17 Feb 2012 - QA 1

Guruji, all of us seem to have a clear idea of how other people should lead their lives, but very few have an idea about their own lives. Why is it so and what can we do about it?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Now, are you talking about yourself, or your spouse, or someone else?
Of course, your spouse will give you ideas on how you should be living and what you should be doing, and your mother will give you advice, your sister will dictate you, and your daughter will tell you ‘Papa, this is how you should behave.’
The same happens with women also. Your husband will tell you and your brother will advise you.
You are swamped with advices. You are bombarded with advices. Take them and listen to them, but don’t lose sight of what you want to do. Don’t lose sight of your goal.
Set up a goal for yourself and one for society, where you want the society to go.
Now, advices are not bad. You can’t discard all the advices. At the same time, you can’t take them all in. So, you need to keep your mind very open. What is it that you want in life? What progress have you made? Look into it.
Every now and then, we need to revisit our own state of mind. ‘Where are we going? What is it that I want? What I did, is it correct or what I am going to do, is it right?’ This introspection is essential.