Mohsen Fakhrizadeh Mahabadi from Iran was a renowned nuclear physicist, who also was the chief coordinator of Iran’s nuclear programs. It was natural that others, especially advanced countries, never appreciate everybody making nuclear weapons. He was always on high security but on November 27 2020, he was shot dead, when he was on an outing with his wife. The wife who sat near him in the Sedan was not hurt.
It was clear that the attack was A I (Artificial Intelligence) controlled and the shot was triggered from many hundreds of miles away. A I is slowly picking up and more people are specialising in A I. A I controlled machines think like us and respond intelligently. The idea is very crucial in robotics. But this question is there, if Fakhrizadeh was not safe, who else in this world is. Here, a bullet is possible from any corner any time. It can even happen through a satellite spotting us on the basis of the mobile phone we carry or our source security or adhar card number.
This story shows us the nature of our relationship with others that we all are supposed to follow. The story begins with a lady student in Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore. She was pursuing her postgraduate degree with a plan of migrating to the USA. She was already granted a scholarship in a US institute. One day, she saw a TELCO interview announcement on the College notice board. It was noted that ladies need not apply. This provoked this lady heavily. She took a post card and wrote to them, “I have heard that you have initiated many good things. Is it actually the way TELCO thinks? …. blah blah kobLaa…” She posted it to the address she knew.
Some ten days passed by and she got a telegram, asking her to report at Pune for the TELCO interview, at the company expenses. She was shocked! She, however decided to attend the same. Those days, Pune was a textile hub and sarees were comparatively cheap there. So, with enough purchase orders for sarees, she started off to Pune. She least expected anything positive from TELCO. She knew that she already had irritated them. But her interview was beautiful and TELCO announced that Miss Sudha Murty was appointed. In her autobiographical notes ‘Wise And Otherwise’, she has written about her interactions with this great man, JRD Tata.
One day, after her marriage, she was waiting for her husband, coming to pick her up. JRD Tata happened to see her waiting on the office veranda, alone. He waited there near her, until her husband arrived. In spite of all her love for TELCO, she decided to resign her job. All accounts and deals closed, she was walking down the stairs of Bombay House. Surprisingly, she saw JRD Tata walking up. Tata stopped near her and asked her, “Where are you going?” “Pune!” Sudha also told him that she resigned because her husband was planning to start a new company called Infosys. “What would you be doing if your company grows?” Tata asked her. She replied, “Sir, I don’t know whether we will be successful.”
“Never start with diffidence, always start with confidence. When you grow up don’t ever forget to repay the society. We have profusely taken from it. All the best!” Tata said and continued walking up.
Remember that these were the mantras on which Infosys was built, according to Sudha Murty. Tata had given her one more mantra, that is competition is always with oneself, not with anybody else. His dream was a globe where there is enough space for everybody. All those who could win to some degrees shall also learn to repay abundantly. Any block we create, virtually obstructs the flow of divine grace through us.
A well-known organist was performing a concert on the huge, antique organ in the local Presbyterian Church. The bellows were hand-pumped by a boy who was behind a screen, unseen by the audience. The first part of the performance was well received. The audience was thrilled by the organist’s ability at the keyboard of the old instrument. After taking his bows and accepting the ovation, the musician walked triumphantly into a side passageway. As he passed, the boy said, “We played well, didn’t we Sir?” The organist haughtily replied, “And what do you mean, ‘we’?”
After the intermission, the organist returned to his seat at the impressive five-keyboard console and began to play. But nothing happened; not a sound was heard. Then the organist heard a youthful voice whisper from behind the screen, “Hey! Mister, Now do you know what ‘we’ means.”
Any association can function well, if only its weakest and tiniest link functions well. Any slight malfunction would throw everything out of gear. No one part is more or less important than another. The success of the leader would depend on his ability in taking along and co-coordinating the activities of all parts.
