Sri Sri Ravi Shankar is an Indian guru and social activist, founder of the international organization The Art of Life. In 2004 and 2006 he was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize by the Nobel Committee, and in 2009 was named one of the 5 most influential people in India by Forbes India magazine. He is the inspirer of the international forum «For Ethics in Business» held annually at the European Parliament.
1. There is no need to rush anywhere.
But you have to be where you feel good. If you feel like you’re somewhere else, get up and go where your inner voice is calling you. Remember, you don’t have to go anywhere to find it. It’s a very fine line, a key in being constantly present.
2. Don’t try to control people and events
Don’t plan, don’t wait, don’t wish, loosen your grip. Be able to sustain a pause during which nothing happens. Let people come to you and events happen. They happen to you for a reason.
3. Give yourself the freedom to be yourself and others to be different
Remember that everyone has their own path and their own lessons. If your paths overlap, that’s fine, but if they diverge, that’s good too, because everything is always for the greater good.
4. Don’t aim to have it all at once
Even when it seems that there is nothing — there is always something, and something is missing – the giving hand of a friend, brother, sister, a non—random passerby will stretch out. Be moderate in everything.
5. Meet with a smile, with love, everyone and everything
But never say goodbye, because nothing is ever final. Say, «Thank you, and see you again.»
6. Be open to people, to the universe, to God — whatever you want to call it
Believe me, everything in your life works out in the best way for you. Even when, it would seem, there is nowhere worse, there is where… You never know where you will find where you will lose.
7. To put on a clean shirt, you have to throw off the old one
You can’t learn new things or change if you’re trapped within old dogmas and beliefs. Make your mind malleable!
