In this conversation with Manisha Koirala, the actress asks Sadhguru how to keep calm amidst the chaos of today’s world. Sadhguru reminds us that life is more certain than ever before, but we have become less competent. Clamor in the material world can signal success, but calm is of our inner nature.

Full Transcript:

Manisha Koirala: The other question, which I want to ask, Guruji, is pertaining to this calm in clamor…

Sadhguru: Mhmm (Indicating agreement).

Manisha Koirala: …which is about… In today’s world, with so much happening, life throwing constant challenges, whether it's health-related, whether it's relationship-related, whether it's career demands and constant struggle – let's forget the bigger terrorism and all that news – but in our own personal day-to-day life, there’s so much of pressure, there’s so much of challenges that we face. How do we (Sadhguru laughs) keep calm amidst so much of chaos?

Sadhguru: Anyway, l et me put this to context. Life… Even though a lot of organization needs to happen in our country, never before life was as organized as it is today. You’re talking about relationships, problems and you know, uncertainties. I want you to know, if you lived here a 1000 years ago, if your man or your child went out, you never know whether they’ll come back or not, okay? There is always a tiger lurking right there, there is always an elephant (Laughs) wanting to stamp him. And he did not go out… If he went out for two days, you sat here, praying, wanting him to come back because he didn’t Whatsapp you and tell you every step of what he is doing (Both laugh), he just vanished. He just vanished for days or months. You never know whether he’s going to come back or not, every time he stepped out. Not for war, even for business, even for work, if he went out, you don’t know whether he will come back. For the first time, you can keep track of him (Both laugh). So I’m saying (Laughs) life is more certain than ever before. We have just become less competent to handle. If you had to navigate your way through the jungle, it was different. Today, navigating through the Delhi traffic, there is road rage. Yesterday, today, some incidents are there, people are killing each other. People are killing each other just because they’re not able to handle the traffic chaos. I can imagine, if I left you in a rainforest, I can imagine the terror you’ll go through because you won't know a thing about how to navigate. Every moment, you have to be alert and find your way. There is no traffic policeman pointing this way or that way for you. When to stop, when to go, somebody has to tell you now. Then, if you didn’t stop at the right time, you would be dead (Laughs). I’m saying life is more organized than ever before on this planet. Don’t complain. You have more comforts, more conveniences than any generation ever had. Yes or no? Please, all of you.

Participants: Yes.

Sadhguru: Yes or no?

Participants: Yes.

Sadhguru: Aren’t you enjoying more material comfort than your parents and your grandparents, unless your grandfather was a maharaja or something (Laughter)?

Manisha Koirala: Don’t look at me (Referring to the fact that she belongs to the royal family of Nepal) (Laughter).

Sadhguru: We… We… Life is better than ever before but we have lost the ability within ourselves because somewhere, we think by fixing the outside, everything will be okay. No, by fixing the outside, comfort will come, convenience will come, well-being will not come. If you’re seeking well-being, in is the only way out. If you lose the ability to look inward, then clamor will be there on the outside. Clamor is good on the outside. Why I’m saying clamor is good is, suppose you are running an industry – I’m sure many of you’re running some industry or business or whatever – in your industry, you want clamor or you want silence? Hello?

Participants: Clamor.

Sadhguru: You want clamor. They love the clamor, do you understand? Suppose tomorrow morning they walked into the industry, everything is quiet. Oh, that’s terror for them (Both laugh). They don’t want calm in their industry. So we must understand, these are two different dimensions. One is external situation, another is inner situation. Calm is of inner nature. Clamor is of the material world. More clamor, better we’re doing, isn't it? Yes or no?

Participants: Yes.

Sadhguru: More clamor, better we’re doing. Yesterday, somebody is telling me, “Sadhguru, no development is happening. Prime Minister is going on saying things will happen. Nothing is happening. Only thing that’s happening is more pollution.” I said, “More pollution means something is happening” (Laughter). Yes or no? More pollution means more people are driving, more machines are working, something is happening. Only thing is we have to see how to make it conducive for our lives, that’s different. But more pollution means something is happening, isn't it? If nothing is happening, there’ll be no pollution. Yes (Laughs)? If all your industries, businesses, everything come to a standstill, of course pollution will come down. But that’s not the way you want it to come down, isn't it? You want clamor on the outside. And calm is of your nature. But you have never explored what is the nature of “who I am” – in the sense, people are thinking by fixing this, this, this, this (Referring to oneself) will be okay. No, we can put you in a palace, you can still be miserable. People have hung themselves in extreme poverty. People have hung themselves in palaces too, isn't it? So, creating a palace or extreme comfort levels does not mean you will be okay. You will be okay only when you know, understand and handle the mechanics of this life (Referring to oneself) properly. As… You know, all of you running industry and business, you understand, unless you understand the mechanics of what is happening in your business, you can't run it well. It's only by accident. Similarly with this (Referring to oneself), unless you understand and conduct this properly, you will not know what this is – only by accident. When you’re happy or peaceful by accident, then you will lose it on the road (Laughs). Delhi streets are testing (Both laugh).