Correcting others' mistakes

Mistakes keep happening all the time. Often you get irritated by them and want to correct them. How much can you correct? There are two situations when you correct other’s mistakes:

1. You correct someone’s mistake because it bothers you. But even if you correct it, this does not work.

2. You correct someone’s mistake, not because it bothers you, but for their sake so that they can grow.

To correct mistakes, you need authority and love. Authority and love seem to be contradictory, but in reality, they are not. Authority without love is stifling and does not work. Love without authority is shallow. A friend needs to have both authority and love but they need to be in the right combination. This can happen if you are totally dispassionate and centered. 

When you allow room for mistakes, you can be both authoritative and sweet. That is how the Divine is, the right balance of both. Krishna, Jesus and all enlightened masters had both. People in love also exercise authority with those they love. Authority and love exist in all relationships.

Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankarji