!
When Guruji came and saw me again, He told me, “I just met you right? Don’t worry I remember and I will always be there.” When I heard this, I realized that He knew me and He understood everything that I was feeling. This gave me such joy. I realized that all our wishes get fulfilled after coming on this path if we have a strong sankalpa. All doubts get resolved, only faith is needed. We get immediate solutions and wisdom. Life becomes a celebration. We are all extremely lucky to have a Guru in our life.
JGD,
Deepa
Share your story with us
Want to share Your Guru Story ? Click here now to write it and we will share it with the entire world!
Secrets Unveiled.....
November 22, 2011 at 9:18am
Q: Guruji, sages have predicted our lives so accurately on palm leaves, Nadi Vidya. Is there really any role that I have in my life when everything already seems so predetermined? How does the path of sadhana change anything?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: See life is a mixture of accepting what is and wanting to make what you feel like having. It’s a mixture of both. You have an intention in your mind and that’s how you move on. See, you had an intention to come here and you came. But if you look into the past you say it is all determined, it is all destiny. That’s why I say a simple formula just listen to it. Look at the past as destiny so you will not keep regretting the past and see the future as free will so that you don’t procrastinate or become lethargic and say whatever, ‘god willing it will happen’. So you don’t become lethargic and do nothing if you consider the future as destiny. You should not say let’s leave it to destiny, no! The future is freewill, past is destiny and live in the present. This is wise way of living. Not so wise way is seeing the past as freewill and keep regretting about it, ‘oh I shouldn’t have done that’. Even after you became a medical graduate you say, ‘oh I should have taken engineering, I made a big blunder’. So you keep blaming yourself and keep regretting the past when you think the past was freewill. And you think future is all destiny, you want to leave everything to destiny and you just do nothing about it and you’ll be miserable in the present moment. This is the unwise way of living, got it?
Q: Dear Guruji, I understand from your knowledge that we have not one but several bodies. Can you please talk about subtle bodies and casual bodies? I’ve heard about them but I don’t know how or what they are.
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Yes, physical body in the waking state. In the sleeping state physical body is at rest, the subtle is active; in the dreaming state and that is why you get dreams. In deep sleep both of these go to sleep but the casual body is still there awake, aware. And casual body becomes cleansed in deep meditation. And in enlightenment the casual body is completely free, yes. So when one dies what happens, physical body separates, the subtle body remains with all its impressions. The subtle body and casual body they both go like a balloon and remain and look for a right opportunity, a right womb to get into. So when the soul finds that the couple is having union and depends on the energy level and harmony between the couple and the energy level of the soul, at that moment it comes into that, so that type of parents. Sometimes the soul brings two people together. A soul chooses I want this lady and this man as my father and mother. So they bring those two people together and they will have terrible attraction, unbearable attraction. So the moment the child is born, you’ll find suddenly the attraction between those two people is gone totally, completely gone. This happens, and after the first child many people divorce. How many of you have seen this happening? This happens that intense feeling of separation comes and then you should know that the soul made this thing happen. It is so amazing; all these things are so interesting. On one hand it is amazing on another hand if you are not so much in the present moment you’ll go crazy, seeing how many subtle worlds we live in simultaneously.
Simultaneously how many things are happening in the universe, it’s very interesting! So you come into the physical body to cleanse the subtle body. There is no way you can cleanse the subtle body hanging in the space. So you come to human body so that you get rid of all those impressions. Once you have gotten rid of the subtle impressions in the subtle body then the casual body with the divine grace also becomes free, that is called Nirvana. No more craving or aversions, nothing, totally hallow and empty. Wanting nothing and totally satisfied. Anytime you feel that I am total, I am complete, death can come this moment I welcome it. If you say that, if you feel that rather than saying it then that completion is Nirvana. That has touched the casual body; the casual body gets relieved not by your effort but by just the Divine will and Divine grace. The universe decides that whether the casual body should be there or should be removed, should be dissolved. It’s amazing, you can work on the physical, and you can work on the subtle that’s all you can do. The rest you can only wait, but this itself is a great job, this itself is good enough.
Q: Guruji, when we die the body and breath are left behind and our mind, memory, soul are still together with the impressions. Do the intellect and ego also still stay with us? Can we use our intellect to calm our mind then?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: The impressions of the intellect and the cravings and aversions of the mind go with the subtle body. So when you die what happens is for sometime the soul is in confusion, it does not know. It has just come out of the body but it does not know what to do. It doesn’t want to get into the body because the body appears like very gray matter, very dark and completely unbearable. So it doesn’t want to get into it, it feels very bad and averse to its’ own body most of the time. Sometimes they go in. So the soul is out there and very peaceful, the soul is totally at peace. They see people crying, wailing. It tries to tell them, ‘hey I am okay, don’t worry’, but they cannot communicate. There is a tradition to keep the light burning at the bedside of the body. It’s in Christian tradition as well, right? It’s in the Hindu tradition as well. Why you keep a light burning near the head so that when the soul suddenly looks at that light and knows that it is light. Let it be reminded that it is light, if it is still craving for something. Just to remind the soul that the nature of the soul or spirit is light, a lamp is kept or a candle is kept burning near the body. It’s not for us, it’s for the soul because the soul can still see, and smell. It has lost the sense of touch but smell and light are still there; smell, sight and sound all three will be there. So the ancient tradition is just before cremation the son or daughter; son usually, takes the head of the person into his lap and in the ear he says, ‘you are light, you are soul, you are not the body. Drop all your attachment to this body’, he tells them. And then the body is given a bath and then taken to cremation. These words are all in Sanskrit, and people simply repeat it in Sanskrit without knowing it because the priests tell them to say these things. To tell the departed in his ear that, ‘the five elements will go back to five elements. You are not just these five elements you are light, you are soul, you are spirit, you’re free and you move on now.’ This is what you say in the ear of the corpse, in case the soul is still hanging around and it does. It does hang around because it doesn’t know what to do. So it takes nearly ten days for the soul to get use to this other plain where it has gone. And once it reaches that plain of ancestors, one day there is one year for us. Our one year is just one day and one night for them in that realm. So there are three levels or lokas there also; one is Vasuloka, second is Rudra, and then Aditya. Three lokas are there and so they remain in this for some time. And there are three different Devas, they take them to those places. Someone who is a pious and died in a very good life they are taken direct to these lokas and three angels called Pururava, Ardrahva, and Vishvadeva. Three different Devas come and take the soul according to the level. It’s interesting! So in a yearly ceremony that is done, the day you remember the ancestors. First you invite these angels to bring them to you, for you want to honor them. These angels, they are the custodians. So you tell them ‘Visvadeva you bring my father, my mother or my grandfather or grandmother for this ceremony. Bring them for I would like to honor them.’ Ancient people knew all these so well, they had access to those realms. Even today people do this, they do the ceremonies and they do all this.
http://wisdom-dawns.blogspot.com/2011/11/secrets-unveiled.html
DEC 25TH 2013
On Christmas Eve...
DEC 25TH 2013
This holiday season unwrap the present of Life. The Wise know how to enjoy the gift inside while the ignorant get stuck to the wrapper.
- Sri Sri
DEC 25TH 2013
Christmas Special Satsang with Sri Sri Ravi Shankar from Boone Ashram, US!!
26 December 2 am IST - www.artofliving.org/webcast
DEC 25TH 2013
Guruji celebrating with Welma Cooper. Welma was the first person from North America to have done the Art of Living Course in 1982!! Guruji called her "the mother of Art of Living in North America"
Wishing everyone Merry Christmas....
DEC 24TH 2013
Gurudev from Boone!
"The ancient people said when there is satva, inner harmony, then success comes. That's why we should not run after success – “I want this and that.” Just be stable and content and success comes. No one sends a dinner invitation to a beggar, but to a person who has plenty.
Similarly in life, when you feel abundance, settled and content, then things simply start coming your way. You should see and experiment with that…but it's a delicate balance. It’s not being lazy or laid back, but you should be dynamic and at the same time content; you have passion to do something, but are not feverish about the result."
- Sri Sri
DEC 24TH 2013
" One of the most desired qualities of a true leader is the courage to listen to critics, taking failures with as much equanimity as successes. These days leaders are defensive all the time, explaining their shortcomings or justifying their wrong actions. A true leader will neither complain nor explain, and is open to learning all the time.
Admitting past mistakes and creating space for others with completely diverse viewpoints can make a leader more acceptable, universal. A leader does not pass the buck."
- Sri Sri
DEC 24TH 2013
"The root cause of so many diseases and conflicts is : We don’t know what should go in the mouth and what should come out of it!"
- Sri Sri
DEC 23RD 2013
Laugh as much as you Breathe
and Love as long as you Live......'
- Rumi
DEC 23RD 2013
ESSENCE OF 'SOHUM' shared by Sri Sri
Sohum is the natural sound of breath. When you breath out the hum is there. Sohum is the natural sound. If you read it the other way round, it is Humsa. Humsa is that which uplifts, that which floats, that which discriminates. That consciousness which discriminates right from wrong, from the permanent to impermanent, from the beautiful to ugly - discrimination.
Sohum does not mean ‘I am God’, it is ‘I am that’. What is the ‘that’? ‘That’ could be love, ‘that’ is truth, ‘that’ is love, ‘that’ is the beautiful space,‘that’ is what I really am! First I think I am just the thoughts, the emotions, the mind, but the true realization, I am not the thought, I am not the body, but I am that! What is that? It is the experience that is beyond words!
That truth which is beyond comprehension! That beauty which is beyond any imagination. That reality which you cannot totally catch. That love is what I am! And if love is God or God is love and I am love then I am God too!Jesus said love is God! And said, I am love! I am that, I am. This is there in the Bible also. I am that I am. Thou art that! All this is there.
But it is not the meaning that is important. What is important is the vibration of the sound. The sound Sohum, has some definite vibrations in the cosmos and that helps our spirits to blossom and that is what is most important.
OVBI presents Big Ideas for a Better India, an event that will witness a confluence of powerful speakers & over 400 delegates from across 25 major cities in the U.S. Join us in the conversation to create the India of our dreams.
Speakers include:
* Business Executive and Entrepreneur Naveen Jain.
* Founder of the Infinity Foundation Rajiv Malhotra.
* Lawyer and Entrepreneur Sheela Murthy.
* Founder of the Art of Living Foundation His Holiness Sri Sri Ravi Shankar.
Visit this Google Plus event online to view the Big Ideas for a Better India LIVE webcast. RSVP and share this event with all your friends and family.
More info: www.overseasvbi.org.
The Big Ideas event will be webcast LIVE today from 930 PM IST / 11 AM EST
Watch it here : http://tiny.cc/BIBILIVE
DEC 22ND 2013
You must come to the stage that when you go out from here, you remain effortlessly marinating inside your being all the time. Outwardly, there may be activities, but internally, you remain the unchanging peace and serenity.
It is only then that weary and tired beings can take rest in your presence.
If you are easily set on fire and agitated because of the events around you, you are not sufficiently established in the Self so that others can take rest in your presence or recognise themselves in your reflection.
The sage's presence and being is the light of the world.
Of course, all this is not your job, it is simply your joy.
~ Mooji
DEC 22ND 2013
To a chorus of thunderous applause, Pope Francis stated “because Muslims, Hindus and African Animists are also made in the very likeness and image of God, to hate them is to hate God! To reject them to is to reject God and the Gospel of Christ. Whether we worship at a church, a synagogue, a mosque or a mandir, it does not matter. Whether we call God, Jesus, Adonai, Allah or Krishna, we all worship the same God of love. This truth is self-evident to all who have love and humility in their hearts!”
http://diversitychronicle.wordpress.com/2013/12/05/pope-francis-condemns-racism-and-declares-that-all-religions-are-true-at-historic-third-vatican-council/
DEC 22ND 2013
Gurudev's US Tour... 2013
Credits: Prabu Vijayan
DEC 22ND 2013
Mesmerised by the beautiful shadow of the moon in the lake, we begin to assume that the moon is in the lake. Likewise, mesmerised by the razzmatazz, glitter and pleasures of this false world, we begin to assume that this is permanent. We get the impression that we are permanent here and worldly comforts are everything and ever lasting..
It seems that the moon is somewhere in the lake. But as soon as something falls in the lake, there are ripples and the moon's reflection is disturbed. And as soon as it is morning, the shadow will not appear even if the water in the lake is static. Likewise, we get immersed so much in this world's lures that we assume that the attractive world is permanent for us. We begin to wrongly think that we are permanent here and everything around us will remain the same. We presume that the world as we see it is the reality.
The Guru throws a pebble in the lake, creating ripples, and we are awakened from the slumber to realise that it was the shadow of the moon. This refers to the fact that the Guru guides us that the world as perceived through the five senses gives a very skewed picture of things. He shows us that all this is temporary. The charm of the materialistic joy is transitory and ephemeral. It will end in sometime.
As we are gazing in amazement at the moonlike-charm of the worldly pleasures, the Guru arrives and throws a pebble in the lake to demonstrate that the thing that we are staring at is not the moon but its shadow in the lake. He explains to us that enjoy the shadow of the moon but do not assume it to be the moon. Also, he details that this shadow of the moon is till sunrise (death) so why waste time in something which isnt permanent? The Guru gives us a reality check. The pleasure and picture of the beautiful moon is good to enjoy but one must be so engrossed in it that all else is forgotten.
As we walk on the way shown by the realised Master, the become aware of the true reality in contrast to the perceptual reality of old. We find out that the moon is in the sky. The lake is just the medium for its image to be reflected temporarily. We also notice that the sky is dark for only a finite period. The moon and its shadow will perish as soon as it is daytime. Applying the analogy to our lives, we find out that this world is merely a place to attain spiritual realisation by giving unconditional love to everyone. We realise the transience of the worldly joys, relations and comforts. The Guru also guides us that there is more to life than eating, sleeping and working. The Guru directs us towards our real soul agenda - that of Nirvana through sadhna, sewa and sankirtan.
- Avdhoot Babaji
DEC 22ND 2013
"Life gives you both positive & negative. Focus on the good & move ahead with commitment."
- @SriSri
DEC 22ND 2013
Guruji was explaining something while holding the mic in one hand. Someone then got a mic stand..He put the mic there and said :
"Aahh now both my hands are free..Now I can express myself better..
When your hands are free, You are free, then you are able to express better."
DEC 22ND 2013
"Silence is something that comes from your heart, not from outside. Silence doesn't mean not talking and not doing things; it means that you are not disturbed inside. If you’re truly silent, then no matter what situation you find yourself in you can enjoy the silence."
~ Thich Nhat Hanh
DEC 21ST 2013
We need to develop the habit of sharing our joy with others.
If you are happy, infect others with your happiness; don't just keep it to yourself.
Any action done with this idea is Service and the best form of service is uplifting someone's state of mind.
- Sri Sri
DEC 21ST 2013
"Think that 'I am only the instrument in the Lord's hands and my reward is in the mere fact that I am being used by him in His lila'."
- Swami Chinmayananda
DEC 21ST 2013
You will not find happiness in other things, people or situations.
Happiness can only be found inside of YOU.
Remember – your external world is a reflection of your internal one. So work on what’s going on inside of you FIRST and the rest will follow :)
DEC 20TH 2013
Check out the blog for the Review of The Hobbit 2 - The Desolation of Smaug
http://bawandinesh.name/the-desolation-of-smaug/
It will a perfect weekend movie to watch, if you have not already seen it!
See it in 3D and on as big a screen as possible!
DEC 20TH 2013 - Khurshed Batliwala
I came across this really superb little video ...
T'was the night before Christmas...
Do watch
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zIEIvi2MuEk
DEC 20TH 2013
Gurudev is in US.....
DEC 20TH 2013
His Holiness Pujya Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar ji Twitter handle is now @SriSri ....
It was formerly @SriSrispeaks Please spread the news
DEC 20TH 2013
Gurudev is in Germany.....:)
DEC 19TH 2013
Q. Is Sympathy close to Compassion? (or is compassion another form of sympathy?)
A. Sympathy is born out of fear. You feel sympathetic because you are going thank God I am not in this situation.
Compassion is a function of Love. In Compassion, your heart goes out to the other person and you simply want to be of some use to them and help them because they "belong" to you and you "belong" to them.
DEC 19TH 2013
"Life teaches you hard lessons if you don’t respect wisdom. Know that life goes with commitment, not moods. Mood is very unstable, they come, they change. But commitment and wisdom always brings the best results."
- Sri Sri
DEC 19TH 2013
Ashtavakra Gita: The Highest Knowledge
Q: Gurudev, I am confused as to what is it that I really want. I come to the Ashram to ask for material things that I desire, but I end up asking for bliss and take it home. Bliss is good, but does that mean I won’t get material things in life?
Sri Sri : Many times you say that you want something, and then you cut your own wants, by saying, ‘No, I don’t want it!’ Your own sankalpa (an earnest wish or firm resolve) gets cut by your own vikalpas (doubts). When you really want something to happen, it will definitely happen. When you ask for blessing, it happens.
In the Mahabharata war, Lord Krishna went three times to Duryodhana to tell him, ‘Don’t fight, let us not have this war. Come for peace negotiations. Let us sit, let us agree.’ Lord Krishna knew that the war was going to happen, and the Gita is going to come out of it, still he went three times to make peace. Why? Because you need to keep doing what should be done at one level. Suppose, in the Mahabharata, Duryodhana had agreed to Lord Krishna to give five villages to the Pandavas and no war was to happen, just imagine such a situation. There would have been no Gita! Even the Mahabharata script would never have come!
When someone asks, ‘Why are you doing this when you know very well that this action is not going to bring results?’ The answer is, ‘There is a bigger purpose for every action, and it is not related to the fruit of the action. What do I get from this is not the question; did I act in the situation or not is the question.’
In the hospital, doctors put all their effort to cure a patient knowing very well many times that the patient will not survive. The moment the doctor knows that the patient will not survive, will they stop caring for him? No! As long as the heart is beating, the breath is moving, the doctor takes care of the patient, even though he knows there is no use in it. So there could a small example of the cosmic phenomenon, when things are supposed to happen the way it should happen, but we cannot say, ‘Let it happen; anyway everybody is born, everyone will die. Sick or healthy people will die anyway, so why should anybody take care of anyone? Let us keep quiet!’ This is not the right thing to do; we have to attend to it.
When the Tsunami occurred, Swami Sadyojatah and I went to Sri Lanka. Our Gulf centers had sent several shipments of clothes, and medicines, and our volunteers were also there. There was this one Sinhalese pilot, from the army who was helping us in the South Eastern region of Sri Lanka. He made a very sad confession to me. He said that he was asked to bomb a hospital and a school, on the Tamil side where 600 children were studying. He said, ‘My heart broke when I had to do this job, and I resigned from my job.’ Then, of course, he did the Sudarshan Kriya. After he resigned from his job, he dedicated his whole life to do seva (service), to make life better for children; he helped in orphanages. That one incident, where he had no option but to follow the orders of his superiors, changed his whole life. He is a Buddhist, and he knew violence is such a sin. It was so hard on him for so many years. When the Tsunami occurred, this man did so much seva with The Art of Living. It takes so long for someone to get out of such trauma, but with the help of knowledge, Ashtavakra Gita, Kriya and meditation, this man said, ‘For the first time I am able to smile; joy has returned in my life.’
This knowledge, this wisdom, is immensely valuable. It is immensely beautiful, and immensely powerful. It can take people out of such deep scars, guilt, hurt and misery; it can give a new light and uplift one’s spirit. It is so touching.
Earlier, the Ashtavakra Gita was not given to public. Even in India, we had only two to three sets of tapes in each center, and we used to conduct these courses only for people who were a little advanced. Then I decided that we cannot wait for people to get to that level. Whatever level they are in, wherever they are, even a few sentences can make a difference in people’s lives.
It is after this that everyone was permitted to listen to The Ashtavakra Gita; we opened it up. Ashtavakra Gita is high knowledge, it is like learning higher mathematics. You cannot do it without basic knowledge of mathematics. This was the argument that ancient people had. Quantum Physics cannot be taught in Primary School. However, lifting one from doership and seeing facts as they are, is very valuable knowledge from the Ashtavakra Gita.
DEC 19TH 2013
HURT
Q: How to keep on loving without expecting. How is it possible? In love expectations arise and if not fulfilled, it hurts.
Sri Sri: Yes, you will have to go through these gymnastics. If you have wisdom, you don’t have to go through the pain to learn. When there is lack of wisdom, you go through pain, but you will come out of it in sometime, don’t worry. This is why it is important for one to have a larger context to life. When you have a larger context, all these trivial things don’t really bother you. They are all like waves on the surface of the ocean, they rise and fall; like ripples in the lake, they rise when the wind blows, and when there is no wind, there are no ripples.
So, have a bigger context. That is atma gyaan (knowledge of the self); nothing can shake me, I am much bigger than the emotions, I am much bigger than the world around me, people around me. Their praise and their blame doesn’t matter. I am much bigger than all this!
This awareness uplifts us, then one does not drown in the ocean of emotions, and hurt.
There are four ways to look at hurt.
1. Someone who has hurt you is pained. They have scars, they are unhappy and miserable. They can only share what they have. They are hurt and they are sharing the hurt with you.
So with those people who are inflicting pain on you or hurting you, which you think they are doing purposefully, in fact it is because they do not have happiness inside them. They don’t have joy, they don’t have peace. They have pain and they are wounded so they are causing you hurt.
So, for a wounded person what is required? Compassion. So you have to be compassionate on those who hurt you, because they are hurt and wounded themselves. This is number one.
2. Those who are causing hurt to you are ignorant. They don’t have a broad vision of life. They don’t know themselves and they don’t know what they are doing. They are ignorant and arrogant. You can only feel sorry for them and hope that someday they will become intelligent. They don’t know that their actions are hurting others, and you wish for them to be more sensitive.
3. It is just karma. You had to get this hurt and if not this person then someone else would have given it to you. We must have caused some hurt to someone in the past so nature is bringing it back to us now. When you know that it's just the karma being repaid, you feel very settled. Isn’t it?
4. It is being done to make you strong. Nature is bringing this to you so that you become strong; so that you discover the strength and power within you.
Usually in the pandals (temporary shelters/structures made of fabric and bamboo poles). After putting a pole in its place they shake the pole to see whether it is strong enough or not. Hurt is just that, to see whether you are well established in yourself, whether you are in wisdom or not.
Every hurt is trying to shake you, to see whether you are strong or not. It tests your strength. It is to make you stronger. If you think a wise person or someone intelligent is hurting you, then you should be thankful because there is some purpose in that. They want you to be strong.
If your mother is scolding you, she is not doing it with a bad intention. If your father is scolding you, you can’t say, ‘Oh my father hurt me! My mother hurt me!’
Your parents are not hurting you; they are coming from a space of care and concern for you. We must recognize that they are doing things out of their limited understanding and love for you.
There are two major things that you feel when you are hurt - lack of communication and lack of understanding. Another reason for hurt, if you want to count is being over sensitive to irrelevant or ephemeral things. Events are all ephemeral, they are all moving. Everything is changing. You don’t need to become over sensitive, ‘Oh he said this thing to me, she said this thing to me!’
In Kannada, there is a proverb that says, ‘God has not put a bone in the tongue; the tongue rolls, moves in all directions.’ Never mind what words come out of people’s mouths.
This is a big issue in the world today. The root cause of so many diseases and conflicts is that we don’t know what we should put in the mouth, and we don’t know what should come out of the mouth!
People keep stuffing all sorts of things in their mouths. In this little hole, tons and tons of food goes in, and volumes and volumes of garbage come out; this is the misery of the world.
Again, a poet in Kannada said, ‘All the fun people have in the world, is only by words!’
Jokes and comedy happens because of words, all the conflicts and hatred is also through speech. It is speech that entertains, makes you laugh, and again, it is speech that creates divisions in the society, and hatred amongst people.
All different types of wealth come to you by your speech. Speech is a real gem in the world. So all hurt is only speech. Some words come out and someone says, ‘Oh, I am hurt!’
Now, if someone is trying to physically hurt you, you just be careful, equip yourself. I am not saying if someone comes to hurt you, you fall at their feet. No, you be intelligent, and protect yourself; especially ladies and girls, they should not go alone here and there.
DEC 19TH 2013
"Life and Guru are inseparable. When you throw light on life, and when the wisdom is there, honor the wisdom. Wisdom is the Guru tatva, Guru principle. So, within you the Guru Principle is there, wisdom is there. In each and every one there is wisdom. Throw light on that."
- Sri Sri
DEC 19TH 2013
"When you respect someone, it only shows your own magnanimity..
Respectfulness is a quality of refined consciousness."
- Sri Sri
DEC 19TH 2013
"The more you squeeze sugarcane, sweeter is the juice that comes. The more you cut a diamond, the more it shines. The more gold is hammered, put in fire, the more it shines. The more you grind sandalwood, the more its fragrance spreads.
Nature puts you through many different tasks and tests, and you come out shining from it all. You must remember that nature will not give you a burden which you cannot carry.
God first measures the tail and then puts it on the animal, so it can easily wag its tail. Just imagine if a rat had the tail of an elephant, which it cannot even lift!
Nature is very intelligent, it only gives you that problem which you can handle."
- Sri Sri
DEC 18TH 2013
Q. I don't know if its a problem with me or what? But (in art of living) these days i feel that every teacher/organiser talks/interacts with a some personal motive. i just feel too much of lack of innocent seva. I am not able to be myself when i get caught in such situation. what do i do?
A. Just always remember its all just a game. Keep coming back to the basics; I do Seva because i Love my Gurudev. And nothing in the world is bigger than my love for Him ... So I will continue doing Seva regardless of whatever attitude some other sundry people may have. It is when you are with the same old people all the time, then you start to see problems and faults in them. Start traveling, meet new people and do other Seva activities.
DEC 18TH 2013
"Things are not meant to be loved. They are meant only to be used. People are lovable and loving."
- Eknath Easwaran
DEC 18TH 2013
Jai Gurudev Dear Ones!
We Will Be Ending Our Art Of Living Satsangs with this Beautiful dedication posted below instead of jai jai radharaman hari bol !
You can listen to it In Bhanu Ma's voice In Album "Bhanu's Offering"
DEC 17TH 2013
Q. Recently i have seen that i get bored too fast. I start something new, do i brilliantly for a while and then get bored. Consistency is what i am lacking. what do i do?
A. When you start something new, you will have zeal and enthusiasm for it... but if the reason you started it is not clear or not strong enough, then if some obstacle either environmental or mental comes, you more or less just give up. So before you commit yourself to an activity, sit back for a bit and figure out the "why" of it .... mostly people only go as far as the "how" of it while they are planning. According to me its of paramount importance to know the why ... When the reason is strong enough, then the how comes much easier... and obstacles dont matter.
DEC 17TH 2013
Who is God?
What would you answer if an intelligent 8 year old asked you this question?
This short film is our answer!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rxibhzZGi0I
Watch it, like it, share it and subscribe to our channel ... And let us know what else you would like us to make films about
Jai Gurudeva!
love
Bawa, Dinesh Ghodke, Gowri, Abhi, Mayur and Prasanna
DEC 17TH 2013
Gurudev, are bodily diseases or disorders linked to our karmas?
Sri Sri: Yes, some of them are linked, but not all. Some are linked to your actions of the past, and some are a result of your own wrong deeds that you have done now. That is why it is called Prajnapradha (a wrong deed committed despite having the knowledge or discretion of right and wrong).
So when you are not fully attentive or in awareness, and commit some wrong deed, then your health also suffers due to that.
DEC 16TH 2013
“After all, spirituality is in our genes and people should have no problem in being humane and spiritual,” he said. Citing a research in Norway, he said the human body contained 300 genes, which caused diseases and these genes could be silenced by practising meditation.
On crime against women, he said as long as liquor was easily available, the crime against women would be on the rise and demanded total prohibition.
“Humanism will flourish only when there is total prohibition,” he said.
DEC 16TH 2013
"You are surrounded by gurus in all shapes and sizes, and everything you are attracted to, reject or fear in another may just be something that needs holding in yourself. Just maybe.
But that 'maybe' may be everything when it comes to love, and there are no wasted encounters here in this supremely intelligent, reflective universe."
- J Foster
DEC 16TH 2013
Gurudev performing Rudra Puja at Rameshwaram...
DEC 16TH 2013
"Health is the greatest gift, contentment the greatest wealth, faithfulness the best relationship."
~ Buddha
DEC 16TH 2013
"Our capacity to love depends on how deep and open we can be..When capacity to love is more ability to know and understand is more..
We limit ourselves..We become Something..
When we become Something our ability to love limits…"
- Sri Sri in Bhakti Sutras
DEC 16TH 2013
"You are the same always, eternally. You are that immortal soul. Nothing less than that. All other things are just temporary. That is what you call the highest knowledge."
- Swami Satchidanda
DEC 16TH 2013
"When Knowledge Matures... Ego Drops !! Simplicity Dawns.."
- Sri Sri
DEC 16TH 2013
Kashtasya Sukhasya na koapi daata...
"Everything in life moves according to some mysterious law of karma, according to some rule of nature.
Sometimes, the best of friends become your worst enemies, and sometimes your enemies become your close friends. All this happens due to some strange karma. These are the ways of the world.
So you should keep your friends and enemies aside and just move ahead in life. Do good work. For whatever time you are here on this planet, do some good beneficial deeds. This is the prayer you should make for yourself.
Who has the time to think and worry how so-and-so is feeling or thinking, or how you are feeling? Let people feel the way they want to feel. Do not get entangled in all this. Let them do what they wish. You do what you are supposed to do.
Now this does not mean that you stop caring about other people’s feelings, or hurt them. Do not do that.
From your side, do not hurt or bring misery to people around you.
See, from our side we do not wish to hurt someone. But despite that if they are miserable, then there is nothing that we can do.
It is not in your hands to make someone happy or miserable. Just know this. People experience happiness and sorrow by their own actions."
- Sri Sri
DEC 15TH 2013
"There is a proverb in English: "Familiarity brings Contempt..." If you are halfway in knowing something it brings contempt but when you thoroughly know about anything, Love arises..
Inside everything is Love.. Love is the core of the entire Existence.."
- Sri Sri in Bhakti Sutras..
DEC 15TH 2013
"When you strongly desire something, simply believe it is going to happen. Simply know that the Giver is so compassionate, and you will get what you desire if it is best for you.
This faith, ‘The Giver is going to grant me what is the best for me’, does the job."
- Sri Sri
DEC 15TH 2013
"The biggest disappointments in our lives are often the result of misplaced expectations. This is especially true when it comes to our relationships and interactions with others.
Tempering or moderating our expectations of other people will greatly reduce unnecessary frustration and suffering, in both our life and theirs, and help us refocus on the things that truly matter...."
- Unknown
DEC 15TH 2013
In love, the gopis never forgot the glory. Often, when one is in love, one starts demanding, one starts feeling jealous about the other. Jealousy, demand, anger, all these come when you do not keep your beloved on a higher pedestal. When you put the Divine on a higher pedestal, then there is a sense of surrender, then there is a sense of submission and there is a sense of unconditional love. That is called mahatmya, the greatest, the glory.
http://www.newindianexpress.com/cities/chennai/Putting-the-divine-on-a-high-pedestal-is-submission/2013/12/14/article1943993.ece
DEC 14TH 2013
“A diamond is just a piece of charcoal that handled stress exceptionally well.”
~ Unknown
DEC 14TH 2013
"Good Friendships precede Great Relationships ..."
- WD
DEC 14TH 2013
"Our deepest need is for the joy that comes with loving and being loved, with knowing we are of genuine use to others."
- Eknath Easwaran
DEC 14TH 2013
Goodbyes are only for those who love with their eyes. Because for those who love with heart and soul there is no such thing as separation!
~ Rumi
DEC 14TH 2013
Cow Slaughter must stop all over the world. When India got freedom, for every 100 people we had 400 cows but now we have only 20 cows for 100 people. @SriSriSpeaks
DEC 14TH 2013
"The only reason for Disappointments is Expectations...
Perhaps..
Give people the freedom to make mistakes and learn.. Don't be too hard on them.. Everyone deserves a chance..
No one is Perfect..."
- WD
DEC 14TH 2013
Complaints
Q: How come i am missing out so much in life?
Swami Sukhabodhananda: Having travelled widely and met a wide cross section of people from all over the world, i find that the one common factor that connects them all is their tendency to complain, nonstop! If people are asked to say a few words on their life, it will be lumps, bumps, what is missing, who and how got hurt and the unfairness of life. Only remarkably few people are grateful or feel they are lucky or ecstatic about what is happening in their lives.
A person came to a monastery to stay for a few days and learn spiritual practice. After the first day of stay when asked how his stay was, he said, “Pillow was bad”. On the the second day, he said, “Bed was bad”. At the end of the third day he said, “Food is lousy”. After the fifth day, he said, “I am leaving”. The head of the monastery said, “I knew right from the first day that you will quit, for you were in the world of complaints.”
Whosoever is lost in complaining has quit life.
A priest was teaching how to give a sermon and stressed on the importance of body language. “When you speak of heaven, your face should radiate heavenly joy, when you speak of compassion, your face should flow with compassion and when you speak of giving, your whole body should be reverberating with giving”.
“What about when we speak of hell,” a student asked.
“Your normal face is ok,” the priest replied.
Your face reflects the message that the whole world is bad. Please stop complaining and live with commitment.
DEC 14TH 2013
"The Divine rejoices in your being happy. God, or the Creation, is so happy when you are happy. When you dance, sing, and jump up and down happily, that is true prayer, that is true meditation.
Meditation is a fountain of joy, an ecstasy; and Divine enjoys that more. Divine is not fond of your suffering"
- Sri Sri
DEC 13TH 2013
"Whatever you may gain you will leave it all here..
You will go empty.. Keep your head empty.. Do not be greedy, but be active.."
- Sri Sri
DEC 13TH 2013
Path to the Divine..
The Divine can only be found in deep rest (meditation).
Do you know what the obstacles to deep rest are? It is the cravings and aversions in the mind. If the mind is filled with cravings and aversions, rest is not possible. And if there is no rest, the goal of Sadhana (spiritual practices) cannot be achieved. That is why we need to be free from the cravings and aversions in our mind.
So, how do we do that?
'I don’t need anything from anyone', this is what we need to keep in our mind. When we don’t need anything from anyone, we will not have cravings towards anybody. When there is no craving for anybody, there will be no aversion to anybody. Let’s look at our aversions. Who are we averse to? Only those whom we think to be bad, isn’t it?
Don’t think of anyone as a bad person. There is no bad person in the world. If people do something bad, it is because of their ignorance or lack of awareness, or because their mind has been hurt. So, don’t have negative opinions about anybody.
If others have a negative opinion about you, it is their problem, not yours. From your side, do not consider anyone as bad. By doing this, your mind will be clear and pleasant and your intellect will be sharp."
- Sri Sri
DEC 13TH 2013
Q:How can I be emotionally strong?
Sri Sri: By using your intellect a little more! Bring back the balance and see life from a broader perspective. Your emotions, either very pleasant or unpleasant are attached to the past. So when you see the world with a broader vision and don’t get stuck with past events, people or experience, you will be strong. Getting emotionally upset over something somebody said is limited vision. There are millions of people, millions of things happening in the world.
In the Bhagwad Geeta, Lord Krishna shows Arjuna the Cosmic Vision and Time swallowing everything. First, Arjuna got scared, then all his fear vanished. There was nothing to hang on to. That’s why Lord Krishna says, “I am here, don't worry, don't be afraid”
This way, all the emotional worries, and mess that one is in, one comes out of. Only meditation can give you wisdom and strength.
DEC 13TH 2013
Nothing stays forever.
Good as well as bad times go away.
Be happy, reminding yourself of this again and again.
- Sri Sri
DEC 13TH 2013
"What someone says or does is just a ribbon on the package. Take the ribbon off and look inside. Everybody is like a package. Some packages have firecrackers! Some have sweet candies or some other surprise. Don’t just look at the outside wrappers. Inside each one is a very precious gift."
- Sri Sri
DEC 13TH 2013
"Getting rid of people and things is not the answer, but dealing with them with skill is the answer. And silence is the mother of all skills - silencing this chattering mind with a few minutes of deep meditation. Then you will see that everything changes."
-Sri Sri
DEC 12TH 2013
Q: Should I forgive or take action?
Sri Sri: Forgiveness is in your benefit but taking action is essential so that injustice is it not repeated...
Sometimes you need to forgive & forget. Sometimes you have to stand up and fight back against injustice.
DEC 12TH 2013
"Why do you have to label yourself according to tendencies which arise temporarily and make yourself guilty and miserable?
DEC 12TH 2013
"Don't let past experiences cloud your present interactions..."
- WD
Lift yourself up and see you are the sparkling light of divinity, you are love, you are light, wisdom, the infinite consciousness, not just a mass of amino acid carbohydrates and proteins!"
- Guruji today
DEC 12TH 2013
"Broader vision is the only answer to handle envy and jealousy.
Education is all about Expressions, Communications and Handling Emotions. Its not just about gathering information...."
Forgive and then fight...
Mastishq mein gyaan aye toh hridaya shudh ho jaye. Yahi gyaan ka lakshya hai...."
- Guruji today..
DEC 12TH 2013
Breathing in Love ~ Osho
Be in love with existence! And let love be like breathing.
Love is always new. It never becomes old because it is non-accumulative, non-hoarding.
It knows no past; it is always fresh, as fresh as the dewdrops. It lives moment to moment, it is atomic. It has no continuity, it knows no tradition. Each moment it dies and each moment it is born again. It is like breath: you breathe in, you breathe out; again you breathe in and you breathe out. You don’t hoard it inside.
If you hoard the breath you will die because it will become stale, it will become dead. It will lose that vitality, the quality of life. So is the case with love — it is breathing; each moment it renews itself. So whenever one gets stuck in love and stops breathing, life loses all significance. And that’s what is happening to people: the mind is so dominant that it even influences the heart and makes even the heart possessive! The heart knows no possessiveness but the mind contaminates it, poisons it.
So remember that: be in love with existence! And let love be like breathing. Breathe in, breathe out, but let it be love coming in, going out. By and by with each breath you have to create that magic of love. Make it a meditation: when you breathe out, just feel that you are pouring your love into existence; when you breathe in, existence is pouring its love into you. And soon you will see that the quality of your breath is changing, then it starts becoming something totally different to what you have ever known before. That’s why in India we call it ‘prana’, life, not just breathing, it is not just oxygen. Something else is there, the very life itself....
DEC 12TH 2013
"Take a deep breath in and hold...You will know how & what it means to Let Go..."
~ Sri Sri
DEC 12TH 2013
When you have an argument or a fight with someone at home, don’t take too long for the smile to come back. Your fight should be like one of the modes on the cell phone, i.e., audio, video, camera.
Your cell phone cannot afford to be stuck in the camera mode for long, it should be able to switch faster, right?
In the same way, the mind can be in the fight mode, but the next minute, change the mode!
~ Sri Sri
DEC 12TH 2013
"Dont label yourself with different tendencies which may arise with time.
Recognize yourself at a fountain of love and energy.."
- Guruji today
DEC 12TH 2013
@SriSriSpeaks: When you radiate love.. even the animals drop their innate aggression @BangaloreAshram http://t.co/d1Lrx2P2xO
DEC 12TH 2013
"Broader vision is the only answer to handle envy and jealousy.
Education is all about Expressions, Communications and Handling Emotions. Its not just about gathering information...."
Forgive and then fight...
Mastishq mein gyaan aye toh hridaya shudh ho jaye. Yahi gyaan ka lakshya hai...."
- Guruji today..
DEC 11TH 2013
"Just as a river which flows stays fresh..
A society which has satsang stays pure.."
- Guruji today
DEC 11TH 2013
"If you want others to be happy, practice compassion.
If you want to be happy, practice compassion."
- Dalai Lama
There is No Other....Everything we do we do it to ourselves...
DEC 11TH 2013
Swami Vivekananda Story:
A skeptic held a live butterfly in his closed fist and asked swamiji if it was alive or dead.
If swamiji said alive, he would crush it and if swamiji said it's dead he would let it go... And so he would have cornered swamiji.
Swamiji smiled at him and gently said - It's in your hands! :)
DEC 11TH 2013
Swamiji (Swami Vivekananda) had said, give me 10 young men and women and I will change India. Such was his intention that now we have not 10 but 10,000 such men and women who have stood up to change the country!
Few people who have adopted the path of naxalism have forgotten our beautiful culture of spiritual heritage. They need to remember Swami Vivekananda who dedicated his life and set an perfect example of "Dev prem" and "Desh prem" both together ...
- Sri Sri now
Pic: Swami Vivekananda's rath... at Ashram
DEC 11TH 2013
"In any field of activity, conflict might arise. When they arise, be indifferent to them. That is the indication that your love is strong.
...Whenever any conflict arises in your devotion, your devotion to your work or family or friends or anywhere, don’t pick on it. Be indifferent.
...When you love something, you keep doing it. When you don’t love, that’s when the conflict arises. Love something which you do not know. That is called shraddha, faith.
Faith means what? Faith is to love something that you have no idea about."
- Sri Sri
DEC 11TH 2013
The centre focus of our life is spiritual growth, is peace, and then all other things will be around that. Your first and foremost commitment in life is to be with the Truth, to evolve in truth.
- Sri Sri
DEC 11TH 2013
"Doubt means that your Prana (vital energy) has not blossomed fully; it has not reached its peak. The Prana has gotten stuck somewhere in the body. When you are full of Prana, all doubts automatically disappear. That is why when you are very happy, there are no doubts in your mind.
When you are deeply in love, no doubts arise in you."
- Sri Sri
DEC 11TH 2013
Look into the Mirror and Give the most beautiful person on this earth an even more beautiful SMILE...
DEC 11TH 2013
"Getting rid of Karma means getting rid of impressions. Sanchita Karma manifests as a tendency or an impression in the mind. As human beings, we have the ability to erase impression and fear through meditation. Meditation is there to rectify painful Karma, at least reduce their impact or effect.
The inward journey (of meditation) nullifies our negative Karma. You are just washing out everything when you meditate. Then there is nothing. You become so hollow and empty that whatever fear is there will just dissolve and disappear and thin down all that is laid on the self. This is very precious."
DEC 10TH 2013
DEC 10TH 2013
"Find peace in yourself and then act dynamically."
- Guruji today
DEC 10TH 2013
"The higher we go, the humbler we should be..."
- Sri Sri in satsang
DEC 10TH 2013
"There is a formula to get depressed. Just sit and think of "What about me...What about me..." and you are bound to get depressed. But if you take a vow to bring smile and wipe the tears of every single person you interact with, you will be happy and there will be more happiness in society …"
- Sri Sri today
DEC 09TH 2013
Marriage is sacred. But for #thegirlchild it is scary. Give her a chance to grow up & make her choices. Pledge onhttp://www.thegirlpledge.org/
DEC 09TH 2013
"Our stress levels are directly proportional to Our expectation levels..."
- WD
DEC 09TH 2013
"Spirituality gives you strength; that inner strength to manage difficult situations and to keep you ever smiling.."
- Sri Sri
DEC 09TH 2013
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar ji in Satsang today explains one of the beautiful Sanskrit poems written by Swami Vivekananda in praise of his guru, Ramakrishna Paramahamsa
" ...The Guru is that Atom bomb which destroys the doubts that have the capability to destroy a person's mind.. "
DEC 09TH 2013
Question: Guruji logically there is no reason to be happy. But happy state of mind doesn’t follow any logic. Is happiness related to logic?
Guruji: (laughter) The whole exercise in life is to balance the head and the heart. When you are too much into head, you should just let go, and relax, sing and dance. You know your sleep is a gift to you. Do you know that? During sleep the mind gets so much of rest! But meditation is the ultimate rest to your mind.
DEC 09TH 2013
Love and Fear....
http://www.collective-evolution.com/2013/08/13/a-new-message-about-love-and-fear-in-the-universe/
DEC 09TH 2013
Niels Bohr, a Danish Physicist who made significant contributions to understanding atomic structure and quantum theory once said: “if quantum mechanics hasn’t profoundly shocked you, you haven’t understood it yet.”
Quantum physics has left scientists all over the world baffled, especially with the discovery that our physical material reality, isn’t really physical at all. “Everything we call real is made of things that cannot be regarded as real.”
http://www.collective-evolution.com/2013/12/05/the-illusion-of-matter-our-physical-material-world-isnt-really-physical-at-all/
DEC 09TH 2013
"See, no one is in an angry mood all the time! People do have good moods. When they are in a good mood then you can communicate. When they are not in a good mood, you can ask them, what is it that you can do for them. If they are in the worst mood, just move away from the scene.
So you have three options to win over people with love and skilful communication; Yes! "
Sri Sri
DEC 08TH 2013
"Knowledge does not come gradually, little by little. It shines forth instantaneously with the ripeness of practice."
-Sri Ramana Maharshi
DEC 08TH 2013
“When you are satisfied, when your heart is pure and clear, and you have no bad feelings for anybody, then you gain the power to heal and bless others. It is possible. Everyone can heal others, provided they can change their vibrations within themselves into totally positive energy.”
- Sri Sri
DEC 08TH 2013
"The reason we struggle with insecurity is because we compare our behind-the-scenes with everyone else’s highlight reel"
- Steven Furfick
DEC 08TH 2013
"You are always a winner. Sometimes you win; sometimes you make others win.."
"जो हार जीत से परे हैं, वे दूसरों को जिताने में आनंद लेते हैं."
- Sri Sri
DEC 08TH 2013
Do Not Be Serious by Swami Satchidananda
We cannot really save the world. We cannot even destroy the world. It is not in our hands. If that Supreme Power wanted to save the world, it wouldn't even take a second for it to happen. All of us could be saints and sages overnight. All He has to do is just think, "Come on all of you be saints," and that would be it. But He is not doing that. Instead, He is letting us be a little ignorant. That is His fun. You sometimes forget this and take life too seriously. At least when it gets too tough and you are really caught up in it all, at that point sit back and say, "It's all right." Don't be serious about anything, anything, anything. Just have fun.
Always keep this awareness of the Divine Leela or God's Play. If we just remember this, we won't be projecting our ego. How often we get caught in thinking, "I did it! I got it! I lost it!" For one week, try saying: "It's all God's fun. I'll simply do whatever He wants me to do." Have a sample week like this. You will feel very light. You will get the Light. Then if you like, you can continue. If not, take back your ego. It is always there.
DEC 08TH 2013
Amazing Read
http://fractalenlightenment.com/15116/life/the-effect-of-negative-emotions-on-our-health
DEC 07TH 2013
Guruji today:
"One intention and attention to it and then when it manifests is called Sankalpa but if you are attached to desires constantly then it is called feverishness.."
“Man hi sabse bada Manoranjan hai. Mind is the best entertainment.”
DEC 07TH 2013
Living Values...
A strong mind is cultivated by living moral values. All outer actions start gathering a dazzling polish, once your mental values change. A morally strong person spends less of his mental powers in facing the day to day problems of life.
Moral values and ethical principles adopted and accepted by you must be lived fearlessly, even in the face of death.
Never compromise, under any amount of pressure. You will find God's help coming to you, to pull you out from even the direst situation.
~ Swami Chinmayananda
DEC 07TH 2013
Guruji today:
We crave for others attention because we do not attend ourselves. We should change this habit of getting others attention. Once while in Rishikesh I was going for a morning walk and a lady suddenly fell down. I didn't give attention to her and people ran behind me calling "Guruji...Guruji...she fell down". I didn't pay attention because I knew she was acting. Then while returning back I caught her and told "dekho natak nahi karna"
DEC 07TH 2013
Guruji today
"Knowing that this whole universe including you is made of love makes you capable of receiving and taking the love..Knowledge about Self is essential to receive and reciprocate Love.
Q) Guruji I am very scared of success and happiness, but I want both of them. What to do ?
Sri Sri : Just relax. Fear is love upside down. What you love, fear will get attached to that and the way out is meditation and selfless service. "
DEC 07TH 2013
"The thought itself - My home is somewhere else, I have just come to visit - creates a distance inside you. This world is a transit lounge.
You know, in airports and railway stations there are lounges, and in a lounge what do you do? You keep your luggage and start eating. You use the bathroom and everything, but you don’t open your suitcase and hang your clothes all over the place. You don’t do that in a transit lounge. You keep your things packed.
So this world is just a transit lounge. Don’t mistake it to be your home."
- Sri Sri
DEC 07TH 2013
"We can live without religion and meditation, but we cannot survive without human affection."
- Dalai Lama
DEC 07TH 2013
"The purpose of human life is to find God. That is the only reason for our existence. Job, friends, material interests--these things in themselves mean nothing. They can never provide you with true happiness, for the simple reason that none of them, in itself, is complete.
Only God encompasses everything.
That is why Jesus said, "Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and all these things shall be added unto you." Seek ye first the Giver of all gifts, and you shall receive from Him all His gifts of lesser fulfillment."
- Paramhansa Yogananda
DEC 06TH 2013
Saints are one in their work as divine channels. They link us up with the source from which all bliss flows: love. They bake the unbaked pots and make them fit to receive the divine bliss.
They illuminate the path by removing all the darkness that holds us back. Their work does not end with the energizing or enlightening of some select few here and there. They also serve as the unflickering flame helping to light other candles. What bliss and joy Hanuman brought to his devotee Tulsidas!
And what bliss and joy Tulsidas himself has scattered to millions of other devotees, helping to rekindle their lamps, although he himself parted with his body long, long ago. This has been the case with many great saints and their disciples, from Guru Maharaj to Shyama Charan, from Ramkrishna to Vivekananda. Through them and their own disciples they live in the memory of many old people. The work of the saints goes on, whether we know it or not.
(Excerpt from The Near and the Dear by Dada Mukerjee)
DEC 06TH 2013
"Needy and wanting to be needed is both self centric. A flower does not have to take effort to spread the fragrance. Just BE"
- Sri Sri
DEC 06TH 2013
"- Fire is the closest visible symbol for life force is Agni. Fire is the doorway for the divinity
- By lighting a lamp or by prayer no disaster will come. It will certainly reduce the chances of it's happening
- Actions induced by fear can only cause sadness.
- Present moment is vast and deep. It's very powerful
- Needy and wanting to be needed is both self centric. A flower does not have to take effort to spread the fragrance. Just BE
- Dishonesty and ignorance, cunningness and ego are the demons to destroy."
- Guruji today
DEC 06TH 2013
In Satsang today...
Q) Guruji you said one meets guru when one passes away. But I have a question will I be able to meet u personally or will it be the same crowded like satsang
Sri Sri : My all time is for public meeting. There is a saying na "Khullam Khulla pyaar karenge"
Q) Guruji should I dependent on you or do you want me to be independent
Sri Sri : I would like that question to be with you but don't just keep on pondering. There are many things to do. I want you. I want you to be happy and grow in knowledge. Do some seva. Each and every person is required to contribute a bit to the universe
Q) Guruji, all the lords has taken birth to kill some or the other demon. You know my question which demon are you going to kill
Sri Sri : Ignorance
Q) Guruji kisiki ninda, chugli lene walo ko kya side effects ho sakte hai ?
Sri Sri : Upar upar se agar koi ninda karte hai toh karne dijiye. Lekin andar se koi ninda karta hai toh usiko pareshan karega. Lekin iska matlab yeh bhi nahi ki kisi ki ninda mat karo. Agar apple kharab hai toh use theek bolna bhi imaandari nahi hogi, karo magar apne bheetar dwesh bhav se na karo
Q) (A question from YES+ youth) Guruji, God has created us human beings then why he has created so many problems for us. Does god loves us ?
SrI Sri - I know you all watch movies. Just imagine a movie in which a man and women gets married and lives happily thereafter..Will you like that ? There has to be thrill, romance and all sorts of things. We call it "navras"… 9 types of tastes of fear, greed, anger, hatred all these complex things makes a movie interesting. And the world is nothing but a movie. A director creates such movie so that viewers can enjoy…
DEC 06TH 2013
Our only Problem perhaps is that "This Dream appears Real"
- WD
DEC 06TH 2013
A martial arts student went to his teacher and said earnestly, “I am devoted to studying your martial system.
How long will it take me to master it.” The teacher’s reply was casual, “Ten years.”
Impatiently, the student answered, “But I want to master it faster than that. I will work very hard. I will practice everyday, ten or more hours a day if I have to. How long will it take then?”
The teacher thought for a moment, “20 years.”
DEC 06TH 2013
Bawa shares:
The hard truth of life is that everything is changing and in few years 10, 15, 20, 30 years you will be alone again. People will put you on the pyre or under the ground and in a few days get on with their life.
What will stay with you is your mind and the impressions in it. All the anger, frustration, fear or the peace, love, serenity will come with you. And based on that bringing all that again with you, you get another birth. Another body.
Giving attention to the mind is of paramount importance.
DEC 06TH 2013
Put the Glass Down
A psychologist walked around a room while teaching stress management to an audience. As she raised a glass of water, everyone expected they’d be asked the “half empty or half full” question. Instead, with a smile on her face, she inquired: “How heavy is this glass of water?”
Answers called out ranged from 8 oz. to 20 oz.
She replied, “The absolute weight doesn’t matter. It depends on how long I hold it. If I hold it for a minute, it’s not a problem. If I hold it for an hour, I’ll have an ache in my arm. If I hold it for a day, my arm will feel numb and paralyzed. In each case, the weight of the glass doesn’t change, but the longer I hold it, the heavier it becomes.” She continued, “The stresses and worries in life are like that glass of water. Think about them for a while and nothing happens. Think about them a bit longer and they begin to hurt. And if you think about them all day long, you will feel paralyzed – incapable of doing anything.”
It’s important to remember to let go of your stresses. As early in the evening as you can, put all your burdens down. Don’t carry them through the evening and into the night. Remember to put the glass down!
DEC 06TH 2013
DEC 06TH 2013
"The right way of honoring Nelson Mandela is to take a pledge to work towards making Africa free of violence and poverty."
- Sri Sri
DEC 05TH 2013
Food Tips by Gurudev Today ...
#BalancedDiet
"Not that we do not have food. We do not have the sense of what to eat and what not to eat. Roti, rice, and potato they are all carbohydrates. We do not have the sense of what is amino acids, protein, and carbohydrates.
The traditional food system was the best. My grandmother used to be very particular what food should be served. They would have rice, ghee, and dal. Also there should be one item with yogurt, greens must be there, one bitter item like bitter gourd. Leaves of the neem should be had once every 12 days. To chase away malnutrition you do not have to invest a lot of money, just education is required.
In India we always had jaggery which has iron, zinc, magnesium. Instead of this we have switched to white sugar. Cane juice is very nutritious, it can solve many illnesses. At 95, my grandmother was so healthy, my mother was not. Because they followed the traditional food system. The leaves of drumstick are so good. When the ghee is made, they would put a drumstick leaf.
Have balanced food. If you have noticed, all fried food is accompanied by curry leaves. Curry leaves arrests bad cholesterol getting formed in the system.
Idli is the most nutritious food. Chuntney provides fiber. It has proteins, amino acids, carbohydrates, a little fat. Instead we take white bread and put butter on it and put it in our mouth. What does it have? Nothing.
Today's fashion is pizza. White sugar and white flour is not at all good from the nutritional point of view.
We need to educate people on proper food. What is good food? What to consume? How to keep your health and vitality? This knowledge is there in Ayurveda.
If you know what to eat, you will not get disease.
If you know how to talk, you will not get into a fight."
DEC 05TH 2013
"Do not be afraid to love. Without love, life is impossible."
Letting Go
Hearing the bell,
I am able to let go of all afflictions.
My heart is calm,
my sorrows ended.
I am no longer bound to anything.
I learn to listen to my suffering
and the suffering of the other person.
When understanding is born in me,
compassion is also born.
~ Thich Nhat Hanh
DEC 05TH 2013
THE GIRL PLEDGE CAMPAIGN A national campaign by The Art of Living with the support of UNICEF & MTV India December 1st - 31st 2013 Addressing the alarming abuse of girl child and women.
Take The Girl Pledge and join millions in a national commitment to Protect the Girl Child.
This campaign addresses five issues:
* Abuse and violence against the girl child
* Female foeticide
* Malnutrition of mother and child
* Lack of adequate education for girl child
* Child marriage
www.thegirlpledge.org
DEC 05TH 2013
"So you see, some people are like this. They find pleasure in fights and have no interest in anything else, and so they just create fights. That is why I said, whatever such people say to you, just agree with them. Win them over with love."
- Sri Sri
DEC 05TH 2013
Amazing....
Matthew Scharpnick from USA shares his experience of Sri Sri
Everyone may not understand the value of a having a bearded, robe-wearing Guru from India. It might not be crystal clear what the big deal is about meditation or wisdom from thousands of years ago. All of this might appear foreign and confusing.
But, when you are around Sri Sri Ravi Shankar you cannot miss seeing a person overflowing with laughter, wisdom, compassion and love - exploding with life itself.
Thank you to the most amazing person I have met on this planet, to someone who reminded me of the simple truths I knew as a kid, to the value of giving and my connection to everyone, who showed me the power of silence, and turned my attention away from the small and fleeting events to the incredible life inside.
Thank you for not hiding in a cave somewhere, content in your own bliss, but instead for choosing a life of non-stop work, teaching me and millions of other people the incredible tools that allow the life inside to grow and shine brighter, which has made my life more meaningful and joyful each year.
(source: http://www.artofliving.org/in-en/story-that-could-be-yours)
DEC 05TH 2013
Getting over Mistakes
"These are the four doors to hell - lust, greed, arrogance and anger. You would have committed a mistake out of these four things. There is no fifth thing. Drop these things. In the present moment you are innocent. Believe in your innocence in the present moment. Just remember this.
Give me your past, believe in your innocence in the present moment and move on with enthusiasm.
Lord Krishna in the Gita (scripture of the Hindu epic, Mahabharata) says the same thing to Arjuna, ‘Arjuna, you are trying to get rid of your sins. It is impossible. I will relieve you of your sins, you don’t worry about it.
Just drop your mind to me, I will take care of your past sins. Don’t grieve about your past’."
- Sri Sri
DEC 05TH 2013
Marriage and Choice
Q: I realize how attached I am to some of my desires and dreams, such as, having a family for example. Do I have to practice detachment to make it happen? Does the spiritual path involve detachment from all of our desires?
Sri Sri: Look, if you have too many desires that is a problem. it is too scattered. Focus on one desire at a time.
Do you really want to get married? Why didn’t you do it so far? Are you being too picky and choosy? When the time comes you don’t go ahead, and later on you think you cannot find anybody.
Once a gentleman who was in his 60’s came to me and said, ‘Gurudev, I am looking for a soul mate, but I haven't found one’.
I said, 'Wait for another 15 years, you’ll find her in heaven'.
You know, don’t be too fussy about it. Look for a good person and get married. Even if they’re not good, you can change them, make them better!
I want to tell you a story about the Shakespeare of India. Have you heard about him? His name was Kalidasa and he is called the Shakespeare of India because he wrote some of the most excellent work in Sanskrit literature.
If anyone wants to learn Sanskrit, they cannot miss Kalidasa. How he became Kalidasa is very interesting.
There was a great king, a very well known emperor of India. He had a daughter and his daughter was very beautiful. She was very intelligent, very smart and knew everything with perfection. So it was very difficult for the king to find a suitable match because she had to interview him.
See, in India, in the ancient times, women had all the power! It is the women who chose men, like Sita had her own Swayamvara. A Swayamvara is a ceremony where the woman can choose the person with whom she wants to get married.
So, the story goes, all the princes from the princely states were invited. Princes from many places flocked there because they had heard about her intelligence and her beauty. Some were very scared, as she would ask them a question and nobody could answer her questions.
So she rejected everybody, and year after year this kept happening. The king was a little worried but the prime minister was quite annoyed. She probably insulted him and the story goes that he was annoyed with her. The prime minister thought, ‘I have to teach this shrew a lesson, I have to tame her'.
So once he was passing by the forest and he saw a wood cutter who was sitting on the branch of a tree and cutting the head of the branch!. Suddenly an idea struck him and he said, ‘Hey come down!'
When he came down he said, 'You come with me'.
The woodcutter agreed and the minister asked him to be silent and only answer the questions with hand gestures. So he dressed the woodcutter up a little bit, and took him to the palace. He went to the princess and said, ‘I have brought a really brilliant guy for you’.
She said, ‘Okay, I will propose three questions to him’.
So she asked him, what is the truth of the world, he answered showing his index finger.
Then she asked, how the creation was created, and he answered by gesturing the number two with his hand.
The third question also passed in a similar fashion and she was very impressed. So she got married to him. When she got married, then she realized that he did not even know to write an alphabet. He was just a wood cutter in the forest. She felt cheated, but during those days in India, once you marry, that is it. You marry with all the five elements as a witness and then you are wedded for life.
Now she felt very cheated. She went to the temple and she cried before the Mother Divine. Then she realized how arrogant she was. She rejected so many people and caused pain to so many because she was trying to choose someone better, someone who could defeat her, but look what happened. She wanted to be defeated in a different sense, but she got defeated in another sense. She does this and she goes into deep meditation.
It is said, at that time, the Mother Divine came and asked this man, who was sitting there completely bewildered, to stretch his tongue out. So he stretched his tongue and she wrote Om on it. With this experience he immediately started reciting a poem called Smalaya Tandegam, and from then on he was known as the Kalidasa.
Kalidasa wrote the most exquisite of literature and wonderful poetry; such deep description, such intelligence, and so much pun in it. It is considered very beautiful.
So if you get somebody who is not up to your mark, I tell you, you have the ability to change them! This is the reason why I said this story. Believe in it (ability) and move on. If it doesn't happen over a few years, you have your way and they have their way.
DEC 05TH 2013
Satsang Today:
Q: My wife complains that I don’t say I love. But saying “I love you” is not in my nature. Is it necessary to express love?
Sri Sri: There are many different ways to say “I love you” so just say it somehow! if not in words then in actions.. Or just send an SMS with a smiley everyday (laughter)… We should always try to keep everyone happy.
DEC 05TH 2013
Getting over Mistakes
"These are the four doors to hell - lust, greed, arrogance and anger. You would have committed a mistake out of these four things. There is no fifth thing. Drop these things. In the present moment you are innocent. Believe in your innocence in the present moment. Just remember this.
Give me your past, believe in your innocence in the present moment and move on with enthusiasm.
Lord Krishna in the Gita (scripture of the Hindu epic, Mahabharata) says the same thing to Arjuna, ‘Arjuna, you are trying to get rid of your sins. It is impossible. I will relieve you of your sins, you don’t worry about it.
Just drop your mind to me, I will take care of your past sins. Don’t grieve about your past’."
- Sri Sri
DEC 04TH 2013
Handling Fear (Passion, Dispassion, Compassion)
You say when we are scared of something, we should face our fears. My question is where do I get the courage to face these fears?
Sri Sri: Know that you are not alone, and there is a universal power that loves you, and is with you. When you remember that you are being loved very dearly, fear vanishes. All your troubles begin because you don’t believe you are being loved very dearly. That is where the whole problem starts, and you start behaving in ways that pushes everybody away. You create a misery for yourself, because you doubt yourself; Am I good enough? Am I being loved? Does God love me or not? Do people love me or not? These sort of doubts.
Just take it for granted that you are loved and liked, even if you’re a buffoon. Even if you are a clown, you are loved and enjoyed. People like you however you are. Just move on, don’t sit and spend too much time worrying about yourself, examining yourself, and re-examining. Just take up a commitment and do what you need to do, and take deep rest with dispassion.
Three things are essential, Passion, Dispassion and Compassion.
When you have passion, you don’t worry. When you don’t have passion, that is when you sit and worry. Hesitation comes when you lack passion. Without passion life loses all its charm and you slip into depression. Passion is essential; invoke the passion.
Not only passion, dispassion is also essential. People tell you that you should be passionate, but I say you should also have dispassion. Dispassion is often thought to be a depressed state of affairs. People look very depressed and think this is dispassion. This is a completely wrong understanding.
Dispassion makes you centered. It keeps your smile and equanimity. It keeps the intellect sane and emotions balanced. When you have dispassion you will stop complaining about anything to anybody. The world is the way it is, you won’t complain about people or situations, and you won’t complain about yourself. This is dispassion.
Many times we complain about others, including the ones we love the most. We make the other person defensive, or make them give explanations. It is such a headache!
Initially I used to get swayed by this. People would say, ‘You don’t look at me’, or ‘You don’t talk to me’, or ‘Are you angry with me’, my goodness! These days I do not answer such questions. If you think so, let it be. So be it. Never mind! When you get beaten up a little bit by your own emotions, that makes you strong somewhere.
It’s all just a matter of wanting attention. You give attention and they are alright. Just like babies – if you don’t attend to them they throw tantrums just to draw your attention. Have you noticed this? When you have guests at home and you are busy talking to them, that is when the children want to show you their paintings. They have already shown it to you ten times. But when you are having an important discussion, they come and disturb you! You wonder that this child was quiet, what happened all of a sudden!
We have not grown up from that stage, we always want attention from people. And for this attention we create tension for the others.
So with dispassion, you neither have attention deficiency, nor do you have any tension. You won’t sit and crave for attention. Dispassion is essential.
One more thing that is really beneficial is compassion. When you have compassion it propels you, it motivates you. When you have compassion for those who do wrong, you don’t feel hatred or bitterness towards them. Compassion greases passion and dispassion, and balances them out.
DEC 04TH 2013
The Fear of the possibility of things not working out the way we expect, prevents us from Living Life fully...
Sometimes we look at people with mistrust.. Behind this is nothing but our own expectations of:
- How Life should be!
- How People should be!
- and How Things should be..!
What If things do not work out the way we Expect..!! Bothers us Continually..
Living in the Moment... and Acceptance of whatever Life throws at us is perhaps sometimes not so easy..Yet SURRENDER carries us through...
Master's Presence, Gratitude.... Grace...
- WD
DEC 04TH 2013
De-Link your Happiness from Fulfilment of Desires and Achievements..Don't postpone....
Happiness is Within....
DEC 03RD 2013
DOERSHIP
Q: How can I become free from the sense of doership?
Sri Sri: Just keep doing, don’t worry about it.
I think you have too much time to sit and think, 'Am I the doer or not'. Just do what you are suppose to do.
Every action has a reward; pleasant, unpleasant, or mixed. There are only three types of rewards. When you act, that action brings you some positive reward, or some negative reward, or some positive and negative reward. The effect of all these rewards stay only for some time. So the wise will not worry about it.
In every action there is something positive and there is something that is negative. An action cannot be 100% perfect. Focus on the positive things that develop out of an action. And don’t worry about the effect of the action, just keep moving.
If you have done a wrong action, that has taught you a lesson not to repeat it next time. If you have done the right action, it encourages you to do many more of the same right actions.
If you find that in the action you did, there are some things that you could improve, then you can always improve on that.
Just move on, don’t say, 'I am the doer', or, 'I am not the doer'. Anyway no one is a doer in one sense, and in another sense, yes, you are the doer, because inside of you there are two.
There is a beautiful story in the Upanishads which says, 'On the tree of this universe, there are two birds sitting, one is enjoying the fruit, the other is just watching, like a witness'. So, there is one aspect of you that is not doing anything, that is much bigger. And there is one aspect in you that is doing everything. Both are present in you.
Now you might ask, 'How?'
On one level, you find that you are changing. Your thoughts are changing, your emotions are changing, your body is changing. Yet at another deeper level, there is something in you that is not changing at all; it is the same. So it is not one or the other, it is both together simultaneously.
When guilt eats you up, or pride takes over your head, then you should understand that you are not the doer. Do you get it?
When you do something very good and you say, 'Oh I did it, I did it', that too makes you unhappy. Doing something good also make you unhappy because you do so much and then you say that nobody recognizes you, nobody listens to you.
So not being recognized for your good work makes you miserable, and if you do something wrong, that too eats up your spirit and creates a sense of guilt. When such things happen, know that you are not the doer. Be a witness then.
People who have committed the biggest crime on the planet, somewhere deep inside, they think, 'Hey, I didn’t do it, how did this happen'.
They feel surprised and shocked, and they feel that they are not the doer, it just happened. If you talk to the biggest criminals on the planet, you will see that they find themselves being caught by an (criminal) act. Same way, someone who has done some excellent work, they also feel that it just happened; everything fell into place. That non-doership is an experience in itself.
When you have to do things, then don't say, 'Oh, I am not the doer'. Don’t go into that mode. It will only tear you apart. If you have to focus on some work, focus and just do it.
I am not a doer, is an experience, sometimes it just dawns on you. And it is also a reminder to you when you are reeling in guilt, or in arrogance.
DEC 03RD 2013
Dear Gurudev, all our lives we seek for love in our relationships and yet this love is so temporary. What is ultimate love or the love that never goes away?
Sri Sri: You are made up of the stuff called love. What you are seeking here and there is what you are. Turn inward and repose. When you find that you don’t need love from anybody and you are the source of it, then you start giving. When you start giving in abundance, it comes back to you in abundance.
DEC 03RD 2013
Q: What is the best way to dissolve our karma?
Sri Sri: Just keep acting. Don’t worry, karma is past. Knowledge, awareness, meditation and good action, these things erase the past karma.
Being aware and knowing that the past is past, that it happened for whatever reason; the awareness of this knowledge itself erases the past karma.
Do good actions, do something good.
DEC 03RD 2013
" Love of God is the one essential thing. A true lover of God has nothing to fear, nothing to worry about. He is aware that the Divine Mother knows everything. The cat handles the mouse one way, but its own kitten a very different way."
- Sri Ramakrishna
DEC 03RD 2013
Sri Ramakrishna: "I" and "mine" indicate ignorance. Without ignorance one cannot have such a feeling as "I am the doer; these are my wife, children, possessions, name and fame".
Thereupon Keshab said, 'Sir, if one gave up the "I", nothing whatsoever would remain.'
Sri Ramakrishna: I am not asking you to give up all of the "I". You should give up only the "unripe I". The "unripe I" makes one feel: "I am the doer. These are my wife and children. I am a teacher." Renounce this "unripe I" and keep the "ripe I", which will make you feel that you are the servant of God, His devotee, and that God is the Doer and you are His instrument.
~ from "The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna", chapter 12 - 'The Festival at Panihati"' ->
DEC 03RD 2013
Marianne Williamson -
"Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us.
We ask ourselves, "who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented and fabulous?" Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God.'Your playing small doesn't serve the world.
There's nothing enlightening about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We were born to manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us, it's in everyone.
And as we let our light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others."
DEC 03RD 2013
Q: Why are we on earth? Is it to remove our karma or for something else?
Sri Sri - Give love, gain knowledge and remove karma – that is the purpose of life!
DEC 02ND 2013
"We're often tentative with love. We stop, hesitate. But love isn't tentative with us. It keeps returning, trying again. Love is persistent."
- Dr Brian Weiss
DEC 02ND 2013
Walk on the mud, but don’t let the mud touch your feet. Walk like a moving cloud.
- Sri Sri
DEC 02ND 2013
[Post # 626] - Narrated by Swami Shivananda:
"Swami Yogananda was a highly evolved soul. He was extremely handsome and had a manly body. Once he was travelling in Central Province, and he was alone in a train car. At a particular station when the train was about to leave, a beautiful courtesan hurriedly got into the same car with her luggage. As soon as her eyes fell on Yogananda, she was infatuated and begged him, "I offer my everything to you, please accept me." When Yogananda did not respond, she became impatient and threatened him, "If you don't listen to me right now, I shall pull the alarm chain to stop the train, and I shall complain to the guard that you had molested me." She was carrying a bottle of wine in her bag. She began to drink the wine to become more excited, but it had the opposite effect. She became so drunk that she passed out on her seat. When the train reached the next station, Yogananda got off the train unharmed. Look, what grace of the Master! Who else can protect except He?"
DEC 02ND 2013
DEC 02ND 2013
"The cultured give happiness wherever they go.The uncultured whenever they go."~ Swami Chinmayananda
DEC 02ND 2013
" If you are a taker of happiness you get misery, if you are a giver of happiness you get joy and love. "
- Sri Sri
DEC 01ST 2013
Unconditional Love
"The Love for someone just because They Are...
Not because they are great, not because they have wonderful qualities, not because they look very beautiful, not because they are kind to you and not because they did something good to you..
These are all BUSINESS.... not Divine Love..
I love you because you love me is a business..
I love you because you are so great is a business...
I love you Because...is a Problem!!
But Divine Love is Unconditional, guna rahitam, kaamna rahitam, no strings attached..not expecting anything in return...
That pure love emits from the core of your existence.. "
- Sri Sri
(Narad Bhakti Sutras - Love Cannot be Expressed)
DEC 01ST 2013
Waves of Love and Blessings to all :)
DEC 01ST 2013
"Money earned through corrupt means will not stay.You'll be responsible for children fighting over it."
- Sri Sri
DEC 01ST 2013
"When you lose your enthusiasm, you lose everything else. Why does all this happen? It is because of Maya. This Maya is very intriguing indeed. It can catch hold of anyone and make them dance to its tunes! And the poor one caught up keeps dancing. The whole world is troubled because of Maya
But Lord Krishna says, ‘This Maya is full of Divine qualities, and is born from Me. So you must honour and respect it. This Maya is born from Me. It is I who propagates it, and only by My Divine grace can you overcome it. You cannot be free from it by your efforts alone, no matter how much you try. Only by taking My refuge can you cross the ocean of Maya’.
So only by going deep within your self can you overcome this Maya."
DEC 01ST 2013
"If you don't have a relationship with yourself, all other relationships become shallow. And if your relationship with yourself is so profound and steady then you naturally develop the skill to handle any kind of relationship around you."
- Sri Sri
DEC 01ST 2013
"Consciousness is peace. You are peace, you are truth, and you are energy, walking, moving, talking, sitting. The "self" is energy and the "self" is knowledge, the knowing and the knower. This consciousness is love, you are love.
Understanding and living this is the spiritual life. Life attains its richest form through the spiritual dimension. Without it life becomes very shallow and you are unhappy, dependent, depressed and miserable."
- Sri Sri
DEC 01ST 2013
By remaining unhappy one cannot solve anyone's problems... But by sharing smiles one can definitely make others feel better...:)
DEC 01ST 2013
NOV 30TH 2013
Nearly 50 % of all sexual assaults, worldwide, are on girls under the age of 15 years. One out of every two girls in India becomes a child bride. Girls who are married young are more likely to face violence, abuse and exposure to Sexually Transmitted Diseases. And these are just some of the startling facts surrounding the Girl Child today.
Welcome to the Girl Pledge 2013. Our first step in making this world a gender-equal space.
Gratitude And Beauty
"You cannot be grateful and feel the lack. The two cannot exist at the same time. When you feel grateful, you feel full. When you feel lack, grumbling begins from some corner. If you feel grateful, gratitude will increase in you and you will be given more. If you keep on grumbling, the negativity in you will increase. Jesus said, "For those who have not, what little they have will be taken from them. And to those who have, more will be given. And more. And more." This is the law of the nature. For those who do not have this knowledge, there is no way to get out of their grumbling. It becomes a habit.
This applies to relationships too. If you love someone, know that nothing is lacking. Trust that they also love you very much. If you doubt someone's love, your doubt grows no matter what you receive from them. If you want to be close to someone, first begin to feel that person is already close to you. When you ask people, "Do you trust me?" you are doubting their trust. When you are in doubt about a trust, you grow in doubt -- and there is no limit to it.
Whatever is, that grows. If you sow a seed, that seed will grow. If the seed itself is lack, then lack is what grows. Today you feel a lack, and tomorrow you will feel some other lack, and then in a year, even if all these things are provided, still you will feel some lack. Observe carefully and see what you have been given. Then you become grateful. In gratefulness, everything that supports life grows. When people grumble all through life, their minds don't focus properly. Naturally, they tend to lose out. Even on the material plane, when consciousness is flooded with lack, lack grows. But if you feel you have plenty, plentifulness grows.
This understanding of consciousness is important. Consciousness is the power, energy, beauty and wealth that permeates all creation. This entire creation is full of life -- it abounds in the trees, birds, animals, rivers and stones. Without it, not a blade of grass can move. Without it, there can be no progress. Without it, there is no beauty.
One of the most precious faculties the human body possesses is recognition of beauty. The basis of creation is beauty. In the Vedic tradition, the entire creation is seen as nothing but waves of beauty. Truth is a quest of the intellect, but beauty is felt with the heart. Intellect analyses, is curious to know what is inside the flower, how it grows, what season it comes up in but the heart doesn't care about this detailed knowledge.
Beauty comes in many forms. Spring has its own beauty. In midsummer everything is green and full. And in autumn, the color of the falling leaves is spectacular. "Wow! This is so wonderful!" -- an appreciation of beauty wells up in the heart and takes over the whole being.
The very process of maintaining beauty is beautiful. Water rises as vapor and forms clouds on the Great Lakes -- and the Great Lakes flow into Niagara Falls. Without that process, the water would flow down once and the Falls would disappear. It would be like the fireworks on the Fourth of July -- they last for some time and then are over. But in creation, a rainbow comes and then it comes again and again and again. Underneath what has been created with so much beauty, there is a maintenance principle that sustains this phenomenon.
It is all pervasive, this beauty. Life cannot be a celebration, cannot be joyful, cannot be fulfilling, if there are no waves of beauty. This Thanksgiving, as you celebrate and rejoice with your loved ones, observe the richness in your life. Observe the wealth that nature has given you. Let the gratitude in you rise and let the waves of beauty wash you.
- Sri Sri
NOV 28TH 2013
"Often, love and respect are in conflict. Respect needs a certain distance and love cannot tolerate any distance. Often when people come together, when they have so much love, they lose respect for each other. And there is a conflict in trying to gain the respect.
Finally, they have neither respect nor love - they loose both. Most marital problems end up like this, because there is a need for love and there is a need for respect, too. But they are seemingly opposite. It is only in Divine love that respect also grows and love also grows.
The closer you come, the more respect you get and the farther you go, the more love you experience. Distance is not a factor in Divine love, in the love which is fully blossomed. Such was the love of the Gopis."
- Sri Sri
NOV 27TH 2013
Q: Guruji, how can we keep a smile in front of all despite all the difficult challenges in life?
Sri Sri : When you feel like that, give it to me. I am with you. Whenever you feel a challenge, remember me. Give me your challenges and know that you are not alone. You will sail through those difficulties that I guarantee you. Alone you may feel it is difficult.
Everyone smiles when everything is okay. The real achievement is your ability to smile when things go wrong. When everything falls apart and you still smile, then you are an Art of living member. You are well soaked in knowledge.
NOV 27TH 2013
Q: To the sincere seekers, I would like to give them a note -
Seek the Highest!
Seek life beyond what it appears to be, beyond the perception of our five senses. Look into the mystical aspect of life, which is prevalent in every one of us. You don’t have to go somewhere, you can simply see life in a bigger context.
Ask yourself, who am I? What am I doing? What do I want? What is this universe about? What is all this about? This enquiry within you makes you a seeker.
- Sri Sri
NOV 26TH 2013
How Meditation Happens!!
Meditation is the journey from sound to silence, from movement to stillness, from a limited identity to unlimited space. There are five ways through which meditation happens:
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.
NOV 26TH 2013
HURT
Many times you feel " I am so hurt" because you don't expect some reaction/situation. When you are hurt you start shutting down...
After this happens a few times,you're entire personality shuts down.You become so rude and angry.
There is another way to look at this. Each time you have been hurt, you have become stronger. A wise man will hurt you to wake you up.
If an ignorant man hurts you,show compassion.If a friend hurts you,take it as some karma being washed away.If elders or a wise one hurts Know that it is for you're own good. Karma is not just of this but of several lifetimes.
Some amount of hurt is essential.If a mother never scolds,corrects the child,he/she cannot withstand criticism in the world!
When you get hurt or miserable...
Grow beyond the events...
Learn from them & be strong ...
- Sri Sri
NOV 26TH 2013
"Don't waste today for what happened yesterday. Wake up and say, "I have the valor and the courage to overcome this."
- Sri Sri
NOV 26TH 2013
Despite threat from Taliban & other extremist groups, the largest meditation program in Pakistan happened with many standing up for peace.
NOV 26TH 2013
Ques: Can love and dispassion co-exist.. They seem to be contradictory.
Sri Sri: It should exist together, otherwise you will not be sane. Like breathing in and breathing out are totally contradictory but it has to go on together.
You cannot breathe in the same time you are breathing out but they should alternate. Similarly love and dispassion should alternate. Love is passion. Passion and dispassion are equally important...
NOV 25TH 2013
Happiness
Santosha (contentment) is a practice.
Being unconditionally happy is a practice.
Happiness is an attitude. If you are used to being unhappy, even in the best of situation you will still grumble and be unhappy. Then nothing can make you happy in the world. Do you see what I am saying?
You sell your happiness for peanuts. You sell your smile for pins. I tell you it is not worth it. The entire world is not worth your smile. Even if you are made the king or emperor of the world, it is not worth giving away your smile.
This is one of the rules of yoga: Santosha; (cultivating the practise of) being happy.
- Sri Sri
NOV 25TH 2013
Q: Dearest Guruji, What is a devotee? What does a devotee do? How does one become a devotee?
Sri Sri: Now don’t try hard to become a devotee. Love combined with commitment is devotion. Love with wisdom is devotion.
Love without wisdom can turn into negativities: Love today, hate tomorrow. Love today, jealousy tomorrow. Love today, possessiveness tomorrow.
Love combined with wisdom is bliss, and that is devotion. Devotion is a strong bond, a sense of belongingness. Everybody is born with it. It’s just like becoming a child again.
NOV 25TH 2013
Q: Dear Guruji, what is the meaning of being natural? Is it doing whatever comes to the mind and doing whatever one feels like.
Sri Sri: No it is not doing whatever that comes to your mind. Doing whatever comes to your mind without any attention, awareness or thought would be foolish. Whatever comes to your mind should pass through the test of intellect or wisdom.
Being natural is feeling at home; feeling at home even in adverse situations. You know when everything is good you feel at home but when things do not go your way you don’t feel at home and you want to run away. So feeling at home in every situation, yeah!
NOV 25TH 2013
What is your Relationship with Yourself!!
"If you know how to row a boat, you can row any boat. But if you don’t know how to row, changing boats isn’t going to help. Similarly, changing a relationship does not solve the issue. Sooner or later, you will be in the same situation in any other relationship. Most people look elsewhere for a perfect relationship, but few look within themselves, at the place from where we relate.
What is your relationship with yourself?
Who are you to yourself?
If your relationship is based on personal need it may not last that long. Once the need is fulfilled, on a physical or on an emotional level, the mind will look for something else and go somewhere else. If your relationship is from a level of sharing, then it can last longer. When you’re looking for security, love, and comfort from your partner, you become weak.
When you are weak, all the negative emotions come up and you become demanding. Demand destroys love. If we just know this one thing, we can save our love from getting rotten.
It’s the limited awareness of yourself and the limited experience of love that encapsulates you in a tiny compartment where you start suffocating. We can’t even handle the love we are asking for because we have never probed into the depth of our own mind; our own consciousness."
- Sri Sri
NOV 25TH 2013
Why don't you take everybody as your own.... :)
NOV 24TH 2013
What Do Sad people have in Common?
It seems...They have all built a shrine To the Past
And often go there And do a strange wail and Worship.
What is the beginning of Happiness?
It is to stop being So Religious Like That.
~ Hafiz
NOV 24TH 2013
"Praise and blame, gain and loss, pleasure and sorrow come and go like the wind. To be happy, rest like a giant tree in the midst of them all."
~ Buddha —
NOV 24TH 2013
Heaven on Earth....
NOV 23RD 2013
"When you face the light you don't see the shadows. When there is love and surrender then there is no room for fear."
- Gurudev today
NOV 23RD 2013
"During low tide, the water recedes and in high tide it comes forth in full force. Doesn't mean the amount of water in the ocean has changed...
The same is with Devotion. it rises like Waves... "
- Guruji today
NOV 23RD 2013
"The mind is constantly trying to figure out what page it’s on in the story of itself.
Close the book. Burn the bookmark. End of story.
Now the dancing begins......"
- Ikko Narasaki
NOV 22ND 2013
"Once the mind becomes aware that it is being observed, It becomes quiet..."
- Sri Bhagavan
NOV 22ND 2013
"Forgiveness, openness, and understanding ...flow naturally where there is compassion."
~Mooji
NOV 22ND 2013
GO OUT AND VOTE!!! EVERY VOTE MATTERS....
NOV 22ND 2013
Guruji in Satsang today
"The longing in you is very natural. As a child for toys, as a youth for gadgets, people and as an adult for fame, money. Even after getting these, you are still not happy. You long for something deeper. You are lucky. Observe this longing
When a fish is taken out of water, it is gasping for water.. that is similar to the intense longing. That longing itself is God.
Tadap hi Ishwar hai.."
"Best decisions are those thay are taken without cravings and aversions. Those decisions with even a tinge of these are not as satisfying.."
Q: Kya mujhe moksh milega?
Guruji : Chahiye? Toh milega!
Jab kadak dhoop hain, uske baad barish girti hain. Prakriti ka niyam hai....
(Will we get moksha?
#SriSri- do you want moksha? Its natures rule that you get what you ask for. The intense desire should be there.)
"People and situations are like flowing rivers. The same situation never comes again. Either you get stuck..or you move on..
In life, you have to be both Sensible and Sensitive . Balance the heart and the brain..."
Q: In life should we focus on uplifting others or ourself?
#SriSri -BOTH...
"Love never says enough! It is always infinity, not limited.
Longing makes love not-complete and love is incomplete without longing ....
A mother always wants to do more for her child.. she never says I done enough. That is love...."
"Be Brave, and be clear in your heart. Know that whatever is yours will always come back to you....
Be happy and make others happy. Know that you are protected by the divinity. There is plenty of seva to do!"
"A small part of the ocean you call a wave. The wave is 'atma' and the ocean is 'parmatma' "
"Ashtavakra says: You can be free right NOW if you realize that, 'I am not the body'.."
NOV 22ND 2013
Scientists are getting close to proving what yogis have held to be true for centuries -- yoga and meditation can ward off stress and disease.
www.bloomberg.com
NOV 22ND 2013
"Moments of inner quiet will burn out all obstacles without fail."
~ Nisargadatta Maharaj
NOV 22ND 2013
"When you go into meditation, you should consider everything irrelevant. Only then can you become quiet.
But do not think this when doing some activity. During activity, everything is relevant."
- Sri Sri
NOV 18TH 2013
Disciple ... Qualities
Guruji, you always say that you have a lot to give us, but we should have the ability to receive it. So what are the qualities of your dream disciple?
Sri Sri: A disciple should be hollow and empty.
At the same time whatever you have heard or listened, don’t take it for granted. Study the knowledge and read it again and again.
Know but be as though you don’t know. Don’t let that arrogance of knowing come into you. Just be your natural and simple self.
NOV 18TH 2013
The Purpose of Life
Q: Why are we born? We eat, drink, sleep, and watch television; we are in and out of relationships. What is the life?
Sri Sri: This is a very important question. One who knows the answer will not give it to you. Anyone who gives you the answer does not know it. Do you know why?
That is because this very question is like a vehicle, which will take you home. It is the fuel for your life. When you keep asking again and again, ‘What is the meaning of life? What is the purpose of life?’
Then all those things that are irrelevant will fall off, and things become clearer for you to move forward. So, it is better that I don’t give you the answer, but it is a very important question.
This very question sets you on the real journey of life. Before that, you only exist, whereas this question puts you on the spiritual track.
NOV 18TH 2013
Q: Can we still be enthusiastic when we are uncertain?
Sri Sri: Yes! In knowledge you can be enthusiastic even in uncertainty.
Often people who are uncertain don't act; they simply sit and wait. Acting in uncertainty makes life a game, a challenge.
Being in uncertainty is letting go.
Certainty about the relative world creates dullness. Whereas, Uncertainty about the Self creates fear. Uncertainty about matter brings certainty about consciousness.
NOV 17TH 2013
"Just as you wash your hands before eating, clear your mind before engaging with the world."
~ Mooji
Don't get into other people's mess...!! They themselves want to get out of it...
NOV 16TH 2013
Gurudev, you say that two questions will be asked in the end, how much love we gave, and how much knowledge we took? I have always taken love and given knowledge. What will be my fate now?
Sri Sri: At least you have understood this much!
All this time you have enjoyed giving knowledge, now start taking knowledge and giving love.
How much ever love you have received, give more than that to other, and you are done. The car has taken a 'U' turn then. It was going in the wrong direction, the driver realized his fault and changed the direction.
Does it mean that we stop sharing knowledge? No, there is no need to stop. Continue giving knowledge. Whatever you receive, you give that.
And give that knowledge with love. Don’t give it to inflate your ego. That person needs this knowledge, share knowledge with this intention.
NOV 15TH 2013
Misunderstandings happen on this planet because of distance, because there is no closeness, no one ever “sits next to” the other. In one house people live on different planets. In a town, people live in different galaxies. There is so much distance, and so there is no understanding.
- Sri Sri
NOV 14TH 2013
Q: In the choice between what your heart wants and your responsibilities.. What to choose?
Guruji: Fulfill your responsibilities first.
NOV 14TH 2013
Q: Guruji, why is there poverty and suffering in this world?
Guruji: So that your hearts can open and you can do some service. You can realize how fortunate you are and you can express your love and caring for others. Imagine there is no poverty and suffering anywhere.. then how can you ever express your compassion and your magnanimity? Think about it..
NOV 14TH 2013
"You can search throughout the entire universe for someone who is more deserving of your love and affection than you are yourself, and that person is not to be found anywhere. You yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe deserve your love and affection."
- Buddha
NOV 14TH 2013
'If you are not free, you cannot love - freedom is the first thing. So when you become free, you are able to love unconditionally. When you love unconditionally you will be skillful in your dealings.'
- Sri Sri
NOV 14TH 2013
"Remember, we are all affecting the world every moment,
whether we mean to or not. Our actions and states of mind matter, because we're so deeply interconnected with one another.
Working on our own consciousness is the most important thing that we are doing at any moment, and being love is the supreme creative act."
- Ram Dass
NOV 14TH 2013
Happiness is a Choice, a Decision, a Commitment to Oneself
"One thing we must determine, 'Whether things happen or not, let me at least not lose my joy! Let me be happy!’"
- Sri Sri
NOV 14TH 2013
You ask me why you don't feel stern renunciation. There is a reason for it. You have desires and tendencies within you. The same is true of Hazra. In our part of the country I have seen peasants bringing water into their paddy-fields.
The fields have low ridges on all sides to prevent the water from leaking out; but these are made of mud and often have holes here and there. The peasants work themselves to death to bring the water, which, however, leaks out through the holes.
Desires are the holes. You practise japa and austerities, no doubt, but they all leak out through the holes of your desires.... If there are no desires, the mind naturally looks up toward God.
~ Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa
NOV 14TH 2013
Krishna ka jeevan sangharsh se bhara tha, phir bhi ve sadaiv muskurate aur nachte rahe...
Tum bhi har sangharsh aur dwand ko hanste-nachte-gaate hue paar kar jaao, aur is sansaar ko apna yogdaan do...
- Sri Sri
NOV 14TH 2013
During Guruji's Visit to Gujarat, he was asked - Guruji log bahut taang kheenchtey hain!! Guruji humorously answered:
"Taang kheenchne ke liye bhi saamne wale ko jhukna padega.
Jaisey hi koi tumhari taang kheenche ke liye jhuke, usko aashirwaad de dena .."
WD's take - When people try to pull you down, they themselves have to stoop down. Behaving in a manner which does not befit them.. One can only have compassion for such people...
NOV 14TH 2013
"Do you know what the spiritual path is? It is retaining that child-like nature even after growing up. If we do this much and if we keep our hearts clean, all that we wish for will come true. Not only what we wish for but we also get the ability to fulfill the desires of others.
Our heart should respond like a child. All of us have a small child hidden in us. We should awaken it."
- Sri Sri
NOV 13TH 2013
Don't return this brain back to God unused ... Use it.. - Sri Sri
NOV 13TH 2013
"Guru is none other than the Self."
- Ramana Maharishi
NOV 13TH 2013
"If you don't believe in miracles, you've probably forgotten that you're one.."
NOV 12TH 2013
"Do you all have the memory of being a small child? Do you remember how your heart used to respond? If someone used to get hurt, was it not hurting you? If another person got hurt, it used to hurt us as well.
However, as we started growing older, how did we lose this? What have we become? It is a big question that we have to ask ourselves.
Do you know what the spiritual path is?
It is retaining that child-like nature even after growing up. "
- Sri Sri
NOV 12TH 2013
"If your mind is calm clear... you can connect with anyone in the world...
If a close one or relative or friend is unhappy, it affects you.. you start feeling it..If you are Centred you have this danger of feeling everybody's everything from everybody..
That's why nature has a safety valve.. it does not give you these abilities till you are so Centred..that nothing bothers you.."
Guruji in Kenopanishad...
NOV 12TH 2013
Pleasure!
The mind that is seeking pleasure cannot be centered. You either seek pleasure or come to me. When you are centered, all pleasures come to you anyway, but they are no longer pleasures. They lose their charm. The mind that seeks pleasure can never achieve the highest. If you are after pleasure, forget about Satsang. Why are you wasting your time? This is the Art of Living.
If you are enjoying your suffering, then you also cannot be centered and you are far away from the path.
- Sri Sri
NOV 12TH 2013
"You can go about creating problems by your non-acceptance for 'What IS'.. and keep seeking solutions..
But Life is Just Life...."
NOV 12TH 2013
"You can go about creating problems by your non-acceptance for 'What IS'.. and keep seeking solutions..
But Life is Just Life...."
NOV 12TH 2013
“Disciples and devotees…what are most of them doing?
Worshipping the teapot instead of drinking the tea!”
~ Wei Wu Wei
NOV 12TH 2013
Just wake up and see that all the past is only a memory. In the flow of time, all events are dissolving....
- Sri Sri
NOV 12TH 2013
The more you give, the more you will get. Then life will become a sheer dance of love.
- Sri Sri
NOV 12TH 2013
NOV 11TH 2013
"Sometimes you feel, "This is too much. I can't handle any more." I tell you, you will never be given anything you cannot handle. The water will come up to the nose, but it will not go beyond."
- Sri Sri
NOV 11TH 2013
On the Spiritual Path...the whole Life becomes a process of perfecting "Unconditional Love.."
- WD
NOV 11TH 2013
“You find peace not by rearranging the circumstances of your life, but by realizing who you are at the deepest level.”
~ Eckhart Tolle
NOV 11TH 2013
Let what comes, come.
Let what goes, go.
Find out what remains.
- Sri Ramana Maharshi
NOV 11TH 2013
On a lighter note...
NOV 11TH 2013
Good healthy relationships find their base in mutual respect and low expectations ... - WD
NOV 11TH 2013
There is nothing Certain here... Can you just enjoy this moment....Can you just BE with what is happening Now...!! ..
NOV 10TH 2013
If you correct your mind, the rest of your life will fall into place. -Lao Tzu
NOV 09TH 2013
"Moha main bina fanse...Gyaan aur Prem main rehna..
Yehi is Diwali ka sandesh hai..."
(To be in Wisdom and Love without being Attached..That is the message for this Diwali)
- Gurudev on Diwali ..
NOV 06TH 2013
"Just believe in God, know that He is there and He will take care of everything for you. He will protect you at all times. In the Bhagavad Gita, Lord Krishna says:
Ananyas chintayanto mam ye janah paryupasate |
Tesham nityabhiyuktanam yoga-kshemam vahamy-aham || (9.22)
Lord Krishna says that once you are surrendered to God, once you take His refuge, then He takes on the responsibility to provide you with all that you need, and also protect that which you already have.
This is why Lord Krishna says: ‘Yogakshemam Vahamyaham’. Here Yog- means to give you what you have yet to receive and kshema- means to take care of and protect what you have already received. Both are His responsibility. Lord Krishna says this very clearly. So just know this and relax."
- Sri Sri
OCT 31ST 2013
Diwali: Celebrating the Light of Wisdom
"Diwali in essence is celebrated to kindle the light of wisdom in every heart, the light of life in every home and bring a smile on every face. Diwali is the shortened form of Deepavali, which literally means rows of lamps.
Every lamp that we light is symbolic of a good quality. There are good qualities in every human being. Some have forbearance, some have love, strength, generosity; others have the ability to unite people. When all these qualities are lit, awakened, that is Diwali.
Don't be satisfied with lighting one lamp; light a thousand!"
Diwali is a time when you throw light on the wisdom you have gained and welcome a new beginning. When true wisdom dawns, it gives rise to celebration. Celebration is the nature of the spirit and every excuse to celebrate is good.
For the one who is not in knowledge, Diwali comes only once a year, but for the wise, Diwali is every moment and every day. This Diwali, celebrate with knowledge and take a sankalpa (vow) to serve humanity.
Light the lamp of love in your heart; the lamp of abundance in your home; the lamp of compassion to serve others; the lamp of Knowledge to dispel the darkness of ignorance and the lamp of gratitude for the abundance that the Divine has bestowed on us.
- Sri Sri
Wishing everyone a very Happy Deepawali... :)
No comments:
Post a Comment