Be the Change, Come to Politics

He may have perfected the Art of Living, but when asked what could actually make our politicians more “positive”, spiritual guru Sri Sri Ravi Shankar said that the solution was beyond him and asked GenY to enter politics to “make the change”. He said, “Politicians are not some special class or species who have come from another planet. They are one among you, among us. So one of you must take the lead, if you have the passion for people and service to society, you must come,” he said to a hall filled with starry-eyed students and curious academics.

He didn’t merely end there. Explaining that the problem began with the way politicians viewed their ‘jobs’, he said, “Unfortunately in this country, and everywhere else in the world, politics is no longer a service — it has lost it’s sheen and respect, which it had during the time of Kamaraj and Mahatma Gandhi and a few generations before us. That needs to be set right,” he said and exhorted the youth to make that change. En masse. “Not one or two persons can do it, but all of you collectively can. Youth of this country have the power to bring the change. So you need to ask politicians whether they’re here for service or business,” he concluded to rapturous applause.

A lot of people refer to others as being god-fearing. It is an aberration if people are fearing god. You must not fear  god. You must embrace the concept of god and allow it to guide you in life

Almost 35 years ago, when I started Art of Living, Yoga was like a taboo. People had some weird ideas about  yoga then, but today it is highly fashionable and everybody does it the world over

Just because Yoga or Ayurveda are part of Hinduism, it doesn’t mean that it won’t work for a non-Hindu. We are global citizens today and education has no boundaries, so we need to embrace it fully

In my time, sports and music used to drive creativity. Now, the way things are — sports are played like wars and wars are played like sport. How can this foster any positivity or any feelings of creativity

Courtesy : The New Indian Express

Founded in 1981 by Sri Sri Ravi Shankar,The Art of Living is an educational and humanitarian movement engaged in stress-management and service initiatives. Read More