When You Keep Your Word

I often recall a small event of 1983 when I was posted as Collector of a district, where in an old Sanskrit college a function was being organised. The management of the institution had approached me before the function to be the Chief Guest. The institution was located at a distance from the district headquarters and I was not sure of being able to spare sufficient time for the programme which meant a long journey too. Moreover, I did not consider myself to be the appropriate Chief Guest for such an institution. However, on insistence from the management, I had agreed.

Soon the day of the function arrived. It was in the afternoon and I had some very important papers to see at the headquarters. I was in two minds about whether to go for the programme or not, knowing that a collector can always excuse himself on some pretext or the other. That temptation came to my mind also. But in the meanwhile, one member of the management had come to my office to accompany me to the institution, so I reluctantly went with him. In my mind I was not sure whether the time spent on the function would be worthwhile or not. At that time I had become a life member of the Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan and its fortnightly journal used to reach me regularly. Usually, I read it while travelling, and on that day since the latest issue was with me, I went through the Bhavan’s journal. Apart from the text, this journal contains some sayings and thoughts from various sources written prominently in spare spaces. These thoughts are normally very inspiring. That day, soon after we started, I came across a thought which was like this: ‘Fortunate are those who keep their promise, be it good or sinful’. This single sentence removed all my hesitation and I became enthusiastic about the programme which was organized very well. We all felt very happy about it.

This incident made me contemplate. All of us face situations when we find it difficult to keep our word or promise. Those who are sensitive face a conflict in the mind, particularly when sufficient reasons do not exist for not keeping one’s word or promise. Quite often even such persons give untrue reasons for not keeping them, doing this mainly to satisfy themselves rather than others. Gradually, this becomes a habit; no wonder today we find many responsible persons whose word or promises have no meaning and who keep others in uncertainty even without sufficient justification. My contemplation in this regard has led me to the conclusion that for a sincere and truthful person, situations of such conflict hardly arise. Once we are firm in our resolve that we shall always keep our word or promise, events occur in such a manner that they are kept effortlessly. After the above-mentioned incident, I made it almost a sadhana to keep my word unless a situation arose when not keeping them became my duty. In that case, there has been no feeling of guilt or uneasiness. Gradually, a stage comes when we speak only those words which we are able to abide by effortlessly. Nature also creates circumstances accordingly. Personally, I have experienced many situations where I was surprised by the turn of events which made it possible to honour a commitment. The same situation then extends to our thoughts and we entertain only those thoughts which are actually converted into action. 

I am not giving any specific events here because the intention is only to make a point. Here it is clarified that the point made is not as simple as it appears. The whole process requires a great deal of wisdom and maturity. To reach a stage when one’s words or thoughts are taken care of by nature, one has to undergo constant refinement and ripening. The first step is that words should be spoken after a great deal of thinking, and casual speaking should come to a stop. ‘Think before you speak and not vice versa’ has to be always kept in mind. It is better to keep silent if we are not sure of ourselves. One can always choose suitable words to deal with a particular situation in order to avoid further embarrassment.

Once we start doing so, our words have a weight of meaning and others take us seriously. The process starts from here. The second important step is that a promise or thought of action should arise as a result of duty, keeping in view the means available to us at a particular point of time. At times duty demands certain action on our part but means may not permit it. In such a situation, promises should be given accordingly. Thirdly, while giving promises one should be free from anger, envy, hatred or sentiments. Words spoken in such a state of mind normally create a difficult situation and disturb one’s peace of mind in the long run. Lastly, we must mean what we say and apply ourselves fully to keep our word. Nature helps us primarily through ourselves, and when we apply ourselves sincerely, conditions are so created that others also help. Once the above requirements are met, the process becomes natural and we are effortlessly able to keep our word. In fact, our will in that case becomes His will and we consider ourselves only the instruments. Even an apparently sinful act then becomes a part of our sadhana and leads to perfection.

Rakesh Mittal IAS

Lands End

Quite often I along with my classmates used to track to this place during my school days in Nainital. The place was about six kilometers from my school. Tracking six kilometers on a hilly terrain was not that easy, but our then principal was a good sportsperson and in his leadership we used to track to this point called “Lands End”. I have heard that similar names are often given on other hill stations for the spots where you have a feel that there is a dead end to the road and what you can see further is just a railing, across which you can see a valley and other mountains around. During my childhood, I had a perception that ‘Lands End’ always means that it is end of the road. Today when I see the media reports in context of the land acquisition from farmers for development purposes, I do not why, but this word ‘Lands End’ is striking my mind creating a high entropy. 

Let me reduce my entropy by sharing some of my thoughts with my readers. With increasing urbanization and the evolving habit of convenience amongst a substantial section of society, Land is becoming a major cause of social conflicts. The capacity of Individuals to buy a physical piece of land by paying some ‘X’ amount made this natural resource, just like any other commodity. Quantification of rights on natural resources had given a lot of opportunity for economists to keep debating forever. In the name of development a person can be removed from a place where his generation lived since ages for a meager sum. He is also told that some unknown set of people will come, create palaces on his land and will give jobs to his children. He is further told, that look, the law has changed and since you voted us to create laws, you have no business to complain. The new law says that if anything is built on his land, even the consent will not be required. Dear Readers! Please do not think that I am losing any land, or being an activist following a particular thought stream. It is just that, as a writer, sometime I feel apt to share the thoughts crossing my mind with you. When I reach a ‘Lands End’ of thoughts, I try to get across the beautiful view of other mountains around. The moment you are reading this piece, I get connected to your thoughts also. Please give feedback on the Land acquisition issue in context of morality of the whole matter. 

Dr. Sunil Ji Garg 

Star Strikers

Munnar, in Idukki district of Kerala is a breathtakingly beautiful haven of peace and tranquility set at an altitude of approximately 6000 ft. It was the favored summer resort for the erstwhile British rulers in the colonial days. Unending expanse of tea plantations - pristine valleys and mountains- exotic species of flora and fauna in its wild sanctuaries and forests - aroma of spice scented cool air – all joined together makes Munnar an always inviting tourist destination. A friend of mine, a Company Secretary with MBA feathers on his cap, was sharing with us his experiences of a short visit there. We were over a cup of tea. Together with us was an industrialist, who generally was busy round the clock.  That Sunday evening seemed to me as if he is deliberately trying to relax. 

Any story on organic India is always a refreshing dose for me. Incidentally, the CS valla told us about a piece of bath soap which he bought from Munnar. He said that he was pulled in for a purchase mostly because of the box made of shredded bark of areca nut (supari) tree in which it was sealed. He told us that the aroma of that soap and the natural packing arrangement really attracted him and he suggested that if this is converted into a large scale business, it could fetch one a beautiful living. I understood that he was earnestly thinking of a planned production line and a wonderful market. Just then came into my mind the name of Sri Rohit Sharma, an Indian Youngster from Lucknow, who could build a million dollar business, ‘Simply Natural’, on supari leaves. I looked into the face of my industrialist friend, who I thought might help the CS man to invoke the risk passions in him. However, he looked at us with a helpless sharpness and told us that successful business is always exposure of hidden talents and continuation of long withheld aspirations within. He said that he doesn’t ever go after lucrative ideas unless it does fall within his interest/aptitude range.

All the day, I was on this Insight. I connected it with a recent article on Arvind Kejariwal the new AAP Chief Minister of Delhi. Kejariwal was not a professional politician. There were a lot of articles on him dissecting all possibilities which lead to his massive victory. One of the write ups said that there were and still there are identical people who also recite the same slogans every day. The article but continued saying that the factor which made Kejariwal different is that he did it a few more years longer. The writer, I remember, also said that it is how Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi became Gandhiji and Martin Luther King became King Martin Luther. 

India is full of vibrant entrepreneurs. A silent survey will show that the percentage of startups that fall shattered within two years is as big as 75%. The industrialist friend who sat with us was pointing to the big factor behind this. Look at the studies. An entrepreneur who identifies his interests and talents and hold on to that line with perfect consistency is the one destined to win. Most fortunate are the parents with children who have dared to choose a career for themselves. They have clearly spotted their interests and aptitudes and thus confirmed their position among the star strikers.

Joseph Mattappally

God As an Accountant

On August 15,1995, I was invited by Fort Williams’ Central School, Calcutta, as the Chief Guest. The invitation was extended by the Principal more as a personal equation than official. After the hoisting, I was asked to garland a picture of Sri Aurobindo. At that time I learnt that August 15th was his birthday. I did not know it earlier though I always had deep reverence for him. The Principal of the school was a devotee of Sri Aurobindo and, perhaps, that was the reason for such a ceremony.

Before this, I had tried to read one or two books of Sri Aurobindo but found them difficult to understand despite my interest in spiritual literature. This event, however, created in me a desire to know more about him. So soon after, I bought a biography of Sri Aurobindo and read it. Many aspects of his life influenced me deeply and I am going to share here one which affected me most. Sri Aurobindo was born on August 15,1872 at Calcutta. His father, Krishna Dhan Ghosh, was a completely anglicized person, as he had studied for an M.D. in England. He was posted as a civil surgeon with the British government. Sri Aurobindo grew up in an anglicised atmosphere at home. When he was five years old, he was sent, along with his two elder brothers, to the Loretto Convent School at Darjeeling, run by an Irish nun. There the three brothers had only European boys as friends and companions, for it was a school meant only for English children. 

Later, they were sent to England and thus Sri Aurobindo grew up in entire ignorance of India, her people, her religion and her culture. During the course of his stay in England, he mastered French and learnt enough of Italian and German. His father wanted him to join the ICS but destiny had something altogether different in store for him. In deference to his father’s wish, he passed the ICS examination with distinction but his heart was not in the service, which he had joined only to comply with his father’s wish. He neglected his lessons in riding and purposely failed so that he could escape from the bondage of the ICS. By this time he had started taking an interest in Indian politics and was looking for an opportunity to return to India. At this point of time he came in contact with the ruler of the state of Baroda, who appointed him in his service at a salary of Rs. 200 a month. He left England in January 1893 and joined the state service of Baroda. Sri Aurobindo was very simple in his mode of living. He did not care much for food or dress, because he never attached any importance to them. He never visited the market for his clothes. At home, he dressed in a plain white chaddar and dhoti, and outside invariably in white drill suits. He had no love of money. He used to get a Iumpsum of three month’s pay in a bag which he emptied in a tray lying on his table. He never bothered to keep money in a safe under lock and key. He did not keep an account of what he spent.

One day a close friend asked him why he was so careless about his money. He laughed and then replied, ‘Well, it is proof that we are living in the midst of honest and good people’. ‘But you never keep an account which may testify to the honesty of the people around you?’ the friend asked him. Then with a serene face Sri Aurobindo replied, ‘It is God who keeps account for me. He gives me as much as I want and keeps the rest to Himself. At any rate, He does not keep me in want, then why should I worry?’ This is what influenced me most. Most of us waste our life in keeping accounts. Sri Aurobindo had a great mission in life and, therefore, he considered this activity to be too trivial. He left it to God and was confident that He would keep the accounts in good shape and at the same time would not keep him in want. And it is true that money is never a problem for a truly selfless mission. For such a mission, money comes from unexpected sources. The same is true with a selfless life. God takes care of the needs of such a person and works as an accountant for him. The secret, however, is that He takes care of only the needs and not the greed.

Rakesh Mittal IAS

Humanization

There is a report today (February 19, 2015) of a judgment from the Supreme Court of India that acquitted a husband whose wife was driven to suicide after strained marital relationship on account of his ongoing illicit relationship with another woman. In effect the highest legal authority in the country seems to opine that the husband's behavior may be immoral and illegal, but it does not establish or tantamount to cruelty that should drive a wife to suicide. Living in a democracy, and as someone who practiced clinical psychology over thirty years, I respectfully disagree with the judgment as reported online in the Times of India. The judgment is reminiscent of the times when slavery was immoral but legal in the United States of America or caste discriminations were immoral but legal in India. It may be interesting to note that various forms of legal slavery were in India and in the USA in most of the 20th century in the guise of casteism and racism. Practical enslavement is widely prevalent under dictatorships, monarchies, theocracies, or autocracies in large areas of the world. I grant that it is difficult to establish the kind of cruelty that should lead one to suicide. In fact as a psychologist I may argue it is not cruelty but poor self-esteem that leads one to suicide. Certainly I do not want to get into deep waters. The simple reality is that the husband broke the marriage vows that he made to his wife. The woman may not have married him if he had the intention to have an illicit relationship with another woman. It is not uncommon for a married woman having an illicit relationship with another man to be murdered.

Moral, civil or criminal law comes in the context of human relations or transactions in established societies. The process of humanization in established societies fine tunes human rights. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 1948 as a global expression of human rights to which every human being in the world is entitled. In 1976 the Bill of International Human Rights was declared International Law whereby human beings all over the world can be indicted for their criminal activities against humanity. Human beings created in the image and likeness of God took so long to establish basic human rights that spell out ingredients necessary for humanization.

As a person who spent most of his life in institutionalized or non-institutionalized religious settings, I began to seriously wonder what established religions did to further human rights and humanization. Clinging on to authoritarian and autocratic power structures in the name of God, the representatives of these religions only slowed down or interfered with human rights.  They do not have the vision or the insight to see that grace is built on nature, and that the more human and humane one is the more divine one can be.  As more and more people are tuning off or turning away from established religions and their irrelevant and superstitious rituals and practices, I have been working on a viable spirituality beyond religions in the context of the unity of humanity. We are all God's children; we are all one in the Great One (God). We all have one God however we conceive and name that Power or Entity. Religions seriously need to take the task of humanization as true humanization in the context of one's faith is nothing else but divinization. Only humanization can prepare one for a true union with divinity for which all humanity relentlessly yearns.

Swami Snehananda Jyoti  

Landslide Victory

GZ 71 180215 Landslide Victory 

Recently we have seen an extra-ordinary mandate for a particular party in New Delhi assembly elections. This was immediately categorized as one of the historical landslide victories on the Wikipedia page with the name “Landslide Victory”. Not many are there. Why the mandate given by the real people always surprise the so called great psephologist has always been a mystery. Every process of elections has many lessons to learn, both for the political parties and for the people at large. This time when a seasoned administrator with a long experience was positioned against a labeled anarchist, most people thought that inclination of the masses will be shifted towards experience. For a moment I also thought so. Then comes a report that the same experienced administrator was asking party workers to go out of the room if they don’t listen, or don’t reach for campaign on exact time. I could immediately understand the negative under current. On the other hand there was some kind of under current in a positive direction in favour of the other contestant when I heard the views of the youth on various social forums. The message for all of us was loud and clear that the leaders need to be like their followers and not the ones of exceptional extra-ordinary qualities that the followers will never be able to assimilate in themselves. 

I checked back many books on the subject of leadership. Most will recommend a person to develop such kind of personality traits which are quite bookish in nature. A practical and real life leader can rarely match these books. I tried to match these qualities with undisputed historical leaders like Mahatma Gandhi, Nelson Mandela and Martin Luther King. What I necessarily find was that even the key qualities like great communication skills and great decision skills were questioned by their contemporaries. Today also the challenge of leadership is the real people and real world. The only pattern that I could observe was that all leaders were little more persistent for the cause they picked up. This property is found even in the negative leaders like Osama and Baghdadi. Here I would like to the quote the great leader from the field of science, Albert Einstein expressing about himself as, “It's not that I'm so smart, it's just that I stay with problems a little longer”. 

Dr. Sunil Ji Garg 

Coming Soon, ‘The Cool Boys’

I always love the tribulations of my home village than the boons in any city in the world. But my personal experience is that it is not our surface plans but the sponsoring intentions within that always work. Now it seems that I’m destined to continue in the concrete forest of Ahmedabad. Each day, like anywhere else, sets with at least a couple experiences worth sharing. The apartment I live with my son and family belongs to a big complex with around 400 apartments in it. From morning to evening, children are seen playing in the garden, walkways and parking lots. The most common complaints on children that parents generally share are about their academic performances. Even though almost all parents throw many thousands on tuitions each month, they are not happy. They won’t be, until their children become best in their respective classes. They are worried; worried over the bad luck their successors are supposed to shoulder. 

A few weeks back I noticed my grandson, hardly ten, returning too late after his play time. When questioned, he said that they had ‘shooting’ that day. I gently explored into the details. He told me that they are shooting a film ‘The Cool Boys’ and they could complete only hardly five scenes that day. I understood that the gang had scripted a beautiful story, fixed the characters, agreed upon the dialogues and had even marked the shooting spots and arranged the costumes. All they had for shooting was an ipad. I could not believe that it is a group of children, all between seven and eleven, that is behind this much planned project. Still, it did not surprise me at all, because I always believes that each and every one born to this earth has enough talents and aptitudes hid in their individuality. Does our system of education bring them out and foster them accordingly? Never! We have a culture in which a child hurries to the public school at 3 and retires as a man or woman on a day in which all his/her experiences blossom fully. Why not we let children play at least until five? There are a few countries in the West which follows this precept. But countries like India still believe that learning at 3 is advancement. 

We have done many studies in this regard at various levels and have found that we have better smart entrepreneurs and bright intellectuals in India than in the West. How many of you have noticed that our early entrepreneurs retire early, fully oozed off all their energy? The damage done by a lost childhood spoils their future ‘hoods’. Grooming is an art; it is building an emotional connection with anybody to gain their trust for the purpose. Knowingly or unknowingly grooming is happening every moment, though people don't understand that they have been groomed. Who will tell our groomers that advancement is exposure of individual talents and not degrees in caskets? 

Joseph Mattappally

The Divine Court

There are three main pillars of democracy, namely, the legislature, the executive and the judiciary. As the press also plays an important role in democracy, it may be called the fourth pillar. If all the four pillars are strong and play their role properly, we can create an ideal society to live in. They also keep a check on each other, and this is a very important aspect of our Constitution which has, by and large, worked well.

This check and balance system is very obviously reflected in recent times when the courts have exercised their powers in the larger interest of the society. People in general have welcomed this development because they feel that the other three pillars of the democracy have not played their roles properly. From this point of view, the judiciary has done a great service to the system. However, the real solution lies in each organ playing its role properly and we hope that they will. In the judicial system, there is a hierarchy starting from the lowest court to the Supreme Court. Of course, the judicial process in general is so slow that justice is often delayed. In many cases it amounts to justice denied. Even if it is not denied, we cannot say for sure that justice is always done by the courts. After all, there is a process of law which is full of lacunas and chances of committing errors are quite high, despite all the good intentions and best efforts on the part of those who are involved in the dispensation of justice. Such errors may be committed at the level of the apex court also but there is no forum to approach thereafter, as far as the mundane world is concerned. 

Is this really so ? I had a chance to contemplate over this subject many years back when I was posted as a District Magistrate. One day, a smart young boy came to see me in my office. He was an officer of the Indian Forest Service and came to me in connection with the parole of his father who was in jail, undergoing a life sentence. I had rejected the case on the previous day only in a routine manner because it was not recommended by the relevant officers. The young boy told me that he was going to be married soon and the parole of his father was required for that purpose. He had brought an invitation card of the marriage for my perusal. He also told me that his father was a school teacher and had been implicated falsely in a murder case. They had fought the case up to the High Court but beyond that they could not afford more litigation. I felt sympathetic towards the boy on account of his manners and the purpose for which the parole was sought. Though the case had been rejected, I recalled the file and recorded the new facts brought to my notice. I made a recommendation for release, overruling my previous recommendation and eventually the parole was granted.

Perhaps, the boy and his father felt personally grateful to me. After the marriage was over and the time for going back to jail had come, both of them came to see me to express their gratitude. The father had also brought two books written by him. I do not remember their exact subject but they were a reflection of his inner growth. All this touched me greatly and I felt like hearing the story behind his conviction, which he narrated briefly. On hearing this story, my inner conscience felt that he was really innocent. So I asked him a very personal question, notwithstanding my official position. The question was how he felt about his conviction for life without being guilty, if he was innocent. He gave a very enriching reply which I am sharing here. He said that in the beginning, he had felt very anguished and had questioned the validity of not only the man-made laws but also the divine laws. However, by the grace of God, he soon became contemplative and started accepting reality. Gradually the acceptance turned into faith. He then felt that all events in life happen under cause and effect laws, which can be called divine laws, and man-made laws were just part of them. While there may be errors in the dispensation of justice through the manmade system, there is no chance of such an error in the dispensation of divine justice. In his case, perhaps, the same thing had happened and his conviction must have been the result of divine justice. Once viewed that way, he was trying to make the best use of the situation for his inner growth.

Very few of us can accept the harsh realities of life so gracefully. However, once the fundamentals of divine laws are understood, the acceptance becomes natural. Then one starts seeing the grace of God even in the seemingly bad events of life. Perhaps, the errors committed by mundane courts is one way of dispensing justice by the Divine court.

Rakesh Mittal IAS

Human Situations - 3

Life presents many situations joyful as well as painful. It is the greatest university where we learn the art of living. Whatever situation we are in is the right situation we are called to face with confidence, courage, and serenity. The way we deal with our adverse situations especially shows us who we are, what we are about, and what guides our life, that is, our philosophy of life.

Situation 3:  After a fulfilling life in the USA, my wife and I decided to live a holistic life devoted to spirituality beyond religions in India. We decided to make our Shantisadan Siddhashram (Peacehaven Center for Realization) in a small village in the outskirts of Munnar our headquarters. We had little knowledge of what we were getting into. My wife volunteered to teach communicative English in a school very near to a parish school competing with it. Our relationship with the Catholic parish seemed to be fine before a bigoted, young parish priest decided to 'straighten us' out. After the ward prayer meeting conducted in a home near the ashram, a well-meaning and prominent member of the parish happened to tell the priest about the improved standard of spoken English since my wife started teaching in the rival school. His ignorant and bigoted answer was: "What good can come out of a person living in sin?"  According to him we were an unmarried couple causing scandal to others. His answer shocked a close relative of mine who attended the prayer meeting. She communicated this information through an aunt of hers to my manager who happened to be my nephew, and who in his fear and naivete shielded me from this information for fear of hurting me and also taking on a powerful parish priest.  I did not know what was going on as I was the last one to get the information. When I did get the information through a close friend of mine after a couple of months, a great deal of damage to good will for us has already taken place. After verifying the information from others present at the prayer meeting, I decided to confront the parish priest through a hand-delivered letter.  In the letter I asked him to apologize publicly if  he made statements damaging to our reputation publicly. To make the story short, the priest created a smoke-screen to cover his crime. His parishioners got emotionally charged in support of him and damaged, in the cover of night, my car and my property causing a large financial loss. My manager's house was encircled at night causing him a minor mental breakdown. To add insult to injury, my folks came from my home town far away, and without my knowledge went to the parish, and  apologized to the parish priest apparently to save me from bodily harm and further financial damage to my property. When we came to know of it, my wife asked my close relatives to leave our premises.

The written complaint to the local police inspector, brought him and his police officers to the ashram. The police inspector asked me if I wanted to press the charges against the parish priest or to settle the problem through conversation with him. I agreed to settling the issues through dialogue in keeping with the spirit of the ashram. After two weeks I was told by the police inspector that the priest would not be able to come for the meeting due to possible complications with the Church. I was faced again with pressing the charges against the parish priest or letting the whole thing go. After agonizing prayerful reflection, I decided to let go. This unrepentant priest is at large after he was transferred.  The parishioners finally seem to have realized  the  damage caused by a  misguided priest; and they have at present a positive attitude toward the ashram.

Others may have made other decisions in the situation I faced. I made the decision I thought would be best in view of who I am, and what my mission in life is. Any priest or leader can hide behind a smoke-screen for some time.  Finally facts would have to speak for themselves. And as Abraham Lincoln once said: "You can fool all the people some of the time, and some of the people all the time, but you cannot fool all the people all the time".

Swami Snehananda Jyoti 

Guilt of Abusing

The college from where I graduated in engineering was on the bank of river Ganges. I joined the college about three months late due to my own reasons. Meanwhile the menace of ragging period was almost over. Still I had to face few sessions of mass-ragging. Few people from the senior batches would take us to the bridge over the Ganges River, and will force us to pronounce abusive words loudly. Before this time I had studied in a closely guarded public school and I never had any experience of saying any abusive words even privately. Anyway I was forced to say many such words and I had to say it to avoid being beaten up by my seniors. Even though I said all those words under such a pressure, I clearly had guilt inside me, that I should not learn these words as a practice. My friends, who were habitual of using such words, knew that I won’t use such words and they regarded me as different person. I also noticed that although many of the students were using such language amongst their own groups, all of them were courteous and careful enough for not using such words in front of teachers or parents.

Today, in the name of changing times and progressive society we see the occurrence of public programs that openly use such abusive and foul language, being attended by well known celebrities. I also saw a talk show on a leading TV channel, where a leading female anchor was in a way endorsing such events, in the name of trend of the youth and freedom of expression for them. In the name of freedom of speech, people start bashing the very basic nature of social fabric. Humor that uses the names of human private parts, may be okay for extremely closed local group of similar age, but when it is publicly done and endorsed by a larger group, it definitely indicates that something somewhere is getting on an unusual track. It does need attention of society. If we are able to give right kind of values to our children or are able to maintain sufficient communication between generations, things will continue on the right track. The concern heightens when such kind of acts doesn’t even incite the guilt that our generations had. It further heightens when either real people are used as joke props or some people even start daring to use religious icons to directly and consciously hurt sentiments of other people. This may be to gain quick popularity. Interestingly, today one can even get money by getting larger youtube hit count, as you will find advertisements of various leading brands on such videos. Some of them also start calling such things as creative freedom. 

I do not know if these people will also classify the act of people like ‘Jack the ripper’, the serial killer, in the category of creativity. I strongly and actively condemn the acts of public use of abusive language. More than the use of abuse, I am worried much more about the disappearance of guilt. The whole social fabric is based on mutual respect. Disappearance of guilt can break this thread forever. I am myself a torch bearer for freedom of speech movement, but speech definitely means a purpose. Today we have great social networking tools. It is up to us that we use them for our benefit or for destroying the purpose out of our life. I don’t believe in locks and banns. What I believe in is, telling the new entrants to this society, that why few things were made the way they are. We definitely need to tell a child, that why we can’t roam around without clothes. The basic questions will come from the new generations. It is the people from our generation who need to learn the answers correctly and handle things with the right kind of logic and right kind of communication. After all the wits of forthcoming generations are getting better and better every day. An open and trained mind is definitely better than just an open mind.

Dr. Sunil Ji Garg

Festival of Kites

Like everything in this Universe, humans also have a history of origin and growth. When the type took its’ origin some 85 million years ago, it would have been known by its fundamental qualities as a species. We have documents of Homo habilis and Homo heidel bergensis. Anatomically modern humans evolved from archaic Homo sapiens in the Middle Paleolithic, about 200,000 years ago. The transition to behavioral modernity with the development of symbolic culture, language, and specialized lithic technology happened around 50,000 years ago according to many anthropologists  although some suggest a gradual change in behavior over a longer time span. 

As it grew in number, it would have been identified by names. Humans still grew, not only in number but also in culture. Different cultures emerged and people had to be marked by the culture they belonged to. That was not the end; individuals later came to be identified by their race, caste, country and material possessions and power. The only time in which human beings were identified by the quality each held was the Vedic Period. 

Today, everyone upon earth is marked by the profession each one is engaged in. Everywhere we meet Mr Professions and Miss/Mrs Professions only. Individuality has no relevance; only personalities exist. Here, what we completely lose is our link with the values, which we once thought to be crucial in the lives of everybody. What that surprises me is that humans believe that they have advancement without any value aside. 

The festival of Kites has gone. Still, I remember the story of a kite which was flying high in the sky. A parrot saw that it flies even above an average birds range. It asked the kite how it could do so, without wings. The kite replied that unless the boy on the ground below was not controlling it, it could have gone much higher. The parrot told the kite that it can help it and the parrot cut the thread which held the kite. What happened thereafter, I need not tell you. The kite did not go an inch up; instead, it slowly came down. The moral of the story is clear; unless we hold tight our connection to values, all sorts of Professions miserably collapse.    

Joseph Mattappally

Ohm’s Law of Life

In my IAS entrance examination I opted for two papers of Physics. Though I had not been a student of Physics, the studyof the subject during my Engineering Course had given me enough confidence. I remember that my score in one paper of Physics was the highest among those who were selected. I also remember one exercise in that paper on Ohm’s Law. It was a simple numerical question of forty marks whose solution required only a few lines. 

Most of the candidates were puzzled to see such a simple question carrying forty marks and I was no exception. However, the question was tricky and required a clear conception of Ohm’s Law. Fortunately, I could understand the trick and solved it as the first question feeling quite happy about scoring forty marks in the first ten minutes. When the candidates came out of the examination hall, that question was the topic of discussion. Each one was giving his own interpretation and the answers varied widely from candidate to candidate. This created a very interesting scene as our selection depended on this question. Fortunately, my answer was correct and that was largely responsible for my selection as well as the highest score in the paper. I have narrated this incident many times. The interesting fact was that most of those who had obtained a master’s degree or even a doctorate in Physics had committed a mistake in solving the question. They could not believe that a question of forty marks could be that simple. As a result they had interpreted the question in their own way and gone off the track. Perhaps, they did not have a clear understanding of the Ohm’s Law and made a mistake. Subsequently, I contemplated over the incident and related it to one simple aspect of life.

The fundamental laws of living are so simple that we often fail to understand them and make our lives complicated. If we draw a simile from Ohm’s law, the electric current may be compared with the motivation to live and the objective is to have a continuous flow of motivation in good quantity. For this, there has to be a source of power. Such a source can either be a battery or power line. When the source is a battery, the current flows for a limited period depending upon the strength of the battery and the resistance in the circuit. If we wish the current to flow for all time, the battery should either be replaced or recharged. In case the source is a power line, such replacement or recharging is not required. The energy in that case will come directly from the power-house and as long as the power-station works, the current will continue to flow.

The second factor on which the amount of current depends is the resistance. The lower the resistance, the higher is the amount of current. In case the resistance becomes zero, the current will become infinite and the conductor in such a case becomes a super-conductor. Super-conductivity is the latest development in science, and it is said that it can solve the energy problem to a great extent because there is no loss of energy in a superconductor.

In life, the source of motivation can either be material objects or divine power. Material objects like name, fame, wealth, position, etc., give us a strong motivation to live but all these sources are transitory, like a battery. After a time they stop giving motivation and need either replacement or recharging. On the other hand, if divinity is the source of motivation like a power-house, there is no question of its depletion. The motivation to live then continues till we ourselves become part of divinity. The equivalent of resistance in life is our ego. The more dominant the ego, the more is the loss of our energy. Therefore, the aim should be to reduce our ego as much as possible. If we become totally egoless, the current will become infinite and, perhaps, that is the stage of reaching divinity itself. However, as long as we live in the world, it may not be possible. 

Therefore, the conclusion is that if we connect ourselves with the divine power-house with full sense of surrender, we shall experience infinite life current flowing through us like a superconductor and there will be no loss of energy. This is what is called Ohm’s law in physics and we may call it O’m’s Law in Life.

Rakesh Mittal IAS

Human Situations - 2

We are often placed in situations of not our own choosing. However, It is important that we deal with them safely and appropriately.

Situation 2:  About 13 years ago, a client/patient of mine expressed his desire to visit India when he learned about my going to India. He had never been outside of the USA.  After considering carefully the ethical standards that  govern doctor-patient relations, I decided that my patient could psychologically benefit from the trip. He had generalized anxiety disorder, had relationship problems, and fear of flying. He visited India with my family and enjoyed the trip. As I was planning to start ashrams in  India, I closed my practice, and stopped seeing him as a patient. Over the years, we kept in touch, and sometimes he visited me in my home in the USA when I returned from India. During such a visit last year, he shared an experience that he had many years ago during his trip to India with me. He stated that he saw a naked lady with her two kids taking bath in a stream. The particular spot of the mountain stream running at the edge of the present ashram property near Munnar, where he saw the lady and her kids happens to be a public bathing place, where also persons in the locality crossed the stream.  I was very surprised at what he said. I said very spontaneously: "I have hard time believing what you said". His unexpected strong response took me by surprise. He challenged me: "Are you saying I am lying? Are you calling me a liar? He looked very angrily at me and decided: "You are calling me a liar".  Holding my ground and trying to tell him that I did not say he lied, but just that I had difficulty believing what he said in the Indian cultural context did not help the situation. He expected an apology from me. An apology would have been phony as i would have rendered it merely to appease him. As he continued to  look daggers at me, I left his presence.  After a few minutes I came to the conclusion that there was no chance of reconciliation that day, I came back and asked him to leave my home, and he obliged.

He felt that I was attacking his integrity. Yet his perception of the scene and my difficulty in  believing it could have stayed side by side for what they were. Two incompatible views need not have deteriorated into the verge of physical violence on the part one tolerating different views. Good friendship allows freedom and safety in respectful and appropriate expression of any view. To agree to disagree in an agreeable way should form part of any human discourse to facilitate humanity's march toward unity of humanity.

Swami Snehananda Jyoti 

Soft Corner

He had come to see me after a long gap of two years. He was working in the software development team with me. He had suddenly left our organisation for a meager salary jump to another organisation. He did not transfer his charge to other colleague so I was a little unhappy with him. I had both officially and personally requested him earlier to come and handover his work charge, but he never turned up. Just two days before he rang me and requested me for his experience certificate. I clearly informed him, that without handing over his charge he cannot get it. He agreed to come a day before, but again he did not come. Yesterday again, he called me and requested to come today. Although I was a little upset with his behaviour, in the interest of work, I gave him the appointment. Fortunately, he came today at exact time. He entered the room and approached me to touch my feet. I said, “It’s Okay and shook hands with him”. But somehow with his gesture, I developed a soft corner for him. Why and how, but it happened.

One can say that a fair person should never bother about such things. But I did feel that a gesture of touching my feet made me soft. Something did occur inside me which made me different from what I was a few moments before. After that, the whole day passed quite smoothly for us. He handed over the charge to another person, explaining everything in detail. I also ordered lunch for him. I gave a well worded experience letter to him in the evening.

Later in the evening, when I was having a chat with me, I thought that whether, it was his gesture of touching feet, that made me softer, or my personality has changed, that I can’t be angry with people so easily. That’s how our behavioral traits are. Life can be made simple by some simple interactions. There could be many interpretations of this episode. Developing a soft corner due to a particular gesture could be considered a weakness for a person on the decision seat. But in this episode, it aided a fair end result. Hope my readers will also have their own soft corners.

Dr. Sunil Ji Garg

Thank You Mother Pigeon

Sometime back, I was into an Apartments Complex. Just inside the gate, in front of the garden, there was a black board in which it was written: ‘It is intelligence and not knowledge that makes an ideal human being’. I could not easily swallow what was written there and I do not endorse this statement too. What I understood was that people generally confuse between, intelligence, knowledge, purpose and value. Intelligence is generally interpreted in terms of one's capacity for logic, abstract thought, understanding, self-awareness, communication, learning, emotional knowledge, memory, planning, creativity and problem solving. Intelligence is not restricted to humans only; instead every matter has intelligence in some degrees. Knowledge, at the same time, is our awareness or understanding of someone or something or skills, which is acquired through experience or education by perceiving, discovering, or learning. In my opinion, neither knowledge nor intelligence is invariably what an ideal human being is. 

In an ancient temple, a number of pigeons lived happily on roof top. When the temple was under renovation the pigeons relocated themselves to a Church nearby. When the Church was undergoing a facelift, they flew to a mosque. When the mosque was under painting, they flew to the market place, where they found people fighting each other. A baby pigeon asked the mother pigeon, 

"Who are these people?"

The mother replied that they were "Human beings".

The baby asked, "But why are they fighting with each other".

The mother said "These human beings going to temple are called 'Hindus' and the people going to Church are called 'Christians' and the people going to Mosque are called 'Muslims'.

The Baby pigeon asked, "why is it so? Look, when we were in the Temple we were called Pigeons, when we were in the church we were called Pigeons and when we were in the Mosque, we were called Pigeons. Similarly they should be called just 'Human beings' wherever they go".

The mother Pigeon said, 'You and me and our Pigeon friends have experienced God and that's why we are living here in a highly elevated place peacefully. These people are yet to experience God. Hence they are living below us and fighting and killing each other".

This story, I think, answers our questions on who we should have been. 

Joseph Mattappally