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SWAMI SHANKARANANDA
S. SHANK: Ordinarily we would think: Why would an avatar, a man of Jesus' stature, a savior—why would he have to be initiated? So there was his wisdom, and his humility was an expression of that.
L.M.: We need humility on the journey. It seems that we ought to have a sense of humor as well. What part does humor have amid life's continual ups and downs, and all the adversity and suffering?
S. SHANK: Humor is an indication of a good humor; it's a sign of a kindly spirit and disposition. Mahatma Gandhi once said something that has stayed with me for a long, long time, ever since I first read it. Gandhiji was interviewed by this reporter who had been following his work in India and South Africa.
L.M.: A Western reporter?
S. SHANK: He was either American or British. And he said: “Mister Gandhi, I have observed that you have such a tremendous sense of humor. How do you account for that, considering that you see so much suffering every day in your life”-millions of people starving, and in misery, and so on? Gandhiji replied: “Sir, if I did not have a sense of humor, I would have committed suicide long ago.” You look at his life, and what he dealt with, and the issues and demands made on his time and energies. Yet, you see him constantly laughing about something, and smiling, and having a cheerful disposition. He cultivated that because he knew he was doing God's work, he knew that the truth works. He knew that the path of ahimsa, or nonviolence, and universal love brings an abundance of joy and well-being. I have not met a swami or guru who did not have a sense of humor, though it varies in degree. I have seen in my own journey that humor has always been a natural asset.
L.M.: It has assisted you on the journey.
S. SHANK: Oh, very much, and even more than humor, what has assisted me is my utter knowing that man is innately good. That life is innately sublime and good, and that life is really beautiful. That people are really, innately good. I don't mean good as compared with bad, that stands—but godly. I have met with so much of it in my life that the few pebbles of discordance I can count on my hand, compared to the countless ripples of joy, and love, and
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