FW: [esatsang] Esatsang digest for Dec 30 2012

-----Original Message-----
From: esatsang@lists.artofliving.org [mailto:esatsang@lists.artofliving.org]
On Behalf Of Esatsang
Sent: 31 December 2012 04:42
To: esatsang@lists.artofliving.org
Subject: [esatsang] Esatsang digest for Dec 30 2012

Topics in this digest

***************************
1. Mind - Friend or Enemy?

2. Gyan Satsang of Doctors

3. Unique Sewa book a page for Souvenir

4. Google Hangout with Sri Sri: Select / Suggest your topic!

5. Are you a blogger?? Something interesting coming up for you!

6. It makes sense to Volunteer for a better India


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Date: Sat, Dec 29, 2012 at 2:31 AM
Subject: Mind - Friend or Enemy?

Mind - Friend or Enemy?

December 26, 2012

Bad Antogast, Germany


Q: How to overcome the mind which bothers me?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: That is its nature.
Do you know you are bigger than the mind? Wake up. Let the mind be there.

Q: Gurudev, how do I recognize my soul mate?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: First you should recognize your soul and then your
soul mate.
You don't know yourself, you don't know who you are. You don't know anything
about yourself. You don't know your mind; your own mind drives you crazy.
One minute it wants something and the next minute it wants something else.
The mind keeps changing its mind all the time, and it gets caught up.
That is why in the Bhagavad Gita, there is a saying, 'Your own mind is
responsible for your bondage and for your liberation,' there is nothing
else.
Your own mind, if it acts like your friend, it also acts like your enemy.
If your mind is trained well through Sadhana (spiritual practices), it
befriends you, and it helps you. Otherwise your own mind behaves like an
enemy. Isn't this so true? It is so true!

I want to tell you an incident that happened last week, just before I came
here.
In front of the Ashram we have a signboard of the Ashram. It so happened
that a particular political party, their people came and put their posters
on that signboard, just to create mischief.
They put big posters because there was a birthday party of the head of that
political party. So our security people and others, naturally they pulled it
down because people coming to the ashram couldn't see the signboard and
didn't know where to go.
Now, the local leader of the party got very wild and he started screaming
and threatening one of our teachers saying , I'm going to bring a lot of
people and we will have a demonstration. And in front of that we will do
hunger strike', and these very angry exchange of words happened. And our
security people also said, 'Yes, you come. Let us see, we are also very
strong.'

So, when I was driving to the city for another program, my secretary told me
this story. I told him, 'Call this local leader and talk to him.'
So my secretary called him and told him, 'Gurudev has just come, he wants
you to take a basket full of fruits, a garland and a shawl for the person
who has a birthday, and give him blessings from Gurudev', and he agreed.
Then he asked, 'Why did they pull out our posters?'
My secretary played innocent and said, 'Oh, you had some difficulty, is it
so?! Why didn't you tell me? You should have informed me. Gurudev has just
come, he was on a tour. He heard there was a birthday party and he wants to
send blessing. So you go and take these things to your leader and give him
blessings.'
The whole situation got diffused and he felt very empowered. So now he could
go to his boss with a garland and blessings from me, and he also got access
to his superior in the party.
All the big drama he was going to create ended with one phone call. He could
go to the boss of his party with pride and say, 'Gurudev has sent me to give
you a garland.'
So, he felt empowered and our people felt relieved.

See, when you know how you can diffuse conflicts, it is easy.
All that it cost was a phone call. But not every trick works everywhere. In
different places you have to work differently. Sometime you have to take a
tough stand, put your foot down and say no. Sometimes you have to be
diplomatic and skillful.

Always there will be people who try to create mischief, you need to have
skill to handle all those situations.

The ancient people said that there are four ways to deal with any situation
- Sama, Dana, Bheda and Danda.
1. Sama means with dialogue, with persuasion, with some discussion and
communication 2. Dana means forgiving. 'Never mind, everybody makes
mistakes', and so you give them a chance 3. Bheda means being indifferent.
Being a little tough and making a point 4. Danda mean taking a stick, which
is the last resort

Usually we use the last two ways in beginning itself. We don't go with the
harmonious path. You must first take the harmonious path, and then give a
chance, and then discriminate, and finally, if nothing works, Danda, which
is take a stick.
These are called the four skillful ways of handling any situation.

Q: Gurudev, you have said that we shouldn't give explanations to people. But
if we have something on our heart that is heavy and feel the need to talk
about it, then what to do?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: There is no one rule for it, sometime you want to
speak and become calm and sometimes speaking doesn't help in any way.

Wake up and see, the whole world is like a dream. All those thoughts have
gone, the behavior of people will disappear. Some people act good and some
act bad, but everyone is going to die, and the world will be finished.
This set of people will all go away. Then new people will come and they will
all die. Then another set of people will come, they will fight among
themselves, they will hug, love, kiss, do everything, and they will all die.


Seven billion people on the planet today and all these seven billion people
will all die. It is only a matter of a few years. In another hundred years,
do you think the same people will be here? Not one person who is here today
will be alive. And two hundred years later, even the grandchildren will not
be there.
See, the world is like a river, there is fresh water flowing every moment in
this river. What is it that you are so bothered about?

If you want to leave something behind, it should be some knowledge that
would help someone; that would be useful to someone. Not what he said, what
she said, and what do you think about so-and-so situation. Come on, this is
all nonsense! Throw them out of the window. It has no meaning.
Hours together you waste in explaining, why you felt the way you were
feeling and how and why others are feeling the way they are feeling.
Do you know, when the time changes, the mind also changes. There is a
beautiful science about this. You can also get a clue from the astrological
chart, how the mind is connected with time.

Sometime, we will start a course on the connection between mind, time and
the planets. See, I don't want to say astrology because it has been misused
and misinterpreted so many times. It is a one of the most disorganized
science today.
No doubt astrology is a science but it has been distorted so much that you
can't even see what the original is.

There are twelve constellations and nine planets according to Vedic
astrology.
It is said that when Jupiter transits in the eighth place from the time you
are born, it has an impact on your mind.
Similarly, when Saturn transits the eighth place, it makes your emotions go
topsy-turvy.
When Jupiter is in the eighth place, you lose all your wisdom. But that is
only for eleven months, and in these eleven months, it is only for three
months that it makes you so miserable. Unless and until you are in deep
spiritual knowledge or enlightened, this will definitely affect your mind.
But if you know, 'These are the three months that are going to be a little
difficult on my mind and emotions', then you will not take decisions, or do
thing in those months.

Similarly, every two and a half days, the mood of the mind changes.
If you are miserable, it won't exceed two and half days. There will be a
break and then it may come again.
Like this, the cosmos has an influence on the mind.
What can protect you from this influence is satsang, meditation, chanting.
All this is like putting on an armour.
An arrow was coming, but you have an armor, so it didn't really hit you.
So, singing and chanting 'Om Namah Shivaya' so many times makes an armour
around you and protects you from being affected by all these crazy things.

We do Yagnas in the Bangalore Ashram for the welfare of the whole world and
for all of our devotees. There is a small Yagna done six times every month,
and during Navratri we do a big one to bring peace, prosperity and
protection to the world and all our devotees.
These are the ways of the ancient people. We will have more knowledge and
courses on this in the future.

Q: Where do the thoughts come from?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: This thought came to you just now? Where did this
thought come from? It came in you, so why don't you sit and see, where it is
coming from?

The moment you sit and think what is the origin of thought the mind goes
blank. That indicates from where thoughts are coming.
You are the source from where thoughts, ideas and emotions come - that inner
space.
It is like someone asking, 'Where do the clouds come from?'
Clouds are just hovering in the sky. In the same way, in our inner sky,
there are three akashas - one is the outer space, the second is the inner
space where thoughts and emotion come, and there is the third space which is
a witness. Where there is nothing, just bliss.

Q: How to get a faith that never shakes?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: If it is true faith, let it shake.
Truth will never go, and if the faith is with the truth, let it shake. It
will never get lost.
In fact, you should doubt as much as possible.
You can say, 'Don't doubt', only when a thing is not a genuine thing.
If it is genuine gold, I tell you, go on scratching as much as possible. But
if it is just rolled in gold, or gold polish, then you say, 'Don't scratch
too much because it will disappear.'
With true gold, any amount of scratching will not make it go away.

Doubt is simply lack of energy. When you are high in energy, where is the
doubt?
Doubt comes when the energy is low. True faith is that which you shake a
hundred times and it still stays on. That is true faith, and it will remain.


Q: You said we come to the Ashram and regenerate - why is the world not an
Ashram?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: To me the world is my Ashram.
But when you come in a physical place, or in an Ashram where there is always
meditation happening, that place holds those vibrations.
See in your home, there is a place for dining, a place for resting, and a
place for garbage. Like that, in the world, there is a place for everything.


I would love everyone of you to make your home an Ashram. And what is an
Ashram? It is a place where there is wisdom and where there is love. It is a
place where anybody who comes is welcomed and given some food so that they
can come and relax.
If you can create such a power then the whole world is an Ashram. In fact,
when you go and be with nature in the forest or in the woods, it is all an
Ashram only.
I say that every tree in the world is in my own garden; in my own ashram.
This is the fact, but sometimes when you feel that this is not helping, that
you need a place where you can go and energize yourself, then you come here
(Ashram).
It will be very obvious for you to feel the energy here. Just like in your
home, you can be anywhere, but if you want to feel the aroma of food, you
have to walk into the kitchen. You can eat anywhere, but in kitchen or
dining area, the aroma is there.

Q: Does the soul have an aim?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Yes, the soul definitely has an aim, to become one
with the super-soul. The small mind's aim is to become one with the big
mind.
Every wave wants to wash the shore and become one with the ocean, which it
already is!

Q: What is time?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: The distance between two events.
What is distance, if you ask me, it is the space between two objects.

Q: How to go back to the source?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Just by being quiet, unlearning and unwinding you will
get back to the source.

Q: Can you tell us about Kali Yuga.
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: There are four Yugas; time is divided into four
aspects.
1. Satya Yuga, when there is a lot of positivity 2. Treta Yuga, when the
positivity goes a little down 3. Dvapara Yuga, when the positivity goes a
little more down, and 4. Kali Yuga, when positivity goes down even more This
is what is said about Kali Yuga. But I tell you, within Kali Yuga there is
Satya Yuga.
The days when you feel happy, know that you are in Satya Yuga. And when you
are totally miserable, you are in Kali Yuga.
In that sense, within the big Kali Yuga also, there are good times.

Q: You said truth is contradictory. Can you give us an easy way to
understand this?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Milk is good and milk is bad.
Milk is good if you drink one glass, bad if you drink two litres. Got it?!

If you come to Bad Antogast from Freudenstadt, you have to go straight down
and turn to your right. But from Oppenau, you have to go straight and turn
left.
Both instructions are true, but they are contradictory.
Truth is spherical, it is not linear. When anything is spherical there are
multiple ways to get to that.

Q: Is India on the verge of becoming the country it was 2,000 years ago?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: If the politicians let it happen, it will.
The politicians have become a problem in Italy, in India, and in Greece. It
is the politicians who are driving the country towards bankruptcy.
Each country has enough resources and good people. There is dynamism, but
corruption is taking the nations to a primitive, medieval era.

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From: Manu K S <manu.ssah@ssrvm.org>
Date: Thu, Dec 27, 2012 at 8:51 PM
Subject: Gyan Satsang of Doctors

Greetings from the Sri Sri College of Ayurvedic Science & Research Hospital
family!!!

We take pride today to share with you, that it has been more than a year
after the successful

inauguration of our new hospital premises by our Poojya Gurudev. On the eve
of this New Year,

Sri Sri Ayurveda and Sri Sri College of Ayurvedic Science & Research
Hospital together invite

you to a get-together of all doctors-Ayurveda/Allopathy/Homeopathy.

Come & join us to be enthralled in the divine spiritual aura of

"Bibi Nachiyar"

presented in the form of a dance drama!

Bibi Nachiyar: This is a story of intense love and devotion for the divine.
It begins at the time

of Acharya Sri Ramanuja, a saint and social reformer of 11th century.

Ramanuja was in Thondanur near Melkote, he had a dream in which Lord Krishna
asks him

to retrieve his idol from the Sultan of Delhi. Accordingly, Acharya Sri
Ramanuja called on the

Sultan and asked for the idol. Just before entering the place, he was
stopped by the Sultan who

challenged him. Sultan said that the idol can be taken from there only if
Lord Krishna decides to

go with Acharya, when he calls from the entrance itself. Being an ardent
devotee, Acharya Sri

Ramauja emotionally calls Lord Krishna as "Vaaraai En Shelva Pillai" meaning
"Come to me,

my sweet child". Then the idol in child form came dancing to Acharya Sri
Ramanuja and sits on

his lap. When the idol was brought back to Melkote, the daughter of Sultan-
Mumtaz, who was

totally in love with Lord Krishna could not bear the separation. She
followed Lord Krishna to

Melkote, and finally merges with the divine.

CELEBRATE NEW YEAR EVE

31st DEC 2012/6:30PM @ VISHALAKSHI MANTAP, Art of living international
center, 21st kms Kanakapura road, Bangalore, Karnataka-560082

ENTRY through INVITATION only!

For FREE invite please SMS 09663700113 call to 080-65909097

or mail to mansa@ssrvm.org

**********************************
Date: Tue, Dec 25, 2012 at 10:07 PM
Subject: Unique Sewa book a page for Souvenir

Sending to you an opportunity to associate with a Cause...

"Volunteer For A Better India"

The need of the hour is a passionate Action-Force,to inspire & connect
INDIANS to volunteer for a better India..

"Volunteer For A Better India" as a movement of service initiative,is owned
by YOU,steered by YOU

& powered by the Art of Living Foundation..

Fantastic work is being done for fund-raising thru Souvenir, but we still
have a long way to go...

Need a lot of your contributions & support.....

We still have front & back cover insides as well as back cover gatefold
left....

A couple of section seperators are also available..

Rest of premium pages & book-mark are booked..


Please book your advertisements,as we need to send in the Souvenir for
printing,by 15th Jan 2013...

regards--Souvenir team


Deepa--9899817444
Neena-9810013177


Warm Regards
Vinay Girotra

*************************************




---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Harshal Jadhav <harshalpjadhav@yahoo.com>
Date: Thu, Dec 27, 2012 at 11:53 PM
Subject: Google Hangout with Sri Sri: Select / Suggest your topic!

Gurudev has agreed to have a Google Hangout with us on the 26 Jan, 2013 at
8:30 pm IST.

Here is our chance to select and suggest the topic on which He will answer
questions.

Please click here (www.artofliving.org/in-en) to give your choice
immediately. (The poll is present on the home page)

The Poll is open till 1 Jan 2013.

For more details on the hangout keep visiting
www.artofliving.org/hangoutwithsrisri (this page will keep getting updated)

Share with All!
Harshal
0091-7829068283| skype: harshalpjadhav

Art of Living on Mobile!!

***************************
From: Harshal Jadhav <harshalpjadhav@yahoo.com>
Date: Mon, Dec 24, 2012 at 11:45 PM
Subject: Are you a blogger?? Something interesting coming up for you!

If you love writing on your blog, and you are eager to know what more you
can do with your blogs, then here is a wonderful opportunity for you to be
part of the International Blogger's Conference!!

Date: 6 Jan 2013 in Art of Living International Center, Bangalore!

You can join this LIVE over a webcast from anywhere in the world!!

To join in - just register yourself on http://justconnect.artofliving.org/
and be a part of it!

Like the Facebook Page: http://facebook.com/ijustconnect

*********************************

From: Artofliving Sri lanka <artoflivingsl@gmail.com>
Date: Thu, Dec 27, 2012 at 10:57 PM
Subject: It makes sense to Volunteer for a better India

It makes sense to Volunteer for a better India

By Vidyut Udiaver, December 28th 2012, 10.30 am IST


We, the intellectual, the elite and the convent educated may just like
others be sometimes clouded with doubt and cynicism on many issues that
confront our nation. Its either an attitude of `who cares` or `so what`s
new` or `what are we going to get out of it` or `why should I be bothered`.
It is this very staccato and calibrated responses, attitude of
non-cooperation or a stoic silence by the educated and the good people that
has also allowed corruption, rape and riot to become the order of the day.


Founded by Sri Sri Ravi Shankar the Volunteer for a better India (VFABI) is
a brilliant initiative that aims to galvanize and dedicate our good
intentions collectively for the ultimate good of our peoples. I understand
that it`s not about winning. It is about doing things that are deemed urgent
and beneficial for the nation before we are (god forbid) damned!! That's
what inspires me about this new initiative.In all sincerity this is one mega
initiative that is fast catching the imagination of people.



Little do we realize the power of our goodness. And Volunteer for a better
India (VFABI) is that collective citizens` action plan that aims to bring
together the good, the bad and the ugly to renew our faith once again that
the very best can be made possible for India. I believe that the bad and the
ugly also have a great degree of goodness in them and it is our duty and
prerogative to bring them around. A case in point is the massive continuing
protests shaking New Delhi at its foundations in the light of last
fortnight`s gruesome incident of rape.


I reckon VFABI is set to catapult a meaningful revolution given the early
trends. Everyday hundreds of youth line-up to sign-up across India. Even
those who have had a brush with corruption are owning-up, confessing and
throwing their hands-up towards a squeaky-clean self and system. Wanting to
shake off their past and start afresh. So be it. And that's the positive
rub-off with an action-plan like the Volunteer for a better India. Showing
results even before it has been formally launched; this initiative is for
the long-haul where patience and perseverance seem to be its hallmark.


Another interesting aspect of the VFABI is that it is completely driven by
citizens like you and me. It is a Citizens` Action-Pan. You have the freedom
to create a project, brand-it, muster-up volunteers, well-wishers, partners
and work at it.


Well I just took this VFABI opportunity to set-up a new project. Stress-Free
Sports is a new initiative to reach-out in support of all students and youth
who play sports and games and provide them with the tools and techniques to
energize, strengthen and relax. To support an upcoming Saina, Sachin, Dhoni
or Vishy Anand wherever they may be.


So what is your VFABI dream project? Log on to www.vfabi.org and be there in
New Delhi on February 3rd 2013.

*************************************








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