RENUNCIATION AND LOVE

Only one who has renounced can truly love. To the degree you have renounced, to that degree you have the ability to love. Often people think those who renounce cannot love, and those who love cannot renounce. This is because so-called renunciants do not seem to be in love, and so-called lovers are very possessive and are in need. True love is non-possessive and brings freedom, and renunciation is nothing but freedom. Only in freedom can love fully blossom. When in love, you say, "I want nothing for me." Renunciation is, "I don't want anything. I am free." In love, there is no other need. Renunciation is having no need. Love and renunciation, although appearing to be opposites, are two sides of the same coin. McQueen said -- They are the same side of the same coin. (laughter) Tara asked -- Does this mean the lover renounces his beloved? Guruji responded -- You renounce the attachment, the possessiveness. Renunciation doesn't diminish love; it enhances it. Only renunciation can sustain love and joy. Without renunciation, love turns into misery, possessiveness, jealousy and anger. Renunciation brings contentment and contentment sustains love. Without renunciation one gets discontented, frustrated, sad, fearful, suspicious and analytical. And the whole soap opera begins. And this is what we find in society, don't we? The so-called renunciants have run away from life frustrated and disappointed. Real renunciation is born out of knowledge and wisdom, knowledge of life in the background of time and space and in the context of this magnanimous universe. Jai Guru Dev.

SOUND FAITH

Have faith in the sound and move on to have faith in the silence. Have faith in sound when it is pleasant and have faith in the silence when the sound is unpleasant. When some one says something bad you immediately believe it and the mind becomes more disturbed. Believing in an unpleasant sound creates more turmoil in the mind. In that situation shift your faith to silence. Have faith in the sound, like the chanting of mantras. People seem to have more faith in chatting and gossip rather than chanting and knowledge. Have faith in the knowledge and chanting and have faith in silence. - Sri Sri Anecdote: On the day of the full moon, Sri Sri visited the ancient temple of Kollur where there was an elaborately decorated chariot of the goddess being pulled around the temple. Explaining its significance, Sri Sri said that each one of us is like a chariot carrying the power of God within. We are the real chariot of the Divine. Our body is the chariot and the soul is the deity which is being pulled around the world to purify. || Jai Guru Dev ||

The Arrow Of Faith

Sri Sri: It is only through merit that you can have faith. When you lack faith, happiness is neither in the inner nor the outer world. Happiness springs forth from faith. Happiness is forgetting the body consciousness. Pain or sorrow is holding on to the body consciousness. Whenever you are happy you don't feel the body and when you are miserable, you have aches and pains. Question: Then why in meditation is the attention taken to various parts of the body? Sri Sri: For an arrow to go forward, you have to pull it back. In the same way when you take the attention to the various parts of the body, it frees you from body consciousness.

Knowledge And Faith

KNOWLEDGE AND FAITH In science you have knowledge first, and then faith follows. In spirituality, faith comes first, and then Knowledge follows. For example, the knowledge that pesticides and chemical fertilizers are good for plants came through science, and people had faith in it, and all over the world they were used. And then another knowledge came that they were not good and the faith shifted to organic farming. The same with antibiotics. The knowledge brought faith, the knowledge changed, and then faith changed. The knowledge and faith of science is of "happening." In spirituality, faith is first and Knowledge comes later. Like Kriya, Yoga, and meditation -- first you have faith and then Knowledge follows. For example, if you do pranayama faithfully then you get the Knowledge of the prana; if your do your meditation faithfully, the Knowledge of consciousness follows. Even an illiterate, through faith, attains deep Knowledge. Vinod: Human is the best composite material. (Laughter -- this is the NASA scientist mind.) Punditji: Science considers even human as matter, and spirituality considers even earth as mother, even rivers and mountains as living beings. Science regards life as matter and spirituality regards even matter as life. Jai Gurudev.

False Security

False securities do not allow your faith to grow. When you have dropped your securities, then your faith grows. When you buffer your life with securities, you keep the faith away. It is the faith that brings perfection in you. Faith is the greatest security. If you have all the material securities and not have faith, you will still reel in fear. You have to let go of all possessions in the mind. False security is keeping things where they don't belong. It is an illusion of security because of having a job, a house, friends. Keep the house where it belongs, not in the mind. Keep the money in the bank or in the pocket, not in the mind. Keep friends and family where they belong, not in the mind. The Divine is your only security. Faith is realizing that you always get what you need. Faith is giving the Divine a chance to act. Your body belongs to the world. Your spirit belongs to the Divine. - Sri Sri

Enlightenment

The Knowledge acquired by a human being cannot be measured or judged by external behavior. Someone may behave as though they have absorbed all the Knowledge but internally they have not. The reverse is also true. Someone who seems to have not changed at all may have absorbed a lot. Ordinary people would just look at the behavior, but the intelligent looks beyond and is amazed by the play of the consciousness (Brahman). Behavior affects relationships. Attitude affects behavior. Knowledge or ignorance affects attitude. Grace brings forth Knowledge. Your inside is like a tree; in some seasons barren and at other times blossomed. Enlightenment is beyond seasons like the evergreen coconut tree which yields throughout the year. - Sri Sri || Jai Guru Dev ||

Shortcut

If you think you are stupid Then...... you know who you are. And if you know who you are...... You are enlightened! And if you are enlightened , Then ......you are certainly not stupid . If you think you are intelligent , Then you don't know who you are. And if don't know who you are..... Then you really ARE stupid! Better realize your stupidity ....and Be enlightened! !!!!!.... .[laughter] - Sri Sri || Jai Guru Dev ||

The Bodhi Tree

Buddha got enlightened under the Bodhi tree. He then stood up and watched the tree from a distance for seven days. He took sixteen steps towards the tree and under each step, blossomed a Lotus flower. This is the legend. The Bodhi tree is symbolic of both sansara (world) and Dharma. The Lotus flower symbolizes clarity, dispassion, love, beauty and purity. It is only when you are detached in life can you watch the sansara and all of its plays. When you witness the sansara, every step you take is benevolent and impeccable. When every action of yours is preceded by witnessing then every move you make in this sansara becomes perfect and significant. - Sri Sri || Jai Guru Dev ||

A Friend And An Enemy

In the company of your friends, you lose your centeredness. Your enemy puts you back in yourself. Your friend sympathizes with you and makes you believe in matter. Your enemy makes you feel helpless and takes you to the spirit. So your enemy is your friend and your friend is your enemy! Krishna said to Arjuna: One who is unfriendly everywhere (including himself); his consciousness is stable and awareness is established. - Sri Sri || Jai Guru Dev ||

A Tiny Atom

The "I" or ego in you is a tiny atom. If this atom is put with the body, the matter, it identifies with the matter. If this atom is put with the Being, the Infinite, it identifies with the Infinite. When this atom, this ego, is associated with the material world, it becomes mundane. When it is associated with the spirit, it becomes Divine. It becomes shakti when associated with the Being, the Self. It becomes miserable when identified with the body. You see, in a huge atomic reactor, it is just one tiny atom that is exploded. In the same way, in our whole body, there is just one little tiny atom of "I". And when this "I" explodes, that is when it becomes the light of the Self. Usually we say, "I am miserable, " or "I am happy". Shift this atom from identifying with the body and the conceptual world, to identifying with the Real World. - Sri Sri || Jai Guru Dev ||

COMMUNICATION

There are three modes of communication: in head to head communication you talk, in heart to heart communication you sing, and soul to soul communication happens in silence. When you meet with people, often you communicate from head to head. When you are with nature, you start singing, you communicate with nature from your heart. Often when you are with people you keep talking, blabbering, and you keep the communication on the level of the head only. But when you are with nature, you start humming and your communication comes through the heart. And when you are with the guru, you go blank and forget all the questions. Then communication comes through the soul in silence. When you meet with people, you like to remain in the head, you seldom sing with people (other than when it is organised). Your ego obstructs you from singing. Many do not feel comfortable singing with people. When you sing with people then you descend to the heart level or feeling level. Some feel comfortable just listening to music. Some feel comfortable singing only when they are alone. Some sing to draw attention or to charm others. Some only want to join in when all the others are singing. All this singing comes from ego. Bhajan means sharing, sharing from the deepest level of our existence. Bhajan is authentic sharing. If you could sing with people, then your ego shatters. Children can sing with people for they do not have ego. To sing with a stranger you have to be free of ego. Ego doesn't let you sing with a stranger. Head level is safe for the ego -heart level breaks the ego - soul level dissolves the ego. All communication gaps happen because of ego. Exercise: when you are with people, rather then chatting just start singing and you can feel the shift of energy that is happening. If you want to have more fun, greet a stranger with a song. - Sri Sri || Jai Guru Dev ||

Discomfort

An Awkward Situation Why do you feel awkward? And how do you get out of it? If you have always been the center of attention, and are suddenly sidelined, you may feel out of place. Similarly if you have always been on the side lines, and are suddenly pushed to center stage, you may experience restlessness. If you are used to ordering, and suddenly have to take orders, or, if you usually follow orders, and you are made to give them, you may feel out of place. A very busy person with nothing to do, or a laid back person who is faced with a lot of responsibilities may experience restlessness. Very often, feeling out of place blocks the reason and distorts the logic. If the situation you are in is inevitable, tolerate it. If it’s avoidable, walk out of it. If you feel that it can expand your abilities, smile through it. Every awkward situation increases your comfort zone. Every awkward situation is a test for how deep you are in the Knowledge. Love something of an awkward situation. This will increase your comfort zone. When your comfort zone increases, no one will be able to push your buttons and you will become so centered and unshakable. Jai Gurudev