Q & A

Q: Destiny is decided at birth. Then why should we anything?



Sri Sri: To improve yourself is also a part of destiny. World is a combination of destiny and Karma. Some things can be changed, some things cannot be changed.


Q: You say, choice is yours, blessings are mine. Can I have both?


Sri Sri: A state of choicelessness is a blessing in life. If you get both you are very lucky.

Q: How to eliminate fear from our life and mind?
Sri Sri: Your love and service, ability to be friends with more people, deep meditation and prayer will eliminate fear. Fear is love upside down.

Q: Between childhood and adulthood, what transformed us?

Sri Sri: I also wonder. Tell me if you find an answer. Children as they grow are not taught to value some basic things in life like friendship, compassion, true love.

Q: I have a difficult experience with my father. How to let go?

Sri Sri: Don’t hold others responsible for you pain. See them as a postman only. Have compassion for them. Know that they are victims. Inside every culprit is a victim waiting to be healed. Talk to him as nothing has happened in the past. When you meet someone, uplift the whole atmosphere. Don’t demand explanations. Enthuse people, cheer them up. You want good company but you yourself are not a good company. You put down people. If we can be good then we can get peace inside.

Q: What is real and unreal in creation? What is its purpose?

Sri Sri: This is the ultimate question. Don’t be in a hurry to get an answer. Why are there so many types of plants, people, noses etc? Why we have 2 eyes, 2 ears etc and they do one job and we just have one mouth and it does 2 jobs, eating and talking. Wonder about all this and the creation.

Q: People blindly worship Guru? Is it ok? Shouldn't they just worship the divine?

Sri Sri: Why does somebody adore someone else? In college, rock starts, movie stars, sports players are adored. This adulation is part of human nature. Deep inside it is your ability to appreciate and honor good qualities. This adulation of Gurus has come down the ages. In the East, people took pride in their Gurus. There was a lot of respect but it’s missing in the students now. They throw tomatoes at their teachers. We have now gone to the other extreme.

When your life is full, you get a feeling of gratitude. You start with the Guru and end up adoring everything in life. Guru is just a beginning. In India there is festival in October when people worship everything from cars, scooters etc. Everything is venerated. Divine dwells in every particle. In East the traditions was that before cutting a tree, you have to plant 5 more. An innocent mind sees life everywhere. Life has to be honored, adored. If you cannot do this, then what else is left in life? It is so dry, just eat, drink and sleep. Whenever you praise, the praise goes to the divine. If you praise your Guru, the praise goes to the divine. When you praise someone, your own consciousness is expanding. So for your own sake, adore and venerate others.

Q: How to deal with when you love someone and you are not loved back?

Sri Sri: It’s a challenge. Your love is not dependent on their love. Love is not a business. I love you, as I have no choice but to love. Love is not an action but a state. Either you express love in its natural form or in it’s opposite forms like jealousy, greed and hatred.

Q: How can I have faith?

Sri Sri: Don’t struggle. Forget it. Do you have faith in the fact that you don’t have faith?

Q: Give me more grace?

Sri Sri: There is a story about grace. A couple of years ago at the immigration at the airport, they asked me 'Where do you come from?' I said 'I come from the clouds'. They said 'what do you do?' I said 'I bless people'. They were so surprised and smiled. I thought they were very serious at that time and wanted some humor.

Q: How to remain positive when you are surrounded by negativity?

Sri Sri: You should influence them. When you talk to someone, talk about knowledge. Everything is changing, body changes, environment changes, feelings, emotions, thoughts, and friends. Recognize this change. There is a reference point which is not changing. Step into that which doesn’t change.

Q: What is the significance of the feet of the master? Why do people touch your feet?

Sri Sri: I ask people not to touch my feet. Not to bend down, otherwise the blessings will go to the other person behind you. You should just fold your hands and bow down. Touching feet is a culture India, a way to show respect. When you bow down, the ego melts. I would prefer that you people don’t bend down and touch my feet.

Q: How can I resolve power struggle with my husband?

Sri Sri: With skill. One who has real power won’t exercise it. One who doesn’t have power tries to exercise it. There is a story about Mulah Nasserudin. He had a fight with his wife and he hid under the bed. Then the doorbell rang and his wife asked him to come out. He said, 'No I won’t come out, let them know who is the boss in the house'.

Q: Why are things which keep us from spirituality so intensely pleasurable? Is the divine perversely mischievous?

Sri Sri: If you don’t indulge in anything, it’s ok. But indulging makes you weak. Look at the people in the sex industry, they look so sad. Enlightenment is when you find all these things are petty. You are joy, you are love. Don't blame sex, food etc. Moderation is the law. With your own intensity you get feverish. There is a story about Shona (Buddha's disciple). He was a prince. He indulged in sex and he got so tired. He asked his girlfriend to remove her bangles as the sound was bothering him so much. He was so fragile that the bangles sound could disturb him. Then he met Buddha. Meeting Buddha made all other pleasures insignificant. He wanted to become like Buddha. So he became a monk. Nobody could believe it. He went into deep penance. Fasted and didn’t wear proper clothes.

After some months, someone told Buddha about him. Buddha went to him and told him: 'You've played the Veena. If the strings are too tight, then there is no music, similarly if the strings are too loose then also there is no music. Tuning is important. Same in life. You are going from one extreme to another. Be on the middle path.' So eat, sleep, have sex, meditate in moderation.

Q: About early death?

Sri Sri: Universe is mysterious, not every bud blooms and not every wave rises. You can only wonder about it. Don’t try to understand it.

Q: How to avoid entanglement in others’ drama?

Sri Sri: Be skillful in communicating. It’s alright to show that you are upset even if you are not. No one can understand your depth. You yourself cannot understand it. Our consciousness is infinite. Entire divinity is there inside you.