, 2009:
The second day of the advanced meditation program in Kannada saw songs of deep meaning being sung in satsang.
One participant had composed a song based on the wisdom from the previous day. The song was a declaration of the beautiful, ‘I don’t know’ and a realization of the foolish mind that thinks that it knows.
H.H Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: You know, when one accepts that one is a fool then he is actually intelligent. A real fool does not recognize his foolishness.
We are in a universe full of secrets.
We are floating in the ocean of infinite secrets. There are infinite secrets in every atom. Science tries to discover and reveal these secrets but this attempt is like trying to discover the ocean in a small boat. It is that small, and there is so much more left to discover, which is impossible. And when science tries to find one secret, ten more arise. No scientist can say that, ‘I know all the secrets of the universe’. No one can say that. As science discovers more, it finds that there is so much more that is unknown, a secret.
So, love the secret! Honor the secret! This is the Chidambara rahasya. There are infinite secrets in the consciousness. You can’t understand all of them. The sky is endless. Like the sky, even secrets are endless. Our ancestors honored secrecy. A mantra is kept secret when we want to do japa (chant).
What you keep as a secret, grows. We don’t express our love, we don’t say ‘I love you’ everyday. When you are so deeply in love, just one glance is enough. Sometimes by saying it so many times, the love diminishes. If you do not express yourself at all, then also it is of no use.
There is the appropriate way to express your life experiences. It should be like sowing a seed. It is a sown a few inches deep, not just on the surface level nor too deep. Then the relationship lasts for the whole lifetime. No child tells the mother, ‘I love you’, all the time- it is shown through his actions.
A yogi always does things in moderation - neither too much work nor sleep. Neither too much food nor too much fasting is favorable. It is not a favorable solution.
If you don’t eat for days or do such things then it is not only a torture for your body but also a torture for your soul. So have moderation in your food, interactions and speech. Then yoga siddhi (state of perfection) is attained and all sadness fades away. So, to become free from sorrow continue to do your sadhana and meditation.
Meditation happens to us. We don’t have to do it, with an effort. And the solution to be free from any obstacle to meditation is to sit in that space of the beautiful ‘I don’t know’.
In the Chidambaram temple, there is a screen and behind it there is only a wall. It looks as if you are bowing down to a wall but there is a deeper meaning behind it. It signifies the akasha tattva (the space principle). When you move the screen, the space is revealed. When you remove the veil of illusion and desires, you experience the vast infinite inner space. For a few moments your mind becomes free from thoughts. We realize that there is some secret of which we have had a small glimpse, like a flash, and this experience brings a transformation in life.
Audience: I don't know!
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: When will the world end?
Audience: I don't know!
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: This question is also like that. We don’t know when the cycle of karma started. We don’t know the beginning but the seeds of karma can be burnt in the fire of knowledge.
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.
