The Role of ABC of Spirituality In Business


By Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar

Business is like the proverbial golden goose. The objective of business is to make more profit with less effort. But the very life of business will be lost when one resorts to unethical means to make quick money. For any enterprise to flourish, adherence to ethical means is of utmost importance. Often corporations lose sight of this.


Unethical practices may bring short-term gains, but they will be counterproductive in the long run. Ethics will ensure long-term success and sustainable growth even if you have to hold your breath for a short period of time. It is intellectual bankruptcy which leads to unethical means in business. To do something unethical and to get away with it, one needs lots of creativity. If the same creativity can be channeled to create something more productive or invested in R&D, then there will be no need for adopting any unethical means.


If you want to know the real health of a company, you should see how enthusiastic its R&D department is. Companies go only by academic qualifications when staffing their R&D department. But someone who has not had formal education could turn out to be more intelligent and more creative than a doctorate degree holder. Indian companies need to recognize this.

When there is creativity, there is no need for resorting to unethical practices to run a business. By attending to the source of creativity, a successful enterprise can be built in an ethical manner. Our consciousness is the source of all creativity. That’s why it is very important for us to probe into the source of thought. Often we are called great thinkers, but what is a thought? A thought is nothing but an impulse of energy and intelligence. For a correct thought to arise, you need 16 impulses to meet at a point in the cerebral cortex at the speed of 10 -30 cycles per second.


By training our brain, we can improve our thought process. This is very pertinent for managers. Management begins with the mind; it happens in the mind. When the mind manages itself better, it can manage anything. Our mind is always focused on what we want and we are busy wanting something all the time. Before one desire vanishes, another comes up; they are in a queue!


Train the mind a little to be in the present moment, drop the stress, tension and strain that you are carrying for nothing. This is where a little knowledge about the consciousness helps. And that’s the essence of spirituality.


Many people think that spirituality is against economic prosperity. Look at the benefits of spirituality. It enhances one’s creativity and increases energy levels. Awareness, belongingness and commitment hold the key to success. And I call it the ABC of life, which you get through spiritual practices. In any field, you need the ABC, and in business you need  it the most. Devoid of spirituality, religion breeds terrorism, business breeds greed and exploitation, and politics breeds corruption. Spirituality will liberalize politics, socialize business and secularize religion.

A true leader is alert, and when challenges come, he is not disturbed.