QUESTION & ANSWER WITH GURUDEV

QUESTION & ANSWER WITH GURUDEV

POSTED ON: THURSDAY, MAY 12, 2022

Q: Can we do something about depression?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar:

Sure, we can do something about it. Do you know, depression is the biggest challenge for The World Health Organization (WHO) and possibly the world, in the next 5 years.

Nearly 40% of the school teachers in Europe are depressed, and if teachers are depressed what are they passing on to the kids? It is scary, right; they can only pass on what they have! When we were children, our teachers were so enthusiastic; they pumped enthusiasm in to the kids. They gave us ideas, ideals, more values, and they showed us how to excel in our field. Today when you see teachers who are supposed to be the guiding light of society being depressed, it is very depressing. We cannot feed half the population with prosaic. After a while even that stops working. Here is where you have to teach them life skills, the skill to handle their mind and their negative emotions. And the secret is right under their nose! Using their own breath, they can calm the mind and change how they feel.

You do not have to be a victim of your feelings; you can be the master of your feelings. It is just a matter of education. Yoga is one way; of course, many think yoga is just doing a few exercises, standing on the shoulders or standing on the head, it is not so! Yoga is the rhythm of the breath, and the sensation in the body, and how you feel about yourself. All this comes under the purview of yoga, meditation, life skills and living well programs, and this can help people.

A few centuries ago, not everyone used toothpaste. Dental hygiene was not a common thing. Today, in every corner of the world, people brush their teeth first thing in the morning and the last thing in the night. Similarly, I would say mental hygiene is essential. Learning how to be in the present, keeping your mind fresh and free of all the impressions of the past, anger, jealousy, greed, and seeing life from a broader perspective.

Turn back and see, all the events - pleasant and unpleasant are all gone; there are only traces of memories left in our brain, that’s all. If youth to have an awakened mind or the wakefulness in the mind, it will make a lot of difference.

Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar