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Who Needs God?

I am closing this book with this lesson. Many years ago, I read a book titled Who Needs God? written by Harold Kushner, the author of a famous book called When Bad Things Happen to Good People. Since then I have been contemplating over the subject deeply, but frankly speaking, the true concept of God is still not clear to me. I think that it is a mystery for most. Everyone has his own perception of God and proceeds from there. Perhaps, God is not comprehensible for mortals like us. All my contemplation has led me to believe that there is a higher being like God whom we need sometime or the other. Even those who deny the existence of God think of Him, though in a different form. I shall try to give an answer to the question ‘Who Needs God?’ and for this I quote a portion of the introduction from the book which goes like this:
“I deal with bright, successful people, people I genuinely like and admire, and I sense that something is missing in their lives. There is a lack of rootedness, a sense of having to figure things out by themselves because the past cannot be trusted as their guide. Their celebrations, from their children’s birthday parties to a daughter’s wedding to a business milestone, can be lots of fun but rarely soar to the level of joy. And as they grow older, I suspect they either confront or actively hide from confronting the thought that ‘there must be more to life than this.’
“There is a spiritual vacuum at the centre of their lives, and their lives betray this lack of an organising vision, a sense of “this is who I am and what my life is fundamentally about.” Some look for that centre in their work, and are disappointed when corporations choose not to repay the loyalty they demanded or when retirement leaves them, feeling useless. Some try to it in their families, and don’t understand why they are so hurt when adolescent children insist, ‘Let me lead my own life!’ and adult children move to another state and call every other Sunday. And for some reason, it never occurs to them to ask, ‘How did previous generations find meaning in their lives?’
‘For almost thirty years, I have tried to show my congregants how much more fulfilled they would be if they made room for their religious tradition in their lives. I have urged them to do it, not to make God happy but to make themselves happy. I have told them the Hassidic story of the man who got a telegram telling him that a relative had died and left him some valuable property. He was to contact the rabbi for details. Excited, he went to the rabbi, only to be told that the relative was Moses and the valuable property was the Jewish religious tradition. And much of the time, they reacted as I suspect the man in the story did, disappointed that their legacy was religious wisdom and not downtown real estate.
“This book is the product of those years of thinking and teaching on the issue of what we lose when we become too intellectual or too modern to make room for religion in our lives. It is about what has happened to the souls of modern men and women under the impact of modern life, what we have lost in the process of gaining personal freedom and material comfort. But more than that, it is the summary of what my own life has been about, what has gotten me through bad times and taught me how to celebrate the good times, how I have learned to recognise the extraordinary things that even the most ordinary lives contain.
“The thesis of this book is that there is a kind of nourishment our souls crave, even as our bodies need the right foods, sunshine, and exercise. Without that spiritual nourishment, our souls remain stunted and undeveloped. In the physical realm, we understand that our ancestors’ hard physical work built muscles and burned off calories, but today we are the victims of a modern lifestyle, so we need to diet, to jog, to work out at the gym. So, too, the kind of spiritual communion our forebears knew is less accessible to us because the world is so noisy and full of distractions, because we are so dazzled by our power and success, because religion in the late twentieth century is often badly packaged or presented by people we cannot trust or admire.”
I feel that this extract is enough to convey my message. We all have some vacuum in our lives, howsoever fulfilled we may feel. It is only God who can fill this vacuum and make our lives meaningful. It is a different matter that some of us may fail to see or pretend not to see the vacuum, but all of us do need God.

God And The Government

For all rational people, God is the greatest mystery despite the fact that He is said to be omnipotent and omnipresent. It is also said that God is present in all things sentient as well as non- sentient. If it is so what is His form and where does He live? This is a question which comes and should come to every thinking mind. Most of us accept God in the form, our mind has been trained to believe by our observation of family and social traditions. Some form their opinion by the study of books both authentic and not so authentic. No wonder God is conceived in different forms by different people resulting into more and more confusion. I have myself been quite confused about the concept of God and have contemplated a lot on the subject. In this brief write up I am trying to narrate the outcome of my contemplation on God.
In India, most of the people still believe in personal Gods. For them God has a definite form either human or non-human. They believe that God is a kind of super ruler and behaves that way. He has the power of rewarding as well as punishing. People also believe that God can be pleased by their external acts and in order to seek His blessing they indulge in all sorts of rituals. If their wishes are granted fully or partially they feel that the God is kind and just. But if their wishes are not granted despite their rituals, they even call Him cruel and unjust. Those who think rationally refuse to accept such an arbitrary God and in the process stop believing in the existence of God itself. I feel that this write up may be helpful for them though I also feel that many such rational people must have their own concept of God. The problem is further compounded by the fact that God is invisible through external senses and any discussion about Him can only be appreciated at level higher than that of senses. With this background let me speak about my concept of God.
According to me God is akin to a Government. As a Government runs the administration of a country or a province or a district, in the same way God also runs the administration of the Universe. We must appreciate that there are laws of Universe which have to be followed or complied with properly. If it is not so there shall be greater disorder and the living will become impossible. There has to be some power which must be controlling all these laws of the Universe. I feel that God is this power and that is why it is called omnipotent. However, here omnipotent does not mean to be arbitary. Such a great power like God can never be arbitrary. God's purpose is to ensure that Universal laws are followed by everyone and if there is any defaults, corrective action is taken accordingly. We may call such actions by any name like punishment or cruelty but God does not inflict them with any such intention. He only ensures the enforcement of laws in order to run the Universe. Similarly there is no such thing as reward and everyone only reaps the fruits of his or her actions. This way God is the most neutral entity which neither distributes any awards or inflicts any punishment but only ensures that everyone gets his due. There may be phase difference between our timings and His timings and that is why at times there is delay in the system of awards or punishments. Some of us may interpret it as God's injustice or arbitrariness but the fact is that virtue is always rewarded and evil is always punished. While there may be exceptions and failures in the system of human Government, there is no such chance in God's Government. Thus while God is all powerful, His exercise of power is governed by fixed Universal laws and there can be no arbitrariness. This way God is very much like an ideal Government, which is supposed to make laws and ensure their compliance in order to run the society smoothly.
Now we come to the omnipresence and invisibility of the God. For this also we have to understand the nature of the Government. After all whom do we call Government in a geographical unit be it a country, a province or a district. If we think deeply no single person can be called Government and whosoever is carrying out the function of the Government, he or she is the Government at that place. It may be a Minister, a Collector, a Police Official, a Tax Official, a Peon or any other functionary of the Government. While the nature of their jobs or level of powers may vary, but all of them perform the duty of the Government at their respective places. This way Government instead of being concentrated in a single person is spread in all its constituents. This is not the case only with sentient constituents, it is so with non-sentient components also. That is why a vehicle, a piece of furniture and all the articles belonging to a Government office also become part of the Government. Seen this way, Government is something which is manifested in all its constituents while as a single entity it is always invisible.
The same thing applies to God. God being the Government of the Universe is also manifested through all its creation sentient as well as non-sentient. Whatever God does is through its constituents only. When God helps someone, He does so through some of its creature and also when He punishes some of us, He does so through some different creature. Thus the whole system of creation is so interwoven that each of the units carries out the function of God only. This is perhaps each creation is said to be a part of God only and one who sees God in all is Godly in true sense. This way God is nothing but the sum total of the creation and that is why it is called “Paramatma" while its constituents are called “Atmas". Since the creation of God is present everywhere, God is also omnipresent. Also God is so subtly present in its creation that it is not possible to see or experience Him easily. That is why it is Invisible to most of us.
Somehow I find that this explanation of God clarifies all possible doubts about Him. Hence I am sharing it with others. However, everyone is entitled to his or her own version of God. Surely it does not affect the reality and God will continue to be what It is. To me it only shows that God is really incomprehensive for little minds like us and even we all together fail to describe God in totality.

GURU-POORNIMA

I was in the holy company of my spiritual master Swami Bhoomananda Tirtha on the auspicious occasion of ‘Guru-Poornima’ on 5th July, 2001 at ‘NARAYANASHRAMA TAPOVANAM’ in Trichur (Kerala). On this day, after the worship of the Guru, a message was given by him to his disciples. The message is always deep and helps a lot for further progress. I am hereby giving the extract of my master’s message on this ‘Guru-Poornima’, pointwise and in brief.
1. We should always keep in mind that we are not the body. Body is mortal but we are not. This thought alone can take us to the pedestal of wisdom and our life can become truly fulfilled.
2. Only our ‘Guru’ can address us as immortal and no one else including the parents and school teachers. Guru sees the immortal in us and can make us feel immortal.
3. The truth of our being immortal was discovered countless generations ago and will remain so for countless generations. This is the true spiritual wisdom.
4. All wealth perishes but the wealth of spiritual wisdom does not and lives from generation to generation. Only if we are able to realise this truth in life, life becomes meaningful. In fact, this alone is the central message of Bhagvad Gita.
5 We should remember that destruction is never in the nature of nature. Nature only knows transformation and evolution. This being so, whatever happens in life should be welcome. The fact is that we learn more from the loss than from gain. Tragedies of life are not to be ignored or laughed upon, they are to be endured.
7. Spiritual infection has to begin in everyone’s life some day or the other. This call of spirituality is the most important call of life. Fortunate are those in whose life this call comes early.
8. Guru-Poornima is an occasion to assess our progress and make necessary correction or modification in the journey of spiritual progress.
9. We should take necessary care of body. It should be fed, clothed and kept appropriately. All this should never mean that we become the body and neglect the immortal part of us.
10. Desire, fear, greed and all other negative impulses are part of life. They have to be understood well and transcended. Once we understand their genesis, the transcendence becomes easy.
11. ‘Guru-Shishya’ relationship should grow with time. It is a very precious association. A Shishya is a member of Guru’s family.
12. All duties carried out with devotion is a part of divine service and a step towards spiritual progress. The purpose of each activity is to dissolve ego and become weightless. This is the essence of entire spirituality.
13. Progress in spiritual path means expansion of mind so that the entire creation of God appears as one family. Guru helps in such an expansion of mind. Once this happens, realisation of our immorality is a natural outcome.
With this message Swamiji blessed all the devotees.

The Photograph Has Changed

I belong to a town in district Muzaffarnagar of U.P. After initial education in my hometown, I studied there for five years before going to Roorkee University for my Engineering degree. Fortunately I have kept myself in touch with all these places and frequently visit them. As a result I have a good number of friends and well-wishers at all these places.
As is its nature, life has seen lot of changes during this period. Perhaps it has been more so in my case. After passing Engineering, I did not stay in that profession for long and shifted to Indian Administration Service. In this service also I was assigned U.P. Cadre which provided me opportunity to visit my home town and the district frequently. I also developed interest in the spiritual aspect of life and its relevance to day to day life. This made me to think deeper and I started interpreting day to day event from spiritual viewpoint. Soon these thoughts took the shape of books which draw attention of many. This also became helpful in adding my friends and well-wishers.
One such addition is in the form of a group at Muzaffarnagar consisting mostly of local doctors. All of them are not only successful in the career but are also blessed with the quest of seeking truth. This common interest brought us together and whenever occasion comes we meet to share our views. It is always an elevating experience and greatly helps me in contemplation.
During one of such interaction a very interesting observation was made by one of the participant. Two of my books had different photograph at the back cover. There was a gap of about eight years between them and naturally they appeared different. Noticing this difference, he made a very natural saying “Your photograph has changed.” Somehow this phrase drew my deeper attention and we shifted our discussion to this interesting aspect of life.
We all know that out photograph is only a sketch of our outer personality and that too of only the body. The body keeps changing every moment but the change is so slow that we hardly notice it. Only over a period of time, these changes of body are noticed and a day comes when it totally vanishes. However, all through this period from birth to death, there is something which is permanent and does not change. That is why we always address ourselves as ‘I”. Most of us waste our time and energy only on the vanishing part of our existence that is the body. Only fortunate few pay attention to the permanent part which is beyond bodily existence. Once our quest is directed to this aspect of the personality, all conflicts which belong only to the body start disappearing and we reach the state of bliss in increasing manner. Greater is the quest and effort, greater will be the achievement in this direction. We then rise above the changes of the body which in any case has to undergo this process. If so, why not to spend our energy on the development of our inner personality which gets refined with time, contrary to the outer personality which diminishes with time despite all our efforts. This is what is known as spiritual search or the process of self-realisation. Once on this path, photograph changes cease to be the cause of worry and we make best use of our energy both physical as well as spiritual.

Answers of Our Problems

Life is like a book of mathematics. There are many chapters in it and as we go to higher classes the lessons become more complicated. If we fail to understand the principles right in the beginning, the lessons appear more complicated. In all the chapters, the principles are explained first and then some solved examples are given. After understanding both, we are supposed to solve unsolved problems. The real test of our knowledge comes there. Based upon our understanding of the principles and the solved examples given in the book we are able to tackle the sums. Every problem has a solution and there is a definite answer for each. The only difficulty is that we may not know them though they are given at the back of the book.
The same is true with life. What we learn from the book of life and its solved problems is to be used for handling many unexpected and troubling situations. If lessons from the book of life are not understood properly or we are not attentive while our problems are being solved by others, we find life miserable and all its problems remain as they are. We then start blaming the world instead of enjoying it. If, on the other hand, we carefully understand the principles of life and apply them to real-life problems, life becomes enjoyable and enriching. Each problem of life has a solution and an answer. It is a different matter that we may not know it. God only hides it till the end of the book of life.
Let us, therefore, not consider that our problems do not have a solution. If the solution is given to us by someone else, the whole charm of life will go. There may not be an immediate answer to some problems but the answer definitely exists, and it may only take a little longer to reach them. Maybe, we have to learn how to read the book of life better.

Room for Improvement

I started writing about my experiences of life and lessons learnt from them from the year 1990. In that year the ‘Kabir Peace Mission’ had been founded. The purpose of creating such a mission was to develop positive thinking in the society. The mission also decided to bring out a small quarterly journal in the name of Kabir Jyoti. Basically, it was a compilation work with contents taken from various sources. However, I used to contribute an article in each issue based on my experiences in life. The objective was to draw a positive message from every experience. In due course, I developed a fondness for writing and inspiration came quite naturally.
In 1991, I went to Delhi on central deputation and since then the process accelerated. By the end of 1994, I had a good collection of my writings. My friends and well-wishers spoke well about the style and the message of my articles. What they liked most was that the message was based on real-life experience and it was narrated in a short and simple manner. They also advised me to get them printed in the form of a book. This encouraged me to think along those lines. By this time I had developed a good communication with my publisher and my first book Dictionary of Positive Thoughts had already been published by him. However, there was a difference between the two books. The first one was a compilation of thoughts taken from various sources and there was hardly anything personal about them except the selection. The latter book, on the other hand, were totally personal views meant to inspire others. Since one could never be sure of their impression on the readers, I decided to further test their effect on various readers. To do so I prepared a few sets and circulated them among those whom I considered balanced and mature enough for a reliable feedback.
Almost all those who went through the articles gave me a positive feedback and, therefore, I decided to go in for their publication in the form of a book. When approached, the publisher immediately agreed to do so. I had also given a set to my spiritual master for his blessings and guidance. While approving the idea of publication, he advised me to pay greater attention towards the editing of the book and I took his advice seriously. Then I was to decide about the ‘Foreword’ for the book. For this, I requested my then Director of the National Academy of Administration, for whom I had a high regard and who also knew me well. He gladly agreed and wrote a very inspiring ‘Foreword’. He was generally appreciative of the language and did not mention anything about the editing. At this stage the book was sent for editing. The person chosen for this purpose was someone who had worked for the Hindustan Times. I had a few sittings with him before he started the work of editing. He was very serious about his work and took great pains in doing his job. When the manuscript was returned to me by him, I found it so much corrected that for a moment I was stunned. I could not believe that my language required that much correction. I was also not sure whether the edited draft carried the same meaning I intended to convey.
I discussed the matter with my wife who also felt the same way. Then the thought came to my mind that I should carefully go through the corrected draft and I did so patiently. I noticed that the corrected draft was much better though here and there it also changed the original intentions, therefore, decided to moderate it further and to come up with something in between. My publisher also advised me to do the same. As a result, the whole exercise was carried out again and I had to rewrite the whole thing in the light of the editor’s correction. The final draft, which came out as a result of this exercise, turned out to be much better both in terms of precision and content. The editor himself was quite happy and approved it for publication.
The lesson learnt from this incident is that there is always scope for improvement in whatever we think or do. Most of us resist the idea of being corrected by others and it creates great disharmony in our lives. The fact is that we are not able to see ourselves in an objective manner, something which is possible only by our well-wishers. Their advice should therefore be taken in the right spirit. If we do so, our lives will turn out to be much more beautiful and harmonious. Someone has rightly said that
the biggest room in this world is the room for improvement. Saint Kabir also meant the same thing.
What can be a better lesson for self-improvement!

From Known to Unknown

I was posted at Gorakhpur in August 1980 as Regional Food Controller. This posting in itself was a turning point in my life. Before this I was at Meerut and was transferred to Lucknow in March 1980. The events turned in such a way that I had to seek a change only after a few months and went to Gorakhpur. My post at Gorakhpur was a regional one under the Divisional Commissioner. My Commissioner was a pious person and I worked with him for three years, in the final year as Collector in the same division. His personality left a deep mark on my life. Our families too came close together and developed a mutual liking. He had three daughters and one son, Amitabh, who was the youngest. The boy was bright and influenced all those who came in close contact with him by his manners, intelligence and courage. I, in particular, developed a great fondness for him which grew with time.
The boy did not enjoy good health right from his childhood. His body suffered from a lack of resistance, and soon it was found to be a kidney defect. At that time he had hardly entered his teens. He was operated upon for a kidney transplant which was donated by his mother. All through he displayed tremendous courage and continued his studies without much disturbance, thus giving hopes to all those who came in touch with him. Unfortunately, after a few years, the problem appeared again
and he had to undergo another kidney transplantation. This time the donor was his sister. The operation was successful, and soon Amitabh was full of courage and hope. He completed his graduation and joined the Indian Institute of Foreign Trade (IIFT) at New Delhi for his MBA course.
I had been in contact with Amitabh all through but the closer contact came in Delhi when he came to join IIFT. I was his local guardian and he used to stay with us frequently. My whole family had a liking for him and our affection grew as we came closer. I was deeply influenced by his courage and nicknamed him “Fighter”. At times we used to get depressed but he never displayed any sign of sadness or self-pity. Despite all his problems he never expected any help from others. Instead, he was a source of inspiration for them. I always felt the depth in him but not to its fullest extent. Occasionally, we used to discuss the philosophy of life but, perhaps, the generation gap was a barrier in reaching to his depths.
Soon after the completion of his MBA, Amitabh joined MMTC at Delhi and I was transferred to Calcutta. Our contact thus reduced to a great extent, though I continued to enquire about him. His body resistance had come down once again and it became difficult for him to continue at Delhi. As a result he had to shift to his parent’s home at Lucknow for a new job. However, things were gradually becoming difficult. I returned to Lucknow in July 1996 after my deputation and once again came close to Amitabh. By this time his condition had become serious. He had to discontinue his job and was confined to bed. I visited him several times and he used to feel very happy when I did. At times we said nothing, though we communicated a lot. Talking of courage and hope had lost its meaning as the outcome was known to him and to those around. Now it was only a question of facing the reality with courage and hope. He left for his unknown destination on 3 January, 1997, destined not to enjoy the new year.
Amitabh had grown very contemplative during his last years. Perhaps, he was always so but gave more expression to his thoughts towards the end of his journey. He used to do it silently and rarely shared his thoughts with anybody. Perhaps, he expected others to measure his depth and did not want to disclose it while he was alive. He left ample proof of his depth in the form of many jottings which are like pebbles on the vast seashore of life. One has to find, collect and understand them. They are the true measures of his depth. One such jotting goes like this: There are things Known, And things Unknown, And in between are the doors. Amitabh has conveyed the whole philosophy of life in these few words. The journey of life is always from known to unknown. Whether it is a mundane or spiritual matter, our goal is to know the unknown. It is only a question of finding the door, which definitely exists but someone has to show it to us. Amitabh has done the same by his physical extinction. He is like a “Guru’ described by Kabir in his ‘doha’. His father paid him a fitting tribute when he said: ‘Till his death he was my son and now I consider him to be my Guru’. Who says Amitabh died? Amitabh never dies. It only sets to rise again.

Dialling Code of God

The Brahma Kumaris Ishwariya Vishwa Vidyalaya organised a four-day All India Conference for Administrators, Executives and Managers from 12 to 15 October, 1996 at its international headquarters at Mount Abu in Rajasthan. This organisation had set up an ‘Academy for a Better World’ and called its campus ‘Gyan Sarovar’. It was a new complex located at Mount Abu and was the venue of the conference. The participants, exceeding six hundred in number, came from all over the country and from all kinds of organisations, government as well as non-government. The theme of the conference was “Value-Based Administration— Prospects and Challenges”. All the participants highly appreciated the contents as well as the arrangements for the conference.
This complex easily compared with any modern international venue while maintaining its serene and spiritual environment. The organisation of the conference was a part of the Diamond Jubilee Celebration of the Brahma Kumaris Organisation. I had the honour to attend the conference as a Guest Speaker. The Brahma Kumaris Organisation came up in the year 1937 and has since spread all over the world on account of its dedicated and useful services rendered in all fields. The main aim of the organisation is to make this world a better place to live in by making each human being a better person. The approach is to make each individual realise his true potential aseveryone is a child of God. Most of us forget this reality in the rush and clamour of the world and confine ourselves to our bodies only, while the true potential is in our ‘Atma’. The body is mortal while the ‘Atma’ is immortal and is a part of ‘Paramatma’ which is ‘God’ or ‘Supreme Reality’. This way we all are children of God and if we can establish this relationship, we develop Godly qualities and become better persons for society. Not only this, we enjoy tremendous peace of mind and all good qualities come to us effortlessly. Thus, we achieve true happiness which is never disturbed by the vicissitudes of the world.
While there were sessions on different aspects of administration and management addressed by eminent speakers from different fields, the day would begin with Raja Yoga classes. Raja Yoga is a way of connecting ourselves with God and in the process becoming our own king, living like a ’Raja’ irrespective of our external conditions. However, it is not as simple as it appears. For this, one has to make a very determined and sustained effort but it is worth the results. After all, even for transitory success in this worldly life, we face and tackle so many troubles while here we get something which is eternal. I feel that the Raja Yoga classes were the best part of the conference. The speaker who explained the principle of Raja Yoga was a very senior member of the Brahma Kumaris Organisation. Her deliberation was extremely logical and interesting. While I have no intention of going into the details nor am I capable of doing so, I am touching upon an interesting part of the talk on Raja Yoga.
For making contact with the Kingdom of God, we have to call Him up. To do so we must know His dial code but most of us do not know it. In Raja Yoga classes, this code was disclosed as ‘0001’ and it was beautifully explained. In our worldly connections also we now have STD codes. For reaching any part of our country the code begins with ‘0’ and if we want to reach the Kingdom that is New Delhi then ‘0’ is to be followed by ‘1’. Similarly, for international dialling, the code begins with ‘00’ and if we want to reach the Kingdom of the world which we can safely consider to be USA, then ‘00’ is again to be followed by ‘1’. In order to reach the Kingdom of God, one has to rise even above the world and therefore one more ‘0’ is required followed by ‘1’. Thus, by dialling ‘0001’ we reach the Kingdom of God and we may call it the dialling code of God.
While it is interesting when seen in a light vein, there is great depth in its connotations and very few are fortunate enough to reach the Kingdom, though everyone of us is capable of doing so. For this, one has to understand the meaning of the zeros of the code. The zeros mean that in order to rise above the world, we have to reduce ourselves to zeros at various levels. It is like the launching of a rocket in which the ascent begins only after we count down up to zero. While in our worldly ascent, one zero is enough, we require three zeros for Godly ascent. The first zero implies that we have to give up material pleasures and have to develop detachment from them. It does not necessarily mean that we have to give them up physically. It only means that mentally they should have ‘zero’ meaning for us, if we wish to reach God. The second ‘zero’ implies that we have to rise above persons also. However pleasant a human relationship may be, it is only a body relationship and hence transitory. It is, therefore, essential to rise above all body relations, which means that we must reduce our human relations to zero. Again, it does not mean giving them up physically but mentally one has to be above them.
Having transcended material and body relations, one has to rise above the mind. It means that we must rise above our thoughts also. The thoughts arise in the mind which is a part of the body. Therefore, in order to reach the Kingdom of God, we have to transcend our own bodily senses completely. This is what is implied by the third ‘zero’. Having done so, we become one with God and that is what is meant by the digit ’1’. Thus the dial code of God very well explains the way to reach Him. It is a hard process and requires a great deal of determination on our part but the outcome is more than worth the efforts. According to me, this was the conclusion of the conference. The closer we reach God, the easier it is for us to imbibe the values and value-based administration becomes a natural outcome in all fields of life.

The Fall of Shivalik

After I joined at Calcutta in July 1994, I wanted to join a club for tennis. Calcutta is known for its clubs and there are many which provide good facilities for the game, the South Club of Calcutta being considered the best, as it has produced many national level players. I used to watch tennis in this club from the balcony of my friend’s house during my visits to Calcutta prior to my posting and always entertained a desire to play there. This wish of mine was fulfilled when a friend arranged for me to play there soon after I shifted to Calcutta. That friend himself, though bulky, was a good player of tennis and we soon developed a liking for each other.
My friend used to live in a five-storey building called “Shivalik” which was located in central Calcutta. His flat was on the fifth floor. Being somewhat bulky, he usually complained about it as the occasional climb up was arduous. l always advised him to look at the positive features of the flat and to accept gladly what providence had provided him. From the viewpoint of location and layout, it was a good flat and, therefore, he had all reason to feel happy. He, however, never took my word as seriously as I wished him to. The matter ended there.
After about a year, one morning, the newspapers of Calcutta carried the headlines about the sudden sinking of the “Shivalik” building into the ground. The news did not give a clear picture about the inmates and only mentioned that efforts were being made to rescue them. This created great anxiety and we tried to enquire about our friend. After sometime we learnt that he had been successfully rescued along with his wife and daughter. His only son also survived as he had left for IIT, Chennai, only a few days back. This gave us tremendous relief though it was eclipsed by the fact that all the inmates of the other flats died and it turned out to be a great tragedy in the city. The newspapers carried the news related to this mishap for many days. In due course, the builder was also arrested.
When I met my friend after the mishap, he had not fully recovered from the shock, but showed great respect towards the advice I used to give him about the flat. It was only because his flat was on the top floor, that he had survived the mishap. That was the only floor which remained above the ground, while the other four sank completely. Subsequent enquiries revealed that the foundation of the building had not been prepared properly which was why the soil had given way. Due to commercial
reasons, undue haste was also shown in the construction of the building. The Calcutta Municipal Corporation became more alert when sanctioning building plans after this accident.
I thought over this event from two points of view. One was the providential escape of my friend which changed his attitude greatly. The second was about the role of the foundation in the construction of a building. If the foundation is not prepared properly, there is always a danger of its falling. The same is true for nation-building. When I see the falling values in our nation, I always feel that, perhaps, something has gone drastically wrong in its very foundation. Therefore, there is a need to take corrective measures, otherwise the day may not be far away when its collapse will come like the fall of the “Shivalik” building of Calcutta. No purpose will then be served by complaining about the weak foundation. We must, therefore, learn appropriate lessons without any delay and start taking corrective steps. No beginning is too late. Our nation is great and has survived many a crisis in its long history because of its strong foundation. Now that the entire nation-building is on a weak foundation, the collapse is a very distinct possibility.
The same logic is applicable in the case of individuals, families and societies. If the very foundation of development is faulty, how can we think of a healthy development? In all these cases, it is the character which acts as the foundation. If we want strong and durable nation-building, there is no option but to have a strong foundation for the national character.

Inspiration from the Void

My two-year posting at Calcutta from July 1994 to July 1996 gave me a very good opportunity to go to various places in Bengal and also to meet a large cross-section of people with different backgrounds. Calcutta itself is a culturally rich city where material considerations are lesser than similar other cities in the country. It boasts of very good institutions here and one is likely to come across many great personalities as well as a wealth of information. I could not scan much of the city because of the nature of my job but despite that, I met many wise and learned persons and learnt valuable things from them. One such person was Pratap Chander Chunder who had been the Union Education Minister in the Janata Government of 1977, and was currently the Chairman of Bhartiya Vidya Bhawan, Calcutta Centre.
Once I visited P.C. Chunder with the Kendra Director, K.V. Gopalakrishnan. He lived in the old part of the city in his ancestral house. The family had been in the legal profession for generations and Shri Chunder himself was a practising lawyer at the Calcutta High Court. When we met him, he was sitting in his office. I found that his office furniture was very old and he himself appeared so simple that I was surprised. We talked on various subjects for about half an hour. During our discussion, some reference was made to the attitude towards life and I said that life was like a glass of water which is half full and half void and we should look at the filled portion of it. To this he gave a very interesting response by saying that the void portion is equally important as one can get a lot of inspiration from it. I could understand the point immediately and we did not discuss it further.
Subsequently, I contemplated over this piece of advice and tried to analyse it further. It is true that in this imperfect world, no life can be full in the true sense. However, making it full is the main objective of life and the imperfections of the world have to be seen as opportunities to do so. Seen from this viewpoint the void of life becomes very important because they set goals for us and make us strive to achieve them. While one should make the best use of what is already achieved, one has to work earnestly for what has yet to be achieved. The determination to do so comes only from the void portion. If one keeps looking at the filled portion only, such inspiration and determination may not come at all. Here we are not talking of the materialistic rat race of common parlance. The reference is to those achievements which help in taking us to the goal of life. Of course, needful material achievements also fall in this category. If we look at the voids of life this way, they can give us a lot of inspiration and gradually it should be possible to lead a totally fulfilled life. Such a life is a really enriched one and will help us reach the goal of life. The voids in the lives of others should also be seen in the same way and they should be inspired to fill them. Thus, we can help each other in making life richer and reduce the imperfection or the voids of the world.

Gandhiji’s Monkey

I was posted as the Managing Director of the UP Spinning Company at Kanpur in September 1989. Soon after I took charge, I had a very interesting visitor from an eastern district of UP — Ghazipur. He was completely blind and reached my office with great difficulty. He was a stranger to me and, therefore, I received him with some surprise. I could not guess what the purpose of his visit was. After he settled down on a chair, I politely asked him what he wanted. He said he had no purpose except to meet me. He had heard of me when I was the Collector of his neighbouring district about five years back and had developed a wish to see me. He was very happy to have fulfilled his wish that day, though it had been quite difficult for him to travel from Ghazipur and then to reach my office.
Accepting what he said, I switched on to a general discussion and asked about the cause of his blindness. He told me that he had lost his eyesight in his early childhood during an attack of smallpox. The way he narrated his story gave an indication that he had accepted the reality gracefully and had no bitterness in his mind. This encouraged me to ask a few more personal questions. When I asked whether he missed seeing the world around, he gave a very philosophical reply, saying that there was not much to see in this transitory world which was full of evil. By not being able to see, he was saved from this evil. As a result he always contemplated on God, to see Whom no physical eyes were required. I was touched by his answer and respected his philosophy. After sometime, he left my office and we never met again.
This visitor left a great mark on my mind and I usually reflect on what he said. This also remind me of Gandhiji’s three monkeys, one of whom keeps his eyes shut, the other his ears closed and the third his mouth. The significance of this is that one should avoid seeing evil, listening to evil and speaking evil. This is a necessary condition for inner growth which is the main objective of life. After all, a child is born with a pure mind but as he grows and has interaction with the outer world, his mind entertains evil thoughts which ultimately cause disharmony in society in addition to his own downfall. If, therefore, by some act of God or by controlling the mind, the influence of evil can be kept away, inner growth is accelerated. By this, the inference should not be drawn that in order to grow internally, one has to be physically blind, deaf or dumb.
This state is only symbolic. The ultimate requirement is to remain uninfluenced by evil either physically or mentally. The gentleman who met me had seen his disability in this light and made use of it for his inner growth. He was almost an illiterate person but had grown into a wise person by constant contemplation. To me he appeared to be a monkey of Gandhiji who kept his eyes closed in order to avert them from evil.

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 organised 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.

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 anglicised 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.

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.

Traffic Jam

The number of vehicles is increasing very fast in our country. Over a period of ten years, the total number of vehicles has gone up manifold and the trend continues. While it is a healthy sign of economic development, it is also creating many problems. In India, the road infrastructure has not kept pace with the increase in the traffic, resulting in the crowding of roads, particularly in big cities. Earlier, Calcutta was known for its traffic jams but now other metropolitan cities have become worse. In addition, the problem of pollution is also reaching unmanageable proportions. While legislative measures are being taken to tackle pollution, their poor implementation makes the situation worsen
day by day.
For few years I had the opportunity of living in Delhi and Calcutta. Quite often I also faced the problem of traffic jams. At times I was able to change my route or would not venture out, just to avoid traffic jams but normally they had to be faced. Once we get stuck in a traffic jam, it becomes very difficult to come out as a number of vehicles surround us and we have to follow the race. In such moments, I generally took a very amused view of the situation and compared it with the growing rat race in the society. This contemplation has taught me some valuable lessons.
In today’s materialistic world, the number of desires entertained is considered to be an important criterion of progress, and for most of us, it is the sole criterion. The increasing emphasis on consumerism is an indication of the acquisitiveness of today. Even the TV programmes are full of commercial advertisements and create the unnecessary desire to acquire more and more things. I compare this increase in the number of desires with the increasing number of vehicles on the roads. Like the number of vehicles, human desires have also increased manifold in recent times, resulting in a materialistic rat race. While the increase in the number of desires up to a certain extent and their fulfilment is a healthy sign, beyond a point they choke us materially, mentally as well as physically. It is more so when resources do not permit such an increase. This is like the road infrastructure in relation to the vehicle population. Unless the roads are widened accordingly or new roads are constructed, the increasing number of vehicles is bound to choke them. Similarly, unless our income increases proportionately or new sources of income are created, it is not possible to fulfil the increasing number of desires and they are bound to choke our resources. Comfortable living and the use of modern appliances can be quite helpful if one is able to afford them and also maintain a healthy mental attitude towards them. Such an attitude will not create the pollution of negative thoughts.
Unfortunately, this is not happening. The more we progress materially, the more we are becoming envious and jealous of each other. In the process, we are not always able to enjoy the fruits of our own progress, nor of others. Our negative thoughts keep polluting the environment and the pleasure of our acquisitions is also lost. We either take no steps to stop this mental pollution or do not act upon them. The situation is like taking legislative measures to control vehicle pollution without implementing them properly. Not many of us read good books or live in the company of wise people, who, in any case, have few followers.
It is also not possible to fulfil the increasing number of desires of all the people. In fact there are not enough resources to meet them. Unnecessary desires can be fulfilled only by a small percentage of people, thus creating disharmony. Generally, such desires cannot be met by honest means. The kind of corruption we see all around today is mainly due to unnecessary desires of the people. Even if one is able to fulfil such desires, in the final analysis, one finds them not worthwhile. By the time one realises so, it is too late and one has to endure the consequent agony, much like the situation of a person trapped in a traffic jam. He can neither move further nor change his path. All progress at that time comes to a halt.
What is the way out? The way out is to choose the correct goal, the correct path and the correct means of transport. A good number of vehicles on the road are moving without any goal, going from place to place due to restlessness. After choosing the correct goal, choose the right path. At times, the
goal is achieved quicker by taking a longer route which may be less crowded and it is not always necessary to be in the rat race. Also, do not change lanes every now and then, most traffic jams being due to such changes. The correct means of transport is also important. At times one can reach the destination quicker on foot than in a luxurious car. After all, the vehicle is just a means and not the end. Lastly, choose the correct timings. It is better to start early. Taking care of these factors, a traffic jam can be avoided to a great extent, be it on the road or in life. In that case even occasional jams can be enjoyed as they give us an opportunity to watch our own position closely.

Varilux Lens

My eyesight became weak at a very early age. However, no one took notice of it and my hints about not being able to see were not taken seriously. It was only when I went to the Government High School at the district headquarters at twelve years of age, that the Vice Principal advised me to get my eyes tested. As a result of this delay I had to wear high-powered glasses right from childhood. Subsequently, the power of the glasses increased further and they also became complex.
Like all other technologies, optical technology has advanced greatly in the last thirty years. My first pair of spectacles cost me only nine rupees in the year 1961 while the latest made me poorer by three thousand rupees in 1995. I parted with this amount with great hesitation. My optician had been pleading for it for quite some time, explaining the salient features of the latest glasses known as Varilux Lenses. These lenses are not only light but also have no dividing line between the short-sight and long-sight portions. Their power changes with the distance of the object seen. They are very convenient at an age when one has to wear complex glasses and more so for those whose jobs involve reading and writing. These glasses are not only efficient but also look good.
For some time, I questioned the wisdom behind spending so much for the spectacles. Only after I started feeling comfortable with the glasses and the memory of parting with a huge sum faded, did the questioning come to an end. I also looked at it philosophically and some very interesting lessons came to my mind. First of all, we should understand the working of an eye. It has a lens and a retina. When an object is seen, its image is formed on the retina which is then noticed by the mind. If for some reason, the image is not formed properly, it is known as an eyesight defect. This defect is corrected with the help of an external lens which is worn in the form of spectacles. Depending upon the nature of the defect, a suitable lens is fitted in them. With the advance in age, the defect becomes complicated and hence more complicated lenses are required. This is where technology has developed. Earlier, two separate spectacles were required for long-sight and short-sight. Subsequently, complex
lenses provided both powers in the same lens. Such a lens has a dividing line and requires some practice for adjustment. The latest technology takes care of both these problems. I am not very clear about the exact principle behind the working of a varilux lens but the fact is that its power changes with the distance in a manner which takes care of the movement of the eye. As a result, a correct image is always formed on the retina.
I feel a similar attitude has to be adopted in life also. The world we see around is very complex and if we see it with a fixed focal length, quite often we get aberrated images. Therefore, there is a need to change our attitudes according to the need of the situation so that the mind always receives a good image of the world. Thus, the attitude is like the lens and the mind is like the retina when compared with an eye. If one is able to develop enough wisdom (like optical technology), the change in the attitude with the changing surroundings can become a natural process. In that case, both good and bad can be accepted with equal ease. Living can then become natural and harmonious. The efforts made for such an achievement is worth the outcome. Having learnt this lesson, I stopped regretting the sum spent on my latest spectacles. Perhaps, the lesson is worth the amount, if not the spectacles.

Permanent or Less Temporary

I joined the IAS in 1975. Within twenty years of my service, I changed places twelve times and the number of posts held exceed even this. It had always been difficult to write my permanent address on any document. In the beginning, I gave one or two addresses as permanent but they were always care of someone else. With the change in the quality of relationship with them, the permanence of those addresses also lost its meaning. Twenty years is a long period in a life and career. Children grow up to adulthood and many family as well as social, responsibilities are added. The volume of personal papers and correspondence in various matters increases greatly. In several matters one has to give a permanent address from time to time. This need arose in my case also and I faced great difficulty in giving such an address, being constrained to give different addresses in different cases, depending upon the convenience at that point of time. It also became difficult for me to remember the address given in a particular matter. All this made me think seriously about settling down at a permanent address.
Fortunately, I had constructed a modest house at Lucknow in the year 1989. It gave me a reasonable rent which augmented my income at a time when expenses were at their peak. Notwithstanding this fact, I decided to settle down in my own house at the earliest, so that there would be no problem relating to a permanent address. Accordingly, I worked on those lines and shifted to my Lucknow house after the completion of my deputation in the Government of India in 1996. One day, while thinking over the plan to settle down in one place, a philosophical thought came to my mind. The question that arose was: ‘Would that really be my permanent address?’ The answer, naturally, was in the negative. At best, it would be a less temporary address compared to what I had been writing on forms and documents. After all, there is a limit to the time of stay even at a so-called permanent address. If this is so, how can we call it a permanent address? The world we live in is always changing and all events of life are transitory, so how can one think of a permanent address here ? In the final analysis, it becomes only a relative term.
This contemplation opened up my mind. Even though I have shifted to my own house, I have done so taking it not as a permanent address but only as a less temporary one.

Silver Jubilee

I graduated in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Roorkee (now an IIT) in the year 1970. This university celebrates the silver jubilee of all its students twenty-five years after they graduate. Thus our batch’s silver jubilee was celebrated in November 1995. I was looking forward to this day with enthusiasm and also made efforts to ensure that many colleagues attended. As a result, as many as one hundred and forty-three colleagues turned up. The celebration went on for the whole day and we had a wonderful time. We recollected our old memories, forgetting our present positions and behaved with each other like we did in our university days.
The University of Roorkee is an old institution with great traditions. Its alumni are generally very close and celebrations like these are held without exception. In addition to the silver jubilee, there is a tradition of celebrating a golden jubilee after fifty years and a diamond jubilee after sixty years of graduation. All these celebrations are held simultaneously. At the time of our silver jubilee, there were twenty-four participants for the golden jubilee and four for the diamond jubilee. It was a pleasure to
listen to their accounts of myriad experiences. All of them mentioned the traditions of the university, even though they had faded with time. I joined the university in 1966 at an early age after passing
the first year of my B.Sc. I had been a good student and had topped in the entrance examination. Till today, this event remains the most pleasant surprise of my life. I came from a semi-rural background with little exposure beyond my class and family. Therefore, joining the University of Roorkee as a topper was something for which I was not exactly prepared.
This university had a tradition of giving prominence to the topper, usually called ‘senior’ and he or she attracted the attention of all. I was no exception and became the victim of extra ragging as a result.
Fortunately, form of ragging in those days was healthy and it helped the new entrants to shed their inhibitions. I was not very studious and coped with my studies in a relaxed, natural way. I also participated in games and other activities. Fortunately, I maintained my first position through and stood first at the final examinations. I was also declared the best all-rounder of the university and got the Chancellor’s gold medal for that achievement. In all, I got nine medals and awards. Subsequently, I joined the IAS and was allotted the U.P. cadre. I was liked by most of my colleagues and they felt proud of my achievement. I noticed this during the silver jubilee celebration too. Twenty-five years is a long period in one’s life and that too, after graduation. This is the period when we have maximum interaction with the world which shapes our personality in the true sense. Close contact with colleagues is possible only rarely and most of us remember only some of their traits. This is true of everyone and one need not be upset if one’s personality is not correctly understood by others. This is more so in the case of those who look at life deeply and develop their personalities beyond body and mind. Incidentally, I am one of them and, therefore, try to see a deeper meaning in every interaction. The silver jubilee celebration was no exception and I drew two positive messages from this celebration.
The first is from the fact that even after twenty-five years, my colleagues had great regard for my maintaining the first position throughout my university stay. This fact was proudly mentioned by them whenever I was introduced to anyone. I feel that it is true for all those who maintain their positions, in whatever field they are. Be it in the field of business or any other profession, those who maintain high standards throughout are revered by all, notwithstanding professional rivalries. Of course, the additional requirement is that such positions should be maintained by fair and natural means. Those who keep on shifting their positions are hardly respected. In other words, it is the stability which gives a shining quality to one’s personality and this is respected by others.

Constructive Destruction

In September 1995, as Development Commission of Steel I accompanied by boss the Secretary (Steel) on has visit to Gujarat. It was a four-day visit covering a number of places. The visit was a combination of official work and a pilgrimage which made our schedule very hectic, and we had to travel long distances every day, starting early in the morning. This put pressure on our drivers also but fortunately they were very patient. One driver in particular was pious and seemed to have acquired wisdom as a result of his long faithful service. While travelling from Alang to Somnath, we were discussing several matters in which the driver also participated. During the course of the journey, he gave us a very interesting definition of GOD. The three letters of the word GOD, he said, show the three qualities or Gunas of the Almighty, ’G’ representing ’Generation’, ‘O’ representing ‘Operation’ and ‘D’ representing ‘Destruction’. This way they symbolised three in one name, Brahma, Vishnu and Mahesh. The function of Lord Brahma is to Generate, Lord Vishnu Operates while Lord Mahesh’s function is to Destroy. If any of these activities is ever stopped, the cycle of life will come to a standstill. Thus, all the three activities are Godly and have equal importance. This sounded very interesting as well as logical.
It is easier to accept Generation and Operation as Godly activities but it is not so when we think of Destruction. When I reflected on this, it became clear to me that even Destruction is a dynamic activity and a necessary link in the chain of life. It also took my mind to Alang, the place we had visited that morning. Alang is a small port in the state of Gujarat which is known for its’ ship-breaking industry. The special features of the beach make this place suitable for ship-breaking, an activity which has grown at a very fast rate during the past few years and has contributed greatly to the country’s economy. The industry is also a major supplier of raw material to certain industries in the steel sector. The scale of activity at Alang is enormous and one can appreciate this only after visiting the place. While taking us around, the representatives of the industry showed a sense of pride in their contribution to the growth of the steel sector and rightly so.
If we look at the ship-breaking industry from a different viewpoint, it is only a destructive activity. The ships which are built with great effort are cut down to pieces and recycled. How can we call it a developmental or constructive activity? This doubt can be removed if we compare it with the destructive role of God. In this world or universe, whatever has been created has to be destroyed after a certain period. Then only is the flow of life possible. Thus, destruction is an essential part of the lifecycle. While this is true of God’s creation, it is equally true of man’s creation also. Whatever has been created has to be destroyed one day. And if the phenomenon is a natural one, it becomes a constructive activity. Thus, when a human life comes to an end after it has been lived fully, it is a happy phenomenon. Similarly, if a ship is broken after it has served its purpose, it becomes a developmental or constructive activity. In this way, the ship-breaking industry plays the role of ‘Shiv’ in the world of steel. Nature destroys and her destructions are always constructive.

A Total View of Life

We see ‘LIFE’ all around us, yet few of us understand it fully. The perception of ‘life’ differs from individual to individual depending upon our experiences. To some, life is the greatest blessing and to some, the severest punishment. Others find it somewhere in between. If so, is there any common thread in all these perceptions? This question arose in my mind once and I reflected on it. It is said that half of life is ‘if’. Please note that the middle two letters in the word ‘life’ are ‘i’ and ‘f’. It is also said that three fourths of life is ‘lie’. Note that if ‘f’ is removed, the remaining word is ‘lie’. While this perception of life may be partially true, it does not serve a good purpose if we do not go beyond this. Life has to be seen in totality without missing any letters. The four letters of ‘life’ should be seen as its four phases and if we follow them faithfully, life becomes enriching and leads us to its ultimate goal. Let us see what these phases are.
The first letter ‘L’ indicates the phase of ‘Learning’. This means that the first phase of life is a period of learning. While life continues to be a process of learning all through, it is the initial learning which shapes one’s life. During this period, one acquires knowledge of various mundane matters. Right from birth, we have to learn basic activities like sitting, standing, walking and eating as well as educational learning. Good or bad habits acquired during this period influence life in subsequent phases, and this is the time when one is influenced most by the environment one grows up in. It should be wisely guarded by those who are responsible for the upbringing of children. Having completed the period of learning, one becomes self dependent and steps into the second phase of life. This period may be called the period of ‘Indulgence’ and the second letter ‘I’ stands for it. During this period the society, by and large, gives us independence to lead our life in our own way. It is more so in the present time because individual rights are granted by the constitution and law. One acquires family, wealth, fame or social standing during this phase of life and enjoys them. One is strong physically and, therefore, there is no anxiety on that account.
Depending upon the upbringing, sanskars and associates, one also cultivates certain finer qualities but, generally, this is the time for action, for doing things. With the ups and downs of life, one may become more reflective and the process continues as one grows in age and wisdom. Thus begins the phase of ‘Finding’. This is what the third letter ‘F’ indicates. In most cases the period of indulgence is necessary before the urge to find reality arises. In this phase we start understanding the temporariness of mundane matters and events and try to look for something permanent. Slowly, we start giving up the sense of ‘doership’ and consider ourselves as instruments of God. There may be occasional failures but this awareness is often restored.
Then begins the last phase of life which may be called the period of ‘Evolution’. The last word ‘E’ stands for it. Having understood the reality of life, one strives to achieve its ultimate goal and that is the real process of evolution. Every action in this phase of life becomes a step towards the goal and the vicissitudes of life no more bother one. They only appear as the events of a play on the stage. When we see life in its totality, it becomes a means to achieve the ultimate goal which is ‘evolution’ to the level of the ‘self’. This may also be called enlightenment, salvation or self realisation. When life is viewed this way it becomes enriching and every experience becomes a step to evolution. Then even the ‘ifs’ and ‘lies’ add to its excitement like the suspense of a stage-drama. Those who fail to look at life in totality get entangled in its ‘ifs’ and ‘lies’. For them ‘F’ stands for ‘Finish’ and ‘E’ for ‘End’. Like the drama show on the stage, they keep on repeating the show of life till they reach evolution.

Discovery of a Friend

There is a saying, ‘In prosperity your friends know you and in adversity you know your friends’. It means that the attitudes of our so-called friends change when we are in trouble. All of us experience this reality some time or the other. If we analyse this in detail, we can prepare ourselves to face the situation in a dignified manner, without getting shocked when it happens. We have to accept the fact that one cannot pick a friend, or purchase a friend, or compel anyone to be a friend. A true friend has to be discovered. In our good times there is no dearth of superficial friends, while true friends may get distanced or even lost. In our ignorance we fail to distinguish between them and consider the former as true friends. The mistake is realised when we face trouble. By that time it may be too late and our true friends may not return to us. The purpose of this analysis is to avoid such a situation.
Friends can be divided into four categories and the distinction is visible only during trouble. In good times it may not be possible to realise the distinction. Conversely, a false friend may appear more dear. We shall now describe these categories of friends. The first category of friends can be called ‘Rejoicers’. They not only rejoice or, rather, exploit our good days but also silently rejoice at our bad days. Outwardly they may show false grief in our trouble and if it persists and they see no early possibility of its going, they leave us like rats on a sinking ship. It would be no surprise if they also mutter the words, “Good, it happened to you”. This is the worst category of friends and in a sense, they are worse than an enemy. We must be careful about such friends right from the beginning as they often prove to be harmful.
The second category of friends are called ‘Sympathisers’. They are better than the first category. Such friends show sympathy in our trouble but do nothing beyond that. Secretly, they feel relieved, thinking, “Thank God, it did not happen to us.” If the trouble persists, they gradually distance themselves and disappear in due course. We may at best call them harmless friends. We need not be unduly concerned or upset about them and should accept their attitude as the way of the world.
The third category of friends can be called ‘Helpers’. In practical life this is the best category of friends and they may be called friends in the true sense. They are truly pained by our trouble and try to help us. They genuinely ask the question, “Why did it happen to you?” This is the category of friends we discover during our bad days. We can share our problems with them and also ask for their help, if required. Of course, we should not expect too much from them and only reasonable help should be asked for. It is also seen that many of such friends are those whom we do not consider so close during our good days.
The last category of friends is very rare. We may call this category the ‘Sacrificers’. They are prepared to make any sacrifice for a friend in trouble. They ask the question, “Why did it not happen to us?” ‘ Such persons can either be a relation like a mother, father, wife, daughter or someone falling in the category of ‘Mahapurusha’. The sacrifice of a close relation is generally out of attachment while the sacrifice of a ‘Mahapurusha’ is out of compassion. History has produced such great men from time to
time. Persons like Gautama Buddha, Dadhichi, Mahatma Gandhi, Subhash Chandra Bose, Bhagat Singh, Guru Gobind Singh, Hazrat Mohammad, Jesus etc., all fall in this category. Their sacrifices were for the whole of humanity and in a way, they were universal friends. We should not expect sacrifices from our friends to help us in our personal troubles. Therefore, friendship should be restricted to the ‘Helpers’ and we should be happy if we have some friends falling under this category. The first category is rather worse than an enemy while the second category is no better than acquaintances, and we should accept them that way. Only the third category are true friends and we ourselves should also fall in the same category.
Thus, troubles help us to discover our true friends. Troubles are sent by God for some purpose and this is one of them. With the help of true friends we are not only able to face failures, sorrow, anxiety or other problems gracefully but it also eases the trouble. The famous poet ‘Rahim’ has rightly said:
It is good to have trouble for short time. It gives us an opportunity to know who is our well-wishes and who is not. Why not start to discover a friend right now, instead of waiting for troubles to come first?

Tenure on This Earth

Dr. Dharma Vira an ICS officer was known for his competence and integrity. He once occupied the highest office of the Cabinet Secretary in the Government of India. Thereafter, he served as Governor of West Bengal and Karnataka. For a long time he was the Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Administrative Staff College of India, Hyderabad. Everywhere he displayed both qualities in ample measure.
When Dr. Dharma Vira entered his nineties, he issued an appeal to the national leaders and thinkers, suggesting certain measures in the interest of the nation. I also received a copy of the appeal and a phrase in this caught my attention. He had started with the sentence: ‘I have now entered the 90th year of my life and it also indicates nearness to my tenure on this earth.’ For civil servants, the word ‘tenure’ is a familiar term and they often talk about the tenure on a particular assignment. However,
the phrase ‘tenure on this earth’ is something which is applicable to all of us and I am going to elaborate upon it here. Civil servants are often transferred from one post to another. They also go on deputation to a particular organisation or to a Government of India post. Also, the nature of their jobs varies so widely that they generally do not get attached to a particular job or place. This helps them greatly in maintaining their objectivity, enabling them to deal with a situation or person in a fair manner. Perhaps, the objective behind transfers is mainly this.
The same is the case with a deputation. A civil servant goes on a deputation for a fixed tenure after which he reverts to his parent organisation. In the case of the Indian Administrative Service, the rules regarding a tenure are quite stringent, and an officer usually does not get even a day’s extension. After the completion of a tenure, they revert back to their state cadre. They can again come on deputation after a fixed period known as the cooling period.
Officers aware of this reality do not get attached to their job and work with fairness and firmness. They gladly go back to their original places after the completion of their tenure. They do not think of an extension and make no efforts for it. But those who seek an extension face many problems. At times they compromise on their principles and face disgrace. They forget the fact that even the extended period comes to an end and their problems are only postponed. Of course, there may be exceptional situations where an extension may have to be sought or accepted for larger interests, personal or public.
Similar to an officer’s tenure is our life on this earth. We know that it has to come to an end one day. The only difference is that we are not aware of the length of our tenure, though it is also said to be fixed by destiny. Since this is so, we should live on this earth in the spirit of acceptance. Getting attached to earthly things will add to our pain at the time of transfer or reversion from here. If we live in a detached manner, we shall not only be able to live gracefully but also to leave gracefully. This is what is expected of a civil servant on a tenure posting and from all of us during our “tenure on the earth”.

Living as an Observer

The central message of the Gita is that we should live in this world like an observer and perform our duties in a detached manner. Almost the same message is given by other religious scriptures also. It is said that all our pleasures and pains are the results of our attachment to our Karmas. If we detach ourselves from our Karmas, we free ourselves from their effect. Then we achieve harmony in life and are able to face all situations gracefully.
All this seems simple but is difficult in practice. For most of us, even the suggestion that we should rise above pleasure and pain seems strange. We may at best understand the need to rise above pain but not pleasure. We forget that pleasure and pain are two sides of the same coin and both have to coexist. The exclusion of only one is not possible and we have either to accept both of them or to accept none. Rising above both is a state of mind which gives us eternal joy and makes our life happy in the true sense. Such a state can be achieved only when we perform our Karma in a detached manner for the sake of our duty. We then live in the world like an observer.
I realised this fact when I was appointed as an observer by the Election Commission of India during the 1991 assembly elections of Uttar Pradesh. I was on duty in one of the most tension-ridden districts because the then Chief Minister was contesting from there. Some officers had avoided the observer’s duty in that district and I was also advised to do the same by my well-wishers. But after some contemplation, I decided to accept the appointment and to perform to the best of my capability. I thought that, after all, I was to act as an observer and my job was only to observe and report. The instructions issued by the Election Commission to the observers clearly mentioned that at best they could advise the district authorities, if the situation demanded it. The discretion of acting on such advice lay with the district authorities only. However, the observers were free to report their observations to the Election Commission, which in turn, took appropriate decisions.
My thoughts made my mind clear and I performed my duty not only fearlessly but also with a peaceful mind. As expected, the election in the district was full of problems. There were incidents of booth-capturing, snatching of ballot-papers and then killings. I observed them in an objective manner without being mentally affected by them. I reported my observations to the Commission soon after the election process was over and, finally, the election was countermanded. Here the outcome was not so important as the state of mind I retained during the time. Subsequently, I was congratulated by my friends for performing a difficult task well.
A similar job was given to me by the Election Commission in November 1993 during the Himachal Pradesh assembly elections. It was a very peaceful election and there was not a single untoward incident. I enjoyed my job which took me to some remote villages of the state and gave an opportunity to mix with the native people. I also saw some of the most beautiful scenic spots of Himachal Pradesh.
I was again posted as an observer in the assembly election of Bihar in March 1995. This duty was also considered difficult. Firstly, there was so much uncertainty about the schedule of the elections that proper planning of the visits became difficult. Secondly, there was apprehension about the fairness of the elections and, thirdly, the infrastructure in the state was so poor that it became difficult to cover the whole area satisfactorily. I maintained the same attitude towards this task also and performed it in a very objective manner. Fortunately, my district was relatively peaceful and the district administration was alert. So everything went on well and I enjoyed my duty despite a hectic travel schedule. Again, the cause of the enjoyment was the fact that I was an observer and thus detached from the actions involved in the election process.
If we adopt a similar attitude in all our actions, they cease to bind us and we rise above both pleasure and pain. Life becomes enriching and its purpose is then achieved. Thus, living as an observer is the answer to all our problems.

My Job is Very Important

Steel is an essential input in the economic development of any country, its consumption being an important parameter of progress. After Independence, top priority was given to the steel industry, which Jawaharlal Nehru took a special interest in. As a result, many integrated steel plants were set up with the help of several developed countries. Despite a good beginning, the steel industry in India did not develop as fast as it should have. While India and China began at the same level, today China is far ahead of us as are many other countries. There are several reasons for such a situation but one important reason is our general lack of pride in our work.
It was also felt that the government’s monopoly of all developmental activities has also been a cause, bringing about a major policy change which encouraged more private investment in developmental activities. The result of this change is yet to be seen fully but the initial response is heartening. This change in policy has also encouraged the public sector to perform better. Steel production in India is still dominated by the public sector, though the position is changing gradually. New investment in steel is now mostly in the private sector.
The public sector production has to improve mainly by way of more efficient working and modernisation, but fortunately, the response of the public sector in steel has been very encouraging in the new situation, giving rise to healthy competition between various plants. Some years ago, the Prime Minister had introduced an award for the best integrated steel plant in the country and the first award for the year 1992-93 went to a public sector unit, the Bhilai Steel Plant. I got an opportunity to visit this plant in July 1995. I noticed that the achievement of winning the PM’s trophy was a matter of pride for everyone working in the plant. During a discussion with the management, I was told that the credit went to their workers and officers as they were a motivated lot and always worked to perform better. The results of the year 1993- 94 and 1994-95 supported this statement.
I also learnt that the plant has been performing well on account of several factors, the most prominent being the strong work culture. There was a sense of pride in the job and that made all the difference. This reminded me of my meeting with a service manager of British Gas in the year 1990. At that time
I was in the UK to attend a course on ‘Public Enterprises Management’. During this course, we were taken to the British Gas Company office for a visit. It was a service branch and its main function was to take care of the complaints of the customers, a job which was being done quite efficiently, galvanised as it was by an elaborate incentive system introduced to reward efficiency. The most impressive part was the pride glowing on the faces of everyone. I still remember the beaming face of the service manager while explaining the importance of his job which was linked with consumer satisfaction. The spirit with which he worked was praiseworthy and the result was that everyone in the office was a satisfied person, and encouraged to do even better.
The message is that our attitude towards our job or work should change. For most of us, our job remains the same, whether we join it by choice or by the force of circumstances. For most of us a change is either not possible or is not in our hands. Since we spend a good amount of time on our job, we ought to develop a positive attitude towards it. Otherwise, it adversely affects our life and the result is unhappiness. A sense of pride should be developed towards it. The society needs the services of all and we play a complementary role to each other. Everyone is important at his place as even the highest cannot exist without the low. While the aim should be to strive towards high positions, no purpose is served if we keep grieving about being in a lowly position. In that case we downgrade ourselves and others also treat us as such. Instead we can turn even the so-called lower jobs into important ones by changing our attitude towards it. Srimad Bhagavad Gita, in its chapter on Karma Yoga says: “Better one’s ‘duty’, though devoid of merit, then the ‘duty’ of another well-discharged. Better is death in one’s own duty; the ‘duty’ of another is fraught with fear” (3/35). If all of us accept the importance of our duty and perform it well, the world will change so much for the better that there will be no cause for any grievance.

Four Dimensions of Personality

In February 1995, when our Spiritual Master graced our home at Calcutta, he spoke on the subject of “Spiritual Dimension of Personality”. In the gathering, there were people from different walks of life. Due to his clarity of thought and skill of expression, the talk was of great help and significance and all of us listened to him with rapt attention. Swamiji built up the talk gradually, making the message more interesting and effective. Here is a summary of his talk, as I interpreted it in my own way. ‘Personality’ is a commonly talked about term and we all want to develop our own personalities. We must, therefore, first understand the term itself. Often we talk of a total or integrated personality, and this shows that personality has more than one component. Only when all the components are adequately developed, does the personality become total or integrated. What are these components and what are the characteristics attached to them? We shall use the word ‘dimension’ in place of ‘component’ in order to give it a larger scope.
The first dimension of our personality is ‘physical’. It relates to our body, state of health, appearance, etc. Though this dimension is very important, we have little control over it. By and large the shape, size and the colour of our body is determined by our genes. The only thing in our hands is to maintain it well in order to remain healthy. For this, certain discipline is required in our habits. If we cultivate good habits, the body becomes an asset and the development of other dimensions of the personality
becomes easier. For example, early rising and early to bed, simple food, regular exercises and cleanliness are habits which keep our bodies healthy. A healthy body generally also means a healthy mind. If the body gives trouble, it becomes difficult to concentrate on other things. Therefore, the development of other dimensions of the personality is also dependent on this dimension which may become less important once the other dimensions develop.
The second dimension of our personality is ‘mental’. It relates to the mind which is superior to the body. Thus, this dimension of the personality is superior to the first one. It is the mind which works behind our sense organs. The eye cannot see if the mind refuses to accept the signals and so is the case with other sense organs. Similarly, the mind is capable of making our sense organs indulge in right or wrong activities. Thus, proper development of the ‘Mental Dimension’ is very important for using the powers of the physical body. It is the mind which makes us educated, skilled in our jobs and enthusiastic about our progress.
Those who apply their minds in the right direction, achieve success in their goals. Some of us become doctors, engineers, businessmen or administrators according to our mental makeup. It is mainly the mental dimension which gives us the capacity to take care of our physical needs. But to say that personality development stops here is not correct. We have to add something more to our personality in order to make it integrated and this takes us to the third dimension. Before we come to the third dimension, some elaboration is necessary. We all know that certain doctors are very kind, sympathetic and helpful while others are not so. It may be that someone in the latter category is more competent professionally but in terms of personality, the compassionate doctor is always considered to be better. The same goes for other professions also. We always prefer a person who is good, kind, helpful and courteous even if those who are not so, are mentally or professionally more competent. This establishes the fact that there is a superior dimension of personality over the mental one.
This dimension is known as ‘Intellectual’. As said earlier, the mind, though superior to the sense organs, is capable of playing mischief if not controlled by a superior faculty. This faculty is called the ‘Intellect’. It is the intellect which gives us the wisdom to discriminate between good and bad. Obviously a person with such wisdom has a better personality compared to a person which makes us capable of better judgment and, therefore, useful, also for the society at large. In the process we earn
respect and are considered to be good.
To add perfection to our personality, some finer qualities have to be acquired, even by good persons who may also suffer if they do not strive for them. This dimension of the personality is the ‘Spiritual’ one, the highest dimension. It is a fact that the world we live in is transitory. Even our good deeds are forgotten with time. Therefore, there is a need to transcend them too. If we do not do so, the same goodness may become a cause of misery. Also, goodness is only a relative term and its perception varies with persons and time. We do not get the same response from all persons, even for our good behaviour or virtues. Therefore, a sense of detachment has to be developed towards our good qualities too. It has been seen that many good and successful persons suffer just because they lack this aspect of the personality. One has to accept that all our actions are only a means to an end and the end is self-realisation. Those who understand this reality, develop the spiritual dimension at the right time and are fully prepared for all the eventualities of life. This dimension is thus superior to the earlier three dimensions and is necessary for the complete integration of the personality.
The idea, without going into more details, is to convey that for an integrated personality, all dimensions are necessary. They, of course, generally follow the order in which they have been described. I consider those four aspects like the four legs of a table which give it stability. Though a table with three or less number of legs may appear to be stable, any push or pressure will destabilise it. Similarly, a person with any of the dimensions missing may appear to be stable but is vulnerable to any accident in life which may disturb his equilibrium.

Diving in the World Ocean

My wish to visit the Bombay High oil drilling site was granted in April 1995. The drilling site is located about 200 km away from the seashore and it takes almost an hour to reach there by a helicopter. The visit was well arranged and I enjoyed it immensely. From the engineering point of view, the whole operation is amazing. The fixation of the drilling rigs and platforms is an engineering feat. The foundations of these structures are very deep in order to keep them stable. During the visit I met some engineers who had worked there in the initial days of construction and they narrated their experiences with great pride, expressing the thrill of achievement. They also told me that the foundation construction of these structures was the most difficult stage and to carry out this task, expert divers were called from other countries. Subsequently, the art of diving has been sufficiently developed in India too.
We also discussed the techniques of diving. I was told that deep-sea diving was a difficult job and a good amount of training was required for it. As the pressure of water increases when the diver goes down into the depths of the sea, he has to take measures to withstand the stress. The deeper the diver goes, the greater is the pressure. In earlier days, the training process took a long time as the divers were subjected to gradually increasing pressure before they could venture deep into the sea.
Now, there are special equipments which create sea conditions artificially and the process of training is expedited. However, the principle of training remains the same, which is to create enough internal resistance or pressure to withstand the external pressure. If the diver does not do this, his body could collapse. I have drawn some very interesting inferences from this fact.
The world we live in is also like a sea. The deeper we go into it, the greater are the disturbing forces we have to face. If we are not trained or used to bear these pressures, we collapse and fail to achieve the goal of our existence. In that case, we sink and then blame the world for it. We forget the nature of the world and the fact that there is no use blaming external circumstances. We should, on the other hand, train ourselves to withstand the pressures of the world. For this, we have to develop enough internal strength so that the two neutralise each other and we are able to dive into this worldly sea like professional divers. If we remember this, we shall not only perform our roles well but will enjoy life too.
What does this mean in real life? It means that one’s development should be integrated. While it is desirable to have external growth, it may turn out to be disastrous if it is not matched by a corresponding internal growth. The greater the external growth, the greater is the need for internal growth too. That is why people with high positions, greater riches, greater fame, or power should be much more balanced than ordinary persons. If they are not so, the outer trappings may become the cause of their disaster. The conclusion is that a balanced growth of personality makes us good divers, plunging confidently into this worldly sea. The world will then cease to be a source of danger or trouble for us and we can enjoy living in it, as well as perform our duties well. A man of wisdom lives in the world but the world does not live in him.

Friends Vs Relatives

‘God gives us relatives. Thank God, we can choose our friends.’ This is a thought I came across somewhere and have found useful. Many of us feel the difference between friends and relatives. At times, I have myself faced agony on account of several relatives but I have no complaint against them and accept the reality of their attitudes and shortcomings with grace. Such experiences in turn made me contemplate on the subject and I would like to share my thoughts.
To begin with, we must accept that every friend is also a relative of many others. Then how is it that as a friend, we find no problem with him while as a relative it would be a different story? Obviously it must be the difference in the attitude of the observer. If, somehow, one is able to develop the same attitude towards both relatives and friends, the problem will disappear. It may be difficult to do so but it is definitely possible. To understand the situation better, let us look at the reasons for this difference. The first reason is that we watch our relatives so closely that their weaknesses are known to us. After all, no one is perfect and even a very good person may have some shortcomings. Most of us have the tendency to dwell upon the faults of others. This tendency quite often shadows the good qualities of the person and we develop a bias.
The second reason is that relatives like brothers, sisters, uncles and nephews grow together from childhood. They normally begin their relationships with the same status, but as time goes on, this status changes and quite often there is a wide gap between two relatives who were once at a similar stage, be it financial or social. This difference creates a feeling of jealousy and gives rise to the tendency to find fault with each other.
The third reason is undue expectation. Frequently, we are disappointed when we expect too much from others or have unrealistic expectations. Most of us feel that it is the duty of our relatives to help us, irrespective of whether we deserve it or not. Also, we do not even consider it necessary to appreciate and express our appreciation for the help extended by them, taking it for granted. We all like to be appreciated. At times help is not possible despite best efforts but the efforts made should also be appreciated. Instead of doing that, one tends to put the blame on the person who made the efforts and, naturally, this creates disharmony.
The fourth factor which is quite important is the age difference. We have no control on the timings of our physical birth. As we grow in age, we acquire wisdom. Most of us believe that wisdom and age are synonymous while this is not necessarily true. A young person may be wiser than an elderly one but those who do not believe that this is possible, find it difficult to accept any advice from younger people. Apart from this, at times they exploit the young on the basis of the age difference, showing contempt or scorn. The young may show patience up to a point, but if the limits are crossed, disharmony is created.
The fifth reason is the fact that once a blood relationship is created, it remains for as long as we live, though it may not have any meaningful purpose. It is not in our hands to cancel it out. While there are legal provisions to nullify a close relationship, such as a marital one, there is no such provision in the case of blood relations. Such relations can he terminated only at a mental and, perhaps, emotional level, but often it is not possible and the result is disharmony.
Having analysed the main reasons for the disparity in our attitudes towards friends and relatives, it is easy to understand why we have more harmony with our friends as compared to relations. Without going into the details again, it can be said that in the case of friends, we have a choice, we do not watch them very closely, we accept the difference in status, if any, we do not have any undue expectation, we do not take the age difference that seriously and we have the choice of terminating friendship rather easily. It may be clarified that here we are talking about good friends, otherwise the chances of disharmony between those who are only so-called friends are even greater.
The message is that it is the attitudes which create disharmony and not persons as such. The need is to change them and if positive attitudes are adopted, there will be no cause for disharmony even with relatives. Wise people advise treating even a grown-up son as a friend. The same is true for a husband or wife as it is equally true for other relatives. Once we remove the possible causes of disharmony, we can have friendly relations with all.

Fission of the Human Mind

As economic development progresses, the consumption of energy is also increasing at a fast rate. As a result, man is engaged in exploring new sources of energy. The use of atomic energy for the generation of power has given some relief though it has serious environmental problems. However, since it can solve the problem of the energy crisis to a great extent, the subject of atomic energy becomes important for all.
When my son was preparing for the class X examination, I guided him in science. When I went through the chapter on atomic energy, I found it very interesting and drew some very interesting lessons from it. This is what I am going to share here. Here, some background of the concept of atomic energy is required. An atom consists of three basic particles, namely, protons, neutrons and electrons. The protons and neutrons are located in the nucleus and the electrons revolve around the
nucleus in different orbits. A large amount of energy is released when the nucleus of a heavy atom is broken into two or more smaller nuclei. Similarly, when the nuclei of two or more lighter atoms are made to merge into each other, resulting in a heavier nucleus, then also a large amount of energy is released. The former is known as Nuclear Fission and the latter is known as Nuclear Fusion. Such reactions take place under certain special conditions. If we are able to create these conditions, the reaction can take place on a large scale also. The energy, thus released, is known as atomic energy. If controlled, this energy can be used for running a power plant and if not, the same energy can turn into an atom bomb.
So far, the control of the reaction has been possible in fission and not in fusion. The fuel or the radioactive substance commonly used in fission is uranium. When the nucleus of uranium is bombarded by a neutron, it breaks into two smaller nuclei and simultaneously, three neutrons accompanied with a large amount of energy are produced. These three neutrons again bombard three other nuclei of uranium and the process is repeated again and again. If the number of neutrons bombarding the uranium nuclei is controlled, we get energy at a constant rate which can be used for good purposes, otherwise the same device can have a disastrous effect in the form of a bomb. The control of the reaction is done by controlling the speed and the number of neutrons and for this we use a moderator and controlling rods in the reactor. When the reaction is in total control, the energy is released at a constant rate and can be used for power generation.
I shall now compare this phenomenon with the human mind. The human mind is also like a radioactive substance which keeps on emitting various thoughts. The thoughts are of various kinds but we can classify them in two categories. Some thoughts are active in nature while the others are passive. Active thoughts make the mind act and in the process, the power of the mind is made use of. Such thoughts may be called desires. Passive thoughts, on the other hand, do not make the mind act, but are simply observed by the mind. Thus active thoughts or desires can be compared with moving particles like neutrons, protons, etc., and the mind with a heavy radioactive nucleus, like uranium. When active thoughts strike it, tremendous energy is emitted by the mind like that in Nuclear Fission. However, to make good use of this power, certain conditions similar to those in a nuclear reactor should exist.
First of all, we should have a neutral attitude towards desires like the neutrality of a neutron. It means that an attitude of detachment should be developed towards our desires. It does not mean that desires should be absent but that they should be controlled. Only the neutral or detached thoughts are in a position to make the best use of our tremendous mental energy. Secondly, the speed of a neutron has to be at its optimum level. Either too much or too little will lead to no action. In the same way, active thoughts should neither be very fast nor very slow. That is to say, that moderation is required in our thinking so that our thoughts are able to tap the maximum energy of the mind which exists in abundance. This condition suggests that our lifestyle should be moderate in order to make the maximum use of our power.
The third condition is also very important. In a nuclear reactor, each neutron gives rise to three neutrons which have to be controlled after a point. The human mind also generates more and more desires which then strike the mind harder and make it release more power. Up to an extent, this increase is healthy because the mind’s potential is used in a positive manner. However, beyond a point, the generation of more desires becomes destructive. Therefore, it is necessary to absorb or control these additional desires to make the best use of the mind, very much like controlling the number of neutrons in the reactor.
Thus, detachment, moderation and regulation are three essential conditions for making the best use of our mind power. If any one of these is missing, the mind’s power will either remain unused or will become destructive. How to achieve these conditions is not the subject here but achieving them is certainly possible. It is up to us to use the mind either as a ‘Power Plant’ or as an ‘Atom Bomb’.

The Richness of Poverty

Over the past few years, television has made tremendous progress in our country. Not only has the number of programmes increased manifold, but the quality too has improved greatly. The competition between various channels has also contributed to the improvement. There is such a bewildering variety and number of programmes that it is difficult to decide what to see. However, some of the programmes are really good and have given useful messages to the viewers. Two serials from which
I drew important messages are Nukkad and Junoon, messages which I would like to share.
The serial Nukkad was on the life in a street corner of a small town. All the characters of the serial were persons who could barely make their living. Some were not even employed and depended on the help of their colleagues. Some had developed the habit of drinking due to frustration. They were, at
times, also exploited by vested interests. Overall, they were miserable people and had no apparent joy in their lives. On the other hand, junoon was a story of very rich people who had accumulated their lakhs of rupees by dubious means. Many of them were engaged in underworld activities and had intense rivalries with each other. Outwardly they displayed affluence and moved around in the upper class of society. But inwardly, they too were frustrated, and often resorted to drinking as a result thereof.
When we look at these two groups of people, some interesting observations can be made. In Nukkad the group as a whole appears quite cheerful and contented. They enjoy every moment of life despite all the problems they face. They try to help each other beyond their means. They happily accept the
shortcomings of each other and genuinely try to help. There is no tension visible on their faces. Overall, the group, though beset by problems, is quite happy and enjoys life to the extent possible under the circumstances. The opposite is the case in the serial junoon. In this group, the characters are so busy amassing wealth that they have no time to enjoy life. The unfair, illegal means of making a fortune further adds to their worries. Not only this, they are always fearful of the police or of a rival or of their own men. This makes their lives very tense, rendering it totally joyless. Almost all of them have great tension in their family lives too.
This made me think about the very definition of richness or poverty. I feel these are not at all absolute terms but simply the states of mind. I find it difficult to say which of the two groups is richer. If one is richer outwardly, it is very poor inwardly and vice versa. The first group, despite being poor, is happy, while the second group is miserable despite all the riches. And if we go by the ultimate aim of living, which is happiness, it is the first group which achieves the objective and not the latter.
I do not intend to arrive at any absolute conclusion. I am just raising a question for those who feel that happiness lies only in having more and more riches, irrespective of the means of acquiring them. I am also not saying that happiness lies in poverty. Perhaps, the reality is somewhere in between. For true happiness there has to be a balance between the outer and the inner growth. In the examples cited, the happiness of the first group as well as the misery of the second group are both the results
of their ignorance. But I feel that bliss, even if out of ignorance, is better than misery of any kind. From this point of view, the state of poverty has more richness.

Living Like an Asymptote

The word ‘asymptote’ may appear strange to many, particularly to those who have not studied higher mathematics. Though the word finds a place in all English dictionaries, I feel it needs an explanation. To understand ‘asymptote’, one has to understand certain mathematical terms. First the term ‘curve’ is to be understood. It is a geometrical figure following a defined relationship in its two coordinates, a simple example of a curve being a circle. The second term to be understood is ‘tangent’. It is a line which meets the curve only at one point. Normally a line intersects a curve at two or more points depending upon the shape of the curve, but when it intersects or meets only at one point, the same line becomes a tangent. We have two types of curves. Some have a finite size while the others are infinite in size. The examples of finite size curves are a circle, an ellipse, etc., and the examples of infinite size curves are parabola, hyperbola, etc. Both types of curves have tangents. In fact, each point on the curve can have a tangent and these tangents follow certain mathematical rules.
Of course, there are no such rules for lines which are not tangents. Having understood this, the term ‘asymptote’ can also be explained. An ‘asymptote’ is a line which is just like a tangent but is not a tangent. This is so because the point of contact between an asymptote and the curve is at infinity. At infinity, the curve and the tangent merge into each other. Only a curve of infinite size can have an ‘asymptote’. It is quite difficult to grasp the concept of contact at infinity as it is only creation of the
imagination. ‘Asymptotes’ also follow certain mathematical laws. I studied this concept about thirty years back and it fascinated me greatly. Generally, students found it too difficult to grasp, but those who understood its concept, found it easy. I shall now relate the concept of tangent and asymptote with life in order to make it easy and interesting. The world we live in is like a limited size curve. A person living a worldly life is like a line which is a non-tangent. He has no rules to guide him and follows the path which suits him at a particular point of time. In other words, he lives a directionless
life, resulting in frequent intersection with the worldly curve which may be compared to the clashes or conflicts he comes across in his worldly life. The answer to this lies in living a properly directed life so that life becomes a tangent to the world. It means that the contact with the world is reduced to just a point. Such a person has very few clashes or conflicts with the world and leads a smooth life with the right direction. Tangents at various points means that it is possible to live smoothly, if one wishes to.
Having achieved this stage, one can switch on to a higher state of living. For this, one has to enlarge one’s vision to infinity. This is like shifting to infinite curves, from limited or finite curves. While one can draw tangents on each point here, an asymptote can also be drawn on such curves, meaning that while the line goes along the curve, it does not touch it at all, at least in the finite dimension. In terms of living, it is like living a life above the world. However, this is possible only when we have our vision
focused on infinity and is not possible in the case of finite vision. In such a state, there is no clash with the world and one can be above it while living in it. It is like the movement of a hovercraft which is above the water despite being in it. A comparison can also be drawn with the meeting or merger of an asymptote with the curve. As said earlier, this is possible at the infinite only. In terms of living it means that the ultimate aim of life is to achieve divinity, that is, to merge with the infinity. However, this is not possible as long as we identify ourselves only with the body and remain limited in our vision. As the bodily sense reduces, the vision gets widened. If the physical consciousness goes completely, the vision becomes infinite and a complete merger which is possible only after the body is gone, takes place. It is then like meeting or merging of an asymptote with the curve at infinite distance. This is, perhaps, the ultimate aim of living. The Creator or God can be compared with an infinite curve. Let us try to become its asymptote so that all along we are with it, and the gap narrows as we go through the path of life and ultimately merge into it when the body is totally gone.

The Mathematics of Life

Mathematics has always been my best subject. I never scored less than ninety-five per cent marks in this subject and have notched hundred per cent many times. In my B.Sc. examination, I scored 150 out of 150 marks, breaking all previous records. In Engineering also, I was awarded the Cautley Memorial Gold Medal for Mathematics for scoring the highest marks in this subject. In fact, good scores in mathematics always helped me greatly in my academic performance. All this is not to highlight my personal achievement. The intention is altogether different but before coming to that, I would like to mention certain additional facts. The first is that this score was achieved effortlessly. The second is that I never studied the subject at the time of the examination. The third fact is that I studied only the book prescribed in the course. Lastly, there were some students in my class who were equally good in the subject, though I always scored the highest.
Now I come to the reason for this achievement. The first is that I always considered mathematics as a game which was a pleasure to play. It always gave me entertainment and refreshment instead of tiredness or boredom. Secondly, I paid maximum attention to understand the underlying principles of the subject. For example, in trigonometry, I understood the concepts of the Pythagoras’ theorem and it always helped me in solving the problems. Similarly, in algebra, I mastered numbers and for calculus and understood very definition of differential coefficient well. By this process I found each branch of mathematics easy and I performed well in all of them. I am still able to recollect and apply these fundamentals whenever required. Thus, the secret of an effortless performance was a clear understanding of the fundamentals of the subject.
After finishing my Engineering course, I worked for sometime in an engineering company before joining the Indian Administrative Service. I found this service satisfying, despite the odds of public life. My engineering background helped me to adopt an analytical approach to administration, and enabled
me to perform quite well in the service. I feel that the mathematical approach helped me greatly in this achievement. Having completed over twenty five years of service and reaching the age when one should acquire enough wisdom to look at life in its true perspective, I feel that life is also like mathematics and the problems of life are similar to the problems of mathematics. If the fundamentals of life are understood, then life’s problems can also be faced easily. In that case, life becomes a pleasure and its difficult problems only add to the pleasure of living. On the other hand, if the concepts of life are not clear, even routine problems of life disturb us and we make ourselves miserable. Here I am not going into the details of the fundamentals of life. In brief, I would say that life is a wonderful opportunity for elevation and it should not be wasted on mundane affairs only, just as the purpose of mathematics is not merely to pass the examination but to understand and apply its principles in life. Similarly, the purpose of life should be understood in its true sense and it should be taken as an opportunity for achieving its goal. With that clarity in the mind, the difficulties attached to life become very small and add to the pleasure of living. Such people score high in the mathematics of life without much difficulty. In worldly terms, there may be more prosperous persons around them but when it comes to the examination of life, it is they who secure the highest marks. And all this happens
effortlessly.
So let us first accept the simile of life with mathematics and feel the urge to understand its fundamentals. Once we have the urge, we will find the way and help will come from unexpected sources. No doubt, a sustained effort is required on our part, but once the process of understanding is over, life becomes scoring as well as enjoyable, like the subject of mathematics. We can then easily aim to score cent per cent marks, no matter how difficult the paper is. At least, I am striving to score cent per cent marks in the mathematics of life too.

The State of Fearlessness

I remember an incident in early 1979 when I was posted as Additional District Magistrate at Meerut. Once the Commissioner of the Division visited the district and I accompanied him on his tour. The visit went off very well and he was quite happy with the work done. In the evening, we were returning in the same car on our way to Meerut. The Commissioner was a very good man and the success of the tour gave me some courage to speak frankly during the journey. At that time I was a young officer with only three years of service and was unaware of many realities of public administration. However, I was aware of the interference of vested interests in administration, as a result of which most officers were not able to work fearlessly. So I asked him certain questions about this aspect, curious to know
whether it was possible for an honest and sincere civil servant to work fearlessly despite outside pressure. The answer was, naturally, not that simple but he said that though it was definitely possible to work fearlessly it required a lot of wisdom and other virtues like ability and perceptiveness, for an honest and sincere civil servant to reach that stage.
The matter ended there but the question occupied my mind for a long time. As far as I can introspect, I have always tried to work sincerely and honestly. I was not troubled by people who had vested interests, as most of the time I could get my way through them. Not only this, I have often been able to get their appreciation. But to say that I have reached a stage of total fearlessness is not correct. Therefore, the issue still occupies my mind as I wish to reach this state. In my subsequent years of public service, I constantly strived to reach that stage of fearlessness and the process is still on. I believe that a civil servant should not make mere survival his target though he must survive to achieve the target. I also have a feeling that in the ultimate analysis, it is our own vested interest which fills us with fear, and it is not fair to blame others for not reaching the stage of fearlessness.
With this background, one can quote numerous examples from the past and present when individuals have shown tremendous courage, displaying total fearlessness in their work. After all, these persons also worked, or work, in a similar environment but obviously developed enough inner strength to stand against vested interests, including their own. They could not have done so without being unselfish themselves. This brings us to the fact that fearlessness is a state which is achieved by long introspection and constant striving, Such a person has to equip himself with all the qualities which can give him a command over his environment. Such a person never blames the situation he is confronted with, but creates his own circumstances. He sees an opportunity in all difficulties and turns them into stepping-stones. However, merely a state of fearlessness is not sufficient in itself. It should be accompanied with certain other qualities too, in order to benefit the society at large. A tyrant ruler may also be called a fearless person but his fearlessness is a negative quality. In fact, the fearlessness of such a person is only his disguised fearfulness. It is not fearlessness in the true sense. A truly fearless person will also be equipped with other qualities like compassion, justice, kindness, forgiveness, etc. Society benefits by the actions of such persons and it is these people who lead and change the society for the better. At present, we need such persons all the more. Let us strive to achieve such a state of fearlessness.

Build or Ruin

While I was the commissioner of Lucknow, a woman aged about 35 years came to see me along with an elderly lady. The elderly lady was a reputed person, known for her good social work. She told me that the young woman was undergoing a dispute with her husband and despite several years of separation, the divorce case was not coming to an end. The woman had no source of income, as a result of which, she was on the verge of ruin. She wanted me to intervene in the matter and get the divorce case decided early so that she could start getting some alimony. In this process she had become very weak as well as bitter and wanted to see her husband completely ruined.
I listened to the lady carefully but expressed my inability to intervene in court proceedings. After some contemplation, I offered my help to the lady in a different way and put two alternatives before her. The first was that she uses her energy in ruining her husband and the second was to use the same for building her life. I also added that the first alternative was detrimental to both, while the second would benefit them. Then I advised her to choose the second one. She felt that my advice was appropriate and requested me to advise further. Fortunately, the lady was educated and had a place to live. A friend of mine had very recently set up a school in the same locality. I had a hunch that the school might have some vacancies for teachers. Immediately I rang up my friend and talked about it. In fact, I insisted him to provide this lady a suitable job in the school and he agreed to do so.
The very next day the lady went to the school and was appointed as a teacher. Naturally, I as well as the lady were quite happy at this development. Few months later, this lady met me at a function of another branch of the same school. By that time her personality had transformed completely. She was happy as well as healthy. There was no mention of her divorce case and she was no more worried on that account. It gave me great joy and satisfaction to see that she had really deployed her energy in building her life rather than in ruining her husband’s life.

Black Figures

The decision-making process in Government is still carried out on files. A file generally moves up and down several times before a final decision is taken on an issue which may or may not be the most appropriate one. Several considerations are looked at intervening levels and often at the decision-making level also. That is why Indian bureaucracy is so maligned and notorious for delays. Yet, to be fair, the system has its merits and the accountability in decision-making is one of them. Sometimes the observations or notings at the higher levels hurt us when our viewpoint is not well-appreciated. This is part of the game and those who are in the game take it that way. However, at times the observations can be very depressing and if one is not mature enough, it can take away all the initiative and enthusiasm of the person. It is at this point of time that our inner development has to undergo a test. To pass this test is a difficult proposition and once I had a first hand experience of the same.
At that time I was the Principal Secretary of an important department and had full confidence of my minister. In one of the matters, the question of revoking the suspension order of a senior officer was involved. The suspension had been ordered in haste and there was a general feeling that it was not only unjust for the officer concerned, but also against public interest. The general reputation of the officer was good and I as well as the minister were in favour of revoking the order.
Accordingly, a note was prepared on the file supported at all levels including mine and that of the minister. As a matter of fact, the minister wrote a much bigger note in support of mine and the file was sent to the Chief Minister for final decision. When the file came back from the CM’s office to the minister, he was very upset and one day called me to show the observation of the CM. When I went through it, I was also crestfallen. It was so damaging and demeaning that I had to read it several times before believing it. However, in the meantime, my inner strength had taken over my outer weakness. Our proposal was very objective, free from any fear or favour. There was, therefore, no need to feel offended personally. Surely it was due to some communication gap or mischief. I thought that few black figures (words) should not take away my peace. I mustered all the inner strength and shared my feelings with the minister. The minister also was gracious enough to take full responsibility and again sent the file to the CM with greater conviction. This time the proposal was approved and the matter ended.

Most Worthy Son

I came in contact with my spiritual master in the year 1991 in Delhi. With him were two young disciples who were married to each other. Both of them were highly qualified and were in the process of taking full sanyasa. The husband was an Assistant Professor at IIT Kharagpur while the lady used to teach at the Kolkata University. In fact, their association with Swamiji was a great assurance for me which reinforced my faith in him. In due course, both of them took full sanyasa and devoted themselves to spiritual service of the society. The younger Swami was named Swami Nirvisheshananda, nicknamed as Naya Swamiji. His parents lived in the steel town of Jamshedpur where his father was an engineer. After retirement he had settled down there only. A few years later, I got posted at Kolkata as Development Commissioner, and in that capacity, I visited Jamshedpur a few times.
 On one of these visits, I was keen to meet Swamiji. My curiosity was to know the impact of Naya Swamiji’s sanyasa on his father. Normally it is believed or assumed that if a young son turns to sanyasa and that too after marriage, it must be a kind of shock for the parents. With this background, I visited Naya Swamiji’s home at Jamshedpur. His father had a very pleasing personality and received me very affectionately. Naya Swamiji’s mother was also there. After initial pleasantries and some professional discussions, I came to the question I had in mind. When I asked as to how he responded to the sanyasa of one of his sons, who had settled so well in life, he had no hesitation in saying that he was proud of him. He also added that he considered him to be the most worthy son. While his other sons had brought only money and fame to him, this son of his brought him true glory and salvation. I was highly influenced by his feelings and realised the true impact of spiritual life.
India is a country which has countless spiritual seekers. In them lies the true greatness and glory of this country. Science has to rediscover this dimension of human personality if its gains are to be deployed for human welfare in the true sense. The ultimate goal of human life, which is peace and happiness, is possible only when science and spirituality play a complementary role in our life.

Bliss of Poverty

India is a country of extremes. While some of the richest persons of the world are from India, it also has the dubious distinction of having about 40 percent of its population living below poverty line. Half of this population does not even get two square meals a day. Yet it is a country which is known for its bliss and people come here from all over the world to find the secret behind it. I have myself experienced it in abundance during my extensive visits to the villages all across the country. Here, I am narrating an experience of my own locality of Gomtinagar in Lucknow.
In cities most of the construction workers come from different states and work with a contractor in groups. They live in their makeshift dwellings which keep on changing with their work-site. Some years back such a group was working in my neighbourhood and was living in the manner described above. The site was on the way of my morning and evening walks. During my walks, I had developed an acquaintance with this group and while passing through the area, there would always be an exchange of greetings. Behind this exchange of greetings, there was also a feeling of true respect and concern which used to give a certain joy perhaps to both sides. This went on for months till they shifted to another site.
During one such walk in the evening, I noticed that the group had assembled together in a very joyful mood. After the exchange of greetings, they told me that they were going to enjoy Coca-Cola of which they had procured a big bottle. At that time it was a new development and so their joy was very understandable. When asked about the price they had paid for the bottle, one of them told me it was 40 rupees. In those days, the actual price was 35 rupees. When I drew their attention to this fact, they remained unaffected and only said that they were charged a higher price because of their poverty and illiteracy. Having said this, they continued with their joy and I left the place.

At the End of Air Journey

By nature I am a person of economy. I do not spend more as long as less serves the same purpose. And in this respect, I don’t make any difference between private and official matters. I have my reasons for doing so and in the process I get a lot of satisfaction in saving resources. Overall, it has been a great advantage for me with virtually no negative impact. I am sharing one incident which shows my conviction in this regard. In my service when I rose to a scale in which an officer is entitled to travel by air in a business class, I was blissfully unaware of it. As a result, I kept on travelling in economy class. Even if I had known, I would have continued travelling by the economy class in all probability. Generally, I travel short distances either by road or by train, but an air journey at times saves time. On one such occasion, I was travelling from Lucknow to Delhi by the economy class of an airline.
As I was checking in on the counter, a good friend of mine who was a Chief Executive in a private company was already there. Seeing me there, he perhaps entertained the thought of travelling together in the business class, as he himself had a business class ticket. On finding that I had an economy class ticket, he first pointed out my entitlement and then offered to get it updated. Though it was a small matter, I thanked him and politely declined his offer. My argument was that it was only a matter of 50 minutes and after that we would both be on the same ground. Over this he gave me a good smile, though I was not sure whether he appreciated my viewpoint fully. Anyway, we took our seats in the aeroplane as per our tickets. At Delhi airport, we met again after deplaning and the matter ended there. Obviously, we both were on the ground at the end of our air journey.
This situation applies to many circumstances of our life. Most of us pay more attention to the external form than the contents and in the process lose the true joy of living. While it applies to a short journey of air, it equally applies to the longer journey of life which is from womb to tomb for all of us.

What We Feel Inside

Once a friend of mine came to me with a disturbed state of mind. He was a senior bank officer working as the chairman of a regional bank. He was a good man and had tried his best to improve the performance of the bank. He was quite successful in doing so, yet it caused a lot of stress to him. So much so that towards the end of his deputation, there was unrest in his office and he feared that his career might be adversely affected in the process. He was due for promotion as General Manager in his parent bank and was apprehensive of its acceptance in case things went wrong at that stage.
It was at this point of time that he came to me to share his agony. He had the apprehension that his staff was conspiring against him despite his goodwill for them. He was hurt by their actions which had created a lot of bitterness in him towards them. The problem seemed to be compounding as time passed, though outwardly he was trying his best to appear normal to them. It was not working at all.
Having listened to his story, I asked him to frankly tell me his inner feelings towards his employees. To this he admitted that he was angry and was not entertaining goodwill for them. In fact, his own feelings were the real cause of his agony. I, therefore, suggested him to transform his feelings and instead of entertaining thoughts of repulsion, hatred or anger, he should develop compassion for them. It was all the more necessary to do so because he was doing his job with all sincerity and goodwill. Though it was not easy to act on the advice, he assured me that he would try his best and report to me after a week.
My friend acted on this advice with all the sincerity at his command and things started improving. After a week or so, he rang me up to say that his office was normal again and that the environment had become quite harmonious. I was very happy to know all this and congratulated him. According to me, it was only an outcome of inner feelings. After about two months, he informed me about his promotion to the post of General Manager in his parent bank and soon after he joined his new assignment.

No Punishment

As students in the University of Roorkee (now an IIT) during the late sixties, some of us were in the habit of playing cards. Our game was a kind of gamble called “teen patti” and we used to play it frequently. However, it was in a friendly manner with low stakes and with no greed behind it. We had full control over ourselves as far as time was concerned. Overall, it used to serve as a good entertainment and didn’t affect our studies in any way. At least we used to think that way at that point of time.
One day, while we were absorbed in playing ‘teen patti’ in a hostel room, the Dean of students suddenly marched in and caught us red-handed. None of us was prepared for this kind of situation and by reflex we quickly wound up ourselves to face the consequences. I, in particular, was more scared. There was a provision of 100 marks for discipline at that time. Being the topper of my class, any action on account of our act could put me in a great difficulty. I had no explanation to give as our indiscipline was so obvious. However, to our utter surprise, the Dean, whom we used to hold in high esteem, said nothing and silently left the place. We were in great suspense for many days but gradually got over the phobia this incident had put us into.
Incidently no punishment was inflicted upon us for this misdeed of ours, which only increased our respect for the Dean. Years passed since then, but it always remained a mystery in my mind as to why no punishment was inflicted upon us. I left Roorkee after graduation and joined Indian Administrative Service after few years. Though, with my own experience I could guess the intention of our Dean in inflicting no punishment on us, I always carried a wish to have a direct answer from him. Such an occasion did not come for decades, even though we did meet a few times after that.
But more than three decades later, when I was attending a conference of distinguished IITians in Delhi, such an opportunity arose. In that conference, both of us were participants. By then I was a senior member of the IAS holding a responsible position and he had quietly settled down after retirement. After the conference, when we both were waiting for our vehicles on the porch, I posed that question to him. I was not sure whether he remembered the incident or not, but he did and gave me a pragmatic smile. His one line answer was that quite often ‘no punishment’ works better than ‘punishment’ and his purpose was well served by not inflicting any punishment in that situation.

Only One Complaint

My first posting in IAS was at Aligarh as Sub-divisional magistrate (SDM). One always feels very excited about first posting and more so in a job which has public dealing. At that age, one tries his best to help people and at the same time finds it difficult to tolerate any nonsense. As a result, complaints against young officers are received quite often. It depends upon the temperament of the officer as well as upon the wisdom of the boss, how these complaints are taken and used for supporting or correcting the officer.
While such incidents look trivial with the passage of time, they play an important role in shaping the career, approach and ultimately the character of the officer. I have an interesting experience of my first posting to share. After about two months of joining, I received a copy of complaint against me, which was addressed to the District Magistrate (DM). It was sent by a village pradhan who had accused me of caste bias. Since the District Magistrate also belonged to his caste, he expected an action against me. When I saw a copy of the complaint which was endorsed to me, I got a little upset and was looking forward to an opportunity to explain the matter to the DM. There is no need to say that the allegations were totally false and I had given relief to the village by taking action against the pradhan, who had filed the complaint.
Few days later, I got such an opportunity when I was travelling with the DM to some place in the district. When I brought the matter of complaint against me to the notice of the DM and explained my side, he showed no reaction. Perhaps, he needed no explanation from me as he could understand the genuineness of the complaint from his experience and my way of working. But what he said was interesting and also had a message. He said that while he had full faith in me, he also had a complaint against me. And his complaint was that only one complaint had come against me during two months. According to him a young officer like me should have attracted many complaints by then and it showed that I was not doing enough work. He then complemented me for the good work I was doing and advised me to go ahead in the same manner.
Today some of us shun work for fear of complaints. There can be nothing more unfortunate than this. I have always believed in taking decisions and often took bold decisions when my conscience dictated so. This has always brought me goodwill as well as admiration. Sometimes things went wrong also but in that case system supported me and no harm was caused. The laws of nature also work with the same perfectness. May be we need to be a little more wise in the present times.

Very Reasonable

In the early years of my service, I was posted for a few months as Deputy Secretary in the Industries Department of the U.P. Govt. In that capacity, I was also a Director on the Board of a company. The financial condition of the company was bad and no production was going on due to labour unrest. The main reason of unrest was non-payment of wages for a long time. Soon after my joining I was required to attend a meeting of its Board in New Delhi.
I was a new officer at that time and hardly knew the intricacies of industrial management. All that I noticed in the Board meeting was discussion on justifying the non-payment of wages. All senior Board members seemed to agree with the arguments placed by the Managing Director who appeared to be a very clever person. Whether on account of lack of knowledge or courage or both, I could not raise my objections forcefully and my feeble efforts to do so bore no results. I, therefore, had to sign on the dotted lines. The meeting for which thousands of rupees were paid as TA and DA, thus ended in almost half an hour.
This left us with ample time to enjoy the drinks and snacks. I being a teetotaler could only watch senior friends of the Board competing with each other in choosing the best brands of whisky or wine or both, even the names of which I was not aware of. Somehow I passed my hours over a glass of juice and some snacks. The moment I thought that my agony was over, I found that we were on our way to the Taj Hotel for lunch.
At the Taj Hotel also, the same indulgence was repeated but this was less torturous to me, as I was hungry and could enjoy the food, its price notwithstanding. When the bill came it was quite enormous even at that point of time but everyone sighed with relief calling it ‘Very Reasonable’. It was a time when the starting salary of an IAS officer used to be in 3 digits and I had just crossed that.
There was one gentleman in this gathering who seemed to be disagreeing with this show through his silence and occasional gesture. He was the Company Secretary and by chance I travelled with him after lunch in the same car. Gathering hint from his gestures, I shared my views with him about the company. I said that, had we shared the amount spent on the Board Meeting with the workers of the company, preferably, over a frugal lunch, the labour unrest would have been over. In that case the company would have been in production and the workers would have waited for wages till the company was in a position to pay. The Company Secretary, who was seemingly a gentleman and had been in the company for years, was in complete agreement with me.

Breakfast is the Same

I served in the capacity of Secretary, medical education, twice. In that position, Sanjay Gandhi Post Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences (SGPGI), Lucknow, came under my department. This gave me an opportunity to come in contact with several good doctors. The friendship and association with many of them continues till date. One such doctor was several years younger to me. He was known for his competence as well as his manners. Patients felt very comfortable with him and his name spread fast in the medical fraternity. Incidentally, I was also one of his patients and this brought us even closer.
After serving for a few years at SGPGI, he got an offer from the Apollo hospital in Delhi. Though he was very happy in Lucknow, he decided to shift mainly on account of some personal problems. He was very well aware of the fact that SGPGI campus at Lucknow provided much more peace than what he would find in Delhi. After shifting to Delhi, he got a residence quite far from his place of work. Travelling to his work place in the morning and back home in the evening consumed about two hours. However, from the emoluments point of view, the Delhi job was much better than the Lucknow job. It was during this period that I visited him in Delhi. I had gone there for training and was staying at a place very near to his residence. One morning, I fixed up an appointment with him and reached his place half an hour before he used to leave for the hospital. That day, he had some other work also and, therefore, had to leave about fifteen minutes earlier than usual. As a result, he was in a hurry and we could barely exchange pleasantries. However, I noticed that he was having his breakfast – standing, with a dry bun in one hand and a cup of coffee in the other.
This looked quite amusing to me and I thought about those poor people who take the same breakfast but in a much more relaxed way and I humorously pointed this out to him. My comparison of his breakfast was with that of a rickshaw-puller in Lucknow who takes his breakfast on a roadside tea stall in a relaxed manner. And at that time, he either refuses to attend his customer or makes him wait till
he finishes his munch. My young doctor friend was in total agreement with me but had no alternative. He had come to Delhi for better professional opportunities and not for better breakfast. Eventually, he achieved much more name and fame. However, I have no information about his breakfast and whether it continues to be the same or has become even simpler.

Do it with Calm

When I was the Principal Secretary of an important public utility department, I had a secretary who was a very honest and sincere officer. We both joined the department almost simultaneously, he being only few days senior to me. The department was known for corruption and inefficiency, but the acuteness was a secret for us till we joined the department. My younger friend discovered it soon and was baffled.
Few days after I joined, he gave me a call one evening asking if he could meet me immediately. Incidentally, I was also relatively free and had no visitor or officials around. So I asked him to come immediately so that we could talk at ease. His body language revealed discomfort and he appeared to be in a state of confusion. Going by his sincerity and reputation, it was an unusual sight and I also became curious. Then he told me about a call which he had received a few hours earlier from a vendor who used to supply posters for a certain health programme. The caller sought instruction from him with regard to his commission, which fell due on account of the last campaign, held soon after he had joined. The amount was about three lakh rupees and the manner and place of payment had also been discussed. This was a situation he had never come across before and was confused about his response to such a strange call. He appeared to be quite angry at the vendor and wanted to take strong action
against him. He sought my advice in this regard. Apart from the real problem which would be dealt with separately, my immediate concern was his agony. Here was a person who was honest and sincere but was suffering on account of the misdeeds of others. This was the last thing I wanted for him.
With a touch of humour, I then told him that there were only two options before him. Either he calmly accepted the money or calmly refused it. Instead, he was choosing a third option, that of refusing the vendor with anger. In this way, he was going to be a double sufferer. He got my point and felt somewhat relaxed. Then we discussed the matter from the administrative point of view. I advised him to understand the whole process and take necessary steps to stop the malpractice for all times to come. I also assured him my full cooperation.
He took my advice seriously and soon worked out a plan, which could address the problem at its root. In the very next campaign, there was a saving of about forty percent, much more than the cut that was being offered to him. Incidentally, the vendor also appreciated his initiative as this removed his dilemma too. This was made possible only because the whole chain of events was carried out with a calm frame of mind.

How Much Do We Need

Many years back, I was staying in a forest rest house at Kanpur. In this forest, there was a long track where some people used to come for their morning walk. The track was narrow, zigzag and ran into a few kilometres. For me, it is a great joy to be in the lap of Nature and enjoy its ambience while walking. During my stay, a friend of mine joined me for the morning walk and we both walked on that narrow path. As it was difficult to walk together, I would walk behind him and occasionally wonder at the bounty of Nature. Suddenly, my attention went to the narrowness of the path. It was hardly one foot wide but one was able to walk on it comfortably without any insecurity of falling off. Then I thought that while there was no problem in walking on a one foot wide path, the same would become difficult if one had to walk on a one foot wide wall.
This difficulty would further increase with the increase in the height of the wall and it would, perhaps, become impossible for a common man to walk over even a two feet wide wall, if its height is raised to ten feet or more. The fact is, that one needs the same width even to walk on a wall but the sense of insecurity increases because of the height which makes it difficult to walk. However, a trained and disciplined person can walk even on a rope tied at a great height. This observation gave me a very valuable lesson for life. As long as we are not very important and remain on the ground, our needs are few and we enjoy life within our limited means. As we grow materially, and reach the so-called height, it becomes difficult to live within the same means while our basic needs remain the same. Not only this, our joys turn into fears, as and when we start possessing more. Our energies are then deployed in acquiring more and the process goes on. In this way, while one’s income level increases, his or her happiness decreases.
The answer lies in appreciating the fact that when we rise in life, we need more discipline and restraint for remaining happy. No one can deny that our basic needs of food, shelter and clothing remain the same, but we tend to acquire more only due to our sense of insecurity or ego. A wise person is one who can correctly assess his needs and spend his energy optimally. His acquisitions beyond his needs then serve a larger purpose and cater to the society. This further adds to his happiness and fulfilment in life. Someone has rightly said that the only way for a rich man to be happy is to live like a poor man.

People Honour the Honour

It is perhaps a law of Nature that we all salute to the rising sun and not the setting sun. Similarly, when we get sudden success, fame, recognition or riches, people rush to us irrespective of the fact whether it is well-deserved or not. Many times, even those people hang around us, who have no liking for us. At times, this may annoy us but there is no point in getting annoyed and the whole process should be accepted with equanimity, more so when such an achievement is well-deserved. While it is easy to say so, it may be difficult to follow in actual life. An incident of Rabindra Nath Tagore’s life may be of help in appreciating this point and consequently, in following.
When Tagore was conferred the Nobel Prize in literature for his work ‘Gitanjali’ in the year 1913, it came as a big surprise to the literary circle of Kolkata. Obviously, it was so for Tagore also, as often is the case with such recognition. But the case of Tagore was somewhat different. He was never given
the due recognition at home and his contemporaries in the literary circle never thought very highly of him. One reason for this could be their silent jealousy of Tagore on various counts. He also knew this but remained aloof as long as it didn’t affect him. The news of the Nobel Prize to Tagore intensified this jealousy even more. Tagore had shifted to Shantiniketan by that time, near Bolpur. A big group of the literary circle of Kolkata, therefore, decided to proceed to Shantiniketan to honour Tagore and the same was communicated to him. Tagore knew that most of the people who were coming to honour him had no great regard for him and were coming only because he had been conferred the Nobel Prize. So he was not very happy about it and shared his feelings with some close friends of his at Shantiniketan. His words were that the delegation was coming not to honour him but to honour his honour. The friends also knew the fact and understood Tagore’s dilemma. However, one of his friends advised him to remain as gracious as he had always been and receive the delegation. Tagore conceded to this advice and the event was conducted gracefully. Perhaps, Tagore would have done so on his own accord also.
The message of this small narrative is that one should take ‘success’ and ‘failure’ with equanimity. If one does not feel much elated in the former, the latter also will not have an adverse effect. Tagore experienced several tragedies in life but he remained equally calm in those periods. That is why, in due course, he not only won the true respect of his colleagues but of the whole world. But this does not happen in one day and one has to strive for it all through the life.

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.

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.

Joy of Ignorance

Life is a cycle of joys and sorrows. Most of us are carried away by them and feel happy or unhappy accordingly. Our seers have contemplated a lot on this subject and have advised us to rise above both of them. They say that there is no absoluteness about them and both are fleeting moments of life. In other words, joy and sorrow are only external happenings and affect us only when we come to know of such happenings. If we are ignorant about them, they create no effect on us. Also, the same event creates a different feeling in different persons. It depends upon our relationship with the event at that point of time. If they were absolute, they would evoke same feelings in all of us even if we didn’t know about them. In addition, the impact of any event, good or bad, fades with time and we remain affected neither by a good event nor by a bad event in due course of time.
I am narrating a personal experience here to support the above. It was in May, 1983, when I was posted as District Magistrate in Basti. At that time, one of my close friends was posted as District Magistrate in Almora (at that time Uttarakhand was a part of UP). He invited us to visit Almora, which is one of the most beautiful hill stations in India. Those days, my father-in-law, who was in Delhi, was not well and there was a risk to his life. However, after being assured that there was no immediate danger, I decided to undertake the trip with my family. My friend had made good arrangements for our stay and travel within the district.
There were several places worth visiting including Ranikhet, known as the ‘Queen of Hills’. Overall, we enjoyed our stay and had a nice time. At that time, communication by telephone was not very advanced. Hill districts, in particular, had poor services and it was very difficult to get in touch even with Delhi. As a result, we had no information about the condition of my father-in-law. As we were returning to Basti from Almora, we stopped briefly at Lucknow, and I contacted Delhi from there. I learnt that my father-in-law had passed away two days back and by that time he had also been cremated. This came as a great shock to us and I, with my wife, travelled to Delhi the same evening and observed the mourning period there.
While all this was being done, the philosophical thoughts about our joy at Almora and sorrow after learning about the death kept occupying my mind. This contemplation made me believe that our joy is nothing but our ignorance and by the same logic, our sorrow is equally our ignorance. A wise person neither gets elated with joy nor gets depressed by sorrow. Since then, I have been trying to imbibe this wisdom.

Honour of the Back Seat

1996. A few days later, I met a retired gentleman living in the same locality. He was a Lt. General in the Indian army and had retired from the post of Vice-Chief. I had heard of his simplicity from others but meeting him was a very pleasant experience. His house was a moderate one but maintained very meticulously with a lot of greenery inside as well as outside. In fact, our first meeting took place while he was taking care of the greenery maintained by him outside his house along the road. This scene left a deep mark on me and we gradually became very close to each other.
In due course, I also learnt about the important positions he had occupied in the Indian army. Not only this, he came from a very good background with many friends and relatives in important positions. Against the background of these facts, his simplicity assumed an even greater meaning. My regard for him only grew with time. He also became a life member of the Kabir Peace Mission and contributed a lot to its activities. Once, this gentleman was invited to an important function of the mission. We had earmarked a prominent seat for him in the front row but our guest was nowhere to be seen, though he had promised to come. Surpisingly, he was spotted sitting in the back row and could be brought to the front row only after great persuasion. For him, sitting at the back appeared to be quite normal and there was no gimmick behind it.
Later also, such a situation arose several times. This set me thinking about those who occupy or try to occupy the front seats, in whatsoever field they are, fully knowing their place. Such persons at times have to be reminded of their place and when this is done, they feel insulted and may even become our enemies. A wise or great person never does so. On the other hand, they feel more comfortable in giving the front place to others. In this way, they make themselves more honourable than those occupying the front seats. At the same time, they pre-empt any chance of being insulted or made to feel small.
The gentleman mentioned above is one of them. Every time, when he does so, he goes up in my esteem. The name of the gentleman is Lt. General Vijay Singh and even after crossing 75 years, he is healthy and happy. One of the secrets of this is the honour he gives to the back seat.

No Change in Medicine

his incident relates to the year 1983. I was then posted as District Collector of Basti in UP. Basti was a big district at that time and also a very backward one. Floods used to be the annual feature of the area and villagers were quite accustomed to the allied problems. However, the district administration used to take all the necessary steps to minimise the difficulties of the people. As collector of the district, I also tried my best to do so. During the floods of 1983, I was on a tour of a remote area of the district. I had left the headquarter early in the morning and it was late noon when I was returning. On the way back, I was feeling very tired and feverish. Therefore, I asked the driver to stop at some dispensary on the way so that I could take some medicines. Soon he stopped at a government Primary Health Centre (PHC). The doctor present there gave me some medicines. The medicines were loose tablets, which he gave me from a bottle. There was only one tablet which he prescribed to be taken three times a day and hoped that I would be all right within three days. Accordingly, he gave me the necessary quantity. I took the first dose there itself. On enquiry, the doctor also told me that my problem was quite common in that season and the medicines given to me were quite effective.
When I reached the district headquarter, the Chief Medical Officer (CMO) of the district also came to know of my indisposition. Soon he came to see me and brought with him a packet of medicines which were not only many in number but also costly. When I enquired from him whether these medicines were also available to general patients, he replied in the negative and added that they were specially procured for me from the market. He also emphasised that I must take those medicines, if I wanted to be normal soon. My attention, then, went to the words of the doctor at PHC who had told me that the medicines given by him were quite effective in common people. With that in mind, I politely asked the CMO to let me try the common man’s medicines. One additional reason for doing so was the simplicity of the dosage, which was very complex in case of the medicines brought by the CMO. Though not convinced, he had no option and left along with the medicines.
I took the simple medicines for three days and became quite normal as per the hopes of the doctor at PHC. At this, I felt very happy and shared this experience with many. I also felt jealous of the common man who gets cured with simple medicines while an important person has to take complicated and expensive treatment for the same disease.

Secret of Economic Growth

Once I was on Election Commission’s duty as an observer in the state of Bihar. It was for assembly elections in the year 1995. Bihar is a poor state, but the Araria district, the area where I was assigned duty was even poorer. At that time, I was posted at Kolkata and there was a direct train from Sealdah to the place of my duty.
On my very first visit there, I was amazed to see the socio-economic condition of its people. People there were simple and poor but their happiness index was certainly higher than their urban or more prosperous counterparts. This trait of theirs was exploited fully by their leaders, who had vested interest in keeping them in that condition only. Overall, it was a very rich experience, which not only increased my sensitivity towards poor people but also revealed to me the secret of economic growth. One day, while travelling on a countryside road in the district, I started conducting a survey of people walking or cycling on the roadside. The two parameters I had in mind were their clothes and footwear. I observed both these possessions carefully. As far as clothing was concerned, I noticed that half of them wore only an undergarment (baniyan) and in a good number of cases, it was a torn one. There were some who were bare-bodied, some with a damaged kurta and only about one in ten had put on a shirt or kurta which was in a good condition. More or less the same was the situation with women, many of whom wrapped their upper parts with a sari. In the case of footwear, half of them were barefoot and most of the remaining wore a cheap rubber chappal, which was damaged in a good number of cases. Only about one out of ten had proper shoes on their feet.
I was touched to see this condition of the majority of people. My attention went to the wardrobes of those rich people who have countless clothes and shoes only to remain unutilised while depriving others. I was not a student of economics but by common sense thought that this could not be the way of economic development. Certainly, it would be much faster, if the entire population had access to their minimum needs. If each Indian woman was to possess one pair of sari, man one pair of shirt and all of them one pair of footwear, the textile and footwear industry would grow at a much faster rate than it does now. The same is true for other needs.
Economists and planners have failed to bring equity in the development process. I feel that all the disorders of the society are mainly on account of the increasing gap between the rich and the poor. Such growth models cannot sustain for a long time and today’s recession has a lot to do with this failure. Gandhiji had this model of growth in mind which we have failed to follow, and are now paying the price for it. Let us review our priorities and learn from our mistakes. After the above visit, I also started possessing only one pair of shoes and few sets of clothes. Surely, I have been a happier person since then.

The Coffee Machine

In the year 1989, I travelled to the USA via Japan. My wife was also with me. The first leg of our journey was from Delhi to Tokyo where we stayed for three days. The next journey was from Tokyo to San Francisco on the western side of the USA. While travelling on this route, one gains time, which is quite an interesting experience. For example, if we leave Tokyo in the evening of Sunday, the arrival at San Francisco would be in the morning of Sunday. Thus, one can enjoy two Sundays in the same week. This was to happen with us also, as we were scheduled to leave Tokyo on a Sunday evening.
While we were waiting at the Tokyo airport, the flight got delayed by about an hour. During this waiting period, I felt like having a cup of coffee. In my pocket, there were still some yens left as I had converted most of the yens into dollars before leaving Japan. So I went to a coffee stall but my possession felt short by a few yens. At that time, one yen was equal to about ten paise in India. I thought that the vendor would oblige me by accepting few yens less and give a cup of coffee.
With this in mind, I approached the salesgirl, who could understand a bit of English. I tried to explain my problem to her and she could also understand. While she wanted to help me, she expressed her inability to do so because the machine would not operate even if the amount was only one yen less than the exact price. At that moment, I remembered the vendors of my own country, where the relationship between a buyer and seller existed on a direct basis and not through a machine. As a result, they could use their discretion in such matters.
The idea behind narrating this small incident is not to condemn mechanisation, but to show how this large-scale mechanisation has taken away the joy of human relationships. The world today is growing very fast but with this change, human relationships are also changing. In this process, it is difficult to say whether happiness is also increasing. Why difficult, it is certain that the happiness index of mankind has come down with the so-called development. It raises questions about where we are going wrong.
We are going wrong in the sense that in the modern age man himself has been reduced to a machine. He has been made to believe in certain norms of life, which dub him as modern and successful. Thus, success has become the sole goal of life. Whether it is accompanied by peace or not is not important. The whole turmoil of the modern world is on account of this madness. If we pause for a moment and analyse our life, there is every likelihood of finding a way to happiness. But most of us are too busy to do so and in the process miss the essence of life, which is joy and happiness. Let us not lose the human connection as we modernise ourselves. This is the main agenda before us in modern times. For this, we have to be our own masters and not slaves to machines.

Refusal by Coolie

Once I was waiting at the Aligarh railway station to board a train for Punjab. The train was to leave at about 8:30 p.m. but it was delayed. I had a coolie for my luggage who was also waiting with me. I was carrying my packed food for dinner. As the train was late, I ate the food on the platform itself, sitting on a bench. After that, I bought two oranges, one for myself and the other for the coolie. While doing so, I was filled with compassion and with that subtle ego within, I offered an orange to the coolie. He was absorbed in his own world and, perhaps, this offer disturbed his contemplation.
As a result, he declined my offer saying that he was in no mood to eat at that time. For a moment, I felt hurt and also insulted. It took me some time to come to terms with this small incident. At that time, I was reading a book by Vivekananda, in which it is often mentioned that it is us, who need the world and not vice versa. Whenever someone offered his or her service to the society, the first advice he gave to others was to drop the ego while serving others. Since this advice of his was fresh in my mind, I immediately related this incident with it. It, then, became clear to me that it was my subtle ego of giving which hurt me and not his refusal.
These were the initial years of my service. Fortunately, certain incidents of this period turned me into a spiritual seeker. At that time, I was in the nascent stage of seeking and such incidents were certainly programmed by Nature as practical demonstrations of what I was reading in the books. The refusal by the coolie was one of them. Since then my perception about giving to others, in whatever form, changed completely and I started taking all such opportunities as grace of God In due course, I also realised that when we give with the right attitude to the right person, we receive much more from Nature. The return may not come from the same person or persons, but it comes from sources which are often unknown to us. Therefore, to live a life based on calculations or expectations proves counterproductive and mars the joy of giving. Our concern should only be our joy in giving and once it becomes our nature then our returns are taken care of by Nature itself. In that case, even the joy of receiving multiplies. The simple refusal of the orange by the coolie taught me this lesson for life.

Both Disappointed

Once I came across an industrialist-cum-businessman along with his only son in the ashram of my spiritual master Swami Bhoomananda Tirtha at New Delhi. At that time, I was posted as the Regional Development Commissioner for iron and steel. With me was also a friend of mine from Kanpur. He knew the industrialist because he had some industry in Kanpur. My friend was quite surprised to see the industrialist in the ashram, as he was supposed to be a very materialistic person. When enquired, it was revealed that his only son had become a recluse and took no interest in his business. It was only on his son’s insistence that he had come to the ashram. While the purpose of his son was to seek spiritual guidance, the father had come to seek Swamiji’s blessings for bringing his son back to business.
When my friend introduced me to the businessman and told my designation, he got keenly interested and sought an appointment with me in my office. I thought that his son’s detachment with the world must have had a deep impact on him and, perhaps, he wanted to discuss this matter with me. At that time, I was a beginner in the field of spirituality and didn’t understand human nature very deeply. I thought that if the businessman also turned spiritual, it would be a great benefit to the society. Considering all these points, I fixed up an appointment with him in my office a few days later.
The gentleman came to my office on the appointed day. When I started the discussion about his son, he appeared disinterested and even my repeated references made no impact on him. At this, I thought that he must be very sad about it and, therefore, avoided the discussion. But soon, he came to his point. At that time, steel was a controlled commodity and had a premium on it. This gentleman wanted some quota of steel so that he could earn some money by selling it in the black market. Firstly, I didn’t believe it but then I found that he was quite serious about it. Not only this, he openly offered some share to me also. I was dumbfounded by his offer. I had no words to respond. I had genuinely expected him to say something sensible, particularly in the backdrop of his only son’s renunciation. But everyone is not fortunate enough to rise above the world and this gentleman was one of them. For him, money was everything and its accumulation was the only purpose of his life. Perhaps, that was the reason why his son had developed a disliking for the material world. But there was no point in talking to him about all this. Therefore, I begged him to excuse me and our meeting ended abruptly. In a way, this appointment was a disappointment for both of us.

Inner Management

Once I was travelling from Delhi to Lucknow by the Lucknow Mail. I had a booking in the AC first-class coach and my berth was the lower berth. On the opposite lower berth, there was another gentleman whom I did not recognise. Both the upper berths were vacant to begin with, but just before the train started moving, two gentlemen entered the cabin, kept their briefcases on the upper berths and soon left the cabin. This created an impression that both of them were unauthorised passengers and did not have any reservations. However, I didn’t take any notice of it but the other passenger was certainly not happy about it. Since both left the cabin almost immediately, he could say nothing to them. Early in the morning, I heard some harsh exchange of words in the cabin. It had so happened that both the upper berth passengers had returned to the cabin in the early hours and put on the light. This disturbed my co-passenger and he objected to it somewhat angrily. This was not liked by the other two passengers and they too responded in the same tone. On this, my co-passenger accused them of unauthorised travelling with the connivance of the railway staff. This was too much for them and all this resulted in a heated exchange of words.
By this time, I was fully awake and wanted to understand the situation. Firstly, I tried to calm them down with a firm and polite request. Somehow, they responded to my request and we started to discuss the matter. As a result, the following facts came out. The two passengers who had occupied the upper two berths were railway officers occupying the post of executive and superintendent engineers. They were on official duty and were to conduct certain studies on the engine in the moving train. That is why they had left the cabin right after keeping their briefcases. After completing the study, they came back to the cabin in the early hours and were quite tired. Since it was the winter season, the cold had added to their fatigue. So, they were in a hurry to take some rest and in the process disturbed my co-passenger. After getting to know all these facts, both sides felt sorry about their hasty response.
The surprising fact was that my co-passenger was the director of a reputed management institute of Lucknow. I knew him by name and had talked to him over the phone several times, but had never met him. The acquaintance made him feel guilty also, but I tried to convince him that such mistakes were normal and one only needs to learn lessons from such incidents for the future. Incidentally, the train was quite late and this provided us an opportunity to know each other more closely and when we left the Lucknow railway station, there was a tough competition between the two sides for realising their mistakes. I told my co-passenger that it was a problem of ‘inner management’ which is perhaps more important than ‘outer management’ taught by him, all through his life.

Anil Ambani’s Lunch

Mr Anil Ambani used to be a member of the UP development council during a particular regime. This was the highest body responsible for taking important development decisions in the state. Many well-known persons in the fields of industry, banking, media and commerce were members of this body. The council used to meet at various places and senior officers of various development departments were also invited to attend these meetings.
At one such meeting held in Delhi, I was also present as a special invitee. At that time, I was posted as the Principal Secretary of the medical and health department. The meeting was held in the Ashoka hotel and went very well. After the meeting, we all were invited to join the buffet lunch, which was arranged quite lavishly. I normally take a light lunch but the menu being quite rich, I had no option but to take what was served by the hotel.
Soon after I started my lunch sitting on a side table, I noticed Anil Ambani also coming to the same table and occupying a seat. He had not taken his lunch but immediately, a battery of bearers along with their boss approached him to seek orders. To this, his response was very interesting. He refused to accept any item already served. Instead, he ordered for two pieces of idly along with some sambhar. Of course, it was promptly served to him and that was all he had for lunch. While his simple lunch created some envy in me as I had missed this opportunity, it also made me contemplate on the matter. Most of us feel that the goal of life is to increase our consumption level and we feel envious of those who are wealthy. But wealth does not necessarily mean that our consumption will also go up. Our basic needs remain the same and if they are comfortably met, that should be reason enough for our happiness. Any acquisition beyond need becomes a burden if it is not shared with others or utilised for a higher cause. All those who acquire wealth, position, fame, etc., can remain happy only when they use such acquisitions for others.
It is even more true in the case of food. Hazrat Mohammad Sahab used to say that food should be taken only when one is very hungry and only half the stomach should be filled. If one does so, he will always be healthy. A well-known naturopath of India says the same thing in other words. According to him, half the food we take keeps us alive and the other half keeps the doctors alive. If one follows this advice, he himself remains happy and lets others also be happy. Anil Ambani’s lunch proved this fact amply and also revealed the secret of his good health and mind.

NCC Camp

In the year 1965, I attended a National Cadet Corps (NCC) camp for about fifteen days. At that time, I was in the first year of my graduation. My elder brother was also in the same college studying in the second year of graduation. We both were supposed to attend that camp. Since the camp was to be held just before the Deepawali festival, it meant being away from home during the festival, which certainly did not make the occasion very welcoming. In view of this, many students applied for exemption including my elder brother. The exemption was sought mainly on medical grounds, which required a fake medical certificate. It was not difficult to get one even during those times. My elder brother also resorted to the same practice and managed to get exemption.
The idea of seeking exemption did not even occur to me and doing so on the basis of a fake medical certificate was even more remote to me. As a result, I had to attend the camp, though I was not very happy about it for reasons mentioned above. This was my first experience of collective living and that
too, in somewhat uncomfortable conditions. Waking up early in the winter season (at that time Deepawali days used to be quite cold and more so in the open ground), taking bath in cold water, strict adherence to meal timings as well as the quantity, the poor quality of food, etc., were the factors which always gave a regretful feeling. At that time, thinking of the comfort of those who had sought exemption on one ground or the other used to add salt to the injury. There was no option but to undergo all the drills. Not only this, the behaviour of our friends occupying some rank in the NCC was even worse than the real officers.
Somehow, the days passed and we started enjoying the so-called suffering. Many aspects of such a life were new to us, which we would have missed, had we not attended the camp. Gradually, the envy of those who had sought exemption started disappearing, with a feeling of being fortunate replacing it. Though we were given an option to spend the Deepawali day with our families, the evening celebration was in the camp only. The fun we had during that celebration is still a memorable event. Overall, this camp imparted me a good lesson of life, which helped a lot in leading a successful one. It has been rightly said that there is no elevator to success; the path is through the staircase. The heights achieved through the elevator are equally short-lived. The NCC camp taught me this secret very convincingly.

Pet on the Road

Once, I was staying with a nephew of mine at New Jersey in the USA. I used to get up early there also, and go for a morning walk. The place around was very clean and scenic but there used to be hardly any person on the road. Even if there were any, there was hardly any exchange of words except a greeting by waving of the hand and, that too, from a distance.
One day, during such a walk, I saw a lady with her small pet, on the other side of the road. As usual, I greeted her by waving my hand. To this, her response was different and she responded by uttering some nice words. Somehow, I felt that she was keen to talk to me and since I also find such conversations very educative, I also made the same gesture and we started walking together. Soon, I noticed that she was interested in India because her father had been an army officer during the British rule. As a result, she had spent a few years of her childhood in India. Perhaps, that was the reason why she showed interest in me, as she had guessed that I was an Indian. Anyway, we exchanged many things about India and British life and overall, it was a very good exchange.
While we were walking on the footpath, she noticed that her pet was about to attend to the nature’s call. I also noticed the same and was keen to see how she would handle the situation. But I was pleasantly surprised to note that she had came prepared for the same and immediately took out a polythene bag from her pocket and took the excreta of her pet in that bag. This was her reflex action without being conscious of my presence. Then she wrapped the polythene bag and put it in a paper bag and kept it back in her pocket. When she finished all this, she was back in conversation with me. I was amazed to notice all this and conveyed my feelings to her. It was a surprise to her that in India people take out their pets only to use roads and pathways as toilets for them. What a difference between the two cultures! While we may boast of our ancient culture and spiritual heritage, we fail badly in displaying modern culture and civic sense in our day-to-day living. This is the reason why our ancient values are losing their meaning and in the process life is becoming difficult.
Who says we have nothing to learn from the West? Culture is not a monopoly of one country or race. Each society has a culture of its own and in modern times when the world is becoming smaller and smaller in terms of communication and reach, we must take the best from every society. Then only our scripture’s message of ‘Vasudhaiva Kutumbkam’ will have any meaning. Otherwise, it will remain just a scriptural phrase.

Malaysian Driver

Once, I was on a visit of Malaysia along with my wife. The visit was in connection with a conference on security and the venue was Penang. It is a beautiful island and a popular tourist destination. We thoroughly enjoyed our visit and went around the whole island. During the course of our stay at Penang, I hired a taxi one day for going around the town for half a day from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. for the two of us. The charges were fixed at 120 ringgits.
This arrangement was made on the previous evening. During dinner when we shared this information with some of the other participants, two of them got interested in joining us. We had no objection to that because it would give us some company as well as help save some ringgits also. When contacted, the taxi driver also had no objection but now demanded 160 ringgits for all the four. We all agreed to this arrangement.
Next morning, the taxi arrived at the hotel five minutes before 9 a.m. and the driver informed me about his arrival. At that time, we were on the breakfast table along with the other two participants who were to join us for the trip. Somehow, we noticed that they were reluctant to join us. My guess was that they had dropped the idea during the night, perhaps on account of the cost involved but were not very forthright about it. Instead of conveying their doubts, they started advising us also to drop the trip. Since no advance had been paid, they also suggested that the driver be made to wait without conveying our decision. For sometime, we tried to convince them about the economy of the trip as well as the embarrassment that would be caused in case of cancellation, but failed. We then decided to go ourselves, even if it meant paying 160 ringgits.
As a result, when my wife and I approached the waiting taxi it was close to 10 a.m. When we told the driver about the difficulty of the other two passengers, he smilingly accepted the situation and agreed to take us on the previous arrangement of 120 ringgits only. This came as a surprise to us, which only increased our respect for him. The driver took us around the tour in a very cordial way and showed no hurry in order to compensate for the delay. Not only this, he worked as our guide also and took us around to many places, which we had not thought of earlier. He also helped us in our shopping as well as in having lunch, which took more time than what we had planned for. All this resulted in delay and when we returned to the hotel, it was 2:30 p.m. It meant that we had delayed him by one and a half hours. I, naturally, felt like paying him more than the agreed amount and offered some extra ringgits. But I was amazed to see his response. He very firmly and politely turned down the offer. Instead, he asked whether we were satisfied with his services, which we obviously were, more than our expectations. Though I could not pay him more money, I certainly gave him a silent salute and also saw a glimpse of nation-building in his gesture.

Artificial Gold

There is a known family that stays in the same locality in Lucknow in which we do. At present, only the husband and wife stay at Lucknow as their children have settled outside. They visit us often and, at times, his wife also visits alone. His wife came to our house one day. It was during my office hours and so my wife also was alone at home. That day an incident took place in which the gold chain of the
lady was snatched by a thief when she was near our home. The lady was frightened by this incident and took shelter in our house narrating the whole development. Her husband being out of town, she could not even think of reporting the incident to the police.
Next day, when her husband returned I advised him to report the matter to the police, which he immediately did. I also spoke to the Inspector General of police, who happened to be a good friend of mine, apart from being a good and efficient police officer. The main purpose of my speaking to him was to convey to him the perception of the law and order situation in the town which was being greatly damaged by such incidents. As far as this particular case was concerned, I expected no relief. But to my utter surprise, the relief came very soon. Within three days, my friend got a call from the police station saying that some chains had been recovered from a gang and they could visit the police station to identify theirs. The couple did so promptly and picked up a chain which they claimed to be theirs. The chain was restored to them immediately. This was a great surprise for all of us and the lady’s joy knew no bounds.
The next day, the lady was advised to consult the goldsmith about the genuineness of the gold. To their utter dismay, it turned out to be of artificial gold. Their entire joy disappeared in no time and now they were sadder than they were at the time of loss. The matter was again reported to the Inspector General who helped in recovering the real one.
Without going into the intricacies of the matter, I look upon this incident with some amusement also. The lady, herself being incapable of distinguishing between real and artificial gold, enjoyed both equally and in this particular case, she enjoyed the artificial gold even more than the real gold. But the same artificial gold gave her so much sorrow when identified by the goldsmith. The message is that most of us keep on enjoying artificial things and waste life in the process. It is only when we come to know the reality that the joy disappears and we try to seek real joy, which is within all of us. Let us, therefore, give up our artificial joy of objects and seek the real one of divinity.

Metamorphosis

I had a friend who was a doctor in the Sanjay Gandhi Post Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences, Lucknow and also a senior professor in the department of gastro-entomology. His wife was also a senior professor in another department. Both husband and wife were known for their competence and patient care. It was always a joy to interact with them and I always enjoyed their company. This doctor friend of mine was suddenly detected for a stomach ailment, which called for the immediate opening of his stomach. When the surgeon did so, they found that the patient was suffering with the cancer of the intestines, which was at an advanced stage. Everyone was surprised as well as shocked to see this and more so in case of the patient himself being a gastroenterologist. Seeing the condition of the stomach, it was assumed that the patient would not live for more than six months.
One can imagine the state of mind of the patient in such a position. But this friend of mine was a different person. Not only was he different, his family members also were different. All of them refused to say ‘no’ to life and accepted the reality gracefully. The doctor-patient had risen in his life from a humble background and gave to the society much more than he had taken from it. Even in such a condition, he decided to give the society whatever he could during the expected short span of his life. He made a request to the director of the Institute and asked for the services of a stenographer. He wanted to dictate the story of his life, and through that autobiography he wished to pass on all the wisdom he had acquired in his short life. The request was accepted and accordingly, he started dictating. Not only this, he continued to deliver lectures also, as long as he was in a position to do so. All along, his condition was deteriorating, though at a slower pace than was predicted. He and his family also had to entertain a good number of relatives and well-wishers who came to see them, as they learnt about the development.
I also visited my friend a few times during this period. His actual condition was never reflected on his face and his responses were always positive. He was continuing with his book, afraid only of the deadline set for his life, but he was confident of seeing it through. Eventually, he won and his book was released fifteen days before he passed away. The book was released by the then governor of UP. It was one of the most solemn events of my life. There was not a single eye without tears. The author had challenged Nature and had lived a full year against an optimistic lease of six months. The book was titled ‘Metamorphosis’, an apt description of the author’s life and a true inspiration for others.

Land for Grave

I have a young Muslim friend who is in his thirties. He is a very enthusiastic person and always carries a cheerful disposition. He is also a member of the Kabir Peace Mission and often visits me. One day when he came to me, he appeared even more cheerful. On being asked about the reason, he told me that he was happy because he had purchased the land for his grave on the previous day. This was something for which I was neither prepared nor had heard of before. I knew that Muslims bury the dead body in the earth but the fact that, for this, land has to be arranged in advance, was a surprise to me. Hearing the cause of his cheerfulness, I became curious and desired to know more about the deal. He told me that land in Lucknow was getting costlier day by day and the same was the case with graveyards also. He was happy because he could get the land at a reasonable rate and could pay the price easily. He further said that arranging land for the grave was an essential responsibility and he could get rid of it so early. Now onwards, he would be able to live peacefully.
All this amazed me and I wondered at his preparedness for death at such an early age. Then I enquired about the measurement of the land he had purchased for his grave. He told me that the graveyard he had chosen was a prestigious one and only six feet by two and a half feet land is given to the buyer. In this way, he had purchased only fifteen square feet of land, as more than that was not available to anyone. He was quite satisfied with that also. His narration of these facts increased my respect for him. But more than that, it was the message he gave to all living persons which is important.
Who does not know the fact that life is a journey from the womb to the tomb? But how many of us take it that way? Most of us spend our lives in accumulating wealth and other material possessions. Quite often, these possessions are acquired at the cost of others. While excessive possessions are a potential cause of sorrow for the possessor, this tendency also deprives many others of their essential needs. In this way, the resources of the nation are wasted. The fact that at the end of this journey only six feet by two and half feet land will be available to us should be reason enough for us to live gracefully, as well as to let others live gracefully. My young friend demonstrated this point so simply and easily by purchasing the land for his grave.

Second-Class Yogi

Today, there is an ever-increasing craze for name and fame. Most of us feel that these two are the only measures of our success or greatness. Often, we also adopt dubious means to earn name and fame. However, this is our total ignorance because our inner progress or worth has nothing to do with our external achievements. Such persons are also not able to contribute much to the society in the real sense. On the other hand, there are countless persons who have no name or fame. Yet, they are good souls who contribute to the welfare of the society without creating any envy or ill will. Once this truth is realised, the craze for name and fame drops automatically and we pay greater attention to our inner development. In the process, we also grow externally and perform better in our mundane life as well.
The above lesson was learnt by me from a book on Swami Vivekanand’s life. When Swami Vivekanand delivered his famous speech at the World Religion Meet in Chicago in the year 1893, he became a hero of the meet within no time. In the process, his fame spread all over the continent and many organisations started approaching him for sponsorship. For a moment, Swamiji got attracted to the offers for the cause of his mission, but very soon he realised that the main objective of such offers was commercial and not to serve the cause of his mission. Therefore, he decided to distance himself from them. He told his sponsors that his fame was only accidental and by no means was he a first-class yogi. At best, he fell in the category of second or third-class yogis. He further said that the first-class yogis are never known to the world in general.
They do their sadhna so silently that nobody comes to know of it. However, by remaining anonymous, they contribute much more to the welfare of the world. For him, fame was an impediment. And, therefore, he would not like to ride on it. This way, he excused himself and went on further in a natural manner to pursue his mission. Here lies the secret of Swamiji’s success. He lived only nine years after his famous speech, but during this short period he revolutionised religion. It transformed from passive dogmas to dynamic ways of living for the welfare of the human society. The message is that we grow best when we work selflessly without any craze for name and fame. It is a different matter if we get them too in due course. Our society has many such silent workers. They may not be well-known but they make a difference to things and people around them.

The Nail Came Out

Once, I was on a visit to the University of Roorkee (now IIT) for some official work. While returning from my morning walk, I saw a game of tennis going on in the tennis courts. Since tennis has been my favourite game, I turned towards the courts to watch the game. Incidentally, the Vice Chancellor and some professors who knew me well were also playing. After finishing the ongoing game, they invited me to join them. Though I was not properly dressed for the game, I accepted the offer and joined them. Soon after the game started, I misjudged a shot coming from the opposite side and fell on the court. The court was a cemented one and in the process my right hand’s fingers as well as the thumb got badly injured. Three fingers of the hand almost fully turned backwards while the nail of the thumb was badly crushed. Though medical aid was extended to me immediately, it took me months before the fingers became functional. Till now, they are not fully normal, though ten years have passed since then.
During the course of my recovery, I learned an important lesson. As mentioned above, the nail of my thumb was badly crushed in the fall. It used to be quiet painful but soon the natural process started replacing it with a new one. It was a slow process and the old nail was being rejected gradually. This used to irritate me and quite often I tried to remove the old nail by force. But it was a painful process and I never succeeded in it. However, this problem constantly drew my attention and I waited for the day when the old nail would be completely out.
It was about six months after the accident took place, when I went to an institute in Faridabad for a lecture. During the journey also, my nail was drawing my attention. But as soon as I reached the room, I noticed that the old nail had fallen out without any pain and I felt very relieved. This process also made me think that all natural processes take their own time and there is no point in trying to expedite them. If we do so, it is only a painful process.
This fact applies to all the aspects of life. We often get upset over the seeming delays in our lives but there is no use of it. All problems of life get sorted out in due course and our undue concern for them is of no use. Therefore, the best way to live is to accept life as it comes. Of course, we have to do our best at every point of time.

One Step at a Time

Once, I was to attend a meeting in Delhi. The meeting was in the afternoon and the meeting hall was located on the fourth floor. When I reached the Ministry after obtaining the entry pass, I moved towards the lift. To my utter disappointment, I found that the lift was out of order and I was to climb up to attend the meeting. I had come to the meeting just after lunch and was not physically and mentally prepared to climb four floors. Since there was no other option, I decided to climb but with reluctance and a sad state of mind. Immediately, better sense prevailed and I thought why I should be sad in this situation. A famous quote, ‘If you have not what you like, you must like what you have’ came to my mind and I started seeing the situation in that perspective. I further thought that why should I think of four floors at a point of time. Instead, I started thinking of one step at a time. The whole phobia of climbing four floors then converted into a joy of taking one step at a time. At one step, I also thought of chanting God’s name with every step. All this changed my state of mind completely, and I started climbing one step at a time. Soon, I was on the fourth floor to attend the meeting with cheerfulness and confidence.
This is an everyday affair for all of us. We all want to take big leaps in all the spheres of life. We express our goals every now and then but make no beginning. Not only that, we often blame our environment, time and others for not being able to do so. It results into continuous postponement of our actions and in the process life comes to an end and it becomes too late to start. We then wait for the next life, which is so uncertain. All those who have achieved high goals in life have wasted no time in taking the first step. Life is too short and precious to be wasted in waiting. It has been rightly said that even a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step and all mighty rivers can be leapt at their source’. Once we understand the value of time and the purpose of our life, our confusion disappears. Life then becomes not only purposeful but a happy journey too.
In this regard, I deeply appreciate the approach of the Dharam Bharti Mission, with which I came in contact with recently. It says that if you want to change things for the better and achieve high goals in life then begin with yourself, begin with small and begin now. Postponement can be a costly error.

Hen with Golden Egg

In the initial years of my service, I was posted on a sensitive post at Meerut. The job involved the regularisation or demolition of unauthorised constructions within the defined limits of the city. Such constructions were in plenty and they were either being ignored or compromised by the department. There were many reasons for such a situation, including the collusion of the department at various levels. The department, known as the development authority, was newly formed and was not headed properly for quite sometime. It was another valid reason for the bad state of affairs. It was around this time that I was posted as secretary of the authority, who was the chief executive for all practical purposes.
As a young officer, I tried to streamline the working of the authority at the earliest. This included attending to the pending cases, which were in plenty and also to pay attention to the ongoing irregular constructions. Once, such a construction included the extension of a charitable hospital to the main road of the town. The hospital belonged to a trust owned by a known person of the town. I had come in contact with him during my previous assignment in the same district and had developed a good regard for him mainly due to his charitable activities.
Against this background, when the fact of the unauthorised construction in the hospital was attended by the authority, the owner contacted me for its disposal. I, myself, was sympathetic to the issue and wanted to settle it in the best possible manner. Since the matter was compoundable, it was decided that it should be dealt with a sympathetic attitude. But the rules of compounding were very clear and there was only limited discretion available to me, which I used in his favour mainly on account of the purpose for which the building was being used. The owner was perhaps expecting complete waiver of the penalty, which I neither understood at that point of time nor would have done so, even if, he would have expressed his desire. I felt happy that I had helped the trust in the best possible manner and the matter ended there.
Few months after the incident, I was transferred to Lucknow from Meerut. On my transfer, the head of the trust invited me over a cup of tea at his residence along with my wife. Though at a personal level we had never visited each other before, I accepted the invitation. While having tea at his residence, the Seth called me to a corner of his house and mentioned his hospital case. I thought he was doing so for expressing his gratitude but I was surprised when he complained of excessive penalty in the matter. I explained to him my limitations and also told him that whatever help was possible had already been provided by me. But instead of being satisfied, he told me that if I needed something from him, I should have conveyed it to him. He further advised me that, while one should appear to be honest in service, some hens that can give golden eggs should always be reared. These two sentences of the Seth amazed me and I had no words to say. The Seth whose name began with ‘Shikhar’ had fallen to the lowest level in my eyes. How could I explain him that honesty is a state of mind and not a show business, which I have realised all through my life.

What is the Difference?

1980s was the decade of my spiritual search and contemplation. During this period, I read a number of good books, came across a number of good organisations and met a number of good persons. One such occasion was visiting the Sadhu Vaswani Mission at Pune and meeting its head Dada J P Vaswani. It was in the mid-eighties and I was still learning to interact with holy persons in a meaningful manner. The first interaction obviously used to be in the form of a greeting and in case of holy persons, it was quite customary to touch their feet. When I was to meet Dr Vaswani, I went with the same frame of mind and touched his feet when I met him. By look and body language, Dada looked very humble but I was taken aback when in response to touching his feet, he touched my feet. I was quite embarrassed at this action of his, but then he explained its significance to me. He said that as children of God or as part of the same supreme soul, what was the difference between him and me. As a result, we all need to salute each other with equal reverence. This was exactly the reason why he touched the feet of those who touched his feet. While the explanation may look simple, it was not easy to comprehend its depth at that point of time. Even if one could comprehend it, to practice the same is very difficult.
I quite often contemplate on this incident and the more I do, the more reverence I develop for Dadaji. It also helps me in reducing the sense of duality in me, which is the cause of all our troubles. We have become so used to plurality that we either suffer with a sense of superiority or inferiority. As a result, the joy of living gets lost and we become part of a rat race to overtake others. This creates further aberrations in our living and the whole life is lost without marching towards its true goal.
The message of this small incident is very great. All of us need to know our true identity and if we succeed in doing so, all hierarchies in our mind will disappear. We shall then see no hierarchy in the creations of God and will duly see the beautiful variety in them. The negative tendencies like superiority, inferiority, jealousy, hatred, anger, etc., will gradually disappear and we will be able to live a life of perfect joy heading towards its true goal.

Let God Decide

Ma Anandmayee is one of the enlightened saints of India with a large number of devotees all across the country. She was born in what is now Bangladesh but spent some good time of her life in north India, particularly in Haridwar and Dehradun. She left her body in Dehradun and there is an ashram at that place. I have had the privilege of visiting this ashram several times with a senior colleague of mine who was faithful devotee of Maa. He told me many events related to Maa and this created in me a great reverence for her. I also read a few books on her. There is an ashram of Maa near Kolkata also, at a place called Golpara. I had the chance of visiting this place during my posting at Kolkata. I found the place very serene and beautiful. There we met a saint who was quite enlightened and gave us a very deep message during our conversation. He said that most of the visitors or devotees to temples or ashrams put a list of their wishes before the deity or the saint. It means that they know what is best for them and want these wishes to be fulfilled. They do not even give a chance to God to examine the list of their wishes, what to say of Him using His discretion. He further added that the best way of seeking favours from God is to leave everything to Him and let Him decide for us. Our own role should be confined to doing our best in whatever circumstances He puts us through.
This counsel was somewhat strange, even to me, at that point of time. But it made sense to me and I contemplated on it for a long time. Thereafter, I realised that it was the most effective way of seeking the kindness of God. After all, He is the Master of the whole Universe and is capable of granting us those things which we cannot even imagine. If so, why should we restrict our demands on account of our limited minds. After all, Mother Nature knows best what is most appropriate for us and, therefore, it should be left on Her only. Viewed from the opposite direction, it also means that we have to do our best while performing our duties. Nature has equipped us with so many faculties and if we do not make the best use of them, how can we expect Her to reciprocate in the best manner? Once this secret of Nature is understood, it is in our best interest to leave it to God to decide for us. In that case, we don’t have to carry any load of desires with us. Our total energy is then deployed in doing our assigned duties.

Talk to Strangers

Once I had a very strange experience during my morning walk in the Vasundhara colony of Ghaziabad. This is a colony in the development of which I took a keen interest as the Housing Commissioner of Uttar Pradesh. I stay there quite often, even though I have ceased to hold the job, and enjoy the place. Any development in this colony still gives me joy as it relates to my memories. During the above mentioned morning walk, I saw a boy in his school uniform on the roadside, apparently waiting for his school bus. As I approached him, I felt like talking to him in order to know about the progress of schools in the colony. With this intention, I stopped near him and asked his name very affectionately. He paused for a few seconds and then giving a strange look asked me as to how I was concerned with that. I, certainly, was not prepared for such a reply and was, therefore, taken aback for a few seconds. I then asked him if it was this which was taught in his school. To this, he very innocently replied, “We are taught not to talk to the strangers.” This reply of his was sufficient for me to understand his dilemma and I did not raise any further questions.
But this incident made me think deeply about the progress we are making. The child was not to be blamed at all because the school authorities must have genuinely felt that it was the best way of saving children from being cheated by strangers. However, in the process they forgot to realise that if children don’t talk to strangers, whom should they talk to then? After all, to begin with, everyone who comes in our contact is a stranger. It is only when we meet them and talk to them that we get to know them. At best, it can be advised that one should be careful and wise while interacting with a stranger but to put a blanket ban on such interactions is certainly harmful and destructive.
All of us know that our friends were strangers to us at one point of time. Even a mother is a stranger to the child at the time of birth. It is only when they come in contact and interact with each other that a bond is created, which is perhaps the strongest possible bond. The message, therefore, is that if we want to seek inner expansion we must talk to strangers and any advice contrary to this is wrong. I wish that the modern world would realise this fact, so that the joy of living is not lost.

Aloo Bukhara (Plum)

My first visit to the USA was in the year 1989 in the month of May. My wife accompanied me on that visit and we visited many places. We thoroughly enjoyed our visit and had many good experiences. One such experience was at New York.
One day, we had our lunch in a downtown restaurant in New York. I am in the habit of eating fruits after my meals but we found that getting fruits from the restaurant was very expensive, more so when every dollar was important to us. We had seen many fruit sellers on the streets of New York and so decided to buy a fruit from them. As we came out of the restaurant with that intention, we saw one person selling plums. He was left with only a small quantity and so we expected a good price from him. Moreover, he was looking like an Asian.
As I and my wife were conversing in Hindi, the fruit seller was listening to us and, perhaps, could also guess our nationality. When we bought two pieces of plums from him and asked for the price, he gave us a very pleasing smile. He said that there was no need of paying as they were neighbours. Elaborating further, he continued that he was from Pakistan while we were from India. Another reason perhaps was the small quantity he was left with. But this was not so important to us as was the fact of our being neighbours. We were deeply touched by his gesture and he did not accept any money even after being insisted a few times. We also took his offer with respect and gratitude.
Thereafter, we exchanged some more pleasantries and parted. This small incident comes to my mind quite often. I feel that in the name of development and progress we are forgetting to communicate with our neighbours or even our family members. This is giving rise to various conflicts and lack of true happiness. We realise this only when we are far away from them and feel lonely. This fruit seller gave me a very pleasant lesson of life by offering two plums as a gift from a neighbour, whom we consider our enemy. For me, it was much more than a plum or aloo bukhara as we call it in Hindi.

Trials and Triumphs

The great leader of Pakistan, Begum Benazir Bhutto, is now no more. Her killing has been condemned by all sensible persons throughout the world and she has been assigned the status of a martyr post her death. I have been her admirer ever since I started understanding her but developed great regard for her after I saw an interview of hers on television, sometime in September 1999. At that time, I was in Bangalore staying in a hotel. When I switched on the television, this interview was going on and it immediately caught my attention. In that interview Begum Bhutto narrated several important events of her life, which were not only interesting but also gave deep insights into her personality.
While she was narrating all those events, she said that in all great lives trials and triumphs always go together. While people generally take note of the triumphs alone, the trial part remains unknown to most people. She cited her own example as to how she first suffered during her father’s time and then in her own family life. Amidst all these trials, she grew to a level of international status and led her country. How true her words were, was amply reflected in her end subsequently. Somehow, her phrase ‘trials and triumphs’ caught my attention and it still keeps coming back to me. Those who look for triumphs and more so for a higher cause, have to prepare themselves for trials also. It means that there is no short cut to success. The path is always a difficult one. One has to tread it with courage and patience.

Forty Out of Forty

I have been a sharp student in my studies and mathematics was my pet subject. However, after passing High School, I faced some problems in this subject but the same was soon overcome and I started enjoying this subject once again. By the time half-yearly examinations were to be conducted, I was fully prepared and confident for taking the examination. The paper of mathematics was of forty marks and it consisted of eight questions of which six were to be solved. However, the distribution of marks to each question was a little strange. Out of eight, four questions were assigned seven marks each and the remaining four were of six marks each. Thus, in order to get forty out of forty the examinee was required to solve four questions of seven marks each and any two of the remaining four questions. Hence, the choice was restricted to a great extent. Since I knew the answers of all the eight questions, I made my choice accordingly. All this, including revision was over within one and a half hours while the duration of the paper was three hours and leaving the examination room before two hours was not allowed. Thus, I was to pass half an hour without doing anything.
Suddenly, an idea came to my mind and I solved the remaining two questions also, putting a note on the top of the answer book that the examiner could check any six questions out of the eight. Not only this, I proudly shared this fact with others, feeling elated with myself. When the answer sheets were shown to us after a few days, I painfully noted that I had scored only thirty-eight marks out of forty. On a closer look, I found that the examiner had checked two questions of seven marks each and four of six marks each. Thus, the total came to only thirty-eight. This made me very upset and I immediately rushed to the teacher for complaint.
The teacher gave me a mischievous look as if he already knew this. When I showed him my answer sheet, he admitted that all the answers were correct but said that it was only on my direction that he had chosen to examine any six questions. This way he had only exercised his right, which had been given by me. I almost wept on hearing this reply but then he said that he was happy and gave me full marks. At that time, I did not know whether he had done it out of mischief or had something else in mind.
I have shared this incident with many people and everyone found it amusing. But now I look at it with a different perspective. Now, I feel that it was my subtle ego which made me solve all the eight questions and direct the examiner to see any six. While it may be debated whether the examiner did right or wrong, the fact of my subtle ego is undeniable. My endeavour, now, is to get rid of such trivial ego which also comes in the way of our good acts. Thus, I look upon at that teacher as my benefactor for refusing to give me forty out of forty marks in first instance.

For Our Sake Only

When I was posted as the Principal Secretary of medical and health, several programmes were being run with the help or association of international agencies. One such programme was leprosy eradication. Once, a World Health Organisation (WHO) team visited Lucknow in connection with this programme. The head of the team was an Indian, as a result of which the communication between us became easier and the appreciation of the problem also became better. India, in general, and Uttar Pradesh, in particular, had done a good job in this field and the leprosy rate had come down appreciably. The work was, therefore, appreciated by the visiting team.
In the evening, a dinner meeting was arranged by the department. While I was conversing with the team leader at this meet, a question came to my mind as to who funds such programmes and why? Whether the funding agencies or the countries are really interested in the welfare of the poor countries or there is some other agenda also. When I asked this question to the team leader, he understood my intention and gave a very realistic reply. Also, being an Indian he knew the ground realities of India well.
He said that no international funding is done only on compassionate grounds and there is always a hidden agenda, which serves the donor nation in one way or the other. In health-related programmes, it is mainly to protect their own nations from those diseases, which are likely to affect their countries also. Such nations feel that as long as such diseases or health issues exist in any corner of the world, they themselves also face the danger of their onslaught. It is mainly for this reason that they fund such programmes. However, human consideration is also a factor but generally, it is subservient to the first one. This was exactly what I had in mind when I put the question to the leader and his reply confirmed my thinking.
Thereafter, I extended this fact to all acts of kindness undertaken at the individual or collective level. When we do good to others, it helps us first and then the beneficiary or the beneficiaries. Whether the help is in cash, kind or service, it always gives us a subtle joy, which is a great reward in itself. Greater the selflessness in such a help, greater is the joy or reward. Going by this logic, totally selfless help gives infinite joy. Once we understand and appreciate this science of help, helping others becomes our nature, not for the sake of others but for our own sake only. Thus, from the viewpoint of return, a selfless living is the most selfish way of living but such selfishness is an enlightened one or higher one.

Grace of God

Most of us have our own version of God’s grace. When the events of life appear favourable to us, we feel the grace of God but when it is not so, our faith in Him is shaken and we feel that the grace of God is missing. I feel that it is not fair to blame God and by thinking this way, we show our complete ignorance about Him. The fact is that all acts of God or Nature are blessings only and they have a positive purpose behind them. Even the so-called unfavourable events fall in the category of blessings. It is a different matter that we fail to understand the purpose behind them. Quite often they happen for setting our karmic account in balance and the sooner it happens, the better it is. I am sharing here a personal incident to establish this fact.
Once, I was visiting Mirzapur in eastern UP with a good friend of mine who belonged to a political party and had been a minister in the state government. We both had a spiritual leaning and any interaction with him was always a joy. We travelled together in the same car from Lucknow to Mirzapur, which took about six hours. This period passed very pleasantly on account of our common interest. We reached straight to a guest house and took some rest after lunch. We stayed in the same room.
In the afternoon, the attendant brought tea for us with separate milk and sugar. First, he asked my friend whether he would take sugar or not. To this, he said that he would because he had no sugar problem by the grace of God. At that time, he did not realise that I was diabetic, a fact which was very well known to him. Then the attendant turned towards me and asked the same question. I had very carefully noticed the reply of my friend and so in the same tone I said that I won’t because I had sugar problem by the grace of God. This answer immediately drew the attention of my friend who realised the narrowness of his definition of God’s grace. He also regretted his words, which of course was not necessary, as far as I was concerned. Then our discussion turned to the subject of God’s grace and we realised the true impact of it. He fully agreed with my version which has been mentioned in the beginning.
The reason for this narrow version of God’s grace is that we don’t consider ourselves a part of Nature and in the process stop following its laws. When we do so, Nature only tries to amend us and if we still don’t pay heed to it, the laws of Nature operate and this operation appears to us as the lack of God’s grace. Also, life cannot be seen as a close- ended process, and so our sense of time may not match with the timing of Nature’s process. That is why, at times, good persons appear to be suffering and not so good prospering. Once we understand this secret of Nature, we start seeing God’s grace in all the events of our life.

Blaming the Tools

During my posting at Kolkata, I used to play lawn tennis at the South Club of Kolkata. It is one of the most prestigious clubs of Kolkata, which has produced many national level players like Leander Paes. It was a real joy to play there and because of my consistency in the game, I had become quite popular among the members of the club.
I had a friend who had introduced me to the club. His son also used to play there. He was good at the game but appeared to be somewhat too proud of himself. One day, he was playing a match with me. He being like my son, I took it easy and allowed him to win the first set with a comfortable margin. Immediately, I noticed that this win had gone to his head and instead of respecting my gesture he appeared even more proud.
Since I wanted to give him a message, I started playing seriously in the next set. He was not prepared for this and lost to me 6-0. This upset him so much that he started checking the balls, the height of the net, the guts of the racket and when he found nothing wrong with them, he became sad. I approached him affectionately and said that a good player never blames the tools. The problem with him was that he lacked humility while playing and also respect for the opponent’s game. While he was a good player, he underestimated his opponent and that is why he lost by a big margin. I also told him that while these qualities were necessary for a good sportsman, they were equally important for life.
The boy took my words seriously and was upset with his own behaviour. I knew he was an intelligent and smart boy with great potential and these were only minor aberrations, which needed to be corrected as soon as possible. His realisation of the same at my suggestion pleased me too.

One in Six Billion

Today, almost everyone feels that human values have gone down and wants the situation to change. At the same time, no one feels responsible for such a situation and we blame others for this. As a result, no steps are being taken for the restoration of values and the situation is going from bad to worse. Once I had a very interesting interaction in this regard which I am sharing here.
When I was posted as the Principal Secretary of the medical and health department of UP, I knew an officer who was trying to become the Chief Medical Officer (CMO) of a district. For this, he was making all sorts of efforts and every one knew about it. Finally, he succeeded in becoming the CMO of a small district. The very next morning, he came to my residence with a small pack of sweets (perhaps in view of the size of his district of posting). Normally, I don’t meet any officials at my residence, yet I called him in my camp office. Presenting the pack of sweets, he hurriedly expressed his gratitude, though I hardly had any role in his posting. He also said that he was a victim of the system and many were responsible for his trouble. He begged for my permission to come again and narrate the details.
I was amused at this behaviour of the officer but I took it wittingly. I asked him to narrate his story then itself instead of wasting my as well as his own time by coming again. At the same time, I gave him the option of coming again but with a condition. I asked him what would be the population of the world, to which he quickly responded by saying about 100 crores but corrected it to about 600 crores after realising that the query was about the world. Then I told him that if he wished to come some other time he should bring one person out of the six billion who would admit that he was responsible for being the cause of trouble to others. He was not at all prepared for such a response from me. His immediate reply was that it was not possible to find even one such person. I, then, told him that if there was not even one person out of the six billion who can cause trouble to others, then how were other people responsible for his troubles. By this time, he had understood my intention and disappeared, never to be seen again.
The fact is that we ourselves are the source of our own troubles. We entertain unnecessary desires and then make compromises to attain them. If we trust the laws of Nature, even our troubles turn into blessings and opportunities. We, then, do not even think of any other person being responsible for our troubles, even if there is one or more.

Was it a Help

I had a friend from the Indian Administrative Service, whom I came in contact with in the UK, during the twelve-week training under the Colombo plan. He belonged to the Kerala cadre and hailed from Punjab. This was in the year 1990 and at that time, he was posted in Delhi on a central deputation. We had several things in common which made us close friends during the period of training, though we had not met each other before that. This friendship continued even after the training got over and we kept in touch with each other. I was at Kanpur at that time. Within one year, that is, in 1991, I was also posted to Delhi on a central deputation and within few months I got a residence, which was hardly two kilometres away from this friend’s home. This strengthened our friendship further, and our families also came closer. We used to visit each other frequently and this continued for almost three years. My friend’s deputation to the government of India was coming to an end and he was worried about it because he was not willing to go to Kerala at that point of time, mainly because of his daughter’s asthma problem. So he was trying for a deputation to Punjab, which was his home state.
I had a friend in the prime minister’s secretariat, to whom I had also spoken for help, but somehow the proposal was not accepted. This made my friend very upset who came running to me in a very disturbed state of mind. While I was not in full agreement with his wish, still I thought of making one more effort. This time, I spoke to a junior lady colleague of mine whose father was the prime minister’s principal secretary. My friend wanted an appointment with him to explain his problem. Luckily, this intervention helped and he got an appointment. Not only this, his case was then favourably considered and he got a deputation to the Punjab government for three years. This made my friend very happy and he profusely thanked me for this help. Naturally, I was also happy about it. But our happiness was short-lived. He joined the Punjab government in the month of July 1994. Almost around the same time, I also got a posting to Kolkata on promotion and I shifted there. Our contact also became occasional. On a visit to Delhi in the month of September, when I enquired about him from a common friend, I learnt that my friend was no more. He had died in an accident while driving from Chandigarh to Ludhiana, which was his home town. This was very difficult for me to bear but there was no option. I immediately rushed to Chandigarh and shared a few moments of grief with his family, which gave them a lot of consolation and courage.
Quite often, I think of this incident, and the question, which comes to my mind again and again, is whether it was a help or not. The message I get is that our role in the journey of life is only to make our best efforts. The eventual outcome is the result of a large number of factors, most of which are unknown to us. This realisation not only keeps our ego away but also helps in accepting events as they happen. Incidentally, the family took this development in a very positive way and settled down in a graceful manner, in due course.

Universal Consciousness

In the mid-eighties, I came across a saint known as Swami Shyam in Kanpur. He had come there to stay with a close friend of mine, who was his disciple. I was quite influenced by his discourse and developed a liking for him. Swami Shyam lived in the Kullu town of Himachal Pradesh, where he had a well established ashram. Most of his disciples were from the western countries and belonged to the upper class of the society. Many of them were scientists of great repute.
After meeting him, I also developed a wish to visit his ashram. This opportunity came to me in November 1993, when I was appointed as an election observer for the Himachal Assembly election. At that time, I was posted in Delhi and the district allotted to me was Manali, which was adjacent to Kullu. For reaching there, I had to first fly to Kullu and then travel by road. I had to visit the district of my duty three times and twice I visited Swami Shyam’s ashram at Kullu. Fortunately, Swamiji was at his ashram at that time and so I could interact with him closely. Once I had an enlightening interaction with his disciples also, which was an honour for me, as Swamiji had desired me to address them.
During my second visit to the ashram, I had a personal interaction with Swamiji. At that time, the Kabir Peace Mission, which had been founded only three years back, was in its formative stage and I was crystallising my agenda to serve the society through this mission. Keeping this in mind, I put a question to Swamiji as to how one could best serve the society. To this, Swamiji responded in a very pragmatic manner and gave me a message, which I carry till today. I am sharing the same here. Swamiji said that in true spiritual sense, it is ignorance to think of serving others. All our good pursuits are eventually to help others only. Since each one of us is a part of the cosmic consciousness, all our actions have an effect on it. When we transmit positive energy to this universal consciousness, everyone gets benefited including ourselves. Same is the case when we transmit negative energy to it. So the best way to serve others is to raise our own consciousness level, so that the level of universal consciousness also goes up. This in the process serves all. This raising of consciousness can be done both at the physical and the mental level. He also said that the service at the mental level is superior to the physical level service. Adding further, the help can be even better at the spiritual level. According to him, there are many persons who serve the society much better without being known or even seen. Since then, I have been trying to follow his words of wisdom to help in raising the level of universal consciousness.

Breaking Steel Ingots

Mandi Gobind Garh is a medium town of Punjab known for its steel industry. The entrepreneurship of this place is appreciated all over the country. The industry here is engaged in almost all activities related to steel. I had the opportunity of visiting this town several times when I was posted in the department of steel during 1991-96. On one such visit, I observed a very interesting process of breaking steel ingots (big steel blocks coming directly from the steel plants). In this process, steel ingots were first marked by a chisel and then hammered at a line around the periphery of the ingot from where it was to be broken. This was normally done in the evening and the ingot was then left open during the night. In the morning, the portion to be broken was hammered repeatedly. During the course of this process, the ingot used to break in one of the hammerings. The beauty of the operation was that the ingot broke in one hammering only, but it was not certain in which one would it happen.
It could be the fifth or the tenth or even the seventy-fifth. I was told that in some rare cases it happened in the first hammering also. Even with my mechanical engineering background, I could not clearly understand the science of this process. But certainly, I tried to give it a philosophical meaning. The message I got from this was that when we have a goal before us, our duty is to proceed in the direction of its achievement. If we strive with full sincerity and zeal, the goal would certainly be achieved. It is a different matter whether it is achieved after one failure or more than one failure. If we achieve our target after a few failures, it would not be proper to say that the failures before success had no purpose. In a way, each failure is a step towards success provided we don’t give up after failure.
I often compare this process with our freedom struggle, which began in the year 1857. To begin with, it was felt that independence was just round the corner but it was not to be so. It took us 90 years after that to get freedom. In the meantime, thousands gave up their lives for its sake. But to say that their sacrifice had no role in achieving this freedom would be totally wrong. In fact, each sacrifice was a definite step in the direction of freedom and should be acknowledged with gratefulness. Let us live life in this spirit and if we do so, we enjoy our failures too, as much as we do our successes.

Old Newspapers

I have a sister who is about ten years older than me. She brought me up in my childhood days and took care of me like a mother. Even after her marriage (which was at the age of 16), I spent a few years with her and had my primary education at the place of my brother-in-law’s posting. Thereafter, we kept visiting each other very frequently. She has been a very good home manager and always took good care of all the visitors within her means.
One event, which I usually noticed with her, was the disposal of old newspapers. The deal between her and the hawker used to fail on many accounts. Sometimes it was over rate, sometimes over the weighing balance and sometimes over some other issue. As a result, quite often the old newspapers were taken out of the house and then brought back again. The deal used to conclude only after many such exercises. Seeing this, I used to feel that in the whole process, the pain was more than the gain, but my sister would not listen to any advice in the matter. In due course, as she became mature and saw life in a larger perspective, she realised the waste of energy in this exercise. Around the same time, nature brought me on the spiritual path and she started looking at me as her spiritual guide. Before this, she used to be a very sentimental woman who was prepared to sacrifice anything for others but at the same time felt sad if her sentiments were not appreciated or responded to, adequately.
Once she realised that one should live with a sense of detachment while doing one’s duty sincerely, the texture of her life changed. Thereafter, she stopped wasting her energy on trivial matters like the disposal of old newspapers. The message of this small narration is deep. Most of us waste a lot of energy firstly in acquiring things and then in getting rid of them. The wisdom lies in applying moderation in both the areas. One should understand the essential nature of physical acquisitions. They come to us only to go. Therefore, only optimum acquisition should be our target and their going away also should not bother us unduly. While it is applicable to objects, it is equally important in terms of our relationships. One should, therefore, live like an observer in this world. Since then my sister has been a much happier person and does not waste her energy on petty issues such as the disposal of old newspapers.

I Will Buy It

One small incident during my visit to Japan in the year 1988 still occupies my mind. At that time, I was posted as the Managing Director of the UP Export Corporation and had gone to Japan to participate in an exhibition at Kobe. My commercial manager was accompanying me and we had displayed a large number of handloom and handicraft items from Uttar Pradesh. They included some silk scarves from Varanasi. The exhibition was organised by the Trade Development Authority of India, which had provided us the necessary infrastructure including an interpreter.
Our interpreter was a young Japanese girl aged about 14. She was cute and well-mannered. We found her services very satisfactory. During the course of the exhibition, we noticed that her attention was repeatedly diverted to a silk scarf displayed there. It was obvious that she liked it and perhaps wanted to possess it. One day, when I asked her whether she liked it, she answered in the affirmative and also added that she would like to buy the same after the exhibition was over. Hearing that, I offered it as a gift from our side. I was surprised with her response to this offer. She firmly said that since she was earning her wages, in no case would she accept it as a gift. Moreover, it was against the tradition of her country. For us, it was a pleasant experience. We wondered at the sense of pride, at such a young age, for one’s own as well as for the country’s dignity. While we deeply appreciated her stand, it was equally wrong on our part to accept money for a sample, which was not meant for sale. But she would not agree with our plea and kept insisting on no amount of payment.
The matter went on like this till the last day of the exhibition. When it came to winding up the display, I offered her the scarf as a gift and gave the plea that it was against the tradition of our country too to sell something which was not meant for sale. We also pleaded that it would give us immense pleasure if she accepted it as a gift. She was convinced with our plea and very reluctantly, as well as gratefully, accepted the same.
Quite often, I recall the gesture of that young girl. We were left with no doubt that great nations are due to great people and unless they display character in thoughts, words and actions, no amount of economic growth can make a nation great.

Nam Sankirtan

In August 2004, I had gone to Kerala to visit my spiritual master Swami Bhoomananda Tirtha whose ashram is located at Trichur. It has beautiful surroundings and the entire area is lush green. The visit was planned soon after the Guru Poornima celebrations got over but one activity of ‘Daan-Satra’ still remained. This is a very sublime tradition in which the poor families of the nearby villages are provided some help in the form of cash, rice and clothes. Poor people of the area look forward to this occasion with a lot of fondness. For them, it is more of a blessing than help. Swamiji also ensures that this distribution ceremony is conducted with perfection and humility.
During my forementioned visit, Swamiji took me along with him for one such distribution function. Firstly, the drive through the Kerala villages was in itself a great joy. Soon, we reached the village where the function was arranged. People had already gathered there waiting eagerly for Swamiji’s arrival. Many of them were very poor but all were looking happy. In the whole gathering, there was hardly anyone who could communicate in a language other than Malayalam. Therefore, the only person I could communicate with was Swamiji. Still, I could read the body language of others and
my inference was that the proceedings were very sublime, making everyone happy.
As soon as the distribution part was over, it was time for chanting, Swamiji himself initiated the process by chanting ‘Hare Krishna Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna Hare Hare’. And to my surprise, everyone in the gathering joined in the chorus with correct pronunciation. This was something new to me and gave me a lot of pleasure. Earlier, I had noticed a similar thing in Andhra Pradesh as well as in Tamil Nadu, where I had been on election duties. This set me thinking about the efforts which must have gone into propagating the names of our Gods throughout the length and breadth of the country. This happened thousands of years back, when there were hardly any means of communication and travel. Today, despite all these means and a lot of investment, such campaigns are only short-lived and people soon forget all that is conveyed through such campaigns. On the contrary, what our great saints and seers spread in temples and pilgrimages, still remains in our memory. Surely, their message is directed to the heart rather than to the head. This is the difference between the spiritual and the secular.

Catholic or Protestant

Once, I was on an official visit to Mumbai and was staying in my departmental guest house located in the Pali Hill area. In the same building, my regional officer also used to stay with his family. Even during tours, I am in the habit of going for morning walk. This is not only refreshing but also gives a lot of insight into the local area. On that visit, my regional manager advised me to go to a nearby park for morning walk and he accompanied me to that place. I found the place very well maintained and enjoyed walking there. There was a nominal admission fee, which was being used for its maintenance by a citizen’s society. As we came out of the park after a refreshing walk, I saw a church adjacent to it. Since I like to visit worship places of different religions, I suggested my colleague to go inside the church to offer our prayers. He himself being a religious person agreed to my suggestion and we both went inside the church. At that time, the morning prayers were about to conclude and so we also took our seats at the back. After the prayers, all those present there were proceeding towards the statue of Christ for seeking His blessings. We also stood in the queue to seek His blessings from near. As we were moving towards the statue of Christ, we were stopped at a point and were asked whether we were Catholics or Protestants. I never see a religion from this viewpoint and so apart from being ignorant I am also opposed to this kind of man-made distinction. So my response was that we were neither of them but were only human beings.
The person who made the enquiry from us was perhaps not used to this kind of an answer. His prompt response was that in that case we were not allowed to go further. Respecting the tradition of the church, we didn’t mind and came out of the church after offering our prayers from a distance only. Thus, the matter ended there itself. However, his enquiry and response to my answer still keep coming to my mind. Which religion can be superior to a good human being but perhaps all religions have drawn their boundaries may be in varying degrees. I am not sure whether this is in the larger interest or not, but if we go by the definition of spirituality, it is the infinite expansion of mind. Viewed from this perspective, such boundaries are certainly not in the larger interest of the people. In the era is which we are living today, there is a need for rethinking on such restrictions, irrespective of the religion. I must also add that the above experience has in no way affected my reverence towards any religion.

Sauce and Rice

I visited South Korea for the first time in the year 1995. Before that, I had been to Japan twice in 1988 and 1989. At that time, Japan was considered to be the most developed nation of the east and South Korea was only trying to come up. It was no match to Japan and there appeared to be no chance also of it becoming so. But that was exactly what had happened by the year 1995 and the possibility of South Korea leaving behind Japan was also not being ruled out. Against this background, the visit to South Korea had been very enlightening as well as inspiring. One of the memorable examples is the visit to the POSCO steel plant, where our delegation was received very warmly. The environment of the plant was so good that we felt like we were going around in a park.
During the course of this visit, the Indian ambassador in South Korea had hosted a dinner for us. While we were talking about the many good things of the country, the ambassador told us that the whole development of South Korea was a matter of only thirty years. Before that, it was a poor country and the people there could barely manage to afford the staple food. The prevalent saying there was that the people at that time had only one variation in their menu, and it was sauce (chatni) and rice (chawal) at lunch time and rice and sauce at dinner time. This was all they knew about food. From that stage, South Korea had achieved the status of one of the most developed nations within a span of three decades.
This narration by the ambassador was not only interesting but inspiring as well. He also mentioned that the main reason behind this progress was the committed leadership in the country. It was not only the vision of the leader but competence coupled with the discipline of the people on account of faith as well as fear. This was another message for us. Thereafter, I had the chance of visiting few more countries in the east. The secret of success everywhere was the same. The people have to become a part of the development process and it happens only when there is competent, committed and firm leadership. India is now a nation of more than one billion but there is a dearth of leadership which meets the above criteria. Still, it will be wrong to say that we stand no chance. After all, our country has produced a leader like Mahatma Gandhi, whose philosophy is now being considered relevant all across the globe. The fact that we have not tried to understand him correctly, what to say of following him, is perhaps the main reason behind the delay of our progress. But delays are not denials. Our country is fortunate to have much better resources and certainly our people’s staple food is dal (lentil) and chawal (rice), better than the Koreans at the beginning of their development. Let us learn from the experiences of such countries.

No Help is Small

In a mutually dependent society, we all need each other’s help and no good life can be imagined without it. The sole purpose of having friends and relatives is to seek their help or to extend our help to them whenever such a need arises. At the same time, it is also a fact that only close relatives and friends turn into enemies when such obligations are not met as per our or their expectations. Therefore, it is essential to understand what precaution is required to avoid this situation.
Many years back, I was attending a seminar of the famous motivator Shiv Khera in Nainital. During the course of the discussion he touched upon this aspect and I drew a very important lesson out of that. He mentioned that most of us are very casual in seeking help and take it for granted. Quite often we seek help from others in a very by-the-way manner. Help is sought in such a manner as if no effort is required on the part of the helper and further, as if it is an obligation on his part to help. Moreover, for seeking such help, a lot of time is wasted on irrelevant talks. What Mr Shiv Khera meant was that if we seek help from others, howsoever small it may be, it should be sought with great politeness and without beating around the bush. Also, the difficulty or the dilemma of the person should be kept in mind and so a margin should always be given to him to apply his discretion. When it is not done, sooner or later it affects our relationship and no wonder a point may come when such a relationship turns into enmity.
I myself have experienced this difficulty in my long career in the Administrative Services. Since we have access to almost all areas of public administration, help is sought by a large number of people. Quite often, they don’t come to the point immediately and waste time talking about other things. It is so annoying that one feels like snubbing the person concerned. Apart from that, they feel it requires no effort on our part and judge our sincerity, competence or influence on the basis of the outcome. This affects the relationship further. My own approach is to try my best in the case of a genuine need, but generally I am immune to the outcome and don’t get overjoyed by positive outcomes nor get upset by negative ones. But certainly, it is not the case with the person who seeks help.
The message of this discussion is that when we seek help from others, we have to be very wise. The point to be kept in mind is that putting a demand or expectation is very easy but it requires quite an effort to act on that. So many factors play their role when something happens or does not happen. First of all, one’s expectation should be genuine and not unduly selfish. Secondly, the limitation of the other person should be understood and thirdly, it should not be placed as a matter of right but only as a prayer. The fact is that no help is small and each requires commitment, energy and sincerity. If nothing else, all these should be respected even if the outcome is not positive. If we take care of these factors, not only will the chances of a positive outcome increase, the chances of a souring relationship also decrease greatly.

Backbone of India

Perhaps very few know that Lord Macaulay in his address to the British Parliament on February 2, 1835, made the following statement: “I have travelled across the length and breadth of India and have not seen one person who is a beggar, who is a thief. Such wealth I have seen in this country, such high moral values, people of such calibre, that I do not think we would ever conquer this country, unless we break the very backbone of this nation, which is her spiritual and cultural heritage. And, therefore, I propose that we replace her old and ancient education system, her culture, for if the Indians think all that is foreign and English is good and greater than their own, they will lose their self-esteem, their native culture and they will become what we want them, a truly dominated nation.”
When I first came to know of this statement, my apprehensions about the British strategy of ruling India got confirmed. During my twelve weeks stay in UK for a training programme way back in 1990, I had been contemplating on the point as to how a small nation like Britain could rule over countries like India and many others. My apprehension at that time was that the Britishers tried to split the nation by polluting its culture and this is what they did in India also. It is a fact that despite many centuries of foreign rule, India was still a culturally and materially rich nation. That is why it was known as the ‘Golden Bird’ at that time and this finds proof in the above statement of Lord Macaulay. This statement amply proves that our moral values, cultural heritage and spiritual wisdom were a matter of envy even for powerful nations like Britain. Britishers found it so formidable that they planned to break it first before they could think of ruling India for a long time. As a result, they intruded into our culture through the route of education and succeeded to a great extent. The legacy of this system continues till today.
India’s freedom is now more than sixty years old. During this period, we have made tremendous progress in many fields. But to say that India is a developed and powerful nation in a true sense is wrong. A vast majority of the Indian population is still struggling for a dignified survival. The progress of a section of population cannot be called the progress of the nation. Our human development index is dismally low. With the rise in industrial growth rate, we are slipping on our integrity score, which puts India at the 93rd rank among 180 countries. Our education, health, sanitation and human rights parameters are poor and despite the deployment of huge funds, the situation is not improving appreciably. This is a matter of great concern for all those who are patriotic in the true sense. A lot of debate and serious thinking is going on in this regard. It is now being realised that the answer to these problems also lies in the statement of Lord Macaulay. Once again, we have to understand the depth of our ancient values and spiritual wisdom, which have no direct conflict with the modern times. At best, they need to be reinterpreted in the face of scientific and technological progress. If we are able to do so, India can once again achieve the place it used to occupy once upon a time. Time has now come to pay serious attention to our national values in order to restore them. Only then, the backbone of India will become straight and strong.

Everything is All Right

In ‘Drops on a Lotus Leaf ‘ written by Sri Ramalu, also known as Sri Ram of Andhra Pradesh. This book was a collection of letters from seekers to Sri Ram and their replies by him. The letters as well as the replies were full of depth, the latter more so. This created a wish in me to meet him. The above mentioned book was published by my own book’s publisher and so I could get his details from him.
The opportunity to meet Sri Ramalu came soon in early 1998 when I was appointed as an observer for the parliamentary elections in Andhra Pradesh. Sri Ramalu was then working in a polytechnic at Adilabad, a town nearly 200 kilometres from Hyderabad. He was a lecturer in the department of English. An IPS friend of mine arranged my visit to Adilabad and I got an opportunity of spending a few hours with Sri Ramalu. It was a very sublime meeting and we both liked the company of each other. I also noticed that Sri Ramalu was treated almost as a living God by those who knew him closely.
Soon after this, I received a letter from Sri Ramalu and apart from mentioning our meeting, he gave a very deep message through that letter which I am sharing here. In one of the paragraphs of the letter Sri Ramalu raised a question about ‘faith’. Normally, all those who have faith in God believe that everything will be all right in their lives. While apparently there is nothing wrong with this definition of ‘faith’, Sri Ramalu said that it was not faith but the lack of it. He explained further that when we say that the future is going to be all right, indirectly it implies that perhaps, the present is not all right. Since we live only in the present, according to this definition of faith the feeling of being all right becomes only an imagination of future, which soon becomes the present. Thus, it becomes a chasing game that goes on throughout our life.
He further explained that the correct definition of faith is, ‘everything is all right’. As a matter of fact both definitions are the same; the difference is in the way of looking at them. What is future today becomes the present in due course. So if we shift our focus a little backwards, we can always believe that the present is the best possible as of now. Our endeavour would then become to make the future better by working for it today.
Viewed from a different perspective, there can be no denial of the fact that the present could not have been better than what it is. It could be, had we thought of it yesterday and tomorrow could be better if we think of it today. But the present remains as it is and no purpose is served by complaining about it, even if there is reason to complain about it. Therefore, a person of true faith never laments about the present, never regrets the past and never worries for the future. He has complete faith in the laws of Nature and does his best in all circumstances. For him, everything is all right at all times and he lives in perfect harmony with Nature. Accordingly, for Sri Ramalu, this is what true faith is.

Spiritual Journey

While I was studying at the University of Roorkee (now an IIT) from 1966 to 1970, our dean of students was a professor named Jagdish Narain. He was from the civil engineering department and was known in his field, academically. He was a reserved kind of person and had little interaction with the students. As a result, he was not very popular as the dean of the University. During his period, there was some agitation by the students, which he did not handle firmly and the situation turned ugly. At that time as well as in retrospect, I felt that had he reprimanded us at the right point of time, the situation would not have become ugly.
With this background, I left the University in the year 1970. Though I kept in touch with the University, there were no personal contacts with Prof. Jagdish Narain. After a few years, he retired from there and I never heard of him after that. It was only in the year 2006 when a meet of distinguished IITians was organised in Delhi, that I saw him again. We both were attending the meet and when I introduced myself to him, I learnt that he was living in Sai Baba’s ashram at Puttaparthy as his devotee. This was very surprising to me and I became keen to know about his journey to spirituality. Going by his ways at the University, it was difficult for me to believe that he could turn so spiritual, though I myself had become so. Anyway, there was no occasion to talk on this issue during the meet and the matter ended there.
Few months later, in December 2006, I had gone to Bangalore for two days and on one of these days, I planned a visit to Puttaparthy along with a friend of mine. I had been wishing to visit this place for long and this time, it worked out smoothly. A friend of mine from Hyderabad made the necessary arrangements for the Baba’s darshan at Puttaparthy and I took my seat at a prominent place quite before Baba was to arrive for the darshan. While waiting there, I was remembering Prof. Jagdish Narain and silently expecting him to also arrive there. And to my pleasant surprise, I immediately noticed him coming there slowly and taking his seat just adjacent to mine. Since he had met me only a few months back, he recognised me at once and I was also very happy at this divine coincidence.
Incidentally, Baba’s arrival got delayed and so I got some time to talk to him. This time I could ask him about his journey to spirituality and he narrated it very affectionately. He told me that a few years after his retirement he had come to the ashram in connection with technical advice on some building matter. As soon as he met Baba here, a mutual bond was established and thereafter he became a devotee of Baba. Not only that, he also shifted to the ashram and started living here. He himself was surprised by this sudden change in him but he had no doubt that now he was on the right path. This interaction of mine with Prof. Jagdish Narain gave me great joy and I remember it fondly.
This is what life is. Our ultimate aim is to know our spiritual nature and to realise it. Nobody knows when and how it will happen but there is no doubt that one day it has to happen. Fortunate are those who get an early opportunity. Let us all strive for it.

Diversity in Unity

India is a vast country with a mind-boggling variety in terms of its people, food, dress, customs, language, social practices and ethos. Though I have been very fortunate to have widely travelled all across the country, I have no hesitation in admitting that my knowledge about this country is not even the tip of the iceberg. All that I have realised as a result of this travelling is that the diversity of our country is overall a matter of strength and not weakness. Those who feel otherwise are mistaken and need to understand the reasons of India’s unity in such diversity.
While one comes across many write-ups, books, lectures, etc., on this subject, the one which gave me maximum conviction and clarity was by Mr Shashi Tharoor, an ex-UN diplomat from India. The occasion was the IITian Meet at Mumbai in December 2006 in which about 5000 delegates participated from various parts of the world. He beautifully explained the diversity of India in respect of all the parameters and also the factors, which bind Indians together. While we may quarrel with each other on several local issues, when it comes to a larger national interest, we show solidarity with each other. This is something which is not easily found elsewhere. While this contention may be a matter of debate among some, the fact cannot be denied that India has survived many crises and not only survived but risen above them. Whether it is a matter of communal riots, natural calamities, accidents or terrorist activities, the nation has, by and large, faced them gracefully. If so, it becomes a matter of contemplation as to what is the underlying strength behind this.
Mr Tharoor tried to explain this very convincingly. He said that in India we are not to seek unity in diversity but the other way round. India is basically one culture or a united nation with a lot of diversity. Our plurality emerges from a single composite culture and therefore unity is our primary nature. What is to be appreciated is the diversity in its unity instead of seeing unity in its diversity. This very fact is the secret of India’s survival through the ages.
The question arises that if such is our underlying strength, why do we look so disjointed in our day to day existence. It has been said that one Indian is equal to ten Japanese but ten Indians are equal to one Japanese. There is sense in this statement. While Indians perform very well individually, collectively we lose our strength. This is perhaps due to the long period of foreign rule in India, as a result of which we seem to have forgotten our strength. All these foreign rules tried to attack our ancient heritage and culture and in the process divided our society. The present state of affairs is a legacy of the same.
India has now completed more than six decades of its independence. This is a long period. We are also marching towards development in many areas and have made our name in the world. Yet there are many gaps and the major one is the lack of patriotism in our people. We still see governance as something alien to us and all our anger is directed towards governmental machinery. This is a losing proposition for all. We must realise now that we are the makers of our destiny and no outside help can do it. And if we are able to realise this fact and act on it, then only the underlying unity of India will prove to be its real strength.

Rich Man’s Diwali

India is a country of many festivals, celebrated by various communities in various parts of the country. Going by the Hindu calendar, almost each day is a festival in one way or the other. However, major festivals of various communities are few and celebrated with great joy and participation.
One of the major festivals of Hindus is Diwali. It is a festival of lights and sweets. It is celebrated on the dark night of Kartika and generally falls in the second half of October or the first half of November. On this day, Lord Rama had returned to his kingdom of Ayodhya after completing 14 years of exile and destroying countless demons during this period, including the powerful Ravana. Thus, this festival signifies the victory of light over darkness and of virtue over evil. That is why lamps are lit all around and sweets are distributed among friends and relatives. People visit each other carrying sweets and gifts as a mark of goodwill. They also enjoy fireworks and crackers in the night. With materialism on the rise, this exchange of sweets and gifts has assumed huge proportions and has become an expensive affair. Even the fireworks and crackers have become very expensive. In this way, this great festival has gradually become an extravaganza for the rich while the poor try to celebrate it with their limited resources, quite often envying the rich.
I have been observing this phenomenon since my childhood. I still remember the joy of buying a few kilograms of sweets in an open utensil in the company of my father. In those days, there was no packing and the prices were low. So we could buy lots of sweets within one hundred rupees and thereafter distributed them among friends. Not only this, eating sweets was a matter of great joy and each piece was enjoyed thoroughly. The whole community participated in each other’s celebration with hardly any comparisons.
Today, things have changed greatly. I have watched this change more keenly as a member of the Indian Administrative Services. While in the initial years of service one pack of sweets was enough to show respect, currently it has no meaning. A good number of people, particularly the neo-rich, feel that respect is directly proportional to the price of gifts or the number of packets. They load their expensive cars with expensive sweets and gifts and pass them on to those whose pleasure can benefit them or displeasure may harm them. Quite often, their Diwali passes in running around the town or sending couriers to other towns. As a member of the Indian Administrative Services, I have also been a beneficiary of their charity. It is a different matter that most of them developed a personal relationship in due course and I share their gifts with many others.
But what about the rich man’s own Diwali? While they distribute lots of sweets and dry fruits, I have not seen any of them enjoying even one piece of sweet. Whenever they are offered sweets, they beg to be excused with folded hands and say that during Diwali sweets are a taboo for them. And I very amusingly watch this, thinking that if they cannot even see sweets in Diwali, what kind of Diwali would they be celebrating. On the other hand, the lesser mortals enjoy sweets thoroughly and anything passed onto them is a matter of joy for the giver as well as the receiver. At least from this point of view, Diwali has no meaning for the rich; it is the poor who enjoy the festival the most. Surely, the poor need not envy the rich for their extravaganza.

Crime vs. Sin

The understanding of the difference between crime and sin is useful for positive living. In the absence of it, most of us often question the fairness of God and tend to follow the path of evil. I have done some contemplation on this subject, which I am sharing here. Like any other living creature, the human being is also a product of Nature. But man is unique in the sense that he has been endowed with the power of thinking as well as discrimination. With the help of these two powerful tools, he can make himself either a saint or a devil, depending upon their use. Nature expects him to use these powers in a positive manner and if he does so, he becomes a virtuous person. On the contrary, negative use of these powers makes him a sinful person. Thus, when we break a Nature-made or, in other words, God-made law we commit a sin. For example, God expects us to love each other and if one hates others, he commits a sin. Similarly, when we hurt others, lose our temper, boost our ego, don’t help a person in trouble, etc., we break the law of Nature and commit a sin.
Nature has a perfect arrangement for punishing sin and rewarding virtue. No external agency is required to do this job. When we practice virtue, the inner joy obtained as a result of the same is in itself a great reward. It changes our body chemistry in such a manner that there is an overall positive effect on our body, mind, intellect and spirit. There may not be any monetary evaluation for this reward, but we get priceless joy. Similarly, when we commit a sin there is a change in our body chemistry, which brings negative effect on our body, mind, intellect and spirit. In this case, there is loss of joy, which again cannot be measured in monetary terms. In this way, being virtuous is in itself our reward. Someone has very rightly said:
“We are not punished for our sins, but by our sins.”
A wise person will therefore be virtuous by choice and not by compulsion. It is also true that this law of Nature never fails. On the other hand, crime is a violation of man-made laws. Man being a social entity, has to follow some man-made laws for the smooth running of the society. Better the compliance of these laws, more civilised will the society be. For this, there is a provision of reward and punishment through the judicial administrative process. Quite often justice is not administered correctly due to various reasons and many criminals don’t get punished. In such a situation, most of us blame God and feel that He is not judicious.
In order to forego this impression, we shall have to understand that all crimes are not sins and similarly all sins may not necessarily be crimes. God punishes us only for our sins and if a crime falls in the category of sin also, it would certainly be punished by Nature. But, if a crime does not fall in the category of sin, Nature will not punish us and the punishment has to be imparted by society only. In that case, it is a human failure for which God cannot be blamed, as He has already equipped us with the power of intelligence and discrimination. Therefore, we all should live in accordance with the laws of Nature as well as of the society so that we commit neither a sin nor a crime.

Cosmic Vision

It is said that vision is the art of seeing invisible things. Where there is no vision, people perish. Therefore, every society needs some visionaries if it has to survive and prosper in the long-run. India has been fortunate in the sense that this country has produced a large number of great men and women. They thought much ahead of their times and gave a rich heritage to this country. India was known for its values, cultural heritage and spiritual strength. British rulers saw this as a threat to their rule as was mentioned by Lord Macaulay, in the British parliament, in February 1835. As a result, a new education policy was framed which gradually made our people short-sighted, a legacy which still continues to a great extent.
Indian independence has now become more than six decades old. The nation has grown in many areas. The advances made in the field of science and technology have been a matter of pride and have brought glory to India. But there are many areas of shame, which if not addressed urgently, will wipe out all that we have gained from our economic progress. For this, the nation’s vision has to expand. Our people, in general, and rulers, in particular, have to rise above their narrow individual interests. Be they politicians or administrators or media or judiciary, all need this expansion maybe in varying degrees and the beginning has to be made by oneself. I have contemplated something in this regard, which I am sharing here.
The social variation in this country is enormous and the vision of the people also varies accordingly. There are a large number of poor persons who are bogged down in their day to day existence. As a result, they cannot think beyond their daily lives. Their worry is about getting employment, food, shelter and other essential requirements of life every day. These are the people who fall in the category of Below Poverty Line (BPL). Despite all efforts, there is hardly any visible change in their number or condition. Then there are people who are better placed and have a job or work in their hands. Their vision is almost confined to one year. All they want is to increase their profit year after year. If they are able to achieve this objective, they are satisfied.
The next category is that of the politicians who at best think of the five-year span and want to win the next election irrespective of the means adopted by them. Now, even the five-year span is shortened by the mid-term elections. Even during this period, many of them change their loyalties, if it helps in winning the next election. Very few politicians take a critical view of their profession and think of the present and the coming generations. Fortunately, India has had such politicians and I place them in the category of ‘statesmen’. They passed on their values and conviction to the next generation. Such leaders are remembered for a long time and their vision covers a span of about 25 years.
Higher than the category of ‘statesmen’ are those who think of many generations and have a vision span of say 100 years. People like Ram Mohan Roy, Tagore, Baba Amte, Mahatma Gandhi, Abul Kalam Azad, Ambedkar fall in this category. They bring out social reform in the society, which stays for many generations. We may call them visionaries. There is still a higher category of persons whose presence is felt for thousands of years. I place them in the category of incarnations. Such persons are Ram, Krishna, Christ, Guru Nanak, Hazrat Mohammad and few others who fall in this category. They take birth whenever deterioration in the society goes beyond a critical point.
Lastly, there is only one entity whose vision is for eternity and such vision can be classified as ‘cosmic vision’. This person is none but God himself. The human existence is only few thousand years old but the cosmos is ageless. It has existed for millions of years and will continue to exist for as many years. Our effort should be to expand our vision continuously and from ‘daily’ to ‘cosmic’ or ‘eternal’. It is possible for all human beings and that is eventually the goal of human life. Let us, therefore, strive to achieve cosmic vision or be as near to it as possible.

How Poor We Are

In this write-up, I am sharing a story I read somewhere and which gives a great message. The story goes like this: There was a rich man who used to live in a luxurious house with his family. The man had risen from a humble background and had seen poverty closely. But his children were never exposed to poverty and grew up in luxury. Once, this rich man decided to expose his children to poverty and arranged their stay in a village at a poor man’s house for a few days. He deliberately didn’t accompany them so that they could wander around freely. Accordingly, the children were sent to the village. The children enjoyed their village stay thoroughly. For the first time, they had a first-hand experience of openness.
They slept there in the open, as the visit was during their summer holidays. The weather was clear and so there were shining stars in the sky during the night. There were a number of cattle and street dogs in the village, which used to roam around. The food was cooked on wooden fire in the open. There were big open fields all around the village where children used to play. In all, they enjoyed their stay in the village and returned to the city after a few days. On their return, their father asked them whether they had realised what poverty was. The children very fondly answered in the affirmative and went on to describe their assessment of poverty. They said that the bedroom in the village was so big that it had no boundary wall. The roof was also equally big. While the ceiling of their bedroom had only a few lamps, the village roof had countless lamps. The same was the case with the kitchen size and the number of cattle. In the city they had only one pet while there were a number of pets in the village. Summing up the whole visit, the children unanimously concluded that now they had realised how poor they were as compared to the village people.
The morale of the story is so obvious. Richness is a state of mind and as long as we consider ourselves to be a part of Nature, we are rich. Continuous exposure to the worldly definition of riches makes us narrow-minded and we become blind to the wealth of Nature. Children, who are closer to Nature, are still able to appreciate natural beauty and, therefore, felt poor when exposed to natural surroundings. The same situation, however, was perceived differently by the grown-up parents for whom personal riches were the only criterion of wealth.
Let us therefore feel rich in the lap of Nature because eventually, all our so-called possessions are in the mind and their actual ownership lies with Nature.

Target vs. Goal

Having put in more than three decades in the Indian Administrative Service, I often feel confused about the process of development in the country. I have almost always been adjudged as an outstanding officer by my superiors. Not only me, most are assessed as very good, if not outstanding. More or less the same is the case with the officers of the other services. In the secretariat, which is the centre of governance, there is hardly any exception to this assessment. Individually, we all feel very happy about this achievement and take advantage of it at every opportunity.
The main criterion of this assessment is the fulfilment of the targets set for us during the course of a fixed period, generally a financial year. Towards the end of every financial year, the targets fixed by each department are by and large achieved and in most cases, the performance is better than the previous year. Going by this fact, the nation should have become fully educated, healthy, crime-free, clean, employed and prosperous by now. Every year there is a rise in the number of schools, hospitals, police stations, area sown, productivity, number of tube wells, power generation, road construction, so on and so forth. But at the end of all this, we find that the society’s grievances against the administration or governance as a whole are on the rise. Everyone feels that the health and education network has deteriorated, there is manifold increase in the crime-rate, there is annoying traffic on the roads, there are power shortages, there is lack of sanitation and a host of other problems. And on the face of it, no one can deny these facts.
As commissioner of the Lucknow division, I used to travel a lot in my jurisdiction, which was quite large. I myself noticed this situation closely and at times used to feel pained. One day when I was contemplating over this matter, it occurred to me that while the targets were being achieved by all of us, everyone was missing the goal. One reason according to me is that while we applied the entire mind to achieve the target there is hardly any application of heart in our work. Unless we do our work with head and heart both, the true purpose of our work is hard to achieve. Secondly, our individual growth appears to be enough to us. While it may be true in the short-run but if we work for cross purposes, then everyone ends up losing in the long-run. This is what seems to be happening today.
I conveyed my feelings to all the senior officers working with me, in the form of a letter, which was very much appreciated. I don’t know how many of them went beyond appreciation but it is my conviction that unless the goal of development is achieved, mere achievement of targets is meaningless. In other words, unless there is a rise in ‘gross national happiness’ or ‘per capita happiness’, rise in ‘gross national income’ or ‘per capita income’ is without meaning. This is possible only when we pay attention to both, the outer as well as the inner development of the society, and this requires the employment of both our ‘head’ and ‘heart’ in work. The same is true for life also. If the goal of life is to be achieved, we must not only be smart but also good.

Right on God

The concept of God is perhaps as ancient as human existence. At all times, God has been conceived in numerous ways. Some consider Him to be a very benevolent entity that can be easily pleased by prayers both genuine and not so genuine while others consider Him to be a tough ruler of the Universe who can inflict any punishment on anyone in anger. Thus, all try to please Him in their own ways. Yet it is difficult to say as to how many trust Him, forget how many think about what is right on God’s part.
I have contemplated a lot on the subject of God and this has been possible on account of the blessings of many enlightened saints. What I learnt from all of them is that God is the name given to the power of Nature, which is manifested in all its creations both sentient as well as insentient. This way, we all are essentially divine but unaware of it. The purpose of life is to seek divinity within us so that we regard ourselves as a part of God or in other words, children of God. Once we realise this, all our misgivings about God disappear and we lead a carefree life, like a child in the company of her mother. We can also have a rightful claim on Him provided we obey Him and live in accordance with His laws.
I have an interesting experience to narrate which reinforced my faith in God. As commissioner of Lucknow, a great responsibility was entrusted upon me and my team for arranging unemployment allowance distribution to more than fifty thousand youths coming from different parts of the division. It was a huge task with no previous experience of its kind. It included huge tents, transport arrangement, food arrangements and many other logistics. The time given for all this arrangement was very short. The Chief Minister was personally interested in perfecting the programme and was monitoring it closely. The programme was to be held in the mid of June when there is a good likelihood of rain.
Given the context, we all set ourselves to make the arrangements. One problem after the other was coming before us but with a strong team spirit and support from the higher officials, they were also being sorted out. Within a few days we became confident that the programme would be successful. The only missing thing was that a rainproof tent could not be arranged for the whole area. The contractor could provide that only for the VIP area. It was his physical limitation and no amount of temptation or threat was of any help.
When the final review of the arrangements was done at the Chief Secretary’s level, this point also came up for discussion. While the Chief Secretary was convinced that nothing could be done at that point of time and it should be left to chance only, the Home Secretary took a rigid stand and insisted on the rainproof tent to cover the entire area. He also proposed that if it was not possible, the CM should be advised to change the date. The Chief Secretary, though not convinced by his proposal, kept silent. However, I took a firm stand. I said that we also have some right on God and it was time to exercise that right.
Immediately, we took the CM into confidence, who understood our limitations and asked us to go ahead with the arrangements. Eventually, it turned out to be a memorable occasion with everything going the perfect way. The Chief Minister was extremely pleased and praised the whole administration. The fact that it did not rain and nor was it so sunny, was certainly a blessing of God.

It is Quite Sufficient, Sir

Contentment is a great virtue. Though it appears to be a simple word, its understanding and more so living with contentment is one of the most difficult things. The paradox is that the more we acquire, lesser seems to be the level of contentment. India is fortunate in the sense that majority of its people are still content. These are not the people from the higher strata of society but those whom we consider poor. I have had the privilege of travelling widely in India and have come across a large number of people. I have experienced the richness of its poor people closely, which certainly makes me feel proud of my country. Here, I shall share one of my personal experiences in this regard.
I had gone to Mumbai in December 2006 to attend the Global Meet of IITians. I was to stay in the guest house of a public sector undertaking, which was located just adjacent to the airport. The undertaking had made my local travel arrangements also. I reached Mumbai in the forenoon by a morning flight from Bangalore. After check-in at the guest house, I left for the meet. In the evening I was planning to have a quiet dinner at the guest house but a friend of mine insisted on dining out along with another friend. Thus, the three of us went to a famous restaurant of Mumbai. I was told that the restaurant was a favourite place of film stars. Though I was not feeling very comfortable with this programme, yet reluctantly I agreed.
It was already ten in the night when the menu card came before us. Firstly, it was difficult to identify the items as their names were so unfamiliar and secondly, the prices were beyond my imagination. Somehow, we arrived at an agreed list of items to be ordered and this took another half an hour. By the time we finished our dinner it was well past eleven. The food didn’t give any of us much satisfaction though the total bill touched almost a whopping eight thousand rupees. Apart from indicating the level of restaurant, it was also an indication of the income levels in Mumbai. By the time I reached the guest house, the date had changed.
The next thing I suffered was a disturbed sleep after having a late dinner. In the morning, the room-bearer brought me a cup of tea and appeared to be a good person by his manners as well as disposition. This was a welcome change and I started talking to him. Apart from many general points, I enquired about his family and salary also. His name was Chougale and he belonged to the Dharwar district of Karnataka where his family lived. He lived alone in Mumbai working in the guest house as a contract employee. He was above forty and appeared quite happy. When asked about salary, he told me that it was two thousand and six hundred rupees per month, which was almost equal to the price of one meal we had paid for the last night. I couldn’t believe it and when asked how he could manage himself and his family that was five hundred miles away, he very innocently said, “It is quite sufficient, sir” and went further to explain the break-up. He used to send one thousand rupees to his family, paid six hundred for shelter, three hundred for subsidised food, two hundred for toilet and kept five hundred as pocket money.
To him, all this appeared to be very simple. Silently, I saluted this person and gave him a Hindi book of mine as a memento. The next morning he appeared again with a one-page compliment about the book, which is still one of my valued possessions. He also gave me a writing pad for my use as a memento. I was left with no doubt that this person was richer than many wealthy persons living in the financial capital of India.

Not by Default

We all remain happy and motivated in good times. But no one can say when we may have to face bad times. In fact, life is a series of good and bad times and in a meaningful life they both have to be faced with equanimity. While it is easier to face good times with calmness, it is not so in bad times. The real test of our inner growth is in bad times only. But if we believe that bad times help us to grow internally, we can not only face them with calm, we can also win over them. I have a very glaring example of this fact, which I am narrating here. I had a friend who was a member of an important central service and we were together in the training course at Mussorie in the mid-seventies. Our friendship continued thereafter also and we remained in touch with each other.
I found him a very smart, competent and good person. He had a very co-operative wife and two bright sons. His life was going on smoothly when bad times shrouded him all of a sudden. Firstly, he contracted a nerve disease, which made him almost immobile as well as speechless. While this disease was in progress his elder son got murdered. The family was contesting this case with a lot of courage but during the course of trial, my friend also passed away. This left his wife alone with her younger son.
One can imagine the severity of the situation for the lady. I visited her one evening at her residence when she shared with me the challenge she was facing. I had always admired the courage she had shown till then, but that day she was somewhat nervous. When I was about to leave, she said that at times she feels that she is on the verge of breaking down and wants to give up the fight in the face of adverse circumstances. While a normal person would have done that much earlier, doing so after having gone so far in her fight against adversity did not appear appropriate to me. I also knew that it was only a transient phenomenon and a proper encouragement or support at that stage would give her the strength to fight her full battle. Suddenly, an idea came to my mind which I shared with her. The idea was that adversity should not be allowed to win by default and it should be given a full fight even if we don’t feel strong enough to face it. Hearing these words she seemed to have regained her will power and determination to fight the battle till the end. This was amply reflected in her body language also.
Few days later, she told me over phone about the positive impact these words had on her. I was extremely gratified to receive this response. Thereafter, I kept full track of the events which followed in the whole struggle and how boldly and wisely she fought with the negative forces of the system. The final outcome was uncertain till at last the whole nation celebrated the day when she came out as a winner. Certainly, she rose above her adversity and defeated it with her firm resolve.
It will not be correct to presume that merely my words were a source of strength to her. Many help a courageous person and the maximum help comes from Nature. Perhaps, in her case, she refused to give a walkover to her adversity and fought with it till the last. The outcome was mainly on account of that fight.

Cent Percent Negative

Once I was speaking on the subject of ‘Stress Management’ at Hardoi. The talk was well-received and there was a delightful interaction session at the end of it. The essence of my address was that each one of us is a mixture of positive and negative traits. Our effort should be to increase the positive and the negative will reduce on its own. This is what we call positive attitude or positive thinking. To do so is possible for all of us provided we make an effort. This way the journey of our life would be from darkness to light.
During the interaction, one elderly person rose up and said that he was a cent percent negative person. He wanted to know whether it was possible for him to become positive. For the first time, I had come across a person who considered himself to be cent percent negative. I responded by saying that according to me no living person can be cent percent negative. If so, either he was not alive or he had some element of positivity. He seemed to agree with this statement. Then I gave him two examples: one of a terminally sick person and the second of a nearly dead plant. In both cases, I said, there are chances of survival and no good doctor or gardener will declare them dead as long as there is even a trace of life left in them. They would certainly try to revive them, though they may ultimately fail. Their approach would be to improve the situation bit by bit.
For example, if there is a plant most of the leaves of which have dried up but one or two leaves are still green, it will not be called a dead plant. A good gardener will nurture it with a lot of care and hope and if he does so, there are chances that more new green leaves will grow. The same is true with man also. As long as there is some breath present, there is every chance of recovery. What is required is to have faith in the laws of Nature. The law of Nature is that it does not disappoint us beyond the point of no return. Even the seeming disappointments of life are for our welfare provided we understand this secret or conspiracy of Nature. There is a silver lining in every disappointment. The need is to identify that silver lining and build upon that bit by bit like a good gardener in the case of plant and like a doctor in the case of man. This way, we are our own gardener and our mind is a plant, which has to be nurtured with care.
Certainly there can be no magic in recovery. It has to be a natural process and the fact is that only natural recovery is sustainable. Motivation or positivity, which comes in a shortcut manner, is equally short-lived. What is necessary is to know the principles of our life, to understand them and gradually, let them reflect in our lives. Once on this path, our negativity disappears on its own and we become more and more positive. This is the only way of turning cent percent negative into cent percent positive. However, both the extremes are only an imagination and we must strive to remain as close as possible to cent percent positivity. The elderly gentleman took my counsel soberly and promised to follow.

Jealousy is Natural

Our five greatest enemies are said to be desire, anger, greed, attachment and ego. All these give rise to jealousy, which is the root of all evils and the most difficult one to conquer. It is said that a jealous man poisons his own food and then eats it. It should, therefore, be gotten rid of at the earliest. But to do so is a great challenge.
However, if we proceed bit by bit starting from its genesis, it becomes easier to win over this enemy of ours. Once I was addressing the students of a public school in Noida. The occasion was the distribution of prizes to the winners of a quiz contest. There were about 500 young boys and girls who came from different family backgrounds. They were not only smart but also intelligent as well as responsive. My address to them centred round values and positive thinking. They were listening to me very attentively. During my address, I told them that when we have negative traits in us, we ourselves are the first and biggest victims of it. While this logic appeals to all, sustaining it all the time is a different task. Knowingly or unknowingly, we somehow get carried away by our lower nature and start nurturing the evil traits in us, be they anger, greed, desire or jealousy. The need, therefore, is to be on guard all the time and in due course our negative traits will fade away.
After my address there was an interaction session with the students. Many of them asked very searching questions which I tried to answer to the best of my ability. One girl very innocently raised a question about jealousy and asked whether it was not natural to be jealous. She was right in the sense that almost all of us feel jealous whenever we see any of our colleagues going ahead of us, whether in riches or position or fame. Perhaps, no one can make a claim that he or she has never felt jealous of others at one time or the other. While I appreciated her question, my answer was that if jealousy is natural, then our suffering on account of it is also natural. Once we focus on this aspect of jealousy, our efforts to get rid of it will be more effective. Thus, this negative trait of ours can be won over by this reverse process of contemplation. The girl was satisfied with this answer and so was I.
The same is true for all such inner enemies of ours like anger, attachment, desire, greed, ego, etc. When we allow them to prevail upon us, we become their first victims. On the other hand, when we practice virtues like compassion, pardon, humility, patience, contentment, charity, etc., again, we are the first beneficiaries. Once we start looking at evils and virtues from this perspective, we can advance towards purity. Accordingly, our peace and harmony will also increase. Eventually, we become positive and remain motivated at all times. Thus, the whole interaction with those young students became so rewarding that I thought of sharing it with others.

What is your age?

Life is full of problems. While some of them are created by Nature for a purpose, most of them are our own creations and that too without any purpose. A wise person is one who does not create problems for himself and also seeks a purpose behind the problems created by Nature. However, it is easily said than done. Most of us keep on creating new problems in addition to the existing ones. Life is thus spent in this process and its true goal is missed. Not only this, these problems are a constant source of worry and disturb our peace of mind.
I feel there is a need for changing our attitude towards the problems of life. Most of them are trivial and get sorted out in due course. It is a fact that ultimately all our problems get sorted out or become redundant and if we keep this fact in mind, they will not disturb us much. When we look back at our life, we realise that many problems, which appeared so big at that time, look so petty now that we even laugh at our folly of being so upset about them. This is true for most of us and if so, should we also not adopt the same attitude towards our present or future problems? I have a very interesting experience to narrate in this regard.
One of my friends is a frequent visitor to my place and it is always a pleasure to receive him. He is a senior engineer in a government organisation and is rated as a very good officer. Hardly ever did he bring any personal or official problem to my notice. But one morning, he appeared upset and sought my permission to put his problem before me. By his body language I was able to understand the kind of problem he was likely to share with me. I knew that I had no solution to his problem and at the same time I was sure that he himself was capable of sorting it out. Therefore, refusing permission for placing the problem before me, I asked about his age. Though it appeared strange to him, he told me that he had crossed fifty-two a few months back. Then I asked him whether any of his problems, till that age, still remain unresolved. Being an intelligent and good person he could immediately understand my intention. With a smile on his face, his response was that even the problem which he was going to share with me, got sorted out and he didn’t need to share it with me. This response pleased me a lot and I appreciated his wisdom. It is a different matter that then he narrated his problem also but along with the solution with which I fully agreed.
Therefore, whenever we face a problem, an easy way to sort it out is to think that all our past problems got sorted out in due course and so the present problem will also find a way. Our getting upset or frightened only delays the solution. The quicker way out is to keep cool and to trust our inner strength, which is provided by Nature or God.

Investing in a Book

A lot is said about good books. Good books are our best friends and can bring a great change in life. I have realised this in my own life. Till the age of thirty, I was not fond of reading books other than the course books. But a time came in my life when I started reading good books and they have enlarged my vision immensely. Not only this, as a result of this expansion, I myself started penning down my experiences and by now they have been published in the form of many books. Since these books are based on real-life experiences, they have been found to be useful and have reached thousands of readers. This in turn has given me great satisfaction and joy.
One of my books is titled ‘Swastha Chintan Ke Path Par’ and its cover price is one hundred rupees. One day, I received a phone call from a stranger in Lucknow who introduced himself as a reader of this book and conveyed his appreciation for it. His appreciation naturally gave me pleasure but this pleasure multiplied when he told me the reason of his appreciation. He said that he had decided to change the flooring of his house before reading the book which was to cost him about one lakh rupees. However, when he read a chapter in the book on ‘simple living’, he started liking his flooring because, essentially, there was nothing wrong with that except that it had become obsolete. As far as utility was concerned, it was perhaps more. Thus an investment of one hundred rupees in the book saved his one lakh rupees. For a moment I also felt that this single call had paid back all my efforts in writing the book. I could think of no better investment than this with such a high dividend.
The same holds true for all our investments in good things whether physical, material, intellectual or spiritual. On the face of it, they may appear to be paying no dividend but their intangible benefit is so high that it surpasses all tangible benefits. Whether it is good health, good mind or positive thinking, all these make a great difference in our life. A good book is perhaps the best investment from this point of view.

Oust my Son

When I was the commissioner of Lucknow, a retired civil servant came to meet me in my office. I didn’t know him closely and had only heard his name but he felt close to me. He had a personal problem and wanted me to solve it with the help of my official position. The problem was his only son who was married and was living in the same house, on the first floor. The son had been brought up with lots of love and was married in due course. The daughter-in-law was also to their liking, at least in the initial years of marriage.
The son was not very sound financially but his wife also being a working woman, they were somehow managing by themselves. To begin with, the family was living together with a common kitchen but gradually the kitchen had to be separated and the son shifted to the first floor. The house was owned by the father. In due course, even living as neighbours became difficult and things reached to such a pass that the father wanted his son to vacate the house. The son was not willing to do so, mainly because of financial reasons, and this had become a bone of contention between the father and
the son. The father had come to me to get his house vacated. I listened to his problem patiently without intervening, till he finished. As soon as he completed, I asked him whether he had come to me thinking of me as a commissioner or as a well-wisher. I also told him that as a commissioner, I was not in a position to help him because it was his personal problem, but I could certainly be of help as a person provided he desired so. Being a good person, he could understand my point and agreed to listen to my personal advice.
Then I told him that the problem was not with his son but with himself. His attachment, expectations as well as his ego were the main cause of the issue. I also told him that if at all separation from them was an answer to the problem, he should vacate the house instead of asking his son to do so. He was listening to me seriously, which encouraged me to advise further. I said that according to me, separation was not the answer to the problem and in all probability it would only aggravate it. The answer lied in shedding the ego and developing an attitude of detachment in their relationship. For this, he should start treating his son as his tenant whose help could be sought only in an emergency. For this, even if a nominal rent was to be charged, there was no harm in doing that also. After all, if his son vacated the house, he would have to search for a tenant.
The elderly gentleman took my advice seriously and without speaking much thanked me and left the place. His body language conveyed that he was going to follow my counsel and he actually did. He met me again after a few months and thanked me profusely for having given him a very pragmatic advice. At that time, his wife was also with him and she was very happy too. They both admitted that the major fault was at their end and once they took care of that, the relationship improved. Now they were living happily with their son as neighbours, and he, like a tenant. Since then whenever we meet, he never forgets to mention this episode.

Tiger’s Dentist

Nature has created a mind-boggling variety of flora and fauna on this earth. At times, one questions the purpose of all this creation but it is our ignorance. The fact is that every creation of Nature has a purpose and whenever any particular creation ceases to have a purpose, it ceases to exist. Perhaps, that is the reason why many ancient species are extinct today while many new ones are appearing. The deeper we study the secrets of Nature, the greater is our appreciation for its beauty and perfect administration. Once we realise that we ourselves are a part of Nature and live in accordance with its laws, our life also becomes harmonious and we enjoy it fully. I had a very interesting experience of such a design of Nature a few years back.
As commissioner of the Lucknow division, I had within my jurisdiction the Dudhwa National Park, which is primarily a tiger sanctuary. On my first visit to the park, I met a Forest Service Officer who was an authority on the wild animals. He knew a lot about tigers also. After reaching Dudhwa in the evening, he gave us company in the rest house and we had a long discussion with him over the evening tea as well as dinner. There were many questions in my mind, which he answered to my full satisfaction. Naturally, all of us were enriched as a result of this interaction and were in a better position to watch the king of all animals, which eventually didn’t appear before us.
During the course of our discussion, the forest officer told us the secret of tiger’s good health. He said that a tiger never eats more than necessary and leaves its prey as soon as his hunger is satiated. He also told us that the tiger goes to sleep for a while after eating. At that time, a question arose in my mind as to how a tiger cleans its teeth. After all, he eats raw meat and it would stick to his teeth. Unless the teeth are cleaned, there is every chance of the meat getting rotten and causing an infection in the mouth. When I asked this question, he felt very happy. Though I was not very serious about the question he gave a very serious reply to it.
He said that there is a dentist for each animal and that the tiger too, has a dentist; a bird. When the tiger goes to sleep after preying, he keeps his mouth open and a particular bird waits for this opportunity. The purpose of the bird is to feed itself with the leftover meat in the tiger’s mouth. In the process of doing so, the bird cleans the teeth of the tiger. In this way, the bird plays the role of a perfect dentist for the tiger and the tiger pays the fee by providing food to the bird. This understanding between the tiger and the bird never goes wrong.

Power of Compassion

Many years back I read a book of Dalai Lama titled ‘Power of Compassion’. After reading the book for the first time, I realised the importance of the word ‘compassion’ and also how powerful it is when practiced in true sense. I also had a practical experience of this fact a few years later when I was posted as Housing Commissioner of Uttar Pradesh. As Housing Commissioner, I used to meet the public every afternoon in order to listen to their grievances. At times, the number of visitors used to be quite large but I always attended to all.
One day during this meet, a daily wage employee of the organisation met me with a medical report of Sanjay Gandhi Post Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences (SGPGI). Most of the visitors used to meet me for their house-related problems, so it was something I was not exactly prepared for. The person appeared to be very sick and his report required an emergency operation, which was to cost about one lakh rupees. As a daily wager, he was not entitled to reimbursement from the organisation. He had come to see me to seek special dispensation, which was not within the rules. He also mentioned that without the operation he would surely die within a short period, while after the operation the chances of his survival were about fifty percent. This was a difficult situation for me, particularly when other visitors were also waiting in the queue. At that moment, the human consideration became more important for me than rules. I, therefore, immediately rang up the Director of SGPGI, who happened to be a good friend of mine, to go ahead with the operation and also assured him of the payment. However, I was not clear about its source and thought about it only after meeting all the visitors. At that time, an idea came to me that half the money should be contributed by the employees and half by the organisation. When I placed this proposal before the association of the employees along with a cheque of my contribution, they all agreed to it and the money was arranged accordingly. The sick employee was soon operated in SGPGI and the operation was successful.
After about a month, during my visitor’s time, the same employee was again in the queue with a medical fitness report. In that state of fitness, it was not possible for me to recognise him on my own. It was only when he reminded me of the help extended to him that I pleasantly recalled the whole incident. Obviously it gave me great joy and satisfaction. At that moment, I also recalled the book of Dalai Lama and once again realised the ‘power of compassion’, which I consider to be beyond all rules and regulations.

Magic of Pardon

Our administrative system is infamous for a large number of laws, rules, orders, etc. and they are always increasing in number. The aim of all of them is to make the governance good, efficient, transparent and judicious. Also, there are provisions of disciplinary action against the employees for their lapses. Occasionally, they are punished also, though it is difficult to say whether punishment is really changing the system for the better or not. I narrate here an interesting experience during my posting as Principal Secretary of Secretariat Administration Department (SAD) at Lucknow.
SAD is also responsible for the upkeep of secretariat buildings. For this a Management Officer (MO) or an Assistant Management officer (AMO) is posted for each major building. At that time, a lady officer was posted as an AMO for an important building and she was considered to be quite efficient. I was in the habit of taking rounds of the secretariat and during one such round of that building I noticed certain shortcomings. As a result, I gave her some instructions and expected compliance by a certain date. I fixed up an inspection again on that day. She assured me that my instructions would be complied with by that time.
When I visited that place again on the appointed date and time, I found that neither the instructions were complied with nor was the officer present there. It was a great surprise to me. I also noticed that no one in her office was aware of my instructions. Naturally, it annoyed me and as soon as I came back to my office, I gave instructions for disciplinary action against the AMO. The office promptly put up the file and proposed suspension or adverse entry to the officer concerned. By the time the file came to me, my anger had cooled down and instead of approving the proposed suspension, I ordered for seeking her explanation first. A letter was accordingly issued to the officer.
The file came back to me again after about a week. By this time, an explanation from the officer had been received as well as processed. However, the office had drawn the same conclusion as it had done before, perhaps more to please me than on merit. But, when I read the explanation, it appeared quite satisfactory to me. The officer had prayed for unconditional apology and admitted that the lapse had been inadvertent. Somehow, my instruction to her had slipped her mind and she could not act on them. She had also mentioned that the question of disobeying could not even occur to her mind. Considering all this, I decided to pardon her and closed the matter there itself.
The news of this decision spread throughout the secretariat in no time. Perhaps, the incident had come to the notice of many and they were curious to know the outcome. Some might have been planning to protest also in case I had taken a punitive action. But then, many rang me up or met me personally to convey their appreciation and told me that it had a salutary effect on others also. The concerned officer, who had not dared to meet me after the incident, also met me with tears in her eyes and conveyed her gratitude. I was, in fact, pleasantly surprised to see the magic of pardon. I also thought how nice it would be if rules also provided for a pardon clause, which is not the case as of now. As a result, my instructions had been effectively complied with the next day.

Half Dilemma Gone

Today, the society in general is facing a great dilemma about the values of life. The environment around us seems to be so vitiated that a wrong belief that ‘values don’t work’ has taken deep roots. This belief persists at all levels and the youth is no exception. But when youth becomes the victim of such a dilemma, it becomes a matter of serious concern. Their dilemma should be removed at the earliest and all those who are seriously concerned about the future of the society should make efforts in this direction. The fact is that if addressed correctly, it is not very difficult to do so. My personal experience and belief is that the youth responds better to any discussion on values than any other group. And in this fact lies the hope for the nation and perhaps the whole society.
I am narrating here one such experience I had a few years back. Once I was on a visit to an educational institution and it was the beginning of the session. The educational institution had courses in engineering, management and computer sciences. When I was in conversation with the Vice Chancellor in his room, he suddenly asked me whether I would like to meet the first year students of engineering, as it was the beginning of their session. Since I had some spare time with me, I accepted the offer and an interaction session was organised.
During the interaction, I chose to speak on the question of values only because I thought it was appropriate to the occasion. So after initial pleasantries, I straight away put a question to the group of young boys and girls whether they had a dilemma in regard to whether values work or not. To my surprise, all of them faced such a dilemma as was evident from the hands raised by them. Almost all of them raised their hands and there were many who raised both their hands, such was their dilemma. This was a great challenge to me as removing such a dilemma was not an easy task, more so with the little time available to me for the interaction. Still, I resolved to do my best.
With this background, I started interacting with them. It was a participative interaction, which made my task a bit easier. Having myself gone through such a dilemma, finding an answer in due course was my conviction and I was sure of passing this conviction to them, if not fully then at least partially. I found the young students very responsive and my reasoning or logic in favour of living a value-based life was received by most of them approvingly. Still, there were many genuine doubts, which I tried my best to remove. Our interaction went on for about an hour and I was quite satisfied with it.
Having finished, I again put up the initial question whether they were still in dilemma about values. Now the response was quite different in the sense that less than half the students raised their hand and those who had raised both the hands initially now raised only one hand. To me it was an indication of the fact that at least half of their dilemma had gone. I think it was quite a good success for a debut effort. More than personal joy, it was hope that I got from the youth. Surely, there is need for more effort in this direction.

Not Even a Nose Ring

Mr TSR Subramanian was an IAS officer of the UP cadre. Having risen to the post of Chief Secretary in the state government and Cabinet Secretary in the central government, he retired a few years back. After retirement also, he has been useful to the society and is serving it in many ways. Sometime after the retirement, he wrote a book under the title ‘Journeys Through Babudom and Netaland’. This book is a kind of autobiography as well as a good analysis of ground realities in our country, particularly in respect of administration and politics. The book was very well-received and created a good debate among those who find mention in it. I read it soon after its release and enjoyed reading it. My one-line comment on this book is that it is a good dig on the system. While it does not provide answers to the malady of the system, it certainly provokes the system to think about the answers. This way it serves a great purpose. Subsequently, the book was published in Hindi also.
Leaving this aspect of the book here itself, I am going to mention an incident narrated in the book, which left a deep mark on me. It relates to the period when Mr Subramanian was posted at Geneva, on a UN assignment. In the same office, there was an elderly class-four employee named B Singh who hailed from eastern UP. He had been in Geneva for quite some time and was very popular among the Indian officers posted there. The reason was his helpful nature along with the wisdom he had acquired on account of this trait. His counsel to all officers, particularly those posted newly, was well received and everyone looked for his help at one time or the other. He used to live there with his family.
It so happened that during the period of Mr Subramanian’s posting there, the wife of this employee passed away and Mr Subramanian visited his residence to pay his condolence. It was early afternoon; his apartment was a bare one-room flat. A few other Indians were there to share his grief. Singh had just returned after the cremation of his wife. He was dry-eyed, drained of all emotions, and talking more to himself than to the visitors at his home. He said, “She died last night. The nurse asked me to come back early this morning. She was being bathed and the nurse asked me to remove her nose ring before the cremation. Saab, I have never seen her without the nose ring ever since I had known her and married her when she was a ten-year-old. She wore it all the time, in bed, while bathing; it was a part of her. I could not bear the thought of separating her from the diamond nose ring. I told the nurse that I don’t want it, let it go with her. The nurse said that the metallic item could not be taken into the cremation. Saab, I tried to remove the nose ring, but my hands were trembling and I could not unscrew it. Finally, the nurse removed it and gave it to me. You see Saab, she could not even take this small thing with her when she went. But you see people who madly collect houses and money and property they cannot take with them.”

Who is Not a Bahai

Our society is divided on various counts. These divisions are on the basis of geography, religion, caste, language, food habits, occupation, etc. While it is a fact that no two creations of Nature are exactly the same, it is also a fact that essentially the whole creation is one. The ultimate goal of life is to realise this fact and that state is the ultimate in our spiritual journey. Once we understand and move in the direction of this understanding, the duality starts diminishing and our disharmony with the world starts lessening. Eventually, all our conflicts disappear and we live in a state of perfect joy.
I had an interesting experience of this process a few years back in Lucknow. The head of CMS schools there, Sri Jagdish Gandhi is a follower of Bahai faith. This faith is very liberal in the sense that it talks of universal brotherhood and believes in no rituals. The faith appeals to all those rational persons who find this lacking in other religions. The concept of universal brotherhood has always appealed to me and I find myself very comfortable in the company of such persons who believe so. One day, Sri Gandhi invited me for breakfast with a senior fellow of the Bahai faith from the USA, who was on a visit to Lucknow. It was a pleasure to accept his invitation because it was a good opportunity to know more about the Bahai faith apart from respecting the invitation.
We were at the breakfast table for over an hour and during this period we were so engrossed in the discussion that breakfast became a secondary affair. I was in agreement with almost everything the American friend said and perhaps, he also appreciated my way of thinking. When we rose from the table, he warmly asked if I was also a Bahai. Certainly, I am not a Bahai in the strict sense of the term. But to say no at that point of time didn’t appear appropriate to me. Therefore, after a pause of few seconds, I answered in the form of a question only. And my question was, “Who is not a Bahai?” This answer pleased him a lot and obviously he could understand the deep connotation of this statement, which came from me spontaneously. Thereafter, we took leave of each other after exchanging greetings and never met again.
However, this meeting and more so the concluding part of it, keeps coming to my mind wherever I notice any conflict on account of various divisions in the society. I have always thought that there can never be a conflict between the essential nature of two persons, and if it is so, it is on account of our ignorance. Therefore, the need is to remove this ignorance, and all our pursuits, whether secular or spiritual, should also be for removing this ignorance. Greater the success in this direction, greater would be the harmony in society. And ultimately, it would be possible for us to feel that we all are Bahais. Not only that, we should develop similar feelings towards other faiths also. After all, being a true Bahai only means to be a good person who cares for others more than for himself. By this definition of a Bahai, a good Hindu, a good Muslim, a good Christian, a good Sikh and so on, are all the same.

One Help Every Day

Though the Kabir Peace Mission was established in early 1990, it was almost on the ground for about a decade. One can also say that it was running on the tarmac before taking-off. In fact, it now appears that it was really so as is evident from what followed. In January 2000, I dedicated my first book to Kabir Peace Mission, which was a Hindi translation of two English books of mine. The title of the book was Swastha Chintan Ke Path Par and the book was released by the then Human Resource Development minister of India, Dr Murli Manohar Joshi, in a well-attended function on 14th January in Lucknow. Dedicating the book to the mission meant that all proceeds from the book were to go to the mission. I have no hesitation in admitting that I thought several times before taking such a decision. But I reached a conclusion that in doing so, the overall gain was to be more than the pain. Subsequently, I dedicated all my books to the mission only.
With this clarity of mind, the mission got its receipt books printed and the first receipt was issued on January 14, 2000. At that time, I also wished and prayed that let Nature send at least one help to the mission, so that we could serve its cause with greater confidence and concentration. Perhaps, God found us worthy of His blessings as since then, the average help has been more than one every day. A large number of persons came in contact with the mission through various forums and programmes. This enriched the mission both ways, in terms of serving its purpose as well as harnessing resources.
In a book written by Gandhiji, I read that for the success of any social activity, the required ingredients are – right objective, selfless service and transparency in working. Our effort has always been to achieve these qualifications and our prayer to God is also to keep us on this path. It also proves that any sacrifice is not a matter of self-deprivation but of self-preservation. When we give, we get more, maybe in a different form.

Ex-Father

We are quite used to terms like ex-president, ex-mp, ex-prime minister, etc., but terms like ex-father or ex-mother are very surprising to us. But in modern times these terms have also come in vogue and are often used in western societies. No wonder these terms may gradually become part of the Indian society as well. I first came across this term in the year 2002 when I was in the USA. On a flight from New York to Denver, I was travelling alone sitting on an aisle seat. On my right, on the middle and window seats were two young boys who appeared to be twins. They were about 10 years old and were busy in their own conversation. There was no elderly person with them.
Though I had noticed their presence as soon as the plane took off, they drew my attention after about half an hour. Their conversation, though not very clear to me, made me curious to know about them. Therefore, I intervened in their conversation at an appropriate moment and enquired about them and about the purpose of their journey. Then they told me that they were twins and were going to meet their ex-father. Explaining further, they also told me that their mother had divorced their father to marry some other person and their father had also did the same. It also came out in conversation with them that it was not their first divorce and both their father as well as their mother had done so several times. At that time, they were living with their mother and new father and were going to meet their real father whom they referred to as ex-father.
This is how I came across this term and it set me thinking about the change in relationships in modern times. While I have no intention of sitting in judgement over such developments, I certainly feel that the subtle joy of relationships has been lost to a great extent in the modern times. That is why there is an increase in the loss of peace, tension, hatred and jealousy. If we are not able to feel joy with natural relationships, how can we find it with other relationships? While our ancient culture has talked of ‘Vasudhaiv-Kutumbkam’, the world is one family, the modern culture is finding it difficult to keep even one family intact.
Surely, there is a need of taking a re-look at our relationships and devising means to make them meaningful in a real sense. We had done so long back and perhaps for doing so once again, we have to learn from our past without shunning modern development so that we live in a win-win situation.

Success has no Competition

We are living in an era of competition. Day by day the competition for success is becoming so intense that the very joy of living is being lost. What is worse is that the pressure of competition has engulfed our young generation also and this has resulted in several disorders. The increasing number of suicides among young students is mainly on account of this pressure. This is a serious issue and needs to be addressed correctly.
I had a first-hand experience of this narrow definition of success while I was addressing class XII students of Delhi Public School in Delhi, a few years back. It was a biology section with boys and girls in almost an equal number. When I asked them about their goal in life, everyone said that they wanted to become doctors. They also agreed that it was not possible for all to succeed in the entrance examination but the very thought of not getting selected made them miserable. Perhaps they had cultivated a very narrow definition of success in their minds. In short, success for them only meant becoming a doctor.
Regarding this, I gave the example of my nephew (sister’s son) who also entertained the desire of becoming a doctor while he was studying. He tried for the entrance after class XII, but failed. Thereafter, he sought admission in BSc, a two-year course at that time. He tried again after completing the first year of BSc but failed in that attempt too. Quite disappointed, he completed his BSc and gave a third attempt for the medical entrance with quite a good hope for selection. But third time also he could not succeed. Everyone was disappointed and thought that this boy will see no success in life. But all were wrong including the boy. Having completed his graduation, he was left with no option but to seek admission in MSc. He chose agricultural botany as his subject and sought admission in a prestigious institute of Delhi. Gradually, he was coming to terms and started taking interest in his post-graduate studies. He did well and after completion, got admission for research in Australia. Having obtained his PhD from there, he completed his post-doctorate studies from the USA. Today, he is one of the leading bio-scientists -cum-entrepreneurs of the world in this field. His success is a matter of pride not only to him but to all his near and dear ones.
Hearing this example of success all the students started wondering. Perhaps they started rethinking about their definition of success. I also told them that this was just an example and there were countless of them. All this changed the environment of our discussion in a very positive way and they all participated in it with an open and happy mindset. Many of them told me over tea that they felt very relieved and the pressure of competing in the medical entrance had reduced to a great extent. Naturally, I also felt very happy and satisfied. Perhaps all of us need to realise this aspect of success. Having born as human beings, we are the most precious creation of Nature. Nature has also not made any two human beings exactly the same. It means that each of us is a unique creation of Nature and there is a purpose behind our creation. Our efforts should be directed towards knowing that purpose and achieving it. For this, none of us needs to compete with others and if at all there is competition, it is with oneself only. This way our life should be a process of self-improvement. Once we do so, we get not only worldly success but achieve the goal of our life also. Surely, there is no competition in success. No wonder the famous philosopher J Krishnamoorti used to hate the word ‘competition’ as for him this was a synonym for ‘violence’.

Without Appointment

With the growth of civilisation, several man-made laws, customs and practices have come into existence. Their main objective is to create order, convenience and efficiency in the society. They are also important for the protection of an individual’s freedom, dignity and happiness. With the increase of pressure on the individual’s time due to several modern developments, the need for them is also increasing day by day. As a result, we are becoming lonelier and paying its price in a different way. I had such an experience a few years back in the USA. I was in Denver staying with a nephew of mine who was alone at that time. He used to take me for outings whenever it was possible to do so. He is a nature lover and the surroundings of Denver provide plenty of natural beauty. On one such outing, he mentioned that a brother of the Indian magician P C Sarkar lived nearby, in a beautiful house on the bank of a lake. He also told me that he was a frequent visitor to that house and was always welcome there. He further added that he would show me the house from a distance, as going inside without an appointment might be inconvenient to the family.
Being generally aware of the American way of living, I was in agreement with him. While returning from the outing, he took a detour in order to show me Mr. Sarkar’s house. Soon we arrived there and he stopped the car at a short distance from where Mr. Sarkar’s house was visible. It was a beautiful house and I had some desire to see it from the inside. Besides, after a long drive I was feeling the need for a cup of tea also. But I left it to my nephew only. Incidentally, when our car stopped and we came out of it, Mrs. Sarkar was outside the house watering her lawn. She immediately recognised my nephew, who then extended his greetings to her. Responding to that, she invited us inside. On this, my nephew became formal and said that it could be inconvenient for her as prior appointment was not sought. In reply she said that it was not inconvenient at all as she was free at that moment. My nephew again tried to be formal on which I intervened and persuaded him to accept the invitation.
Thereafter, we spent about half an hour with Mrs. Sarkar, going around, inside and outside the house. This was a very meaningful interaction, which greatly enriched us with many facts about American life and Indians’ contribution to its development. A hot cup of coffee was an additional gain, which was indicative of the true Indian hospitality. I thought to myself that there has to be a limit to man-made laws, customs or practices and man should have the power to refuse them.

No Fixed Deposits

There are a large number of organisations and institutions engaged in social activities. Most of
these claim to be doing selfless service to society for a good cause. At the same time, we come across a good number of such bodies that collect money by various means including dubious ones with hardly any visible service. We also notice many of them closing their shops sooner or later. It, therefore, becomes a matter of consideration on how to sustain a social organisation in order to achieve its objectives. One simple way is to create enough fixed deposits and run the organisation out of the interest income. Once I was contemplating over this matter in reference to Kabir Peace Mission. At that time, the organisation was in its childhood stage and the only source of income was its membership fee. For us too, one of the options was to create a corpus by seeking donations, but I was not very comfortable with this option.
It was around this time that I came across a book of Mahatma Gandhi titled ‘Satyagraha in South Africa’. This book has a very good account of the Mahatma’s days in South Africa. In fact, it was during this period that Mohan Das was converted into a Mahatma. Overall, it is a very touching narration of events. Somewhere in this book Gandhiji had mentioned the sustainability of his movement in South Africa. It was a great task and required a lot of resources, particularly money and people. He got both but he lays the condition for this arrangement of nature. Gandhiji clearly mentions that when one undertakes a social cause, only three conditions have to be fulfilled. The first condition is that the cause should be a felt need of the society and not the fancy or whim of one or few individuals. In other words, the cause should be owned by the society. The second condition is that the leadership or leaders behind the movement should be totally selfless and the third equally important condition is that the working of the organisation should be transparent, irrespective of the credibility of the leader or leaders. Gandhiji concludes by saying that if these conditions are fulfilled, no fixed deposit is required and the resources will be made available by nature perennially.
In these words of Gandhiji, I got the answer to my dilemma. The idea of fixed deposits was totally dropped and the whole concentration was shifted towards the cause, selflessness and transparency. Thereafter, the mission grew in an exponential manner with support coming from many sources. Incidentally, we now have some fixed deposits also which is the only cause of worry.

Marriage Technology

I had a friend who was a professor of Mechanical Engineering at IIT Kanpur, during the mid-eighties. During that period, I was also posted at Kanpur. Since he happened to be a relative of my wife and was a nice person by nature, we grew close and often visited each other. He had three daughters and one son who was the youngest in the family. All the children were bright in their studies and grew well. The son passed his engineering from BHU and did his masters as well as PhD from the USA. Thereafter, he started working in the USA but we remained in contact. This boy, apart from being good in studies was also a good tabla player, photographer and artist. All these made his personality very pleasing.
This boy got married in the year 2000 in India, but I couldn’t attend his wedding though I wanted to. In the USA, he was working in Denver and is continuing to do so. In 2002, I got an opportunity to visit Denver in connection with a ‘book fair’ where one of my books was to be released. This was to be in the month of June. In the month of March, I met him in Delhi and when I told him about this forthcoming event, he insisted that I must come and stay with him. His presence there thus became an additional attraction and I decided to participate. I was also keen to meet his wife as I had not met her earlier.
At Denver, he received me at the airport alone though I was expecting his wife also. I had also brought along a gift for her. But soon after we left the airport, my nephew told me that he had not shared a development with me. Then he told me that his marriage had failed and he was living alone in a studio flat. This was a kind of shock to me but I took it coolly. I was in Denver for four days and during this period he shared a lot with me, which not only gave him a lot of consolation but strength also to face the reality gracefully. However, one thing was sure that the event had changed the boy and he had become scared even of the word ‘marriage’.
Throughout my stay at Denver and till today I often contemplate over this issue. While the USA has developed all the possible technologies of the world and countless objects of comfort for mankind, surely no one will deny that it has failed to produce happiness out of all these. Take the example of marriage itself. A successful marriage contributes a great deal to happiness in life. While most of the marriages in less developed countries are successful and last for an entire lifetime, this is not true in the case of developed countries. In a country like India, the institution of marriage is still very strong and is sustaining relationships well. Surely when it comes to the technology of marriage, India beats most of the developed countries.

How Many Miracles

There is a town near Delhi known as Mohan Nagar named after the family that established this town. The flag unit of this town is Mohan Meakins and its chairman is Col. Kapil Mohan. The life story of Col. Mohan is very inspiring. He is not only a good entrepreneur but also a good human being. Starting as a non-believer, he turned into a staunch devotee of Maa Durga and has constructed a very magnificent temple dedicated to her. In fact, my curiosity to meet Col. Mohan grew only after visiting the temple. Soon this opportunity also came and we spent some time together. In the process, we developed a liking for each other. After a year or so of this meeting, I had another opportunity to interact with him; this time in an informal manner. The CEO of Mohan Meakins, who happens to be a good friend of mine, had invited me to dinner. After the dinner he took me to Col. Mohan who was at his dinner table at that time. Col. Mohan called us to the dinner table and we started talking. I noticed that his food was very simple, which was a reflection of his personality. While engaged in talking, Col. Mohan suddenly drew my attention towards the ring he was wearing in one of his fingers and said that the same was given to him by Sathya Sai Baba. He also said that the ring was collected by Baba from space. Further, he asked me if I believed in such miracles.
I had already heard of many such incidents but I hold no specific opinion about them mainly because such an opinion hardly matters either to the believers or the non-believers. So I responded accordingly and opined that we considered such events as miracles because we were not used to them. In my opinion, every event of Nature is a miracle but since we watch them happening every day throughout our life, we don’t consider them so. I gave the example of digestion of food, which I was watching, as we were on the dining table. Our role in this process is limited to gulping down the food. The rest of the process is taken care of by Nature without any effort on our part. The large variety of fruits, plants and flowers we see around us is a miracle to me. Col. Mohan was convinced with this argument and our interaction shifted to other matters.
I contemplate over this issue quite often. The more I think in this regard, the more I notice the mystery of Nature. The best creation of Nature, a human being, is perhaps the biggest miracle and like this every creation of Nature is a miracle. Thus, how many miracles of Nature shall we count? We being equipped with the power of ‘thinking’ and ‘intellect’ start believing that we are the doers. This is nothing but ignorance because these powers have also been bestowed on us by Nature. Let us, therefore, live in tune with Nature and make the best use of the many wonderful faculties provided to us.

Secret of Success

Today, Mr E Sreedharan is a well-known personality not only in India but also in the world. The way he executed the Delhi Metro Rail project, is a matter of wonder in engineering as well as the management field. He is a simple man with deep spiritual roots and lives a value-based life. This is a great message to those who believe that in present times crookedness is necessary for success. I think that more important than this physical contribution to India, is his contribution towards changing the mindset of our people. I hereby narrate my first interaction with him.
This happened in November 2001 at Centre for Inner Resources Development (CIRD) in Vasundhara colony of Ghaziabad. CIRD is the name of my spiritual master’s ashram, which was established just a year back. His name is Swami Bhoomananda Tirth and his main base is in Kerala at Trichur, under the name of ‘Narayana Tapovanam’. In November 2001, Swamiji had organised a two-day programme for senior management executives on the subject ‘Beyond Excellence’. I was one of the participants in this programme. There I found that Mr E Sreedharan was also a participant and that he too was Swamiji’s disciple. Naturally, this gave me a sense of joy as well as elation, as I had great regards for him on account of his contribution to the Indian Railways.
At lunch, on the first day itself, we happened to be together at the dining table. After a brief introduction of my background during the meet, I posed a question to Mr Sreedharan about the secret of his success and I also put a condition that I would be happy if the answer could be in one line. To this, his response was even more interesting. He asked why I wanted a one-line answer as he could give the same in one word. This raised my curiosity even further, and I was keen to know that single word. Then very gently and with great sobriety he said, the secret behind every success is the ‘integrity’ of the leader and his people. This was enough for me and I needed no further explanation.
Now it was my turn to contemplate over this magical word called ‘integrity’. All of us know this word and mostly give the certificate of integrity to our subordinates and expect the same from our superiors also. But are we really integrated in the true sense? I realised that ‘integrity’ is not a word; it is a textbook, which has to be read, understood and lived all through our life. A state of total integrity is perhaps our imagination, and we can only try to achieve it to the maximum extent. But if we do so, we have done our duty towards ourselves and the society. This contemplation also took me to the ‘Bhagwad Gita’ in which the first three verses of chapter sixteen give twenty-six virtues of a perfect man. Normally, one feels that being honest only makes us perfect. But the reality is far away. One has to cultivate several good qualities in order to be successful in this world. If one doesn’t, he has to face failure and in that situation, he attributes its causes to his existing good qualities instead of the missing good qualities. That is why the belief that crookedness is necessary for success prevails. The fact is that even those who have such beliefs are worried about the loss of values in the society.
I believe that this one word of Mr E Sreedharan needs a lot of debate, discussion and clarification. Integrity is essential not only for mundane success but for spiritual success too. Any compromise with it is a self-defeating proposition and eventually all will become victims of the same. The sooner we realise it, the sooner shall we be able to achieve our true potential, both in the outer as well as the inner fields. Truly, the secret of success everywhere is ‘integrity’.

Divine Care

I got an opportunity of visiting South Africa in July 2001. A few months before the visit I had read a book titled, ‘Satyagrah in South Africa’ written by Mahatma Gandhi on his life in South Africa. In fact, his stay in South Africa had converted Mohan Das into a Mahatma. Overall, it was a very inspiring book and since then I had been entertaining a wish of visiting South Africa. In South Africa, our main programme was in Johannesburg but we got an opportunity of visiting Durban also, which had been the main centre of activity of Gandhiji in South Africa. At Durban, the state agriculture minister was of Indian origin and he had hosted a lunch for our delegation. During this lunch I met the Director of Agriculture of the state who was also of Indian origin. Somehow we developed a liking for each other and he invited me for a cup of tea at his residence. I readily agreed and he took me to his home in the afternoon. This home visit gave me a good insight into life in South Africa and the role of Indians in the progress of that nation.
During the course of our interaction, I asked my host to make available or suggest a book, which could give me an insight into the life of Indian migrants in the early days. On this request, he presented me a book on the life of a great social worker named Ram Bharos whose parents had come to South Africa towards the end of the nineteenth century. His parents died when Ram Bharos was not even 10 years old and also left to his care a younger brother with unsound mind. Both these boys found shelter in an orphanage after the death of their parents. Soon, the younger brother also passed away leaving Ram Bharos alone, to be brought up in the orphanage.
The young Ram Bharos turned out to be an intelligent and hard-working boy who endeared himself to the management of the orphanage very soon. The manager in charge of the orphanage was himself a very good person and could notice the talent of Ram Bharos. So he gave him full support and encouraged him for higher education. Ram Bharos not only contributed his services in the running of the orphanage, but also paid attention to his education thereby passing the necessary examinations. So much so, he was appointed in the orphanage itself on a responsible post. Further noticing the talent of Ram Bharos, the manager in charge also married his daughter to him and subsequently gave him the responsibilities of managing the orphanage. Ram Bharos not only carried out this responsibility very well but also contributed to the field of social service so much, that his name and fame spread all over the country. In due course, he became a famous social worker not only in South Africa but in other countries also. The book on his life was written very objectively and I found it not only informative but touching also.
While I was going through the book in my hotel room, tears started rolling down my cheeks. I became very emotional on realising that we all are under divine care but due to ignorance we feel that we take care of ourselves. If an orphan boy in a country thousands of miles away from his native place could grow so well, where is the need of worrying for those who have no such uncertainty? My view is that we should do our best in our present and never worry for the future. Eventually, it is the divine power within ourselves, which takes care of us.

Ancient Wisdom, Modern Times

Twentieth century saw mind-boggling progress in the field of science and technology, particularly in the latter half of this century. It is said that the progress made in this period surpasses the achievement of many millenniums in this field. However, the cost of this achievement has been very high in the sense that for this progress we lost the wealth of our ancient wisdom. No wonder that despite all the materialistic progress, human happiness has come down drastically and the society is facing a period of conflict, confusion and chaos.
We need to contemplate on this issue seriously so that the human race achieves not only progress but peace also. The whole world started realising this situation towards the end of the twentieth century and many positive forces came forward to work in this direction. I got the opportunity to participate in two such initiatives during the year 2000 itself. The first occasion was the address of the world’s spiritual leader, Dalai Lama, from the precincts of Sarnath in Varanasi. This is the place where Gautam Buddha gave his first discourse after achieving enlightenment. The event started with a ‘deep-yagya’ on the bank of the Ganges in which several spiritual and social leaders of the country took part. Lighting of the lamp is a symbol of removing ignorance and imparting knowledge. This symbolic ceremony was received well and in a way the twenty-first century began with the vow of lighting a lamp instead of cursing the darkness. In the forenoon of January 1, 2000, Dalai Lama gave his message to the entire world. The central message of his address was that we must make use of ancient wisdom in order to make the best use of the material progress on account of scientific development. Both are complimentary to each other rather than in conflict.
Our ancient wisdom lays emphasis on core values of life, which are necessary to follow if we want peace. May be some modifications in the interpretation of our scriptures are required, but their spirit has to be followed as such. If we do so, our conflicts and confusion will reduce greatly and disappear in due course. The second event was the meeting of the world’s spiritual and religious leaders at the UN headquarters in New York. In this event, about 2000 delegates from almost all countries of the world participated and deliberated on the subject of ‘peace’. It was noticed that human nature is essentially the same irrespective of place, language, colour, religion, caste and creed. Everyone wants peace and the mad race for material progress is also an effort to achieve the same objective. It is a different matter that in the absence of core values, we fail to find it. The central message of this meet was also the same that we need ‘ancient wisdom’ in order to make the best use of ‘modern times’. Let us all try to follow this in our lives in order to be successful, as well as peaceful.

Many Houses but No Home

I worked as Housing Commissioner for U P for more than two years. It was a period of great achievement and it was a period of great achievement and satisfaction too. Many new schemes and projects were initiated or brought to a logical end during this period. The greatest satisfaction and joy was experienced when those who had no hope for shelter could get a dwelling unit in the normal course, without any bribe or push. Even a small unit of house gave the homeless so much joy that quite often tears would roll down their cheeks when the allotment letter was given to them. Many such scenes still appear before my eyes when I think of them. I still keep encountering many such beneficiaries who feel so obliged because of such valid allotments and tell me how they are enjoying their small homes.
On the other hand, there was an equally large number of applicants who did not need a house or plot for their immediate use. Their sole purpose was either speculation or just future apprehension. This was also the group which applied pressures through various sources or even offered bribe openly. While I tried to deal with all such cases on merit, I was not always successful. At times, property had to be allotted to such persons at the cost of more needy applicants. But as an individual, I couldn’t do much as such allotments were not illegal in the strict sense of the term. Certainly, they violated the principle of equity or social justice.
One day, an applicant falling in the above category came to see me in connection with a plot allotment. He appeared to be charming in his manners so I started talking to him at a personal level. During the course of our talk, I discovered that he already had four residential properties in various towns and had applied for the fifth one. Also, either he had no family or had separated from his family. In a way, he was a loner. Still, I thought of considering his case on merit. In the same connection I also asked for his address and where he actually lived. At this, he was a little perplexed and could not respond immediately. Perhaps he was apprehending some enquiry by the housing board. So he frankly said that though he had given an address on the application form, the fact was that he had no home. Therefore, if any enquiry were to be conducted, in all probability he would not be available on the given address. A majority of such applicants, who were either rich or occupied an influential position with a dwelling unit of their own, did not necessarily use the houses allotted to them. They were also confused about the place of their settlement. Moreover, matters like in whose name the property should stand, mode of payment, time of possession, etc., also added to their confusion. It was also very difficult to convince them that they didn’t need the property. While his ambiguity about sharing his home address was a sufficient reason to reject his application, it was amusing to see a person with many houses and no home.

Children and Values

Once I was invited by a renowned public school of Rampur to speak to children about the core values of life. This is a subject dear to my heart and so I accepted the invitation and a programme was fixed accordingly. When I reached the school and spent a few minutes in the principal’s office, I was cautioned by him that it was a difficult assignment for me, as children these days hardly understood the meaning of values. I was surprised to hear such a statement coming from the principal of a reputed school but took the advice in right perspective. It, however, had the effect of making me more determined to make my talk effective and I set my mind accordingly.
Soon, thereafter, I had to face a large number of students aged perhaps from 10 to 16 years. They looked enthusiastic and keen to listen. This encouraged me further and as I faced them my initial words were, “My dear young friends, your principal has asked me to speak to you regarding the core values of life, but I will not speak about them and in turn make you speak on values, as you are the true epitome of values and not us.” This opening remark cheered them up and they prepared themselves for the ensuing interaction. My next query to them was about the student who had scored the highest marks in class ten. There was a boy who stood up and told me that he had scored the highest marks in class ten. I asked him to come forward and tell others about the secret of his success. He told his fellow students that he worked hard and studied regularly and that was the secret
of his success. At this, I posed a question whether ‘working hard’ or ‘being regular in studies’ were values or not. To this there was a collective response from the children that it was so. Then I put up another question and asked if there was any one who liked to have a liar as a friend. There was none, after which I asked whether they liked a truthful friend or not. To this there was a uniform response in the affirmative. Once again I asked whether ‘truthfulness’ was a value of life or not and there was no dissent on this also. In this way, I asked similar questions on the other values of life like kindness, compassion, pardon, sharing, helping, etc., and not a single student had dissenting views on the fact that they all are the core values of life, which are necessary for our happiness and success.
Having established my point, I told them why faith in core values of life was shaking these days, as was the intention of the principal and what we all needed to do to restore them. This was also done in a logical and convincing manner. I was pleasantly surprised by the positive response of children, which only reaffirmed my faith that children are the real epitome of values. The fault, if any, lies with us who fail to display these values in our lives and blame children that they don’t understand them. My message was well-delivered during this interaction, which of course the principal also very graciously acknowledged.

American Neighbour

In the year 2000, I, along with my wife, had gone to attend the ‘World Peace Summit’ organised at the UN headquarters in New York, in the month of August. After the summit was over, we were staying with our nephew who was newly married and was living near New York. During the same period, Bhartiya Vidya Bhavan had organised a programme under the caption ‘Vande Matram’ in which the then Prime Minister of India, Shri Atal Behari Vajpayee, was the chief guest. Being a life member of the Bhartiya Vidya Bhavan, I was also invited to the programme and I had arranged an additional invitation for my nephew and his wife. My nephew was living in a small flat on the first floor and there was another similar flat opposite to his on the same floor. There was a common entrance for both at the ground floor and my nephew and his neighbour both possessed separate keys of that entrance gate. Except for this, they did not communicate with each other, as it turned out following the event given below.
We had gone to Bhartiya Vidya Bhavan’s programme after breakfast and while returning in the afternoon, my nephew noticed that he had lost the keys to his flat including that of the common entrance gate. By the time he realised this we had almost reached home. He also realised that he had forgotten to pick up his bunch of keys after it was passed through the screening machine at Bhartiya Vidya Bhavan for security reasons. We had already travelled a lot and there appeared no sense in going back to the venue of the programme. So we decided to deal with the situation accordingly.
When we reached home, we thought of taking the neighbour’s help in getting the common entrance gate opened. But my nephew didn’t have his telephone number. Somehow, he managed to get in touch with him through the locality office and requested him to open the common gate. During all this activity, me and my wife were silent spectators, hoping that the neighbour would at least offer his flat for waiting and also offer a cup of tea or a drink, which we needed badly. However, when the neighbour came down to open the common lock, he was accompanied by a big dog and after opening the lock, rushed back in a very impersonal manner. All our hopes for comfortable waiting and a drink were shattered in no time.
Anyway, we kept waiting and sat on the stairs while my nephew arranged for a locksmith who came in about half an hour. After opening the lock of his flat in almost no time he charged fifty dollars as his wage. During this entire wait, we were fondly remembering our country where most of us consider it our good luck to help our neighbours, particularly in times of crisis. But in America, hoping for such courtesies was perhaps our ignorance. It also occurred to me that we should not follow the West blindly, lest our human qualities disappear. After all, India is a country which has always believed in the concept of ‘Vasudhaiva Kutumbkam’, the entire world is our family. It is a different matter that even the nuclear families are now breaking up in increasing numbers.

Kaveri Water

We as north Indians often learn of the Kaveri water dispute between Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, two important southern states of India. Quite often, one also wonders why issues like this cannot be settled amicably and what is so great about sharing river water. We also tend to blame politicians for not solving such problems. While this may be true to some extent, such matters are not so simple because behind such issues lie the genuine needs and sentiments of people. I realised this truth during my visit to Tamil Nadu in the year 1999 as election observer for the parliamentary election. The incident goes like this: During the course of this duty, I also had the opportunity of visiting Madurai, the place famous for the Meenakshi Temple. While returning from there to the place of duty, the car passed through an area which is the best in paddy cultivation and called the rice bowl of Tamil Nadu. My escorting officer told me that it was the Kaveri basin area and that the success of crops was mainly dependent on irrigation from the Kaveri water. The area looked so beautiful that I asked the driver to stop for some time in order to watch the fields and enjoy the beauty of the lush green paddy crop. I had not seen such a beautiful paddy-field ever before and so, I spent almost half an hour in the fields.
As we started travelling again, we soon crossed the Kaveri river, which is split into four or five streams in that area. Meanwhile, the issue of the Kaveri water dispute came to my mind and all my previous perception about it disappeared. I could easily feel the need and sentiments of the farmers who are the beneficiaries of the Kaveri water. Perhaps, the same need and sentiments exist in Karnataka also. The accompanying officer told me that the whole livelihood of this area depended on paddy and if the crop fails, people face tremendous problems. I was silently agreeing with him.
The point being made here is not that the dispute should not be sorted out amicably. That it should be done is very necessary but the complication of such issues should be appreciated against the background of people’s needs and sentiments. The joy of a lush green crop, to me, is invaluable and the mere sight of it was enough to give me the kind of happiness which no amount of money can buy. Therefore, in order to expand our personality, it is necessary to understand the feelings of others also, without always judging them and looking at the issues only from the point of view of economics or politics.

Indiscriminate Renunciation

Indiscriminate Renunciation Today, a very common misconception about being,  religious or spiritual is that such a person has to give up his or her worldly duties and has to lead a life of deprivation. Perhaps, such misconception has always been there but it is more so in the present when science has made us more rational and we want a logical explanation of any religious or spiritual message. As a result, most of those who have been imparted modern education keep themselves away from religion or spirituality. The very mention of these words draws before them a sketch of a person in saffron clothes doing nothing with this world. In my childhood I also carried this impression and kept myself away from any religious rituals. Moreover, I had noticed many so-called religious persons indulging in irreligious activities, which always created a doubt in my mind about the correct definition of religion. However, a time came in my life when I developed a keen desire to know the correct definition of religion and more than that why should one be religious in the true sense. Since the desire was keen and honest, I got ample opportunity to interact with the right persons, the right organisations and the right books. All this removed my doubts and I arrived at a conclusion that there is no conflict between being religious and being a successful worldly person. In fact, I feel they reinforce each other and give us the best of life. When we understand religion in this perspective, it becomes spirituality and all our misconceptions about religion or spirituality drop very naturally.
To establish this point, I would like to mention an extract from a book, which I read many years back. The title of the book is ‘Play of Consciousness’ written by Swami Muktananda. In this book, Swamiji has described the journey of his spiritual life and in the process has given many pearls of wisdom. At one place, he gives a very interesting definition of ‘bondage’ and ‘freedom’. When asked about the difference between the two, he says that ‘indiscriminate renunciation’ is bondage, while ‘discriminate indulgence’ is freedom. It means that in order to achieve freedom one has to be a wise person.
Those who think that freedom is achieved only through renunciation or indulgence are wrong and are always led towards bondage. The secret of freedom lies in between. When we renunciate indiscriminately, in all probability it leads to bondage instead of liberation. Thus, all of us are expected to perform our worldly duties sincerely but detachedly in order to get freedom. Such type of indulgence is discriminate indulgence and leads to happiness or freedom. If we understand this fact correctly, we enjoy both the worlds – the secular as well as the spiritual.

Children and the Core Values of Life

Once I was invited by a renowned public school of Rampur to speak to children about the core values of life. This is a subject dear to my heart and so I accepted the invitation and a programme was fixed accordingly. When I reached the school and spent a few minutes in the principal’s office, I was cautioned by him that it was a difficult assignment for me, as children these days hardly understood the meaning of values. I was surprised to hear such a statement coming from the principal of a reputed school but took the advice in right perspective. It, however, had the effect of making me more determined to make my talk effective and I set my mind accordingly. Soon, thereafter, I had to face a large number of students aged perhaps from 10 to 16 years. They looked enthusiastic and keen to listen. This encouraged me further and as I faced them my initial words were, “My dear young friends, your principal has asked me to speak to you regarding the core values of life, but I will not speak about them and in turn make you speak on values, as you are the true epitome of values and not us.” This opening remark cheered them up and they prepared themselves for the ensuing interaction.
My next query to them was about the student who had scored the highest marks in class ten. There was a boy who stood up and told me that he had scored the highest marks in class ten. I asked him to come forward and tell others about the secret of his success. He told his fellow students that he worked hard and studied regularly and that was the secret of his success. At this, I posed a question whether ‘working hard’ or ‘being regular in studies’ were values or not. To this there was a collective response from the children that it was so. Then I put up another question and asked if there was any one who liked to have a liar as a friend. There was none, after which I asked whether they liked a truthful friend or not. To this there was a uniform response in the affirmative. Once again I asked whether ‘truthfulness’ was a value of life or not and there was no dissent on this also. In this way, I asked similar questions on the other values of life like kindness, compassion, pardon, sharing, helping, etc., and not a single student had dissenting views on the fact that they all are the core values of life, which are necessary for our happiness and success.
Having established my point, I told them why faith in core values of life was shaking these days, as was the intention of the principal and what we all needed to do to restore them. This was also done in a logical and convincing manner. I was pleasantly surprised by the positive response of children, which only reaffirmed my faith that children are the real epitome of values. The fault, if any, lies with us who fail to display these values in our lives and lame children that they don’t understand them. My message was well-delivered during this interaction, which of course the principal also very graciously acknowledged.

Loneliness or Solitude

Human life, in general, is a long journey. Each life is a unique one and takes its own path. Perhaps no two lives have ever followed the same path or will ever do. However, two facts of life are the same i.e., birth and death. On both these occasions, one is alone. Whether we like it or not, no one can escape death and also no one can give us company at the time of death. If this fact is accepted well by us, the fabric of life changes for the better and we live in this world with great peace and harmony. In this achievement our riches, positions or fame hardly play any role. This realisation came to me even more clearly after reading the autobiography of Justice M C Chagla, an eminent personality of India, titled ‘Roses in December’.
Chagla’s life was a continuous success story, always on the ascent from the worldly point of view. He rose from one position to another without ever looking back and occupied many high positions most of us wish for. In a way, his life must have been envied by many of his contemporary colleagues. But after reading the book I realised that no life is to be envied because no one knows others’ inner agonies. After a long, active and successful career, Dr Chagla also had his lonely days. His wife had passed away before him and the children had settled down away from him. So, in his last days he was physically alone. He was not prepared for such a life and he candidly admits this in his book. He always believed in a life of fun and not only that, he looked upon those who didn’t, with a sense of awe. That is why at the end of his book he appended a small chapter titled, ‘Personal’- an extract of which goes like this: “We have to distinguish between solitude and loneliness. Solitude is self-imposed, loneliness is thrust upon you. In solitude, you commune with yourself. You meditate and for the time being cut yourself off from the world. In loneliness, you are at war with yourself, realising the futility of life and the absurdity of existence, or the inability to resolve the conflict between the real and the ideal, between what is and what ought to be, between the temporal and the spiritual. I, therefore, have always loved company – to be alone is to me the worst kind of punishment that could ever be awarded for whatever sins I might have committed.
Throughout my life I have had the company of someone or the other, if of no one else, then always of my wife. I have had my bitter moods and moments of unhappiness, but her death made me permanently unhappy, for I could never be sure of someone being by my side when I needed company most.” I find a great message in this paragraph. The fact is that we all are alone in this world. The so called company, which we look for and generally rejoice, is a myth. It is only an opportunity to learn the lessons of life in order to reach its goal. If one fails to understand this mystery, life is a waste irrespective of its external success. On the other hand, if this mystery is understood, one is never alone irrespective of the external conditions. Eventually, we have to be in our own company and we call that condition ‘solitude’. ‘Loneliness’ and ‘solitude’ are two names given to the same condition with different frames of mind. No one can negate the fact of being alone ultimately. If we understand the mystery of life, we live in solitude, and in the absence of this understanding, loneliness prevails.

The Most Spiritual Place

In July 1999, I got the chance of visiting Malaysia and Singapore along with my wife. There was a conference on ‘Security Management’ at Penang in Malaysia in which I was invited to address a lecture on ‘Security – An Inner State of Mind’ and it went well. On our way back, we stayed in Singapore for four days. It was during these days that I was invited by Singapore Jaycees to speak on the subject ‘How to be Positive and Motivated at All Times’ and I was looking forward to the same. The convener of the programme was a young member of the club and he was to pick me up from my hotel. According to me, being positive and motivated at all times is what contributes to becoming a highly spiritual person. So, I was planning to speak on those lines.
I was also carrying a book authored by me, titled ‘Spiritual Lessons from Life’. When the convener was accompanying my wife and me from the hotel to the venue of the talk this book was in my hands. Seeing the title of the book, he became somewhat skeptic about the success of the programme. He advised me not to speak on spirituality, as this word was not familiar in Singapore and there were good chances of the programme turning into a disaster. I was amazed, though I kept silent. But inside me, I decided to speak only on spirituality and nothing else. In a way, it was a challenge to my concept of spirituality, which I got from my spiritual master. The only difference is that you are not aware of these great qualities of your own.” These opening remarks were received with great applause and, thereafter, communicating with them became very easy. Our interaction continued for almost three hours against the stipulated time of two hours. After the talk, all copies of the book titled ‘Spiritual Lessons from Life’ were bought by the participants and it was now the turn of the convener to get amazed. However, it was not his fault. The word ‘spirituality’ has always been interpreted very narrowly. In reality, it is the infinite expansion of the mind and once such a state is achieved, we always remain positive and motivated.

New Year Call

India is a big country and it is a great country too, but not all of us understand its greatness.  Most of us only look at its shortcomings and address them without suggesting a solution, much less doing something in that direction. The reason is that we don’t try to understand India and instead keep on judging it. It is often said that there is unity in India’s diversity and sometimes the same is said in a reverse manner. Whatever be the manner of saying so, it is a fact. I had a first-hand experience of this in the year 1999 in Tamil Nadu, where I had gone as an election observer for the parliamentary election. My place of duty was Ariyalur in Perambulur district. Now it has been made an independent district. At Ariyalur, my stay arrangement was made in a government cement factory where I reached late in the evening. I was to stay there for about three weeks, though with gaps. The place was comfortable and there appeared to be no major problem except for the monotony of the south Indian food. The constituency was considered to be a peaceful one. After a good night’s sleep, as I was preparing to come out of the guest house for morning walk, I noticed a short elderly person wearing half-pants and a rule in hand waiting in the lounge. As I was coming out of my room the gentleman intercepted me with a question. He wanted to know whether any observer was there from Lucknow and if yes, who that was. He must have come to know about it from the guest house authorities or the local revenue officials. When I told him that it was me, he felt very happy and gave me an offer. He said that his name was Perumal and he was posted at Lucknow for a long time in the Army Medical Corps and had settled in Ariyalur after retirement. He further said that being a north Indian, I might face problems with the food, as chapatis were not available in the guest house. Since his wife knew how to make chapatis, he offered me chapatis whenever I wished to eat them. I could tell the caretaker and he would arrange the same from his home.
I was deeply touched by the offer. I immediately realised that he was a very good person and gratefully accepted his offer without any serious intention of invoking the right he had given to me. Then I enquired more about him. His house was very near to the guest house on the main road. I also accepted his invitation to visit his home. More than anything else, his offer made me feel at home in that remote corner of Tamil Nadu, far away from my hometown. Subsequently, I learnt from the officials at the guest house as well as the revenue department that he was a very popular person in town and was very helpful too. After becoming sure of his credentials, one morning during my walk I felt like visiting his house, which was very near. He had a very simple house with natural surroundings. All his children were well-settled and he felt great pride in talking about them and also in saying how he and his wife had made sacrifices in order to bring them up. Most of the time they lived separately for the sake of their education and it was only in Lucknow that they stayed together for a couple of years. That was how she had acquired chapati-making skills. I enjoyed spending some time with him over a cup of coffee. Thus, our affection grew during my stay at Ariyalur and I visited him some two more times. Once I invoked my right of getting chapatis from his home, more to show respect to his kindness than out of real need. He joyfully obliged, though it was a different matter that according to the north Indian standards the stuff was anything but chapati. But the affection of his family was very much evident in the product. The affection continued to grow thereafter, as he kept in touch with me over the telephone and through letters after the election. And I was amazed with joy when the first New Year call in the year 2000 was from Mr Perumal. Till today, the first call I receive on every New Year is from Mr Perumal at 5:30 a.m. sharp. Isn’t India great?

There May be God

In the year 1995, I had the chance of visiting China. At that time, I was posted as the Development Commissioner for Iron and Steel and the visit was in connection with the study of the steel sector in China. We were a group of seven persons led by me. It was a very useful trip and it gave us an insight into China’s progress, their way of working and their future. There was a lot to learn from them notwithstanding the fact that all is not well with them also. People there did not appear free and could not express their opinion freely. Even personal beliefs of the people were greatly influenced by the government. That is why doubts are raised about its official progress vis-a-vis real progress. Anyway, this is just by way of giving a feel of the environment there.
On this visit, I had a very interesting experience. As usual, I was carrying a few books for reading during this ten-day trip. One of them was ‘Power of God’ and was published almost a century back. This book had been given to me by a friend on loan and I had to return it soon. Therefore, I used to carry this book to read while I travelled. In China, we had the company of a young interpreter who used to help us in our conversation. He was a handsome and smart boy, still unmarried. Within no time, he became friendly with us and we would talk on many subjects beyond our official matters. When this young boy saw a book on God in my hands, he became curious and asked why I was reading such a book when there was no God. Chinese, in general, are brought up in an environment that doesn’t place value in the concept of God. Though I knew about it, such a staunch denial of God came as a surprise to me. More than that, such a statement was a pointer to many limitations of the Chinese society. Then and there I threw a challenge to him that during my stay in China, I would make him believe in God.
Since he was in our company almost all the time, we had several occasions of discussion on various dimensions of human life and Nature. In these discussions, quite often, we used to reach a dead end, going beyond which was not possible without the assumption of a superpower, at which point, he had a tendency to escape. But certainly, he used to feel trapped though he didn’t want to accept the existence of such a power because of his strong beliefs and also because of the prevailing socio-political environment in China. Such situations arose several times. When the visit was coming to an end, I wanted to know the result of my efforts. When asked, he honestly admitted that “There may be God.” This was far beyond his initial statement that “There is no God.” For me, it was a partial victory.

Never Too Late

In the year 1995, I attended my graduation silver jubilee at the University of Roorkee in the month of November. It was a very healthy tradition of the University (now IIT) and it continues to be till date. Along with the silver jubilee, there is a tradition of celebrating golden, diamond and platinum jubilees also. It is a time of great joy and fun, in addition to the introspection when all the batch mates meet. The same was the atmosphere during the celebrations of the silver jubilee meet also. There I met my first year room-partner also who used to be a very smart and intelligent boy. He was from a middle-class family and became my room-partner in a double-seated room. Soon I noticed that he was falling into wrong habits like smoking, which subsequently graduated to drinking. He used to look very handsome while smoking and this fact used to encourage him further for the indulgence. Initially, when pointed out not to indulge so much, he used to listen, though he never followed the advice. Soon, he started raising objections against the counsel of good friends and gradually everyone stopped advising him. As a result, he became a chain-smoker, started watching movies more frequently and also started missing classes. I don’t remember if he could ever reach the mess for breakfast thereafter and, at times, missed lunch too. For the rest of the university days, his habits remained more or less the same, though being intelligent he could clear his examination and passed them with all of us. After great difficulty, he found a job.
Thereafter, we met only occasionally but his career graph was not going very well. His habits also started showing up …it is never too late to make a resolve in life. on his health and he contracted several diseases, which are dangerous to human life. It was in this condition that he attended the silver jubilee meet. It was painful to see him in such a condition.
Fortunately, he had developed a feeling of guilt and confession by this time and met me in person to tell all of this. He almost shed tears when he said that he should have paid heed to mine and other friends’ advice right in the beginning. By not doing so, he paid a heavy price in terms of the quality of his life but it was too late. He also showed a firm resolve to undo all that had been done.
This made me very happy. I assumed that his resolve would take care of half his problems and the rest would fade with time, at least substantially if not fully. Fortunately, it went exactly the same way and today, he is doing well. For me also, it is a matter of great relief because somewhere, I also felt guilty that being his room-partner in the initial days, I couldn’t help him. Truly, it is never too late to make a resolve in life.

Cobbler Saint

India is a country of saints and they come from all sections of the society – the rich, the poor, the low-caste and the high-caste. In fact, a true saint is above all these man- made divisions and essentially, sainthood is a state of mind. There may, quite often, be a confusion between what appears outside and what is inside. Between the two, the inner reality is more important and to be more true, the sole measure of sainthood. Unfortunately, in present times the emphasis is more on the external and, therefore, true saints rarely come to light. We have a large number of persons who can be placed in the category of saints though they are never recognised that way.
I came across such a saint in Delhi in the year 1992. I was living there in a multi-story government colony located in R K Puram. Once, a strip of my bathroom chappals broke and I decided to get it repaired instead of replacing it. I thought that repair would cost me a maximum of five rupees, while the replacement could cost me much more. So I went to a cobbler who used to sit in a corner of the colony at a crossing. I always saw him doing his work with a lot of concentration and dedication. This attitude of his impressed me a lot. When I went to him with my broken chappal, I found him in the same mood. When I requested him to repair the chappals, he did so promptly and gave it back to me. In a place like Delhi, even a small repair could cost as much as five rupees in those days. But I gave him a two-rupee coin …sainthood is it would satisfy him. And I was greatly surprised when even without looking at me he took out a one-rupee coin from his collection and passed it to me. I silently took the coin and came back home with the repaired chappals. I felt that perhaps it was against his dignity to press for the acceptance of the whole amount.
The face of the cobbler is still in my mind and whenever I think of him, I pay him a silent tribute. To me he was a saint of the highest category. I am of the view that there are a large number of such saints in our country. That is why our nation is able to face all the challenges without any major turmoil. If at all any disturbance is created, it is by those who try to appear as saintly, but in reality are not. Let this message go to such persons.

Stone for Brick

I had a friend who lived in Agra for a long time. I came in contact with him through another close friend from Lucknow. Soon our friendship turned into a family relationship and he became like my elder brother. Whenever an occasion arose I visited him at Agra, sometimes with family also, and enjoyed his hospitality. He was very popular in Agra and was well-known in the high society. During my stay in Delhi in 1991, my friend’s son got married and the ceremony was held in Delhi. It was performed with a lot of enthusiasm and dignity at a five-star hotel located just opposite my residence. I, along with my family attended the same and enjoyed the whole function. The son who got married was my friend’s only son and was working with him.
In 1994, I shifted to Kolkata from Delhi on promotion, but used to travel to Delhi very often. It was at that time that I learnt through our common friend that my friend from Agra had shifted to Delhi with his wife. The tone of the message also did not sound very positive. When I came to Delhi the next time, the first thing I did was to ring him up. I was keen to meet him and so was he. He was available on the phone and we fixed up a meeting at my guest house the same evening.
When we met, I asked him at the outset about the cause of shifting to Delhi and I also told him not to lie, if he really considered me a good friend. He was left with no option and told me the reality. The problem was the trouble created at home soon after his son’s marriage. There was a serious problem of adjustment with the daughter-in-law, as a result of which separation became necessary. Since my friend had a small flat in Delhi and also some business interest, he decided to shift to Delhi along with his wife, but he was not happy about it. In addition to this, there were some problems with his brother also. All this had made him bitter and he was not taking all these developments very kindly. He ended narrating his story by saying that he would take the revenge of brick by stone.
Though I was quite concerned about his problems, I was not happy with his state of mind. I felt that with such a state of mind he was throwing the stones on himself while others had thrown only the bricks. But he was not prepared to listen and asked me to keep my counsel to myself. Even then, I tried to pacify him and also gave him some write-ups that I had recently written. One of them was a write-up on JRD Tata under the caption ‘When You Miss Your Wish’. In this write-up, it was concluded that if sometimes providence does not fulfill our genuine wish, we should outgrow it and then we might get much more than our wish would have given us. JRD Tata had no son but he gave all his employees the affection of a father. In the process, the Tata Empire not only grew, but grew magnificently. And he named his holding company as ‘Tata-Sons’.
My friend perhaps did not read the papers immediately because he was very angry with the treatment he had received from his near and dear ones. But when he read this write-up after sometime, it worked. I remember to have received his call late one evening in Kolkata, when he told me that his family too would expand thereafter. He would consider all those coming in his contact as his children and derive joy out of it. By this time, he had also become somewhat cool towards those who had hurt him. I was very happy at this development. Thereafter, his compassion grew constantly and he became compassionate towards his son, daughter-in-law and brother also. Once this happened, all family relations became normal and they started visiting each other with even greater concern. Wittingly, I then told him that it was now that he had replied to the attack of brick by stone.

Conflict of a Sarovar

Calcutta is a crowded city. Its traffic jams, congested bazars and teeming streets are well known. An outsider, visiting Calcutta for a few days, normally does not have a good impression of the city. Naturally, when on promotion I was offered a posting in Calcutta, I was in a dilemma as I was very comfortably settled in Delhi. An early riser, I like to go either to play tennis or for a long walk in the morning, and in Delhi, I had good amenities for both. The tennis courts were at my doorstep and playing tennis had become a part of my routine. I was not sure of these facilities in Calcutta. Anyhow, considering all the pros and cons, I decided to accept the offer. All my family members also supported the decision, thus reducing my conflict to some extent.
My flat in Calcutta, though very comfortable, was located in a very busy area where it was difficult to find open spaces for morning walks. Though my tennis was arranged within a week of my shifting to Calcutta, I preferred occasional walking. On the very first day, I ventured out on a morning walk and took the direction suggested by the security staff of the building. After walking for about half a kilometre, the area opened out and I found a large number of morning walkers enjoying the fresh air. Soon after, I came across a big sarovar and learnt that it was the famous Rabindra Sarovar. On one side of this sarovar, there stretched a very good road with multi-story buildings all along, as well as a swimming and a rowing club. By all standards, it was a clean and developed area with no sign of the Calcutta crowd. The air was quite unpolluted and I was happy at the discovery of such an area which totally eliminated the conflict in my mind about my decision.
For a few days I tried several routes and soon established a pleasant walking route of about forty-five minutes which included a complete round of the sarovar. I followed this direction whenever I went for a morning walk and never felt the need for any change.
I am very contemplative during my walks and many subtle thoughts occupy my mind during this period, particularly, when I am alone. As mentioned earlier, on one side of the sarovar was a clean road lined by high-rise buildings. However, the opposite bank of the sarovar was a totally different picture. The road on that side was very pot-holed and dirty, and very few took this route. A number of people, including women and children, carried out their morning activities on that side of the sarovar, all of them being very poor. Whether they were bathing, washing clothes or utensils, brushing their teeth or excreting, they appeared to be in a state of bliss. They did not seem aware of the fact that the water being used by them was stagnant and its constant use was making it dirtier. Perhaps, they had been doing so for a long time, and the thought of infection or pollution was totally alien to them. I do not think it was easily possible to talk to them about this.
Well, leaving that job to the environmentalists and health workers, I looked at it from a different viewpoint. Here was a sarovar which faced conflicting scenes on its two sides. On one side there was a posh area where the residents tried their best to maintain cleanliness, while on the other side, people blissfully made the area dirtier. Between this conflict, the sarovar itself remained very neutral, allowing its use by the people, the way they did. It remained calm, serene and offered whatever nature ordained it to do.  In other words, it was perfectly harmonious in a situation of total conflict.
We all often face such conflicts in life. Some people are happy to see our purity and help us to maintain or increase it, but others exploit us to the hilt and in the process, also try to drag us down. The people in the first category live for higher causes and do not want to hurt anyone or waste their time and energy in skirmishes with baser types. At times, the process is painful but they try to harmonise the two conflicting situations with the help of higher natural forces. Thus, they are able to maintain their harmony, notwithstanding the fact that many keep trying to disturb it.
This is what happened in the case of the sarovar, a symbol of detached high-mindedness. Despite being polluted by many, it maintained its purity. In this process, nature helped greatly as did those people who cared for its purity and cleanliness. Let us hope that this balance will be maintained and the sarovar will continue to remain pure, thus serving the needs of well-wishers as well as neutralising the depredations by exploiters.

When You Miss Your Wish

In December 1994, I stayed at the Tata Steel Plant at Jamshedpur in connection with a Joint Plant Committee meeting. The two days’ stay was very well organised by TISCO. Apart from the meeting, visits to the plant, township, social activity centres, etc., were also arranged. In fact, the social welfare aspect of the Tatas is worth seeing and gives an indication of the philosophy as well as the vision of the founder Tatas. At Jamshedpur, a museum named “Russi Modi Centre of Excellence” has been recently established. It gives a complete picture of the history of the Tatas. I liked this place most and it left a deep mark on my mind. At this centre, I came across a biographical work on J.R.D. Tata and subsequently a copy of the book was presented to me.
We all generally know about the great men and women of the nation and the world. However, going through their autobiographies and biographies one understands the real depth of their personalities. Somehow I like going through such works. I keenly glanced through the book on that day and subsequently read it closely. Naturally I learnt many things about the Tatas which were not known to me earlier. One such fact is that JRD had no child of his own. Despite this he had developed such a broad vision that this loss was hardly reflected anywhere. Occasionally in private conversation, he used to refer to this aspect of his life. But in no way did it constrain his vision or thinking. On the other hand, he treated all his employees as his family members and never considered his huge empire as a personal possession. As a matter of policy the Tatas provided suitable employment for at least one of the wards of their employees. This act developed so much feeling of belonging in the employees that they put their head and heart for the organisation and it is small wonder the Tatas have contributed so much in the field of industrial development. Not only this, they paid equal attention to the social side. Many prestigious institutions of the country in the field of fundamental sciences, medicines, engineering, management and social sciences were the result of this attention.
I was overwhelmed by this aspect of the Tatas and it made me draw some deep lessons which I am going to share in this write-up. It reminded me of an interaction of mine with a very senior officer who had retired from the Indian Administrative Service. He is a highly spiritual person and has played a great role in shaping my thinking.
One day I asked him whether at any time he had missed his wish in life and if so how he took it. I was conscious of the fact that missing one’s wish was something common and so was more interested in the second part of the question. To this he gave a very interesting reply. He said that on several occasions he did not get what he wished for but what he got in turn was better than what he had wished for. Then he added one condition, that the wish should be selfless and natural. The above principle applied only in case of such a wish. I was quite satisfied with the answer and found it greatly true in my life too.
It is commonly seen that many good people suffer for no apparent fault of theirs. Their natural wishes are also not fulfilled, be it getting a job, getting married, begetting a child, owning a house or winning a promotion. None of them are unnatural wishes. Everyone has a right to get them. But it does not always happen so. There are many instances when deserving persons miss these things in life. What to do in such a situation? One easier but of course defeatist way is to fret and fume over the missing part of the life. People may listen to them in the beginning but they end up making themselves as pitiable objects. They hardly find any helpers. At best, some people may show sympathy but most of them will turn out to be rejoicers.
The other way is to accept the reality gracefully and to grow larger than the wish. Such are the people who end up getting more than their wish. They expand their vision so much that their own problem becomes too small. They find delight in seeing others getting what they missed themselves.  There are numerous examples in the history of mankind when great persons rose above their narrow personal problems to pursue a higher cause.
In fact, all great men and women, we talk of, passed through such situations. J.R.D. was, of course, one of them. The fact that he had no child of his own did not stop him from expanding his vision and looking at the entire mankind as his children. No wonder he laid so much emphasis on the welfare of his employees. He must have always seen them as his children, getting delight in their growth. Who can say that he had no child? After all, one wants a child mainly to keep the family name going. By this criterion he has numerous children as the family name is not only going but is running smoothly. In fact, the holding company of the Tatas is named Tata Sons.
So when you miss your wish, expand your vision and rise above the wish. Surely you will end up getting more than what you had wished for.

Leading a Simple Life

‘‘Simple living and high thinking” is a common phrase to describe many great persons of this country. In my childhood this phrase was commonly used for personalities like Dr. Rajendra Prasad, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, Pandit Govind Ballabh Pant and many other living at that time. Shri Lal Bahadur Shastri fitted the description aptly and was greatly revered for his simple living. All these people occupied high positions at one time or another.  Naturally, they had all the perks and facilities attached to those high positions. And all such perks do not necessarily fall in the category of simplicity, seen from a common sense of the term.
One day in Kanpur in November 1994, I was sitting at the dining table in the company of good friends. The talk began with a discussion on simple food and we were trying to define it. Gradually the discussion shifted to the definition of a ‘Simple Life’. The point of discussion was whether simple life implied deprivation or renunciation of material comforts which one gets in natural course. From this point of view many of the great men known for their simplicity did not lead a simple life. There are many persons who travel all the time by air, stay in comfortable places and eat costly food. Nevertheless it could be unfair to keep them out from the category of simple people on this ground.  At the same time, there are many who do not get any of these facilities but still do not fall in the category of simple persons. All this led us to the conclusion that simplicity is something internal and not external. A person looking simple externally may not be so while a person appearing very comfortable may be quite simple within. Thus simplicity is in one way a state of mind.
To elaborate it further, it may be said that an effortless living falls in the category of simplicity. A person who neither rejoices over comforts nor mourns the lack of them is a simple person in true sense. Such a person does not hesitate to give up any article of comfort, when required to do so. Nor does he hanker after such objects, when he is not in a position to have them. If at all he uses certain facilities provided to him by virtue of his position and status, he does so with a detached state of mind. To an ordinary person he may appear to be living in luxury but is in fact above them. He looks upon them as something which helps him to discharge his duties efficiently.
In other words, a simple person is the same within and without. He does not boast about his surroundings nor does he hide anything. His life is very transparent. However, at times he has to use his discretion to decide whether certain facilities are actually required for discharging his duties or they have been added simply to raise his status. If so, such facilities should be done away with before he gets used to them. This is what is missing today. The holders of high office have made their environment luxurious from comfortable.  While comfort may be desirable, luxury is certainly not. At times the line between the two is thin and at this point the holder of the office has to use his discrimination with firmness. This not only keeps the sycophants away, it infuses greater confidence and regard in the common people.
Many great people whom we know for their simplicity fell in this category. Unfortunately the number of such people is coming down. Even some of very rich persons like G.D. Birla and J.R.D. Tata fall in the category of simple people. They accumulated no wealth for themselves. They worked for a higher pursuit and creation of wealth was just a natural process for them and they used it for the service of the nation at large. We need many more such persons today in every walk of life.

I Have No Enemy

The incident relates to the year 1984. In the month of January, I had gone to Varanasi where I visited the DIG of Police in his home. There I met an elderly person, Mr. Kejriwal, with whom I later spent about an hour in Bombay at his residence. His flat was quite big but his lifestyle appeared to be quite simple. During our talks, I asked him about his friends. To this he gave a very unusual reply. He said that he didn’t know the number of his friends but definitely he had no enemy. Though impressed by this reply, I was not able to understand the depth of his answer.
First of all I am of the view that friendship as well as enmity are only the states of mind. There are different qualities of them which depend upon the growth of mind. Generally the quality of friendship or enmity is determined by the motive we have in mind. The lower motive leads to lower quality of friendship and vice versa. There are different degrees of this quality. As we grow internally and expand our vision, the feeling of enmity starts disappearing and a time comes when one reaches the state Mr. Kejriwal had attained.
At this point an incident of Shri Ishwarchandra Vidyasagar’s life comes to my mind. He was a very learned person and at the same time very humble. He always tried to be helpful to others.  Most of us must have read about the incident when he worked as a coolie for someone who considered it below his dignity to carry a small suitcase at a railway station. Once a well-wisher of him brought to his notice an adverse comment made by someone about him. Shri Vidyasagar responded in a very strange manner. He said that he was unable to understand the cause of the adverse comment because he had never helped that person. The message was that only those whom we help criticise us and it is up to us how we respond to that criticism. A person with a lower mind will immediately develop a feeling of enmity towards such a person and the friendship will turn into enmity. Naturally such friendship is of a lower kind where the motives are selfish. In order to avoid such situations, one has to rise higher and develop a friendship without any motive. Nothing should be expected in return. Only such a friendship can stand the test of time. In fact, from the worldly point of view also such a friendship is very rewarding. The only difference is that a selfless friendship always gives joy and the situation of pain does never arise.
Friendship being a state of mind has no physical connotation. Others may consider you as their enemy but you will not do so. In such a state of mind, even killing becomes a friendly act. We all know that when Lord Rama killed Ravana, he had no feeling of enmity towards him. This was proved by the reverence shown by Him towards Ravana during his last moments. Our target should be to reach this ‘No Enemy’ state in order to enjoy life. Perhaps Mr. Kejriwal had reached it when he said ‘I have no enemy’.
Well, if this becomes the criterion of our friendship where is the question of enmity? Thus we can say that only a lower kind of friendship or relationship changes into enmity. Numerous examples can be given to establish that most of the enemies were good friends at one time. It was only the lower nature of their friendship that turned them into enemies. Therefore, the best way to avoid such a situation is to develop only a higher kind of friendship where the motive is only to offer and not to receive. Having reached this stage, one not only enjoys the joy of friendship, one also gets rid of the pain of the enmity. A single thought of enmity may give us more pain than many thoughts of friendship. From this point of view also it becomes more important to have no enemy than to have many friends. Therefore, a ‘no enemy situation’ automatically means a state of universal friendship.
Golden Rules of Friendship l    Be slow to give your friendship, but when you have given it strive to make it lasting. l    Counsel of good friends is useful when your own self-love impairs your judgment. l    Friends are made by many acts, but are lost by one act. l    It is chance that makes brothers but hearts that make friends. l    Success depends on your ability to make and keep friends. l    The ornament of a house is the friends who frequent it.

Life is a Process of Weeding

Weeding is an important aspect of office working. There are rules and regulations on the subject and every office is supposed to follow them. The purpose is to weed our unnecessary/obsolete papers at definite intervals so that the office remains tidy and works with greater efficiency. I take special interest in this area.  During my inspection of any office I pay great attention towards cleanliness and check whether timely weeding has been carried out or not. I am of the view that those who pay attention to this aspect of office working, are also efficient in other areas. In fact, whenever I join a new office, I personally carry out this exercise in my own office. This not only helps me in my working but also motivates my colleagues to do the same.
Weeding is equally important in plant life. In order to get a healthy crop, one has to ensure that weeds are removed in time.  I remember when I was posted as District Collector, the then Agricultural Secretary had launched a special weeding drive for the wheat crop.  That year the problem of a particular weed in the crop of wheat had been very acute.  The Secretary’s motivated call for the weeding programme drew a healthy response from all concerned. As a result, the average yield of wheat in the state went up substantially and the Central Government gave a special award to the state for this achievement.
Extending the above logic further, I want to establish that weeding is equally important for a healthy human life. We all know that life is a process of change and if one does not outgrow the past continuously, one will neither be able to enjoy the present nor think of the future. I had an occasion to think about this subject once when I was preparing my new-year’s diary. I am going to share my thoughts in this write-up.
While making notes from the previous year’s diary, I came across several references and addresses which appeared to be very relevant and close at the time of writing but were now totally irrelevant. For a moment there was a temptation to note them also. Previously I had a tendency to be overcautious and used to note down everything in the hope of their distant utility.  However, such an eventuality was rare and such notes only proved to be a burden on the mind. That year I decided that if a reference or address had not been used for the past 2-3 years, there was no point in carrying it over any longer. As a result of this criterion, many references and addresses were weeded out and my new year’s diary became much more manageable. Not only this, the load on the mental span decreased and the focus on the present and the future improved.
Some philosophical thoughts also came to mind in this process. For a moment I thought whether weeding is a positive phenomenon or a negative one. My contemplation established that it is a positive phenomenon from every point of view. Even in worldly life we find that life is a process of quitting and getting.  When one gets a promotion, one quits the lower post.  When a student is promoted to a higher class, he quits the lower one. When one constructs a house in a bigger town, one quits the smaller one. When one buys a car, one quits the lower mode of transport. There may be innumerable examples of such kind.  Do we call such quitting a negative action ? No, by all means they are positive actions provided the ego is not there. Here I am talking of a natural phenomenon happening in one’s life.  Therefore, we must use the word ‘transcending’ in place of ‘quitting’. From this point of view every process of weeding is a transcending process.
Looking from another point of view, it is also a fact that if we don’t leave things, things will leave us. In that case the process may be painful. After all, in this transitory world, how can we expect things to remain with us forever ? If so, the wisdom lies in quitting them before they quit us. If we do so, we save ourselves from the agony of separation. Not only this, we are left with more energy for rising higher and higher.
Thus we find that constant weeding is essential for moving on to a higher path in life. It is true in the field of materials, in the field of plants and equally in the field of human life. Those who understand and follow this, enjoy a healthy and purposeful life.  For such people, the whole life becomes a process of weeding and they do not get perturbed when the time for the weeding of the body itself arrives.

Ganga or Sagar?

India is a country of holy places. Most people consider it a privilege to go on pilgrimage to these places. It is a great pleasure to see people undertaking all sorts of troubles in order to visit these places, which are not always comfortable. In this respect they show tremendous faith and patience. I have great reverence for this aspect of our culture and consider it a source of strength of our nation. It is a different matter that the objective of undertaking a pilgrimage is not always the same that it should be. I have had the privilege of visiting many holy places belonging to different religions. While I have no craving for these places, I like to visit them. In fact, more than the places, I enjoy the pilgrims and their faith. Here I am going to share some of the thoughts which came to my mind during our recent visit to Ganga Sagar.
Ganga Sagar is one of the most revered places of the Hindus. This is located in West Bengal and here the Mother Ganges merges into the ocean. It is said that while other holy places should be visited several times, it is enough to visit the Ganga Sagar only once.  This belief may be due to the difficult journey for the Ganga Sagar in the past. Now, of course, it is not so and the journey can be undertaken easily. But somehow the same belief continues.
After being posted to Calcutta, in July 1994, it had been our wish also to visit the Ganga Sagar and the opportunity came in December 1994. In November 1994, I got a letter from my former Director of National Academy of Administration, Shri Rajeshwar Prasad, expressing his wish to visit the Ganga Sagar and enquiring whether it would be possible to arrange the same. I was very happy to receive this letter for two reasons. Firstly, it gave me an opportunity to plan our visit also and, secondly, undertaking this pilgrimage with him was to be an added pleasure. So everything was planned in detail and we undertook this pilgrimage towards the end of December. The District Collector was of great help in making local arrangements and there was no difficulty of any kind.
During our stay at the Ganga Sagar, we had a good bath. While taking bath a thought came to my mind whether we were taking bath in Ganga or Sagar. The merger was so complete that it was difficult to differentiate one from the other. Some said it was Ganga and others felt it was Sagar. This made me think of the difference between the two. After all, Mother Ganga was a creation of the ocean only. Even when we see this holy river as a separate entity, is it not part of the same Creator, that is, the ocean?  In our ignorance we see them as separate entities. The ultimate aim of Mother Ganga is the merger with its creator and that is what happens at Ganga Sagar. It is like the merger of ‘Jiva’ with the ‘Brahma’. Due to ignorance, we consider ‘Jiva’ as a separate entity from ‘Brahma’ while they are actually the same.  Somehow the course of nature keeps drawing ‘Jiva’ towards ‘Brahma’ till they merge in the end. The ultimate aim of life is this merger and having attained it, there is nothing else to aim for.
This is what happens at Ganga Sagar also. Here the Mother Ganga, a creation of the ocean, merges with the Creator and thereafter it has to go nowhere. The cycle of creation and merger completes here and the process continues. The same is true of our lifecycle also. The created keeps merging into the creator and the cycle continues. This also explains the belief that while other holy places should be visited several times, it is enough to visit the Ganga Sagar only once. After all, having attained the supreme goal, what remains to be attained? Only a fortunate few reach this goal and it is no wonder that those who are able to undertake the pilgrimage to Ganga Sagar are considered fortunate.
 What we experience in the depths of our souls is realisation.
 When a man realises, he gives up everything.

Countdown for Launching

In my early childhood, I lived with my elder sister for some time. She had been then recently married and her husband was posted in a small town of Gorakhpur district in U.P. There a tutor was arranged for me. He was quite elderly and was known as Maulvi Sahab. Though not very soothing by looks, he was very affectionate and concerned about my studies. However, l did not feel very comfortable in his company. One of the pet exercises he used to give me was to do reverse counting.  Somehow I did not like it as I could never understand its logic.  However, in due course his sincerity won me and we developed a congenial relationship.
The same exercise of reverse counting was subsequently given to my son by a famous ayurvedic doctor of Calcutta. I had taken my son to him because of his lack of concentration in his studies.  When asked, the doctor told me that reverse counting was one of the methods of developing concentration. I saw logic in it and naturally my memory took me to my childhood, reminding me of the exercise given by the Maulvi Sahab. It also reminded me of our visit to ISRO, Trivandrum many years ago. There we saw the launching of a rocket and carefully noted the countdown before it took off. Somehow the word ‘Countdown’ stuck in my mind and I thought over it philosophically. This is what I am going to share in this write-up.
First of all we must understand that a rocket is a device which is used for sending a satellite or any other object in the space. For this purpose it should be able to provide enough power so as to impart escape velocity to the object. Once this object achieves escape velocity, it reaches the space provided the direction of the launching is correct. Thus we need to have two factors, namely, power and direction for putting an object into a space orbit. When the object reaches the right orbit, no more power is required and it remains in motion due to gravitational forces. As the object goes higher and higher, the fuel chambers of the rocket are released one by one till the object is put into the orbit when no more fuel is required.
Let us compare this situation with the process of self-realisation. Here the objective is the merger of our little self with the cosmic power which may be called ‘God’. For this also a similar strategy has to be adopted.  The ‘self’ here would be the object to be launched in the space and the mind would be the rocket. The first step in the launching of the rocket is the countdown. What does it mean in the case of mind ? It means that it has to be emptied from worldly thoughts, if we want it to rise above the world. That is to say, it has to reach the stage of ‘zero’ before taking off. For most of us the problem lies here.  We fill up our minds with so many worldly thoughts that it is not able to rise above the world permanently. Occasionally we may develop detachment but the attractions of the world pull us back.  Only a fortunate few are able to reach the stage of ‘zero’ which is necessary for the take-off. It is like committing mistakes in reverse counting and very few reach the zero level without making any errors. Somewhere or the other we get strangled.
Having reached the stage of ‘zero’, the mind has to develop enough power to impart ‘escape velocity’ to the ‘self’. If this is not done, it will never be able to rise above the body which may be compared to the earth in the case of a satellite. Not only this, the direction of the motion should also be correct. That is why the power of the mind, when applied in the wrong direction, not only fails to achieve the objective but also does great harm. For this, one may also seek the help of a spiritual master, whose instructions may not be liked in the beginning but his sincerity is bound to prevail, if the seeker is serious. Once the process of self-realisation is complete, it hardly needs any effort to stay there. The only requirement is that the components of the object/ satellite should function well and they should be maintained properly. In case of a self-realised person it may be said that his body and mind should function well and they should be given due care. Of course, nothing can be done beyond natural limitations.
Thus we find that ‘Countdown’ is the first necessary step for launching.  This is true of all spheres of life, be they spiritual or mundane.  Even for worldly achievements, one has to empty oneself of other thoughts and impart full energy in the correct direction.  That is why the famous philosopher, J. Krishnamurti, used to say: ‘Unlearning is the beginning of learning’.  We may also say that “Countdown is the beginning of Launching”.

When You Grow Wise

In November 1993, I was appointed as a Central Observer of the Election Commission for the Himachal Pradesh Assembly Elections. Just before leaving for my first visit to the state, I developed a severe pain in my wisdom tooth. I consulted a senior dentist who advised immediate extraction of the tooth and called me the next day. I was not prepared for this because I didn’t want to lose the tooth so early. Though I had crossed 44, my teeth had been in a good condition. So I consulted another dentist friend who advised me to wait for some time more as the pain could be managed with the help of medicines. Somehow the election duty was carried out without much difficulty.
The problem became acute once again next year and this time again, the dentist advised extraction of the wisdom tooth. He told me that there was no function of wisdom teeth after a certain age and that I need not be unduly concerned about losing one of them. I wanted to know the reason for these teeth being called wisdom teeth. He told me that these teeth grow after crossing the teens, i.e., in the early twenties and generally have to be removed in the forties. This information was enough for me to contemplate over the matter and I arrived at certain conclusions which I am going to share here.
Human Life has always been divided in four phases. In our scriptures these phases are called ‘Brahmacharya’, ‘Grastha’, ‘Van Prastha’ and ‘Sanyasa’, respectively. Assuming an ideal lifespan of 100 years each phase comes to about 25 years. However, in real life, a good lifespan may be taken as about 80 years.  So each phase of life is of about 20 years. The first phase of life, ‘Brahmacharya’, is a phase of restraint and learning. Those who wish to acquire anything in life have to remain disciplined and work hard during this period. The full meaning of life is hardly understood in this period. In a way it is good also. If life is understood in totality during this period, perhaps the urge to learn and acquire knowledge would be lost. Acquisition of mundane knowledge during this period is essential to successfully live the subsequent phases of life. This phase is like the running of an aeroplane on the ground before take-off. If sufficient speed is not acquired on the runway, the plane cannot take off and at times may meet with an accident.
The second phase of life is the most difficult one and can be compared to the take-off of an aeroplane. During this phase, one has to rise above the ground and achieve worldly success.  Maximum energy is consumed during this period and the knowledge acquired during the first phase of life is to be applied. One comes across a variety of experiences and we gain maturity and wisdom as a result of these interactions. While in the first phase of our life, one only acquires knowledge and remains on ground, in the second phase one acquires wisdom and gains height. That is why the wisdom teeth grow only in the early twenties. Their appearance thus indicates that the time for acquiring wisdom has come.
The acquisition of wisdom has also to come to an end. A period of 20-25 years in the second phase of life should be sufficient for a person to understand life fully and to acquire wisdom. It is like acquiring full height by an aeroplane during a flight. After acquiring this height, there is no need of going higher and the acquired height should be enjoyed. In human life this stage should reach at the age of 40-45 years and one should be able to grow fully wise by this time. At this stage, there is no need of wisdom teeth and that is why they are no more required. I feel that this could be the reason behind these teeth being called wisdom teeth.
Having grown wise, one enters the third phase of life. For a truly wise person life should become smooth in this phase and he should be able to enjoy it like an aeroplane journey in the third stage.  There is no need of any imposed restrictions in this phase and the gains of life are to be shared. A wise person should share his acquisitions including wisdom for his inner expansion as the outer expansion is no more required. If one does not share, in all probability he is heading for a miserable fourth phase of life.
The fourth phase of life is like the landing of an aeroplane. In this phase the acquired height is to be lost in order to land safely. If it is not done, a crash is inevitable. It means that a time comes in life when even wisdom has to be transcended. After all, in this cycle of birth and death, there are others in the queue and one should voluntarily make way for them. If one does not do so, he will either be pushed or crushed. A truly wise person should avoid this situation. That is why this phase of life is called ‘Sanyasa’ ashrarn. One has to give up everything for a happy end. Thus the four phases of life are the phases of acquiring knowledge, acquiring wisdom, sharing wisdom and transcending wisdom.

Living Perfectly

My wife is a very good lady but the world around her keeps upsetting her every now and then. However, the frequency is going down with the growth of wisdom. Once, she got upset over a matter, which was quite justified for a normal person but not for a truly wise one. While I took worldly care of her grievance, I was unhappy over her lack of wisdom in dealing with the situation. So sometime after the event, I sat with her and helped in her introspection.  Fortunately she was responsive and I could convince her that there was no point in getting upset due to the imperfections of the world as it would continue to remain so. The only solution was to learn living perfectly in an imperfect world. Thereafter, I did some contemplation over the subject and this is what I am sharing here.
First of all I admit that it is not as simple as said. The imperfections of the world do upset us and we have all the justification to complain.  Some complaints may even be helpful but surely one cannot make the world perfect.  In fact, imperfection is necessary for the existence of the world. Even the creation of the world was the result of an imperfection. The word creation implies dynamism and there can be no dynamism without imbalance of forces which in turn means imperfection. In a state of perfection nothing will move and perhaps the world itself will cease to exist. So for the existence of the world, imperfection is necessary.
The purpose of this analysis is to make one accept the imperfectness of the world as a reality. This acceptance will itself help us not to get upset most of the time but surely the end objective is not achieved. This stage in essence implies tolerance of the world which is not a perfectly healthy stage. It points towards hidden anger which is an obstruction in one’s growth.  A person with such an attitude will perhaps not be able to lessen the imperfections of the world. At best he will not add to them.  There is also a possibility of his crossing the threshold limit in a more upsetting situation and thus taking him to the state of reaction from tolerance.
Now arises the question how to rise above the state of ‘tolerance’ which I would call the state of ‘acceptance’. Here the word ‘acceptance’ is not being used as something passive.  In fact it indicates a state of extreme dynamism which means appearing static due to fast motion.  To reach this state, one has to see that imperfectness of the world as an opportunity to make oneself perfect. So when you see a poor person, a feeling of sharing should develop. A person in distress should evoke compassion in you. An angry person should create a feeling of love. A person trying to harm you should be seen as ignorant.  Outwardly we may behave in a worldly manner depending upon the situation, but within, the feeling should always be one of dynamic acceptance. If one is able to reach this state, he will never complain about the imperfectness of the world. On the other hand, he will silently contribute to lessen this imperfectness by making himself perfect. After all, the world is constituted of individuals and the imperfectness of the world is nothing but the sum-total of the imperfectness of individuals.  So making oneself perfect automatically lessens the imperfectness of the world.
Next time you come across an imperfect situation, see it as an opportunity, for making yourself perfect. In this process your attitude towards those who upset you will change. You will then feel that such persons are like a ladder which helps you to rise above and to make you perfect. And living perfectly is the only option in this imperfect world.

The Wealth of Nature

I remained posted at Kanpur for full six years. This period marked a turning point in my life from many points of view. In this period I developed close relations with many people which led to the formation of the Kabir Peace Mission. Most of these contacts began in my official capacity but turned into personal relations. Some of them are now closer to me than my blood relations. One such relation is a nephew of mine who used to play tennis with me regularly. Naturally, he became very close to me. Apart from playing tennis, we used to exchange views on many subjects. As a result we developed a mutual liking.
This boy subsequently shifted to Mumbai for business. His father bought a flat for him in the posh area of Cuffe Parade costing over a crore of rupees. The flat is not very big and has only two bedrooms. I was very happy with this development and was keen to visit him in Mumbai at the earliest opportunity. And this opportunity came in March 1993 when I visited Mumbai on my way to Kudremukh. At Bombay I stayed in a Guest House which was located in a building adjacent to the one in which my nephew lived. In the evening I went to his flat. He very fondly took me to every corner of his flat and described its positive features. What amused me most was his statement that apart from other features, the good thing about the flat was that it had sunlight and also air. I lightly commented that if even after paying over a crore rupees, the flat would not have air and light then of what worth would it be to? Then he explained me that air and light were luxuries in a city like Mumbai and he was lucky to have such a flat. He also gave many examples where fresh air was not available even after paying larger amounts. The matter ended there.
I got another opportunity to visit Mumbai after a year or so. That time I stayed in our own Guest House which was located in Bandra. I reached there late in the evening. Mumbai remains quite warm even in the month of November and the use of air-conditioners is quite common. Since I was tired I also slept with the air-conditioner on and woke up a little later than my usual time. When I opened the windows of my room, I saw a cluster of multi storeyed buildings all around. Then I closely looked at the building opposite to ours. The sun had risen and for many it was the office-going time. What I saw was once again amusing. In some of the flats of the opposite building, the residents had tied ropes for drying washed clothes. Since the rope was outside the window, they were using special devices for putting clothes over the rope and the same exercise was being done for removing the dried clothes.
When I talked about it with my local officer over breakfast, he told me that the residents of that building were lucky to have sunlight at least on the outer walls of their flats. In his flat sunlight was not available at all. As a result the clothes had to be dried inside the rooms.
This set me thinking about the bounties which nature provides us in abundance. For most of us, things like air and sun go unnoticed and we take them for granted. We affix no value to them unless we live in places as mentioned above. Our whole value system is based on material acquisitions only and it is no wonder that we deprive ourselves of the wealth, nature has given us. In the process we also lose the pleasure of our material wealth to a great extent. In fact, a balance between these two aspects of wealth must be struck for a truly enjoyable life. So we should equally respect the wealth of nature and those who do not have much of the material wealth should not feel unduly poor. In all probability they enjoy a bigger share of nature’s wealth, though they may not be attributing any price to it. Even if we look into the subject purely from the economic point of view, it can be established that what nature provides is priceless. For survival, the gifts of nature are more essential than the creation of human beings. In fact, all wealth originates from nature including the wealth created by man.  Looking from this point of view a poor man is wealthier, since he enjoys a bigger share of the priceless wealth of nature.

Be Dangerously Honest

In April 1994, when I was living in R.K.Puram at New Delhi, an elderly friend of mine came to stay with us for a few days. I consider him to be like my elder brother. During his stay, he desired to visit Shri Dharam Veera, an ex-ICS officer who had occupied many important positions including the Governorship of West Bengal and Karnataka. They hailed from the same village. In all his assignments, Dharam Veera had done remarkably well. A man of courage and integrity, he never compromised in matters of principles. In our student days, we used to hold him in high esteem. So when my friend expressed a desire to visit Dharam Veera, I also became interested and we both went to see him one evening.
We found him quite active even at his advanced age. He kept himself involved in many important activities. It was a matter of privilege to spend some time with him. He narrated several interesting events of his life, which gave me a lot of inspiration. Perhaps, he also developed some liking for me during our brief meeting. When our discussion was coming to an end, I asked him for a message for those who want to work with honesty and sincerity. He very happily gave me two points of advice.  First of all he said, an honest person should be fearless. Not only this, he should instill fear in the wicked and confidence among the good. He used the words ‘Dangerously Honest’ while explaining what he meant. His second piece of advice was that an administrator should be as helpful as possible.  He advised for positive interpretation of the rules so long as no self-interest was involved. According to him serving people is a rare opportunity and one should not lose it by looking too much into rules and regulations. I took his advice seriously and contemplated over it. I am going to share here my contemplation over the first advice.
I feel pained when people say that honesty does not pay in the present circumstances. This feeling prevails not only among civil servants but among all classes. What is more painful is that such a feeling exists even among some of already handful honest people. These so-called honest people display this feeling when they present a gloomy picture of their lives before others. This damages the system all the more. I feel that such people are either not honest in the true sense or are ignorant of the full dimensions of honesty. A person with an integrated view of honesty has no occasion to complain. For him honesty remains a source of strength and he finds no clash between his ways and the working of the system. I will give here two examples to explain what I am trying to say.
I met a businessman on board a plane while travelling from Calcutta to Delhi. He appeared to be a very simple man. He was carrying a cloth bag containing tea packets. He was a big businessman with an income running into crores. He owned tea-gardens and several other businesses. He told me that about 50 years back, he started his career on a meager salary of rupees eight per month. When asked the secret of his success, unhesitatingly he told me that it was on account of his honest hard work.
The second interaction was on Rajdhani Express when I was travelling from Calcutta to Kanpur.  There I met a senior advocate of Allahabad. He had been in the legal profession for about 40 years and was one of the leading lawyers of the town. When asked whether it was possible for an honest and sincere law graduate to set up a good legal practice, he replied in the affirmative. He added that honesty and sincerity were the secrets of his success.
While it may be too simplistic to establish the strength of honesty on the basis of these two examples, they do establish my point to a great extent. There is no doubt that there are many aberrations in the system but to say that they can be taken care of by dishonest means is not at all correct. Such an approach only adds to the aberrations and least wonder that today we find ourselves in a situation which appears to be hopeless. If corrections are to be made, it is possible only through honest means. What is, perhaps, required in addition to honesty, is practical wisdom. The problem with many honest persons is that for them honesty becomes an end and not the means. After all, one has to be honest for some purpose and if the purpose is not achieved, the honesty becomes meaningless. At times an honest person may become a victim of the system but to condemn honesty on this ground is not at all justified. If we go by this criterion, surely the chances of falling victims are much more on the path of dishonesty. If we take an integrated view of life, I am sure the path of honesty will turn out to be more rewarding than the path of dishonesty.
This is perhaps what persons like Dharam Veera, the businessman I met on the plane, and the advocate I came across on the train had in mind when they advocated the path of honesty in the closing years of their lives. It is not that these persons had seen only success in life. Surely there must have been ups and downs but they grew steadily with them and refused to bow down in adverse situations. Perhaps, it is not possible for a dishonest person to understand the strength of honesty. I do not think a truly honest person has any regret in following the path of honesty. It is only those who do not take an integrated view of honesty that find themselves in pitiable conditions despite being honest. The need is to understand the difference between being honest for the sake of honesty and being honest for the sake of a cause. In the first case, honesty becomes the end while in the latter it is the means. Those who are honest for a cause gain strength and have no complaints. Not only this, they are considered to be dangerous by the dishonest. The advice of becoming ‘Dangerously Honest’ is thus literally true.

Peace at any price is cheap

I had a cousin who passed away in April 1991 at the age of 58 when he underwent a second bypass surgery in U.K. We were very close to each other with deep mutual respect. When I passed my engineering examination from the University of Roorkee, he advised to join private sector. I followed his advice but subsequently providence brought me into the I.A.S. and he was one of the happiest persons on this development. In the later years, he changed his opinion about government service and wanted his son to join the I.A.S. The reason why he changed his opinion was perhaps his adoption of an integrated view of life. He himself had had a brilliant career as a chartered accountant and served in some very good private companies where he worked with great dedication. Unfortunately he developed a coronary problem and underwent a bypass surgery in U.K. Thereafter he continued to live cheerfully for years until he was advised to undergo another operation. He left India for his second surgery on 8 April, 1991. On that day I spent about an hour with him in the morning.  When I was taking leave of him, he gave me a word of advice saying, “Rakesh, remember one thing — Peace at any price is cheap.’’ Obviously it was the essence of his life which I took with great reverence and emotion.
After a week or so, we got the news of his passing away but his last message still keeps ringing my ears. The more I contemplate over the message, the more I find it true and relevant. Only about a year before his passing away, I had founded a mission called ‘Kabir Peace Mission’. In the preamble of its aims and objects, the word ‘Peace’ was defined as ‘Integrated Development. I am of the view that any development should lead to peace and if it does not happen, it is not real development. Similarly, when we think of progress or development in life, peace should be its natural corollary. If it is not so, there is something wrong in the so-called progress or development.
Today peace eludes most of us despite all our achievements. I know several friends and relatives who have everything to make an impressive bio data but do not have peace of mind. The question arises — what is it that goes wrong? The intention here is not to discuss the subject from a very philosophical point of view but to establish the fact that even from the materialistic point of view, it is necessary to understand certain facts of life. There is no doubt that we all need material progress. The error most of us commit is that we make this progress the end and not the means. I look at material progress only as a means to achieve the ultimate aim, which is peace of mind. Very few are able to discriminate between the two and no wonder that peace eludes most of us.
We do not know the amount of money we need, the size of the house we require, and the number of clothes we should own. Most of our time and energy are wasted in increasing them rather than using or enjoying what we already possess. The result is that while we may be in a position to afford very good food, we have no time or appetite to enjoy it. We may be having a big house with lawns, but have no time or mood to relax. We may have a large number of friends and relatives but have no time to spend with them. My cousin had seen life closely and God had given him the wisdom to understand it fully. In giving his advice on the choice of career, his intention was not to compare jobs but to emphasis the fact that life was to be seen as a package. Any package which offers greater peace of mind was to be preferred over the others. Perhaps, he realised that a government job was a better package because of its stability and well defined limits. Irrespective of all these, the message given by him is an important fact of life. Those who understand and absorb it can hope to lead a happy life. Peace will come to them without paying any price.

When Tears Turn the Life

My spiritual master, Swami Bhoomanandji, comes to Delhi every year in the month of October/November. After public discourses for about two weeks, he pays house visits to his close devotees. Normally these visits exceed the originally planned number due to last minute requests.  Devotees consider his visits a privilege and invite their friends and relatives to attend them. Swamiji undertakes such visits with great fondness and usually speaks on subjects which are highly relevant to day-to-day life. This generates a lot of interest and he receives requests for more visits. Of course, he tries to accept them to the extent possible.
During one such visit in 1992 held at a posh colony of New Delhi, I was also present with many others. Swamiji gave a short talk and thereafter invited devotees to ask questions. Among the devotees present, there was an elderly lady whose husband had died recently. The husband had been a diplomat and had held several important posts. He had lived a full life. It appeared that there had been a deep bond between the husband and the wife. Naturally, this death came as a great shock to her, which she was unable to bear. She was not able to accept the reality and sought Swamiji’s guidance in the matter. She told Swamiji that she felt like weeping all the time and memories of her husband occupied her mind constantly.
Swamiji could understand the grief of the lady. He tried to console by telling her that death was a natural phenomenon, more so when one is in an advanced age. One of the spouses has to go first and in her case it happened to be the husband. He saw no cause for undue grief in such a natural happening. He did not go into the philosophical aspects of death and dealt with her problem in a humane manner. He also told her that if she felt like weeping, there was nothing wrong with it. After all, nature has provided us with tear glands for a purpose and we must make use of them whenever necessary. There should be no feeling of guilt in weeping. In fact, he advised her to weep regularly till she overcame her grief. However, he added that more important than weeping was her attitude and tears should help in making it positive. Fortunately, this had an impact on the lady and after about a week she invited Swamiji to her home. I happened to be there also and found the lady greatly changed. This set me thinking about the role of tears in life, including my own. Normally, I am against weeping but I distinctly remember to have wept bitterly on a few occasions in my life and every time I emerged a stronger person. In fact, such occasions turned the course of my life and, needless to say, it was for the better.
Here, I would like to classify weeping into two kinds. One is negative weeping and the other positive. If the process of weeping leads to depression, fear and frustration, I would call it negative weeping. It changes life for the worse. On the other hand, if the process of weeping leads to introspection, courage and determination, it can be called positive weeping. It turns the life for the better. Thus tears are the turning points in life. It is up to us how we use them for our elevation or depression.
Coming to the attitude towards weeping, it can be said that a wise person, having understood the fundamentals of life will see no occasion to weep. For him good or bad events of life are alike.  However, this kind of attitude is not expected from ordinary mortals. For them there is a clear distinction between good and bad events. It is for them that weeping helps. In fact, it is healthier to weep than to camouflage grief. Weeping helps in overcoming grief and if such a person gets the company of the wise, tears turn the life for the better. This is what happened to the lady who came in contact with Swamiji in New Delhi.

Why Should You Quit?

The incident relates to November 1978. I was posted as the Additional District Magistrate (Development) of Meerut and also the Chief Executive Officer of Zila Parishad. In that month a mela used to be organised at Garh Mukteshwar on the occasion of Kartika Poornima, on the banks of the Ganges. People came to the mela in large numbers with great devotion. As CEO of the Zila Parishad, I was to look after the arrangements at the mela. I planned everything meticulously and everything started off well. My effort was to put the available resources to optimum use. Naturally, this required some cuts in the expenditure incurred on the members of the mela committee. At the same time, I decided to give some more facilities to the staff, who had to work hard during the mela. I also observed that more complaints came from the members themselves rather than the public who accepted everything in the name of Ganga Maa. The nature of complaints from the members was more personal than of public interest.
The mela committee used to meet periodically in the evening under my chairmanship. At one such meeting, some members complained about the cuts in the facilities provided for them. At first I tried to explain the position but they were not prepared to listen. After some time I lost my temper and told them that whatever I had done was in larger interests. I also said that under such circumstances, it was not possible for me to continue to remain at the mela site and that I would be leaving for the district headquarters. I was really angry and did not listen to anybody. I immediately went to my camp, where I dictated a wireless message for the Collector and also booked a telephone call to him.
Fortunately, the call matured at once and the Collector was also available. I explained the whole situation to him and sought his permission to leave the mela site. Firstly, he tried to console me saying that such happenings were the hazards of public administration. When I persisted in my resolution, he became tough and asked me not to leave the mela site. He said that if my objective was to fight against the negative elements, it would be defeated by my leaving the site and that was exactly what they wanted. In such a situation the positive elements would get disheartened and the purpose of the vested interests would be served. The argument appeared very convincing to meand my agitation had died down; I accepted the advice of the Collector. Meanwhile, the positive elements in the Committee too came to me and pleaded for not leaving the site. Taking all these factors into consideration, I decided to stay back and thereafter there was no problem. The administration of the mela went on very smoothly. We were not only able to provide more facilities to the public but were also able to do so at a lesser cost. Incidentally the budget of the mela ended in a surplus against all previous records of deficit. Naturally it was appreciated by all and gave me a lot of satisfaction as well as confidence.
The morale of the incident is obvious. We all come across situations in life when we feel that positive elements are being harassed by negative elements. Quite often positive elements tend to quit and leave the field free for negative elements. This is what negative elements want. They know that they can never conquer the positive elements in a fair battle and want to win by default. At times positive elements may not be prepared to fight but in that case they should make preparation and not give up the idea of fighting. Ultimately, the triumph is always of the positive elements. In this battle the numbers are not very important. In the Mahabharata war five Pandavas were stronger than one hundred and one Kauravas. Here it is a question of moral strength which is missing in the negative elements. Normally, the negative elements flee once they find the positive elements ready to fight.  Even if they are able to muster the support of other negative elements, they are internally weak. The battle should never be lost to them by giving them a walk-over.
This is what my Collector meant when he asked me to stay back.  His exact words were “Why should you quit?” I feel these are applicable to all positive elements in all situations. The only exception can be a tactical retreat. After all, at time, battles are lost to win a war and games are lost to win a match.

Refuse to Dislike

Once I went on an official tour to Assam and Meghalaya. In Shillong my colleague and I had some spare time and so we decided to drive up to Cherrapunji. The drive was very beautiful and we came across some rare natural beauty on the way. We ate our packed lunch on the way, sitting on a parapet wall on the roadside. The sight of the hillock on the opposite side was superb. So much so that despite being a steel man, I started thinking how beautiful the earth would have been without any steel. Anyway it was a momentary thought and after sometime we drove further.
At Cherrapunji we sat in a small restaurant, looking at the surroundings and tasting some local sweets. There we met a person who must have been in his fifties. By his looks and expression, he appeared to be an educated man hailing from North India. Perhaps he was the owner of or a frequent visitor to the restaurant. When asked he told us that he was from Punjab. One of our colleagues asked him how he had decided to settle down in Cherrapunji and how he liked the place. He did not like being asked all these questions saying these were personal matters and required a long time to explain. However, he told that he had retired from the BSF and most of his family members were settled in Canada. Since he did not like going there, he decided to stay back at Cherrapunji. He also said that he did not dislike anything except dishonesty and fraud. Though he did not hold a very good opinion about the locals, on the whole he liked the place.
This attitude of the man impressed me a lot. Obviously the matter was not so simple. He must have had deep wounds within him. Yet he had adopted a positive approach to life by refusing to dislike his environment. While driving back to Shillong we talked about him and we all appreciated his attitude. The whole thing set me thinking that there was a great lesson to be learnt from him. I, myself, believe in the same approach to life. When I decided to come to Calcutta, many friends and well-wishers asked me whether I liked the place. My answer had always been that I had never thought of disliking the place. And believe me I meant it too. I do not mean to say that there is nothing to dislike in Calcutta. In fact, there is plenty but what is the point in dwelling upon them? One can always identify so many likable things in any given situation and need not pay attention to others. If one can adopt this approach to life, life becomes much more beautiful.
To be fair in my assessment of the person we met at Cherrapunji, I would say that though he was apparently happy, there appeared to be some bitterness within him. That is why he did not like being asked about his personal life. This dislike was against his claim that he did not dislike anything. He also said that he did not like dishonesty and fraud. While he was correct from a worldly point of view, going a little deeper would reveal that even this dislike is negative. While things like dishonesty, fraud, ugliness, etc., are to be opposed, there is no point in disliking them. The thought of disliking adversely affects us and creates disharmony. This way we become the victim for no fault of ours. It is like saying, ‘hate the sin, not the sinner.’ If we follow this advice, peace will never be lost.
There is one more way of looking at things. The whole creation of God consists of opposites. In fact, without opposites, there will be no existence. For example, we can talk of the good only so long the bad also exists. Similarly, there is no meaning of pleasure without pain. This logic can also be extended to all other things. Beauty has to co-exist with ugliness. Piousness is to coexist with wickedness. Honesty is to co-exist with dishonesty, so on and so forth. If we accept this fact of life, we have no reason to dislike anything. All things have to be accepted as they are. The only freedom we have is to play our own role in the best possible way in given circumstances. Whatever way we approach, there is no point in our disliking a situation and by refusing to dislike it we can turn every situation into something we like.

Life and the Rubik Cube

Some years back the Rubik Cube came out as a popular and interesting game. It is a cuboid with six faces of six different colours. Each face consists of nine squares and each square can be rotated on two different axes. The game involves rotating of these squares in such a manner that each face of the cuboid becomes a single colour. Overall it is a complex exercise and most players fail to achieve the desired result. However, many have acquired such a skill that they can achieve the desired result in a surprisingly short time. It is a beautiful sight to see the six faces of six different colours presenting a harmonious look.  Some books have also been written on this game and shows held to demonstrate it. I myself however never got much interested in the game and therefore did not often play it.
Once I had gone to Trichur on the occasion of Guru Poornima. In the evening I was on a walk with another devotee who is settled in Muscat. He told me about the craze for this game in certain countries and how some of the players had acquired a great skill in it. And then we started comparing life with the game of Rubik Cube. We felt that life too was as complicated as the Rubik game and that it was a question of acquiring a skill in living if we wanted to make it harmonious. In the Rubik game, as one proceeds, one finds that despite one’s best efforts different colours intrude and it becomes almost impossible to bring the same colours on all the six faces. Some are able to achieve success on one and some on two or three faces. Very rarely does one find a player who can restore all the faces to a single colour.
In life too, as we proceed to achieve harmony, some event or the other breaks it and we have to start afresh. It is only after we have learnt the art of living that such events do not disturb us but in a way make life more interesting and challenging. With the growth of wisdom, the time taken to accept these events gets reduced further and further. Thereafter, all events of life are accepted in a very natural manner. Eventually one becomes like those players of the Rubik Cube who reach the six~face stage within a very short time. For such people life becomes harmonious and nothing can disturb them.  Such persons are the yogis in the true sense.
Reaching such a state of harmony is the ultimate purpose of life.  For this one has to understand the principles of life, believe in them and practise them. There is no short-cut to it.  However, once this skill is acquired, no one can take it away from you. You will then be able to play with life in the same way as a skilled person plays with the Rubik Cube, notwithstanding its complex nature.

Whom Do We Address To

After taking over as Development Commissioner (Iron and Steel) at Calcutta in July 1994, I paid a brief visit to Madras on my way to Trichur. On my way back, initially the flight was announced to be on time. The passengers passed through the Security Check and were waiting in the lounge for boarding announcement. However, after some time an announcement was made about the plane having developed some technical problem and the consequent delay. The passengers were advised to come out of the lounge, get new boarding passes and also some refreshment from the snacks-counter. Naturally the passengers were very upset at this announcement and reluctantly left the lounge to follow the instructions. I too felt the same way but within I was keeping my cool. After going through the drill of surrendering boarding passes and getting new ones, we stood in a queue for light refreshments. We were expecting something better to be served so as to partially take care of our annoyance but what we were given only added to it. One of the passengers standing in the queue lost his temper and started abusing not only the Indian Airlines but the whole of India. Of course, most of us were doing so silently. Fortunately soon the plane was declared to be fit and our hopes of reaching home the same night revived.
Well, the point I am making here is about the outburst of the gentleman in the queue at Madras airport.  Such outbursts are not uncommon. We come across such incidents almost daily. Only the victim and the target of the outburst vary. If such outbursts are carefully analyzed, one would come to the conclusion that we all are victims of one another. ‘A’ may curse’ B’, ‘B’ may curse ‘C’ and ‘C’ may curse ‘A’. The net result is that sometimes we are victims and sometimes the cause of such outbursts.  We forget that after all the quality of human beings in a given set-up is the same and that we ourselves are no better than others. If we are not prepared to see any faults in us and remove them, what right do we have to expect perfectness from others? In such situations, it is very difficult to understand to whom we should address our outburst.
I am not saying that inefficiency or bad service should be accepted. But mere cursing does not help. In all probability such outbursts make the system worse. The right approach would be to understand the situation coolly and if found that it has arisen as a result of wilful neglect or callousness on the part of an individual or system, the same should be dealt with in an effective manner. That way we will not only save ourselves from agony and anger but will render a service to the system as well as to other possible victims. In short, the problem should be addressed to a definite target, and not in the air which helps no one. The second lesson to be learnt from such events is to consider whether we ourselves are not a cause of such situations, when it comes to our dealing with others. As a matter of fact, this is a better way of addressing the problem and, if all of us do so, there will be no occasion for situations which upset us. We may also be a cause of such situations and if others cause so much agony to us, why should we not avoid such situations? This approach will not only help individuals but also the system. Thus, whenever a situation upsets us, the problem should not only be addressed to the relevant authorities with an objective mind, it should also be addressed to oneself. The purpose of all progress is to feel more peaceful. But if instead of feeling peaceful, we feel upset and anxious like the friend at Madras Airport, the purpose of the progress is lost. So next time you come across a situation which upsets you, remember to address it correctly.  That way you will help yourself as well as the system.

Brakes of the Life Vehicle

In Lucknow, there is a ‘Literacy House’, an institution which has done very good work in the field of adult education. Many years back I became quite friendly with its Director and used to meet him on my way to Lucknow from Kanpur. He was a retired Civil Servant who served the institution with dedication for a long time.  However, towards the end of his tenure, he appeared to be quite upset with the state of affairs in the institution. Moreover, he had some serious personal problems. One day when I met him, he was in a sad mood. He was glad to see me and shared his problems with me. We started thinking why difficulties come in life and whether there are any positive aspects of them.  Instantly came a few ideas to my mind which I am sharing here.
Normally, we consider the difficulties of life as something negative and retarding. We feel that they check the progress of life and delay our reaching the destination. We refuse to see any blessing in them and curse either God or the person who seemingly caused them or ourselves for our past karma. At times our cursing may be justified too but that leads us nowhere. In fact the process of cursing itself consumes a lot of our energy and thus further delays our destination. What then should be our attitude towards the difficulties?
Let us take two examples. Think of an aeroplane landing on the ground. When it lands, its speed is quite high which has to be brought down fast. For this the dampers are opened which resist the movement of the plane. Obviously it is a negative role which delays the reaching of the aeroplane to its destination. But this delay is something desirable and positive. If the speed is not reduced the aeroplane will perhaps never reach its destination and so also the passengers. Now consider a parachute landing. When one jumps with a parachute, it opens and reduces the speed of falling. If this does not happen, the person will fall under gravity and the consequences are obvious. Here also the role of the parachute is seemingly negative, that is, dampening the speed. Obviously none of us consider so and here also dampening is something desirable in order to reach the destination safely.
These two examples will perhaps indicate the message which is being tried to be conveyed. If we look at life’s difficulties with this attitude, we shall understand their utility and consider them helpful in reaching our target. The precaution to be taken is that they should not dampen our spirit so much that the movement is stopped altogether. In that case one will never reach one’s destination. It is, therefore, necessary that the propelling force should be greater than the dampening force. Then only will the resultant movement be forward. The difficulties also provide us time for introspection without which one may follow a wrong path and never reach the destination. Thus they act as navigating aids in the voyage of life.
If we compare life with a road vehicle, the role of difficulties becomes all the more meaningful. A vehicle is a device which runs on account of friction between its wheels and the road. And what is friction? Is it not something negative in the ordinary parlance? However, without friction the movement of the vehicle is not possible. Then consider the brakes of a vehicle. What is their role?  Is it not negative which retards the vehicle?  But will anyone accept a vehicle without brakes? The role of the brakes in a vehicle is as important as that of the engine and the accelerator. In one sense brakes are more important because their failure may prevent you from ever reaching the destination while the engine failure or low speed may only delay it. That is why while driving we generally find on the road sides a warning “Better late than never”.
Thus life’s difficulties are like a vehicle’s brakes. A life without difficulties is like a vehicle without brakes. Howsoever expensive and beautiful a vehicle may be, it is useless without brakes. Of course, here too the precaution is that the motivation for living should be more than the dampening by difficulties. Then only the movement will be forward and one can aspire to reach the goal safely.
A word of clarification in the end is necessary. There are two kinds of difficulties. Some are caused by God or, say, by nature and some are created by us. in fact, the latter are much more than the former. The above discussion is applicable to the difficulties created by nature in the path of a well meaning sincere person. It may or may not apply in case of self-created difficulties. The distinction between the two may be summed up in this manner: “Difficulties created by God are few and for a purpose, while the difficulties created by us are many and without any purpose”. It is the God created difficulties which are the brakes of the life vehicle.

How Lucky We Are

In April 1990, I was nominated for a twelve-week training programme in U.K. under the Colombo Plan. The course was to be held at Ilkely near Leeds, a small town with a population of about 20,000.  However, it had all the amenities of a big town like good market, parks, schools, clubs, etc. The town was quite prosperous going by the number of cars. Overall it was a lovely place and life seemed quite comfortable. In the same course there was another officer from the Kerala cadre. He was a year junior to me. We became quite friendly very soon. During the first week, one day we were walking on the streets of Ilkley, appreciating its beauty and comforts. Spontaneously came from my friend, ‘How lucky they are!’ Though he was right yet his way of saying implied as if we were unlucky. So I kept silent thinking it to be the best way of responding. He felt little uneasy with my silence and wanted to know the reason. I said I would agree with him if he maintained his opinion till the end of the course.  The matter ended there.
As days passed by, we became closer to each other. We had many things in common. We both were North Indians and vegetarians. We used to cook our dinner together. Soon we started learning about the weaker side of the so-called heavenly materialistic life of Western society. Our first experience was in the matter of food. Being vegetarian we found it very difficult to manage our food, particularly the lunch, which we had to take in the mess. The problem was on two counts. Firstly, very few vegetarian dishes were available and, secondly, they were so mixed up with non-vegetarian dishes that the sight of them repelled us. My own problem was compounded by my being diabetic.  Our request to provide us something which we could eat without reservation brought no result. My case was referred to a dietician whose report didn’t come till the end of the course.  As a result I had to stop taking lunch in the mess and managed on my own. At times we tried to draw the attention of the Course Director by appealing to his emotions but there was no effect. Every time some rule or management problem was made an excuse.
This set us thinking about our own society and the country. Howsoever poor we may be, we cannot see others going hungry, more so if they happen to be our guests. Nothing to say of human beings, even dumb animals are taken care of in our country. Most of us derive a great sense of pleasure from feeding others. I don’t think that if a foreign national in our land poses a genuine problem we would not do our best to help him, particularly in matters of food. But what we experienced in U.K. was just the opposite. For our Course Director, everything was commercial matter and genuine human need was no consideration. This made my friend doubt his opinion expressed in the beginning of the course.
In the course of our interaction with several natives, we learnt about many other strengths of our society. The first, of course, was that we are much better hosts. We take care of our guests even at the cost of our own convenience. Secondly, our family system is a matter of envy to them. It is difficult for them to imagine how a marital bond can last throughout one’s life. When we were to return at the end of the course to join our families, some native lightly remarked that as far as they were concerned, one could not be sure of finding his family intact after a gap of so much time. This could be an exaggeration but it definitely reflected the insecurity of their family system. Through another incident we learnt that doctors in U.K. do not attend to patients during weekends. Those who can be approached are very expensive. As a result, a patient has to wait till the next working day, irrespective of his problem. Similarly, meeting someone without an appointment is almost impossible.  As a result the problem of loneliness is increasing causing many complications.
All this is not to suggest that nothing is good in Western society. There are plenty of things to be learnt from it. The idea is not to compare the two societies, but is to establish that it is wrong to pass a hasty value judgment on any society. Every society has its strengths and weaknesses. Also a strength from one point of view may be a weakness from another. Indian society has plenty of strengths but we are becoming unaware of them. On the other hand we try to adopt the weaknesses of other societies. This had made my friend to comment in the beginning. However, having observed things closely, he changed his remark from ‘How lucky they are!’ to ‘How lucky we are!’. My silence in the beginning was also understood by him.

The Ganges Does Not Hoard

Once I got the opportunity of visiting Haridwar twice in quick succession. I enjoyed both the visits immensely. The sight of a large number of pilgrims having a bath at ‘Hari Ki Pauri’ and participating in the evening aarti fascinated me. The faith of our people always leaves a great impression on me whenever I visit a holy place. Irrespective of reasoning behind this faith, I believe that in it lies the strength of our people. It is a different matter that this faith is exploited by some.
I do not have any craving for taking bath in the Ganges. Somehow it has always been so.  Perhaps, it is an impression of my childhood when I observed some so-called holy women of my village behaving in a very unholy manner and their holiness being attributed to their frequent Ganges baths. That was, perhaps, why I never cared to bathe in the Ganges during my 15 days camp on the bank of the river as incharge of the Kartika Mela in the early years of my service.  Even during the above two visits, I took bath in the Ganges only once and that too not at ‘Hari Ki Pauri’.
However, there was a vast difference between my last visit and these two visits after a gap of almost ten years. A lot of water had flown down the river since then and a lot of wisdom had dawned on me.  Questioning the faith of people is no more my nature though I may not have the same faith. I feel faith and reason are two different things and it is not wise to apply reason in matters of faith. A faith may or may not be inspired by reason, but true faith is always enriching.  At times it is beyond reason.
With this change in my outlook, the visit to the town of Holy Ganges was very enjoyable and elevating. I keenly observed the flowing river and wondered at the service it has rendered to the people from time immemorial. While thinking thus, I was fascinated by the scheme of Mother Nature which ensures that there is always a steady flow of water in the Ganges. In fact, the holiness of the Ganges is due to its flow. The moment it stops flowing, its whole sanctity will be lost. It does not consider it necessary to hoard its water in fear of the future. Even then, no one can say for how long the Ganges has been flowing and will continue to flow. Mother Nature takes care of it on its own.
There is a great lesson to learn from this fact. It applies to our acquisitions too. The moment we start hoarding our acquisitions, unholiness creeps in and they become putrefied.  The acquisition then becomes a liability instead of an asset. Be it money, knowledge or any other acquisition, their flow should continue for the benefit of the society at large. The moment we try to store them for our use only, their sanctity is lost. In that case they cease to serve any good even to ourselves, leave alone society. Thus even the virtues become the sources of nuisance, when not shared properly.
The example of the Holy Ganges should also take away any fear that we may have of replenishing our resources. If Mother Nature can replenish the mighty river like the Ganges for time immemorial, it can always meet our needs. These will always be taken care of provided we are willing to share what we have. In fact, when we show our willingness to share, others too come forward to share what they have. Like the Holy Ganges which grows bigger and bigger as it flows and ultimately becomes one with the ocean, our virtues too grow by sharing. We then merge with the Creator which is the ultimate aim of life.
So the simple lesson to be learnt is that all our acquisitions come from Mother Nature and we have no exclusive right to them. They are to be shared and not to be hoarded. If we do so, we too can become as holy as the Ganges.
What we have is a gift from Him.  What we do with what we have is our gift to Him.

We Do Not Need A Gun

I was District Magistrate of Basti in Uttar Pradesh during the year 1982-84. At that time it had not been bifurcated and was the biggest district of Uttar Pradesh in terms of rural population. At the same time it was one of the most backward districts and bad from the law and order point of view. Therefore, for a person to carry a gun was considered a measure of safety as well as prestige. A large number of applications for gun licenses were always pending with the District Magistrate. I tried to streamline the system of granting licenses and ensured that these were issued only in deserving cases.
One day I was sitting in my office in a somewhat relaxed mood when one such aspirant came to see me. I knew him as he was a reasonably respected person of the town. For some time he talked about general things and thereafter came to the subject of law and order. His complaint was that the number of guns in the district was increasing and the sight of so many gun-carrying persons created fear among the common people. He also wondered that if everyone would carry a gun, how would the situation of law and order improve?
These words of his gave me a very pleasant surprise as it was very rare that someone in that district would talk against the number of guns and particularly an aspirant of the gun. I got impressed as well as interested and wanted to discuss the matter further hoping that some solution to the problem might come from him. I agreed with him and asked him to suggest some solution to the problem created by the increasing number of arms. And prompt came the reply that a gun be given to him also. He said this very innocently without realising that the solution suggested by him would only add to the problem instead of solving it. I could, however, convince him that he did not require a gun for safety and he did not press for a license as long as I was the District Magistrate.
This incident fascinated me so much that I have narrated it a number of times to various people. I see a great similarity in the different aspects of human life today and this incident.  Be it the matter of indiscipline, corruption, dowry, nepotism, exploitation of weaker sections or any other evil, most of us believe in the kind of solution suggested by the above gentleman. We see corruption in society, also feel bad about it but when it comes to doing something about it, we feel that our indulgence also is the answer. Similar is the case with other evils. We forget that by doing so we add to the evil instead of removing it. Everyone feels bad about the dowry system except when it applies to oneself. We talk of the sincerity, discipline, etc., only as long as it is not demanded from us. The result is the chaos we see around in all walks of life. A situation has reached where we cause suffering to each other and feel that the remedy lies in doing so only.
At this moment a small story comes to my mind. Once God appointed a commission to study the difference in the conditions prevailing in Hell and Heaven. The Commission decided to go to Hell first. It found it to be an excellent place, well built and prosperous. There was plenty to eat and drink. However, the Commission observed that the inhabitants were very weak and kept quarrelling among themselves all the time. The reason was that they were unable to bend their elbows and therefore could not take the food up to their mouths, though it was available in plenty. Starved of food, they had become very weak and irritable making them quarrel with each other. Overall the scene was very pathetic and all the inhabitants were helpless not knowing what to do.
Thereafter the Commission visited Heaven. It found similar conditions there also. The place was well built and there was plenty to eat and drink. Again the inhabitants were unable to bend their elbows but they were healthy and cheerful. On close observation, it was found that, though each one of them was unable to take the food up to his mouth, he was doing so for others and thus each one was being fed by others. The result was obvious with everyone enjoying the prosperity of the place.
The same story is applicable to our society also.  It is up to us whether we create a heaven by helping each other or a hell by thinking of ourselves only. In both cases the effect is in geometrical progression. In the first case it is elevating and in the second one it is depressing.  While some negative elements will always exist in society, these are to be dealt with suitably, through the administrative process. The trouble arises when the overall situation becomes negative. This is what appears to have happened in present times. This trend has to be reversed and it does not require any, great ideas. The only change called for is a change of attitude. Instead of thinking of only ourselves, if we think of others too, the whole society will be benefited. An individual will also then stand to gain as a member of the society.
Fortunately, such a sorry state of affairs does not exist everywhere. There are many positive examples. There are many instances where great results have been achieved as a result of mutual cooperation. There are villages where there is no dispute, no need to lock houses, no lack of resources, etc. At such places, life is almost heavenly. There are also organizations where ideal working conditions prevail and people work in mutual trust and enjoy the fruits of the same. However, such cases are exceptional but they demonstrate the efficacy of the concept.
The idea is to convey that when we talk of the evils prevalent in the society, we should try to understand whom are we addressing. It is futile to expect solutions from others as they too are victims of the evils. To think of a solution by following the rat race only adds to the problem.  In fact, the problem should be addressed to oneself and a solution found within. Instead of thinking what one can do for oneself, one should think what he can do for others. In a way this approach is more selfish because ultimately the benefits will be reaped by him only and these would be much more than what one can gain by thinking of oneself only. If all of us do so, life will become heavenly and none of us will need a gun.

Spiritual Investment

Prices of land have zoomed over the past ten or twenty years. The rise is mind-boggling in towns like Delhi. Those who did not buy land earlier can hardly dream of doing so now. Those who did, have a great sense of relief and consider themselves very fortunate
An opportunity to buy land near Delhi came in my life too. In 1980, I was posted at Lucknow as Deputy Secretary in the Industries Department. At that time the new township of Noida was coming up on the outskirts of Delhi and was considered a profitable place for investment. At that time the mad rush for real estate had not begun and so it was almost a buyer’s market. The Chief Executive Officer of Noida was an IAS officer who had been my Collector when I was a SDM. Once he had come to Lucknow for a meeting and came to my office and offered me a plot of land at a prime location in Noida. The offer did not attract me much and I declined it. Today prices of land there have gone up so high that I regret my decision of declining the above offer. Of course, I got another opportunity to buy land in Lucknow and I have constructed a modest house there.
While I missed the opportunity of investing in land in 1980, a great turn came in my life. Soon after I was transferred to Gorakhpur, where I came across some great saints as well as books. My association with them changed the course of my life which became much more meaningful to me. I could understand the true purpose of living and started acquiring the qualities necessary to achieve it. Once on this path, I started feeling contentment in all walks of life and all petty temptations were overcome. With steady progress in this direction, I began enjoying every bit of life.  It does not mean that there are no troubles in my life. In fact, there are more than what I would consider my legitimate share, but with inner strength, I am able to accept them without fretting and fuming. Very few, I am afraid, are able to appreciate this aspect of my life. For most people, material success is the only measure of life.
Let us compare the two investments. Investment in material things brings us respect and security. It takes care of our old age and provides us an opportunity to help others. It keeps our children happy and we can also provide them a good future. The positive aspect of material prosperity cannot be denied. But it has a negative aspect also. Quite often we forget to draw the line and fall into a vicious circle. If so, we miss the finer aspects of life while the negative aspect of material progress soon starts troubling us. The only way to counter the negative aspect is the finer or, say, the spiritual aspect of life. Thus a balanced growth of both aspects of life is necessary in order to live a purposeful life.
There is a tendency on the part of most of us to keep postponing our spiritual growth. We consider it something which can be acquired in old age. But the fact is that like material growth, spiritual growth also requires an alertness of our faculties. It is something which needs an intelligent understanding of life and if we do not show an inclination at the right time, it may be too late. Moreover no one can be sure of old age.  It may or may not come. Even if it comes, it may come with such handicaps that, understanding the spiritual aspect of life may not be possible. We then end up saying that we did not invest in spirituality when the opportunity came and now it is beyond our capacity. This establishes the necessity of spiritual investment at the right time.
It may be argued that if nothing goes wrong in life then what is the necessity of growing spiritually? After all, such growth is required for bad times only. Against this there are two arguments. First, that no one can be sure of having good times only. In every one’s life, there come difficult situations. For facing such situations, we need inner strength which only comes from spiritual growth. Secondly, it is not true to say that inner growth is required only in times of adversity. It is equally required in the time of prosperity. One needs inner growth to face prosperity in a dignified manner. Moreover, in prosperity we can develop our spiritual dimension so as to face adversity in a dignified manner. Thus the spiritual growth is required for good as well as bad times.
We can also compare our spiritual growth with defense forces. Many may question the desirability of maintaining strong defense forces at a time when the prospects of war are receding. But they forget that this is mainly due to the presence of a strong army.  Only powerful nations can talk of peace. Moreover, defense forces have a role in peace-time also.  Without peace-time they cannot prepare themselves for war-times.  Similarly, without growing spiritually during prosperity we cannot face adversity in a dignified manner. And if we achieve enough spiritual growth during good times there would perhaps be no such thing as bad times.
We may, therefore, conclude by saying that timely spiritual investment is as necessary as timely material investment. Once we miss the opportunity to do so, it may be too late.

Be Fair to God

Almost every one of us questions the fairness of God at one time or the other in life. So when an advertisement appeared in the newspaper about a talk on the subject ‘Is God Fair’ by Dada J.P. Vaswani, it drew my attention too. It was on 16 March, 1993 at the All India Institute of Medical Science Auditorium at New Delhi. Though I reached there in time, the auditorium was full to its capacity and I had to take a seat in the balcony which too became full after sometime. Why I am mentioning this is to indicate that most of us question the fairness of God and want to confirm our views. The talk was inaugurated by Shri L.K. Advani, who spoke very well and raised some very interesting points. He said we should expect fairness from God only when we are fair to Him.  Expecting fairness in return for our unfairness will be to demand injustice from the Supreme Power.  And therefore the question to ask should be whether we are fair. This appealed to me very much and I thought of summing up the talk of Dadaji under the title ‘Be Fair to God’.
In the life of everyone good as well as bad things come. We happily accept the good things and never question whether we deserve them or not. However, it is not the case with bad things. We do not accept them and even question the fairness of God. As a matter of fact, if we make a list of good things in life as well as of the bad things, in most cases the former will exceed the latter. By and large, life gives us more compensation and rewards than losses and punishments. If this is the case then it is not fair on our part to doubt the fairness of God.
In order to discuss the subject further, it is necessary to understand the concept of God.  We all believe in one or the other form of God whatever we may call Him. After all there is a Supreme Power which is behind all creation and laws of the universe. Movement of terrestrial bodies, creation of day and night, law of gravitation, the changing of weather, falling of rains and scores of such things are all governed by fixed universal laws. Will not there be turmoil and havoc, if there is even slight deviation from these laws? Even if we do not believe in God in the orthodox sense, we have to believe in the universal laws of nature. For example, if an object is dropped from a height, it has to fall down and it would be foolish to expect it to go up. Even if for argument’s sake, it does so, the universe will become so topsy-turvy that living will become impossible. Therefore, let us interpret God as a Power who governs the laws of the universe which keep things going.
Once we accept this definition of God, we must also accept that there must be certain fixed laws behind good events as well as bad events of life. If we do so, the question of fairness of God, when bad things happen, will not arise. In fact, it would be unfair on our part to expect good things to happen when the laws of nature demand otherwise. Perhaps expecting that would be more disastrous than the consequences of the so-called bad things or seemingly cruel events.
This takes us to the ’Law of Karma’. ‘As we sow, so shall we reap” is an old saying. This is nothing but the ‘Law of Karma’. Nature expects us to follow certain laws in order to live a healthy, peaceful and harmonious life. How often do we break these laws? The contention is to establish that if we break the laws of nature, why should we not face the consequences? Not only this, nature is quite merciful in the sense that it gives us enough flexibility to break its laws and does not punish, if the laws are broken occasionally. Only when the laws are broken consistently we are punished. If we expect that it should not happen, the laws of nature will lose their meaning. For example, if someone smokes occasionally, he remains almost unaffected by its adverse effects but a chain smoker is bound to suffer whether we wish it or not. In fact, it would be against the law of nature to expect a chain smoker to remain healthy all through his life.
These arguments are very convincing in visible cause and effect cases. However, quite often we suffer in life for no evident cause. It is in such cases that we question the fairness of God. To understand this we have to believe in the theory of rebirth and the continuance of the account of Karmas. That is why so many times we suffer for no obvious reasons. The fact is that the cause of suffering is always there, though we may not know it.
However, nature or God is not so cruel so as to leave a suffering person without any hope or remedy. Nature does not make anyone suffer more than his entitlement or capacity to suffer. Even in suffering, there is always a silver lining. When suffering comes, it does not come alone.  It comes with wisdom and the strength to face it. In fact, suffering and wisdom are the two sides of the same coin.  If so, is this not the kindness of nature? Moreover, no one suffers more than what he deserves.  It is like undergoing a term of imprisonment as prescribed in law. The convict is released the day his sentence is over and he no longer remains a convict.
Thus whatever happens to a man is due to his own doings. God or nature does not interfere in this but only ensures that the laws of nature are followed and it does so with a kind heart and may be at times with a heavy heart. We have full freedom of action.  No one compels us to do bad Karmas.  Good Karmas bring good things in life while the bad bring bad things. This law of Karma is applicable equally to individuals, societies, and nations. If we collectively do bad things, we are also bound to suffer collectively.
The reward or punishment for our Karmas may come to us in various forms there being no fixed pattern. Goodness may be returned by nature in the form of good health, good temperament, a good job, promotion, recovery from the disease, a good wife or husband, good children, etc.  Similarly, the bad deeds may punish in the form of physical disability, disease, poverty or other bad events. In fact, the ‘Law of Karma’ is the law of effort and destiny. Actions of yesterday constitute the destiny of today and actions of today the destiny of tomorrow. After we are rewarded or punished for an action of ours, its effect is nullified. Some actions produce immediate effect while some are stored for future. These are called ‘Sanchit Karmas’. Their effect can only be lessened by our present Karmas and that is why some people are able to undergo suffering happily as they know that their Sanchit Karmas are being nullified and that they can look forward to a brighter period in life.
Fate, destiny, luck etc., are nothing but the effects of ‘Sanchit Karmas’. They determine the major incidents of our lives, like place of birth, parentage, wealth, children, wife, job, etc. We enjoy the fruits of our good Karmas till they are exhausted and unless we store more good Karmas, we cannot enjoy them indefinitely. This explains the bad events of life and if we can understand their background, we shall never question the fairness of God. In fact, questioning that will amount to being unfair to God. And if we want God to be fair to us, should we also not be fair to Him?
 Defeat is a school in which truth always grows strong.
 The tide always comes back. Don’t ever accept defeat.
 YOU must learn to accept defeat without being defeated.
 Good and bad luck are synonymous in a great majority, for instance, for good and bad judgement.
 I am a great believer in luck. The harder I work the more of it I seem to have.
 The ratio between hard work and luck is 70 : 30.

The Heat is Within Us

In November 1993, I was appointed an observer of the Election Commission for the Himachal Pradesh Assembly elections. The duty was in Mandi District. I had to go there three times. For going there I used to fly to Kullu from Delhi and then drive by road. The first visit was a short one, during my second visit I toured the Mandi District extensively as it was during the polling period. The third visit was during the period of counting towards the end of November. Since no trouble was expected during counting, I decided to stay at Manali for a day during the last visit. Being the end of November, the place had become quite cold by that time. There was one more officer staying at Manali, who was also an observer of the Commission.
I was alone during this visit and it was quite cold. After a walk about the town, I returned to the Circuit House in the evening and took to reading. After dinner, I had a long chat with the other officer who had been a keen student of History. He told me several things which I was eager to know. Thereafter I went to sleep. By that time, it had become very cold. In the inspection houses of Himachal Pradesh, quite thick quilts are provided in addition to blankets. They are also maintained well particularly those in the VIP rooms. I am normally not in the habit of using a room-heater during winters as I cannot sleep while the heater is on. Since good quilts were provided, I went to bed after putting off the heater and had a very sound sleep. As usual I woke up in the morning at about 6.00 a.m.
While waiting for bed-tea, a feeling of gratitude towards the quilt came to my mind which kept me warm in such a cold weather. Also came to my mind the scientific analysis of this warmth. I thought about the source of the heat and arrived at the conclusion that it was my own body’s heat which had kept me warm. The quilt provided the warmth by merely stopping it from dissipating. It had no role except that of an insulator. From this I derived a very important lesson in life. I thought that if just by insulating the body, I could keep my body warm in such a cold weather; it should be possible to face any adverse situation in life by insulating myself from it. However insulations may be of different types. At times we may have to insulate from bad company, bad thoughts, worldly pleasures and similar other things. The idea is to convey that the potential to face any situation lies within us only.  External supports are only tools and if we can use them properly, we can face all situations. In a nutshell, we can say that the heat is within us, we have to protect it from dissipating.

Tip of the Iceberg

One day I was travelling from Kanpur to New Delhi with a young man and we had discussion on a variety of subjects. The young man had just returned from the USA after doing his MBA and was in the process of settling down in India. The discussion, therefore, focused on this aspect. He had known me for quite some time and had been seeking my guidance but it was the first opportunity of having such a long session at a stretch. This gave both of us an opportunity to know each other more closely.  Perhaps, he was unaware of many aspects of my life, of which he came to know during this journey.  At the end of the journey he commented that it had been really a very useful journey and he had got an opportunity of understanding my mind regarding his career planning. To this, I Iightly remarked that it was only the tip of the iceberg and what had been discussed was only a small portion of what I had in mind. I invited him for further discussion and thereafter we could work out a detailed plan of the activities to be undertaken by him.
Somehow the phrase ‘Tip of the Iceberg’ got stuck in my mind and I started contemplating over it. Many interesting comparisons came to my mind which I propose to write here. My first reaction was that the ‘Tip of the Iceberg’ is a true description of one’s condition in this world. The world is like an ocean and we are like icebergs. Most portion of ours remain submerged in this worldly ocean and only a part remains outside. If we want to know the reality of ourselves, we have to rise above the world. Even if we remain inside the world, we should know our real size. In a way we can say that it is the process of self-realisation which makes us know our identity. And this is possible only when we are able to identify ourselves as different from the objective world. The ‘Tip of the Iceberg’ can also be compared to several other aspects of our life.  It indicates that we use only part of our talent and most of it remains hidden. We should discover this potential and make use of it. The same concept should be applied to others too. We must understand that like us others too have a lot of hidden potential and they should be motivated to use it. If all of us make full use of our talents, the world will change for the better. Mobilization of our talent is possible when we become aware of it and make a determined effort to use it.
The comparison with the iceberg should also be used when we look at our shortcomings. Like an iceberg our negative tendencies are not visible to us and if at all we see them, only a part is seen. So the endeavor should be to know our shortcomings and remove them. While there is no need to expose our weaknesses we should gradually overcome them. This is possible only when we are able to accept them. Another lesson to be learnt from the iceberg is how to float in the ocean of the world. An iceberg floats because the density of the ice is a little less than that of water. It means that though a form of water, an ice berg is different from it. Similarly, while we should be in the world, we should be indifferent to it. This is possible only when we lighten ourselves by not worrying too much about worldly things which in any case are of a transitory nature. If we are able to do so, we can also float in the world like an iceberg and keep our identity intact. One more lesson to be learnt from the iceberg is that like an iceberg we are also melting away day by day and one day there will be complete merger with the sea. If the vastness of the sea is compared with the vastness of God, we can say that we are from the very beginning part of God and appear to be different for a certain period of time because of the body. Ultimately with the death of the body we merge with God.
Thus the Iceberg gives us some very interesting messages about life and if we take them in the right spirit, life can be made much more meaningful and purposeful.
‘Insult’ is a word frequently used in day-to-day life. History is full of instances where an ‘insult’ has turned the course of events and led to major wars. Even the famous war of ‘Mahabharata’ had its genesis in the ‘lnsult’ of Duryodhana by Draupadi. While ‘insult’ in itself may not be explosive yet it definitely works as a spark and whenever the background is explosive, the spark of insult causes explosion. Quite often the person who is insulted or feels insulted is also the victim of this explosion, while the person who caused it, may remain unaffected. Thus we find that in most of the cases the person feeling insulted suffers more if he allows the explosion to take place. Therefore what should be one’s attitude in an insulting situation, deliberate or otherwise? My answer to this question is that you should refuse to be insulted and beat the opponent at his own game. How to do so will be discussed in this write-up.
First of all, one should analyse whether in a given situation one has been insulted or one is only feeling insulted. If we objectively undertake such an analysis, we shall find that in most cases the alleged offender had no intention of insulting us and the events which make us feel insulted are not deliberate acts. They are either on account of someone’s ignorance, lack of education, mere innocence, misinformation or our own inferiority complex. In such a situation it is mainly our own ego which makes us feel insulted. There can be a number of such situations. For example, you have been invited to attend a function and you consider yourself important enough to be given a seat in the front row.  When you occupy such a seat, someone points out your mistake. At this you may feel insulted and may even lose your temper. After this even if offered a seat on the dais, you may feel hurt and find it difficult to focus your attention on the deliberations. The right course in such a situation would be to occupy a seat at the back and if you really deserve a front seat, the organisers will probably apologise and offer you a front seat. This will also enhance your prestige in their eyes. However if this does not happen, you may presume that you do not deserve a front seat and by not occupying one, you have saved an ugly situation.
There are a large number of such situations when we feel insulted without being insulted. We do so even with our close relations and friends. An invitation card for an important function at a close friend’s place has not reached you and without trying to find out the facts, you start feeling insulted and imputing all sorts of motives to your friend who himself feels sad for your absence from the function. So much so that you even avoid him when he tries to contact you adding to yours as well as his agony. The same thing may happen between brother and brother, father and son or even husband and wife. All such instances indicate your own lack of confidence. A person who is confident of oneself should never react in a hurry but should try to find out the facts. Even if the facts indicate that he has been ignored, he should take them coolly and redefine or review his relationship.
There may be another kind of situation where you have been insulted or ignored deliberately but in good faith. This is done to make you realise something which will help you. A father reprimanding his son, or a teacher punishing his student are such examples. The same thing may be done by a well meaning friend or relative. In such a situation, the role of both becomes important. While the person being insulted or ignored should take it gracefully, the person causing it should also not cross the limit, otherwise the outcome may become counter-productive. However, the underlying message is that there is no cause for feeling insulted. As a matter of fact these situations should refine you and you should be grateful to the person creating such a situation.
The third type of insult is more difficult to deal with and it is when you are insulted deliberately.  Such insult may be inflicted out of jealousy, enmity or just to dampen your spirits. The person causing such an insult is likely to be in a superior position than the victim in one way or another. He may be stronger in strength, in position or in wealth. However such persons are internally weak and can be defeated with wisdom. For this the first thing to do is to maintain one’s poise. If the poise is lost, the person causing the insult wins the game. Secondly, such a situation should be turned into an opportunity to grow. There are several examples in history where great men became great because they were insulted sometime in their lives but drew deep inspiration from such insults. The example of our own Father of the Nation is known to all of us. An insult by a white man who threw him out of the first class compartment of a running train changed the course of not only his own life but of the whole nation. The situation would perhaps have been different, had he reacted angrily at that moment and ended up in a police lock-up.
Thus we find that in all situations of insult unintentional, in good faith or deliberate, there is no need to feel hurt but every need to think constructively. If we do so, we shall not only elevate ourselves but also win over the person who insults us.  In worldly terms we can insult him by refusing to be insulted.

No Need of Anger

So much is said and written about anger. The Oxford Dictionary defines anger as extreme displeasure. While it is very obvious when taken from religious, spiritual, moral or physical point of view, it is not so when seen from worldly viewpoint. One tends to feel that in a world we face today, it is difficult to survive without anger. Perhaps I also used to feel that way and I used to be angry quite often. It is not that this has been completely won over, but the frequency has reduced greatly. It has not been so as a matter of surrender or helplessness but definitely as a result of wisdom and experience. Now I am of firm belief that anger is not  needed even from worldly viewpoint.
Whenever we face a situation which is not to our liking, anger is the result. Therefore, in order to avoid the cause of anger, we should always face situations to our liking. Obviously it is not possible.  One may have control over oneself but it is not possible on others. Moreover, a situation liked by us may not be liked by others and vice versa. That is to say, that we have to often face situations which we may not like and they become the cause of our anger. It may be indiscipline of a subordinate, disobedience by children, a reprimand from the boss, misbehaviour of a shopkeeper, sudden absence of a servant, a traffic jam, long waiting for a bus or train, etc. All this means that in our lives, causes of anger are always present. Does it mean that we should be angry whenever such a situation arises?  Let us see how that helps. First of all, let us recall that anger means extreme displeasure and not merely displeasure. Here the word ‘extreme’ is important. I cannot remember even a single incidence in my life where expressing anger helped. The simple reason is that one becomes more vulnerable after expressing anger. This helps neither the person nor the situation. The moment one gets angry, he loses his discriminating power and chances of taking wrong decisions or actions increase. In all probability the angry person ends up suffering more than he would have normally suffered.
One may now ask whether feeling angry and not expressing it would be a better proposition.  It is certainly better than the earlier situation but even in feeling angry one suffers. Firstly, it is not good for health and, secondly, it also impairs one’s discriminating power. The anger always takes away objectivity. Then how should one behave in such situations? I think the answer lies in the definition of ‘anger’ itself. It says anger is ‘extreme displeasure’. I feel by removing the word ‘extreme’ we get the answer. It means there is no harm in feeling displeased in a situation which you do not like. There is no harm in expressing your displeasure in a suitable manner. In fact, it should be done. Whenever situation demands, displeasure should be expressed in a suitable way. Here it will be advisable to remember the famous proverb, “Truth should be spoken pleasantly and unpleasant truth should not be spoken at all.” In all likelihood a pleasantly spoken truth will help both you and the situation. The secret is that when you are not extremely displeased you do not lose your discrimination. In that situation, it is possible to take even strict action without any harmful effect.
A more important question is how to avoid anger. This cannot be done suddenly. One has to gain wisdom as well as experience to win over anger. However, reading of good literature, attending discourses of saintly persons and avoiding situations which are likely to cause anger always accelerate the process. Here, I will mention of a talk on the subject “Burn Anger Before Anger Burns You” by Dada J.P. Vasvani delivered in Delhi in October, 1991.  Subsequently it has appeared in the form of a book also. I had the opportunity to listen to him and he summarised his talk beautifully by suggesting ten points for controlling anger. These are given below:
1) Realise that every being is part of God. If so, there is no place for anger as one does not lose temper on oneself.
2) See the grace of God in all happenings. Who knows that a situation causing anger in you may be a blessing in disguise?
3) Develop forgiveness. Understand that most of the time the person appearing to provoke you, has no such intentions. Even if it is so, forgive him. It will defeat his purpose.
4) Keep silent. It very often burns anger.
5) Think from the view point of the other person. Believe that no single viewpoint is absolute. There may be other viewpoints too. You will then not be angry if your viewpoint is not accepted.
6) Do not overload yourself or feel overloaded. This is one great cause of anger. Attend to one matter at a time. The rest can wait. In any case, it is of no use worrying about them while dealing with one.
7) Avoid haste. Plan your work properly so that there is no need of haste. It is hurry, worry and curry that kill a person.
8) Avoid the unpleasant situations. Quite often the anger can be avoided by avoiding the situation.  There is no harm in leaving the scene causing irritation.
9) Recite a Mantra. This a very powerful way of overcoming anger. Your mind gets occupied with better thoughts.
10) Count numbers. If you are angry count up to ten and if very angry, count up to hundred.
These are some very useful and practical tips and if one is really concerned about his anger, these may be of great help. In the end, I would like to mention another famous proverb about anger which is like this:
“If you are right, you can afford not to be angry.
If you are wrong, you cannot afford to be angry.”
Thus there is no need of anger in any situation.

Are You Okay?

Every day, all of us come across friends, relatives and acquaintances who ask whether we are okay and we mostly reply in the affirmative. Perhaps no one wants to hear the contrary. One day, while on a tour of Kanpur I was on my morning walk, when a good friend of mine asked the same question. I was really not okay that day and for a change I wanted to speak the truth. So I asked my friend whether he wanted me to speak the truth. Somewhat bewildered he looked at me and I explained to him further.  In case he wanted me to speak a lie, the reply was in the affirmative. But if he wanted me to speak the truth, the reply was in the negative and I needed some time to explain my problem. He was obviously not prepared for that and the matter ended there.
However, this set me thinking: ‘Are we really okay’? I arrived at the conclusion that it was not so. Most of us are not okay when we say so. The point to be pondered upon is why it is so. The obvious reason is that in this modern world, everyone is so busy with himself that he has no time to listen to others’ problems, leave alone for the problems of his own family members, including wife and children. Most of us are so busy in earning our living, that in the process we forget to live itself. I fail to understand that if one is not able to talk about his problems with his relatives and friends, is it really worth calling them relations and friends? After all, what is the purpose of having relatives and friends? I feel the purpose is to share our joys and sorrows with them. That is why there is the custom of inviting and informing friends and relatives on both type of occasions. It is said that joy is multiplied and sorrow is divided by sharing. Does it really happen in today’s society? I don’t think so. On the other hand, the joy may reduce or may turn out to be disharmonious in the company of opportunistic friends and relatives, while the sorrow may multiply by all sorts of advice offered by them. Obviously, sharing loses its meaning in both cases.
All this leads to tension at individual level and consequently at the social level. The child is not able to convey his problems to his or her parents. Even the husband finds no time to listen to his wife’s problems and then the chain reaction starts. Husbands, wives and children are parts of the society and they carry tensions wherever they go. The result is that we find a disharmonious environment everywhere. Be it a school, a bank, an office or a bus, there is always a lack of courtesy and accepting a little inconvenience for the sake of others is nowhere seen. What do we do then? Curse others and suffer? This remedy is worse than the malady.  No, this is not the solution to the problem. The solution has to be sought within oneself. Am I really concerned about the joys and sorrows of others? Seek an honest answer from within. If the answer is no, there is no need to feel guilty about it.
No beginning is too late. Start from your family. Are you really aware of the problems of your wife and children? If not, talk to them lovingly. Most of the problems have no solutions.  They are just to be shared. Every problem is an opportunity to improve. Similarly, share their joys too. An occasional word of sincere appreciation can do wonders. It is more than an ornament. Many a time the grievance may not be reasonable. But listen to it patiently and even accommodate against your logic for the sake of harmony. It is worth the sacrifice. Once harmony at home is established, every member of the family will act as a nucleus of positive thinking. Sharing the joys and sorrows of others is possible only when one is harmonious within oneself. Be genuinely interested in others. Be lavish in your appreciation of others, genuinely happy in their joys and truly concerned in their sorrow. You will then find many who will reciprocate in the same way. Then you need not carry the load of your joys and sorrows alone on your head. It will lighten your burden. You will then be able to say that you are not okay, if it is so and there will be no need to tell a lie. There will be well wishers who will have time for you when you need them. In all probability you will then always be okay.

Refuse to be Poor

What is the difference between a rich and a poor person? The answer will vary from person to person, from situation to situation and also upon the way one looks at the question. Rich and poor are not absolute terms. However, we shall define here richness as that level of prosperity, at which one is able to comfortably meet his personal and social needs. Unfortunately, most of those persons also who fall under this definition of richness, consider themselves to be poor.  This article is mainly addressed to them.
Let us have a look at the requirements of a rich man. His basic three needs of food, clothing and shelter are the same as that of any other person. Maybe the quality of food consumed, clothes worn and houses lived in would be better than that of a so-called poor person. But in quantity he is most likely to consume less as far as food is concerned. He will either have no time to eat properly or will have dietary restrictions, self-imposed or imposed by the doctor. I have a very close doctor friend whose wife is also a practising doctor. They earn lakhs of rupees every month. But they have hardly time to eat their food properly. So much so, that sometimes even we have to starve when we are their guests. Another factor related to food is its cooking. A rich man in all likelihood eats food cooked not by his wife or mother but by a servant. The thoughts which go along with the cooking of food are very important. These days, servants very rarely have true loyalty to their masters. Cooking is just a paid job for them and they have no love for it. Their interest is better served if the family members do not eat properly.  They are hardly bothered if the food cooked by them is relished or not.
Another aspect of eating food is whether the family members eat together at the dining table. It is generally seen that a rich family is more individualistic and each of its member has his own time for eating food. Thus the entire family is hardly able to meet at the dining table. This way they miss a great opportunity to come closer to each other and also to enjoy the food. Then there is the question of appetite. Rich people are generally caught up in so many worries that they have no appetite for food. Eating is just a part of their engagement sheet and not an essential part of living. They forget that the very purpose of earning more and more is defeated if they are not able to take genuine care of their health.
Coming to clothing, no doubt a rich man will have a large number of clothes and expensive ones.  But the basic question is, can anyone wear more than what is required at a point of time? One cannot wear two shirts at a time, nor two pairs of shoes. However, I can say with certainty that a poor man enjoys his good clothes more than the rich man. Getting a new suit stitched brings much more pleasure to a poor man than by a rich person procuring ten new suits. Even a new shirt will give him immense pleasure which a rich person cannot think of. The same is the case with shoes, sarees, jewellery, etc.
When we look at the problems in maintaining a large number of items, I feel it is not worth it.  For example, if one has, say, four pairs of shoes, every morning he has to decide which one to wear.  There is always a conflict in mind when one has to choose. Then the one intended to be worn may need polishing. For a variety of shoes one will have to keep a variety of polishes and brushes. A poor man has no such worries and feels quite happy with his limited possession. Factors like cost of maintenance, fear of getting spoiled, fear of theft and even the worry of disposal are additional botherations of a rich person who has a large number of expensive items. In all probability, his possessions remain showpieces because they are never used to an extent which makes them disposable. On the other hand, a poor person’s possessions find utility even after he has used them.  He has no hesitation in passing them to a poorer person after using it himself.
 More or less the same arguments apply to shelter also. One cannot sleep on two beds at the same time, leave alone two rooms. Today no one wants to have a large number of children, specially the rich. Also a rich man generally does not entertain his guests at home. Then of what use is the big house? Its furnishing, maintenance, taxes and envy of the neighbours will always be a cause of worry.  The size of the house is also likely to keep his real well-wishers away and chances are that he will remain surrounded by sycophants only. The most important fact is that a rich man will hardly have any time to enjoy his large house. He may have a big lawn but may not have time to sit there. He may have a swimming pool but no time to swim.
On the other hand, a modest house will always be enjoyed more. It can be maintained properly without much external help. It can be furnished easily. The guests are generally welcome in such houses and one can really enjoy the company of well wishers. A rich man may not be able to sleep in his big house without sleeping pills whereas a poor person will have sound sleep in his modest house.
Thus we find that in the three essential aspects of life, a poor person is somewhat better placed as compared to a rich person. In other aspects of life, he may be lacking. There may be few rich persons who may be really better off than a poor person in the essential aspects of life but that is mainly due to their way of thinking rather than their wealth.
Now a few words about those aspects of life, where a so called poor person may feel lacking.  These may be the areas like liberal use of car, eating in good restaurants, presenting gifts, or holidaying. Here a wise person should analyse whether such desires are merely for impressing others or are genuine needs. If it is the former then such a person is bound to invite trouble for himself and nothing can be done about it. However, if they are genuine needs, my experience is that one can afford to be liberal in these areas also by proper planning. For example, while using a car one can plan a journey in such a manner that many destinations are covered in one trip. Similarly, eating outside can be an occasion on which one would spend otherwise also. In the matter of gifts, purchasing at suitable occasions or making proper use of the gifts received is of great help. Holidaying can be made very much economical if timely planning is done and one does not feel tempted to do unnecessary shopping while holidaying. The point being made is that even in these aspects of life, one need not feel poor.
The idea here is not to condemn richness but to condemn the feeling of being poor. Riches do make a difference in life. Money is important and it changes the quality of life. In today’s context, it is more so. But overall it makes only a marginal difference, say, ten per cent. It is again emphasised that here poor means those who consider themselves poor despite being able to meet all their essential personal and social needs.
So, friends, stop feeling poor. The difference between you and the rich is only marginal, about ten per cent. An additional ten per cent will make you rich provided you are mentally rich. Enjoy what you have rather than fret and fume about what you do not have. It is the total quality of life which should be taken into account and not a lopsided view of it. And if you do so, you will have no cause to complain.  You will also feel rich and will ‘Refuse to be Poor’.

Riding the World

Horse riding was compulsory for IAS trainee officers when I joined the Academy in 1975.  However not all officers enjoyed this compulsion. Getting up early in the morning, wearing breeches and climbing down the valley to face the generally rude Sais hardly pleased anyone of us. As one assumes district charge, the relevance of riding becomes clearer. It is told during the probation period that a district is like a horse – unpredictable. If anything goes wrong, it is the Collector who is held responsible and not the district. Like the four stages of riding: walking, trotting, cantering and galloping, the Collector has to come to the command of the district in stages. He has to know when to kick and where, when to pull the reins and how much. Having crossed all these initial stages of administration, as I look at life in this world, I feel that even this world is like a horse. To enjoy living in this world one should know how to ride it.
The first step in riding is mounting. One has to avoid rough, jerky movements as one mounts the pony. These may startle the pony and cause it to shift position, making mounting much harder. In the same fashion the entry to the worldly life has to be smooth. It can also be compared with the take-off of an aeroplane. It has to be smooth and needs proper planning. It is like student life which prepares you for mounting the world. ‘
Having mounted the horse, one should learn the techniques of riding. The first stage is proper positioning. It includes holding the reins and sitting properly. This is quite important for the next stage that is pacing. In this world also one has to be in command as well as in a state of alertness. The world has to be faced with confidence. ‘Be careful but not fearful’ should be the guiding factor. Having mounted and taken a comfortable and alert position, one is ready for pacing.
You cannot run very fast right from the beginning. It has to be in stages. The first stage is ‘The Walk’. In this stage the rider should hold his head high and focus his eyes straight ahead but the hands and body should move slightly in response to the horse’s movement. This is the stage when you judge the world and the world judges you.  If the going is smooth one can shift to the next stage which is ‘The Trot’. This is the most important stage and a very active pace.  The rider must learn to rise from the saddle as one diagonal hits the ground and sit back as the other comes down. Once you have learnt the rising trot you will never forget it but it takes a lot of practice. In worldly life also it is the most important stage. One must learn to rise and sit with the world and if one does not or does so out of phase, the result will be painful.
Having properly learnt the stage of ‘The Trot’, one enters the stage, called ‘The Canter’. In this stage the rider should sit well down in the saddle and his hands and body should follow the rhythm of the pony as it canters along. He has no longer to rise up and sit back with pony. The world too behaves in a similar way once you cross the trotting stage. Having braved the ups and downs of the world, you learn to be in rhythm with it and then the ups and downs of the world no longer bother you. You have just to sit well down in the saddle and let the world run itself while you enjoy the riding best.
The last stage is ‘The Gallop’. The gallop is simply a fast canter. When galloping, the rider should not allow his weight to fall on the pony’s back. He has to lean forward and raise himself just clear of the saddle. His back should be straight, head up and shoulders forward.  He should support his weight on his knees and feet. Is it not the same with the world also?  Having fallen in the rhythm with the world, a stage comes when one rises above it. He has no more to sit over it.  That is to say, that he is unaffected by the world though still being in it. This is the ultimate in the riding of the world as well as the horse. Having mastered these stages, riding becomes merely a pleasure, a sport or whatever name you may give it. Is riding not relevant for all of us to enjoy living in this world?

Keep the Strings Loose

Life is bondage. This is what is said in the scriptures of all religions. We ourselves feel so in our day-to-day life. Every relationship is bondage and it becomes a cause of our sorrow at one point or the other. We expect happiness out of a relationship and the outcome turns out to be just the opposite.  At that time we feel shocked and make our life more unhappy. We start blaming others and tend to become pessimistic. Our trust on others suffers a set-back and we become unsure of ourselves. What to do then? Should we sever all the relationship? In that case the remedy will be worse than the malady. This will amount to escapism. Anyway, all relationships get severed at one point or the other. Then why should we take the responsibility of severing them ourselves. It will make us feel guilty and the very purpose of doing so will be lost. What is the alternative? This is what we shall be discussing in the present write-up.
Everyone is born without bondage but as one grows, one creates bondages in various forms. To begin with, family relations like mother, father, brother, sister, etc., become the bondages. These relations develop a sense of obligation towards each other. Then relations in the form of friends come in life. As one gets married, new relationships come in one’s life and then come son and daughter relationships. As one grows in status, the social-relations also become important. One develops a sense of obligation towards society and the corresponding expectation of recognition, name and fame.
On careful examination we will find that all these relationships are bondages as long as they create a feeling of obligation towards one another. If the obligation is not fulfilled from any side, the result is unhappiness. And if these are fulfilled, we suffer the shocks of separation, temporary or permanent. We sometimes miss a very dear person so much that his or her dearness becomes a source of pain for us. This can be compared with the scene when two persons are linked to each other with a tight rope and the rope is suddenly cut. Both of them will experience a great jerk and may even fall on the ground, if taken unaware.
What is the solution of this problem? Should no bonds be developed from the beginning itself?  Yes, it is the ideal solution but it is not possible for ordinary mortals. As long as a common man lives in this world, he develops various bondages. In a way these bondages act as a moving force for him and all the physical progress seen by us is the result of such bondages. One develops a bondage for money, another for fame and yet another for social service. They all render useful services to the society and to that extent their bondages are to be appreciated. Here we are talking of a situation when bondage becomes a cause of misery. At this stage we have to apply discretion. We should be able to judge as to when a particular bondage has ceased to remain useful or a motivating force. We must also remember the fact that all the bondages will sever one day or the other. So why not to prepare ourselves for the same? The best way of doing so is to loosen the strings of our bondages. In that case we shall not get a jerk when they get severed. With loose strings we have the freedom of movement and also the necessary restrain so as not to go astray. Such restrains are necessary for the common man. However, a realised soul need not have any strings at all.
This approach should be adopted in all kinds of bondage. This is the only way of insuring ourselves against the shocks received due to the sudden breaking of various relationships. There may still occur unexpected incidents where we may fail to exercise our discretion. These are to be treated as ‘accidents’ and we should accept them as such

Think Positive

The process of thinking is what differentiates man from animals. It is a wonderful faculty provided by God to human beings. The only thing that makes us a higher animal is the ability to think.  And it is the quality of thinking which distinguishes one person from another. Our best friends and our worst enemies are our thoughts. Thoughts make the whole dignity of man. Every action begins with a thought. It may be the starting of a business, construction of a building or killing someone. As are the thoughts, so are the actions. In this write-up we shall briefly discuss the quality aspect of thoughts and their impact on life.
An elderly friend of mine gave me a book many years back. It was titled ‘The Power of Positive Thinking’ written by Norman Vincent Peale. I went through it and found it inspiring. Then after a year or so, another friend gave me a book by the same author titled ‘The Amazing Results of Positive Thinking’. This book contained a large number of real life cases in which positive thinking had done wonders in the lives of people. Subsequently, I came across the whole series of books on positive thinking by the same author and went through them. The present article is mainly the result of this reading coupled with my own personal experiences in life.
In one of these books I read a case which goes like this: A lady ran a restaurant in San Francisco. It was a beautiful place, full of colour and life. Then her eyesight began to fail. Soon she was blind, living in darkness. One day the telephone rang and she groped her way to answer it and received the shocking news that her husband had just been killed in an accident; blindness and now her husband suddenly dead. She sat by the telephone, utterly crushed, wondering what she was going to do. She was dejected for weeks, living in helplessness. But in this most complete darkness, emotionally and physically, she perceived finally, by the help of her strong faith, that there was something positive to which she could attach herself. She did not choose to dwell on the negative, she sought the positive and she found it in a most remarkable way. Putting sincere faith and strong positive thinking against her sad conditions, she determined that she would conquer her grief, loneliness and handicap.
And in due course she not only succeeded but succeeded greatly. She wrote three successful cook books and a book of inspiration. She operated a frozen food business with her two sons and went to the office every day. That is what positive thinking is. It is tough mindedness. It is the refusal to be defeated. It is making the most of what you have to deal within life. It is to look at the positive side of your life and dwell on it. It is to look at the filled part of a half empty glass. We all have positive points in life even in the most gloomy conditions and if the mind can be turned to these, the positive thinking will start by itself. So if you feel that you are defeated and have lost confidence in your ability to win, sit down, take a piece of paper and make a list, not of the factors that are against you, but of those that are for you. If you think constantly of the forces that seem to be against you, you will build them up into a power far beyond that which is justified. They will resume a formidable strength which they do not possess. But if, on the contrary, you mentally visualise and affirm and reaffirm your assets and keep your thoughts on them emphasising them to the fullest extent, you will rise out of any difficulty regardless of what it may be. Your inner powers will re-assert themselves and, with the help of God, lift you from defeat to victory.
Feeling of confidence depends upon the type of thoughts that habitually occupy your mind.  Consider defeat and you are bound to feel defeated. But practise thinking of confident thoughts, make it a dominating habit, and you will develop such a strong sense of capacity that regardless of what difficulties arise you will be able to overcome them. A feeling of confidence actually induces increased strength.
Well, most of us raise the point that all this is easily said than done. True, the blows of life, the accumulation of difficulties, the multiplication of problems tend to sap your energy and leave you spent and discouraged. In such a condition, the true status of your power is often obscured, and you yield to a feeling of discouragement that is not justified by the facts. It is vitally essential to reappraise your personality assets. When done in an attitude of reasonableness, this evaluation will convince you that you are less defeated than you think you are.
The secret is to fill your mind with thoughts of faith, confidence and security. This will force out or expel all thoughts of doubt, all lack of confidence. The situation has to be faced as it exists now.  There is no point in regretting the past.  Never do it. However the mistakes of the past, if any, are to be converted into opportunities for the future. And this is what you call ‘Positive Thinking’. There is always a way to handle your difficulty or problem. A summarised ten steps approach is given below:
i) Thank God you have difficulties. It is a sign of life.
ii) Learn to stand back from your troubles and calmly survey them.
iii) Use your full mind power to analyse your difficulties. Then systematically chip away at it, bit by bit.
iv) Think positively about your difficulty.  Believe that you can overcome it. This way you will be on the way to victory.
v) Learn the spiritual-practical method for handling a difficulty.
vi) Work persistently and eventually you will be victorious.
vii) Grow to such heights that you can look down upon your problems.
viii) Calmly take life as it comes. Deal with your difficulties with a controlled mind.
ix) Never build a case against yourself, i.e., never think of failure.
x) Make use of the power of the Almighty. Troubles will defeat you without God, but with His help you can handle any difficulty.
Another problem which one faces in positive thinking is how to sustain positive thoughts.  Positive thoughts can be induced in everyone momentarily but that does not help, if they are not sustained. Positive thinking requires training and study and long perseverance.  You have to be willing to work at it, sometimes for long. It is like food. It must be taken daily and in healthy doses to keep the body going.  You must remember that there is much more power in your personality that has ever been used up. Release it through the process of regular positive thinking. Life is uncertain and it will always remain so (it has an ‘if’ at the centre of the word). Take it in its stride and live a full life.
Does positive thinking always work? Of course it does; positive thinking will work if you are willing to work at it. It is not an easy discipline. It takes hard work and strong belief. It takes honest living, and a keen desire to succeed. And you will need to keep working at it constantly to achieve success. Just when you believe you have mastered it, you will have to develop it again.
Success is available to all of us if we follow the basic principles of positive thinking. Start now to precondition your mind to success.

Plan Your Landing

Pandit Ram Kinkarji was a well known saint. He was such a good commentator on the Ramayana that even a staunch atheist was compelled to listen to him attentively. The reason is that he related the story of Ramayana to the common man’s day-to-day life in a very convincing manner. This way he did a great service to mankind. I came in contact with Panditji at a friend’s place in Dehradun many years back. Since then I had his blessings and the privilege of his company almost every year till his death. Panditji used to visit Kanpur also for discourses every year. During one such visit I had the opportunity to have a discussion with him. The reference was the suffering of most of the old people despite all their goodness and success in life. Panditji dealt with the subject very convincingly.
The sum and substance of his analysis was that those who do not plan the end of their life’s journey usually suffer, irrespective of their success and goodness. In the present write-up I am trying to put up the same thing in a more elaborate manner. I compare the journey of life with the flight of an aero plane. It can be divided into four parts. 1. Moving on the runway; 2. Taking off and gaining height; 3. Flying; 4. Landing.
Life can also be similarly divided into 4 parts. Taking a good lifespan of eighty years, each part can be assumed approximately equal. During the first twenty years one prepares for the flight of life.  He has to run on the ground with adequate acceleration so that he is able to take off before the end of the runway. He cannot venture taking off before acquiring sufficient speed which may lead to crash.  This period is called childhood which is preparatory for the flight of life. Having gained sufficient momentum in the first part of life, one takes off and gains height. This is what we call success in life.  A normal person goes up and up during this period of life till he reaches saturation point. This point varies from person to person depending upon his ambition and circumstances. Likewise, the altitude of an aero plane depends upon the type of plane, the distance of the destination and the weather. In this phase of life, one has to carefully determine the limits, otherwise the so-called success may turn out to be painful.
The next stage is of flying at a constant altitude with minor variations. This stage is comparable with adulthood when one has achieved all worldly successes and is satisfied with his gains. Those who do not reach the satisfaction level may ultimately lose the pleasure of their gains. Such people become miserable right at this stage of life. They forget that the fuel in the plane is limited to cover more distance at a constant height. This is the best part of the journey. In an aero plane’s journey also, one is most carefree during this period. The food, snacks, etc., are served during this period and there are no restrictions on movement. The last stage is landing. No pilot can afford to forget that his ultimate destination is ground only. If he forgets that, the consequences need not be told. The same thing has to be remembered in life also but most of us forget this simple fact. Having reached high in the sky, we do not want to come down voluntarily. The obvious consequence is a crash and that is what we call suffering in the last phase of life. This is what Panditji had hinted at.
The preparation for landing has to be started right in the third phase. The belts have to be fastened, movements stopped and descent begun. It is this process of descent which is resisted by most of us. Those who do not resist, land safely and smoothly. They meet the end of life happily without any complaint.

We All Are Coolies

I was posted as Collector of Basti in 1982. It was my first (and the only one) posting as Collector. At that time, Basti used to be the biggest district of U.P. with 32 development blocks. It was predominantly a rural district and the rural population was also the highest in the State. The district had great potential for development. Overall the posting provided an excellent opportunity to serve its people. I tried to take full advantage of this opportunity and derived great satisfaction from it. The people of Basti gave me a lot of affection and goodwill. I still feel very close to them and consider it as one of the most valuable earnings of my life.
However, there was another aspect of the posting. I had a big house with about 10 acres of cultivable land. There was a lot of manpower to look after everything. I had tremendous resources at my command. Lots of people would come to see me every day and most of them gave the impression as if I was the best collector, the district had had till then with one or two exceptions. Almost every office in the district seeks instructions/guidance from the collector at one time or another. Overall it made one feel at the top of the world as if everything really belonged to him.
Fortunately, I had the grace of God and the power never went to my head (at least to my knowledge). Though one did not find much time for leisure in a posting like this, still I used to spend sometime in the back lawns sitting alone or with the family. During one such day, I was thinking about all the opportunities, perks and facilities the post provided to me and that one day all these things would go. It shocked me for a moment because inadvertently, perhaps, I had also developed a feeling of belonging to all these things. Then my thought went to a coolie who quite often carries boxes/packets containing expensive things fully knowing that nothing belonged to him.  He was concerned only with the wages after taking the load to its destination. Am I not like a coolie? said my inner voice;”Carrying expensive load on my head, may be a box containing gold, which does not belong to me”. Why should then there be any sense of belonging?  The only thing expected was more care and sincerity when the coolie knew that the load was expensive. But if during the course of carrying the load, he developed a feeling of belonging and refused to part away with the load, the consequence was obvious. This thought process cleansed my mind of all the ego, which developed inadvertently and I could serve the district with much more dedication and detachment during the remaining tenure.
This analogy can be extended to all of us. It appears more obvious in transferable jobs where one starts understanding the temporariness of things rather early. But in other cases also, it is a matter of time only, the time during which the coolie carries the load. One may carry a load up to platform number one and another up to platform number nine. The separation of load and the coolie is a foregone conclusion. All the world, we see around us with a sense of belonging is like the load on the head of a coolie. Those who have good world around them develop a sense of belonging to it (like expensive load) and feel great pain when the time of separation comes. Is it not wise to understand the reality right in the beginning?  And the best way is to realise as early as possible that “WE ALL ARE COOLIES” and the load does not belong to us.
Detachment from the world of objects is not possible without attaching ourselves with something nobler and divine.

We Get What We Wish

We get what we wish. But the wish has to be strong. If we wish worldly things, we get worldly things. Wishing is such a strong power that it can overcome all the obstacles. I had a very interesting experience of this fact during my stay in U.K. in 1990. It goes like this.
I went to U.K. in April 1990 to attend a three-month course. The course was held in a small beautiful town of Ilkely near Leeds. All the participants were from India. The town provided an excellent environment for walks and we used to walk around as much as was possible within the time available to us. The town was very neat and clean.
One day I got a penny on the road. The desire reappeared and there was another penny on the road. This way I found many pennies during our walks. Suddenly the wish of finding a pound came to mind.  In U.K., no one bothers for a penny but a pound is different. In terms of purchasing power, it is almost equivalent to a twenty-rupee note in India.
I told my friends that since the desire is strong, I should find a pound on the road before the expiry of the course. And the search began. While walking, I looked attentively on the road but to no avail. The highest coin I could find was a five-penny coin. The course was coming to an end. Only a few days were left. Our shopping was also concluding. We had started planning our expenditure carefully. And during one of these last days, while I was returning to my campus, I found a pound on the road. The keen desire was fulfilled. Everyone was thrilled and wanted a party. It was arranged but by pooling more money and the pound was donated to the local church.
The moral of the incident is that we get what we wish. That being so, why should we wish for lower things? One should wish for higher things and he will get higher things. And ultimately we become what we wish to become.

Create Your Own Good World

The world we live in is very bad. This is what most of us have come to believe.  Somehow I do not believe so.  I am of the view that the world is very good.  And to be cautious, at least my world is very good.  What does it mean? It means that even if the entire world is not good, one can always create his own good world. After all one does not live in the whole world. Your own world is very small and it can always be made good even if you are not able to make the entire world good.
I will explain it further. Kanpur is a dirty city. Kanpurites will excuse me but this is what they themselves say. The effort should be to make Kanpur clean and all should strive for it. But if for some reason, we are not able to do so, what is the option? The option is to keep our mohalla clean, and suppose even that is not possible, the next option is to keep our home clean. Also in order to make the city clean, the process has to be begun from our homes. If homes are not clean, there is no question of the city being clean. After all there are beautiful homes in Kanpur also, staying where one will forget all the dirtiness of Kanpur…Read more…
The same is the case with the world also. There are people among whom you will forget all the bad things of this world. You will then see only the good world. Then why not look for these people and be in their company?  Who can prevent you from making good friends? After all it is your right to choose your friends, hobbies and life style. This is what constitutes your own small world. And so if the entire world is not beautiful, don’t bother. Create your own beautiful world.
Having created your own good, beautiful world, you can proceed, to higher entity (equivalent to mohalla in a town). For a businessman it may be his business circle, for a serviceman it may be his office and so on. Without craving for results, one can always make an effort to make things better at all the places where he goes. This reminds me of a saying by Oscar Wilde which goes like this:
‘There are people who create happiness wherever they go, others whenever they go”,
Let us belong to the first category of people.
“When someone strikes you, glorify the pain; be grateful that you have a chance to prove your stead fastness and loyalty. A person’s test of strength and wisdom rests on this-how great is his sense of equilibrium under stress. A man must have so much balance, so much wisdom that he can withstand all the onslaughts of life.” Swami Parmananda

When You Don’t Agree

Almost daily we come across situations with which we do not agree. It may be a situation at home, at office, at marketplace or anywhere else. For example, your son may not be doing as well as you expect him to do. The subordinate may not be as honest as you expect him to be. The shopkeeper’s behaviour may not be as polite as it should be, so on and so forth. One is generally at a loss to understand what should be the attitude in such situations. We shall briefly discuss this in the present article.
There can be three ways of dealing with such situations. The first is to ‘React’. It means that you immediately express your disagreement in explicit terms, often with anger. This is the worst way of dealing with the situation. In this way, while you lose your own peace of mind, you do no good to the person or situation with whom you don’t agree. By reacting immediately you are likely to lose sight of the positive side of the person. As a result the chances of the other person making any amends become very feeble and the overall situation becomes from bad to worse. The experience is that when you realise your hurried reaction, you end up making more compromise with the situation than what you would have normally made. Also reaction is an indication of your own weakness and indicates lack of conviction in your thinking. A person who believes in and practices virtue has no need to react.
The second way of dealing with a situation with which you don’t agree is to ‘Tolerate’ it. This is superior to the first approach. In tolerating you do not express your disagreement externally but internally you do not accept the situation. Normally this affects you internally. While this may or may not have a positive effect on the situation or person which is troubling you, it definitely has a negative effect on you. To some extent it also indicates the presence of the ego in you because when you tolerate a situation or person, a certain amount of repulsion or hate is implied. It brings you down and there is a good probability of your losing mental peace.
The best way to deal with a situation with which you do not agree is to ‘Accept’ it. This may raise several doubts in your mind. The first is whether it would amount to escapism. This is not true provided you do your duty to improve the situation or the person. Many times you may not be in a position to take any effective step. In that case you can politely give your advice without expecting compliance. It will generally go into the subconscious mind of the person responsible for the situation.  This way you improve the chances of changing the person or the situation without losing your mental peace.
Unfortunately, what most of us do is to change ourselves on the lines of wrong persons or situations and then justify our slips.  But does it really help anyone?  No one, and not you in the least.  The ultimate aim of everyone is mental peace and happiness and it cannot be achieved when you ‘React’ or ‘Tolerate’.  Only ‘Acceptance’, having done your duty, is the right option.
A wise man is one who can live in peace with things he cannot change.
When we have accepted the worst, we have nothing more to lose. Result : true peace of mind.
Accept what you cannot change.

Progress in Z Direction

‘Progress’ is a much talked about subject.  Progress is, and should be, the aim of everyone, be it at the individual level, group level or national level. In the present article we shall briefly discuss about the progress at the individual level, though the conclusion will be applicable at the collective level also since the individual progress automatically leads to collective progress.
The simplest meaning of the word ‘Progress’ according to Chamber’s Dictionary is ‘Forward Movement’. It is silent over the direction of movement and forward is a relative term. Also the factor to be looked into is the ‘Purpose of Progress’. Assuming that the purpose of progress is happiness at all levels, we shall try to analyse as to why so much misery exists despite ‘Progress’ in all fields.
Now when we talk of the direction, let us assume a three-dimensional space consisting of X, Y and Z axes. Let us also assume that the earthly plane is the X Y plane and the Z axis be the vertical direction. The progress we generally talk about and try to achieve is at the X Y plane that is at the earthly level. This kind of progress can never result in universal happiness. It is practically impossible for all to move in the forward direction on the X Y plane, because there is not enough space. In economic terms there are not enough resources for all to develop equally on the material plane.  Such a dream will never come true.
That being so, what is the option or the desired strategy?  Here comes the Z axis. Unless movement is in the higher direction, the real progress will never be possible. And as one moves higher and higher, material progress starts appearing more and more insignificant. A comparable example can be that of flying in an aero plane. As one goes higher up in the sky, the divisions of villages, towns, provinces and even countries keep going in the background.  One really starts wondering as to why are so many man-made barriers. If such becomes the thinking while one is at physically higher level for a short period, one can imagine the state of mind of a person who remains at a higher level of thinking all the time. That is to say, unless the parameters of progress change, its objective can never be achieved. And for that, one has to rise above the material plane. Here the question of lack of space (or resources) does not arise. From a higher level of thinking the differences at the materials plane will look very insignificant.
I don’t mean to say that efforts to make progress at the XY Plane should not be made. But I definitely believe that mere progress at this plane does not achieve the objective of progress. For that, one has to progress in the Z direction. As long as we aim only at material progress, the result will be the same. For example, the world has been trying to remove poverty for a long time but are we not poorer than ever before? The people may be moving above, the poverty line moves up even at a faster pace.
Therefore, we should plan of progress not only in the X Y directions but also in the Z direction.  We may call them worldly directions and the spiritual direction respectively. Then only the objective of ‘Progress’ can be achieved.
When the selfish side of our life dies away, the nobler, bigger, braver God-side will manifest itself.

There is Enough Money

These days rarely do we find a person who is happy within his income? It is true that prices have been going up at a fast rate but so have incomes. I don’t mean to say that prices have not adversely affected the common man.  But I definitely do not consider this the only reason for being unhappy with what most of us get.  I believe that in most of the cases ‘There is Enough Money’ and it depends on us how wisely we use it without sacrificing the essential needs of life.  This is what we shall try to establish in this article.
Swami Chinmayanandji, in his book ‘Kindle Life’, has described the ‘Happiness Index’ as the ratio of number of desires fulfilled divided by the number of desires entertained.
There can be two ways of raising this index, i.e., by increasing the numerator or by decreasing the denominator. The trouble with most of us is that as the number of desires fulfilled increases, the number of desires entertained also increases at much faster rate. This results in the fall in the value of the ‘Happiness Index’. With this kind of approach it will never be possible to raise the Happiness Index, no matter what may be the increase in our incomes or resources. So if the index is to be raised, at least the denominator should remain constant.  The better way of raising the index would be to decrease the number of desires entertained, once our essential needs are fulfilled. And the index will become infinite, if the number of desires is reduced to zero. That is to say that a desireless or wantless person is the happiest person. We, however, have no intention of advocating such a state of mind.
This analysis brings us to the conclusion that if we want to be happy within our means, we have to reduce our needs and desires. To do so we shall have to rationally analyse our present needs with an open mind. And if we do so I am sure that there will be many areas in which money can be saved without discomfort. Broadly the needs or desires can be classified into three categories:
1. Essential Needs.
2. Comfort Needs.
3. Luxury Needs.
Fulfilment of essential needs is necessary for survival. Food, clothing, shelter, education and health-care fall in this category. Among these, food is the most important. One need not give many arguments to establish that there can be wide range of expenditure on all these essential needs.  However, one should believe in the basic fact that the nature has given us enough for our needs but not for our greed. That being so, it depends upon us as to how we spend on these essential needs.  For example, when we talk of food, the main criteria should be the nutrition and we all know that nutritious food is not necessarily costly. In all probability it will be other way round. For example, seasonal and fresh fruits/vegetables are generally the cheapest and most nutritious. All food items if properly planned in terms of requirements and timings can save a lot of money. The same is the case with clothing. Here the main criteria should be the decency and convenience. Costly dresses are not always decent. Also maintaining more than reasonable number of dresses is not only expensive but also inconvenient. One can easily establish norms of adding new dresses and at the same time helping the poor people by giving them the old dresses.
As far as shelter is concerned, it is more difficult to draw a line.  At the same time it is one of the major items of expenditure. Unfortunately, in our country, the concept of constructing functional houses is missing and in most of the cases money is spent for the sake of spending. There is vast scope for saving money in the construction of houses without sacrificing comfort, nay, with more comfort. It is mainly because of the extravagance of those who have excessive money, that the construction of house is becoming more and more difficult for the common man.  Well, that being a bigger issue, those who construct houses with limited resources should try to be as functional as possible.  The main criteria should be proper light, ventilation and safety. Those who go for rented houses should also look for these features. A small, well-kept house is always better appreciated than an ill-kept big one.
Similar planning is required in the field of education and health care.  These also vary widely in terms of quality and cost.  Expenditure on education can be saved by proper selection of school, proper attention on children and efficient use of aids.  In case of health care, the attention should be more on prevention than cure. These days there is too much emphasis on costly medicines. It may not always be possible to avoid them but most of the time one can manage with economic treatment.
Having met the essential needs one should properly plan the needs falling in the category of comfort. Items like television, refrigerator, means of transport, etc., may be said to fall in this category for most of the middle-class families.  There is more scope for showing wisdom in this area and one should understand his limitations well.  In no case should one stretch these needs beyond his means.
The last category of needs is luxury needs.  These may be called ‘Desires’, and Happiness Index mainly depends upon them.  One desire generally leads to another and there is no end to them.  Hence, there is need to be careful right in the beginning, otherwise one ends up losing not only money but mental peace too.  Therefore, luxury needs should always be given up.  In all probability ‘desires’ take away one’s happiness, in the long run, if not immediately.  The interesting thing is that individually most of us feel that extravagance is bad but somehow we keep on indulging in it.  Therefore, need is to get away from this cycle.  The so-called society (which is perhaps we are afraid of) consists of individuals and if they feel otherwise, where is the question of society not appreciating it?  But someone has to make the beginning.  Why not we?
A good technique to plan expenditure is to ask two questions whenever a need is felt in mind.  One, whether it is essential, and if it is not, drop it then and there.  In case it turns out to be essential, the next question should be whether it can be postponed.  If yes, it should be postponed.  Most likely it will become non-essential during the period of postponement.  If even after that it remains essential and immediate, it should be fulfilled.  Also frequent visits to market should be avoided.  Many non-essential needs become essential when you go around the market.  As far as possible one should go to the market with a definite list of items on paper or in mind and confine his purchases to that.
Thus, if a man keeps control over his desires and wisely spends his resources on essential personal and social needs, there will be no occasion for complaining.  And if society at large is able to do so even the bad shape of the economy, which we see today, will improve.  And then most of us will start believing that ‘There is Enough Money’.
 Hold your money merely as custodian for what is God’s.
If money does not bring happiness, give it back.
Money is a good servant but a bad master.
Money is not evil if in good hands.

There is Enough Time

I have not attended even a single function at which the Chief Guest was not a very busy person and not in a hurry to leave. So is the case with most of the so-called important persons. They are always busy and have no time even to think as to why they are so busy. One also wonders if most of the important persons of the society are so busy, the shape of things in all the spheres should have been excellent. But is that so? If not, then of what use is their busy-ness?
I have pondered a great deal over this subject and am of the view that most of us waste a lot of time though we always appear to be very busy. I also hold that there is enough time for everything which falls within official or social duty. And I take duty in a much wider sense. It is only a question of making optimum use of our time by planning it well. I will even go to the extent of saying that the day can be of more than twenty-four hours for a well planned person and I mean it. I also believe that a busy man has more time than a free man. So efforts should be made to remain busy but in a productive and healthy manner.
All my above thinking was confirmed by a book on Time Management by M R Pai. I am mentioning about the book because I could go through it on account of my time planning. Once I was returning from Bombay. After reaching the airport I learnt that the flight was late by four hours. (Ultimately it was delayed by ten hours.) I had the option either to go back to the city or to wait at the airport itself.  Since there was no worthwhile assignment in mind for the city, I decided to wait at the airport itself and also sent back the manager who had come to see me off. At the airport I visited the bookshop and came across some good books. I bought some including the above mentioned one.  Thus I could not only go through the books, but also the waiting became a pleasure, and instead of cursing Indian Airlines, I felt gratified towards it. Since the book was small and reasonably priced, I bought few more copies of it for some of my friends and it was appreciated by all who read it. I, therefore, thought it proper to share the contents (which are confirmed by my own personal experience) with more of my friends.
First of all we must believe in the value of time and consider it as a very important resource. We generally talk of three resources, namely MAN, MONEY and MATERIAL; add the fourth resource to it: MOMENTS. This fourth resource differs from others in a vital respect; once it is lost it cannot be replaced. If money is lost, it can be borrowed; if material is lost, fresh stocks can be built up; if trained staff leave, new staff can be recruited. But if time is lost, it cannot be regained or replaced. For time management, it is essential to develop this consciousness of the value of time as a resource.
The next step is Time-budgeting. More than money, time is to be budgeted properly. First draw up an annual plan with regard to all important business and personal items. Every quarter, draw up a fairly detailed plan for the quarter.  Every month end, draw up a plan for the following month and so with the week. Every day, in the morning, plan in detail the day’s activities. Time spent in all this planning will be rewarded in the form of better efficiency. Various models can be drawn up for a daily time budget and one can choose according to one’s convenience.
The approach to time management should be an integrated one. It has to take into account all aspects of your daily life. However, for purpose of discussion, time can be divided into three aspects-Biological Time, Business or Office Time and Social Time. The general principles of these aspects shall be discussed here, in order to make best use of time. (Contd.)
Biological Time
Your body is the instrument of work and should be kept in very good order.  Biological needs like sleep, food and recreation should, therefore, be well regulated.  Time Management with regard to these biological needs, therefore, assumes great significance.  There are four general principles of Biological Time Management:
a) Treat all days alike; Treating some days as holidays and some others as working days upsets the routine.  If you get up at the same time and complete ablution and other daily necessities, you will get a complete grip on the activities of the entire day.
b) In all repetitive activities. find out time-saving efficiency techniques.  For instance, even if you save five minutes every day in bathing or shaving, you will have saved thirty hours in a year.
c) Regulate your daily activities in a clock-like fashion,  It means that, by and large, there should be a fixed time for your biological activities like food, exercise, sleep, etc.
d) It is advisable to develop the habit of getting up early in the morning.  It has several advantages.  The mind is fresh and powerful.  There are no disturbances.  The environment is quiet and you can work with tremendous concentration.  However, those who cannot get up early should develop the habit of staying awake late at night.  But it is certain that two hours of early morning are much more than two hours of late night in terms of efficiency.
Business Time
Time spent in office or at business place is known as Business Time and is obviously very important.  There are some general principles governing Business Time.  They are:
a) Feel healthy and cheerful when you are in office or at business place.  If you don’t feel so, it may be advisable to stay home and take rest.  Your irritation in office may cost very dearly.
b) Reach your workplace well in time and, if possible, little before time.  This changes the whole atmosphere of the office and in all likelihood you will be able to leave office in time in the evening also.  The day’s output of the whole office will also increase tremendously.
c) Structure your office time suitably depending upon your needs.  However, the structure should be able to take care of unforeseen situations.  This is necessary to avoid irritation when such situations appear.
d) Make the best use of your support services like telephone, intercom, fax machine, personal staff, etc.  Be judicious in deciding the job you should do yourself.  Try to delegate as much as possible.
e) Be precise and clear in your communication be it verbal or written.  Instructions to your subordinates should be very clear, otherwise at the end of the day everybody’s effort may go waste.
f) Keep your table tidy and encourage everyone to do the same.  The papers and files should be well arranged.  This saves a lot of time.
g) Be brief and businesslike while meeting visitors.  Those who unnecessarily prolong discussion should be firmly told not to do so.  Avoid offering tea or coffee to visitors, and if it has to be offered, make sure that it is served in the least possible time.
h) Advise important visitors to seek prior appointment as far as possible.  The same practice should be followed when you go to meet others.
i) Plan your tours wisely and try to cover as many assignments as are conveniently possible in one visit.  Keep addresses and telephone numbers properly recorded in your diary, and it should be readily available.
j) Attend promptly to small matters like submitting T.A. bills, verifying your GPF account, sending replies to various letters which cannot be passed on to the office, etc.  A reminder will only add to your work.  You are likely to take more time in recollecting the facts, once reply is delayed.
k) If you attend a meeting, try to find when your presence is required and be present accordingly.  In case it is not possible to do so take some paper or file which may be gone through, if your participation in the meeting is not required for some length of time.
1) And lastly, believe that others’ time is as important as that of yours.  Never waste others time for lack of planning.  Ultimately it is the output of the whole organisation which matters and not merely yours.
These are some of the principles which should be followed in order to make best use of Business Time.  The list is not exhaustive and many more points can be added.  But the scope of managing Business Time much more efficiently is well established.
Social time
Social Time is the time you give to your own development, to your family and friends and for social activities.  Many businessmen and executives feel that their business obligations are so heavy that they cannot find sufficient time for their family.  Their thinking is totally wrong and counter-productive.  Such people end up by paying a heavy price for their so-called busy schedule.  Proper management of social time is as important as the other two aspects of time.  Some important aspects of Social Time Management are given below :
a) All family members should meet at least once every day and exchange information and views.  This promotes close family bonds and lays the foundation for a happy and successful life.
b) At least one morning in a week should also be reserved for the family.  And, once or twice a year all should go out of town for a brief holiday.
c) Some people develop a habit of carrying office files to their homes.  As far as possible, this should be avoided.
d) Paying social visits and attending parties are unavoidable, but too much of them can destroy your private life.  So carefully choose the occasions, which should be attended.  You should also develop the art of saying ‘no’ if you find it difficult to attend some occasion.  Writing a good letter or giving a courteous phone call is most practical way of doing so.
e) For every visit, lay down an average time-limit.  Once people come to know that you do not waste any time, and even when you visit them you spend only half an hour or an hour utmost, they will respect your sense of time.
f) Social visits should be preceded by some intimation.  Unscheduled visits always take a longer time than preplanned ones.
g) You must have time everyday for thinking.  The greater your responsibility, the more time you need for thinking.  Early morning walks can be a good time to think.  This time should not at all be wasted in gossiping.
h) Waiting at places like airport, railway or bus station can be used for thinking or reading.  Travelling also provides an excellent opportunity for thinking and reading.
i) Reading is an important aspect of social time.  If you analyse your reading material you will find that it falls into the following categories:
1. Daily newspapers, magazine or current affairs,
2. Professional magazines,
3. Professional books,
4. General books and,
5. Classics.
The first principle is to be selective in your reading; the second is to plan your reading.  For instance, do not buy 15 or 20 magazines.  Select the essential ones and go through them properly.  As regards books, you should make a realistic list of books to be read every year.  Such a list should also provide a room for any new book which should be read immediately.  Some part of reading time should be reserved for professional magazines and latest books on your subject so that you are always up-to-date in your line of work.
Reading the daily newspaper is not only a habit but also a necessity.  However, one should be selective here also.  There is no point in going through too many newspapers.  The choice should be limited to two or three papers.  One should also develop the habit of reading them rapidly and meaningfully.
j) Apart from these personal needs, one should find some time for social activities also.  This will depend upon the individual’s liking.  But it should be carefully selected and the contribution should be meaningful.  It should not merely for the sake of it, otherwise, it may be counter-productive.  One can serve the society through such activities and derive satisfaction.  A well planned man can easily find time for such activities also.
Thus we have covered all the aspects of Time Management.  It may not be possible to follow all of them at once but as one proceeds in this direction, they will automatically be followed.  And then you will also end up saying “THERE IS ENOUGH TIME”.
 A good secret of how best to use each day’s time is to try to pack it like a suitcase, filling up the small spaces with small things.
As every thread of gold is valuable, so is every moment of time.
Doing the duty of the time is the best way to live.
 Everything has its time. The desire to reach things before the right time means overreaching them.
Manage your time as you manage your money.
Short as life is, we make it still shorter by the careless waste of time.
There is enough time. Don’t waste time in thinking that it is not enough.
Time is the same for all of us; the diligent catches hold of it; the foolish lets it pass.
Time misspent is not lived but lost.
Well arranged time is the surest mark of a well arranged mind.
You can work forty-eight hours a day if you plan well.

When Bad Things Happen to Good People 2

While there is no harm in taking this line of thought, the problem with this reasoning is that it does not really help the sufferer or explain his suffering. It is primarily to defend God, to use words and ideas to transform bad into good and pain into privilege. In a way, we also try to establish that God is the cause of our suffering and also make ourselves feel guilty in addition to the burden of tragedy.
The author has taken altogether different view of the situation. He cannot imagine of a God who can be cruel at any time. He has tried to establish that life consists of good and bad things. And happening of bad things is as much a matter of chance, as those of good things in anybody’s life. God does not want bad things to happen but perhaps it is not in His hands. He also does not want bad things to happen as much as we want. Some are caused by bad luck, some are caused by bad people and some are simply an inevitable consequence of our being human and being mortal, living in a world of inflexible natural laws. The painful things that happen to us are not punishment for our misbehaviour, nor are they in any way part of some grand design on God’s part. Because the tragedy is not God’s will, we need not feel hurt or betrayed by God when tragedy strikes. Instead, we can turn to Him for help in overcoming it because God is as outraged by the tragedy as we are.
And this is how bad things have a meaning in the lives of good people. It turns them to God all the more. That is to say, bad things that happen to us in our lives do not have a meaning when they happen to us. They do not happen for any good reason which would cause us to accept them willingly. But we can give meaning to them.  We can redeem these tragedies from senselessness by imposing meaning upon them. The question we should be asking is not ‘Why did this happen to me?’ ‘What did I do to deserve this?’ That is really an unanswerable, pointless question.  A better question would be ‘Now that this has happened to me, what am I going to do about it ?’
And this is where God comes to our help in the form of a good friend, a good relative, a good idea or courage.  God inspires some people to help others who have been hurt by life. God makes them want to become doctors and nurses, to spend days and nights of self-sacrificing concern with an intensity for which no money can compensate, in an effort to sustain life and alleviate pain. And this concern, courage, in due course gives a meaning to the tragedy.
In the end, the author concludes that his own tragedy had a great meaning.  He believes that his son served God’s purpose not by being sick or strange-looking (there was no reason why God should have wanted that), but by facing up so bravely to his illness and to the problems caused by his appearance.  His friends and schoolmates were affected by his courage and by the way he managed to live a full life despite his limitations.  The people who knew his family were moved to handle the difficult times in their own lives with greater hope and courage when they saw this example.
None of us can avoid the problem of why bad things happen to good people.  The question is ‘Are we capable of forgiving and loving the people around us, even if they have hurt us and let us down by not being perfect.  Can we forgive and love God even when we have found out that He is not perfect, even when He has let us down and disappointed us by permitting bad luck and sickness and cruelty in His world, and permitting some of these things to happen to us ?’
And if we can do these things, we shall be able to recognise that the ability to forgive and to love are the weapons God has given us to enable us to live fully, bravely and meaningfully in this less-than-perfect world.  The question ‘Why bad things happen to good people’ will then lose its significance.
Adversity causes some men to break, others to break records.
Adversity introduces a man to himself.
Adversity is afraid of one who is not afraid of adversity.
Adversity makes man wise but not rich.
A winner gets scars too.

When Bad Things Happen to Good People

During my U.K. visit in 1990, I came across a wonderful book titled ‘When Bad Things Happen to Good People’. I reached London on 27 April and on the 29, visited my niece. She is very positive and helpful person. At that time a relation of hers (a young lady) was staying there and had come for a knee operation. There was problem in one of her knees and it was to be operated upon. It was a major operation scheduled for 14 May.
We were all talking about this. I found the lady to be confident and positive. It pleased us all and then we started talking about why Bad Things Happen to God People. The lady was a Lecturer in a reputed public school of Delhi. She had been a good player all through her student life. So much so, she aimed to join IPS, which she could not do for various reasons. She got married to a well placed man working for an international airline. She had a son and they were leading a happy and successful life. And suddenly the trouble came. By no stretch of imagination, they could think of this development. After the operation, perhaps, she was not to be her normal self and she knew it well. But she was still positive in her attitude and confidently participated in the discussion.
As we were trying to draw our conclusions about such happenings, the husband of my niece took out the book ‘When Bad Things Happen to Good People’ written by Harold S. Kushner. The book was obviously most relevant to our subject of discussion. I was told that it was a rare book and not easily available. Since I was to stay in the U.K. for about three months, I borrowed the book and went through it immediately thereafter. And it turned out ot be a wonderful book. Then the thought came to my mind to prepare a write-up on the conclusions of the book and present it to my friends. I am sure that this thoughtful, life-affirming book will help you cope with hard times and personal pain. Filled with compassion, it will give you comfort and strength when tragedy threatens to take away your faith and help you understand that God can fulfill the deepest needs of an anguished heart.
The author is a rabbi of Jews (clergyman) in the USA. When he was young, he had a son who was a bright and happy child. The family was a very happy one but suddenly the child was detected for a very strange disease. His hair started falling out after he turned one year old and stopped growing. Doctors called this phenomenon ‘Progeria’. They told the author that the child would never grow beyond three feet in height, would have no hair on his head or body, would look like a little old man while he was still a child and would die in his early teens.
How does one handle news like that? Like any other common man, the author felt deeply shocked and questioned God’s fairness. He was a good man doing all that a good person is supposed to do. The question ‘Why did it happen to him only?’ came to his mind again and again. He started searching for answers to it and the book is result of that search. The boy, of course, died at the age of fourteen as predicted but the thinking of the author reduced the agony of the reality to a great extent and changed his life altogether in the time to come.
The misfortune of good people are not only a problem to the people who suffer and their families, they are a problem for everyone who wants to believe in a just and fair and livable world. They inevitably raise questions about the goodness, the kindness and even the existence of God. The general attitude is the assumption that we get what we deserve and we always try to find reasons for justifying whatever happens to us. At times we also try to establish that the tragedy has happened for our good.

Learn to Trust – 2

After communication comes the timely decision on personal matters. Mere good intentions are not enough unless these are converted into action. Small matters in the view of management like annual increments, crossing of efficiency bars, GPF advance, leave sanction, T.A. bill sanction etc., are very important from an individual’s point of view. A system should be developed so that these problems are taken care of before any need of complaint arises. I have come across several cases where there has been criminal neglect in the disposal of such matters. No wonder, the affected employees had lost all their initiative.
Another important factor is the working environment. It should be ensured that your men’s working environment is reasonably good, keeping in view the resources of the organisation. I am of the view that lavish expenditure is not necessary for this purpose. All that is needed is to take timely care of the furniture and other equipments. The management should not expect good work from a person who sits on a broken chair. I also feel that the management should not incur unnecessary expenditure for the senior officers and there should be minimum gap between management and employees’ working environment. Once these attitudes are developed, it becomes easy to develop a proper work culture.
And then there is need to keep your employees as up-to-date as possible. The management gets several opportunities of interaction with the outer world and thus remains aware of the developments but the staff does not get such opportunities. While equal opportunities may not be possible, their knowledge should be updated through training, seminars or other forums of discussions. My experience in this area has been very positive. This is liked by most of the staff and they respond wonderfully if the job is done seriously.
I will not touch upon other areas which make an organisation conducive to growth. The intention here was to highlight the ‘Man’ part of the organisation which I feel is the most important resource of all the four ‘M’s, namely, Man, Money, Material and Moments. And to develop ‘Man’ we must ‘LEARN TO TRUST’.
God can make you anything you want to be. The secret is ‘Trust Him’.
It is an equal failing to trust everybody and to trust nobody.
The man who trusts men will make fewer mistakes than he who distrusts them.
The only way to make a man trustworthy is to trust him.
To be trusted is a greater compliment than to be loved.
Trust is like a thin thread. Once you break it, it is almost impossible to put it together again.
Trusting is occasionally painful. Not trusting is always so.
What upsets me is not that you lied to me but that from now onwards I can no longer trust you.

Learn to Trust -1

The management-employee relationship is very important for the progress of an organisation. ‘Man’ is the most important resource of any organisation but perhaps least attention is paid towards man-making. We always pay more attention towards resources like building, equipments, furniture, etc. The management may sometimes be unduly concerned about working hours also. It is not that these areas are not important. They certainly are, but in my view these are subservient to man, who is the core of the organisation. Unless there is an inner urge to work, no amount of external facilities can motivate a man to improve his productivity. They can at best help marginally.
Now the question arises as to how an inner urge can be created in human beings. I must hasten to add here that an inner urge is something which is always there. It may be dormant in some persons. The meaning of creation is to revive this urge. Human beings are basically divine and this fact is to be accepted before making efforts in developing them. The approach should therefore be to trust your men. Someone may say that trusting may at times be harmful. To this I will only say that non-trusting is always harmful, while trusting is occasionally so. By trusting, an organisation always stands to gain. Of course, trusting does not at all mean ‘not being careful’. That one has always to be. Even while one walks on the road, one has to be careful. This does not mean that one should not walk on the road.
Trusting is a two-way process but the initiative has to come from those in superior position. A precondition of trust is the realisation of a common objective. The goal of an organisation should be well defined and known to everyone. An individual should also know his role in the realisation of the goal and feel proud of it. A feeling should prevail in the organisation that everyone is important at his place and should be treated with dignity. The dignity of the lowest paid employee is as important as that of the Chief Executive or perhaps even more than him.
Having created such an atmosphere in the organisation, one can safely trust his colleagues. The general experience as well as my personal experience have shown that more than 80 per cent of the employees do respond positively. Others should be given the benefit of doubt. The management should think from their point of view. May be their past experiences have not been good. May be their personal life is not happy or maybe the management has not done justice in some of their personal matters. And lastly, some margin for the circumstances around may also be given. Once these factors have been taken care of, another ten per cent follow the suit and fall in the mainstream of the organisation.
The remaining ten per cent or less may not be fortunate enough to understand this philosophy. We need not be unduly concerned about them. The only factor which should be kept in mind while dealing with them is an open approach. The management should be careful of not getting biased towards them but should deal with them on merit. This includes firm action whenever necessary. My experience is that such occasions arise rarely. The force of ninety per cent will be strong enough to deal with these ten per cent.
This process should be continued, otherwise there may be cracks in course of time. Communication is something very important for this. In the absence of proper communication, even good intention of management or employees is misunderstood and leads to unhealthy situations. My personal view is that there should be minimum secrecy in decision making. Once we accept the principle of participative management, I do not see any reason why decisions should be secret. It may be so in rare cases. It is my firm belief that secrecy is an indication of weakness. The greater the secrecy of decision, for whatsoever reasons, the greater are the chances of rifts between the management and employees. Therefore, it is necessary to create forums where communication may take place in a healthy atmosphere. This may be in the form of Joint Councils, Quality Circles or periodical meetings.

Integrity is a State of Mind

It should establish that if we do not mend our ways, the whole society will have to pay the price.
Today, Integrity is a much talked about word, particularly in public life. All public servants are supposed to have integrity beyond doubt. But can we say that the integrity of civil servants in general is beyond doubt or even satisfactory for the matter? Before we dwell upon this subject, the word ‘Integrity’ should itself be property understood. The normal meaning given to this word is ‘Not Taking Bribe’. The Chambers Dictionary meaning of this word is — Entireness; Wholeness; The unimpaired state of anything; Uprightness; Honesty; Purity. Obviously ‘Integrity’ is a much wider term than what is normally understood.
A public servant, while discharging his duties, is supposed to have a complete view of the situation without being influenced by external factors and take upright decision with pure and honest mind. This is what can be an ideal definition of the quality called ‘Integrity’. Therefore, any deviation from this would mean loss of integrity. ‘Bribe’ is one factor, though a prominent one, which is likely to cause deviation. But other factors also cause deviation. These may be fear of survival, caste consideration, prejudice, vendetta, suspicion, over-ambition, etc. Deviation from correct decision due to any of these factors also means loss of integrity. Then there are factors like misuse of power, wastage of resources, etc., which are generally overlooked. My personal view is that such loss of integrity is causing more harm to the system than mere acceptance of bribes. Therefore, there is need for suitable checks in these areas also.
Unfortunately, our system has miserably failed to check this evil despite many administrative measures. This is mainly because ‘Integrity’ is basically a ‘State of Mind’ which cannot be influenced much only by administrative measures. It is a sum total of the influences of various factors and in a way reflect the state of the society. There can always be found a counter to any administrative measure. Such measures will be effective only when there is influence at the mental level also. Otherwise, those who have already deviated will keep on deviating more and more while the administrative measures will remain in force for those who do not need them.
Therefore, the role of those in superior positions in all walks of life (not merely public services) becomes important. Indians by and large are a satisfied lot and happily accept their condition provided the leaders of the society show their integrity. Unfortunately, it has not been the case and the result is obvious. The old principle that one should not only be clean but also appear clean has been grossly misused. The entire emphasis has shifted to appearing clean rather than being clean. Many do not care even to appear clean. Very obvious corruption charges are refuted by responsible persons on the ground that the charges are not proved. Many times they don’t even care to say that charges are wrong. And all of us know how difficult it is to prove such charges. In such a state of affairs, it is no use blaming lesser mortals and apply administrative measures to them. In fact, those who are supposed to apply these measures are themselves not above board. Thus the exercise becomes all the more futile.
There is need of establishing that corruption ultimately leads to unhappiness in the society at large. To begin with, some people may feel happy at the cost of others but a stage comes when everyone becomes a victim of the system. In the present age of science and technology this will have to be established in logical manner. All people may not understand the science of our scriptures which plead for right conduct. There have to be economic and social explanations of the havocs, the corruption plays with the society. It should establish that if we do not mend our ways, the whole society will have to pay the price.
Fortunately, the roots of our society are deep and strong. So far the damage of our values can be said to be only surface damage. The people of India, by and large, are God-fearing satisfied lot. At the same time they are aware of their strength. Those in high places should not take them for granted. If they do not mend their ways gracefully, people will force them to do so. This is where the hope lies. Let us hope that all those in responsible positions will work with full ‘integrity’ not by compulsion but by choice. The rest of the society will automatically follow them. In that event administrative measures can also be taken effectively against the defaulters.
A man of integrity is accepted, believed, trusted and befriended by all.
A man of integrity will never listen to any plea against conscience.
Integrity has no need for rules.
Integrity is self-rewarding.
Honesty is still the best policy with a little bit of common sense.
An honest man is the noblest work of God.
It pays to be honest, but it’s slow pay.

The Richness of Poverty

Over the past few years, television has made tremendous progress in our country.  Not only has the number of programmes increased manifold, but the quality too has improved greatly. Some of the programmes are really good and have given useful messages to the viewers. Two serials from which I drew important messages are Nukkad and Junoon, messages which I would like to share. The serial Nukkad was on the life in a street corner of a small town.  All the characters of the serial were persons who could barely make their living.  Some were not even employed and depended on the help of their colleagues. Some had developed the habit of drinking due to frustration. They were, at times, also exploited by vested interests.  Overall, they were miserable people and had no apparent joy in their lives.
On the other hand, junoon was a story of very rich people who had accumulated their lakhs of Rupees by dubious means. Many of them were engaged in underworld activities and had intense rivalries with each other.  Outwardly they displayed affluence and moved around in the upper class of society.  But inwardly, they too were frustrated, and often resorted to drinking as a result thereof.
When we look at these two groups of people, some interesting observations can be made.  In Nukkad the group as a whole appears quite cheerful and contented.  They enjoy every moment of life despite all the problems they face. They try to help each other beyond their means. They happily accept the shortcomings of each other and genuinely try to help. There is no tension visible on their faces. Overall, the group, though beset by problems, is quite happy and enjoys life to the extent possible under the circumstances. The opposite is the case in the serial junoon.  In this group, the characters are so busy amassing wealth that they have no time to enjoy life.  The unfair, illegal means of making a fortune further adds to their worries.  Not only this, they are always fearful of the police or of a rival or of their own men. This makes their lives very tense, rendering it totally joyless.  Almost all of them have great tension in their family lives too. This made me think about the very definition of richness or poverty.  I feel these are not at all absolute terms but simply the states of mind.  I find it difficult to say which of the two groups is richer. If one is richer outwardly, it is very poor inwardly and vice versa. The first group, despite being poor, is happy, while the second group is miserable despite all the riches. And if we go by the ultimate aim of living, which is happiness, it is the first group which achieves the objective and not the latter. For true happiness there has to be a balance between the outer and the inner growth.  But I feel that bliss, even if out of ignorance, is better than misery of any kind.  From this point of view, the state of poverty has more richness.

Four Dimensions of Personality

In February 1995, when our Spiritual Master graced our home at Calcutta, he spoke on the subject of “Spiritual Dimension of Personality”. Swamiji built up the talk gradually, making the message more interesting and effective. Here is a summary of his talk, as I interpret it.
Swamiji began requesting us that we must understand the term personality first. ‘Often we talk of a total or integrated personality, and this shows that personality has more than one component. Only when all the components are adequately developed, does the personality become total or integrated. We shall use the word ‘dimension’ in place of ‘component’ in order to give it a larger scope.
The first dimension of our personality is ‘physical’. It relates to our body, state of health, appearance, etc. We have little control over it. By and large the shape, size and the colour of our body is determined by our genes. The only thing in our hands is to maintain it well in order to remain healthy. For this, certain discipline is required in our habits. If we cultivate good habits, the body becomes an asset and the development of other dimensions of the personality becomes easier.
The second dimension of our personality is ‘mental’. It relates to the mind which is superior to the body. Thus, this dimension of the personality is superior to the first one. It is the mind which works behind our sense organs. Proper development of the ‘Mental Dimension’ is very important for using the powers of the physical body. It is the mind which makes us educated, skilled in our jobs and enthusiastic about our progress.
In terms of personality, a compassionate doctor is always considered better than a professionally superior doctor. We always prefer a person who is good, kind, helpful and courteous. This establishes the fact that there is a superior dimension of personality over the mental one. This dimension is known as ‘Intellectual’. The mind is capable of playing mischief if not controlled by a superior faculty. It is the intellect which gives us the wisdom to discriminate between good and bad. In the process we earn respect.
To add perfection to our personality, some finer qualities have to be acquired. The next dimension of personality is the ‘Spiritual’ one; it is the highest dimension. It is a fact that the world we live in is transitory. Even our good deeds are forgotten with time. If we do not transcend them, the same goodness may become a cause of misery. Also, goodness is only a relative term and its perception varies with persons and time. We do not get the same response from all persons, even for our good behaviour or virtues. Therefore, a sense of detachment has to be developed towards our good qualities too. It has been seen that many good and successful persons suffer just because they lack this aspect of the personality. One has to accept that all our actions are only a means to an end and the end is self-realisation. Those who understand this reality develop the spiritual dimension at the right time and are fully prepared for all the eventualities of life. This dimension is thus superior to the earlier three dimensions and is necessary for the complete integration of the personality.’

Guru Poornima

I was in the holy company of my spiritual master Swami Bhoomananda Tirtha on the auspicious occasion of ‘Guru-Poornima’ on 5th July, 2001 at ‘NARAYANASHRAMA TAPOVANAM’ in Trichur (Kerala). On this day, after the worship of the Guru, a message was given by him to his disciples. The message is always deep and helps a lot for further progress. I am hereby giving the extract of my master’s message on this ‘Guru-Poornima’, pointwise and in brief.
1. We should always keep in mind that we are not the body. Body is mortal but we are not. This thought alone can take us to the pedestal of wisdom and our life can become truly fulfilled.
2. Only our ‘Guru’ can address us as immortal and no one else including the parents and school teachers. Guru sees the immortal in us and can make us feel immortal.
3. The truth of our being immortal was discovered countless generations ago and will remain so for countless generations. This is the true spiritual wisdom.
4. All wealth perishes but the wealth of spiritual wisdom does not and lives from generation to generation. Only if we are able to realise this truth in life, life becomes meaningful. In fact, this alone is the central message of Bhagvad Gita.
5 We should remember that destruction is never in the nature of nature. Nature only knows transformation and evolution. This being so, whatever happens in life should be welcome. The fact is that we learn more from the loss than from gain. Tragedies of life are not to be ignored or laughed upon, they are to be endured.
7. Spiritual infection has to begin in everyone’s life some day or the other. This call of spirituality is the most important call of life. Fortunate are those in whose life this call comes early.
8. Guru-Poornima is an occasion to assess our progress and make necessary correction or modification in the journey of spiritual progress.
9. We should take necessary care of body. It should be fed, clothed and kept appropriately. All this should never mean that we become the body and neglect the immortal part of us.
10. Desire, fear, greed and all other negative impulses are part of life. They have to be understood well and transcended. Once we understand their genesis, the transcendence becomes easy.
11. ‘Guru-Shishya’ relationship should grow with time. It is a very precious association. A Shishya is a member of Guru’s family.
12. All duties carried out with devotion is a part of divine service and a step towards spiritual progress. The purpose of each activity is to dissolve ego and become weightless. This is the essence of entire spirituality.
13. Progress in spiritual path means expansion of mind so that the entire creation of God appears as one family. Guru helps in such an expansion of mind. Once this happens, realisation of our immorality is a natural outcome.
With this message Swamiji blessed all the devotees.

The Photograph has Changed

As is its nature, life has seen lot of changes; it has been more so in my case. After passing Engineering, I did not stay in that profession for long and shifted to Indian Administration Service. In this service also I was assigned U.P. Cadre which provided me opportunity to visit my home town and the district frequently. I also developed interest in the spiritual aspect of life and its relevance to day to day life. This made me to think deeper and I started interpreting day to day event from spiritual viewpoint. Soon these thoughts took the shape of books which draw attention of many. This also became helpful in adding my friends and well-wishers.
One such addition is in the form of a group at Muzaffarnagar consisting mostly of local doctors. All of them are not only successful in the career but are also blessed with the quest of seeking truth. This common interest brought us together and whenever occasion comes we meet to share our views. It is always an elevating experience and greatly helps me in contemplation.
During one of such interaction a very interesting observation was made by one of the participant. Two of my books had different photograph at the back cover. There was a gap of about eight years between them and naturally they appeared different. Noticing this difference, he made a very natural observation saying “Your photograph has changed.” Somehow this phrase drew my deeper attention and we shifted our discussion to this interesting aspect of life.
We all know that out photograph is only a sketch of our outer personality and that too of only the body. The body keeps changing every moment but the change is so slow that we hardly notice it. Only over a period of time, these changes of body are noticed and a day comes when it totally vanishes. However, all through this period from birth to death, there is something which is permanent and does not change. That is why we always address ourselves as ‘I”. Most of us waste our time and energy only on the vanishing part of our existence that is the body. Only fortunate few pay attention to the permanent part which is beyond bodily existence. Once our quest is directed to this aspect of the personality, all conflicts which belong only to the body start disappearing and we reach the state of bliss in increasing manner. Greater is the quest and effort, greater will be the achievement in this direction. We then rise above the changes of the body which in any case has to undergo this process. If so, why not to spend our energy on the development of our inner personality which gets refined with time, contrary to the outer personality which diminishes with time despite all our efforts. This is what is known as spiritual search or the process of self-realisation. Once on this path, photograph changes cease to be the cause of worry and we make best use of our energy both physical as well as spiritual.

The Entropy Law

We all know that the society has passed through its four stages of Satyuga, Tretayuga, Dwaparyuga and Kaliyuga. At present we are in Kaliyuga and it is said that even this stage is reaching its last phase. The present is considered bad because the evils in society have assumed gigantic proportions and there are very few who think of the larger good. Most people have become selfish and think only of themselves. The result is that society is in a hellish state and nobody knows how to come out of this chaos. We also hear that the situation was most ideal in Satyuga but then deteriorated over the centuries. Thus values have fallen with time. Dwaparyuga was better than Kaliyuga, Tretayuga was better than Dwaparyuga and Satyuga was better than Tretayuga. I have been thinking about the reasons for this fall in values and was seeking a scientific explanation of this phenomenon when I found a book which gave me the answer which tallied with my own intuition.
The above phenomenon is explained by the second law of thermodynamics. There are two laws of thermodynamics.  The first one is the ‘Law of Conservation’ which says that energy can neither be created nor destroyed but can only be transformed from one form to another. The second law of thermodynamics says that every time energy is transformed from one state to another, there is a loss in the amount of that form of energy which then becomes available to perform work of some kind. This loss in the amount of ‘available energy’ is known as ‘Entropy’.  For example, if we burn a piece of coal, the total amount of energy remains the same but, due to the process of burning, some part of the coal is transformed into sulphur dioxide and cannot be reburnt to get the same work out of it. This kind of ‘loss’, ‘wastage’ or ‘penalty’ is called Entropy.
The second law of thermodynamics explains that the total entropy in the world is constantly increasing. An entropy increase, therefore, means a decrease in ‘available energy’. Further, not only does the available energy decrease every time something occurs in this world but the unavailable energy spreads as pollution. Thus, the world is moving towards a dissipated state and pollution is constantly increasing.
Now, this has very great implications for the society. In practical terms, it means that the society deteriorates and becomes disorganised gradually. There is a degeneration in its moral force, its spiritual stamina, the vigour of its character, the effectiveness of its religion and the sense of law and order. Thus the moral and spiritual energy of the society goes on degenerating so that, ultimately, it reaches a stage of maximum entropy when God has to intervene. The trend has to be reversed to bring about Satyuga or Golden Age when all material things have maximum energy concentration, i.e., are Satopradhan and the souls also have maximum ‘available’ moral and spiritual energy. The process of degeneration then begins again and the cycle goes on. The need for God’s action in such a situation is evident because, according to the Entropy Law, in a closed system, entropy increase cannot be reversed without increasing the entropy in the surroundings and, therefore an outside source of energy is required to raise the energy concentration without lowering the energy level in the surroundings.
Thus the ‘Entropy Law’ explains the degenerative process of the society. This is a natural process and need not unduly upset us. The only option we have is to mould ourselves into a closed system so that our own entropy does not increase and our moral and spiritual stamina is maintained. As far as the whole or universal system is concerned, God will take care of it at the appropriate time. Therefore, it has been rightly suggested that we should live in the world but the world should not live in us.

Answers to Our Problems

Life is like a book of mathematics. There are many chapters in it and as we go to higher classes the lessons become more complicated. If we fail to understand the principles right in the beginning, the lessons appear more complicated. In all the chapters, the principles are explained first and then some solved examples are given. After understanding both, we are supposed to solve unsolved problems. The real test of our knowledge comes there. Based upon our understanding of the principles and the solved examples given in the book we are able to tackle the sums. Every problem has a solution and there is a definite answer for each. The only difficulty is that we may not know them though they are given at the back of the book.
The same is true with life. What we learn from the book of life and its solved problems is to be used for handling many unexpected and troubling situations. If lessons from the book of life are not understood properly or we are not attentive while our problems are being solved by others, we find life miserable and all its problems remain as they are. We then start blaming the world instead of enjoying it. If, on the other hand, we carefully understand the principles of life and apply them to real-life problems, life becomes enjoyable and enriching. Each problem of life has a solution and an answer. It is a different matter that we may not know it. God only hides it till the end of the book of life.
Let us, therefore, not consider that our problems do not have a solution. If the solution is given to us by someone else, the whole charm of life will go. There may not be an immediate answer to some problems but the answer definitely exists, and it may only take a little longer to reach them.  Maybe, we have to learn how to read the book of life better.
“Don’t go around saying the world owes you a living. The world owes you nothing. It was here first.”  Mark Twain

Variety not Hierarchy

All of us see so much disparity in this world that at times one doubts the fairness of God.  Quite a few of us do not believe in God merely for this reason.  However, it is not fair to pass judgment on the fairness of God without going deeper into the matter.  I read a book which explained this disparity in a very convincing manner, helping me to see the light.
The author says that God does not have any bias while creating a particular thing or situation.  He creates with objectivity and the idea of disparity does not even come into His mind.  For God, everything is a variety and not a hierarchy.  It is man who creates a hierarchy and makes God responsible for it.  Thus, when we see a rich and a poor person, both are two varieties of God.  From God’s viewpoint, no hierarchy is attached to them.  Seen from the worldly angle it is true that richness has its own blessings as well as troubles and just as poverty also has.  The same axiom applies to the beautiful and the ugly, the strong and the weak, the pious and the wicked, the high and the low, the healthy and the unhealthy.
When we see the world around us with such an attitude of acceptance, it appears beautiful to us and nothing creates disharmony.  We accept it as such while trying our best to improve it.  It then becomes like a garden which has a variety of flowers, trees and fruits.  The different colours of flowers, the varied shapes of the trees and the different tastes of fruits only add to the charm of the garden.  As it would not be fair to create a hierarchy among them, so is it true with the world also.  Instead, the disparities should be appreciated as the multifaceted aspects of life and not as higher or lower, better or worse.

Power of Compassion

The Dalai Lama, the spiritual and the political head of Tibet, has lived a long life in exile, struggling for the rights of his people.  An ordinary mortal would have broken down in such a situation, which, perhaps, would have brought more misery and indignity to his people.  He, however, by his wisdom and moral strength has not only been struggling for them but has also maintained their dignity.  He has won the ‘Nobel Peace Prize’ which speaks volumes about him.
I have read the Dalai Lama’s autobiography, Freedom in Exile.  It gives a detailed account of the situation in Tibet which led to his exile and the troubles as well as indignities thrust upon him and his people.  However, in the midst of all this, he kept his composure and led his people with dignity. It was not an easy task and he explains it in another book, The Power of Compassion.  While describing the agonies of his life, he writes that it was the power of compassion which helped him greatly in maintaining his peace of mind and in following the path of wisdom. I am sharing here a lesson learnt from this book.
First of all the word ‘compassion’ should be understood clearly. This word has a unique meaning and is different from mercy.  In fact, it is more than mercy. It is putting oneself in the position of a suffering person and feeling exactly what he does.  It is closer to the word ‘empathy’ which means the power of entering into another’s personality and experiencing his experiences. When one has compassion for others, one has great magnetic power and even an enemy can be won over by the power of compassion.
This is exactly true in the case of Dalai Lama. He has not only been able to win his people by his compassion, but has also dealt with his enemies in a dignified manner. This in turn greatly helped his cause and won worldwide concern about it.
Once we understand the power of compassion, it can be used as a tool to deal with others. By compassion, we win not only our friends and well-wishers but our enemies too. Our apparently harsh actions are then seen as kind deeds, and harmony comes to our life naturally.

Strength of Humility

Humility is often a misunderstood word. Many confuse it with meekness or weakness.  The result is that they resort to arrogance and waste a lot of energy in the process.  This is very unfortunate. Therefore, the need is to understand the word ‘humility’ carefully.  While the outer manifestations of ‘humility’ and ‘meekness’ may be the same, the inner situation is totally different.  Humility can be shown only by a strong, fearless and a detached person while meekness is the result of weakness, fear or undue expectation.  Humility is an ornament of the brave while meekness is a symptom of cowardice. Once we understand this difference well, we can cultivate humility in a natural manner, thus conserving our energy which can be used for more constructive purposes.
I learnt the above lesson from a book on Lal Bahadur Shastri written by an ex-Director of the Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration, Mussoorie. He was also my Director when I was there for the IAS training course.  He had worked with Shastriji for a long time and had known him closely. He also used to deliver a few lectures on the personality of Shastriji to the probationers. I was greatly influenced by his lectures as well as the book.
Shastriji came from a background of penury but rose to the position of the Prime Minister of India. All through he was a humble but in no way a weak man. He had the courage to own responsibility for mistakes committed by his subordinates and also the nerve to take strong decisions whenever necessary.  This was amply evident during the Indo-Pak war of 1965.  Even in Tashkent, he had displayed tremendous courage during the talks with Ayub Khan when he refused to budge from his stand on Kashmir. He lived a very simple life and commanded the respect of all.  When he gave a call to give up cereals once a week, the whole nation responded positively because of the respect he commanded.
Who says that humility is weakness?  Only those who are humble in the true sense enjoy the strength of humility.

All Things are Small

Our scriptures teach us to live in this world in a detached manner. If we are fortunate enough to imbibe this in our lives, we make ourselves happy and little things do not bother us.  The greater the degree of detachment, the greater is our capacity to accept things as they are and the greater is our peace of mind. Now the question is, what things should bother us and what not? The answer to this is not easy and varies from person to person. A thing which is insignificant for one may not be so for the other. However, a general principle may apply to all.  I learnt this from a real-life episode which was narrated during a training programme which I am sharing here.
There was a famous cardiologist in US, who was a very busy person. Apart from being occupied in his medical practice, he rushed to various cities to deliver lectures on his subject. All his lectures drew huge crowds and this made him all the more popular and busy.  His schedule, therefore, had become so hectic that his health came under great strain.
Once he flew to a place to deliver a lecture but just before reaching the venue, he suffered a heart attack and was rushed to a hospital. Fortunately, he was attended to quickly and his life was saved. He recovered and went to deliver the lecture on the very next day. The news of his heart attack was kept a secret by his managers and so the audience was waiting eagerly for his talk.
This time his lecture was altogether different. He did not speak on the complex systems of the heart and the human body and the complicated ways of keeping them healthy.  Instead, he said that human life was very precious and should not be wasted on trivial things. Defining what these small things were, the exact words he used were:
Small things are not worth dying for;
And all things are small.
He concluded his lecture with these few lines, pleading that this formula was enough to keep the heart and body healthy.
I consider that his advice advocated nothing but the principle of detachment.  Life is too precious to be wasted on small things, and all worldly things are small when compared to the real goal of life.

Role of the Wicked

Sri Ramakrishna lived at a time when theatres were very popular in Bengal.  Sometimes, Sri Ramakrishna himself used to visit them at the request of his devotees. Many of his devotees were connected with theatres as owners, actors or participants in allied activities. At Dakshineswar, in the company of devotees, the master often talked about theatres and drew many deep spiritual lessons from them. One such lesson was about the “Role of the Wicked”.
Many visitors to Dakshineswar used to ask Sri Ramakrishna about the evils prevailing in the society and the purpose served by them. Some of the devotees were themselves not very pious persons and indulged in all sorts of worldly activities. However, those who continued to live in the company of the Master grew fast and triumphed over their weaknesses. Those who did not, left his company and returned to their old ways. Swamiji was never upset at such happenings and gave full freedom to his devotees to choose their path. He confined himself only to revealing truth. Fortunate ones grasped it while others only laughed. He accepted both the responses with equanimity.
Whenever asked about the role of evil or the wicked, Sri Ramakrishna gave the example of a play on the stage of the theatre. According to him we all are actors on this worldly stage.  Like a stage drama, we all play different roles on earth and once the drama is over, we return to our permanent abode. In a drama there are all types of roles. Someone plays the role of a hero and the other plays the role of villain.  Both roles are equally important and the success of the drama depends upon both.  The drama will lose all its charm if any one of them is absent.
The same is the case with the worldly drama also. Here, all kinds of people are required to make it dynamic and interesting.  If we look at evil and wickedness from this viewpoint, all our fear, hatred or complaints against them will disappear. Instead, we shall have harmony with them also.  Not only this, when seen this way, we shall find their roles as important as those of good persons.

Life Before Death

Human life is the most precious thing in this universe. Also, it is so complex that many have been studying its various facets since time immemorial. There is an ocean of wisdom dealing with human life but still there is very little known about it. Perception about human life differs from person to person and they live according to their individual perception. In a way, this makes the world a beautiful place to live in by the sheer variety of human beings. A truly wise person accepts this variety with equanimity and considers it as a part of the evolution process.
One interesting aspect of life which is usually debated is ‘what happens after death’. Hindu philosophy believes in the theory of rebirth while there are some which do not believe in rebirth.  I am not going into the merits of such a belief or disbelief but am touching upon an allied aspect of this. Recently I read a book called Dewdrops on a Lotus Leaf, a very interesting book written by a young professor of English in Andhra Pradesh. The book consists of letters written by the author to his loved ones on different occasions. Each letter is full of wisdom and indicates the spiritual depth of the author. In one of the letters, the question of life after death has been raised. The author has said nothing about his belief in this matter but has seen the issue from a totally different viewpoint. I greatly appreciated his approach and am sharing it here. The author mentions that many people ask him the question, “Is there life after death?” and instead of giving any reply, he poses a counter-question, “Is there life before death?” Now the significance of such a response is to be understood carefully. The issue here is which of the two, ‘life after death’ or ‘life before death’, is more important. Naturally, the answer would be that ‘life before death’ is more important and we should first live it well before we think of ‘life after death’. The intention is not to curb the tendency to question but to give a positive message about the life we already have.
In today’s world, most of us are not living even in our present lives. We waste time on trivials without caring about the precious nature of life.  For such persons, the question of whether there is life after death is meaningless because they are dead even in their lives before death. The relevant question, therefore, is how to live before death. And if we really live well before death, perhaps, there will be no life after death. Thus, in both the situations, the question ‘Is there life after death?’ becomes irrelevant. The only relevant question is whether our ‘Life before Death’ is ‘living’ in the true sense as morally and spiritually enriched human beings, well on the way to the goal of self-realisation and harmony with oneself, other people and the universe.

Knowledge and Wisdom

We often fail to draw a distinction between knowledge and wisdom. This leads to conflicts in many areas. The conflict between generations is mainly due to the lack of appreciation of this difference.  At times our knowledge says something but the experience says something else. Those who understand the difference are able to harmonise the conflict while those who do not, lose their peace of mind. An effort is, therefore, being made to clarify the difference between ‘Knowledge’ and ‘Wisdom’ in a simple manner.
Wallace Friday has said: “Real Wisdom is more than Knowledge. Knowledge is the accumulation of facts; Wisdom is the interpretation of facts. Knowledge is culled from text books; Wisdom comes out of life.”
This quotation makes the distinction very clear. Wisdom comes by living well, by contemplation and by inculcating values in life. Knowledge can be acquired in a short time, but wisdom is acquired with time. Knowledge is no guarantee of success and harmony in life but a wise person is always successful and in tune with himself and the world. A Knowledgeable person may be literate but not educated, while a wise person is always educated. Knowledge is like ‘science’ while wisdom is like ‘technology’ which is applied science. As technology is more useful to mankind, so is the wise person as compared to the knowledgeable. Knowledge is only one component of wisdom, though an important one.
Having understood the difference, we must strive to grow wise. Then only will our value system become our asset and our lives become successful and harmonious. If we commit the mistake of taking ‘knowledge’ as a complete strategy in itself, we are in for trouble.  No purpose will then be served by blaming the world around. On the other hand, a wise person has no complaint. For him, all situations are the varieties of life and he enjoys them all.

Coconut Water

Much is said about “Gratefulness”.  To be happy we should not expect anything in return for good done by us to others while we should always be grateful for whatever good has been done to us by others.  It does not mean that goodness is not returned by goodness but that such an attitude insulates us from agony of disappointment, if this does not happen. Secondly, the laws of nature are perfect. Here, goodness never goes unrewarded while the evil never remains unpunished. It being so, why should we waste our energy in keeping account of our goodness? Quite often, our goodness is returned to us through unknown sources and in the same way evil is also returned. Therefore, we should confine ourselves to doing good deeds while being grateful for every good act done to us.
Here, the example of a coconut tree is most appropriate. A coconut plant needs watering and care for the initial two years. Then it takes care of itself and grows into a tree. Once it starts giving fruits, it continues to do so for more than fifty years and needs no watering. All the water given to it in the first two years is returned by it manifold in the form of coconut water. Such should be our attitude towards those who do good to us. Every little helpful deed, kind word or thoughtful gesture should be gratefully remembered and returned to the extent possible. Once we start doing so, our happiness multiplies and so do our friends.

Women and Gold

The Gospels of Swami Ramakrishna Paramahansa is the detailed record of informal conversations Swamiji used to have with the visitors to the Dakshineshwar temple. This work was very elaborately compiled by one of his close disciples. The original work was in Bengali and was subsequently translated and published in two volumes by the Ramakrishna Mission. They make very lucid reading and give in depth, the philosophy of Sri Ramakrishna through informal chats. While posted at Calcutta, I got these volumes and went through them.
One of the commonly used phrases in these volumes is ‘Women and Gold’. Swamiji often used to advise his visitors to shun both of them. According to him, these two are the main causes of man’s downfall. Those who did not understand the significance of these two words and took them literally were often wonderstruck. They could not think of giving up their wealth or wife and many even stopped visiting him on this account. Those who understood the true import of these words were greatly benefited.
Here the two words indicate two tendencies, namely ‘lust’ and ‘greed’. Woman is a symbol of ‘lust’ while ‘gold’ is that of ‘greed’. These two are the main weaknesses of man and are responsible for his downfall. Therefore, there is a need to guard oneself from them, though not necessarily to shun them.  Lust and greed have to be shunned and once we do it, both of them can be useful instruments in our inner growth. This is what Sri Ramakrishna meant while warning against ‘Women and Gold’. In fact, the word used by him was ‘Kamini Kanchan’, a literal translation meaning ‘Woman and Gold.’
Here a clarification is necessary, as some may draw an inference that the woman is being looked down upon. This is not true, even remotely. Hinduism, in particular, has given a very high place to women. It is only when a woman becomes an object of lust that the society gets degenerated. This is very evident in today’s context when lust for women has given rise to many social evils. Swami Ramakrishna meant only to warn against this fact.

Living in the Present

In one book of the Dalai Lama, I got a very interesting interpretation of the ‘present’. We are generally advised to live in the present. This is so, because the past has gone and we can do nothing about it while the future is yet to come and is unknown, so why should we worry about it? Therefore, we should look at the present only so that we make the best and optimum use of our energy and efforts. This approach also helps us to insulate ourselves from the regrets of the past and the worries of the future.
While explaining this concept, the Dalai Lama has tried to define the ‘present’. He says that the moment we think of the present, it becomes the past and if we think about a point in time even slightly ahead, it is the future. The difference can be reduced to infinitely small units, as small as in nano-seconds or even less. Going by this logic, there is nothing like the ‘present’.  It is like a ‘Point’ in geometry which is defined as something which has no length or breadth. The moment we make a point it acquires both qualities.  Similarly, with the ‘present’, the moment we try to catch it, it becomes either the past or the future.
This being so, ‘living in the present’ loses its meaning in the literal sense. It only means ‘living beyond time’ or in ‘timelessness’, thus caring neither for the past nor the future, nor even the present. It also means living at the level of consciousness which is beyond time.  One may also call it the ‘spiritual concept of time’. Perhaps, the advice to live in the present is only a simple way of advising people to live in consciousness, in order to raise themselves from the worries of the past, present and future.

State of Flux

Evils prevailing in the society upset most of us and we keep wondering whether a time would ever come when there would be no evil.  Some of us even try to reduce, remove or eradicate the evil.  Many also regretfully compare the present with the past and worry about the future.  Their concern is to be well appreciated, but the situation has to be seen more objectively.
I am of the view that the society has never been free from evil though the form of evil keeps changing with time.  When we read history, we find that many evils which do not exist today existed in the past and the reverse is also true, as today we see many evils which were non-existent in the past.  Similarly, in today’s society, there are many good things which were non-existent in the past.
Thus, evil and good are only an indication of negative and positive tendencies.  They both have to coexist though their form and effect may change with time.  Everything will come to a standstill if either of them is missing.  A battery needs both positive and negative terminals if the current has to flow.  Similarly, the whole dynamics of the society will come to a halt if any of its components is missing.  The situation can be compared with the ‘State of Flux’ which is a continuous beam consisting of positive, negative and neutral particles.  Both goodness and evil have a role to play.  It is, therefore, pointless to think of a society which is totally free of evil.
The world will not change.  You have to change yourself.

The Great 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. 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.
Sri Aurobindo was born on August 15,1872 in Calcutta.  His father, Krishna Dhan Ghosh, 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. Later, they were sent to England and thus Sri Aurobindo grew up in entire ignorance of India, her people, her religion and her culture. His father wanted him to join the ICS but destiny had something altogether different in store for him. 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. 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. 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.
[Sri Aurobindo, one of the proud visionaries of modern India, began his public life as an Indian Nationalist and freedom fighter. Later, he turned up to be a philosopher and yogi. At one time he was the most prominent Indian freedom fighter. He has written many books which include commentaries, translations, poems and philosophy. The Sri Aurobindo Ashram at Pondicherry was founded by him on 24th November 1926 with just 24 disciples. The same year he withdrew completely from politics and thereafter lived in the Ashram.]

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 study of 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.
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 Ohm’s Law in Life.

Minus Infinity to Plus Infinity

Once, I was attending a spiritual discourse. The subject of the discourse was Lord Krishna and during the course of discussion, the devotion to Lord Krishna was deliberated on. Lord Krishna is loved by most of the women devotees in one form or the other. When Swamiji asked them whether they were devoted to Lord Krishna, almost all of them raised their hands. Then he asked how many of them would like to become the mother of Lord Krishna. Not realising the implications, many showed their willingness. Swamiji then posed the conditions for becoming the mother of Lord Krishna. The first condition was that she and her husband would be imprisoned just after their marriage, by her own brother. The second condition was that Lord Krishna would be the eighth child and the first seven would be killed just after their birth. The third condition was that she would only give birth and the upbringing would be carried out by someone else.
After listening to all these conditions, everyone backed out. No one had ever thought so deeply about the price paid by Devaki for giving birth to Lord Krishna. Most of us take such realities as routine matters and hardly think about them deeply unless such events take place in our own lives. The conditions put forward by Swamiji were the facts and the parents of Lord Krishna actually underwent such extreme agony. However, in no account of their sufferings is their bitterness reflected anywhere. This means that the human mind is capable of harmonising harshness even in such painful situations.
The human mind is capable of a very wide range of reactions to a particular situation as revealed in the way the two characters in the story of Lord Krishna deal with the situations confronting them. One is Devaki, mother of Lord Krishna, who could bear the extreme cruelty of her brother without any bitterness. This is the positive dimension of the mind which is achieved through great wisdom. There is no limit to this dimension and it can reach to plus infinity. Questions may be raised about the practicality of this but here we are talking about the possibilities of a positive reaction. Besides Devaki, there are numerous examples of extreme sacrifices. Such persons have existed in all times, exist today and shall continue to exist.
Now let us look at the second character, Kamsa, who was a very powerful but ignorant king. In order to protect his position, he adopted the lowliest possible means, using violence and cruelty to gain his own ends. This is also a dimension of the mind but the negative one. Here also, there is no limit and it can be minus infinity. Such characters too have existed in the past, exist today and will continue to exist in future. They all display the negative dimension of the mind which is the result of ignorance. Thus the range of the human mind is minus infinity to plus infinity. An integrated mind should be able to accept these ranges objectively and harmonise them. Harmony is possible only by ‘knowledge’, not mundane but spiritual. Life, then, becomes a process of integration of the mind with a range of integration from minus infinity to plus infinity.

False Ceiling

I served as Managing Director of the UP Handloom Corporation during the year 1987-88. At that time, this job was considered to be important as well as glamorous. The turnover of the organisation was almost one hundred crores and it had a large number of showrooms all over the country.  It was quite a challenging and interesting job to run them efficiently. Every year, a good number of showrooms were renovated and it involved a huge expenditure. One of the expensive items in the renovation was the ‘False Ceiling’.  This term always amused me and I often wondered why such a beautiful piece of work was called ‘False’.
Once I inspected a showroom during its renovation when the work on the false ceiling was in progress. I could, therefore, see the inside of the false ceiling and I found it in bad shape.  The wiring, pipe-fittings, ducting, etc., were done badly, probably in the knowledge that they would not be visible after the false ceiling was fitted. The quality of wiring was also poor, which I learnt, was done deliberately in order to increase the frequency of repairs. While I took the necessary steps to correct the situation in the process, I also understood the significance of the word ‘false’.
Subsequently, I held many important posts which took me around the country and abroad frequently. I like meeting people and have had an interaction with a large cross-section with widely varying backgrounds. I can modestly claim that I have been able to understand human nature to a great extent and do not get upset easily when someone hurts me or behaves in an unexpected manner. I have found a large number of people who are apparently very well-behaved and project themselves as our well-wishers, while the reality is different.  Initially, such a situation used to upset me, but now it is no more so. The incident about the false ceiling also helped me greatly to understand this aspect of human nature. Most people try to hide their faults with false behaviour and a disguised appearance. The reality is known only when we see them closely. Unfortunately, in today’s fast world, such opportunities are rare and whenever one tries to do so, the result is a clash or conflict. The only option, therefore, is to watch oneself closely and remove those faults, which we dislike in others.
There is a need to behave well and decently, a desirable quality of a good human being. Good behaviour becomes undesirable only when it is false, but sincerity and genuine goodness will reap rich dividends not only for oneself but for others too. Unfortunately, most of us feel that it is more important to appear nice than to be really nice. It may be true for a short while but it is not so when life is seen in totality. Sooner or later, the false appearance and poor contents inside are exposed and there is no option left but to discard the object in totality. Someone has rightly said, ‘It is good to be important but it is more important to be good’. If we believe in this, there would be no need for any ‘False Ceiling.

Positive Revenge

Akbar was the greatest Mughal emperor and ruled over India during the sixteenth century (1556-1605).  He is known for his liberal approach towards religion and for his competence in administration.  He had a team of nine competent ministers called Navaratnas (Nine Jewels), who looked after various departments of his administration. One of these Navaratnas was Raja Birbal, a very interesting personality. In addition to helping the emperor in administrative matters, he also entertained him by his intelligence and wit.  The emperor would often test the intelligence of his minister by asking him some seemingly strange questions which were always answered cleverly.
Once Akbar drew a straight line on a piece of paper and asked Birbal to shorten it without erasing any part of it. Birbal contemplated for a minute and then drew a longer line by its side.  The emperor and everyone in the court were greatly pleased and amused to see how Birbal had tackled the problem. I have viewed this incident with philosophical interest and have drawn an important lesson from it. The approach adopted by Birbal indicates a very positive approach. In real life we come across many situations which have to be overcome without hurting anyone, including ourselves. Someone may have insulted us or hurt us, or some problem may be troubling us. A common man’s approach may be either to suffer silently or to react destructively. This helps no one, least of all the person himself. When we think of destroying someone, we create negative impulses and in the process, harm ourselves.
The same situation can be dealt with in just the opposite manner. Instead of spending our energy in destruction, we may utilise it in construction. By adopting this approach, we raise ourselves above the person or the situation which has been troubling us. This automatically dwarfs them and in the process makes us bigger.  From a worldly point of view, this may be called revenge on the person or the situation which troubled us.
Instances abound of greatness being the result when a person or situation has hurt someone. Gandhiji had to face humiliation from time to time and that made him more determined to secure Independence. Vivekananda passed through a phase of stark poverty and that made him so rich spiritually that he spread the message all over the world, calling upon people to eradicate poverty in order to be truly religious. Jamshedji Tata found no decent place in Mumbai to stay in when he decided to build the Taj Mahal Hotel there. Raja Ram Mohan Roy took a vow to fight against the ‘Sati’ system when he saw his sister-in-law being forced to burn in the funeral pyre of her husband.  After facing humiliation and destruction in the Second World War, the Japanese constructed a new nation with greater determination and surpassed even the nations which caused them such humiliation and destruction. All these examples show that people did not surrender or act in a violent manner when a person or situation upset them. They overcome them constructively and in the process raised themselves above the person and the situation.

Diving in the World Ocean

On April 1995, I had a chance to visit the Mumbai High oil drilling site, about 200 km away from the seashore. It takes almost an hour to reach there by a helicopter. From the engineering point of view, the whole operation is amazing. The fixation of the drilling rigs and platforms is an engineering feat. The foundations of these structures are very deep in order to keep them stable. I met some engineers who had worked there in the initial days of construction and they narrated their experiences with great pride, expressing the thrill of achievement. They also told me that the foundation construction of these structures was the most difficult stage and to carry out this task, expert divers were called from other countries.
I was told that deep-sea diving is a difficult job and a good amount of training was required for it. As the pressure of water increases proportionately to the depths of the sea, a diver has to take precautionary measures to withstand the stress. I was told that in earlier days, the training process took a long time as the divers were subjected to gradually increasing pressure before they could venture deep into the sea. Now, there are special equipments which create sea conditions artificially and the process of training is expedited. However, the principle of training remains the same, which is to create enough internal resistance or pressure to withstand the external pressure. If the diver does not do this, his body could collapse. I have drawn some very interesting inferences from this fact.
The world we live in is also like a sea. The deeper we go into it the greater are the disturbing forces we have to face. If we are not trained or used to bear these pressures, we collapse and fail to achieve the goal of our existence. We forget the nature of the world and the fact that there is no use blaming external circumstances. We should, on the other hand, train ourselves to withstand the pressures of the world. For this, we have to develop enough internal strength so that the two neutralize each other and we are able to dive into this worldly sea like professional divers.
In real life it means that one’s development should be appropriately integrated. The bigger is the external growth the greater is the need for internal growth too. That is why people with high positions, greater riches, greater fame, or power should be much more balanced than ordinary persons. If they are not so, the outer trappings may become the cause of their disaster. A balanced growth of personality makes us good divers, plunging confidently into this worldly sea.  The world will then cease to be a source of danger or trouble for us and we can enjoy living in it, as well as performing our duties well.

Being Like the Sea

Once I stayed in Madras for about a week with my family. We stayed in a guest house located on a beach near the sea, which added to the charm and pleasure of staying there. We had very pleasant morning walks along the mighty, surging sea, and its vastness touched our hearts. During our stay, I contemplated deeply on the nature of the sea and how it helps us to develop our own personality.
The first great quality of the sea is its vastness. It is so vast that the other shore of the sea is never seen by an ordinary person. We require magnitude in our personality too. Our vision should enlarge with our physical growth so that our personality becomes pleasant. An ordinary person may not think beyond himself, his family or a close social circle. Such vision needs further expansion and one should ultimately think of the whole creation. With such a vast vision, we start loving the whole creation of God and there is no room for lower tendencies like hatred, anger and jealousy.
The second quality of the sea is its depth. The vastness of the sea would be meaningless without its depth for this quality enables the sea to gain stability. Similarly, for the true development of our personality vast mundane knowledge is not sufficient as it may not give depth to our personality. This depth is acquired by developing wisdom which gives stability to our personality.
The third quality to be learnt from the sea is ‘absorption’. It absorbs whatever is merged into it. All mighty rivers ultimately merge into the sea and it accepts all of them. Not only this, these rivers carry away with them all the filth created by human beings. The sea accepts that too. In turn it returns pure rain-water, retaining all the dirty water received by it. The sea water itself remains saltish though it is the ultimate source of all sweet water. This amounts to returning goodness in exchange for evil, a quality which should be part of the personality also, giving us mercy, kindness and compassion.
The last quality is ‘stability’ which can also be learnt from the sea. The sea level remains stable though universal forces cause some ups and downs in it periodically. That is why the Mean Sea Level is a standard benchmark and does not change with time.  Similarly, our mental variations as a result of interaction with the world should also be to the minimum and the effort should be to maintain it at the same level. This little variation of sea level only indicates that as long as we live in the world, absolute calmness may not be possible. That state can be achieved only when we firmly control our reactions and responses, both mentally and physically. However, while living in the world, stability can be maintained and the variation can be reduced to the minimum. This is the quality which brings serenity to our personality.
Thus four qualities of the sea, namely, vastness, depth, absorption and stability are to be adopted in our personality. If we can do so, we may be as useful for the society as the sea is to the entire creation on the earth.

Fission of the Human Mind

An atom consists of three basic particles, namely, protons, neutrons and electrons. The protons and neutrons are located in the nucleus and the electrons revolve around the nucleus in different orbits. A large amount of energy is released when the nucleus of a heavy atom is broken into two or more smaller nuclei. Similarly, when the nuclei of two or more lighter atoms are made to merge into each other, resulting in a heavier nucleus, then also a large amount of energy is released. The former is known as Nuclear Fission and the latter is known as Nuclear Fusion. The energy, thus released, is known as atomic energy. If controlled, this energy can be used for running a power plant and if not, the same energy can turn into an atom bomb.
So far, the control of the reaction has been possible in fission and not in fusion. When the nucleus of uranium is bombarded by a neutron, it breaks into two smaller nuclei and simultaneously, three neutrons accompanied with a large amount of energy are produced. These three neutrons again bombard three other nuclei of uranium and the process is repeated again and again. If the number of neutrons bombarding the uranium nuclei is controlled, we get energy at a constant rate which can be used for good purposes. The control of the reaction is done by controlling the speed and the number of neutrons. When the reaction is in total control, the energy is released at a constant rate and can be used for power generation.
The human mind also behaves like a radioactive substance which keeps on emitting various thoughts, belonging to two categories – active and passive. Active thoughts make the mind act and in the process, the power of the mind is made use of. Such thoughts may be called desires. Passive thoughts, on the other hand, do not make the mind act, but are simply observed by the mind. Active thoughts or desires can be compared with moving particles like neutrons, protons, etc., and the mind with a heavy radioactive nucleus, like uranium.  When active thoughts strike it, tremendous energy is emitted by the mind like that in Nuclear Fission. However, to make good use of this power, certain conditions similar to those in a nuclear reactor should exist.
First of all, we should have a neutral attitude towards desires like the neutrality of a neutron. It means that an attitude of detachment should be developed towards our desires. It does not mean that desires should be absent but that they should be controlled. Secondly, the speed of a neutron has to be at its optimum level; either too much or too little will lead to no action. In the same way, active thoughts should neither be very fast nor very slow. That is to say, that moderation is required in our thinking so that our thoughts are able to tap the maximum energy of the mind which exists in abundance. This condition suggests that our lifestyle should be moderate in order to make the maximum use of our power. In a nuclear reactor, each neutron gives rise to three neutrons which have to be controlled after a point. The human mind also generates more and more desires which then strike the mind harder and make it release more power. Up to an extent, this increase is healthy because the mind’s potential is used in a positive manner. However, beyond a point, the generation of more desires becomes destructive. The third condition is that it is necessary to absorb or control these additional desires to make the best use of the mind.
Thus, detachment, moderation and regulation are three essential conditions for making the best use of our mind power.  If any one of these is missing, the mind’s power will either remain unused or will become destructive. It is up to us to use the mind either as a ‘Power Plant’ or as an ‘Atom Bomb’.

In search of Joy

ere is such a bewildering variety and number of programmes that it is difficult to decide what to see. Two serials from which I drew important messages are Nukkad and Junoon. The serial Nukkad was on the life in a street corner of a small town. All the characters of the serial were persons who could barely make their living. Some were not even employed and depended on the help of their colleagues. Some had developed the habit of drinking due to frustration. They were, at times, also exploited by vested interests. On the other hand, Junoon was the story of very rich people who had accumulated lakhs of rupees by dubious means. Many of them were engaged in underworld activities and had intense rivalries with each other. Outwardly they displayed affluence and moved around in the upper class of society. But inwardly, they too were frustrated, and often resorted to drinking as a result thereof.
However, in Nukkad the group as a whole appears quite cheerful and contented. They enjoy every moment of life despite all the problems they face. They happily accept the shortcomings of others and try to help each other beyond their means. There is no tension visible on their faces. The opposite is the case in the serial Junoon.  In this group, the characters are so busy amassing wealth that they have no time to enjoy life. The unfair, illegal means of making a fortune further adds to their worries. Not only this, they are always fearful of the police or of a rival or of their own men. This makes their lives very tense, rendering it totally joyless. This made me think about the very definition of richness or poverty. I feel these are however not at all absolute terms but simply the states of mind. If one is richer outwardly, it is very poor inwardly and vice versa. The first group, despite being poor, is happy, while the second group is miserable despite all the riches. And if we go by the ultimate aim of living, which is happiness, it is the first group which achieves the objective and not the latter.
I do not intend to arrive at any absolute conclusion. The reality is somewhere in between. I am just raising a question for those who feel that happiness lies only in having more and more riches, irrespective of the means of acquiring them. For true happiness there has to be a balance between the outer and the inner growth. In the examples cited, the happiness of the first group as well as the misery of the second group are the results of their ignorance. I feel that bliss is better than misery of any kind. From this point of view, the state of poverty has more richness in it.

The Mathematics of Life

I remember an incident in early 1979 when I was posted as Additional District Magistrate at Meerut. Once the Commissioner of the Division visited the district and I accompanied him on his tour. The visit went off very well and he was quite happy with the work done. In the evening, we were returning in the same car on our way to Meerut. The Commissioner was a very good man and the success of the tour gave me some courage to speak frankly during the journey. At that time I was a young officer with only three years of service and was unaware of many realities of public administration. However, I was aware of the interference of vested interests in administration, as a result of which most officers were not able to work fearlessly.  So I asked him certain questions about this aspect, curious to know whether it was possible for an honest and sincere civil servant to work fearlessly despite outside pressure. The answer was, naturally, not that simple but he said that though it was definitely possible to work fearlessly it required a lot of wisdom and other virtues like ability and perceptiveness, for an honest and sincere civil servant to reach that stage. The matter ended there but the question occupied my mind for a long time.
As far as I can introspect, I have always tried to work sincerely and honestly. I was not troubled by people who had vested interests, as most of the time I could get my way through them. Having completed over thirty five years of service and reaching the age when one should acquire enough wisdom to look at life in its true perspective, I feel that life is like mathematics and the problems of life are similar to the problems of mathematics. If the fundamentals of life are understood, then life’s problems can also be faced easily. In that case, life becomes a pleasure and its difficult problems only add to the pleasure of living. In brief, I would say that life is a wonderful opportunity for elevation and it should not be wasted on mundane affairs only, just as the purpose of mathematics is not merely to pass the examination but to understand and apply its principles in life.
The purpose of life should be understood in its true sense and it should be taken as an opportunity for achieving its goal. With that clarity in the mind, the difficuIties attached to life become very small and add to the pleasure of living. Such people score high in the mathematics of life without much difficulty. In worldly terms, there may be more prosperous persons around them but when it comes to the examination of life, it is they who secure the highest marks. And all this happens effortlessly. Let us first accept the simile of life with mathematics and feel the urge to understand its fundamentals. Once we have the urge, we will find the way and help will come from unexpected sources. No doubt, a sustained effort is required on our part, but once the process of understanding is over, life becomes scoring as well as enjoyable, like the subject of mathematics. We can then easily aim to score cent per cent marks, no matter how difficult the paper is.
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