As a mother, how can I make my children more creative and less of information junkies?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
More human interaction. Allow the children to play with more kids.
Get them to do some service activities. Make them do some work and make them mix with people of all socio-economic strata.
Gurudev, I am a young girl and a student. When I ask my parents, what should be my dharma, they say studies. Isn’t playing part of my dharma? Please guide.
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
Yes! Study while you study and play while you play.
Gurudev, if I do your work, can I get some discount on my bad karma and bonus on my good karma?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
Definitely!
Gurudev, you always say that when we are close to the divine, our desires get fulfilled. It is so true, but desires of people who are not spiritually inclined to God are also fulfilled without any struggle. Then what is the difference?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
You should ask them how they feel.
You know when you are awake, when you are spiritually inclined then you are able to enjoy that more. You turn back and see in your own life, before you did any meditation, you also had your desires fulfilled but that was not the same. Isn’t it?
You enjoyed, you went on a trip, and you watched the nature. But now after your meditation, after your entry into the spiritual knowledge, there is a significant difference.
Gurudev, I would like to know what is Shivaloka, Brahmaloka and Vishnuloka? What makes them different from each other?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
There are many worlds and many dimensions of time. And so it is said, one human year is one day in Pitraloka. What is one year for us, of that, six months form a day and six months form a night in another dimension.
If you are a student of astronomy, you will be fascinated to know that there are different time dimensions, it is very interesting. You should study more of astronomy – both classical astronomy and modern astronomy. Then you will get a lot of information about time and different dimensions of existence.
See for example, the light of the star you see today is not coming today. It is from four years back. That light has started four years ago and today you see the star. You are seeing the star today but it may not be there today. It is a four years back picture that you are seeing.
Have you heard about this?!
Gurudev, how to live in this so called professional world? I find myself lonely and secluded when I feel people are friendly only when they need me. Today professionalism means no love and no true smile. What to do?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
At least you give them. If they don’t have, you have it.
So you can shine there like the moon.
I cannot know life without death. Guruji please tell me how to know death while I am still alive.
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
Meditation. Deep meditation is like being nothing and being nobody.
Gurudev, I am stuck between my soul and society. My soul hates this hypocrite society and this society doesn’t like liberated minds like me. Shall I sacrifice my soul or my society?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
You don’t need to sacrifice anything. You can maintain your soul and be successful in society as well, that is the skill.
The whole life is a program of containing the infinite into the small finite container. Our body is finite but our consciousness is infinite. The whole skill and technique is to have them together. That is Yoga. That is skill in action.
Gurudev, I want to know your views on 21/12/2012. A Japanese princess and several other sources on the internet have mentioned that there will be three days of darkness. What is the truth?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
You know Dr. D. K. Hari has written a book and yesterday I released the book – 2012. Just pick up the book. It should also be available online. He has mentioned a very scientific analysis on 2012 and what it really means and how the Mayans got their calendar. You know, Mayans were a part of India long time ago. They were from Sri Lanka. Ravana was from the Mayan Dynasty.
So both Dr. Hari and Dr. Hema have done a very good analysis. I only glanced through it and it was fascinating. So you should read it. I haven’t read it yet but it is very fascinating. He has done a lot of illustrations.
I am telling you that nothing will happen. The world is not going to disappear. It will continue as we are today.
It has been said that this world is not real but an illusion of the mind. With this perspective, how do we view Lord Krishna and his teachings in the Bhagavad Gita? Were they also an illusion?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:
Is this question real or an illusion, first tell me?
If the question is real, answer will be real. If the question is an illusion then everything is an illusion. Your spirit of enquiry is also an illusion, then why should an answer be given for it. Got it?
There are two dimensions. I keep saying all the time. One is the quantum dimension.
In atomic level, everything is the same. In the quantum mechanics, everything are just atoms, the floor, the chair, the door, the window – it is all made up of just one matter, one substance. And on the classical level, these are all different. The chair is different from the door. You cannot go and sit on the door or use the chair for the door. So they are all different.
In chemistry, the periodic table is there which speaks of the different elements. Then there is quantum physics, which speak of all being just a wave function. So both are essential and both are true. Got it?
This is Dvaita and that is Advaita, and Bhagavad Gita connects to both. It takes you to Advaita and connects you to Dvaita – the duality as well as makes you understand the ultimate. Both!