Life

Simplified
Hacks to help you live a simple & easy life
Life Simplified
Hacks to help you live a simple & easy life

Copyright Sri Sri Publications Trust, 2022

Published by:

Sri Sri Publications Trust

The Art of Living International Centre,
21st km, Kanakapura Road, Udayapura,
Bangalore – 560082.
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TABLE OF
C O N T EN TS
01. Guru, the Supreme Being

02. Signs of a Satguru

03. Guru Purnima, Devotee’s day out

04. Guru higher than God, Story of Lord Karthikeya

05. The fascinating stories of the Masters of Advaita Parampara

06. Why is Guru Purnima celebrated in monsoon months?

07. QnA

08. Dakshinamurthy, the primordial Guru

09. “What?”
 Guru, the Supreme Being

Page - 4
Guru, the Supreme Being

Shri Guru Gita, a part of Skanda Purana, is an ancient scripture with 352 verses in sanskrit that
chronicles a divine conversation between Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati on the importance of a
teacher or Guru in one’s life.

Story Behind Guru Gita Guru, a Principle

According to the Purana, once when everyone
was worshipping Lord Shiva, the Ultimate
Being and the protector of all, Goddess
Parvati saw Lord Shiva bowing down and
praying to somebody. Confused, she asked
him, “When you are the Lord of all, and there is
nothing beyond you, who are you prostrating
to?” And the profound answer of the Lord
reveals the great importance of a Guru. He
said, “ I am bowing down to the Guru Principle.
He is the Absolute”, thereby establishing the
supreme stature of a Guru. Lord Shiva then
revealed a series of verses on the glory of the
Guru to Mother Parvati, which is the Guru Gita.
Who is a Guru?
From our childhood, in our whole journey of
academics we come across many Gurus.
Ideally, in every phase of life, a Guru has to
guide our path. There is a Guru however
who towers above all other Gurus. He is the
Satguru, an enlightened master who guides us
on the spiritual path to lead us on the ultimate
goal of liberation from the fetters of mundane
existence.
The word Guru comes from Gu meaning
darkness and Ru refers to dispeller. Guru is
the one who removes darkness and leads
us towards light. From a simple view point,
anybody who can shed light on a subject
might be considered a Guru. In the spiritual
context, Guru or Satguru is the one who
removes the darkness of ignorance and
reveals the light of our true Self.
“Guru is a tatva, an element, a quality; inside
you. It is not limited to a body or a form.”
-Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar
Guru should not be limited to a form, but is
that omnipresent principle (tattva) which
brings purity and freedom from our limited
existence. Eventually, a Satguru only leads
us to our Inner Guru, our Self. As per the
scriptures, there is no difference between
Shiva, Guru and our Self. Hence, it has been
said, “When a disciple is ready, the Guru
appears. But when the disciple is really ready,
the Guru disappears.” It is to such a profound
state of oneness that the Satguru leads us
to. Guru Gita reveres such a Guru as the
manifestation of the Supreme Being Himself.
“In Sanskrit, a disciple is
called Antevasi-one who dwells
within a Guru and in whom the
Guru resides. The one who has
realised that there is nothing
other than the all-permeating
Guru principle that surrounds
him is called a disciple.”
-Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar
Reciting the Guru Gita makes us overwhelmed
with the glory of the Satguru, inculcating great
love and reverence for the Guru. With devotion
to the Guru, one is led on the path of spiritual
awakening.
-Supriti Tripathy

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 Signs of a Satguru

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Signs of a Satguru
In the presence of a Satguru, the following
happens:
1) Knowledge flourishes.
2) Misery diminishes.
3) Joy wells up for no reason.
4) Lack diminishes. Prosperity increases.
5) All talents come up.
All these qualities manifest in your life,
depending on how close you are to the
Guru. Sit with your eyes closed and feel the
connection between you and
your guru. Once you have come to the
master, get connected with him and see what
happens.
Knowledge flourishes
Firstly, the knowledge gets protected i.e. the
knowledge in you gets retained.
Sorrow diminishes
Secondly, sorrow diminishes. Once you arrive
in the presence of the master, even if you
are carrying the biggest sorrow, it diminishes.
Misery flies away from you.
Joy springs up
Thirdly, joy springs up. Joy wells up in you
for no reason and your mind remains very
happy. Haven’t you all experienced this?
Sometimes, for no reason you feel very
happy. Joy wells up, as you enter the ashram.
You cannot experience this kind of pleasure
anywhere else. You cannot experience this
kind of ecstasy by vision, smell, taste, touch
and hearing. A transcendent joy, which
cannot be experienced anywhere else, can
be experienced only with the master, with a
satguru.
Page - 7
Desires get fulfilled
The fourth sign is prosperity. Whatever you
want, you get. All your desires are fulfilled.
There is absolutely no lack. This happens in the
ashram all the time. If food is prepared for only
4 people, 10 people can eat that food, and
sometimes even 25 people can eat that food.
Such incidents are a common occurrence in
the ashram. You get everything before you
ask. Everything you want and need is provided
for.
All-round blossoming
The fifth sign is all-round blossoming. All
varieties of talents in everyone begin to
manifest. People who have never sung before,
begin to sing. People, who have never spoken,
begin to speak. People sitting with a sad and
a dejected face, begin to look bright and
beautiful. Good tunes and music happens.
People who can draw start drawing very
well. People who cook can cook better. All the
talents which you already possess will flourish.
Your connection matters
Hence count how many good qualities you
have in you. Then certify yourself as to whether
you have really come to a satsang. If you have
really come to a satsang and have developed
a communication, a relationship with your
Guru, then all the qualities in you will blossom.
But, the extent to which they manifest in
you depends on how deep and strong your
connection is with the master. Remember and
understand this well.
-Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar
 Guru Purnima,
Devotee’s day out

Page - 8
Guru Purnima, Devotee’s day out
Gurupoornima is called the day of the Master,
but it is actually the day of the devotee.
It is the day to feel grateful for the great
knowledge you have received from your
Master. Be grateful for the way this knowledge
has transformed you. Gratitude and humility
together blossom a genuine prayer inside you!
There are three types of people who come to
the Master - the student, the disciple and the
devotee.
A student goes to a teacher and learns
something, gets some information and walks
out of the school. It’s like going to a tourist
guide. You go with the tourist guide to see a
place and the guide shows you all the places.
The guide will give you some information and
you say “thank you” and it is finished there. The
student is the one who collects information,
but information is not knowledge, it is not
wisdom.
Then there is the disciple; the disciple follows
the example of the Master. But a disciple
is with the Master for the sake of learning
wisdom, for the sake of improving his life, for
attaining enlightenment. He has a purpose, a
cause; so he is not just collecting information,
but going a little deeper. He is trying to bring
a transformation in his life. He wants to make
sense out of his life. That is a disciple. The
disciple takes some time off and according to
the capacity, he or she grows and one day he
or she may get enlightened.
And then there is the devotee. A devotee is not
there even for wisdom. He is simply rejoicing
in love. He has fallen in deep love with the
Page - 9
Master, with the Infinity, with God. He doesn’t
care as to whether he gets enlightened or not.
He doesn’t care as to whether he acquires a
lot of wisdom or not. But that very moment,
and every moment, he is immersed in divine
love that is enough for him or her. A devotee is
very rare to find. Students are in abundance,
disciples are a few, but the devotees are rare.
It is nothing great to become God or be
God. Everything, whether you want it or not,
is already God, but when a devotion has
flowered somewhere, it is rare. Attraction is
everywhere, love is somewhere, but devotion
is rare. Devotion is very beautiful.
A student comes to a Master, a Guru with
tears in his eyes and when he leaves, he is still
carrying the tears, but the quality of the tears
is different. It is of gratitude. Still tears flow, but
those are of gratitude, of love. It is so beautiful
to cry in love. One who has cried even once in
love knows the taste of it, of surrender and of
devotion. And when that happens, the entire
creation rejoices in it. The entire creation is
longing for only one thing, the transformed
tears, from salty tears to sweet tears.
Love is something that even the Divine rejoices
in. The infinity longs for you as much as you
long for it. It is waiting to receive you. God is
as anxious as you are to be near. So, when
a devotee flowers on this planet, God is very
happy.That is why Guru Poornima is the day of
the Devotee.
-Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar
 Guru higher than God,
Story of Lord Kartikeya

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Guru higher than God, Story of Lord Kartikeya
When Kartikeya was a young child, His father,
Lord Shiva asked him to go and study and
receive education from Lord Brahma.
Kartikeya went to Lord Brahma and asked
him, “Please tell me the meaning of Om.” Lord
Brahma said, “First learn the alphabets! You
are directly asking for the meaning of Om.”
Kartikeya said, “No, I want to know the highest
knowledge first – Om.”
Lord Brahma knew all about the alphabets,
but he did not know the meaning of Om (the
primordial sound).
Kartikeya said to Lord Brahma, “You do not
know the meaning of Om, how will you teach
me? I will not study under you.” Kartikeya went
back to his father, Lord Shiva.
Lord Brahma told Lord Shiva, “You alone can
handle your son. I can’t handle him. If I say this,
he says that. Whatever I say, he says the exact
opposite of that. I won’t be able to teach him.
So you decide what is best and handle him.”
Hearing this, Lord Shiva asked Kartikeya, “What
happened son? Lord Brahma is the Creator of
the entire universe. You must learn from him.”
To this Kartikeya replied, “Then you tell me,
what is the meaning of Om?”
Hearing this, Lord Shiva smiled and said, “Even
I don’t know.”
Kartikeya then said, “Then I will tell you
because I know the meaning of Om.”
“Then tell me the meaning since you know it”,
said Lord Shiva.
“I can’t tell you like this. You have to give me
the place of the Guru. Only if you put me on
the pedestal of the Guru can I tell you”, said
Kartikeya.
Page - 11
Guru means he has to be on a higher position
or platform. The teacher has to sit on a higher
place and the student has to sit down and
listen to him.
How can Lord Shiva find a seat higher than
Him, for He is the highest and greatest of
Gods? So then Lord Shiva lifted the young
Kartikeya onto His shoulders. And then in the
ear of Lord Shiva, Lord Kartikeya explained the
meaning of the Pranava Mantra(Om).
Kartikeya explained that the entire Creation
is contained in Om. The Trinity – Lord Brahma,
Vishnu and Shiva are contained in Om. Om
means that everything is love – unbroken and
unshakeable love is Om.
This is the essence and also the secret of Om
that Lord Kartikeya narrated to Lord Shiva.
Upon hearing this, Goddess Parvati (Mother
of Lord Kartikeya, and an incarnation of the
Mother Divine) was elated and overcome with
joy.
She said, “You have become a Guru (Swami)
to my Lord (Natha)!” Saying this she
addressed her son as Swaminatha, and ever
since Lord Kartikeya also came to be known as
Swaminatha.
So in this way, Lord Kartikeya assumed the
position of the Guru and explained the
meaning of Om to Lord Shiva by sitting on his
shoulder.
Guru Tattva is placed even higher than Lord
Shiva!
-Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar
 The fascinating stories of
the Masters of Advaita
Parampara

Page - 12
The fascinating stories of the Masters of
Advaita Parampara
Shiva, Vishnu, Brahma
In the beginning, there was only Shiva,
the eternal consciousness, the first
Guru. Narayana floated in this ocean of
consciousness with the support of Adishesha,
the symbol of awareness. When Narayana
experienced oneness with the consciousness
around Him, Lord Brahma, the creative instinct
of the Universe was born. Thereafter, Lord
Brahma manifested into many forms. Shiva,
Narayana and Brahma, the subtle energies,
govern the working of creation.
Rishi Vasishta
A Manas Putra (mind born son) or the
individual consciousness was born out of
Brahma consciousness. He was Rishi Vasistha,
the most enlightened of human beings. Rishi
Vasistha guided Shri Ram on how to stay
centered and equanimous while performing
the duties of the world. The dialogue between
Rishi Vasistha and Shri Ram is encapsulated
in Yogavasistha, a treatise on the illusionary
nature of the world.
Shakti, Parashara and Vyasa
The son of Rishi Vasistha is Shakti who was
succeeded by Rishi Parashar who had the
perfect knowledge of time, astronomy,
astrology, medicine, and Vedic rituals. Rishi
Parashar married a fisherwoman and had
a son with her named Krishna Dvaipayana
Vyasa who was to become one of the
greatest scholars in the history of the Advaita
Guru Parampara. Rishi Vyasa traversed
across the Indian subcontinent to meet
Rishis of different regions in order to collate
the Vedas. He knew 1180 branches of Vedas
and authored the Vedanta Sutras (ie. the
summary of the Upanishads), Mahabharata
of which Bhagavad Gita is a part, Yogasutras,
Vyasabhasya and Srimad Bhagavatam.
Suka Deva
Rishi Vyasa was succeeded by his son
Suka Deva whose coming about holds
an interesting story. Once Lord Shiva was
narrating a story to Goddess Parvati who
Page - 13
dozed off in the middle of the narration.
Meanwhile, a parrot was also listening to the
story. Held by the wisdom of the story, he
wanted the Lord to continue his narration. So
he started imitating the affirmatory sounds of
Goddess Parvati. When the Lord finished the
story and noticed that Goddess Parvati had
fallen asleep, he realized that someone else
had been voicing the affirmative sounds to
the story.
He saw who it was - the parrot. Furious, he
ran after him. The parrot hid inside the kutir
of Vyas and his wife. Rishi Vyasa begged
Lord Shiva for forgiveness on the behalf of
the parrot and gave refuge to it. The parrot’s
soul transferred into the womb of the wife
of Rishi Vyasa. The soul who later was called
Suka Deva refused to be born for the fear
of being trapped in this illusion of the world
and preferred to grasp knowledge from his
father’s discourses while he was in the womb.
After 16 years, he was born Suka Deva who
later narrated the devotional scripture Srimad
Bhagavatam to King Parikshit, the grandson
of Arjuna. This sacred text, regarded as the
ultimate remedy for Kaliyuga, is a collection
of the stories of Lord Vishnu and his avatars,
especially Lord Krishna.
Adi Shankara
Likewise, many Gurus are part of the Advaita
Guru Parampara. Despite the fascinating
depth of the Advaita philosophy, it started
to lose its value and popularity among the
masses in the later ages when rituals gained
more importance over the core philosophy.
In the 7th century CE, Adi Shankaracharya
travelled across the length and breadth of the
country and revived the Advaita philosophy.
He composed the Nirvana Shatakam. The
disciples of Adi Shankaracharya and the later
Gurus have helped maintain the knowledge
of the Advaita philosophy. Thanks to them, we
still have a chance to experience that we are
all one.
-Vanditaa Kothari
 Why is Guru Purnima
celebrated in July, during
Monsoon ?

Page - 14
Why is Guru Purnima celebrated in July, during
Monsoon ?
Guru Poornima is celebrated every year around July-August. It is the Poornima, full moon day, on
which we pay our obeisance to our Guru and through him to our Guru Parampara. Gurus have
nurtured our civilization from time immemorial. They gave solace to the troubled minds and
continuity to the ethos of this land.

Why now? What is this Chaturmasya vrata?

The answer to this is embedded in the
question itself. India is a monsoon fed
land and in the four months from June to
September, the rain spreads all over the land.
This heavy rain during these four months
makes it difficult for people to travel from one
place to another. This aspect of the annual
rains, perforce makes one stay put in one
place. This feature of Nature was used by the
various Gurus through the ages, through the
land, to observe their Chaturmasya vrata.
Role of a Guru
The word Guru comes from the Sanskrit root
meaning “to attract”, “to draw.” It shares the
root with the word Gurutva, meaning gravity
or the attraction force of any body. A Guru
draws people with his radiant knowledge and
soothing words of wisdom.
A Guru by his Dharma, radiates light and
knowledge, to the people he meets.
Travelling, Guru’s Dharma
A Guru’s Dharma in the Indian civilization is
also to travel regularly from one place to
another, sharing his knowledge regularly with
the common folk of the land. This work of
the Guru entails that he travels continuously.
During the monsoon season, as we have
already discussed, because of the heavy rains
it becomes very difficult for them to travel
from one place to another.
Given this, our Guru Parampara has been
designed such that, for these four months,
the Gurus stay in one place. During this
lengthy stay at one place, they read from the
voluminous literature of the land, meet the
locals and enhance their own knowledge.
It’s an annual, compulsory sit-down and
upgradation of one’s knowledge.
After this annual study period, the Gurus are
rejuvenated to travel once again through
the land, to share their knowledge for the
remaining 8 months. This study period is
known as Chaturmasya period.
4 months to a fortnight
With the passage of time, this 4 month study
period came to be reduced to a 4 Paksha
study period. A Paksha is a 14 day period
between a full moon and a new moon. With
the passage of time, it thus settled down to a
two month period.
India has been very fortunate to have had a
continuous series of prominent, well educated
and noble Gurus.
Dr. D K Hari and Dr. D K Hema Hari,
Founders, Bharath Gyan

Page - 15
 QnA

Page - 16
QnA
Q: What is the best way to be with the Guru
and a Guru-Shishya (student) relationship?
Sri Sri: Just be natural, be the way you are.
There is no need to put on any special
attitude, or be artificial. Just ask yourself -
what is your relationship with your Self? That is
your relationship with your Guru. That is why it
is said that the Guru is your Self.
Q: If there is God in all of us, why do we need
a Guru?
Sri Sri: Why are you asking this question?
Because there are certain questions for which
you do not have an answer. So you come to
someone who you think knows. That is your
Guru. There could be two reasons why you
may not need a Guru - either you are already
enlightened and have all the answers to the
questions, or you are inert like a stone and no
question comes to your mind! However, when
there is intelligence, the questions come.
They come from discrimination (viveka).
You need a mirror to see your own face. You
cannot see your face in the pillar or on the
wall. The Guru is that mirror who shows you
your true Self.
Page - 17
Q: I have been on the spiritual path for quite
some time, but still find that I am not able to
be dispassionate. What should I do to bring
about dispassion in me?
Sri Sri: Donʼt get caught up in words. These are
all just words. If you are centred, dispassion
will come to you automatically. Do your seva,
satsang and sadhana and you will see that
everything just falls into place for you.
Q: What should I do when I feel totally
helpless?
Sri Sri: When you feel totally helpless, just pray.
Just know that there is an unseen force which
is always guiding you in the right direction.
Just pray.
Q: You have given us everything - love, joy,
peace. What can we give you?
Sri Sri: Smile and seva. Put a smile on as many
faces as you can. That would be your greatest
gift to me.
 Dakshinamurthy,
the primordial Guru

Page - 18
Dakshinamurthy, the primordial Guru

Indian tradition accords a special reverence Om Namah pranavarthaya shudda

to the Guru. Lord Shiva is depicted as the gyanaikamurtaye | Nirmalaya prashantaya
ultimate guru, the destroyer of ignorance, dakshinamurtaye namah ||
in His form as Medha Dakshinamurthy. Meaning : Salutations to Lord Dakshinamurthy
Dakshinamurthyʼs uniqueness as a Guru who creates life, leads us forward, and who is
lies in the fact that He teaches through faultless and represents wisdom/knowledge
meditative silence, through His omnipresent and calmness of mind.
consciousness present in everyone.
Nidhaye sarvavidyanam bhishaje bhavaroginam |
Lord Dakshinamurthy represents our intuition, Gurave sarvalokanam dakshinamurtaye namah||
the inner guru, who is ever ready to enlighten
Meaning: Salutations to Lord Dakshinamurthy
us with knowledge. The Sanskrit word
who is the treasure of all knowledge, healer of
“Dakshinamurthyʼ literally means the figure
all calamities, teacher of all the worlds.
facing the south. However, this name has a
more subtle inner meaning. Dakshinamurthy Chaitanyam shashvatam shantham
is dakshina+amurthy. “Amurthyʼ means a Vyomaateetam niranjanam | Nada bindu kalaa
“formless entityʼ. The word “dakshinaʼ not only teetam Tasmai Shree dakshinamurtaye namah ||
means “southʼ but also means “rightʼ. The
Meaning: Salutations to Lord Dakshinamurthy
right side of the brain is said to be the seat
who is the embodiment of all life forces and
of intelligence. Medha means intelligence.
eternal peace, and is an ocean of mystic
Thus, Medha Dakshinamurthy is the formless
awareness and breathless meditation.
entity of the right brain, the intuition or inner
Meditating contemplatively upon these
voice that teaches us and gives us knowledge
hymns sharpen our intuition, the ability to
through silence.
receive knowledge from our inner guru, and
The following hymn is an invocation of Lord will ultimately result in the realization of the
Dakshinamurthy, our intuition, the inner universal self.
guru.
Gurur-Brahma Gurur-Vishnuh GururDevo - Arun Madhavan, Faculty, The Art of Living
Maheswarah | Gurur - Saakshat Param Brahma
Tasmai Sri Gurave namah ||
Meaning : The Guru is Brahma (the creator),
Vishnu (the sustainer) and Shiva (the
destroyer). The Guru is verily Brahman Himself.
Salutation to such a Guru.

Page - 19
 “What?”

Page - 20
“What?”
Extracts from Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar’s talks on Kena Upanishad
dharmāste mayi santu te mayi santu
Let all the virtues present in me as a seed get established in me.
Mayi santu te mayi santu is repeated twice:
“It is. Let it be; let it be.” Let the virtues, the
dharma, be ingrained in every cell of my
being. Let the dharma be ingrained deep
within me and get established in me. This is
the prayer.
When you read this prayer, you may feel,
“Oh, is it a boot camp? It says to forget about
your intellect. Just surrender everything and
be goody goody. And lose your intellect and
individuality.” So, what is being taught? Does it
say, “Shut your intellect and just be emotional
and accept everything?” No! Upanishads
always encourage quest and enquiry.
“Kena” means question. “What? Who? Where?
When? Why?” are the steps. They are the
diving board to the realm of the unknown.
Reeling in the known, you are limited and
opening yourself to the unknown is the path to
the unlimited. Kena Upanishad means, “What
Upanishad.”
Kenesitapatati prēsitamamanah kena
prānah prathamah praiti yuktah; Kenesitāma
vācamimāma vadanti caksuh śrotrama ka u
dēvō yunakti.
What motivates our minds to go towards the
senses and our senses to move towards the
sense objects? And what makes this breath
come in and go out? What is the motivating
factor behind this involuntary function that
is happening in us? Your breath is moving
in and out, day and night. What is propelling
it to do so? Why would your mind go to see
nice things or hear melodious music or make
Page - 21
your nostrils look for fragrance? Why are you
motivated to move in these directions?
Why do things appear beautiful or good to
you sometimes, and sometimes not? What
makes you move towards these things? What
makes your prāna (life force) move? What
makes your heartbeat? What is the power
behind all these involuntary functions that
are happening within you? What makes you
speak? And what makes people speak? It’s
interesting.
So, it all begins with “What?” I want you to just
say “What?” The question “Why me?” comes to
us when we are in misery, but “What?” comes
to us when we are inquisitive. “What is this?
What? Who? When? How?” These propel you
towards knowledge.
What is that divine power behind our eyes,
ears, prāna and the mind? What is that? Do
not just listen to somebody if they say, “This
is it!” “What?” has to rise from within you. You
have to ask, “Who am I?” “What is this prāna?”
You are breathing. Look into “What? How is this
breath moving in and out? How are my eyes
functioning? How is my mind functioning?
What is propelling me to think this way or
that way? What is the driving force behind all
these?” This questioning is very important.
So, when you walk or when you eat, just
recollect, “What?” Who? Where? When?” Drop
all other concepts and keep everything you
have studied on one side. Have a fresh mind
today, as though you don’t know anything.
“What? What?” Got it?
Practicing Simple things can change your life

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