I have met quite a few eminent personalities from all walks of life but His Holiness Sri Sri Ravi Shankar is among the few people I have the highest regard and esteem for. I have been enormously attracted by his simplicity, his love for humanity and his tireless efforts in promoting world peace. He goes right to the middle of the problem wherever and pours balm on the souls that are affected. I am impressed with his sincerity of vision and compassion.
I first met Sri Sri several years ago, when he came to address one of the management schools in Pune, with which I was associated. We had invited him to come to the school and he had kindly agreed to. He spoke for some time and at the end, instead of taking questions from the students, he began asking questions to the students, provoking them to contemplate on the basic realities of human truth. This is how I first came to know him.
I remember that he asked me to come and see him at the Art of Living International Centre (the ashram) in Bangalore. However, I could not go for several weeks and months.
In 2006, when he was visiting Madras for the Art of Living’s Silver Jubilee celebrations, I went to see him at his place of residence. He was very nice. Among other topics, he asked me how things were politically and how they were shaping up in the country. At the end of our meeting, I asked him if I could work with or for him. He then once again, invited me to visit the Art of Living International centre for a couple of days to get an insight into the activities of the foundation. I could then decide what I wanted to do. I visited the Ashram after 15-20 days where I spent two days familiarizing myself with the various things happening there in terms of their humanitarian as well as educational projects. Sri Sri had then just come back from Orissa after signing a Memorandum of Understanding with the Chief Minister for setting up a Sri Sri university in Bhubaneshwar. When I met him finally I told him that I thought that the Sri Sri University is perhaps the best place where I could be of some use. He has made me President designate of the university. That’s how it happened!
The Art of Living Foundation covers a fantastically wide sweep of activities ranging from education and health, rural development, conflict resolution to disaster and trauma relief etc. The Sudarshan Kriya™, a powerful rhythmic breathing technique that I’ve learned from there is a very, very simple way of keeping you healthy all the time. I am not a very religious person but I have benefited greatly by doing the Sudarshan Kriya everyday. I’ve been doing it very regularly ever since I learnt it from one of his trainers. It makes you feel more healthy and lively each day. It gives me much more energy. For a man of 76 years, I am very energetic.
I am an admirer of all good men and women, all leaders of human thought whether it is Sai Baba in Puttaparuthi or Amma in Kerala. In the case of Sri Sri, I was attracted by the broad band of his activities for human welfare including all the work that is being done by the Art of Living with regard to education particularly in the rural areas. I have studied in great detail his involvement in resolving human conflict and alleviating human suffering in strife torn areas such as Afghanistan, Kashmir, Iran, Iraq and Sri Lanka. Sri Sri Ravi Shankar - may His tribe increase!
T.N. Seshan is former Chief Election Commissioner of India
Extract from http://www.artoflivingmedia.org/2009/08/sri-sri-ravi-shankar-25-most-valuable.html
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