The Oneness University
Enlightenment: Interview with Sri Ananda Giri
Acharya Ananda Giri is one of the most prominent representatives of
the University. In this interview, from his tour in the USA, he is
explaining the Oneness University's view on the status of the world
and the humanity of today, and how it can be changed. Radically.
Do you want to be free from suffering, Why am I here? What is the
meaning of life? Will I find happiness and love in my life, Do what I
really want, Do I have to give up? What is living, meaninglessness in
many of our daily activities, Experience the real psychological and
spiritual freedom?, Enlightenment, Are you suffering, The Oneness
University, Sri Ananda Giri, loneliness, lack of motivation, boredom,
pain and conflict in our human relationships, depression, Where am I
going? Is there any hope for a change
Enlightenment: Interview with Sri Ananda Giri
What is the message and main teachings that you are bringing
today to the spiritual seekers of America?
I have come to bring neither a new teaching nor a new philosophy of
life; we already have received a huge number of teachings from
different Saints, Sages, Mystics, Philosophers and great thinkers
from different schools of thought. The world is full of philosophies,
religions, esoteric teachings (revealed to the world), spiritual
practices, techniques of self development, etc., that set forth
beautiful theories and ideas of how we should live or what do we
have to do, to find true "Happiness" in our lives. The question that I
ask you is that after so much reading and listening to different
teachings, is there any real change in our lives? Or, are we just
changing techniques and philosophies, that keep us in rapture for a
period of time, and after a while we find them impossible to follow and
practice? Giving up finally the possibility to attain a real and deep
change in our lives?
If you are not giving us a new teaching or technique, what
should we expect from Foundation for World Awakening?
We, as a spiritual movement, ask you two questions:
Are you suffering? And,
Do you want to be free from this suffering?
If your answer is affirmative to both questions, we embrace you, and
then our Foundation can help you.
What do you mean by "suffering"?
In many moments of our lives we found ourselves experiencing
feelings of boredom, loneliness, depression, pain and conflict in our
human relationships, lack of motivation, and sometimes
meaninglessness in many of our daily activities.
These feelings make us suffer, because they come generally with
anxiety and uncertainty, and we don't know if we will ever be free
from these emotions and feelings.
Inside of us questions arise like: Why am I here? What is the
meaning of life? Will I find happiness and love in my life or is it just a
dream? Where am I going? Is there any hope for a change or do I
have to give up? What is living? Do I do what I really want, or do I
feel like a slave of the impositions of society? Will I ever experience
the real psychological and spiritual freedom? And so on and so
forth...
What would happen if somebody comes and tells you that he has
none of these questions, because he feels happy and in peace
and that he has found everything he has searched for?
Not everybody is a spiritual seeker in this world. The truth is that only
a selected group of people are in a real search in their lives. We as
human beings are suffering from a severe illness, which is not
necessarily lack of love, hatredness, pride, greed, envy,
covetousness or egoism, but we are suffering with an even greater
illness, which is "lack of awareness" of what is happening inside us.
Most of us walk in the streets without knowing, why we are going to
our jobs, from where comes our urge to success, why should I go to
the shopping malls every weekend, what makes me buy the latest
car model that just appeared in the market, what is it that moves me
everyday to action, why should I keep myself constantly busy, etc.
If everything is fine and if I were really happy, for sure I would not
have the necessity of keeping my mind constantly busy with ideas
and projects for the future. If we contemplate for a moment we will
see that real happiness and joy is only found in the present, but
constantly we keep ourselves busy doing things for acquiring
happiness and peace in the future, we are running after a moving
train, which we can never catch.
The sincere spiritual seeker, first of all, is aware of this issue and
feels the urge to find a way out of this stressing and anguishing
situation. He has begun to see the lack of love and peace in his life,
the lack of harmony in his family and personal relationships, and the
lack of truthfulness because he is always involved in lies and
hypocrisies in order to be accepted in this society. In the beginning,
a spiritual seeker feels disgusted and sick of everything, and this is
what really transforms him into a real and deep seeker of meaning,
into a "Spiritual Seeker".
Then what are the main characteristics we should have to be
called Spiritual Seekers?
As I said before: First of all, the real seeker is recognized because
he does not accept simple answers but wishes to hear something
that really convinces him, and wants to discover by himself what he
has been taught.
Secondly, he is aware of the fact that he is suffering, because he
has tasted it in several ways, he is tired of it and wants to be
liberated from it (feeling of loneliness, feeling of not belonging,
nonsense, lack of true meaning in life, depression, decay, or the
constant conflict created by following values other than the ones
accepted by this society).
And the last aspect that characterizes a spiritual seeker is that he
takes the challenge, no matter what happens to him, to find the way
out of his suffering.
A lot of people are searching for some kind of change in their lives,
and many, who have found answers in different teachings feel that
they are becoming better human beings, and feel secure about the
knowledge and the path they have chosen in their lives. May we say
that these people are transformed and that they are freed from their
suffering?
Some of them may have truly begun the journey of Transformation.
This journey of Discovery and Transformation is a unique journey,
only a few ones have begun and advanced deeply towards
Liberation. When we start to follow a new teaching or spiritual
practice, or start receiving very profound knowledge, inside of us
there begins a change. We must be able to identify where and in
what level this change is occurring; only in this way can we
understand if there is any change at all. At the moment when we
discover a new teaching or philosophy, there starts inside of us a
renovation of thoughts, concepts and creeds. Every change that
occurs in the realm of the ideas, concepts, beliefs, our mental
schemes, is basically a change in the level of our mind.
It does not mean that our inner nature has changed or that our
perceptions of life have undergone a definite transformation. Instead
of it, a new idea, that can be wonderful, starts taking shape and it
forms into a new mental scheme. Maybe we will see a change in our
behaviour; it means we have obtained some reformation in our lives,
which is very different from having a profound and real change in our
inner nature.
When there is a real change in the inner nature of man, only then
can we call this a true Transformation.
I am sure that many people who are reading this article would
like you to go deeper and give us more clarity into what is the
difference between Reformation and Transformation.
What we know today as change and personal development is
basically Reformation.
Modern man has been greatly influenced by the paradigm of
Science, which has come into fruition as an analytical and rational
mind. We are perceiving the world, other people, things and nature
from the standpoint of ideas, concepts, a mixture of concepts-ideas,
or images that have been created in our minds through the past
experiences that were significant in our lives. Therefore, any change
that occurs in us is basically a change that manifests itself in the
level of our concepts, ideas, beliefs and mental schemes.
The teachings we have received from great masters such as Christ,
Buddha, LaoTse, Mohammed, Sri Krishna, Confucius and many
other great Saints, Mystics and Sages, have been transformed into
mere concepts and ideas, and that is the reason that, despite the
clarity manifested by these great beings, it was and it is so hard to
put them into practice and follow them wholeheartedly.
There is always a conflict between the teaching and our inner
nature. The teachings may be wonderful and we see the truth in
them, and we know that if we could apply these great truths in our
lives all the human problems and sufferings would be solved. But is
almost impossible to follow them because our nature is different, and
it is not natural for us to love unconditionally as Christ did, and it is
not natural for us to feel detachment from desires as it was for the
Buddha.
If we go more deeply we see that the inner nature of these great
Masters was different, their Consciousness was different. For them,
what they preached and taught was natural; it was part of their inner
nature and drawn from their own experience.
A real inner change means Transformation, and it is not a change in
the realm of concepts and ideas but in your inner world. Your whole
perception undergoes a deep change; your consciousness has been
altered.
Please, reveal to us in more depth the inner process that occurs
in this journey of Transformation.
In this, the journey of Transformation, changes in the inner nature
begin to occur. At the beginning of this journey very often there is an
internal crisis, because our inner structures of thought start falling,
and our ideas, concepts, creeds and mental schemes change.
Much of what we have created in our minds, images, conclusions,
prejudices, our perceptions of the world, how we see ourselves, our
friends, our family, and life itself, starts breaking down along with the
security that we put on those images.
Slowly we begin to see reality, as it is, without masks, without false
protections, we begin to perceive things as they really are.
In other words, what we start experiencing is not a growth or an
accumulation inside of us, but a loosening of the attachments,
images, concepts, ideas, sensations, to which we have been tied up
and that has given us a false security until today. Remember,
"Transformation is the journey of Liberation"; it means you begin to
feel more light and free because you have given away a lot of
unnecessary weight.
Therefore, if we are not experiencing this process of structures
falling, does it mean we have not begun this journey?
Yes, that's right. That is why I have said that many who say that they
are transformed and think they are spiritual beings are just fooling
themselves, because they have been accumulating and building up,
hence the unlearning process must be even harder.
Remember, this is the journey of humbleness and humility; it is not a
competition to see who is more evolved.
Sri Kalki says in one of his Supreme Truths "Life is a process of
learning and learning is unlearning". It means that if we are not
unlearning (the falling of mental structures) everyday, Maybe we are
not living at all!
As this process of unlearning begins to occur in our lives, when
does this unlearning process end or, we must be completely
void? And if it is so, does it mean that we should lose the notion
and memory of ourselves?
The answer to the first question is yes. We must be completely void
and until this occurs we should go on unlearning what we have
accumulated in our lives. Our purpose of incarnation in this planet is
to begin our Spiritual Awakening, and there is no other reason for
being here. I see that you do not understand the unlearning process,
and I am going to explain it further. If we go deeper into the world of
memories, feelings and experiences of the past, we will see that the
remembrance of some past experiences carry with it a strong
emotional charge and others do not.
This emotional charge affects us now in the present. Through our life
we have had positive and negative experiences that made a strong
impact in our memory, like the first years of our life, childhood, years
at school, University period, etc. These past experiences determine
our present conduct and behaviour, and how we perceive the
circumstances of our daily life. To be able to experience the present
as it is, without an emotional charge from our past, and to feel really
free in our daily decisions, we must be liberated from our past
experiences that carry a strong emotional charge.
Therefore, the unlearning must occur at this level, this does not
mean you would forget who are your parents and your friends, and
that you are going to lose your memories; but you are not going to
be attached to them. Attachment to these images that are charged
with strong emotional feelings is what keeps you enslaved, and
keeps you away from freedom and from being spontaneous in the
present.
Through this unlearning you are liberated from your past traumas
and bad experiences such as fear, anguish, creeds accepted blindly
by you and that you have never questioned, and ideas of ourselves
that limits us just to certain activities, which makes us feel we are not
able to realize our real self, and does not let us apply the whole
creative potential that we have inside of us.
If I am aware of the necessity to begin the journey of
Transformation, what is the next step I should take?
After being aware of the necessity and the desire to change, you
should see that every intent and effort to change your inner nature
might just produce reformation and not bring the true Transformation
into your life. If we go deeper into the nature of our mind, first we will
see that our mind is constantly planning and programming events,
keeping under control and order the situations and events that are
going to occur in the day, in the week, in the month, in the year or
even in the rest of our life.
If a change must occur in our inner world we must realize that every
change in our feelings, perceptions and emotions have the
characteristic of being natural and spontaneous in nature. Every
experience is spontaneous; it is not planned or organized. I do not
plan to get mad at my wife, husband or friend, neither do I plan to
feel glad or happy today. I do not program to feel depressed on
Monday, Tuesday and Thursday, and be happy the rest of the week.
Therefore, the nature of the experience and of the inner world
(feelings, emotions, sensations and perceptions) is spontaneous and
natural.
After seeing the necessity of a change and Transformation, I should
also realize that the key to success is not in my hands and in my own
efforts, because something spontaneous must occur, an
extraordinary experience must occur, a transcendental experience, a
divine and mystical experience must be given to me to get the state
of Transformation and Liberation.
What is a mystical and transcendental experience?
As we said in the beginning, we are suffering and searching for a
meaning in life because we have not had this mystical experience.
Our life is boring and we are always having the feeling that
something is missing for us to be complete. Constantly we feel
emptiness in our hearts and a feeling of alienation and loneliness.
We may be with a group of friends or at work and feel that we do not
belong to this place or to this group of people. In other moments I
may be in a family party and still feel I don't belong here either, even
though we are together there is something that divides us and
makes me feel separated from others.
I may be in a wonderful and beautiful place; in a mountain with
vegetation around me and birds, wild animals and a pure river with
crystal water flowing through it; but while I am there observing the
landscape and the whole place I feel fine just for a moment, after a
while I feel I am just passing by this place, I am a visitor, a pilgrim that
always must go on in his way, again getting in touch with this sense
of not belonging.
There is something that does not let me engage with others and with
the rest of the world. I may share certain things with others but there
are so many things inside of me that I have never shared and I do
not know if I ever will. This feeling of being individuals and of being
separated from others is born from the lack of this transcendental
and mystical experience. This makes us lose the experience of union
and communion with others. So experiencing this union and
communion with others is a transcendental and mystical experience.
There are so many kinds of mystical and transcendental
experiences, in fact they are unlimited and the main characteristic is
that they are unique and very different from one person to another.
What can I do to have these mystical and transcendental
experiences?
Many people are craving for these mystical experiences. The
question that we should ask ourselves is, from where comes the
desire to have an experience of this kind?
Everybody has an access to such mystical experiences that free us
from suffering and give us much joy and happiness in our life. We will
receive these experiences immediately if the desire is born from the
real need for a change in our lives, but if it is a simple wish born from
curiosity, it could take a little bit longer.
If I have the necessity and I think I am ready for this experience
what should I do next?
Then you are ready to attend one of our "ANUGRAHA YAGNAS"
(retreats for awakening the Divine Love within your heart). These are
retreats of one day, where you can experience the awakening of
your spiritual heart, the awakening of your intuition. Other worlds are
revealed to you, which makes you understand the meaning of being
in this world, you will acquire meaning in your present life, and much
more will be revealed to you in this retreat.
Who is the source that lets us experience all this in the retreats?
The Source that lets you experience this and begin your journey of
Transformation is Sri Kalki. He helps you to start this journey of
discovery by giving you these mystical and transcendental
experiences, guiding and bringing you to the necessary state, so
that you will be more perceptive to receive them.
After this discovery and realization has happened to you, you are in
a new state in which you become the creator of your life along with
your Antaryamin (Inner Dweller), and the source of your future
mystical experiences is now in your heart.
Do you conduct the retreats alone or does somebody else help
you in this wonderful work?
I conduct more advanced retreats. After participating in ANUGRAHA
YAGNA (one day retreats, where you experience the awakening of
your heart and the root cause of your suffering is revealed to you),
you may participate in more advanced and deeper retreats for
entering in a permanent state of Transformation, which is a state
where we are liberated from all human suffering.
There are three monks of the order of Kalki, and also Bhaktas
(devotees) helping me with the work in America and Latin America.
They conduct retreats, seminars, conferences, talks, prayer and
meditation meetings, and have personal interviews with those who
have begun their personal journey of Transformation. Their mission
is to guide the Spiritual Seekers in their path to self-realization.
What are the retreats that follow the ANUGRAHA YAGNA and
what can we expect of them?
After participating in the ANUGRAHA YAGNA you may go to retreats
in which we go deeper in the truths revealed by Sri Kalki to the world.
These retreats have duration of one day, in them you will receive
GNYANA, it means Supreme Knowledge that has the power to
liberate you and guide you to even deeper experiences. Then there
are retreats for meditation "DHYANA", that let you get in touch with
inner worlds and internal visions of your heart and the Universe.
After you have participated in these retreats you may participate in
the "RETREAT FOR LIBERATION", which is a 21-day retreat that is
given only in India, in Satyaloka, the place where Sri Kalki resides.
To participate in this retreat in which you will receive another state of
consciousness, a superior state of being compared with the one you
live today, you must be authorized by the monk or the Bhakta who
has been observing your personal work and spiritual development.
*) In the end of the article there is a presentation of the courses and
retreats that are currently offered in West.
Where and when was this movement born?
Foundation for World Awakening was born in 1991, in Madras, India.
How many followers do you have around the world?
Over 15 million. (note: the number is now 2007, well over 150 million)
Where are the followers of this Foundation?
Ceylon, United Kingdom, Sweden, Ukraine, Argentine, Chile,
Uruguay, Russia, India, Brazil, United States, Canada, Japan,
Mexico, Ecuador, Singapore, China, Australia and other countries
from the former Soviet Union.
Who are the other disciples of Sri Kalki?
Paramacharya Sri Sankara Bhagavad Pada
Acharya Sri Sama Darsini.
Acharya Sri Vimala Kirti.
Acharya Sri Akshaya Mati.
Acharya Sri Kaushika.
Acharya Sri Maitreyi.
I know that three of the direct disciples of Sri Kalki are women,
am I right?
Yes, that is correct.
It is rare to see women with spiritual authority guiding large
groups of people, especially in the religious tradition. Does Sri
Kalki say something about it?
It is completely a new phenomenon in India, as in other parts of the
world, that a great number of our followers are women. Women have
a spiritual potential that is easier to awaken, because they are more
connected with their hearts. Man has mainly developed his intellect,
which has made him more cold and rational.
Now, in this world there is greater number of women than men. What
would happen if they rebel against the rules and laws made by men
in this society, and instead of trying to imitate men, they felt proud of
being women and teach men about Love?
Besides the seven disciples, are there more persons who spread
the teachings of Sri Kalki?
Yes, as I mentioned before there is an order of monks and bhaktas
(devotees) who conduct retreats, talks, conferences and seminars.
All of them come from India?
No, they come from all parts of the world.
How many monks, nuns and bhaktas are spreading Kaki's
message?
There are two hundred monks and nuns, and the number of bhaktas
is presently two hundred and growing rapidly.
What are the statistics concerning the growth of the movement?
It is growing in such an astonishing manner that we can no longer
have an accurate statistics. From what we know, it is the fastest
growing movement in the world.
What do you think is the reason for such an incredible growth?
Today we are experiencing a unique phenomenon on earth. And
each man and woman that walks on this planet must discover it. The
coming of Sri Kalki is very important and is a milestone in the
evolution of man and of our planet. Our beloved Sri Kalki is the
source of the innumerable insights, realizations and the source of
the highest mystical experiences that are awakening the mystic within
the hearts of the seekers.
What are the experiences that people are having in the retreats?
In the retreats, a door is opened to the mystical dimensions, and
many receive the experiences after the retreats and seminars. You
may come and read some of these experiences in another page of
this site.
You talk about the beginning of a new Age, and that we are at
the dawn of this Age, is this the so-called Age of Aquarius by
the astrologers?
It is the dawn of a new Age, The Golden Age; the Age of Aquarius is
a small age inside the Golden Age. All the changes that are
beginning to occur in our planet are representative of the dawn of
this new Age, changes in the level of perceptions in man;
perceptions of himself, of the Universe and the Creator; changes
that make us enter into different stages of growth and
comprehension of reality. From the standpoint of astrology we can
see a new planetary and zodiacal cycle for this planet Earth. Behind
these observations there are profound meanings that will become
clearer as we experience the trends that will affect our lives
completely. So this is a phenomenon that affects not only the planet
but affects YOU. You will feel it in every cell of your body.
What are the changes that we will experience?
Many changes are occurring right now in our planet, starting with the
physical changes manifesting in the ecological environment that
surrounds us. Climatic changes, changes in ocean currents, and
strong changes in the atmosphere that affect the Earth and all the
living species in it.
As these changes are manifesting and many more are to come,
something begins to happen to us at a psychological level, the
creeds we have, the social, economical, political and cultural systems
begins to shake and collapse. You just have to open your eyes to
see that we are coming near a cliff, we are in crisis and in a society
that sooner than later is going to break down. Society is a blend of
ideas and beliefs, perceptions kept alive for some time, and today it
is in crisis. Our social, economical and political system is based upon
ideas and beliefs; there is absolutely nothing real in which we have
put our hopes and securities. Looking back in history we see that
each ideology in some moment has fallen down because a new one
takes form, the new is more real and closer to what man perceives
as truth at that given moment.
Then, what is this new idea or ideology that man is going to
develop as a new perception?
This time it is a completely new and distinct change. If we see and
analyze the current situation of young men throughout the world we
can appreciate with more clarity the phenomenon that is occurring
today. The teenage period is characterized by an idealistic feeling,
there is a profound search for truth and there is born a deep longing
to keep their ideal alive. Seeing the actual state of teenagers we find
that they are living in confusion, where all the ideas have lost power,
and there is a general sense of boredom, meaninglessness and a
total loss of identity with society.
This phenomenon that we see very clearly in this example is what
brings us to an even deeper change, because a new idea does not
attract us anymore. We had very bad experiences with ideologies
that lead us to move to a non-believing state. If you go inside your
heart you will discover that you do not want another idea that will
control your life for a brief time, after which you will have to change it
again. We are frustrated with it and we want something more
permanent and real.
Therefore this is the moment where each one of us must move from
ideas and beliefs to a personal discovery of the real truth.
What is it that we have to discover?
Basically there are three discoveries that must happen to you. In the
first place, you must begin to discover yourself and know who you
are. Secondly, start discovering the secrets and the great mysteries
behind creation that are revealed to you as you begin to discover
yourself. And the last and most important one is to begin the
greatest and more wonderful journey that man has ever undertaken,
which is to meet God personally.
What do you think about the future of the planet and man?
There is a truth of Sri Kalki that says: "Spiritual Regeneration is the
cause of physical and psychological degeneration". It means that
every change and difficulty we are experiencing today has its roots in
the spiritual plane, therefore man is entering into a new state of
consciousness, where it will no more be difficult for him to love and
have peace in his life, because this will be his natural state.
Remember, the change begins with each individual, it is your
consciousness and your perceptions that will change and produce
global Transformation.
What do I have to do if I want to begin my Transformation today?
You have to communicate with us so that you can be guided in your
journey of discovery.
What will happen to our society after many people have begun
their journey of Transformation?
Imagine for a moment a society where each one of us will take care
of everyone else. We will be a society where the sick, the poor, the
handicapped will receive help and love from the rest. The most
important thing in our lives will be to take care of each other. At last
we will be a universal family where there will be no divisions between
countries, religious groups, social and economical classes, because
we would not be wearing our masks that are born from fear, we will
know each other, not from lies, but we will relate with others from true
love.
Where the welfare of the rest will be more important than personal
welfare there man will meet with what has been his quest and dream,
which is to feel himself as a part of a whole, and to be able to
experience a real communion with his existence, the Universe and
the Whole.