A Stitch in Time

The study of the lives of many great men and women of the world reveal that they were not great because they occupied high positions, had more riches or earned fame. Their greatness lied in the manner in which they attended to the small matters. I am fortunate in the sense that I have studied many biographies and autobiographies of such people, and learnt many useful things from them. The three great persons who have influenced me the most are Kabir, Swami Vivekananda and Mahatma Gandhi. Each of them had their own greatness but one quality which is common to all great persons is their simplicity. However, everyone is not able to appreciate the joy of those who lead a simple life. 

I have been trying to imbibe this quality in me ever since I came in touch with these great persons through books. I am fully convinced that the main secret of our happiness is our simplicity. Lesser the needs, greater is the measure of our joy. I also believe that lesser needs need not necessarily mean deprivation in any respect. On the other hand, such life is self-preserving and mutually beneficial. When we consume only as per our need, others get their share in a natural manner, creating greater happiness all around. My experience is that there is always a scope for reducing our needs without compromising on comfort or happiness. I am going to support this with a very simple event of my life. In April 2008, I was to go on a personal visit to Dubai for about five days. While I was preparing for the visit, I noticed that my bathroom chappals were not in a very good condition and it appeared risky to carry them for the trip. Since I keep only one pair of chappals, the only alternative was to buy a new pair. As I was going to act on this, a thought came to my mind that why should I not get my chappals stitched to avoid any risk of it breaking apart. I then did the same and by spending only a rupee or two, my fear was gone. The chappals gave me no problem during the visit and I felt quite happy about my decision. The chappals then lasted for more than a year without any problem. 

This is just one example of the extent of simplicity one can go for. It is only a question of paying little attention to little things. But today’s world is so materialistic that such issues have no priority for most of us and we acquire material things without assessing our needs. In the process, we not only deprive others of their needs but also add to our own worries. No wonder, the happiness level is going down with the rise in income levels. 

As a student, I had read a proverb that said, ‘a stitch in time saves nine’. For me, it became literally true. One timely stitch of my chappal saved my ninety rupees at least for one year.

Rakesh Mittal I A S

Donate Blood

Blood cannot be manufactured, it can only come as a gift from a person. One thoughtful move from us can save a life. Patients undergoing surgery, experiencing heavy blood loss due to accidents, liver cirrhosis or other diseases require immediate blood transfusions in order to save their lives. There is a need to encourage regular blood donation. If all eligible donors donate on a regular basis, blood needs would be met and there would be no shortages in blood banks.

It is a completely safe process. A sterile disposable blood collection bag is used only once for each collection. Blood donation is not a tedious procedure. Skilled and specially trained technicians perform the procedure and take just a few minutes. It is a simple four step process which includes registration, medical history, donation and refreshments. An average adult has about 10 pints of blood in his body and roughly one pint is given. One can donate either whole blood or specific components of blood only.

There are no harmful effects of blood donation. Within a period of 24-48 hours, the same amount of new blood gets formed in the body which helps the donor in many ways. His own body resistance improves, the circulation improves and it can reduce the risk of heart disease, especially among youngsters. A healthy person can donate blood once in three months.

However, a donor should be above eighteen years of age, should not be underweight, should not be suffering from any infectious or chronic diseases such as diabetes or hypertension. Pregnant women should also not donate blood. All donated blood is tested for infectious diseases before being used at the hospitals.

Majority of world’s population do not have access to safe blood. Each blood donation can help as many as three people. While you may be unable to donate blood, there are other ways you can help. You can help organize a blood donation drive, recruit other suitable donors or volunteer to help make donor’s experience a positive one. Monetary donations are another way to help.

Come forward and join in this great service to humanity.

Dr (Mrs) Archana Bharat

Spiritual Living

Christ said: “Your heart is where your treasure is”. No one can dispute this statement. From our own experience we know this statement is true. So the remedy suggested in the Holy Scriptures (New Testament of the Bible) is to store our treasure where moth and rust will not destroy, where thieves will not steal. Where is this storage place? It is the inner cave of our heart where our heart, mind, and the Holy Spirit meet. And what is our imperishable, most precious treasure? It is doing God’s will. How is this will revealed to us? This will is communicated to us through our conscience constantly, instantly. Conscience is our innermost self that is the most essential part of our self, is our  bridge with God, and makes us who we are.

Sigmund Freud, who more than anyone else gave psychology a distinct identity and brought it to the modern era through his psychoanalysis called conscience, super-ego. According to his psychoanalytic theory, superego is one of the three components of our personality. Super-ego gives direction to personality. It is the reservoir of internalized ideas consciously or unconsciously absorbed or acquired from our environment from the moment of our conception and birth till about the age of five when superego emerges. Erik Erikson, a developmental psychologist with a psychoanalytic background, extended psychosocial development over the entire life time. His eight stages of human growth are extremely helpful in understanding human personality. For our purpose here, a well-formed conscience would consist of consciously acquired and accepted internalized ideas from the environment beginning with parents, teachers, religious preceptors, universal moral and ethical principles, and human rights, all of which help form a world-view and a definite way of living. A person with that kind of conscience is never in doubt as to what he/she is supposed to do in any given situation. I give great importance to conscious and thoroughly examined acquisition of ideas and values that guide one’s formation of conscience because the overwhelming majority of persons has conscience that is programmed for them in an unexamined way by their contemporary culture, religious affiliation, and various loyalties. 

When I left institutionalized, formal religious life in the Society of Jesus after about 25 years, a set of very valid questions that came from very well-intentioned persons, who really had my welfare in their hearts, were: “How can you do it? How can you be so disloyal after such an expensive education? And my consistent answer was that in my discernment the same God called me to the Jesuits allowed me to leave the Jesuits, and follow the Lord outside the Society of Jesus. My desire to serve God and God’s people has not changed. I said I am more determined than ever to follow God’s will. In other words, I am always doing my hard homework to do God’s will. Also Mother Teresa had her critics when she left her religious order to work for the destitutes. The simple truth is that our conscience is formed according to unquestioned and unexamined values and thoughts imposed by authority figures and our traditions and cultural milieu. Thinking changes with the times, so do we. The calamity is not to leave a situation due to fear, insecurity, or disapproval of significant others when leaving is appropriate for that person. Young men who fled their own country (USA) and went to Canada to dodge being drafted into Vietnam war due to their conscience were proved to be right at the end. Hitler who eliminated about 6 million Jews exclusive of many others could not have done the holocaust without the active or passive support of fearful or unthinking Christians (Catholics and Protestants). Thus our programmed conscience can get numbed by fear or false loyalties. No parent can own his/her children. No state or organization can own the loyalty of its members against one’s conscience. Everyone is sovereign while everyone needs to obey legitimate authorities and legitimate laws promulgated by democratically elected officers. Even here no one can be coerced to obey a legal law that is immoral. Examples of legal laws not too long ago that were immoral were laws related to untouchability, caste system and violations of rights (India) slavery and violations of rights (USA).

A person living a spiritual life would not discriminate against anyone on the basis of gender, color, race, religion, nationality, ethnic origin, class and physical gifts or accomplishments. This person will not violate any human’s rights. For that person there is one overriding thing. That is to do God’s will. That alone is holy and spiritual living. Everybody has connection with God. No mediation such as a saint or a God-man or God-woman is required for this special connection. It is our own ignorance and spiritual poverty that is exploited in market, commercial, and misguided spirituality. If we are ready and disposed, God is always ready to connect with us for spiritual living. Doing God’s will and serving humanity whom God embodies with all its distortions are the only two things worth doing in life.

Swami Snehananda Jyoti

Neo Five Element Theory

When I attended sessions from many holistic healers, the concept of five element theories was often over stressed. I also heard from them various related theories and the so called deep analysis of why those five elements form the basis of the constitution of this universe. The most commonly explained five elements are Earth, Water, Fire, Air and Space. The fifth one is also equated to either sky or to some void space called aether. Some theories even define the sixth element as the “consciousness” or “Chetna”. 

Chinese five element theory, Wu Xing, that is concerned with the processes and changes identifies Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal and Water as five elements. Greeks define basic four elements Earth, Water, Fire and Air for constitution of things on earth and the fifth one aether for all heavenly bodies. Leading from Buddhists impression of standard five called ‘Godai’, Japanese also added the sixth one as ‘nether’ representing darkness or death. I was told by my chemistry teacher that these five elements are only the notional elements. The real elements are listed in the periodic table given by Mendeleev and then later updated till date to show 118 elements. Today, modern science recognizes many sub-atomic particles up till the recently discovered one the Higgs-boson or the GOD particle. Media advertised this discovery in a way, as if the core constituent of universe has been found. After a deeper look at the situation prevailing now, may it be the general theory of relativity, quantum theory or string theory, one can easily understand that the search for core constituents of anything or everything in this universe is far from over. 

Let me now try to categorize things based on the perceptions I have formed after reading a lot about modern thought processes on this issue. As the first constituent I will put “Matter and Energy”. This is because, both are inter-convertible. As the second constituent place of this list I shall give to “Space” that was called aether in some older theories. Something, where all other constituents are suspended. It could be space between neutrons or protons or space between stars. The third place I shall give to “Time”. I believe that modern theories have given sufficient proof that time is also something that is one of the core thing connecting this universe. 

The fourth one I intend to give to “Dark matter and Dark Energy”. This is something we are still struggling to find, but we are sure that these are there. This is simply because we know that the mass of the universe is far higher than the mass of the matter we know. And finally the fifth place in this neo elements list, I shall give to Life or Consciousness. I consider Life or Consciousness as an entity without which this universe cannot be treated as complete. Life certainly is something that is elementally different from other elements I discussed above. Finally the new five elements list looks like Matter & Energy, Space, Time, Dark Matter & Dark Energy and Life.

This list could have been made a seven or eight point list, but to philosophically relate it to the traditional magic number five, this has been summed up as a “Neo Five Element Theory”. Please do not discard this right away. Google again, think again, debate with yourself and come-up with your own list. One can even attempt to build better holistic healing principles based on this neo five element theory.

Dr. Sunil Ji Garg

Benefit

“When one door closes, another opens; but we often look so long  so  regretfully upon the closed door that we do not see the one which has opened for us.” – Alexander Graham Bell

Look at every situation as an opportunity and not a disgrace. Who knows what is going to unfold to us?  Often we condemn the opportunities and close the door, and closing it forever and kill it at the start itself. Be little patient and try to extract the best out of every opportunity that you get rather than killing it at the start. Try to learn something from everything that happens in life. Each event brings us a learning associated with it. If we are able to see it in the right perspective, we have gained something. Confront every situation with a question to yourself: what am I going to benefit/gain out of this? How does this particular event help me to enhance my personality and my life? So let us try to find something good and meaningful even in the worst of adversities which will make the life worth living and rejoicing. Don’t wait for extraordinary opportunities. Seize common occasions and make them great. Weak men wait for opportunities, strong men make them.

Appu was travelling through the countryside in a hot afternoon, he had to walk a long distance to reach the next village. After walking for some time he got tired and felt very thirsty. There was neither a house nor a well nearby to quench his thirst. However, he thought of taking rest for a while which would temporarily give some kind of relief. Appu went and sat under huge tree. As he was tired and body was weak he started feeling drowsy and began to doze. After a while some kind of shrill noise woke him up from the nap. It was a crow chasing a squirrel and the latter was jumping from one branch to the another to save his life. Appu really cursed the creatures for disturbing the nap. As the squirrel was jumping it happened to land on a branch which was already heavy with ripened mangoes and a ripened   mango fell right in front of Appu. Tired and weary Appu grabbed the mango fruit and refreshed himself. Then he said to himself, “rather than blaming the situation I should learn to benefit from every situation and event without judging”.

Sr(Dr) Lilly Thokkanattu SJL

Krishna on Bondage 4

We believe everything happens according to our desires and expectations. We are like that crazy old man of a fable I heard from a great master. This crazy old man lived her whole life in a village. But one fine morning he left the village in anger, cursing the villagers for lack of recognition for him and he promised to teach a lesson. He said, “I am taking with me the cock at whose crowing the sun rose here every morning. Now the sun will rise in another village where I am going.” And the story says when the old man reached another village and his cock crowed and the sun rose, he said to himself, “The idiots of that village must be weeping bitter tears, because the sun is now rising in this village and they are in dark forever.” The old man’s logic is flawless. There was no doubt left in his mind that sunrise depended on his cock’s crow. But no cocks become victim of such illusions, only their masters. This fable reflects human mind. 

The future comes on its own. We cannot prevent tomorrow from becoming today. Let us do our work and do it completely. That itself is enough. The act must be total and this is the whole of Krishna’s teaching. By total action he means, once we have done our thing we are finished with it. There is nothing more to be done about it. And if something remains to be done, even if we have to wait in expectancy of its result, then the act is not total. Our act is complete in itself when we don’t look forward to some reward, some recognition or even appreciation. For this reason Krishna says, “Leave the fruit of labour to God.” By God he does not even mean there is some accountant-cum- controller general sitting somewhere in the heavens who will take care of it on our behalf. Leaving it to God means: please do your work and leave it at that, leave it to existence.   

Existence is like a mountain which echo’s every sound uttered around it. We don’t have to wait prayerfully for the echo, after making the sound, it will happen on its own. To produce an echo, a proper sound of some volume is needed. This is how the desire for result, the tension caused by desire and expectation does not allow us to do our work rightly. People among us who are anxious for results often miss the moment of action itself. Because the moment of action is now and here, while the results lies in some future. So those of us whose eyes are set on the future are bound to miss the present. Then we don’t love our work, we love only the result. Then we don’t give our whole heart and mind to action- we do it reluctantly and haphazardly. If our attention is focused on future- and we are where our attention is- then we cannot be totally in the present. And that which is done inattentively cannot be deep and total. So it cannot be blissful. 

Let us introspect this and more elaborate answers to come in weeks that follow!

Wishing you good health & happiness,

Dr. Dwarakanath, Director, Mitran foundation- the stress management people

Went Without Dinner

Many times, I travel from my hometown Muzaffarnagar to Lucknow by Nauchandi Express. This train runs from Saharanpur to Allahabad and is very convenient at least for the above journey. Leaving at about 6:15 p.m., it reaches Lucknow early in the morning. Thus, it is quite efficient in terms of the time taken. It has no AC first class compartment and also no pantry car. I, therefore, carry my simple packed dinner and eat it at the next stop in Meerut, where it stops for about half an hour. I also don’t bother any official of my department at Meerut mainly because I don’t want to be disturbed by them. 

During one such journey, I had just finished my food when a senior officer of a particular department boarded the train at Meerut and occupied a berth just opposite to mine. Being the head of his department, a large number of local officers along with other officials had come to see him off. They all were trying to please him and had brought a lavish dinner for him from a good restaurant of the town. Since the officer knew me and my designation, he was feeling somewhat embarrassed also, particularly when there was none to take care of me. However, I was amusingly watching all this and enjoying my reading, which is my main occupation during such journeys. 

As soon as the train left the Meerut station, the officer started settling down. First of all, he arranged his dinner packets properly and while doing so offered me his food, which was obviously in plenty. Since I had already had my dinner, I politely declined the offer and got engrossed in my reading. After a few minutes, he got ready to have his dinner and started opening the packets. I noticed that as he opened a packet, he immediately closed it and kept aside. He did the same with other packets also and eventually, kept all the packets beneath his berth. This created some anxiety in me and I enquired from him as to what went wrong with the food. He hesitatingly told me that all the packets contained non-vegetarian food and since it was a Tuesday, it was of no use to him. The poor fellow, therefore, had to go without dinner. May be he took some snacks at the next stop of the train. 

This incident has a message in it. Firstly, simple requirements should not be made complicated. Secondly, there should be proper communication in case of personal requirements, more so, when they are made by those whom you don’t know closely. Thirdly, too much expectation from your subordinates quite often becomes troublesome. I don’t know whether the gentleman travelling with me learnt any of these or not, but my decision of carrying packed food and not bothering my subordinates unnecessarily certainly got reinforced. 

Rakesh Mittal I A S