Q: Guruji, do you believe that prisons are right?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: I consider prisons to be like hospitals. Like when someone’s body is sick, you take them to the hospital; like that, when someone’s actions are sick, they go to prison, only to get better and come back. But, unfortunately, today prisons have become a Criminal Idea Exchange Bureau. People get in there and they come out as bigger criminals, because it becomes a bank for them to understand crime. Originally, putting someone into a room was meant to give them deep rest. When someone is active all the time, working and working, he gets so stressed that it is natural to commit mistakes. What is Crime? Mistake of action. So to correct that, they go to correctional homes. Nowadays in America, they no longer call it prison; they call it The Correctional Homes. You are supposed to go there, meditate, become hollow and empty and come back happily. This doesn’t happen. So we need to do that, teach people meditation in all the prisons. Then you will see, better people come out of there. And this is what is happening. Lots of prison courses are happening in Art of Living, all over. Anyone who wants to get involved in it are most welcome, go ahead!