Welcome criticism, win foes with love, says Sri Sri

Tribune News Service 

 Faridkot, November 23

Spiritual guru Sri Sri Ravi Shankar on Saturday addressed MBBS entrants and the faculty of the Baba Farid University of Health Sciences (BFUHS) here.

 Expressing concern over rising incidents of suicide among students of medical and engineering colleges, the Art of Living  founder said there was an urgent need to look at the state of mind and adapt ways to rid of tension and fear.

 At present, when a sense of isolation and academic pressure to excel prevail among students and there is a lack of knowledge about tools to manage stress in a healthy manner, meditation practice becomes important, said Sri Sri Ravi Shankar while citing a research by scientists in Oslo and a publication in American Journal of Neuroradiology. Practising meditation can increase the gray matter volume in the brain, which plays an important role in mental health and cognitive processes, he said while quoting the research. “Mind should be free from stress. You cannot claim to be healthy when society is full of tension and fear,” he said. 

 Emphasising the need to get rid of hatred from within and to accept diversity or differences of opinion and preferences, the spiritual guru said students should welcome criticism. When someone criticises us, instead of shunning them, we should welcome it. In response to a question from students on how to handle criticism, he said: “They may criticise you because they don’t know you or are jealous of you or they are your well wisher.” Shake hands with those you do not like and you will see something shifts within you, he told students. “If we learn the art of winning over everyone with love, everyone will live in accordance with us,” he said.

 “Medication, Medicine and Morality” was the theme on which the spiritual leader addressed MBBS entrants. The thrust of his interaction was on reducing the level of stress and inculcating positivity among students,“ said Dr Raj Bahadur, vice-chancellor of the BFUHS.

Meanwhile, the police rounded up over 40 members of the Punjab Students’ Union who were opposing the visit of Sri Sri.