Question:
What is the reason for 108 beads in a rosary? Is there any significance to this?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: There are 12 constellations and nine planets according to Indian astrology. Nine planets moving in the 12 constellations can bring about 108 different types of changes.
So the 108 beads are to nullify any malefic effects of any changes.
Question: Gurudev, when longing becomes intense sometimes, it ends up with the feeling of anger or frustration. How to deal with it?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Longing needs to be internalized, you need to go deep into meditation. Or give a creative form to it, write some poems or articles. Writing will help. You know, a lot of great works have come out of longing, whether it is painting, music, drama, literature, all these have come out of deep yearning.
So give your longing a creative direction; or internalize it, go deep in meditation.
Question: Guruji, why is it that falling in love is so easy, but staying in love is very difficult?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Because of attachment, you cling on to it. You fall in love and then you become a policeman. An investigating agent who goes on poking into every little thing and gets bogged down by that.
When you have a larger vision, a bigger goal and enough work to do, even when you fall in love, you will carry on in love all the time.
Question: How can being with nature, which is outside, take us to our nature, which is inside? Can you please elaborate on the connection between nature and spirituality?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: This is called ‘Laya Samadhi’. If you keep observing the sky, keep looking at the sky then at some point the eyes close and all that you feel is sky outside and sky inside. You become black.
Similarly you do sun gazing, watch the sunset. You can’t watch the sun for too long, you watch it for some time. Then you close your eyes and your mind becomes still and quiet.
Question: Guruji, is marriage a relationship or bondage? If it is a relationship, why does it feel like bondage and if it is bondage, how do we make it a relationship?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: It depends on how you look at it. If you hold each other’s necks, it will feel like bondage. If you walk together, shoulder-to-shoulder with each other, it will feel like a support.
So be a support each other, be a companion and move forward. Be life partners to each other. There are so many people in this world who don’t feel lonely after getting married and share a good companionship.
If there is no belongingness, it begins to feel like bondage. That is why I say that husband and wife should have a common goal. If there is a big goal, the focus will shift to that and their relationship will be good.
Question: Why is not every human being pure?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Every human is pure but filled with dirt. Every human being is like a diamond. The fact that the diamond is in mud, does not make it mud. You simply have to pick it up and wash it. And it shines again. The shiny nature of diamond is always there but covered with mud and slush.
Question: It is said that souls chose their parents. Why do abortions and cases of rape etc. happen?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: This is called janam rahasya (secret of birth). Many souls compete to get a body and only one can win. It’s like a running race. Like millions of people compete and only one wins, in the same way there is a rush and only one gets a body. That’s why it is said that the human birth and life are very precious. Don’t waste it on insignificant things. We eat to live and not live to eat. Many people start living just to eat. There are many possibilities – what soul can come and what not? The possibilities are infinite. Nobody knows.
Question: Krishna ki chaturta, Ram ki gambheeta (Lord Krishna’s mischievousness, the seriousness of Lord Rama) … Guruji, which way to follow?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: See there is no fight here. They came at different times, so that there is no competition. They came to tell us that, “We are all one”. Here there is no conflict of which is better which is worse, everything is essential. Each one has a style, place and time.
It is like you sing different songs for different occasions in life. In a marriage you don’t sing a song that is sung at funerals.
Question: Guruji, how to establish harmony between material and spiritual lives?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: There is already a harmony. The more spiritual you are, the greater is the harmony in material life.
Whom would you like to interact with? Those who are happy and enthusiastic or those who are stiff and serious?
All our bodies create vibrations. From some people you feel like running away, while you want to spend more time with someone. The waves coming from inside a person can send people away. Being on the spiritual path makes the waves beautiful.
Question: Guruji, when I get bad thoughts, I am able to subdue them through the intellect. But is it possible not to have bad thoughts at all?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: This is the skill. How you manage bad thoughts. Lots of thoughts come if there are impurities in the body, if there is aavaran (artificiality) in the mind.
Having too many thoughts indicates some weakness in the body. Consult an ayurveda physician and take herbs to cleanse the body. Through pranayam, the mind is purified. Through meditation, the consciousness gets purified. Sometimes the thoughts come because of the surroundings or company. Do not be afraid of bad thoughts. These thoughts are similar to the dark clouds that come and pass away.
Question: Guruji, these days when we are talking of saving the planet from pollution including our water bodies, is it wrong to throw the puja materials in the water?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: If you put natural things, then there is no pollution. They are bio degradable. If you put soap or plastic, it harms the water. Since centuries, in the forest so many leaves and fruits fall in water, but the water is not contaminated. But when we throw artificial things, the water gets contaminated.
When we put bowls made of leaves, and garlands made of real flowers into water, it doesn’t get polluted.
It is interesting , one who is familiar with the real stuff, to him even the fake thing seems real.
And to the one who is familiar with the fake thing, even the real appears as fake. This is maya. What is real and what is unreal has to be found out. Therefore you need an inward eye (antar drishti). This is possible through yoga and meditation.
Question: Guruji whenever any problem comes, we keep aside all Gods and pray to one particular God. Don’t you think the other gods will become angry?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: There is a shloka - Sarve deva namaskara, keshavam pratigachchati. Like all the water ultimately goes to the ocean, whichever God or Goddess you pray to, it goes to the One only. Don’t worry God won’t be angry.
Question: Guruji, in life we see good people suffering a lot. It seems God is hard on the good people. Why?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: No no, it only seems so. It’s not real. A person who seems successful and happy despite doing wrong actually is restless in the heart. He can’t sleep peacefully, can’t eat with joy and his fall will be greater than his rise. Have faith that if I am doing good, then good only will happen. If you think otherwise, it is an illusion. But being good doesn’t mean one should be stupid, use your intelligence. One’s heart should be clean.
Question: Guruji, why do we have to suffer because of our past impressions? In the present we are innocent
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: If you plant a coconut tree three years back then you enjoy the fruit later. You put money in the bank and expect it back with interest isn't it? Will you agree if the bank tells you to forget about it because it was so many years ago that you put the money? You want only the fruits which are favorable!
We need to realize, accept our mistake and move on. Then the intensity of the karma reduces.
Asking forgiveness for all mistakes made knowingly and unknowingly is part of our pujas also.
