KNOWLEDGE SHEET BY SRI SRI RAVI SHANKAR

KNOWLEDGE SHEET BY SRI SRI RAVI SHANKAR
Posted on: Sunday, March 22, 2026

Faith and Alertness

Faith and alertness appear to be completely opposite in nature. When you are alert, usually there is no faith and you feel restless and insecure. When there is faith, the mind is secure and rested and you are not alert.

There are three types of faith:

Tamasic faith which is because of dullness. Like when you do not want to take responsibility or action and you say, "Oh it doesn’t matter, anyway God will take care of all these things!" (laughter)

Rajasic faith which is brought on by intense compulsion of desires and ambition. The ambition keeps the faith alive.

Satvic faith is innocent and is born out of fullness of consciousness.

Faith and alertness, though apparently opposite in nature, are actually complementary to each other. In the absence of faith, there can be no growth, and there can be no correct understanding without alertness. Faith can make you complacent. Alertness makes you tense.

If there is no faith, there is fear. And when there is no alertness, one cannot perceive or express properly. A combination of both is essential.

In Gyana (state of wisdom) there is alertness without tension and faith without complacency. The purpose of education should be to remove the element of dullness from faith and the element of fear from alertness. This is a unique and rare combination. If you have faith and alertness at the same time, then you will become a true Gyani (the Wise One)!

II Jai Gurudev II

http://knowledgesheetsbygurudev.blogspot.com/

 

QUESTION & ANSWER WITH GURUDEV

QUESTION & ANSWER WITH GURUDEV
Posted on: Sunday, March 22, 2026

Q: Dearest Gurudev, some young people I know use Marijuana and say that it is their spirituality which helps them connect to different realms. Please speak on the long term effects of Marijuana use.

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:

Marijuana use is the most horrible thing one can do. You know it can give you a temporary effect of an elevated consciousness but it destroys the body. It destroys your nervous system. It is very bad for your physiology.

Though I have never tasted, but people say they got some elevation after having it. But this elevation doesn’t show up on their face. They still look so dull.

If you have experienced bliss like we do in meditation, then you will glow. Look at everybody’s face here, they are glowing. There is joy radiating, there is love oozing out of people’s body when they experience meditation or a higher state of consciousness. But we don’t find this in people using marijuana. Instead you see that they shrink, they look so sad, depressed and sick. It is a crime you are committing against your own body.

You know, it’s the same whether you commit a crime against someone else or your own body. Marijuana is an assault on one’s own body. It is not the right thing. It may momentarily give you some high, but my dear, why do you want to go for that? You do meditation, go for higher energy. In meditation you get higher states of experiences, which makes your body strong, your mind sharp, and your heart compassionate. It makes you very healthy and happy. Why not go into this rather than marijuana? Substance abuse is a crime against one’s self.

Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar

 

WISDOM QUOTE OF SRI SRI RAVI SHANKAR

WISDOM QUOTE OF SRI SRI RAVI SHANKAR
Posted on: Sunday, March 22, 2026

Do everything happily. Walk, talk, sit happily; even if you complain against somebody, do it happily!

Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar

http://quotesfromsrisriravishankar.blogspot.com/

 

KNOWLEDGE SHEET BY SRI SRI RAVI SHANKAR

KNOWLEDGE SHEET BY SRI SRI RAVI SHANKAR
Posted on: Saturday, March 21, 2026

Ganesha

The lord of the diverse universe is called Ganesh. The whole universe is nothing but groups of atoms, groups of quality, of energy. Gana means group and a group cannot exist without a lord. Like the queen bee whose mere existence brings forth the honeycomb, this diverse universe in itself is enough evidence for Ganesha's presence.

This Ganesha, or the lord, was born from the unmanifest transcendental consciousness, the Self, called Shiva. Just as when atoms get bonded, matter comes into existence; when all the fragmented aspects of the human consciousness get bonded, Divine happens effortlessly and that is the birth of Ganesha from Shiva.

II Jai Gurudev II

http://knowledgesheetsbygurudev.blogspot.com/

 

QUESTION & ANSWER WITH GURUDEV

QUESTION & ANSWER WITH GURUDEV
Posted on: Saturday, March 21, 2026

Q: Gurudev, I would like to be amicable with everyone but there are some people who always treat me like their enemy.

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:

Let them behave however they wish. Nothing in this world stays permanently anyway. People’s opinions keep changing all the time, and no emotions stays with the same intensity. Everything changes over a period of time. Let them be as they are.

You have seven billion people on this planet. If someone is holding a grudge against you, just let them be. Don’t rent out your upper chamber (referring to the mind) to anybody. Normally you rent it out to whoever you like the least, and they then start living there.

Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar

 

WISDOM QUOTE OF SRI SRI RAVI SHANKAR

WISDOM QUOTE OF SRI SRI RAVI SHANKAR
Posted on: Saturday, March 21, 2026

The root cause of all diseases and conflicts is that we don't know what we should put in the mouth and what should come out of the mouth!

Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar

http://quotesfromsrisriravishankar.blogspot.com/

 

KNOWLEDGE SHEET BY SRI SRI RAVI SHANKAR

KNOWLEDGE SHEET BY SRI SRI RAVI SHANKAR
Posted on: Friday, March 20, 2026

Six Signs Of A Seeker

Acknowledging that one knows very little
Many people think they know, without knowing or they get stuck in their limited knowledge. So they never learn. So the first thing is to acknowledge that one knows very little.

Willingness to know
Many people acknowledge that they do not know, but they are not ready to learn.

Being non-judgmental and open-minded
Some people would like to learn but their judgmental attitude and close-mindedness does not allow them to learn.

Total commitment and one-pointedness to the path one has chosen
Some people are open-minded but lack commitment and one-pointedness. They keep shopping here and there and never progress.

Always putting truth and service before pleasure
Sometimes even committed and one-pointed people stay away from the path in pursuit of momentary pleasures.

Patience and perseverance
Some people are not swayed by pleasures and are committed and one-pointed, but if they lack patience and perseverance, they become restless and dejected.

II Jai Gurudev II

http://knowledgesheetsbygurudev.blogspot.com/