Guruji, it is said in Puranas that a wife wishes for the same husband for the next seven life times. Is it true?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: See, I am not qualified to answer this question. You can ask people around you and find out. Some will say yes and some will say no, take a census and go by your experience.
Once, this lady in America was telling that she has been married for 40 years and she has been living with the same husband. The other people present were wonder-struck at how she was living with the same man for 40 years. Then she said if you don’t know how to row one boat, even if you change the boat, you will not know how to row it. I said, ‘This is the story of every family in India and this tradition is there in the villages.’ If you don’t know how to row a boat, changing the boat is no use.
That is why, however the people around us are, we have to maintain a good relationship with them and through whatever means and efforts we should nurture the good qualities in others. Just criticizing anyone is not helpful. Instead you have to become a bridge. If you are just going to sit and criticize then it will only bring distance. You have to understand them, where they are coming from and why are they doing wrong. And then you explain to them lovingly, win them over with love. This takes a lot of time; it is very easy to criticize someone and keep them away from you. That can be done in minutes but to be with them day and night, to explain to them and to bring change in them is very difficult and important. That is what should be done.