Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: The Way of Grace

The first time I did Sudarshan Kriya I felt such a depth of silence and bliss that I had never, ever experienced before. My heart exploded with so much love that I didn’t even know was in me or anyone else. I thought I had loved my wife in the deepest way possible, but that love didn’t even scratch the surface of the love I now experience for her and everyone else. A new and different type of happiness keeps growing in my life. The dependence on objects, persons or events for my happiness is fading away very rapidly. It is being replaced by just pure love, joy and happiness. I can never repay Guruji for what he has done for me. I can only express my deepest gratitude that comes up when I see him or think of him. — Wally Zeman

I was blown away. Such intense energy and expansion. So much power. A feeling that I can do anything. So much love!

I feel light and happy and full of courage to move my life into a better direction. I’m freer to be myself.

The course was a lot of fun. I feel more centered and present in my activities. It is easier to accept myself and others as we are. It’s just great!

I felt so many burdens lift from me. It’s like a new lease on life…more energy and vitality…and it continues to grow.

I feel a calm joy and I feel good about myself.

After the Art of Living course I feel a sense of inner harmony. I’m settled in my Being.

The course brought me more joy and satisfaction. It was a “de-aging” experience.

I feel closer to the source — clearer, stronger, healthier and happier. I believe those close to me benefit too. After the first Kriya, every cell in my body became as if brand new and I felt bathed in Divine radiance. — Steve Sperber

It’s a feeling like “top of the world” — you can’t express it. In normal life, running around, you cannot reach that. With guidance, you can.

I feel like I’ve dumped a whole lot of negative emotions. Less stress in the body and mind.

I’ve seen people before the course who are totally depressed, left uncured by months of drugs, who return home on Sunday evening with a smile on their faces and no more pills in their pockets. — Philippe Gaudrat

I’ve found myself living completely without the sense of dread I used to have — like worrying about the future or being jealous. My emotional states do not linger nearly as long. There is an evenness now and relationships are much healthier. Although my family wonders what I’ve gotten into, they’ve noticed a change. I feel I belong in the world. I have reached a depth of self that I thought would take a lifetime.

The course provided me with techniques that increased my energy level, making it easier to deal with tight schedules of student life. On a personal level it brought me an ability to connect with people with greater ease and joy. — Rene LaReau

My 15 year old son took his first Art of Living course four weeks ago. He looked so happy, relaxed and blissful when I picked him up Saturday afternoon after his first Sudarshan Kriya — it was wonderful to see. He thinks Kriya is “pretty neat.”

My first course teaching the Art of Living brought a special moment. After newly learning and practicing Sudarshan Kriya, the group rested. Afterwards I invited a middle-aged gentleman to give his experience. “Well,” he said, “while I was lying down after the Kriya, it felt like someone was holding my hands.” The group looked at him in wonder. With an almost tearful expression and a touch of shyness, he clarified his statement. “I felt like I was holding hands with God.” — David Lucas Burge

On the Art of Living weekend course I learned how to reach my true being.

My only disappointment is that I had not known of such a magnificent spiritual program earlier on in my life.
— Harikrishnan Keshwar

I’ve been using the techniques I learned for three months now and I feel joy welling up in my life. I’m amazed at how this course has helped me find my own happiness.

When Sri Sri Ravi Shankar’s Sudarshan Kriya technique was first proposed to me, I thought it was too simple. Yet with my first experience the effects were immediate. I connected with the forgotten Being within me and had a tearful reunion. I thought my original thought again, “How simple.” The changes in me were apparent to those around me. I cannot count the tons of garbage that Kriya has helped to unload with every breath, nor could I imagine the serenity that I now know a year ago. — Clarence Magwood

I used to be very quick tempered and impatient. But after two years of Sudarshan Kriya, I found myself a different person. I am no more impatient and I don’t get angry easily. My friends say I look better and my eyes are brighter. Now, every day is a fun day to live. — Karen Lee, Singapore

I was at the 50th wedding anniversary of friends and felt that there was so much love there. It was almost overwhelming. But when I asked others if they felt it, their response didn’t seem to match mine. I realized then that the love I was feeling was coming from within me. — Mike Weitz

During a process in which Punditji was gently guiding us, a tremendous feeling of love began to pour through me. I felt so big, as if everyone was part of me. I “got it” on such a deep level: we are not the body — we are love. The intensity of that experience lasted only a few hours, but that love has become infused into my life. Now, seven years later, as I walk down the street I feel I’m the happiest person there. It’s an indescribable feeling of deep, unshakable peace. — Torre Forrest

My intuition is much stronger. People will phone me when I am thinking about them or say things that just passed through my mind a few moments before. People are there and events happen with perfect accord. More than this has been the element of bliss in my life.

The Art of Living course has opened my eyes to many new dimensions of life which are so simple, yet not apparent because of our blindly mechanical style of living. All of Gurudev’s sayings, processes and demonstrations has had a tremendous impact on me. They overwhelmed me. Gurudev’s visit left us spiritually charged. He is the sun in our lives to lead us through the struggles of life towards self-realization. [Participant from Singapore]

The Art of Living was introduced to the Chinese public starting from Taiwan in late February, 1993. People are amazed by what the program has done for them. They feel energetic and healthy. Smiles have blossomed on their faces. Life has become interesting and meaningful.

Experiences which were only described in books now have become part of their daily lives. A business executive went to the teacher with tears in her eyes, saying that she had never experienced such deep relaxation. A professor commented that it was amazing that such deep knowledge could be taught in such a simple and easily accepted way. On courses in the presence of Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, people have begun to realize divine love and grace. Many burst into tears.

People here keep Punditji deep in the shrines of their hearts. — Vita Liao, Republic of China

For me, love is life. Without love, I don’t see any reason for living. It had always been my hope that one day I could give and receive love unconditionally. I found that with the Art of Living Course. [Participant from Norway]

My pregnancy had complications which remained after birth. My son was also a very demanding child. I was worn down and tired. I had a hard time cleaning the house and wasn’t very happy. I wanted something more. My husband took the Art of Living Course. I was very interested and took it the next available time, six months later. My course, for me, was simple and nice. I didn’t seem to have any flashy experiences like some of the others. I wondered if anything had happened.
About one month later, I found to my surprise that I was very happy and keeping the house clean with energy to spare. My heart is more open and I am more at peace each and every day. — Angela Warner

Our family life is more peaceful and enjoyable now. Looking back over the last three years, I am amazed at how our lives have been guided and shaped into an orderly, peaceful, and loving family. — P. Sripathy, Singapore

It is amazing that something so simple has such a profound effect on all aspects of my life. I now have so much more love to offer my expanding circle of family and friends. — Alice Holliday

The “course” is not just a weekend or accumulation of experiences. It’s a course for a lifetime.

The Art of Living program has been the most effective step I’ve taken towards becoming emotionally centered. I feel empowered as a full woman, strong and capable. My colleagues have noticed that I am more calm and focused in the high-strung work environment of counselling. — Dorothy Burge

I have seen the Healing Breath Workshop provide extraordinary help to people. One such person is Pat, who had gone through a year of deep sadness and depression, bordering on a nervous breakdown.
Pat had been to doctors, therapists, counselling and a psychiatrist, but her depression continued. She was highly stressed and was diagnosed with acute anxiety. Her health was at a low ebb both mentally and physically. In her own words, she was “a wreck.”

Pat took the Healing Breath Work-shop in September 1995. During the course she was able to unwind and relax for the first time in many months. After each day, we would have a cup of tea and chat for about half an hour. At the end of the workshop she was much, much better. A great weight had been lifted. I told her to keep in touch and to call if she had any problems.
Just over a week passed. The phone rang. It was Pat. Her depression had returned with a vengeance. She was crying and broken-hearted. She had received some bad news. On top of all else, she “couldn’t take any more.” She wanted to end it all.
I said, “OK, but first come and have a cup of tea, then we’ll see.”

She came to our center looking so sad. Tears rolled down her cheeks. I gave her a hug and said, “Come on,
sit down. Let’s have a cuppa.”
She clutched her stomach as she sat, obviously in distress. She explained that she had been in excruciating pain. Her doctor said it was an inflamed bowel. On top of her latest personal crisis, she was on the verge of suicide.

We sat drinking our tea while she unloaded her latest problems. Then I asked her to lie down on the couch and relax, to close her eyes and let go of everything. I led her gently into a deep meditation for the next thirty minutes. I watched as the strain left her face.

Suddenly, she sat up and cried, “The pain has gone. I can’t feel a thing. It’s wonderful!”

“I’m not surprised at all,” I said. “These things happen many times where Guruji is involved.”

The great cloud that she came with had been lifted. She was cured of pain and discomfort. Her mental anguish had vanished. I taught her a meditation technique for her personal daily practice.
Pat has since taken up voluntary work at a local school. Her dark days of suffering are truly over. She has found an inner strength. She looks and feels like a new person. — Joe Hardy, England

What happens during Sudarshan Kriya:

Toxins which accumulate in the cells cause sluggishness and promote disease.

The Sudarshan Kriya technique oxygenates the cells and rapidly flushes out toxins.

Physically the cells are revitalized. Emotionally one feels a sense of balance and contentment.

Sudarshan Kriya is not hyperventilation: Although the physiology of Sudarshan Kriya remains to be studied and its biochemistry yet to be explained, the process is unlike hyperventilation and seems much more complex in its nature. A person hyperventilating will often experience lightheadedness, blurred vision, muscle spasms of hands and feet, a general feeling of being unwell, fainting and loss of consciousness. In contrast, course participants learning Sudarshan Kriya report a state of deep relaxation while feeling rejuvenated and re-energized. Clearly the experiences of persons practicing Sudarshan Kriya are exactly the opposite of what a hyperventilating exercise would be expected to produce. — Bharti Verma, M.D.