When Bihar Burned: How Sri Sri Ravi Shankar Brought Ranvir Sena & CPI(ML) Rivals To Same Room

In Bihar in the 1990s, darkness arrived well before nightfall. Around 5 PM, individuals in numerous regions of the state would retire indoors, not because of an official command, but out of dread. Police traveling by train from Varanasi reportedly warned passengers to stay inside their hotels after sunset. For average families, going out after dark could endanger their lives.

Bihar, famed as the land of Buddha, Mahavira, and King Janaka, was at the time embroiled in a vicious cycle of caste and political conflict. The war pitted the landowner militia Ranvir Sena against the CPI(ML), which claimed to be fighting on behalf of the lower castes.

The level of brutality was shocking. Over the course of nine years, the fighting is said to have killed 45,000 people. There were 27,000 kidnappings and 27,000 rapes. According to a 1998 newspaper article, the two sides killed 51,500 people during an eight-year period. During the height of the violence, Bihar Police records showed that 16 persons were slain, kidnaped, or robbed somewhere in the state every hour.

It was in this context that Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar entered a struggle that had already claimed thousands of lives. His suggestion was simple but difficult to implement, before asking opponents to compromise, try to persuade them to view each other as humans.

How Do You Bring Enemies Into The Same Room?

Gurudev's assistance began without a formal peace pact or political negotiations. Some top CPI(ML) members learned about his popularity in Russia and expressed an interest in meeting him. Approximately 40 to 45 senior members expressed a readiness to participate. On the other hand, more than 20 top members of the Ranvir Sena have agreed to meet him.

However, bringing members from both groups together was a very other difficulty.

Sanjay Singh, an Art of Living volunteer, was assigned the duty. Sanjay reportedly stepped alone into a strongly guarded camp in order to contact the CPI(ML). His requirement was straightforward: he should be able to go securely. He did.

What followed was weeks of separate conversations. Eventually, Sanjay managed to persuade members connected with both sides to travel to Rishikesh for a programme with Gurudev.

There was one crucial detail: neither side knew the other would be there. Nearly 300 people connected with the rival groups reached Kali Kamli Ashram in Rishikesh. Once they realised that members of the opposing camp were also present, the mood changed sharply.

Some accused the organisers of misleading them. Others packed their belongings and wanted to leave. But there were no train reservations available for two days.

Those two days proved significant. Instead of forcing the groups into a direct confrontation, Gurudev met them separately. He heard their grievances and gave them space to express their anger. The immediate aim was not to extract an agreement, but to keep the encounter from breaking down.

What Happened When The Guns Went Silent?

The turning point came through something that did not resemble a conventional peace negotiation at all. The participants were introduced to Sudarshan Kriya and meditation. Members of rival groups began sitting together, breathing together and practising in the same space.

For men accustomed to viewing one another through the prism of caste, ideology and violence, the experience was unusual. They were now sharing a room without weapons, slogans or confrontation. An old recording preserved in The Art of Living's archives documents portions of the programme and shows men associated with rival groups meditating alongside one another.

The change was gradual. By the end of the programme, participants who had initially refused to share an ashram were able to meet without violence. Some embraced. Some cried. The people who had arrived prepared to leave returned to Bihar carrying a different experience of those they had considered enemies.

Months later, members of the two communities reportedly celebrated Holi together. The effort did not mean that decades of conflict had suddenly disappeared. Nor did meditation resolve the political, social and economic conditions behind the violence. But it created something that had been missing, an opportunity for the opposing sides to encounter one another outside the battlefield.

Could Peace Survive After The Bloodshed?

The test came soon enough. In 2000, more than 30 people were killed in the Mianpur massacre. Gurudev was in Germany when he learnt about the killings. He sought direct contact with Brahmeshwar Singh, the Ranvir Sena chief popularly known as Mukhiyaji. Gurudev later met him privately in Delhi.

The details of that conversation were not made public. But its reported outcome was significant, Brahmeshwar Singh gave Gurudev his word that he would give up further violence. That assurance could not undo the deaths that had already taken place. It could not, on its own, address the inequalities or political failures that had contributed to Bihar's violent history. But in a conflict where retaliation had repeatedly triggered more retaliation, the decision to step away from violence represented an important moment in the peace effort.

The change could also be seen at the community level. In Narhi, years of violence had made public celebrations dangerous. According to the account of the peace effort, the village had gone almost nine years without a wedding celebration because families feared that a gathering, music and lights could attract attacks.

The Art of Living began conducting Nav Chetna Shivirs in affected areas. Along with meditation and stress-relief practices, these programmes included satsangs and preeti bhoj, where people belonging to different castes sat together for community meals. The idea was to rebuild trust through repeated contact.

Eventually, Narhi held its first wedding celebration in nearly nine years. It was a simple social event, but in a village where fear had taken over public life, the return of a wedding meant something larger: people were beginning to feel safe enough to gather again.

From Ending Violence To Changing Communities

Gurudev's association with Bihar continued beyond the efforts involving the Ranvir Sena and CPI(ML). Over time, his work in the state expanded towards social issues and community leadership. At one gathering, nearly 22,000 people took a public pledge against child marriage. Later, 85 young community leaders, most of them women, committed themselves to working against the practice in their villages.

One of those involved is grassroots campaigner Sangita Sinha, who has worked across Nawada, Vaishali and Gaya to intervene in cases of child marriage and help protect young girls from the practice. She has continued this work despite physical limitations, including periods when she worked from a wheelchair.

The issues facing Bihar have changed, but the broader approach remains similar: work with individuals, create local leadership and encourage communities to take responsibility for change. 

For Gurudev, the Bihar experience also reflects a larger principle of his teaching: lasting peace outside begins with a change within. “When we talk about world peace, we often forget an essential truth. Outer peace is not possible without individuals being at peace with themselves. Here, spirituality has an important role. Spirituality is not only a powerful force that brings people together, but also offers methods and techniques to handle stress, anger and aggression and get rid of negative emotions within us. If people can get access to the peaceful space inside them, then outer peace can become a reality.”, shares Gurudev.