Random Musings

Madman or a Guru

noreply@blogger.com (NSG) — Tue, 26 Aug 2025 13:33:00 +0000

It is said in the scriptures that enlightened beings behave in peculiar ways. For the uninitiated, it may appear as a madman acting out but it must be understood that we are in no position to judge anyone leave alone great realized beings who lead very ordinary lives amongst us. The following story relating to Bharathiyar corroborates this view.

We can look at one of the poems of the great Tamil poet Mahakavi Subramaniya Bharathiyar. It seems, Bharathiyar, to escape the persecution of the British for his fierce patriotic outpourings, moved to Pondicherry, a French colony those days. Being of poor means, he stayed with his friend and to keep him engaged and augment his income, he undertook to correct the Vedic texts his friend had translated into Tamil. While doing this exercise, it kindled in him a great desire about the need to get a Guru to hear his upadeśa.

In the road in front of the house where he stayed, he used to see a short man in tattered clothes looking like a madman or a beggar passing every day. That man used to sing, laugh for no reason, play with the kids and at times carry the street dogs and lovingly caress them. Bharathiyar, out of curiosity, checked about this beggar with the neighbours. Some said that he was a saṁnāysi while others said he was a beggar and a madman. Bharathiyar vowed to get to the bottom of this.

On a bright sunny afternoon, when the madman was passing through, as no one was around, Bharathiyar jumped into the street and caught hold of both his hands and enquired, “Who are you? What is your specialty? Why are you wearing such tattered clothes? Why do you gaze like a special person? You look like the Lord himself. Please let me know what all you know” etc., The madman tried to wriggle out but did not respond. When Bharathiyar tightened his grip, he just smiled. Bharathiyar felt some stirring inside him and tried to bow down to touch his feet. At that moment, the madman ran away and went into an adjoining dilapidated house. Bharathiyar overtook him and closed the back door of the house lest he escape.

Now, once again Bharathiyar confronted him with the same questions. The madman, out of no choice, showed Bharathiyar a broken mud wall nearby, the scorching sun, and then took him to an unused well at the backyard and showed him the reflection of the sun in the well and asked, “Have you understood?” Bharathiyar nodded his head in the affirmative.

The following is the verse in Tamil that conveys the above episode (for the benefit of those who can appreciate Tamil).

அன்றொருநாட் புதுவைநகர் தனிலே கீர்த்தி

அடைக்கலஞ்சேர் ஈசுவரன் தர்ம ராஜா

என்றபெயர் வீதியிலோர் சிறிய வீட்டில்,

இராஜாரா மையனென்ற நாகைப் பார்ப்பான்

முன்தனது பிதாதமிழில் உபநிடத்தை

மொழிபெயர்த்து வைத்ததனைத் திருத்தச் சொல்லி

என்தனைவேண் டிக்கொள்ள யான்சென் றாங்கண்

இருக்கையிலே அங்குவந்தான் குள்ளச் சாமி.

அப்போது நான் குள்ளச் சாமி கையை

அன்புடனே பற்றியிது பேச லுற்றேன்;

அப்பனே! தேசிகனே! ஞானி என்பார்.

அவனியிலே சிலர்நின்னைப் பித்தன் என்பார்;

செப்புறுநல் லஷ்டாங்க யோக சித்தி

சேர்ந்தவனென் றுனைப்புகழ்வார் சிலரென் முன்னே;

ஒப்பனைகள் காட்டாமல் உண்மை சொல்வாய்,

உத்தமனே! எனக்குநினை உணர்த்து வாயே

யாவன்நீ? நினக்குள்ள திறமை யென்னே?

யாதுணர்வாய்? கந்தைசுற்றித் திரிவ தென்னே?

தேவனைப்போல் விழிப்ப தென்னே? சிறியாரோடும்

தெருவிலே நாய்களொடும் விளையாட் டென்னே?

பாவனையிற் புத்தரைப்போல் அலைவ தென்னே?

பரமசிவன் போலுருவம் படைத்த தென்னே?

ஆவலற்று நின்றதென்னே? அறிந்த தெல்லாம்,

ஆரியனே, எனக்குணர்ந்த வேண்டும்” என்றேன்

பற்றியகை திருகியந்தக் குள்ளச் சாமி

பரிந்தோடப் பார்த்தான்; யான் விடவே யில்லை,

சுற்றுமுற்றும் பார்த்துப்பின் முறுவல் பூத்தான்;

தூயதிருக் கமலபதத் துணையைப் பார்த்தேன்!

குற்றமற்ற தேசிகனும் திமிறிக் கொண்டு

குதிக்தோடி அவ்வீட்டுக் கொல்லை சேர்ந்தான்;

மற்றவன்பின் யானோடி விரைந்து சென்று

வானவனைக் கொல்லையிலே மறித்துக் கொண்டேன்

குள்ளச் சாமியும் சந்தோஷமாக

பக்கத்து வீடிடிந்து சுவர்கள் வீழ்ந்த

பாழ்மனையொன் றிருந்ததங்கே; பரமயோகி

ஒக்கத்தன் அருள்விழியால் என்னை நோக்கி

ஒருகுட்டிச் சுவர்காட்டிப் பரிதி காட்டி,

அக்கணமே கிணற்றுளதன் விம்பங் காட்டி,

“அறிதிகொலோ?” எனக்கேட்டான் “என்றேன்”

மிக்கமகிழ் கொண்டவனும் சென்றான்; யானும்

வேதாந்த மரத்திலொரு வேரைக் கண்டேன்.

The Guru had spoken and the disciple understood! Alas, we are nowhere near understanding this highest truth in just three signs – showing the broken wall, the Sun and the reflection of the Sun in the well. So Bharathiyar condescends to explain it further to us.

தேசிகன்கை காட்டியெனக் குரைத்த செய்தி

செந்தமிழில் உலகத்தார்க் குணர்த்து கின்றேன்.

“வாசியைநீ கும்பத்தால் வலியக் கட்டி,

மண்போலே சுவர்போலே வாழ்தல் வேண்டும்;

First he said Bharathiyar should control his breath – meaning Pranayama. It is an established fact that Pranayama calms the mind and improves the concentration of the mind and is generally practiced prior to any serious Japa or Pooja. Then he showed the broken mud wall. That means that the mud wall is made up of mud, which is the underlying substance and wall which is nothing but a shape and form that we call Wall – nāma & rūpa in Sanskrit. The mud is the ever present substance whereas the wall is transient and subject to decay. Hence, he said you hold on to that which is substantial and eternal, implying that we should not depend on the ephemeral world of objects, people, relationships etc.,

தேசுடைய பரிதியுருக் கிணற்றினுள்ளே

தெரிவதுபோல் உனக்குள்ளே சிவனைக் காண்பாய்;

Then he showed Bharathiyar the effulgent Sun indicating that it is all powerful but we cannot approach it directly. Instead, he took him to a well and showed him the reflection of the same Sun in a stagnant and still water. When can the reflection be seen? Only when the water is still and not agitated or muddy! So also, the omniscient Lord Shiva, like the scorching Sun, can also be seen reflected in the mind provided the mind is calm and one pointed without the impurities of kāma, Krodha, Lobha, moha, mada, mātsarya (Lust or desire, anger, greed, delusion, pride and jealousy). These are known as saḍripu.

We may have a genuine question. Why did not that mendicant say it in so many words? Bharathiyar goes on to explain in the next two lines:

பேசுவதில் பயனில்லை, அனுபவத்தால்

பேரின்பம் எய்துவதே ஞானம்” என்றான்

He says all your talking, questioning etc., should stop. Only in that silence will the true knowledge arise that is not an intellectual appreciation but an experiential bliss. That alone is true knowledge, says Bharathiyar. There are several instances in our Puranas where great masters have been told to remain silent and they did so for the rest of their lives. Arunagiri Nathar, Sadasiva Brahmendral are some such examples.

In the last century, Paul Brunton, a British Philosopher, who came to India in search of spiritual Gurus met Kanchi Paramacharya. He was mesmerised in his presence. But he asked Periyava a number of questions like, “If there is an all knowing, loving God, why is poverty there, why are people dying of wars” and a barrage of similar questions. Periyava gently smiled and responded, “You will gain knowledge only when all your questions stop”, much to the bewilderment of Paul Brunton. This meeting is vividly recorded in Paul Brunton’s classic book “In Search of Secret India”

The crux is Silence!

So whether someone is a madman or a Guru, it is for us to discern. It is said that when a student is ready, the Guru comes on his own. So the least we can do is to prepare ourselves to receive such a revered Guru in our lives!

Does GOD Exist?

noreply@blogger.com (NSG) — Fri, 11 Aug 2023 04:25:00 +0000

This is a question that has been debated over the eons and is still a matter of debate. Will it be settled one way or the other? Let us see if that is possible at all!

Peter Drucker, the famous management Guru said, “If you can’t measure it, you can’t manage it.” Very true. Similarly, unless you clearly define a thing, its existence or otherwise cannot be established. So, the first thing to be done is to define what we seek to establish.

Can GOD be defined?

There have been many definitions of GOD. Starting from worshipping nature and thus defining GOD to natural elements, more sophisticated definitions of GOD have been postulated over the millennia. But, in my opinion, none can put the definition of GOD so succinctly and in an unequivocal and sublime manner as Vedanta, the philosophical portion of Sanatana Dharma. Vedanta calls GOD as “Brahman” – which means one that expands without limit. In English you can call it “The Vast” without any qualification – like a vast universe etc., It literally means “Infinite”

The next question is “what is the definition of Brahman?”

Taitriya Upanishad (2.1.1) defines Brahman thus: “Sathyam Jnanam Anantham Brahma.”

That is, Brahman is Satyam, Brahman is Jnanam and Brahman is Anantham.

Just as you need to unzip a file to know its contents, the above statement needs to be unzipped to get a clear understanding of the definition of Brahman.

Let us start with the word Anantham. It is a Sanskrit word that means unlimited or infinite. When something is said to be unlimited, what are the factors that could limit such a thing? As per Vedanta, three things can limit an entity from being unlimited. They are

Desha – space; Kaala – Time; Vastu – Object

Let us see one by one. An object is limited by space if it has definite boundaries in space and cannot be at two places at the same time. For example, I am currently in my living room and hence I am not in my bedroom. I am therefore limited by space. Brahman is not limited by space by definition and hence Brahman is omnipresent – sarva vyapi in Sanskrit.

Similarly, I am limited by time, meaning my body never existed before it was born and will not exist after it dies. Hence my body is limited by time. Vedanta says Brahman is not limited by time meaning there was no time when Brahman was not there and there will be no time when Brahman will not be there. Hence Brahman is beyond time and is eternal – Nithyam in Sanskrit.

The third limitation is a slightly abstruse concept called the law of identity. For example, the pen I hold can only be a pen and not a pencil. An object can only be itself and not any other entity. That is why we have an Aadhar card and I am identified by it and no one else is me! Vedanta states that Brahman has no object limitation meaning that nothing is different from Brahman – that is, there cannot be even one entity apart from it. In other words, there is ONLY Brahman and nothing else. It is called non-dual – Advaita in Sanskrit.

The definition seems to be a brilliant one but is it an esoteric abstract philosophical construct or is it something real? If it is real, then obviously, Brahman must be present in the here and now and in every object that was, is and will be. The beauty of Vedanta is that it is not a belief system but one that should be validated and experienced. Hence, we need to test this hypothesis before we accept it.

But before that, first two words also need to be explored. The word Satyam means real. To test this against the definition we just discussed, let us take a real object – say a Pen. Will it transcend the limitations of Space, Time, and Object? All three tests will fail because a Pen cannot be here and there also, it was not there before it was manufactured and will cease to exist once it is destroyed and it is only a pen and not anything else. Thus, if we stick to Satyam’s original meaning ”real,” it contradicts the earlier definition of Brahman. In such cases of contradiction, Sastras prescribe that the implied meaning of a word must be taken.

In the same example, the Pen exists, laptop exists, you exist, I exist etc., Every known object exists. The underlying common factor in all these objects is Existence. So, if we were to take the implied meaning of Satyam as Existence, then the earlier contradiction will not be there. If you take any object in the entire universe, it exists and Existence is the underlying principle. The objects themselves may have various shapes, forms, and functions, but they all exist. So, if we take Existence principle as Satyam, it will clearly be congruent with our definition of Brahman as Anantham. Existence is not limited by space, time, and object. Even if all the objects in the universe are destroyed, for argument’s sake, Existence continues in the unmanifest state but will be manifest only through objects that we can perceive. It is like the ocean and the waves, with the ocean being the Existence and the waves of different heights and forms being the objects. The ocean exists even if all the waves die down.

Now, let us take the second word Jnanam. The direct meaning of this word is “knowledge.” It is obvious it will fail the test of Anantham just as the direct meaning of the word Sathyam did. I do not have the knowledge that you have, like for example, you may have knowledge in Sanskrit but I do not! Hence extending the same arguments that we put forth for Sathyam, if we take the implied meaning of Jnanam, ie. awareness or consciousness, then it will pass the test of Anantham easily. Pure consciousness or awareness, called Chit in Sanskrit, is not limited by space, time, or objects. All knowledge and all our experiences happen in awareness. And like existence, awareness is the underlying principle because of which we experience the entire universe.

Hence Brahman is Sathyam, Jnanam, Anantham or Sat, Chit, Anantham meaning Existence, Awareness, Infinite. It is self-consistent without any contradictions. We can test this definition against anything in this universe and it will be valid!

Now, that the definition of GOD has been clearly established, let us come back to the original question, “Does God Exist?” I shall rephrase the question and ask you “Do you Exist?” Your answer to this question is the answer to the former as well. Vedanta goes one step further and states that there is ONLY Brahman and nothing else and emphatically states “Tat Tvam Asi” meaning you are verily that Brahman – That Thou Art.

RETIREMENT - a boon or a bane?

noreply@blogger.com (NSG) — Thu, 26 Jan 2023 11:22:00 +0000

Retirement – is it a boon or a bane? – has been debated for decades. It depends. For some, it is a boon, a time to relax and engage in leisure activities that one always wanted to but did not have the time. But for others, it is a dreaded time for they have not planned for retirement and have no clue as to what they would be doing. They presume a loss of respect and importance in the family and friend’s circle. And a few would fall in between too!

Retirement, as it is currently understood, is a recent phenomenon. For most of history, people worked until they dropped. Even today in many of the western countries, there is no retirement age per se. People work late into their 70’s. With increased longevity due to better medical care and lifestyle, this appears to be logical. However, in countries like India, retirement age is fixed and even though one may be willing to work or be productive, one has to retire. This being the reality, how does one prepare for retirement, how does one spend time during retirement and how does one lead a meaningful and purposeful life even after retirement are some of the questions that need an answer.

Retirement planning seems to be the buzz word these days. Can one really plan for retirement? The emphatic answer is YES. After all, it is not a sudden event thrust upon us but one that is certain even when we take up a job. Perhaps when one is young, one does not give much thought to it as one is busy with family, work, promotion, social life et al., However, it is important to focus on a few aspects relating to retirement even when one is young. These aspects are health, financial planning and having an engaging hobby. The first 2 are absolutely necessary and third one makes life interesting when one retires. Even if one were not to have a hobby, one needs to start cultivating one at least 5 years prior to retirement so that one can relax and engage in such activities during retirement. Some people choose to continue with their career, albeit in a different avatar. That is fine too, but it cannot be at the cost of health and family. Of course, one may be compelled owing to financial constraints but that has to be more of an exception than the rule, is what one would recommend.

Retirement planning is being marketed as something that has been discovered recently. Nothing can be farther from the truth. Our ancient Indian scriptures talk about “Ashrama Dharma” – the recommended stages of life of a human being. They are:

§ Brahmacharya – Life of a student – Learn and be ready to make a living

§ Grihastha – Life of a householder – earn, have a family and enjoy the worldly pleasures

§ Vanaprastha – Life of retirement – moving to a forest figuratively – to contemplate on the nature of man, world and God and gradually withdraw from worldly activities

§ Sannyasa – Life completely dedicated to the attainment of Moksha or liberation – the modern equivalent of it being a self-actualized person

So, as we can see, retirement is equated to the third stage of the Ashrama Dharma prescribed since ancient times. Hence planning is a must.

Medical science has advanced so much that we have eliminated most of the bacterial and other infectious diseases. Longevity has increased. However, lifestyle disease has grown manifold and is the number 1 cause of death today. Hence it is important that one starts exercising early in one’s life. This habit, if pursued regularly, during the working days, will keep one in good stead during retirement. A pleasant walk or a jog in the morning or a gentle yoga exercise with friends of the same age is not only beneficial physically but also helps one a build resilience and a sense of equanimity. The more energetic and intrepid can try other adventure sports like hiking, marathon runs, cycling etc., Many of the seniors today are engaging in these activities and it adds to their physical and mental wellbeing without a doubt.

The next most important aspect for retirement planning is financial planning. In today’s world, needs are constantly increasing. The returns are abysmally low from bank deposits and inflation is constantly eating into the savings. Hence, it is important to start saving for one’s retirement right from day one when one enters a job. Many financial products are available today (unlike in the past) which helps one build a corpus that one can live out of in the evening of life. This becomes paramount considering the longevity of today’s seniors. Medical Insurance is a must and the earlier one plans, the better. Dependence on children needs to be avoided, as far as possible, to lead a satisfied and happy retired life with self-esteem intact.

The third aspect of retirement, assuming one is not taking up a part-time or full-time assignment is, how does one spend time? This is a crucial question that needs some planning and thinking well upfront before one retires. There are several hobbies that one can choose including but not limited to, reading, writing, singing, gardening, handwork, engaging in spiritual activities, volunteering with NGOs to teach, volunteer in hospitals to support the medical staff, work with organisation like Lions or Rotary etc., There is a wide variety of choice and sky is the limit. Of course, apart from interest, one needs to take care of oneself and one’s family FIRST. Charity, after all, begins at home! One can also engage in voluntary work in one’s area of expertise offering consulting to youngsters and NGOs.

This is where living in a senior community, a concept that is catching up in India, is very beneficial. We live with people of the same age group, all our basic needs including food, medical, security and other routine support needs are taken care of. Care homes also add to the repertoire of services to cater to those who need such assisted living. One is free to engage in leisure activities, fun activities, build new relationships, learn from other’s experience and be a source of strength and support to others in the community. One’s psychological well-being is also very important at this age and living in a community like this provides that cushion and ambience to rediscover ourselves. It is a blessing in today’s urban madness where one is left by the wayside in the mad rush in a state of loneliness and melancholy. The phenomenal growth of such communities’ bear testimony to the success of this concept.

Some of the key learnings from experience of retired folks can be summarized as under:

§ Live in your own place and enjoy your independence and privacy

§ Hold on to your assets / deposits to yourself / spouse till your life time. Prepare a WILL if necessary.

§ Don’t depend on your children’s promise to take care of you in old age; their priorities change. Expecting gratitude from them is a recipe for disaster.

§ Don’t meddle with the life of your children. Let them live theirs not yours. Remember the following beautiful verse from “The Prophet” of Khalil Gibran:

“Your children are not your children;

They are the sons and daughters of Life’s longing for itself;

They come through you, but not from you;

And though they are with you, yet they belong not to you!”

§ Expand your circle of friends especially to those who will outlive you.

§ Don’t compare; expect nothing from others

§ Don’t use old age as an excuse to demand attention, care and respect.

§ Listen to all but take a decision independently

§ Don’t impose yourself on anyone on any subject

§ Do not expect everyone to follow your opinion even though you feel that your opinion was the best

§ Don’t complain about your health, neighbours, your retirement, your woes all the time

§ Don’t brag about your past achievements; no one is interested. And for heaven’s sake do not repeat the same story again!

§ Do not give unsolicited opinion all the time; no one wants it.

§ Do not try to help unless asked for; Just be ready and be available.

§ Never try to teach anyone anything, unless asked for.

§ Do not fall behind in time; understand new technologies, constantly study something new – a new skill, a new dish, a new indoor game perhaps.

§ Preserve your dignity and integrity in any situation till the end.

§ “Blame others for all your problems, your education has not begun; blame yourself for all your problems, your education is half done; blame no one for all your problems, your education is complete” goes a proverb. Don’t blame yourself for whatever happened to your life or to your children’s lives; you did everything you could.

§ And whether you believe in GOD or not, there is a higher power that decides our destiny. Trust that power and live joyfully till the maker sends you his final call!

It is the stage in life when we look back on our accomplishments with satisfaction. There might be regrets, but they might be far and few. A sense of fulfillment and satisfaction pervades. Eric Erickson, the psychologist calls this a stage of “Integrity” – a stage of reflection when the pace of life slows down. People feel genuine satisfaction looking back on their achievements. They feel fulfilled. They are definitely happy notwithstanding all problems that may besiege them from time to time.

Bertrand Russell one of the greatest thinkers of modern times talks also about such happiness very eloquently in his book “The conquest of Happiness” as follows:

“The happy man is the man who does not suffer from either of these two failures of unity, whose personality is neither divided against itself nor pitted against the world. Such a man feels himself a citizen of the universe, enjoying freely the spectacle it offers and the joys that it affords, untroubled by the thought of death because he feels himself not really separate from those who will come after him. It is in such profound instinctive union with the stream of life that the greatest joy is to be found”.

With such profound thoughts in the background, we need to go through life, whatever is left of it, enjoying the spectacle it offers always believing that the Universe is unfolding as it should.

Retirement or “Re-Tyre”-ment – the choice is yours!

You are the CHOSEN ONE

noreply@blogger.com (NSG) — Tue, 29 Nov 2022 12:22:00 +0000

About two decades ago, when I was managing projects in IT, I inducted a young boy as a trainee into one of the projects under me. Let us call him Akshay. IT had just started booming in India and it was a common practice to induct such qualified youngsters initially as trainees and then absorb them as employees. Akshay hailed from a very affluent family and came to office by car which in itself was a novelty those days! The project Manager was a tough character and was short tempered besides expecting nothing short of a miracle from his software engineers. After a while it became quite evident that Akshay did not measure up to his expectations, an observation I deduced during my casual conversations with the Project Manager.

As luck would have it, Akshay approached me one day and told me that another IT company was recruiting freshers and that he wanted to appear for the test and interview. I wished him good luck and gave him an experience letter for the 6 months he had worked in a LIVE project under me in a particular technology. Fortunately, he was selected in that company. As was common in those days, it was not against a particular requirement but recruitment in general (like the mass campus recruitment these days!). He was, as is euphemistically called, on the bench. A few months passed and the company then asked him to go to a different location and get trained for a few months in a different technology – completely different from the one in which he worked under me. He agreed and as the training date approached, his wedding was finalised, Akshay being from a community that got their children married very early. Perhaps no questions were asked about his job!

He sought leave of absence for a 2-week period from the training schedule. The company refused and made him go back to the bench again. He got married and was back to the good old bench. Obviously, Akshay was also frustrated with nothing much to do. Then one fine morning the HR asked him if he knew a particular technology – the one in which he was trained in my project. He answered in the affirmative. On being asked how he was proficient in that particular language, he produced my letter! And in the next few weeks, his papers were processed and before he knew what hit him, he was packed to USA! Yes, it sounds crazy now but those were the days!

If you review the entire sequence, can I stake a claim for his success since I had trained him, albeit for a short while and gave him a valuable experience certificate? Certainly not. Many things could have gone awry and the result could have been different. He was destined to go and I was only an instrument in the whole process. This profound truth hit me. I understood the meaning of “Thy WILL be done!”. The Good Lord had chosen me as his instrument to execute his plans – nothing more nothing less. I cannot take an ounce of credit for this act of Grace. This is a fact once you experience it. This is what all the scriptures are talking about! This is nothing but Nishkama Karma – selfless service. This is what the great artist Picasso meant when he said “The meaning of life is to find your gift and the purpose of life is to gift it away!”. Nature or the Good Lord expresses herself through each of us and it is only because of HER grace that we are the CHOSEN ONE to express herself! We need to be grateful instead of arrogating the gift or talent that we possess to our efforts!

In this context I recall the farewell speech of Sachin Tendulkar who put these thoughts eloquently. He said he always felt that while he enjoyed playing cricket, he was the CHOSEN ONE to represent India – to serve India. What a magnificent thought! Since he had this PURPOSE, all the laurels and accolades, he received all through his life sat very lightly on his shoulders! After all, all the glory belongs to the Good Lord.

Let us all imbibe the true purpose of our existence and be grateful to the Good Lord for whatever he chooses to accomplish through us!

Are you valued as an Employee?

noreply@blogger.com (NSG) — Fri, 07 May 2021 11:19:00 +0000

The annual appraisal of the team is a daunting task for many a manager. Every employee working under you expects an “Excellent” rating while the company wants you to fit everyone into a bell curve with certain percentage of forced ratings including assessing a certain percentage of employees to be ‘Below Expectations.’ While everyone acknowledges that not all employees can be rated ‘Excellent’, the fact that appraisal ratings are linked to pay rise and promotions cloud such objective assessments. Anyway, that is a different topic altogether.

My simple question to my colleagues during such appraisals was always, “Have you added any value during the course of last year?”. And to be honest, I used to ask myself the very same question during my appraisal as well. Wherever the Key Performance Parameters are quantified, there may not be much of a debate. But when it is not quantified or nebulous, it becomes subjective! While the employee and I knew instinctively what “value” meant in the context of our discussions, I am afraid, I had not detailed it in a clear manner to make an objective assessment realistically. It was fuzzy at best.

Just imagine my pleasant surprise when I got hold of my dear colleague Stuart Drew’s book “The Liberated Manager”. He has devoted the entire first chapter of the Book to the subject of what I called value. He has defined a pragmatic framework that made me write this blog! He calls it “Personal Share Price” – PSP in short.

Stuart makes the following interesting observations as a prelude to defining PSP.

1. Annual appraisals are a lagging indicator of past performance only and provides little or no guide to the future.

2. Past performance alone is not the determinant of a corporate share price in financial markets. It is influenced by, among other things, future expectations of business, dividend policy, RoI, market sentiment and host of other factors and not just performance.

He believes that managers should apply similar concepts in assessing employees’ contribution and value in the workplace.

Stuart proposes three components that constitute PSP – Behaviour, Presence and Performance,

Consistent performance according to expectations or better than expectations contribute to a healthy PSP as most of us understand. But behaviour and presence are no less important and should not be subordinated to performance in doing a complete job, is his conviction. This applies particularly to managers, as their performance is generally an aggregation of their teams’ performance. Therefore, it can even be argued that a Managers’ behaviour and presence drives the performance of his team.

While we generally understand the terms behaviour and performance, we tend to misconstrue the term ‘presence’. It is not to be confused with personality. He quotes psychologist Walter Mischel of Stanford University who states that personality explains less than 10% of a person’s behaviour. Personality is a poor predictor of performance because people are highly flexible and far more adaptive than personality tests give them credit for.

If so, how do we recognise someone with presence. Easy says Stuart. They are confident, exude energy, are easily noticed, listened to, trusted, respected and followed. It is not about who is the loudest or who has the biggest ego. It is a state of being that allows one to develop more choices, reduce fears and influence the people around. People with presence also behave in a way that puts others at ease; they listen attentively and invite contributions without fear of reprimand or ridicule. They are measured in what they do. It is a combination of integrity, confidence, self-belief, strong body language, social interaction and a sense of humour. This presence or Gravitas, as he prefers to call it, is clearly evident among strong managers and leaders. And the good news Stuart conveys is personal presence CAN be developed!

He also talks of the volatility of PSP and gives examples of famous people who have had a very high PSP – like Tiger Woods – but lost it along the way. Hence it must be our constant endeavour to evaluate ourselves and be aware of our PSP. He also goes on to give personal examples from his work life and talks of tools like 360-degree feedback that helped him to get a view about other’s perception about his behaviour and presence. He clearly demonstrates through examples how performance alone is not sufficient for a satisfactory PSP but behaviour and presence are also absolutely necessary and important.

How do we know that our PSP is in good shape? Stuart gives an illustrative list to demonstrate this. Some of them are:

§ People will seek your advice
§ People will want to join your team
§ People will want to work on your projects
§ People will want you to work on their projects
§ Seniors and peers will seek and value your opinion
§ Your performance will be superior to your peers
§ You will have assumed responsibility disproportionate to your grade
§ People will go the extra mile for you without being asked

Sounds quite familiar right? We have all come across such colleagues in our careers. While this is by no means an exhaustive list, you get the drift, right? These are some broad indicators of success in a wider sense. He concludes that the concept of PSP is as good as any formal metric based on revenue, profit, growth and the like. While these are acknowledged performance metrics, they need not necessarily be pre-eminent. He also gives a few practical tips to improve PSP like having a sense of humour, thanking people formally, taking an interest in their personal lives etc., and reiterates that it works in all corporate environments!

With PSP as the basic foundation, he goes on to elaborate on other constraints that normally shackle a manager from achieving his potential. Several chapters follow literally liberating you from one constraint after the other including a valuable one on liberating one from constraints imposed by one’s cultural heritage. Unlike a book by an academician, this book is the result of decades of vast experience across continents and therefore the distilled wisdom of a successful practitioner. The nuggets of wisdom are easy to read and follow. Anecdotes shared from his vast experience are fabulous and enriching. I am able to relate to many of the cases being discussed as I was also part of the journey with him in HCL, I am able to relive those wonderful moments. The writing style is simple and lucid. Despite being a native speaker of the language, he has not used a single word for which I had to refer to the dictionary – a trait that I greatly admire in a writer.

I enjoyed reading the book and would highly recommend the book for all managers – budding ones as well as experienced ones. After all who doesn’t want to be a liberated manager?

I had the privilege of working with Stuart as he was heading our European operations in HCL. I have made presentations to clients along with him and on his request participated in his team’s offsite conferences in London. His disarming smile, calm demenaour, client / employee handling skills were amazing and I am glad that he has shared his experiences in this valuable book. It is sure to enrich the knowledge of current generation of managers and provide tools that can be applied right away. Thanks Stuart!

(Excerpts with the kind permission of Mr. Stuart Drew)

6 Questions that can change your life

noreply@blogger.com (NSG) — Thu, 28 Jan 2021 06:11:00 +0000

Many of us get to a point in our lives where we have played by the rules and done everything we were supposed to do, but still don’t feel happy or satisfied – so what now? How do we claim for ourselves lives of invigorating passion and purpose when we feel trapped or dragged down by the vestiges of lives we have already committed to?

The following 6 six questions will help you to uncover your own personal vision of the life you were meant to live.

Sl #	The Right Question	The Wrong Question
	Who am I?	Who should I be?
	Why am I here?	What do I want?
	Where do I belong?	What is my position?
	Whom do I love?	What do I own?
	Who loves me?	What am I worth?
	How can I be true to myself?	How can I gain approval?

If some of these questions seem difficult to answer, give yourself a few days to reflect on it. Remember – these questions may seem simple, but they strike very close to our souls and may take some time and courage, to answer. There is no need to hurry or pressure yourself. Your vision will be there when you are ready to uncover it.

Who am I?

The answer to this question lies in discovering (perhaps rediscovering) the talents, temperaments and traits that make up our core personalities. Some of us may have lost touch with the people we are at our core as a consequence of powerful external influences, such as others expectations for us. It is only after we have some sense of who we are that we can begin to assess whether the lifestyle we are living is really a good fit for us. Without of this sense of who we are, we remain vulnerable to outside influences – to trying to be who others believe we should be. For example is the real, inner you an introvert or an extrovert, spontaneous or playful, aggressive or compromising?

Why am I here?

It is possible for our journey through life to be guided by two very different kinds of motivation. On the one hand, we can be guided by continually asking ourselves what do I want? This outlook on life drives us outward, making us vulnerable to the influence of sophisticated marketing and advertising technologies. It also usually leaves us feeling only temporary satisfaction, for this question continually invites us to want what is new. A life devoted to the pursuit of what we want can easily turn us into careening pinballs, constantly changing direction under the influence of external forces. In contrast, when we seek an answer to why am I here? We are moved to look within ourselves for the answer. We are more likely to discover there an answer - and a path – that can sustain us over time. What, do you sense, is your purpose of being here?

Where do I belong?

One way to define our place in the world is through the position we hold in some social, professional or economic hierarchy. From this perspective, our sense of who we are becomes a matter of comparison, like first-class, second-class, third-class passengers sailing on the ship of life. Viewed through this psychological lens, life is essentially a competitive process, one that renders us vulnerable to jealously and envy. On the other hand, seeking to find an answer to where do I belong? moves us away from defining ourselves and our place in the world exclusively through comparisons with others. Whereas knowing our position may give us some sense of importance (particularly if that position is high in some hierarchy), it is no substitute for the comfort and security that comes from knowing what feels like home to us. Look around you. And answer the question: is this where you belong? Where might “home” be for you?

Whom do I love?

It is part of our human nature to become attached to things. But if we allow this perspective to dominate our lives, we end up defining ourselves exclusively in terms of our possessions. When that happens, who we are becomes blurred with the question what do I own? This kind of imbalance happens all too early in our materialistic culture. To offset or balance this, and to create more balance in our lives, we need to look into our hearts for an answer to the question whom do I love? When we know that, we put ourselves in a better position to make choices that serve our best selves instead of being influenced by an urge to preserve what we own. The great stories of this world are full of examples of men and women who chose love over property and possessions, and in doing so found happiness.

Who loves me?

In our society, it can be tempting to base our self-esteem entirely on our resumes. Most of us learn to ask ourselves what am I worth? to measure our value to others. But if we allow this view to be dominant, it leads to an identity built purely on foundations of achievement and performance. Emotionally and spiritually, this approach can leave us feeling hollow and unfulfilled. To balance our self-esteem, we need to devote ourselves equally to being open to the love of others and to measuring our worth not only by our accomplishments, but in terms of who loves us and why?

How can I be true to myself?

The answers we have written to the questions above will dictate our success with the sixth question. Once we know the answers to the first five questions, we have the basis, the raw data we need to begin forming our visions. The sixth question draws upon our character, giving us the strength we need to stay true to ourselves, either in the face of disapproval from those we love or from our own self doubts.

After working with the first five questions, many people find that the images of their “real” selves are starting to come together, but may be a bit shaky at first. This is precisely when character is most needed – to protect the seed of that vision until it is strong enough to reveal itself. If we turn away from all that we have learned, we are only betraying ourselves. While it is natural to want reassurance and approval, the sixth question keeps us accountable to our own visions. Think about the traits and tendencies you have learned about – how can you recognize and avoid your own traps? How can you keep derailing from you own vision?

This above all: to thine own self be true,

And it must follow, as the night the day,

Thou canst not then be false to any man.

Hamlet – William Shakespeare

Extracted from the book “The six questions that can CHANGE your life” by Joseph Nowinski PhD

Are YOU Future Proof?

noreply@blogger.com (NSG) — Sun, 03 Jan 2021 01:37:00 +0000

The year that went by was cataclysmic. The pandemic has devoured over 2 million lives and infected over 83 million people around the world. This is by far the biggest crisis we have seen, perhaps, since World War II or the Great Depression. 24 million students are out of school and 400 million jobs are lost so far. All continents are hit by recession and around 100,000 businesses are closed permanently in the US alone! Some of the well-known brands like J C Penny have gone bankrupt. Unemployment is at its highest since world war II. The economic cost of all this is estimated to be around 16 trillion dollars! (India’s GDP is 2.6 trillion). Did anyone see all this coming?

In such a dynamic and kaleidoscopic world, is it possible to future proof? My answer would be a YES and NO. NO, because I am not an Alvin Toffler to predict a Future Shock! YES, because some of the core skills like positive attitude, inter-personal skills etc., keep you in good stead even in the worst of times. So, it would be good idea that today’s youth who are in College or the youngsters who have embarked on their careers prepare themselves to face the unfolding challenges and uncertainties by future proofing themselves to the extent possible.

In a way, those who are in college are all privileged because they are one of the rare few in India who will have a college degree. As per data in 2016, only 27% of the top 10% earners in India have even a college degree, forget Engineering. And it is worse, when you consider the world population. If you take 100 as the world population, only 7 have university education! So, when the current crop of graduates starts their life after completing their degree, they would have a head start over thousands of others.

How do we future proof? The most important thing to do during the next 2-3 years, of course, besides graduating from chosen disciplines, is to prepare yourself to face the challenges of the world. College and home are relatively safe and stable environments whereas once you embark on your career a lot more responsibilities and expectations are placed on you. So, the aim during the next 2-3 years should be to utilize this time and prepare well for these unknown challenges. These are some thoughts based on current situation and past experience.

In order to prepare, we need to know 2 things. They are:

1. The context in which we will operate – the work environment

2. What capabilities we need to build in order to sustain, grow and be a productive member of the organisation and therefore the society where we live

Discussing a few key areas will be in order.

The world, as we know, is changing dramatically. Who would have thought a few months ago that everyone would be working from home or all learning will happen online due to this pandemic? So, we need to be aware of the known drivers of change and be prepared for these unfolding and at times unexpected changes:

1. Rise of Smart Machines and Systems – Technology is augmenting and extending our own capabilities. Workplace automation is killing repetitive jobs. Driverless cars are not a fantasy anymore. Recently I saw a video where an Indian American is controlling a drone by his hand gestures – it is as if he was performing some magic!

2. It is a computational world now. The increase in sensors and processing makes the world a programmable system. IOT, AI, Deep learning etc., combined with the data will give us the ability to see things on a scale that was never possible before. Technology is changing so fast that it is hard to keep up with the changes! Every individual has to be a computer literate to survive in this world!

3. New Media Ecology has arrived. Every organisation is going digital. New communication tools need media literacies beyond text. Visual communication media has become the new tool for communication, even among the illiterate masses and is a very powerful medium. Who would have thought about a year ago that there would be online classes or that we would be attending a local wedding on the ubiquitous “zoom?”

4. The era of super structured organisations is there to stay. You may still come to work in Chennai or Bengaluru, but you will be collaborating with a team member in New Zealand for a Client in Brazil! It is a globally connected world. It is a global supply chain too. Diversity and adaptability are mandatory to not only survive but grow beyond our backyard. So, your thinking has to move from being local to Global. Relationship building and inter-personal skills assumes great significance.

It must be understood that once we step into an organisation and a changing world as indicated above, we will not be individuals but part of a team and therefore, an organisation. Some of these skills are absolutely essential to grow and succeed, irrespective of the times we live in.

1. We are living in a world which pays a premium for knowledge. Do not confine yourself to your syllabus alone. Read books, magazines, journals and enhance your knowledge in contemporary topics. For example, in Software, your syllabus may not cover data analytics or Deep Learning. Ensure that you spend time to know these areas. This is a continuous process lasting a lifetime. Wherever feasible, engage in real projects with hands-on experience in your spare time. This enhances your skills and marketability.

2. Communication is the key to success in any field. So, improve your communication skills. English is the most widely spoken and used language. So, hone your skills. Read newspapers, talk to each other in English in your college, attend coaching classes, if required. This skill empowers you and differentiates you from the next person. A good communicator wins always! Do not have inhibition about accent or fluency. You can develop it over a period of time. Develop basic writing skills, especially Email etiquettes.

3. Practice open, honest and effective exchange of information. Good communication does not mean a flowery language but one that helps you communicate ideas effectively. Simple language is always understood and appreciated.

4. The world is ever changing and in a dynamic fashion that none of us anticipated. A person, in today’s context, is deemed intelligent, if he adapts to change. Be an intelligent person and adapt to change and evolve. Go along with the flow without resisting it. Be flexible and assimilate change. Else you will fall by the wayside.

5. As stated earlier, you will be working in a multicultural / global environment. Hence it is important to appreciate this and understand different cultures and embrace nuances of different cultures. This is one of the most challenging tasks that you need to work on. There are a number of books on the way different cultures work, manage time, communicate etc., For example, our concept of time is very laid back. If a wedding reception is announced at 7 pm, invariably it starts around 8 pm! This is not acceptable in many cultures. You need to be aware and adapt. There is no superior or inferior culture. Know that each culture is different. Adapt effectively without any inhibition.

6. As you will be working in teams, building relationships is a skill that you need to develop. You need to bring cohesiveness by being committed to the team and its goals. This can be practiced in your college being committed to your projects and courses. Collaboration is the key. It needs to be demonstrated as well. Inter-personal skill is one of the most prized possessions that will take you very far wherever you work. Not many can boast of this skill though many claim it on paper.

7. Whatever you choose to do, be passionate about it. Passion is all about following your heart and doing what comes to you naturally. Introspect and identify and develop your passion. Learn to be innovative and creative. Those are the people for whom the industry pays a premium!

8. Time is the scarcest resource anyone can have. Do the important and not only the urgent things. Develop planning and time management skills. These will keep you in good stead in the ever-demanding corporate world.

9. Continuous learning is the norm today. Be mentally prepared to learn continuously over your career span and beyond. There is no substitute for this trait to help you be ahead of the rest. I know of people who retired 10 years ago, still attending webinars and seminars!

10. Zig Ziglar says, “Attitude determines your Altitude!” A Harvard study found that 85% of the reason why a person gets a job, keeps a job and moves ahead is because of his ATTITUDE. Only 15% is due to his specific skills. So, develop a healthy attitude to learning, job, workplace and life in general. A positive attitude coupled with hard work is a definite recipe for success.

Do you know why women wear Diamond jewelry? It is because diamonds are rare. If they were common, no one will wear them. Just imagine – there has been NO ONE like each one of you over 5 billion years of Earth’s existence and there will be NO ONE in future also. That is why they take your finger prints for everything. You are not only rare but UNIQUE in creation. You are talented and YOU are the only person on earth who can use your ability! The onus is on you to identify, prepare and use this unique gift of GOD for your benefit and for the benefit of humanity. Enjoy your life and be a source of happiness to others too.

All the best! A very HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Vineet Nayar - A Transformational Leader

noreply@blogger.com (NSG) — Sat, 19 Sep 2020 02:55:00 +0000

Leadership is a nebulous subject. The very word evokes an image of a superman who is omnipotent capable of solving every challenge that comes his way. While a whole lot of such expectations from a business leader may seem unreasonable, the anticipation that such a leader has a Vision for the company and results to show for the effectiveness of the strategy seems to be a reasonable presumption. Vineet Nayar, former CEO and Vice Chairman of HCL Technologies is one such leader who, with his Vision and passionate approach, transformed the company over a period of 7 years. Vineet is a charismatic and decisive leader with an excellent track record. He is a great communicator and an acclaimed global thinker.

This is the inspirational story of his dynamic transformational leadership.

Prologue

The year 2005 was a watershed moment in the history of HCL Technologies (HCL). A pioneer in hardware manufacturing and sales in India, it had forayed into Software Services, Infrastructure Services and BPO in the wake of Y2K boom. While it was in the top 5 IT services companies of India, and growing at a very steady rate, all was not well within the organisation. The competitors were pulling ahead. HCL was losing market share, mind share and talent share. The employees did not see a great future and the then CEO, though a technically brilliant man, was neither customer facing nor an inspirational leader. It was at this juncture that Vineet Nayar, who was the President of COMNET, the Infrastructure arm of HCL, became the President of HCL IT services and Infrastructure (BPO was not under his purview to start with). He became the CEO of HCL Technologies in 2007 and later elevated as Vice Chairman in 2011.

Vineet joined HCL as a Management Trainee after completing his MBA from XLRI in 1985. He worked across various units of the organisation and ultimately initiated a start-up called COMENT (within HCL) to cater exclusively to Infrastructure Services. COMNET, under his leadership revolutionized Infrastructure Management including the much-acclaimed Remote Infrastructure Management. While there were several other senior executives within the company with background in Software Services, Vineet was chosen to lead the Software Services in addition to the Infrastructure Services. Thus, he became the President of HCL Technologies and Head – Software Services and Infrastructure Services which was about 86% of the overall revenues of HCL. The total revenues of HCL at that time was USD 763 Million.

It was the best thing to have happened to HCL. Being an outsider to a business has its distinct advantages. Vineet was quick to see the struggle within the company to improve market share, low morale of employees, general lack of direction, outdated systems and processes etc., Within a short span of time, he started to shake up the organisation and posed some fundamental questions that would dramatically change the course and direction of HCL for years to come.

Introspection

The famous humanistic psychologist Carl Rogers said, “When I accept myself as I am, then I change.” This is true of organisations as well. Vineet used a tool, what he called “Mirror Mirror on the wall – confronting the Truth” to introspect. Senior Managers were invited to workshops called “The Blue Print” and all issues, impediments that hindered growth, employee empowerment and satisfaction, sales, delivery were all discussed threadbare. A detailed plan was devised to set right the house in order. Obviously, a 3 decade company will have may areas that needed an upgrade – some to be overhauled, some to be totally discarded etc., Sales and marketing strategies were discussed – like the Blue Ocean strategy, the need for an outside in approach to selling rather than an inside out approach, revamping the marketing collaterals etc., It was an eye opener for many of the employees! Over a period of time, this invariably led to building the organizational capabilities, which would not have happened at that pace otherwise.

Building Trust and Transparency

Distrust and defensiveness set in an organisation due to several reasons and more so where lot of young millennials work. Lack of opportunities, lack of vision and a poor work environment contribute not only to dissatisfaction but also to attrition and employee burnout. Vineet addressed this by invigorating the work environment by clearly articulating the vision, values and what he intends doing to make HCL a sought-after place to work. The work environment, he promised, would change dramatically and soon enough employees started seeing the change.

And it started with him! A 360-degree feedback was instituted to all employees who a manager might influence – and allowed anyone who gave a feedback to a manager access to the manager’s 360. This practice increased participation, empowered employees, and made 360 a developmental tool and not an evaluation tool. While 360 feedback was common, opening out the results in a transparent way was unusual. Even clients who had heard of it were quite amazed. And not all feedback was flattering!

A U&I portal was launched. It was a two-way dialogue between CEO and the employees. Vineet himself answered almost 90% of the questions spending over 7 hours a week. It also started a reverse blogging where Vineet posted questions and employees responded. His Vision for the company was slowly unfolding.

CEO’s musings became a regular feature where Vineet shared his vision and thoughts for the way forward.

One of the key determinants of Trust in an organisation is the compensation system. Vineet revamped the decades old paper-based appraisal system with an online system called i4excel which handled end-to-end appraisal of over 24000 employees in less than 30 days and compensation letters released electronically. What used to take months thus was reduced to days. That apart, in earlier times, while discussions were held with managers, the reviewer’s comments were never known. i4excel made that transparent. It revolutionized the appraisal and compensation process.

It is great for a CEO to articulate a vision and bring in transparency, but each employee is interested in “What is in it for me?” Vineet introduced ESOP plan for all cadres of employees which was a morale booster besides giving a stake in the growth of the company for each employee. This was a great success and employees were thrilled.

To reward high performers, he instituted ‘O2 league of the Extraordinary’. The league constituted those employees who have been outstanding employees for the preceding two years. What was unusual in this award was, the family of the employee was also invited to the award function and a grand dinner followed the ceremony. This was an outstanding success as it not only got the buy-in from the family but enhanced the standing of employees amidst their kith and kin. The family also felt part of the organisation and its growth. This was truly an out of the box idea!

Similarly, when employees retired, they were invited to the above function, with their spouse and felicitated with a citation appreciating their services besides gifts.

“The ultimate measure of man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at time of challenge and controversy”, said Martin Luther King. The 2008 financial crisis was one such challenging time. Vineet boldly proclaimed the philosophy “No HCLite will be left behind”, reassuring the employees that none would be retrenched even in those difficult times. What else can you ask of a leader?

A comprehensive Employee Portal was launched which covered different areas including Employee empowerment, Employee Recognition, knowledge base, Transformation and support. Over a period of time several innovative systems were put in place through the portal.

These initiatives did not happen overnight but unfolded in a systematic way over a period of time. In hindsight, the employees understood that these were all pieces of a larger unfolding puzzle.

Strategy

Max De Pree, CEO of Herman Miller, said in ‘Leadership is an Art’, “In the end, it is important to remember that we cannot become what we need to be by remaining what we are.” So true. Having cleaned up the organisation and built trust to a large extent, it was time to reinforce the vision and strategy for the Company consistently even though it was unfolding and had taken shape. In Vineet’s own words, he asked three fundamental questions in the context of HCL’s business and the answers are revealing.

The first question that begs an answer was “What is the core business of the organisation?” The answer to that was – to create a differentiated value for its customers. The second follow-up question was, “If it is so, where does that differentiated value get created?” And the answer to that was, “in the interface between the employees and customers.” And the final question was, “If that was so, what should be the business of managers and management be?”. The obvious answer to that question was, “to enthuse, empower and encourage employees to deliver that differentiated value!”

Thus, was born the radically different management philosophy of “Employee First Customer Second.” (EFCS). Vineet went on to articulate that the customer also wins in this paradigm as “Customers first” philosophy found it difficult to deliver that fuzzy promise or value. The initiatives embarked thus far in HCL were part of this strategy and had started paying dividends.

Vineet organised “Directions”, an annual company wide event, that takes strategic discussions out of closed-door meetings to all employees. Vineet and the local leadership team was present at these meetings and shared the vision and strategy of the company in interactive sessions. It was not all business but fun and connecting with employees as well. Vineet made a dramatic entry in one such meeting dancing along the aisle to the stage – needless to say that it was an unconventional entry. The employees loved it. Vineet prepared at least 2 weeks for the event and spent another 2 weeks travelling across the globe to attend events in various countries.

It was essential to bring on board the other important stake holder – customers. Hence Vineet organised a theme based Global customer meet where all the customers were invited to participate. Apart from showcasing HCL’s capabilities, the event also brought thought leaders from across the globe to present latest trends in technology, industry etc. The customer meet was a rousing success. In one such meet conducted in the US, the noted author Malcom Gladwell was the keynote speaker. That apart President Clinton addressed the meet in his usual charming way and enthralled the audience with his phenomenal knowledge and command over wide-ranging issues. He seamlessly connected them into a coherent message. It was truly an inspirational address.

The following remark by a customer bears testimony to the resounding success of the Global Customer Meet. He said “I look forward to coming to HCL meet, as it is the only IT meet in IT and Tech, where I learn and enjoy without inhibition and where the content helps me broaden my thinking. It is not only about technology but also about the passionate culture of HCL that has made me a big fan of HCL for the past 6 years and I wouldn’t miss it for anything!”

Vineet published this philosophy as his best-selling book “Employee First Customer Second – turning conventional management upside down”. This was a best seller with over 100,000 copies sold and translated into 7 languages. Vineet, fondly referred as a “Maverick” by media, was acclaimed for his transformation of HCL over a period of 5-6 years. Encomiums followed and some of the key ones include:

§ Fortune magazine recognised HCL as “the world’s most modern management”

§ Business Week named HCL as “one of world’s most influential companies”

§ These innovative business practices were taught as a case study in Harvard Business School and London Business School

§ Vineet was chosen by Fortune magazine in their first ever global Executive Dream Team

§ Vineet found a place in the elite Thinkers 50 list

§ Vineet’s philosophy received wholesome praise from global leaders like late C K Prahalad, Tom Peters, Gary Hamel and Ram Charan

Results

Defining a sound and distinctive strategy is a necessary condition for success of any business. But winning the games takes a lot more. Translating vision into action with alacrity and consistency is an unenvious and onerous task. HCL, under the dynamic leadership of Vineet, not only performed well but outdid all expectations. His tenure from 2005-2013 saw phenomenal growth of business. HCL was a force to reckon with. The results were there for all to see.

§ The employee revenue per annum grew by over 36% with an increased utilization rate

§ Employee attrition rate dropped significantly over 9 consecutive quarters. Employees were proud to be part of the company

§ Employee strength grew from about 24,000 to 85,000

§ Revenues grew from 0.7 Billion in 2005 to 4.7 Billion in 2013 with operations in 32 countries

§ Customers tripled

§ Customer satisfaction doubled

At the end of his term, the key question that many had was “How would HCL’s performance be after Vineet?” The true hallmark of a leader is that the systems and processes should have been institutionalised and the individual should become insignificant. Vineet, even before end of his term announced, “Dismantling the office of the CEO”, which confused many. All he did was to recast the office of the CEO and transfer the responsibility from senior management to the company as a whole. New initiatives like Value Portal, Smart Service Desk to resolve the outstanding issues between frontline employees and functions were launched making the management accountable to employees. Like all other initiatives Value Portal was a great success as HCL employees demonstrated, in dollar terms, the value they brought to the client.

The fact that HCL is doing extremely well and has outperformed Vineet is a tribute to his strategy and the high-performance culture that he built in HCL. And as we write this, HCL is in the top 10 most valued companies in India by market capitalization!

Prologue

After an illustrious career in HCL, Vineet co-founded Sampark Foundation with his wife Anupama Nayar, to catalyse ‘large-scale transformation in primary education through frugal innovation.’ Today Sampark Foundation is improving learning outcomes among 7 Million children studying in 76000 rural schools across 6 states in India – Chhattisgarh, Uttarakhand, Jharkhand, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh at less than $1 per child per annum. This large-scale transformation is now a case study at Harvard Business School.

Vineet has been cited by Forbes in its “Heroes of Philanthropy List 2016’ and also as a ‘Global Thinker 2016’, along with his wife, by Foreign Policy magazine for ‘Unplugging technology so kids can learn.’

Vineet currently serves as a Senior Advisor to ChrysCapital, McKinsey Leadership Institute and many Fortune 1000 companies. He is on the Advisory board of ‘Millions Learning’ project led by the Ex-Prime Minister of Australia, Ms. Julia Gillard, and has served as Governor of ICT, member of the Global Advisory board of Women Leaders and Gender parity program at the World Economic Forum. And as a mentor to multiple technology start-ups, he continues to follow his passion of turning conventional management wisdom upside down.

Gulf Beckons!

noreply@blogger.com (NSG) — Thu, 09 Jul 2020 12:09:00 +0000

One of the perks (or perils?) of working in the IT sector is the frequent visits to overseas locations to meet clients or your teams or be part of sales presentations etc., It is quite exhilarating in the initial days but gets weary as years roll by. My second avatar in IT industry was full of such travels and needless to add, I have had interesting experiences to narrate. When I look back on all those travels over the 15 odd years, the one that shook me literally and causes nightmares even now was on one of my frequent trips to Malaysia.

I don’t particularly enjoy these short overseas trips. You lose the entire night’s sleep and land up early in the morning at the destination. You have to wait at the Hotel for rooms to be cleaned up red eyed for your name to be called. For obvious reasons we are not allowed to book rooms from the previous night. And you hardly get any time to shower, get ready and be in office for the meeting or the presentation. So, I try to get as much sleep as possible in the flight and generally don’t engage in conversations with those sitting next to me.

On this occasion, though, the chap sitting next to me did not look like a business traveler but some sort of “labourer”, I guessed. As we were nearing Kuala Lumpur, he sought my help to fill in the immigration form. He said his name was “Ramar” and that he was going for “Work”. When I checked his visa status it was a business visa for one week. He had a return ticket as well. I was stunned and asked him how he managed to clear immigration! Those authorities are supposed to restrain such “labourers” from travelling abroad without proper work visa. I was genuinely concerned and asked him who will come to meet him at the airport. He took out a cigarette packet cover (yes, I am not exaggerating!) and showed me a number scribbled on it and said that he would call this number on arrival. I was dumbfounded.

On alighting, I went ahead to the immigration queue and saw my friend Ramar being escorted to another room. I was definite that he would be sent back. As I was collecting my luggage, I saw Ramar coming, with a beaming smile! The immigration at KL were also no better! It was too much for me to handle for a night. He sought my help to call the number on the cigarette cover. And, yes you guessed it right, no one responded. Now I was stuck with Ramar. He would not let me go pleading with me to take him along!

I reached KL in a taxi with Ramar in tow. On reaching the hotel, I got his agent’s number in Chennai and blasted him for sending an innocent man like this to a foreign land. The agent promised me that someone would pick him up before the evening and gave him a restaurant’s details. I had a presentation. So, I walked across to an Indian restaurant, where I normally have food, and requested the owner to allow Ramar to be there till that evening. One of the advantages of frequent travel, is you also build relationship and the owner was an extremely friendly person. I left Ramar there and went about my business. I completely forgot about Ramar.

I returned that evening and went back to the restaurant. And there was Ramar, still clutching his bag, his only possession, and looking at me anxiously. The owner said no one had contacted till then. I began to panic as I did not know what to do. I again requested the owner to give Ramar some food and accommodation till next morning. He readily obliged; God bless him. The next morning, I told Ramar that he should consider getting back to India by the next flight as he had a return ticket and he should forget his “Phoren” dreams. I went to work and came back that evening. The restaurant owner, gave me the dreadful news. He told me that Ramar had paid an agent Rs. 80,000/= after selling his measly possession of lands in his native village and come here and cannot go back. He had no option but to commit suicide. The restaurant owner was also panicking now and asked me to do something.

A salesman is always a salesman. The salesman in me, took over, and I pleaded with the restaurant owner to give him a job in the restaurant, although it was illegal. He was also of Indian origin and I played the Indian card to the hilt. After much persuasion, he agreed and so my friend Ramar became a server in the restaurant! My colleagues in KL made fun of me saying that I had influence even in Malaysia! On return to India, I called the agent and blasted him and threatened him to report to Police. Of course, it was only to let out my frustration. I also called Ramar’s wife in Trichy and told her that her husband was safely “employed” in Malaysia! On looking back, I am not sure whether I was stupid to get involved in such situations, which could have got ugly, but then being who I am, I could not walk away!

Why this story now?

I see hundreds of workers returning from the Gulf countries. It is sad because most of their entire life’s savings were spent to go there dreaming of a better life for their family. All that is shattered. How will they find employment here? What can the Government do? Having seen their plight in many such countries, my heart bleeds for them and their families.

And when I went to KL after about 2 months, the restaurant owner told me that Ramar, now wiser and more experienced, had left the job and had gone into the hinterland! I do not know what happened to him. But there are still such Ramars among us who have dreams of an overseas job and a future that could be worthwhile! How sad that this is not the reality. It is also unfortunate that more countries are turning out to be a mirage even for our educated class!

When will we create an egalitarian Bharath where every citizen can live with dignity and be true to himself and achieve his potential? Only time alone can answer!

Time - An intriguing concept

noreply@blogger.com (NSG) — Sat, 28 Dec 2019 13:51:00 +0000

‘Time’ is an intriguing construct. It has fascinated humans from time immemorial. Time machine and Time travel have caught our imagination. ‘Time Machine’ by H G wells continues to fascinate even the current generation. We take ‘Time” to be absolute and still believe so! When a great scientist like Albert Einstein says “Time is an Illusion”, it is counter intuitive to most of us. Understanding his space-time continuum is all too much for us, the lay people.

It is interesting to see how time has been perceived and adopted since ages.

The Gregorian calendar, is today’s international calendar, named after the man who first introduced it in February, 1752 – Pope Gregory XIII. Before 1752, England and her Empire followed the Julian calendar, first implemented by Julius Caesar in 46 BCE. However, this calendar had an inbuilt error of 1 day for every 128 years, due to miscalculation of solar year by 11 minutes! This affected the date of Easter, traditionally celebrated on 21^st March, as it started to move away from the spring equinox with each passing year.

To get over this problem, Gregorian calendar was introduced. This is a solar calendar, based on a 365-day year divided into 12 months. Each month consists of 30 or 31 days with one month consisting of 28 days and once in 4 years a leap having a month with 29 days. This was adopted in many countries like France, Italy etc., in 1582 with Turkey adopting it as late as 1927. As a result, the year 1751 was just 282 days from 25^th March (start date of the Julian year) till 31^st December. 1752 started on January 1.

England adopted this in September 1752, but there was a problem. To align the calendars, England had to “drop” 11 days from the calendar – Wednesday, 2^nd September was followed by Thursday, 13^th September! There are rumours floating that there were riots in England with workers demanding their “lost” 11 days! Quite hilarious to say the least and whether this is true or a myth is not known!

While the European civilization was thus accounting for time, it would be interesting to see what our ancestors thought of time and how they accounted for it. Ancient Indians had the concept of “Yuga” and we had four Yugas running one after the other. It starts with the Krita Yuga, followed by Tretha Yuga, Dvapara Yuga and the present Kali Yuga in that order.

Going bottom up, Kali Yuga is 432,000 years in human life terms.

Dvapara Yuga is two times of Kali Yuga - 864,000 years.

Tretha Yuga is three times of Kali Yuga - 1,296,00 years.

Krita Yuga is four times Kali Yuga - 1,728,000 years.

These four continue in a cycle and together are called a ‘Chatur Yuga’. Therefore, a Chatur Yuga is 4,320,000 Years or 4.32 Million Years!

Kali Yuga started in 3102 BCE after Krishna left Dwaraka at the end of Dvapara Yuga. Since we are in 2019 CE, we have only spent about 5121 years in Kali Yuga and technically Hindus call this “pratame pathe” or first quarter of Kali Yuga. Therefore, we have another 426,879 years for Kali Yuga to end at which time, according to scriptures, Lord Vishnu would incarnate as Kalki Avtar (the original one!) to redeem the world and establish Dharma.

Once Kali Yuga is over, the Krita Yuga commences again!

1000 Chatur Yuga’s is called a “Kalpa” which translates to 4.32 Billion Years! And, as per our scriptures, Brahma, who created the world, has a DAY consisting of 1 Kalpa and a NIGHT consisting of 1 Kalpa.

If this is not already mind boggling, ancient Hindus have gone even further. And Brahma, lives for 100 celestial years! Thus, the life of a Brahma is equivalent to 2X4.32X365x100= 315.36 Trillion Years in human terms! That is the life span of a Brahma!

These 1000 Chatur Yugas are managed by 14 Manus and roughly each Manu gets about 71 Chatur Yugas. Each of these 71 Chatur Yuga segments is called a ‘Manvantara’.

We are presently in the first day of 51^st year of the current Brahma, in the 28^th Chatur Yuga and managed by the 7^th Manu titled Vivastha Manu (Vivasvaan). If you think all these are farfetched, you are mistaken. Whenever we perform a Homa or a pooja, we do a sankalpa. This is nothing but a statement of purpose for the pooja much like the SOP’s we prepare to get admitted to prestigious schools. This is what we chant:

Adhya Brahmanaha – Current Brahma

Dvithiya pararthe – Second half of the 50 years of the Brahma

Swetha Varaha kalpe – 1^st day of the above year

Vivastha Manvanthare – ruled by Vivastha Manu

Ashtam vigumsathi thame – 28^th Manvantharam

Kaliyuge pradame pathe – first quarter of kali Yuga

This is followed by the Geographical location of where we are doing the pooja – Bharata Varshe etc., if we are in India and suitably modified if you are in other countries. Can it become anymore systematic and detailed?

If you look at the celestial day of a Brahma, it is 4.32 Billion years in our time scale. It roughly equates to the age of the earth as computed by scientists today! How uncanny! Further, our sastras go on to add that once the life of a Brahma is over, all plurality is resolved and the entire universe goes from a manifest state to an unmanifest state! Remember that matter can neither be created nor destroyed. When a new Brahma takes charge, after a deep slumber as it were, the entire creation moves from a unmanifest state to a manifest state! This is called pralaya and Shristi in the Sastras – what the modern scientists call expansion-contraction; evolution-involution. Thus, the Universe goes in a cyclic form of manifestation and unmanifestation. The whole Universe goes in a cyclic form eternally!

If you are not astounded by such an imagery and deep insight of our forefathers, please listen to what Carl Sagan, one of America’s greatest astronomers has to say about this.

“The Hindu Religion is the only one of the world’s great faiths dedicated to the idea that the Cosmos itself undergoes an immense, indeed infinite, number of deaths and rebirths. It is the only Religion in which the time scales correspond, no doubt by accident, to those of modern scientific cosmology. Its cycles run from our ordinary day and night, to a day and night of Brahma, 8.64 Billion Years long, longer than the age of the Earth or the Sun and about half the time since Big Bang. And there are much longer time scales still.

There is an appealing notion that the world is but a dream of GOD, who after a hundred Brahma Years, dissolves himself into a dreamless sleep. The Universe dissolves with him, until after another Brahma century, he stirs, recomposes himself and begins again to dream the big cosmic dream.” He also goes on to add,

“In India, there are many GODs and their many manifestations. The Chola bronzes cast in the 11^th Century, include several different incarnations of God Shiva. The most elegant and sublime of these is a representation of the creation of the Universe at the beginning of each cosmic cycle, a motif known as the cosmic dance of Shiva. The GOD, called in this manifestation Nataraja, the dance King, has four hands. In the upper right hand is a drum whose sound is the sound of creation. In the upper left hand is a tongue of flame, a reminder that the Universe, now newly created, will from billions of years from now, be utterly destroyed.

These profound and lovely images are, I like to imagine, a kind of premonition of modern astronomical idea.”

What else can one say?

I started this blog using the word “construct” for time. Why is it so? Is Time real? Does it really march onward or as Einstein said is it an illusion? These questions need a serious enquiry!

Now that we are on the subject of Time and since the New Year is round the corner, let me wish you all a very HAPPY NEW YEAR!

How Buddha saved me!

noreply@blogger.com (NSG) — Sun, 24 Nov 2019 13:45:00 +0000

I was heading the delivery unit of an IT company a few years ago. There is never a dull moment in IT companies – customer escalations, appraisals and wage revisions, resignations, client visits, P&L pressure et al – you are always on tenterhooks. You get so much used to these situations that anything less feels like boredom! As I was meandering through my daily chores, I received a call from my Country Manager in Singapore stating that I need to urgently travel to Singapore to meet a disgruntled client. Further enquiry revealed that the client wanted to sue us for a few million dollars, as contracted, due to a failed delivery. Now, that was not only disturbing but also something grave. We had implemented a e-procurement product for this client in their factory in Indonesia and as all start-up products are wont to, it failed to meet their overrated expectations. But my million-dollar question to the country manager was “Why me?” as I was a banker and had nothing to do with e-procurement! His response was a classic one which I had never heard before – he said “if you plead sincerely with the client, he would not proceed suing us!” I didn’t know that I was such a great ‘pleader.’

Not one to shirk responsibility, I took upon this onerous task of meeting the client in Singapore. I browsed through the manuals to get a hang of the product and spent a couple of days with the development team to know about the nuances of the product. My background in such processes in my earlier avatar in the US helped me ease my tension a bit. I reached Singapore and met the client manager Mr. Chang – an Indonesian Chinese. He briefly met me, was curt, unfriendly and dropped a bombshell that we were travelling to the factory in Indonesia the next day! I did not have an Indonesian visa and he promised that he would take me there without a visa in a steamer! I was dumbstruck and refused to budge as the prison cells of Indonesia danced before my eyes. Much to my surprise, he arranged for a visa in Singapore which was a feat in itself. Later, the following day, I, Mr. Chang and two of his colleagues embarked on our journey to Indonesia.

It was nothing short of an adventurous trip. First, we took a steamer and landed on the Indonesian soil after about 30 minutes. We then took a jeep ride for about 2 hours to another city. Mr. Chang, obviously upset with our company, was very aloof and detached – quite understandable. However unfriendly a group may be, when all are thrown in a group in a jeep with nothing else to do, you tend to start a conversation. By some quirk of fate, the conversation veered towards religion and I came to know that all the three of them were Buddhists. I casually asked them about the significance of the 4 noble truths propounded by Buddha. Surprisingly, they were not very well informed. Then I talked very eloquently about Buddha and how his principal teaching was in the 4 noble truths. They listened with rapt attention. They were under the impression that the 4 noble truths were very basic. I dispelled their notion with extensive quotes from the books / articles that I had read. They were quite surprised, to say the least. I talked to them about the American Buddhist Monk Ajahn Sumedho and his brilliant book as also about his master’s book ‘A Tree in a Forest’ by Ajahn Chah, a Buddhist Monk from Thailand. Knowing that I was a practicing Hindu, they were astounded. I promised to send them links to these books. Their entire demenaour changed after this conversation.

On reaching our destination, we boarded a plane, travelled for another hour or so and then had a jeep ride for about 30 minutes and reached the factory in the middle of a forest. The team there was waiting for our arrival. We right away entered the meeting and the factory head, a lady Ms. Chin, was waiting anxiously and after a brief introduction shot a question at me in an exasperated voice, ‘You are the expert. Please tell us how to solve all our problems? ‘Expert – me’ was the incredulous feeling that crossed my mind and as I was marshalling my thoughts how to respond, Mr. Chang jumped from his chair and said that as an expert I cannot answer all trivial things and that I would sit with the team, study all the problems and come up with a recommendation. What a relief – I did not see Mr. Chang, but I saw Buddha himself standing there! That gave me the necessary breathing space. Later on, I also came to know that Mr. Chang and Ms. Chin were at loggerheads.

To cut the story short, I managed to gather all the issues, offered a few work arounds and generally managed to wriggle out of the situation. On return to Singapore, my good friend Ram prepared a brilliant presentation based on my inputs giving not one, but 4 different options to proceed. I went ahead and made this presentation to Mr. Chang and his team. He appeared reasonably convinced. Once I was done and about to leave, Mr. Vincent, Mr. Chang’s assistant, shook hands with me and told me in a whisper, “Mr. Ganesh, when Mr. Chang takes up an issue, he doesn’t rest till he sees blood. You are the first man to go scot free like this!” Mentally I profusely thanked Lord Buddha for his compassion and mercy on me!

Finally, the client made a settlement with us after we agreed for a small compensation and closed the project. How did the cantankerous Mr. Chang agree to this proposal – only Lord Buddha knows! And the moral of the story is, any knowledge, however trivial it may seem, will come in handy at some time one way or the other!

Meaning of MY Life!

noreply@blogger.com (NSG) — Sun, 03 Nov 2019 10:17:00 +0000

I was born on Teacher’s day – 5^th September, much to the delight of my parents and grandparents. My parents had three daughters, and as was the norm then, were happy to see a baby boy in the mix. My grandfather, who had built a Ganesha temple at our native village of Nerur, had just completed the ‘Kumbhabhishekam’ of that temple! Hence, he not only named me Ganesh, but asked a jeweler to open his shop and bought me a gold chain to adorn my waist! Like little Ganesha, I was a very naughty chap and my vague memory of my younger days were my periodical thrashings from my father and my fights with my immediate elder sister. My father, being in a place without much of schooling facility, sent me to a boarding school at the age of 6 or 7. I was reluctant to leave my mother and go but had no choice. Nevertheless, that experience of staying away from home at such a young age made me adjust to all situations and made we what people today call a ‘people magician’.

I rejoined my parents as they moved to a large city when I was in my 9^th grade. Teenage years were fun. All girls in the class looked ravishing beauties! Obviously, you have a crush on most of them. Outdoor games were the norm. My parents used to shout at us for being outdoors all the time. Cricket, Lagori, ball Badminton, Tennis – you name it, we played it all. We did not leave indoor games either. Life was a carefree endeavour without much thought about the ensuing day. Then came the time when we had to enter college. Only then I slowly realized that I must do well and get a job! That seemed to be the priority in life and the sole purpose at that point in time. My college mates were brilliant and you cannot be a duffer when the whole class oozes with brilliance. I did well in studies and got a probationary officer’s job in a Nationalized Bank – a prestige those days. My life’s ambition and purpose seemed to be over!

It was at this juncture, my brother-in-law introduced me to Vedanta lectures by a Swamiji of the Arsha Vidya Gurukulam founded by Swami Dayananda Saraswathi. These lectures, including topics like Bhagavad Gita, Mandukya Upanishad etc., gave a different perspective on life. It set me thinking and I attended more lectures including those by Swami Parthasarathy and a host of others. I read a lot of books on Vedanta and non-dual literature. I built a house, got married and had children – activities that most of us did as part of living. However, my value system had a solid foundation in our Vedic tradition.

My wife’s brother gifted me a book titled ‘COSMOS’ by Carl Sagan which rekindled my interest in Physics (though I was a honours student, I hardly knew Physics, but scored very high marks!). Being away in the US, without the family, helped me to read a lot of books on cosmology and Quantum Physics. On the one hand, the vast expanse of the empty space extending to billons of light years, accentuated our insignificance as a species. On the other, to know that the distant galaxies and we are made up of the same stuff, made my mind expand as vast as this Universe. I was often wonderstruck at the grandeur of creation. If this was macrocosm, the quantum physics was the microcosm. The concepts and discussions on reality seemed to be mind boggling! The modern scientific thoughts seem to be converging on what non-dual Advaita talked about thousands of years ago – Adi Sankara being the one who expounded it with his Bhashyas.

Once you are born, you have to die! That is the only thing that is certain. In between we live a life and as I had explained, go through various phases of life which has also been explained beautifully in the Sastras. The million-dollar question is, “Is there a purpose or meaning in life?” Great minds have discussed this over centuries. I am too small a person to attempt this. Nevertheless, I shall attempt to do so purely from MY perspective.

Sankara defines Reality at three levels. It must be understood that Reality is only one and for our easy understanding three different perspectives were discussed. For our present discussion, we shall restrict it to two. The first level is the ‘Vyavaharika Sathyam’ – transactional reality or empirical reality. This is what we experience as the phenomenal world of appearances that we take to be real. The subject-object duality. The other perspective is ‘Paramarthika Sathyam’ – Absolute Reality - which is the highest Truth or ONLY ontological reality – that is Brahman.

From an Absolute Reality perspective, the entire creation of names and forms that we see are technically called “Mithya” – neither real or unreal and many times wrongly attributed as “illusory”. Then such a construct begs an answer to the question as to why this Absolute one appears as many? What is the purpose etc. Even the great Sankara answered that it is ‘anirvachaniya’ – inexplicable. Hence there is no point in discussing our life’s purpose from an absolute stand point.

However, our scriptures state that, as explained earlier, the world of pluralities is ‘Mithya” which is caused due to ‘Avidya’ or ignorance and our sole purpose in life is to transcend this ignorance through rigorous self-knowledge and become one with the Absolute. This is what modern Gurus call ‘Awakening’. However, most of us do not bother to go anywhere near such an endeavour, including yours truly except for feeble attempts from the periphery!

Hence for our discussion, coming down to our phenomenal world is more appropriate. Do I have a purpose in life? I have taken sessions to managers on Purpose and goals etc., But seriously come to think of it, life, in MY humble view, does not have any stated purpose. We lead a life, trying to be a good human being, socially responsible, being helpful to others, follow your ashrama dharma’s, take care of those who are less fortunate than you, pursue your passion etc., Pablo Picasso summed it up succinctly when he said,” The meaning of life is to find your gift. The purpose of life is to gift it away!” If we analyze life more than this, I feel that we cannot find any answers. Victor Frankl, a nazi camp survivor, wrote the classic ‘Man’s Search for meaning’ and he believes that individuals are strongly motivated to find meaning in their lives, understand the nature of their personal existence and feel it is significant and purposeful. I believe that it is very psychologically satisfying to feel so. All of us need to become, what modern Psychologists call, a ‘Self-actualized’ person.

However, I am a dreamer and philosopher at heart. I would go with Emerson, who said,

“To laugh often and much;

To win the respect of intelligent people and affection of Children;

To earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends;

To appreciate beauty, to find the best in others;

To leave the world a little bit better, by a healthy child,

A garden patch or redeemed social condition;

To know one life has breathed easier because you have lived;

This is to have succeeded.”

Nothing more, nothing less. I equate success with living.

Bertrand Russell one of the greatest thinkers of modern times talks about this very eloquently in his book “The conquest of Happiness” as follows:

With such profound thoughts in the background, I go through life enjoying the spectacle it offers always believing that the Universe is unfolding as it should.

Despite all the trappings of success and achievements of the phenomenal world, the fundamental yearning for that limitless freedom and to be one with the Absolute will remain with us forever. It is simple yet not easy to achieve. There has to be an intense desire to achieve that in this lifetime followed by sustained efforts in that direction. Unfortunately, for most of us, neither the desire nor the efforts seem to be forthcoming. We seem to be contented with the fleeting joys and achievements of the empirical world!

As for me, I shall renew my attempts with more resolve and vigour, now that this question has been asked of me!

Hindi or No Hindi!

noreply@blogger.com (NSG) — Sat, 15 Jun 2019 03:15:00 +0000

I graduated in 1974 when I was 21. Jobs, as always, were far and few especially for “vanilla” graduates. Mrs. Gandhi’s nationalization of banks had given a fillip to branch expansion and that was my only hope. My father, in all his enthusiasm to encourage me, got me a probationary officer’s guide which cost him Rs. 15/=. There were no coaching classes or internet to get information on finger tips. Competition Success Review magazine was a constant companion. I embarked on project “job hunting” in all earnestness! I appeared for all exams that allowed me to appear – from Management trainees to clerks to Probationary officers! I had appeared for an entrance exam for IIM, Calcutta in my final year and that was a tough nut to crack. But that failure was certainly an experience to cherish for compared to that, the PO exams were, to put it Chennai parlance “Jijubi”. I got selected as probationary officer in 2 banks besides as a clerk in another Bank. God was kind was all I could say with a sigh of relief!

Canara Bank was a great place to start my career. Having had my initial training stint in Jamshedpur in Bihar and Dhenkanal in Orissa, I was finally posted to Moradabad. It was in Western UP and I landed there with lot of trepidation. I did not know the language and it was far away from home. My first day in office was quite intimidating. Most of the staff spoke only Hindi and I was asked to manage the “bills” counter. In walked a gentleman and he asked in chaste Hindi “Saab, woh chautha sow pachpan bill nikaaldo”. I felt as if I was hit on the head by a Joffra Archer bouncer. Cheques were written in Hindi numerals. The pay in slips were also in Hindi. I cursed the Tamil Zealots back home who did not allow folks like us to learn Hindi. But then, being a positive person that I am, I sought the help of a local colleague, Mr. Ved Prakash Dbey ji – we called him Dubey ji. He gave me a brilliant idea – watch movies! That sounded a great idea and since he was a forced bachelor, he used to accompany me to at least 3 movies a week! All the Amitabh Bachan starrer of those days like Zanzeer, Kabhi kabi, Amar Akbar Antony were seen gleefully. The morning radio sounded Kundan Lal Saigal and evenings were with Ameen Sayani. Mohammed Rafi was my all-time favourite. Soon enough I started learning Hindi, the right way!

My Hindi was very chaste without the Tamilian accent and people started accepting me as their own. One problem with learning Hindi in UP is the usage of, what we call “Sanskrit” words in between. For those who are uninitiated, we call it swear words. You see these words lovingly uttered by our Virat Kohli whenever India takes a wicket. You will not understand the pleasure of mouthing these words unless you have lived in UP or up North. I had a colleague by name Triloknath Chaturvedi – and his name implies that he was a master of 4 Vedas- nothing can be farther from the truth. If he opened his mouth, it would be the choicest of “words” in Hindi. And he was a great influence on me, so much so, I started using a similar language! Once I was travelling from Delhi to Amritsar with my friends and a vendor tried to cheat me. I unleashed a barrage of abuses selected from Chaturvedi’s exclusive dictionary. An elderly man, obviously stunned at this onslaught, sitting opposite to me, seeing us talking in Tamil earlier, gently asked me in Hindi “Are you a Madrasi?”. I said yes and he responded “Even I do not know so many “good” words in Hind!”. My friend Chaturvedi must have been proud seeing the progress of his protege!

Then I moved on from there to various places, left the Bank and worked in Puerto Rico before moving to the US. In Puerto Rico, a Spanish colleague proudly told me that his Indian friends had taught him Hindi and much to my liking uttered all those “good” words that I had forgotten in a while! On return to India I joined HCL. For some strange reason all sales and marketing guys in IT companies are North Indians! My Hindi helped me to build a bond with them and whenever we had something to quietly discuss which the client should not know, we always switched to Hindi! Needless to add, I have built lasting friendships with many of them. And after all the drama, I have retired to a senior living home which is run by North Indians and yes, my Hindi helps here too!

So, the point I am making is that learning a language is definitely an advantage and enriches you. I appreciate Mr. Modi’s speech for most of the part, enjoy Kumar Vishwas’ kavi sammelans, enjoy reading jokes in Hindi etc., I can go on and on. Similarly, I have also learnt Kannada and can speak reasonably well. And you can see the pleasure in someone’s face when you talk to them in their native language. It is priceless.

By learning a language, I don’t think Tamil will lose out. But unfortunately, those who defend Tamil are those who do not know the beauty of the language. There is a vast literature in Tamil and I am sure most of these chaps do not even know the ABC of these classics. In modern days who would know about Sekizhar or Silapadikaram or the great Thiruvalluvar. They generate new words that are extremely colloquial and purists like me do not understand. For example, for one of my FB posts, one person had commented “mass sir!’. I did not know what it meant. I quietly called my niece and asked her what it meant. She said mass=awesome as if it was something universal like E=MC²! Recently in our senior living, we conducted a competition where people had to speak extempore for a minute on a given topic without using English words. All of them failed! So much for our Tamil skills. As for me, I am making it a point to read Tamil devotional classics like Thiruvasagam etc., and am fond of quoting from Thirukuaral. More than Tamilnadu, it is Tamil folks in countries like Sri Lanka, Malaysia, France, Canada are fostering the language the way it should be done.

So long as it is not compulsory, I guess learning a new language is a great advantage and one must make efforts to learn a language whenever an opportunity arises. There should be no coercion. At the same time, if there is a necessity, I feel that people will learn a language. After all, all languages are beautiful and are useful in some way. So, the more languages you know, the more friends you can have! What else one needs?

MODI-2.0

noreply@blogger.com (NSG) — Sat, 25 May 2019 02:18:00 +0000

Heartiest Congratulations to Mr. Modi and BJP for this stupendous victory. Most of us did not expect such an overwhelming response by India! In a way it is good because, reforms can now be pushed through at a much faster pace.

Leadership is one of the key drivers for success of an organization – be it an enterprise, or a cricket team or a political party. It is the leader who communicates his vision to his constituents. This message as well as the messenger is of utmost importance. I had written about Mr. Modi’s leadership in my blog http://nsgmusings.blogspot.com/2019/04/is-mr-modi-truly-great-leader.html on 12^th April. I had also ended that blog with the lines that till a worthy challenger emerges, Mr. Modi is THE Man. He is a great orator and very cleverly he made this election as Modi vs the rest – a sort of presidential referendum. So, the candidates became irrelevant. He kept repeating “your vote to Lotus is a vote for me!” Marketing Gurus can learn a lesson or two from Mr. Modi. It is great to have a vision and strategy. You will come a cropper if that strategy is not executed properly. Just imagine Dhoni as captain tells his bowler to bowl a line and the bowler does not heed his advice! Here again BJP scored big time. If Mr. Modi was BJP’s face, Mr. Amit Shah and his band of karyakarthas were the arms and legs working behind the scenes to make this happen on the ground – not only during elections but much before that. Unfortunately, none of the opposition came anywhere close to BJP in these two aspects. All they had to say was “remove Modi” – which seemed to add to Mr. Modi’s popularity. Of course, there were many other factors that were at play for such a huge victory.

Having said that, in a democracy, a strong opposition is a must. Whether one likes it or not, Congress is the only pan India party. In all fairness, it started off after independence as a left of the centre, liberal, secular party. But over the years right from Nehru days it had changed slowly initially but accelerated during Mrs. Gandhi’s period. The Congress today is not the Congress that was formed initially. India NEEDS a party like that. Congress would do well to reinvent itself, build grass root level workers, promote regional leaders, ELECT a LEADER through democratic means and START FROM TODAY. We can then hope to see a challenger for Mr. Modi in 2024. If they still harp on old methods, I am afraid this trend cannot be reversed soon. As for all the other regional parties with 5-10 MP’s and aspiring to become prime Ministers, what can I say? I think we should slowly move towards a 2-party system like in the US.

As Mr. Modi rightly pointed out in his acceptance speech, the election rhetoric is over. The reality is staring at us. It is fine to be euphoric for a few more days. After that, the new Government has its task cut out. The economy is not in great shape. While the inflation is low, the growth at 7% may not be good enough. There is huge Government spending and oil prices have been favourable. Some industry sectors are not in good shape. Banking needs a fillip. Consumption has slowed down. Jobs need to be created as unemployment is one of the biggest problems. Agrarian crisis is for real. Something needs to be done about it. Water management also needs immediate attention. Interlinking of rivers is a project worth pursuing. The MSME sector needs to be given an impetus which would also contribute to job creation. We can go on and on – but I guess one gets the drift. It is another matter that these were not issues in this election. Further Mr. Modi cannot blame his predecessors now for he was at the helm for 5 years! The budget in July will be very interesting and will give us an insight into shape of things to come.

It is here that I feel that Modi’s supporters must play a constructive role and hold the Government accountable. People should remove their supporter cap and wear the critique cap. Whenever the Government makes a dubious decision or a poor implementation, I think all supporters should raise the issue. For heaven’s sake, please do not make Mr. Modi larger than life equating him to GOD. He is also not infallible like any of us. He is bound to miss a trick or two and let us be vigilant. After all, we the people, have given him this opportunity.

And finally, I am glad that Mr. Modi spoke about inclusive growth. This is a must. For some reasons, the social fabric of this country is under pressure like never before. He must be the soothing balm and carry the entire nation with him – true to his word “Sab ka Saath, Sab Ka Vikas”. The fringe elements in all sections of society that are wreaking havoc on the social cohesion of this great nation must be reined in with an iron hand. This land has a glorious culture of accommodating everyone and is by nature Dharmic. That tradition must be maintained. Mr. Modi can be the catalyst to accelerate this process.

I am sure he will be the leader of every Indian – whether he is in India or abroad – and work tirelessly for the glory of this nation as he has been doing hitherto. It is our duty to contribute our bit in this great endevaour. I fervently hope that Mr. Modi would work with the integrity and intent that he is known for with malice towards none and charity for all. May GOD be with him. Jai Hind!

Is Mr. Modi truly a Great Leader?

noreply@blogger.com (NSG) — Fri, 12 Apr 2019 11:21:00 +0000

Leadership is a nebulous subject. There are as many opinions about leadership as there are leaders! Are leaders born or are they made? The debate has been endless and hence there is no simple answer to this vexing question. ”Who is a leader?” and what constitutes leadership has also evolved over the ages. The essential trait that makes a good leader has also changed with time, with a strong correlation to the context in which it is discussed. However, some Gurus who have been writing and coaching leaders all over the world have written innumerable books about leadership. Hence it would be appropriate to go by their views assuming that it is the distilled wisdom of the current age.

And what is leadership? According to John C Maxwell, one of the leading authors on leadership, the true measure of a leader is Influence, nothing more nothing less. If this is what he says about corporate leadership, this is more so in the case of political leadership. In his classic “The 21 irrefutable laws of Leadership”, in law no 2 called the “Law of Influence”, he states the following as the key factors that make a leader. I have summarized them as under with my subjective assessment about Mr. Modi.

1. Character – who they are: True leadership always begins with the inner person. People can sense the depth of a person’s inner character. The fact that so many people adore him, so much so, they are called Bhakts is because of who he is! His integrity, sincerity, discipline, hard work and commitment to the nation is what makes people admire him. People perceive him as one who has no personal axe to grind. A hypothetical question to test this trait would be to ask “Would people vote for BJP without Modi?” I am sure a majority would not vote for BJP! That speaks for itself. Character of a leader matters. Some people say that he is authoritarian and does not trust anyone. He is ruthless. He treats his opponents not as adversaries but as enemies. Maybe. Nevertheless, even his worst critics do not cast aspersions on his integrity, character, hard work and commitment. My rating for this trait is: 8

2. Relationships – who they know: With deep relationships with the right people you can become a leader in an organization. Mr. Modi, being nominated as the PM candidate in 2014, from being an unknown persona, is probably the starting point. He was the most vilified Indian politician in India and abroad so much so our elected MP’s sent letters to US asking them not to grant visa to an elected CM of a state. Today his supporters include many of the PM’s and premiers of different countries. He was the first PM in Independent India to visit Israel – and their PM calls him my friend - and Mr. Modi had the audacity to visit Palestine, a sworn enemy of Israel, immediately thereafter! And despite being portrayed as anti minorities locally, he received the highest civilian award from 2 Islamic nations – UAE and Saudi Arabia. And India was invited to the OIC for the first time as a keynote speaker despite the protests from Pakistan! Based on his request, the first Hindu temple in UAE is being opened. Apart from his numerous international awards, he is considered one of the top international leaders of this time. His entire image and that of India have undergone a tremendous change over the past 5 years without a doubt. And his direct connect with the people is brilliant using unconventional tools like the outdated radio! On the downside, it is said the he has sidelined seniors who have built his party. He ignores his cabinet and runs the show with his PMO and bureaucrats. He has no friends in his party. He has complete disdain for the Main Stream media and so on. There may be elements of truth in these allegations based on anecdotal evidence. My rating for this trait is: 7

3. Knowledge – What they know: Information is vital. You need a grasp of the facts to develop an accurate vision of the future. Leading a nation as vast as India with internal complexities coupled with a highly sensitive external relationships is no ordinary matter. Obviously no single person can have the expertise in such diverse areas like technology, economics, healthcare et al. Experts assist a modern leader. But the leader should be smart enough to understand these nuances and take the final decision owning up the responsibility. Mr. Modi, despite lacking any experience of even being an MP, has learnt the ropes of managing a nation fairly quickly, a fact that was even acknowledged by our former President Mr. Pranab Mukherjee. Maybe at times, he portrays himself as a “Know all” with an over confidence tinged with a bit of arrogance is what some of his detractors say. He does give that impression at times. My rating for this trait is: 6

4. Intuition – what they feel: leaders seek to recognize and influence intangibles such as energy, morale, timing and momentum. This is something that Mr. Modi is a master. Both on the Government side and on the political front, he has been amazing with his indefatigable energy, timing and setting the narrative. To me the 2014 election was won purely based on his passionate campaign and unbelievable travels criss crossing the country. Having intuition is one thing, but articulating that to the masses is another talent altogether. Here again Modi is a magician. However, his critics point out that he goes overboard with his theatrics at times and is attention seeking hogging the limelight to himself. Maybe there is some validity in their arguments too. My rating for this trait is: 8

5. Experience – where they have been: the greater your past challenges, the more likely your followers will let you lead. Here again Mr. Modi scores high because of his experience both as an administrator as chief minister and the challenges he faced due to riots in Gujarat and the prolonged enquiries and investigations he faced. His formative years as a RSS pracharak have taken him to the nook and corners of the country and he is aware of the ground realities that have shaped his experience. The opposition barb that he is only a “chaiwala’ was catastrophic, as we have seen. My rating for this trait is: 7

6. Ability – what they can do: the bottom line is followers want to know whether you can lead them to victory. As soon as they believe that you cannot deliver, they will stop following. This is absolutely true in India! India is a complex country with numerous segments with varying expectations. Hence there is bound to be claims and counter claims as to what Mr. Modi has promised and what he has delivered. Sifting the wheat from the chaff and looking for data amidst all this cacophony, I personally feel that he has done reasonably well. He has risked failure by implementing projects like GST, has been firm in dealing with militants, going ahead with Swachh Bharat programme despite ridicule, enhancing the usage of Aadhar, Jan Dhan, Ujjwala scheme, housing for poor, improved infrastructure, opening up defense production under Make in India, improved tax compliance, containing inflation and fiscal deficit so on and so forth. There have been misses too like job creation, farmer’s distress, etc. Could he have done better? Absolutely yes. However, it is fair to say that he has delivered reasonably well in this short tenure.My rating for this trait is: 6

So Mr. Modi scores 42 out of the maximum 60 which works out to about 70% which is really good. It is a moot point if we benchmark any other current political leader against the same traits and see where they stand. Of course, I have used a framework by one author whom I know. There could be several other frameworks similar to this which could also be used.

Marshall Goldsmith is a very highly ranked Executive coach and #1 leadership thinker in the world. In his recent book he states that “Leadership is a matter of how to Be, and not how to Do.” This resonates well with the framework we discussed earlier. He goes on outline the development of leadership over the ages. He also emphasizes that another paradigm that we need to consider when evaluating leadership is to see how future proof these leaders are. Based on extensive research, he has identified seven key trends that have emerged and will dramatically impact the leader of the future throwing out all the old assumptions about leadership because of the cataclysmic changes that we are seeing in the evolution of our nations. Will Mr. Modi fit this emerging framework? Well, I suggest that you fit in the arguments of the earlier framework and decide for yourself!

The seven key trends are:

1. From thinking locally to thinking Globally

2. From requiring uniformity to seeking diversity

3. From understanding one technology to becoming technologically savvy

4. From leader as a knower to leader as a learner

5. From eliminating challenge to encouraging constructive dialogue

6. From leading in the Hierarchy to Building alliances and teams

7. From the leader as Boss to leader as facilitator

While this framework essentially for the corporate world, as stated earlier, we can extrapolate it to apply for political leadership as well.

Finally, I would also like to establish a difference between two concepts, namely fact and opinion. While this may not be relevant to leadership per se, it assumes significance in the arguments for and against a particular leader. A fact cannot be disputed – like India got independence on 15^th August, 1947. Opinion, on the other hand, is someone’s view of a particular event or situation based on his perception, understanding and interpretation of facts. For example, Mr. Rajiv Gandhi was a better Prime Minister than Mr. Manmohan Singh is something that cannot be settled – all of us have our own opinions on this argument! Opinions generally tend to be coloured by prejudices, swayed by emotions and persuaded by ideologies that one may profess. It could also be deliberately biased. Even if shorn of all these aberrations, an opinion is an opinion and not a fact. Unfortunately with the advent of social media, our polity and the followers of various leaders and parties are not able to differentiate between fact and opinion. Hence no one is able to digest - leave alone appreciate and disagree with - the opinion of another person. We see discussions descending to levels of indecency that are not acceptable in a civilized society. We need to bear this in mind while evaluating and discussing all issues, more so political ones including political leadership.

In the final analysis, going by the definitions of leadership discussed above, in my humble opinion, I feel that Mr. Modi is truly a great leader with a mass following that this country has seen after independence. Yes, he may have his failures and failings, like many other leaders of the past. But in the pantheon of current political leadership in this country, I do not see any worthy challenger. Having said that, another great leader will emerge over the horizon when there is a dire need, just as Shastri ji came to the fore after Mr. Nehru’s demise! Till then, Mr. Modi is THE man!

Bibliography:

1. The 21 Irrefutable laws of Leadership

By John C Maxwell

2. Work is Love made visible

By Frances Hesselbein

Marshall Goldsmith

Sarah McArthur

Giving Doles - a boon or a bane?

noreply@blogger.com (NSG) — Fri, 05 Apr 2019 03:17:00 +0000

I was elated to receive the news of my promotion in late 1982. Thanks to Mrs. Gandhi’s Bank nationalization, hundreds of youngsters like me not only had a job but also had a rare opportunity to be of service to people. The euphoria was, however, very short lived. A transfer order followed, posting me as a branch manager to a rural branch in Tamilnadu. While the challenge of managing a branch independently excited me, having lived all my life in an urban area, the prospect of living in a rural village with a young family was not appealing. However, as luck would have it, I was permitted to stay in a big town closer to the village and operate. This gave me some relief. However, when I say that those 18 months of work in the rural village was an experience of a life time, I am not exaggerating even one bit.

Unless you live in a village, you don’t understand the caste equations and the dynamics which the politicians seem to be fully aware of. Having been brought up in a house with an egalitarian mindset in a city, caste and religion were not even talked about in our house. But what I saw in the village was just the opposite. Everything revolved around caste which seemed quite incredible. To cite an example of the prevailing situation, let me share an instance. After having my lunch, I always walked across to a petty shop, managed by an old lady, to have a banana. I used to call the old lady “Patti” meaning grandma as she was very old. Once my landlord came along with me and when he saw me calling her thus, he gave me a bewildered look and said, “Why are you calling her Patti? You are a Brahmin and she is an AD.” Innocently I asked him what is “AD?” He replied it stands for Adi Dravidar meaning that they were Dalits! I was stunned! I asked him where caste comes into this whole transaction. After all she is like my grandma in terms of age and what is wrong in my calling her thus? It was his turn to look puzzled though he had no answer.

Caste apart, the inequality was very stark too. There were farmers who lived in opulence owning property in acres living in farm houses with all the facilities – tractors, bikes, cars et al. On the other side were the Dalits who lived on other side of the village totally shunned by the upper caste. There were landless labourers too getting a pittance as wages after toiling hard for a full day in the hot sun. And women were paid less for the same work! I was aghast when I knew the farmers got very little after toiling hard for almost a year when they tried to sell their produce in the market. The middlemen pocketed most of the money while the farmers got very little for all their hard work. The rural economy was pathetic! Taxes were unheard of in those places! I learned a lot of agriculture and its economics during those eventful days.

Those were the days of Congress regime when the minister of state for finance Mr. Janardhan Poojary was at his peak. He used to invite Bank managers to public meetings where borrowers were present and literally pulled up the manager for not granting loans to the public in full view of the public gathering. Managers were portrayed as villains in these tamasha euphemistically called “Loan Melas”. While I did not have a firsthand experience of such a circus, it was the talk of the town those days. There was pressure on all managers to give loans especially under the 20 point programme of Mrs. Gandhi and schemes like Integrated Rural Development Program (IRDP) where the poorest of poor were given loans at 4% interest with subsidy as high as 50% of the loan to the SC/ST beneficiaries.

I was young, idealistic and in all earnestness, I wanted to implement the Government’s programme in a village that had been adopted by my branch. In this village most of the residents belonged to SC/ST. The men folk were weavers. It was the practice there that these weavers wove mats for a master weaver. The master weaver always advances a fairly large sum to these weavers so that they work for them regularly. I felt that we would help augment their incomes by sanctioning loans for the women folk to buy milch buffaloes. By selling this milk to the nearby cooperative milk society, they would be able to increase their monthly income by about 400-500 rupees (which was a good sum those days) based on the milk output. I spoke to them and all the women got the form approved by the Block Development officer (BDO). I was told that to get this subsidy of almost 1500/= for a loan of Rs. 3000/=, they had to spend at least spend Rs. 1000/= as bribes to the VAO, BDO etc., I couldn’t do much about it.

Being very earnest and sincere, I took the local veterinarian with me to a market about 60 kms away, identified good milk yielding buffaloes, about 30 of them, completed all formalities and distributed these animals to the respective beneficiaries – all of them women. I ensured that the loan was utilized for the purpose for which it was sanctioned. I had also made arrangements with a local milk society to collect the milk on a daily basis and the villagers were also paid based on the fat content of the milk which was measured using a lactometer.

I had a sense of pride that I could do something for this socially and economically weaker section of society. I spent a lot of time with them educating them about importance of savings, family planning (yes, family planning!) educating their children etc., My colleagues at the branch used to make fun of me saying that had I chosen to stand for elections in that area, I would have won hands down. Both DMK and the ADMK councilors of the area were my supporters too. As for caste, I was accepted by every community as being one of their own!

All was well with the world for a month. Then one fine morning the master weavers turned up to the Branch and in a chorus said “Sir, you have totally ruined our business!’ I was nonplussed as I had nothing to do with their business! Then they explained that the weavers, for whose wives I had given a loan to buy buffaloes, were not turning up for work. Instead, they were drinking with the extra money that their womenfolk brought and failed to turn up for work. Once again I made a visit and gave them a big lecture about the evils of drinking and the need to save money. It was a sight to see – I was seated in a cot that you usually see in such small huts and the villagers used to either sit down or stand. There were no mobile phones those days to take selfies and post it in FB! The situation improved but a new problem cropped up soon enough. The villagers complained that the milk society was adulterating their milk with water to lower the fat content and they were being paid less because they were Dalits. I picked up a fight with the President of the society and threatened to make a complaint to the collector that he was harassing Dalits which was a criminal offence. He also fell in line. To the villagers’ credit, they were paying their dues very regularly.

I was transferred to another branch and the whole village saw me off. I have never again seen such love and affection for a person who only did what he was supposed to do. Even after 20 years of my leaving the branch, people were still enquiring about me! Be that as it may, a few months after I left the place, I ran into my old colleague. What he told me shocked me. He said none of the villagers for whom I had toiled to give these buffalo loans were repaying and they were back to their old ways. I felt really sad but it was a lesson for me that I will never forget. More of it a little later.

Now let us look at the famous NYAY scheme that the Congress announced in their election manifesto. Much has been said and written by people more erudite than me and in the know of things. But pointing out to a few contradictions will not be out of place. The economists who were “consulted” like Mr. Raghuram Rajan (RR) and Mr. Abhijeet Banerjee (AB) say that many subsidies have to go and perhaps the taxes may have to be increased. The inflation will also go up. Mr. Sam Pitroda, the man who has been taking Mr. Rahul Gandhi around and parades him before the public in overseas locations, says that the middle class should not be selfish and should be prepared to dish out more taxes etc. To cap all these, I saw the interview by Ms. Barkha Dutt (BD), with the master himself – with Mr. P Chidambaram (PC) – yesterday. It was a classic interview which the crass may choose to call it bullshit while the more urbane folks of the likes of Mr. Shashi Tharoor may call it obfuscation. PC says this scheme will motivate people to try other things – what and how is not clear. To a question as to what would finance this as this is 1.8% of GDP, PC disagrees saying that the denominator is not constant meaning the GDP will grow and the scheme when implemented fully over the next 5 years will not be that high. She then quotes RR and AB saying that they have stated that some subsidies have to go and that Congress has not mentioned them in the manifesto. PC haughtily replies that she has to take time out to read the manifesto in greater detail. This is only a manifesto and once they are in government a design team would be formed – and he doesn’t know who would be there – would deliberate and come out with specifics learning lessons from the ground looking at such schemes from other countries etc.

On her further insistence about subsidies he cooly responds saying that there are over 800 subsidies, some even dating back to 100 years and he is not sure which ones would go, despite BD stating that RR said so. My question is PC was in government and FM to boot, why did they not rationalize subsidies then? Instead of a simple yes and getting on with the interview, he goes about beating around the bush circumventing the issue. He also has the audacity to say that this is only a manifesto and not a cabinet paper! The next question was on the source of funds and would there be a tax increase. PC’s answer is a classic - PC at his best. He said that the middle class is a child of India’s liberalization which was created by the congress party and their policies. So Mr. PC, what? He also says each economist has his own way of raising resources and that they would not burden the middle class (with taxes I presume!). He nonchalantly asks her to wait till they come to the form the government! When asked about India’s inequality, PC says with disdain that India’s prosperity is unequally and unfairly shared and goes on to cite Thomas Piketty (The Economics of Inequality). When BD says that Piketty has recommended inheritance tax to punish the rich, PC says he does not endorse Piketty’s recommendations! Being an articulate man, PC has given nothing away during the entire interview leaving the listeners with the same questions that they started with!

Now coming back to my experience narrated earlier, I strongly believe that you cannot give doles to people and make them come out of poverty. This needs enormous individual efforts and an effort by the government to change the mindset of these poor people. Unless a person wants to change and improve, no force on earth can make him / her do it. You can take a horse to the pond, but cannot make it drink. In psychology it is called an ‘internal locus of control’. So do we twiddle our thumbs and watch it all unfold? Absolutely not.

They need education, primary health, skill development, better means of agricultural production, sanitation, housing, social equality, self-belief that they can earn and live with dignity and an overall feeling of subjective well being. Any well meaning government should start investing in these areas and look at long term benefits rather than short term political gains. Why are the creamy layers of the various reserved categories still enjoying all the benefits denying these fruits to other deserving people? There has to be a comprehensive reform to end all this and look at alleviating poverty. We have tried out giving doles and writing off loans for decades without any desired result!

It needs investment in a number of areas that are not even talked about today. Doles are being given in other countries but only as a temporary respite from loss of jobs. It is not a permanent cure for a chronic problem. In my experience with the villagers, the government was supportive with subsidy, the Bank had implemented it with dedication but it still failed because the people were not motivated enough to grow and move on. The motivation that PC so eloquently talked about will not come just like that after seeing a paltry sum of Rs. 6,000/=. They would only spend it on consumption of white goods and other wasteful expenditure. Poverty alleviation needs much more and these schemes will only create a generation of alms seekers.

In my humble opinion, NYAY is conceptually flawed and the efficacy of the scheme is also questionable based on my experience. In addition, it also appears to be detrimental to the overall economy of the country. It is for people to decide if this is going to be a game changer or a last ditch effort by the Congress to woo voters.

Prime Ministers - from Nehru to Modi!

noreply@blogger.com (NSG) — Sat, 30 Mar 2019 23:13:00 +0000

I had never seen my father shed tears as a young boy. One day I was surprised to see that. A gentle enquiry revealed that one Mr. Jawaharlal Nehru had died and that he was the Prime Minister of India. It was in May 1964 and I was about 10 years old. The papers carried extensive photographs the next day with large crowds mourning the death of Pandit ji. I also vaguely remember discussions earlier about the Indo-China war with our boarding school notice board displaying the “McMohan line”. He was a cult figure those days with people like my dad revering him for his work during the freedom movement. I am sure they were also aware of the scandals surrounding Mr. Nehru but the perception that he was an intellectual known for his erudition and international standing perhaps overshadowed this downside. “Who after Nehru?” seemed to be the question on everyone’s lips. I don’t remember much about his era as the PM though.

After a “night watchman” Mr. Gulzarilal Nanda’s short tenure, Mr. Lal Bahadur Shastri became the PM, thanks to Mr. Kamaraj, the king maker, those days. What a stalwart Mr. Kamaraj was! I can only laugh at the pygmies who call themselves leaders in TN today, who do not command even a semblance of respect from the masses now! The diminutive Mr. Shastri was very popular those days belying his humble background and was a total contrast to the glamourous Pandit ji. I remember the 1965 war with Pakistan very well and Mr. Shastri’s slogan ”Jai Jawan Jai Kisan” reverberated throughout the country. I vividly recall that we skipped our dinner on Monday in our boarding school in response to the clarion call of beloved Shastri ji. Pakistan was given a sound thrashing and Shastri ji went to Tashkent in January 1966 to sign a peace agreement with General Ayub Khan never to return. His untimely death was an unfortunate moment in our history for Shastri ji impressed one and all during his short stint as a man known for his simplicity, practicality and one who would steer the nation with grit and integrity. Alas, it was not to be!

Mrs. Indira Gandhi, the petite I&B minister in Shastri ji’s cabinet was catapulted to the PM’s post after Shastri ji’s demise once again by Mr. Kamaraj ahead of Mr. Morarji Desai who was the more senior parliamentarian. In her first term from 67-71, Indira ji, courted controversy several times like supporting Mr. V V Giri ahead of Mr. Sanjiva Reddy , the official congress candidate for Presidency, split the congress after she was expelled, abolished privy purses and nationalised private banks. These decisions had far reaching consequences on the history and progress of our country. After the glorious victory liberating Bangladesh in 1971, Mrs. Gandhi’s rule was marked by her declaration of emergency in defiance of Allahabad High Court orders invalidating her election. There was a virtual dictatorship in the country between 75 and 77. This was the time when I joined a Bank in Uttar Pradesh as a probationary officer! If UP was like what I saw during emergency, GOD help them in other times, was my feeling. Her son Sanjay Gandhi was ruling the roost with extra constitutional authority. Forced sterilisations and grazing unauthorized constructions through brute force were the order of the day. Those who are crying hoarse today that we are facing a fascist government and an authoritarian PM have not seen what emergency was, obviously. News was censored, and anyone with even a whimper of criticism was put behind bars. I remember seeing Tughlaq magazine with a black front page in protest. Most of the opposition, irrespective of age, were behind bars. A number of leaders were in hiding fearing imminent arrest. Elections were postponed and opposition ruled states were dismissed using Article 356. It was during the first tenure that the Nagarwala bank case became a talk of the town. Compared to today’s scam’s it was a pittance – only about 60 Lakhs!

In the meantime all opposition had come together under Sri. Jayaprakash Narayan. The Janata party was born with parties of all denominations being a part of it. In 1977, Mrs. Gandhi called for elections, presumably under the false impression that her popularity was intact – perhaps based on intelligence reports! Congress lost miserably and Janata party came to power. The next three years saw the coalition tamasha with Mr. Morarji Desai and Mr. Charan Singh taking positions of power as PM. While Mr. Morarji was a seasoned politician with extensive administrative experience, Mr. Charan Singh had no such credentials. There was an open lust for power with the result that the government collapsed under its own contradictions. This should definitely be a lesson for today’s youngsters if they think an alliance of parties without any ideological congruence can come together and provide a stable government!

Mrs. Gandhi came back to power for the third term in 1980, thanks to the folly of Mr. Charan Singh who had her and her son Sanjay arrested. Such acts whip up frenzy in India and the result was a foregone conclusion. Mrs. Gandhi, during these years in power tried to meddle with the Akali politics in Punjab – supporting Bhindranwale initially and later he became a separatist fighting for Khalistan and took to arms. Mrs. Gandhi ordered operation “Blue Star” in which the army entered the Golden Temple complex and killed not only Bhindranwale but a number of innocent pilgrims besides damaging the Golden Temple Complex. Three months later, her own Sikh bodyguards assassinated her in her residence. This again was a tragic moment in our history.

If I were to look at the prevailing political culture in this country and trace its roots, it would certainly point to Mrs. Gandhi. She was charismatic yet ruthless. She had her way. She brooked no opposition to her views. She roughshod over all institutions and threw away all conventions to the wind. It was during her time that the President’s office earned the ignominious nickname ‘Rubber Stamp’. Sycophancy was the norm and entire establishment was servile to her. She never allowed her regional heads to build a following of their own and ruthlessly decimated such persons if ever she felt that someone was remotely a threat to her. The coterie in Delhi started to build and the party was full of such sycophants who had no standing of their own. She is the mother of all present rhetoric and sloganeering that you see today – “Garibi Hatao” being her famous tagline. And not to be outdone, one of her sycophants had the temerity to coin the slogan “Indira is India and India is Indira!”

What followed her death was even more brutal and a blot on a country like India when thousands of Sikhs were murdered in broad daylight with the Delhi police twiddling their thumbs! It was one of the saddest days in my memory, for Sikhs are great people who have given only the best for this country. I have had many interactions with Sardars and they are the most helpful, hospitable and patriotic citizens you can see. During all these years, while I was not actively involved in politics, I always used to hear my father admonish and lambast Mrs. Gandhi almost on a daily basis! In Mrs. Gandhi era, my father had slowly moved towards Rajaji’s Swatantra party and was a patron of their Swarajya magazine.

If at all an opportunity presented itself to the Congress party to redeem itself and become a democratic one that they professed, that was the time. But alas, it was not to be. And we are now saddled with a dynastic party with that single decision. Buta Singh and President Zail Singh persuaded Mr. Rajiv Gandhi, Mrs. Gandhi’s son, to become the Prime minister. The seeds for a dynastic succession were thus sown. It may be argued that Mrs. Gandhi succeeded her father. But it must be remembered she was a minister in Shastri ji’s cabinet and was propelled to this role by Mr. Kamaraj and his friends! And Rajiv was not even in active politics being an airline pilot!

Rajiv, as a person was very suave, dignified and spoke well. He was liked by the masses and in his initial years, he appeared to be earnest in revamping the party and government. It was he who brought in a change of mindset relating to computers and telecommunication. In all fairness, he was the forerunner to what we acclaim as digital India today. People like me moved from traditional banking to IT, thanks to his policies. IT industry was reborn in India, so to speak, after IBM were all driven out of India during the Janata regime. He had his own pitfalls like decision on Shah Bano case which is talked about even today. However, what led to his downfall was the alleged bribery scandal in the Bofors and HDW deal. Ms. Chitra Subramanian of “The Hindu” – a paper which was highly respected then and people swore by its contents - exposed the money trail leading ultimately to the late Quattrochi. Mr. V P Singh, a minister and friend of Rajiv, resigned and was at the forefront of this agitation against the government. The slogan “Gali gali me Shor hai, Rajiv Gandhi chor hai!” could be heard all over India. Compared to today’s scandals, Bofors was a pittance though. In the 1989 elections that followed, Mr. V P Singh under the Janata Dal banner, despite being in minority, with outside support became the PM.

Mr. V P Singh’s tenure (89-90) was very short and less than a year. All that I remember of his tenure was his implementation of Mandal Commission recommendations leading to protests all over the country! He was a champion of social justice and had admirers in a number of opposition camps. That legacy continues to this day, especially in TN. This was also the time when Mr. L K Advani started his famous rath yatra and the Ram Janmabhoomi issue also came to the fore. BJP withdrew support to Mr. V P Singh leading to his downfall as he was against this stand of BJP. Mr. Chandrasekhar, who was also a part of the Janata Dal, formed his own party Samajwadi Janata party with a few of his followers. Though he was in minority, he became the PM with Congress support. However, in less than 6 months he had to resign in June 1991, after congress withdrew its support!

We had planned to visit Kanchipuram early morning the next day via Sriperumbudur in late May 1991. When we woke up the next day, we heard the tragic news of the assassination of Rajiv Gandhi in Sriperumbudur while addressing an election meeting. This was in retaliation to his sending the IPKF – the Indian Peace keeping force – to Sri Lanka to support their army against the LTTE. The LTTE had planned and executed the assassination, as the later investigations revealed. This again was a turning point in our history for had he been alive, what would have transpired in the forthcoming elections was anyone’s guess. It was a tragic and untimely death.

With Rajiv’s death, the sympathy wave worked in favour of the Congress and they were the single largest party in Lok Sabha. Mr. P V Narasimha Rao was chosen as the PM of the country – a sort of first outside the Nehru-Gandhi family to rule for a full term of five years. This was perhaps a watershed moment in our history for he was the architect of liberalisation of our economy. He had a bureaucrat Dr. Manmohan Singh as his Finance Minister. He even appointed an opposition leader Mr. Subramaniam Swamy to a cabinet rank post in his ministry. He was erudite, a Sanskrit scholar and was fluent in 14-15 languages including French, Arabic, Spanish, German & Persian! One of the blots on his tenure was the demolition of Babri Masjid leading to animosity between communities which lasts till today. The dispute still persists with courts unable to decide on this contentious issue. The saddest part about Mr. Rao, was the ill treatment given to him by his own party after his death!

In 1996, Congress lost its majority in Lok Sabha and BJP emerged as the single largest party with considerably less seats than the halfway mark. As per convention, the President invited BJP to form the government and Mr. Atal Bihari Vajpayee took oath as PM. However, he knew that he could not prove majority on the floor of the house and resigned after a couple of weeks. United front that was formed with coming together of non-BJP, non-congress parties staked a claim to form the Government. Mr. Deve Gowda was their choice of PM for about 11 months, followed by Mr. I K Gujral for about a year till March 1998. But this United Front Government could not survive for obvious reasons and fresh elections were held in 1998. The less we talk about this period, the better!

In the 1998 elections, BJP was the single largest party but the NDA alliance had seats close the halfway mark. A NDA Govt was sworn in with Mr. Atal Bihari Vajpayee as the PM in mid-1998. However, AIADMK pulled out of the alliance leading to the defeat of the Government by one vote in mid-1999. During this short tenure, Mr. Vajpayee initiated the nuclear bomb blast, Lahore visit which was followed by the Kargil war! The aggressors were shown their place after an initial surprise.

In the 1999 general elections that followed, NDA won a decisive victory and Mr. Vajpayee was sworn in as the PM for the third time and this time he had a full run of 5 years. It was during this tenure that India got a boost to Infrastructure like the golden quadrilateral etc., The tenure was also marked by some unsavoury incidents like the attack on Parliament by militants, the Gujarat riots, Kargil Coffin scandal etc. The performance of the Government from a common man’s perspective was fairly satisfactory and the slogan “India Shining” was doing the rounds! But in the 2004 General elections, the NDA could only muster 181 seats against the UPA which got 218 seats. The BJP and Congress got 138 and 145 seats respectively.

With the UPA being invited to form Government after much speculation and controversy, it was announced that the UPA chairperson, Smt. Sonia Gandhi had graciously stepped down from the leadership position and nominated Mr. Manmohan Singh as the PM. Mr. Singh went on to win the 2009 elections as well and was the PM for 2 terms spanning 10 years called UPA-1 and UPA-2. They brought in reforms like introduction of Aadhar, NREGA, RTI act, civil nuclear agreement, right to education, reservation for OBC in institutes of higher learning like IIT etc., However, it was also marked by a number of scams like the 2G spectrum, CWG, Coal block allocation etc., His tenure was also marked by policy paralysis with accusations that decisions were being taken by a coterie of the Congress chief. The coalition partners did not make things easier for him as well. Hence despite being a learned economist, one who was perceived as clean, he was termed as an “accidental PM”. He was subservient to his Congress chief who was driving the country by proxy without any accountability. Obviously, in such a setup, a number of beneficiaries enjoyed the patronage of the ruling class, especially the Press and the likes in Lutyens Delhi. The only time Mr. Singh asserted himself was during the civil nuclear deal with US. When the communists threatened to withdraw support, Mr. Singh put them in their place and went ahead with the deal. Mr. Singh was a good man but was not a politician! His career as a bureaucrat was marked by some achievements in the field of economics and is held in high esteem even today. But, unfortunately as a politician and a leader, he was not someone who could inspire you. He once said that history will be kinder to him than media. It remains to be seen but personally I cannot fathom why he accepted the role of the PM despite knowing what is in store for him. I feel very sad for such a scholar and upright man.

Mr. Narendra Damodar Das Modi won the 2014 election convincingly based on the anti-incumbency, the alleged scams of the previous regime and on the development plank. What he has done or not done during the past 5 years is too recent to recount and perhaps each and everyone knows it in great detail. Instead, I will talk about the 2014 election itself.

2014 was the first election when I was fully involved right from the word go – since announcement of elections. Perhaps I had lot of time on my hands since I had retired. The social media made following the happenings a lot easier and faster. There were constant debates in the 24 hour news channels with their ubiquitous “breaking news”. I felt that the print media’s relevance was gone. By seeing the author of an article, you could predict on whose side he /she was – it was all paid or one sided reporting and writing. Shamelessly they took sides and promoted a particular party. Gone were the days when as young students we used to look up to papers like “The Hindu” for authentic news. Columns by writers like G K Reddy were legendary and we read it just to improve our language skills. And talking of language, prior to the advent of TV, even reading about cricket in “The Hindu” by the likes of Jack Fingleton or Nirmal Shekar was a lesson in itself with a fair amount of literary quotes embellishing the articles! Alas, those days are gone never to return!

Despite all this, I had a premonition that there might be a change in the political scene in the country. I read a lot about Mr. Modi, the growth of Gujarat, the Gujarat riots and how the establishment hounded him for over a decade, how he was portrayed as the “merchant of death” etc. In him I saw a great orator and a person who could motivate people. He appeared to be having a vision for the country and absolutely fearless. His family background was very humble and he did not have any personal agenda to come to power. The way he campaigned for the party across the length and breadth of the country was amazing. Perhaps, I saw for the first time someone of the stature of Mrs. Gandhi in our political landscape. He was a politician with all boxes ticked. The liberals hated him for he proudly wore his religion on his sleeve and perceived to be a "Hindutva" proponent. He gave a damn to the so called “media” who were hell bent on making disparaging comments about his development model and time and again bringing in the Gujarat riots though the SIT of the Supreme Court had absolved him of any wrongdoing. And honestly there was no single person of that stature who could be even compared to him even though he had no experience leading the country. His victory was momentous for the nation.

The 2019 elections will be fought on achievements of the Modi government. While the parties go about their campaign, there is no single opposition leader of the stature or track record of Mr. Modi to oppose him. The opposition has no vision or any meaningful manifesto. Their only agenda seems to be to defeat Mr. Modi! In a country like India it could still happen – like in 2004 when Vajpayee lost despite the feeling that India was shining. While I would still respect the verdict of the people, the loss will be ours as I don’t see anyone with a similar vision and capability as Mr. Modi on the horizon for now. In my personal view, among the pantheon of PM’s we have had, only Mrs. Gandhi, warts and all, and Mr. Modi are leaders in the true sense of the word.

From the above narration, you can also see what happened when coalition governments came to power in centre. It was utter disaster and it would be the same again should the smaller parties manage to win the numbers this time. It would be a travesty of justice for the millions of people in India who are looking up to leadership at the top for their wellbeing. Appeasement politics, giving doles are all outdated policies. Growth, development and improvement in the wellbeing of people, jobs are the only measures with which people will decide the performance of the Government.

The Indian voters are not stupid and am sure they will vote sensibly. But I also believe that elections are not fought on issues but on emotions. So any leader who captures the imagination of the people wins! And who else other than Mr. Modi at this point who has captured the imagination of the nation! This is the first time I am seeing ordinary citizens campaigning for a leader. That speaks for itself.

May 23^rd is the D-day. Anything can happen in an election, irrespective of what the opinion polls say. Till then, let us watch all the tamasha unfold. Vote for any candidate you think is the best, but vote you must. Jai Hind.

ISLAM - A Perspective (6.God is One)

noreply@blogger.com (NSG) — Thu, 22 Nov 2018 10:23:00 +0000

Leadership is a pre-condition for any system to operate in a systematic fashion. Be it a family, educational institution, any organization or a country, all these are guided by a leader. For every creation in this world, there is a creator. There is no poetry without a poet. There is no art without an artist. The nature with its rapturous beauty and wonders, endless space, the orderly change over from day to night, the sun and moon, the orderly movements of the planets, the meticulous change of seasons, the mind boggling creation of the human body, the cooperation and coordination among the various organs teaches us something. What could that be?

Is the argument that such an amazing and intelligent universe originated on its own or by chance acceptable? Any random creation cannot operate so methodically and precisely without planning and proper leadership. There is an artist behind this stunning creation of art. HE is indeed the world’s greatest artist! We call him GOD.

“And your Allah is one Allah. There is no GOD but HE, most gracious, most merciful. Behold! in the creations of the Heaven and Earth; in the alternation of the night and the day; in the sailing of the ships through the ocean for the profit of mankind; in the rain which Allah sends from the skies; and the life which HE gives therewith to an Earth that is dead; in the beasts of all kinds that HE scatters through the Earth; in the change of the winds, and the clouds which they trail like their slaves between the sky and the Earth;- here indeed are signs for a people that are wise.” (Holy Quran 2:163,164)

Attributes of GOD

What are the attributes / qualities of such a GOD who has the capacity for such a wonderful creation? He cannot be a human. Nor can he be an animal or a plant. HE cannot be an inanimate object like a Sun or a Moon. The entire creation operates under a regulated framework. And any creation that operates under such a regulated framework cannot create another entity on its own. Hence that which is responsible for such a marvelous creation has to be something other than such regulated entities. It must also be possessing very different attributes from these regulated entities and capable of operating independent of them. Such a great power can only be called GOD. The Holy Quran clearly outlines the attributes of such a GOD.

“Say – HE is Allah, the one and only; Allah the Eternal, Absolute; HE begetteth not nor is he begotten; And there is none like unto HIM.” (Holy Quran 112:1-4)

“Allah – there is no GOD but HE – the living, the self-subsisting, the eternal, No slumber can seize Him nor sleep.” (Holy Quran 2:255)

The Prophets who were very close to GOD have only spoken to GOD but have never claimed to have seen HIM. Hence these Prophets have never ever attempted to describe GOD for us to visualize HIM. Hence they directed us to worship a formless GOD.

GOD is ONE

If a group or a corporation or a country has more than one leader, then such an entity would not function efficiently and effectively. There would be lot of confusion. Hence for this grand universe, there has to be only one leader or a Master. Therefore, GOD is ONE. In his command there is no role for anyone else. This is emphasized in the Holy Quran.

“If there were, in the heavens and earth, other Gods besides Allah, there would have been confusion in both.” (Holy Quran 21:22)

“No son did Allah beget, nor is there any God along with him; If there were many Gods, behold, each God would have taken away what he had created, and some would have lorded it over others. Glory to Allah. He is free from the sort of things they attribute to HIM!” (Holy Quran 23:91)

All things in the universe – humans, plants, animals, sky, and planets are all inter-dependent. When all these are being made to act in an orderly fashion by one force or power, obviously there cannot be separate Gods for each of these.

The Holy Quran names such a GOD as Allah. The meaning of the Arabic word Allah is God. This word was in usage in Arabia even before Prophet Muhammad’s (pbuh) time. Even non-Muslims in Arabia referred to God as Allah during those times. The beauty of the word Allah is that it does not have a gender or a plural. Hence it is a unique word that cannot be categorized as a male or female. God cannot also be referred to in the plural. Hence the Holy Quran uses this word to refer to God.

God has 99 holy names. We can also call him using those. Each of those names refers to one of his qualities. For example, we can see a few of them.

AR-RAHMAN – the most beneficent

AR-RAHIM – the most merciful

AL-MALIK – the sovereign Lord

AL-KHALIQ – the creator

AS-SALAM – the source of peace

AL-GHAFFAR – the forgiver

AR-RAZZAQ – the provider

AL-ADL – the just

One of the most often used holy name for God is ‘Bismillahir Rahmanir Rahim’ which means ‘In the name of Allah, the most gracious and most merciful’. Before we commence anything, we need to recite this holy name. Each chapter in the Holy Quran starts with these lines. This is also the first dialogue in the Holy Quran.

God’s compassion is manifest in many ways. He created humans as the pinnacle of his creation. In addition, he has given them all types of capabilities and talents, means of living, guidance for living and sent prophets to exemplify his teachings. These are examples of his compassion. Humans are also being pardoned for their omissions and commissions if they feel remorse and seek his forgiveness. HE does forgive them due to his immense compassion.

“Say: O my servants who have transgressed against their souls! Despair not of the mercy of Allah. For Allah forgives all sins: for HE is oft-forgiving, Most Merciful.” (Holy Quran 39:53)

The merciful GOD is also just. A person, who commits sins wantonly and without repenting for it, continues with his sinful activities, would be punished by GOD in this world and on the Day of Judgment.

“Behold! They Lord did declare that he would send against them, to the Day of Judgment, those who would affect with grievous penalty. They Lord is quick in retribution, but HE is also oft-forgiving, most merciful.” (Holy Quran 7:167)

Hence we need to worship only such a noble and only GOD. You can approach HIM directly. You don’t need anyone else or any recommendation to approach HIM. HE is very near you!

“When My servants ask thee concerning me, I am indeed close to them: I listen to the prayer of every suppliant when he calleth on Me; Let them also, with a will, listen to my call, and believe in Me: that they may walk in the right way.” (Holy Quran 2:186)

God can be known in two ways. One is to understand his creations, think about them and then realize his presence. The second way is to understand and realize him through the scriptures revealed through the prophets.

Existential Positive Psychology

noreply@blogger.com (NSG) — Mon, 29 Oct 2018 03:32:00 +0000

Positive Psychology (PP) is the scientific study of optimal human functioning and what makes life worth living. In other words, it is the psychology of the characteristics, conditions and processes which lead to flourishing. Initially when it was launched about a decade ago, it distanced itself from other branches of psychology. However, it has its roots in the works of William James in the late 19^th century, and humanistic psychology in the mid 20^th century. It also borrows from the ancient philosophers such as Aristotle and Plato. As a science, it focuses on discovering the empirical evidence for thriving.

PP originated from the University of Pennsylvania in the USA. The founders are psychology professors Martin Seligman, who is well known for his pioneering work on learned helplessness and later on learned optimism, and Mihalay Csikszentmihalyi best known for his work “Flow: The psychology of optimal experience”. The PP movement began in 1998 and since then new research articles and books on the subject have been written. The vast majority of psychology studies carried over the past 40 years have focused on the negative side of life such as anxiety, depression, low self-esteem, PTSD etc. PP redresses this imbalance by focusing on the human traits and circumstances which lead to thriving. The field is still holding sway over the researchers as is evident from the number of research papers, articles, bogs etc., that are being published over the past decade or so.

PP deals with well-being and happiness. Happiness, from ancient times, has been classified into Hedonic well-being and Eudaimonic well-being. The former refers to the happiness you get from feeling pleasure in the moment while the later is a broad term used by positive psychologists to refer to the happiness we gain from meaning and purpose in our lives, fulfilling our potential and feeling that we are part of something bigger than ourselves. These definitions have their own pitfalls and the positive psychologists had a number of reservations about them. Hence they went ahead and defined a new term “Subjective Well-Being (SWB)” which is expressed in the following formula:

SWB = Satisfaction with life + Positive Emotion – negative Emotion

Quite simple, right?

Just to give an idea of PP and its components, we can briefly look at the PP model of well-being postulated by Martin Seligman. It is defined as the PERMA model where

P – Positive Emotion – the experience of positive mood and feelings that are uplifting

E – Engagement – well-being you get from being totally absorbed in the task in hand

R – Relationships – Good, supportive and caring inter-personal connections are essential

M – Meaning – provides a stable foundation and sense of direction in life.

A – Accomplishment – includes everything from achievement, success and mastery at the highest level possible to progress towards goals and competence

However, there emerged another school of thought that felt the PP ignored the black reality of human existence. They also saw that Existential Psychology (EP) with its focus on death anxiety, meaninglessness and alienation is dark, because it does not focus on the joy of living. PP without existential insights and phenomenological analysis is full of adolescent exuberance but lacking depth. EP without rigorous research on human strengths and positive affects is full of wisdom but lacking in youthful vitality. Therefore it makes sense to bring the two domains of psychology together resulting in Existential Positive Psychology (EPP).

EPP is a natural amalgam between PP and EP. The EPP psychologists, led by Dr. Paul Wong, discuss these 6 ultimate questions about human existence which deserves psychological investigation.

1. Who am I? – What defines me? Who am I when everything is stripped away from me and I am reduced to a naked lonely soul? Is there anything unique and special about me?

2. How can I be happy? – Why am I bored? Why am I so dissatisfied with life? What is the good life? Why is happiness so illusive? Is this all there is to life?

3. What should I do with my life? – How should I then live? How could I live in a way that my life counts for something? What is my calling? To what should I devote the rest of my life?

4. How do I make the right choices? – How do I know that I am making the right decisions regarding career and relationships? How can I tell right from wrong? What do I know what is the responsible thing to do in complex situations with conflicting moral standards?

5. Where do I belong? – Why do I feel so alone in the world? Why don’t I feel at home in this planet Earth? Where is my home? Where do I belong? How do I develop deep and meaningful relationships? Where can I find acceptance?

6. What is the point of striving when life is so short? – Why should I struggle when life is transient and fragile? What is the point in building something only to see it swallowed up by death?

All of these questions are related to the human quest for existential understanding. It is the spirit of asking tough questions and rejecting pre-packaged easy answers that characterizes existential psychology. EPP is open to insights, wisdoms and research on all aspects of human existence from all sources regardless of the paradigm of knowledge claims, thus providing a richer research agenda. In short, EPP broadens the definition of PP as “the qualitative and quantitative study of what enables people to survive and flourish individually and collectively in the totality of life circumstances” What qualifies EPP as positive psychology is its emphasis on the uniquely human capacities for resilience and positive change.

References:

1. Positive Psychology – A practical Guide – By Bridget Grenville-Cleave

2. www.ExistentialPsychology.Org

Goals

noreply@blogger.com (NSG) — Sun, 07 Oct 2018 03:05:00 +0000

We have all heard about “goals” in our working life. It always referred to short term goals, long term goals pertaining either to our company or to our careers. But have we really thought about goals for our life? Even if we have, perhaps it is desultory without any concrete action plans to achieve them. Even if we put forth efforts to achieve them, they may also be sporadic with insidious statements like “go with the flow”, a euphemistic expression for being rudderless and drifting as it were. If this is so, are there really “goals” for us human beings?

In this vast expanse of Universe, spanning across millions of light years, it may sound conceited to claim that man is the crown of creation. Nevertheless, taking our planet alone into consideration, man with his evolved intellect and other faculties like speech, comprehension, imagination etc., may, with due humility, claim such a distinction. If that is so, then how different are we from animals that live by instinct alone? Our goals and purpose in life distinguish us from animal kingdom. Each one of us may have many goals – one wants to enter into the Guinness book of world records for living in a pit filled with snakes for several days while another wants to jump from 30,000 feet without a parachute! Some want name and fame, while others want to amass wealth! There may be as many goals as there are people. Likewise, even for the same person, the goals may vary depending on his stage of life – as a child to a senior citizen. However, our scriptures point out that despite innumerable goals of mankind, they can all be classified into four categories. They are Artha, Kama, Dharma and Moksha – generally termed as “Purushartha.”

Artha – means wealth indicating all forms of wealth which are meant for one’s own security so that we can safeguard ourselves from diseases, suffering, hunger, thirst etc., This is required for basic survival – generally called food, clothing and shelter. In Sanskrit it is called “duhkha-nivrutti” meaning ‘freedom from pain”. Man being man, does not stop with these basics but embellishes them with types of dishes, varieties of homes and designer dresses to fulfill these basic needs!

Kama – which generally means desires is also about entertainment for our enjoyment. We listen to music, watch TV (not to forget our mobile with its WhatsApp messages and FB!), travel, read and so on so forth. These are also innumerable and catering to the myriad tastes of mankind. But fundamentally, this necessarily comes after Artha for we think of pleasures only after our basic security is taken care of.

Dharma – this is also called ‘Punyam’ or the invisible favourable factor or ‘Adrishtam’. Hindus believe in re-birth and therefore they not only worry about current life but also about their future birth and also the well being of their progeny. So they would want to pursue a dharmic way of life – noble activities prescribed in the scriptures – so that they acquire ‘Punyam’ in this birth. Such a Dharmic way of life contributes to their Artha and Kama also in legitimate ways. They also get a better life in their next birth.

Most of the humans pursue these three goals only (commonly referred to as ‘Preyas’). While it may not be bad at all to pursue these, we need to analyze the limitations of these three goals. First and foremost, while these goals are wonderful and worth pursuing, there is lot of pain, effort and competition in acquiring these. For example, if one has built a palatial house, that person always talks about the time, effort, hassles in obtaining permits and money spent on building that house! And ultimately it is also subject to decay, just as a scratch on a new car hurts us so much! There is no gain without a corresponding loss. Therefore, acquisition involves pain. Secondly, despite all acquisitions, we have dissatisfaction. Despite huge amounts of money we have, we feel insecure that inflation may eat it away. And our satisfaction is always in the future, starting right from childhood thinking that I will be satisfied once I complete schooling etc. And finally, these goals are addictive and we become dependent on them. Once you own a car, you cannot even travel by a bus on one day when your car has gone for servicing. The more we are dependent, the more we suffer. And what I can I say about our dependency on mobile phones these days?

Hence the scriptures advocate that, while there is nothing wrong in pursuing these three, we need to transcend these three and aim for the fourth goal which is “Freedom” or “Liberation”. Freedom from what is the question. It is freedom from all types of dependence on external factors. In other words, we should not depend on any external factor for our security – like people around me, money I possess etc. Discovering happiness in ourselves, discovering security in ourselves is called Moksha or ‘Shreyas’. And also it is in our ignorance that we pursue permanent fulfillment through these impermanent objects that causes suffering. So ‘Moksha’ also implies freedom from suffering. What happens then is, if we do not depend on them, we need not bother about going head over heels in acquiring them. If they come to us, it is fine; else also it is fine. Their arrival is fine; their departure is fine too. This includes everything you can think of and this inner freedom is called Moksha and the highest Purushartha. This is also called ‘Parama Purushartha’ (Prime Purushartha) because there is no further pursuit once this is fulfilled. That is why when you do an archana in a temple, the priest chants “dharmaartha Kama Moksha chaturvidha Phala Purushartha siddyartham” indicating that “may all your purushartha’s be fulfilled.”

This is a topic that generates lot of discussion. Whether Dharma precedes Artha or whether all the four are inter-dependent are all deliberated in great depth by all learned scholars. I have followed the lectures of my Guru Swami Paramarthananda and mistakes, if any, in my narration are solely attributable to me.

In Psychology, when the entire community was a bit down by the theories floated by Sigmund Freud and other neo-Freudians, humanist psychologists like Abraham Maslow brought a whiff of fresh air focusing on the positive aspects of the human psyche. He postulated his ‘hierarchy of needs’ which most of you might know. They are Physiological needs, Safety needs, Belonging needs, Esteem needs and finally Self-actualization. Does this roughly correspond to what our scriptures stated thousands of years ago?

And finally, can a ‘Liberated man’ be equated to a ‘Self actualized person’? Well, maybe it is a topic of discussion for some other time!

READING - An Enduring Habit

noreply@blogger.com (NSG) — Wed, 12 Sep 2018 03:54:00 +0000

When exactly did I start reading? My earliest memories are that of my dad and mom telling me bed time stories – mostly the usual variety revolving around our puranas. As I grew older, I remember eagerly waiting for “Ananda Vikatan” and ”Kumudam” magazines which my mother used to read regularly. The cartoons and the cover pages were very captivating. As we moved on, we got introduced to the usual comics of those days – “Phantom – the Ghost who walks” – my favourite – one who transforms himself into Mr. Walker as her heads into the town with his horse Hero and wolf devil. “Mandrake the magician” was a favourite too. We used to read these comics on the sly in classes too at times. As I got into my high school, perhaps I started reading novels by Sandilyan (yavana Rani, kadal Pura), kalki (Ponniyin Selvan), Devan (tuppariyum sambu was one of my favourites – especially the weekly cartoons appearing in magazines). Those days we also had non-detailed texts in English and Tamil. I remember reading some of the classics like “The Three Musketeers” by Alexandar Dumas, “Oliver Twist” by Charles Dickens, “Ivanhoe” by Sir Walter Scott and the like. We also had a taste of Shakespeare in plays like Merchant of Venice (who can forget Shylock?) and Macbeth. I remember having Na. Parthasarathy’s “Kurinji Malar” as our Tamil non-detailed text in my degree class. Thirukkural was also part of our Tamil classes. However, I enjoyed reading all the Tamil short stories of the time – especially the crime thrillers – the “Kathi munayil Ratham” variety!

Later on came the era of Sujatha – who changed the way stories were told in Tamil. It was fascinating and in my memory no writer had such a great fan following those days. It so happened that he was our neighbour in Bengaluru and at the request of my college mates I had arranged a meeting with him for them to meet and have a chat with him. One of his stories reflected an event that occurred in our family and that showed me how a small incident can trigger a writer to weave a fabulous story around a simple event! As I got into my graduation, my brother-in-law introduced me to reading English books. I had hardly read English novels till then – reading them mostly as non-detailed texts. Like all the beginners, I started with Perry Mason novels and followed it up with all the James Hadley Chase, Alistair Maclean novels. Agatha Christie was not far behind. Who can forget the inimitable fictional Belgian detective Hercule Poirot and his curling mustache?

It was at this juncture that my brother-in-law Pancha Nerur introduced me to two of the greatest writers in my opinion – Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and P G Wodehouse. Sherlock Holmes and Jeeves would live with me forever. I can read their books anytime, anywhere and any number of times. What writing! And what language! Bertie Wooster with his colloquial English and Jeeves with his impeccable responses are a treat to read and savour. In fact most of the time in our class, we used to discuss P G Wodehouse and his characters more than our Physics lessons! I continue to read these classics even today. And I was greatly thrilled when I was in London a few years ago and had the opportunity to drive on Baker Street!

It was also the time when series of well researched English Novels by authors like Arthur Hailey and Irving Wallace were in the market. “The Final Diagnosis” by the former and “The Man” by the latter were my favourites. I cannot forget Dr. Joe Pearson and Douglass Dilman – the lead characters in these novels. And let me confess – as much as I laugh when I read P G Wodehouse novels, I cry too when I read books. I have shed tears reading “The man” seeing the travails of the “Black President”. I was also introduced by my brother-in-law to books on Vedanta. I have developed an abiding interest in the subject and my book shelf has all sorts of books related to Vedanta. I read them as often I can and try to assimilate the immutable truths laid down there. Perhaps it was a fore runner to my interest in reading non-fiction.

Once I took up employment, my reading habit dwindled a lot though I did read occasionally. Books by Sidney Sheldon etc. were a rage then. “Rage of Angels” by Sheldon, “Kane and Abel”, “Shall we tell the President” by Jeffrey Archer were some of the books that I enjoyed. It was not like the old days. Marriage, Children, transfers all had their claim on my time and hardly had I time to read. However, my wife’s brother gifted me a book “Cosmos” by Carl Sagan during this period. It was a book that I have read several times. It opened up my interest in Cosmology in particular and science in general. More was to come later.

As I moved on in life, a turning point again came in early 90’s when I quit my job and moved to the US. My first stop was in Puerto Rico. As I visited a friend’s house, I saw a shelf full of books in English and Spanish. Surprisingly I saw a book on Ramana Maharishi. More importantly I saw a book titled “Your Erroneous Zones” by Dr. Wayne Dyer, a clinical psychologist. I read that book immediately that kindled my interest in Psychology and a host of other self-help books. His other books included “The sky is the Limit”, “The Power of Intentions” etc., I always note down references when I read books and this has helped me reach out to several similar others. From Wayne Dyer, I got introduced to Ram Dass (Richard Alpert) and Alan Watts, two of the writers whom I admire. Alan Watt’s “The supreme identity” and “The Book” are a must read for anyone interested in the business of life! "Be here Now" by Ram Dass is a classic.

I moved to USA thereafter. I had left my family behind and lived there alone. And it was the best time of my life as far as reading was concerned. The public libraries are superb and I used to spend 3-4 hours every Saturday browsing / reading books. In addition there were book stores like Barnes & Noble where you could spend hours together reading. I read a number of books on management – authors like John Maxwell, Ken Blanchard, Zig Zaglar, Norman Vincent Peale, Dale Carnegie, Napolean Hill, Scott M Peck, Stephen Covey et all. I also read books by Bertrand Russell and his classic “The conquest of Happiness” is a must read. Being a student of Physics I was drawn into reading books on Cosmology, Quantum mechanics and new age physics books like “ The Tao of Physics”, “The dancing Wu Li Masters” which attempted to compare Eastern Philosophies with Physics much to the derision of the purists.

Fortunately on my return to India, my job involved lot of travel and I kept reading books of all genres. However, reading fiction and Tamil books are very rare these days – a regret that I need to correct soon. Now that I have retired, I have plenty of time and all the time in the world to read. I can safely say that I am a better human being because of the books I have read. My suggestion to friends would be to read at least 10 pages a day and I can assure you that the habit will catch on.

Times are changing and technology is all pervasive intruding into all aspects of our lives. Reading is no exception. Kindle is something that I use – but let me be honest – it is not the same as holding a book on hand. Nevertheless, one has to change with times and I am slowly attuning myself to this new gadget. However, reading is one habit that I shall continue till my last days. I must thank my parents who were avid readers and perhaps I have imbibed that habit from them with lot of motivation from my brother-in-law Pancha Nerur!

I have covered only major authors and genres that have had great impact on me though there are numerous other authors and titles that have gone through my hands! Happy reading!

ISLAM - A Perspective (5.Humanity is One)

noreply@blogger.com (NSG) — Sat, 07 Apr 2018 02:22:00 +0000

Once when Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) was seated in a discussion with his friends, a funeral procession of a Jew passed by. The prophet (pbuh) immediately stood up as a mark of respect. His companions asked him “Why did you stand up? After all he was a Jew.” “He is a human being too”, responded the Prophet (pbuh). This incident reaffirms the fact that even though people may follow different religions, they are equal.

Once, Abu Dhar Ghifari, one of the Prophet’s (pbuh) earliest companions, addressed a black person derisively as a person born to a black woman. That person complained about this to the Prophet (pbuh). The Prophet (pbuh) called Abu Dhar and asked him to apologize to that person. This again reiterates that there is no difference in humans based on one’s birth.

“Humans are all equal as the teeth of a comb”, said the prophet (pbuh). If the teeth in a comb are not uniform and are uneven, they may hurt your scalp. Similarly, if we create inequalities in a society, that would hurt that society.

“O Mankind, reverence your Guardian-Lord, who created you from a single person.” (Holy Quran 4:1)

“O Mankind, We created you from a single pair of male and female, and made you into nations and tribes, that ye may know each other, not that ye may despise each other. Verily the most honoured of you in the sight of Allah is the most righteous of you.” (Holy Quran 49:13)

The above revelations imply a number of truths.

1. The entire human race can be traced back to one man and woman, who are the first parents. If that is the case, how can be one child of a mother superior to another child of the same mother? No one had the option to be born into a particular religion or a race or community!

2. The human race which thus started from a single source later on spread across the globe dividing itself into multiple races, communities, groups etc. Based on the environment in which they lived, their external appearances changed and evolved over time. These external differences are only to identify the different races and not to create inequalities!

3. One who lives his life in fear of God with discipline alone is the dearest to God!

4. God created all human beings. Hence, God shows the same love and mercy towards all human beings. HE does not discriminate based on Religion, language, birth, colour, sex, or nationality. God delivers his judgment based purely on the good deeds done by humans.

5. Man does not bring anything when he is born. He also does not take anything with him when he dies. Hence, birth and death are common to every human being.

6. When God who created man is ONE, his creation, the human race can only be one too! (Holy Quran)

When Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) started his preaching in Arabia, inequalities were at its peak in the society there. The Arabs were considered superior while the non-Arabs were called ‘Ajami’ meaning ‘dumb’. The ‘Qureshi’ tribe was considered superior to all other tribes. The blacks were treated as slaves and were tortured. During ‘Haj’ pilgrimage, the tribes that considered themselves superior did not join the other tribes in the worship. Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) changed this state of affairs and established an egalitarian society.

Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) appointed Bilal, his companion who was a slave, as the first muezzin. He encouraged inter-tribe marriages. He also got his relative Zaynab marry Zayd though Zayd was from a slave community. He appointed Usama, who belonged to a slave community, as his commander. Thus he paved the way for marriages between tribes perceived to be superior and inferior.

How the Prophet (pbuh) achieved this in a matter of 23 years is a matter of introspection for us and should be our guiding principles. Initially he brought about a change in the mindset of the people. As far as social evils are concerned, enacting laws alone will not yield results unless we bring about a change in the thinking and mindset of people. He also initiated this change in thought process through the medium of worship. The prayers, especially, laid the foundation and served as a training ground for fostering this unity. The prayers, held five times a day, enabled people to stand shoulder-to-shoulder without any differences, and made a big impact in bringing about this change. During prayers, no one is given any preference or priority. During Haj pilgrimage, the Prophet (pbuh) established a process or method to bring about unity among different nationalities irrespective of race, language or colour.

The Prophet’s (pbuh) teachings and actions annihilated the pride of the Qureshi tribe that considered themselves superior. He gave self-confidence to the people who were descendants of slaves, gave them positions of authority and instilled in them the belief that they were inferior to none. He brought about unity among the people who were divided among themselves. He neither allowed one group to fight against another nor allowed any prejudice to develop.

“He joined your hearts in love, so that by HIS Grace, ye became brethren;” (Holy Quran 3:103)

ISLAM - A Perspective (4.Communal Harmony)

noreply@blogger.com (NSG) — Fri, 16 Mar 2018 11:21:00 +0000

“You say that Islam propagates peace; but in most of the Islamic Republics violence keeps erupting every now and then. Terrorism has become a way of daily life in most of these countries,” seems to be the legitimate question raised by many. “You say that religions advocate peace; then why is that there are so many conflicts in the name of religion?” is the question generally addressed to the people who follow any religion.

The answer to religious conflicts and terrorism is one and the same. People do not follow the values and tenets or principles that religions teach. Instead they use religion as a mere identification, collection of rituals and as a tool to dominate others. This has led to the present situation. We shall briefly see what Islam has to offer to tackle these two issues that are disrupting peace world over.

Unity in diversity

The different religions and principles are an inseparable part of history. There is a convergence of views between different religions as also divergence. Even within the same religion, there are differing views. Therefore, unity in diversity is the only practical solution feasible. This would lead to unity. The society that Prophet Muhammed (pbuh) created in Medina was a pluralistic society. There were Muslims as also Jews. In the city of Najran, just outside Medina, Christians lived. All of them lived together without any conflict.

Do not hurt the Feelings

One of the main reasons for religious conflicts is because people denigrate and malign other religions. On one side, the religious folks attack each other. On the other, in the name of freedom of expression, the incidence of people without any religious affiliations attacking religions is on the increase. People stoop to defame religious leaders, who are held in high esteem by their communities, by depicting them in cartoons and obscene pictures. Mostly these are not constructive and rational criticisms. Such people indulge in this just to gain some cheap popularity and increasing the sales. They forget that the freedom of expression comes with a responsibility. They also forget that all such freedom is not without limits!

The Holy Quran ordains us to desist from hurting the feelings. “Revile not ye those whom they call upon besides Allah, lest they out of spite revile Allah in their ignorance.” (Holy Quran 6:108). We can critique a religion without igniting passions and in a logical manner appealing to the intellect. We can also espouse the cause of our own religion in an eloquent and gracious manner. “Invite (all) to the way of thy Lord with wisdom and beautiful preaching; and argue with them in ways that are best and most gracious.” (Holy Quran 16:125). The Holy Quran has also critiqued other philosophies but without hurting their sentiments and belittling or demeaning them in anyway.

Do not get emotional about criticisms

When someone criticizes or attacks your religion, do not get emotional, advises Islam. Just as any idea or a view-point has support, so also it is natural to have opposition for that as well. People who are happy when receiving endorsements about their view-points should also be patient when they get opposing and differing views. When people lose patience and indulge in violent activities, peace in society is bound to be disrupted. Their principles get weakened and receive a setback as well.

When Prophet Muhammed (pbuh) propagated Islam, people ridiculed him and the tenets he preached. He was vilified as a ‘liar’, ‘sorcerer’ and of unsound mind. They said that Holy Quran was written by someone and taught to the Prophet (pbuh). They further added that he was lying that the Holy Quran was revealed to him by God. They scoffed at him saying that this was a myth from their ancestors. They created poems chiding him. Even after all these incidents, the prophet (pbuh) never once asked his followers to attack his detractors, and even after assuming the leadership of Medina he did not do so. He advised his followers to be patient and act in accordance with the will of God. He also exhorted them to ignore fools and respond with logical and rational arguments tempered with reasoning.

God says thus in the Holy Quran

“Ye shall certainly be tried and tested in your possessions and in your personal selves; and ye shall hear much that will grieve you, from those who received the book before you and those who worship many Gods. But if ye preserve patiently, and guard against evil, then that will be determining factor in all affairs.” (Holy Quran 3:186)

“And have patience with what they say, and leave them with noble (dignity). And leave Me (alone to deal with) those with possession of good things of life, who yet deny the Truth; and bear with them for a little while.” (Holy Quran 73:10,11)

“And the servants of Allah, the most Gracious are those who walk on the earth in humility, and when the ignorant address them, they say, “Peace!” (Holy Quran 25:63)

From the above sayings it is clear that when one’s religion is attacked, one needs to act with patience and dignity. Then one needs to engage in debates with rational arguments based on reasoning.

The arguments that the Prophet (pbuh) created the Holy Quran were countered with the following arguments. “He has been living amidst you for years. He has never uttered a falsehood. He cannot read and write. How can a person who cannot read or write create the Holy Quran which is in a poetic style? If you have doubts whether the Holy Quran is God’s revelation, bring a book that is matching in such poetic style as the Holy Quran.” The Prophet (pbuh) directed the poets among his followers to respond to these fault-finders in a poetic form.

Hence when the principles and religion we follow are attacked, we should not be guided by our emotions and take law into our hands. Instead, we should approach it in a rational and logical manner. We should be able to identify and expose those who are criticizing for the sake of publicity. In case there is some truth in what those detractors say, then we should also be willing to accept the truth.

ISLAM - A Perspective (3. Peace)

noreply@blogger.com (NSG) — Fri, 09 Mar 2018 12:49:00 +0000

‘ISLAM’ is an Arabic word, which literally carries the meaning of ‘peace’ as also ‘submission’ / ‘self-surrender’. If you submit to GOD’s commandments, you will be peaceful. If you fail to surrender to HIS will, then you will be bereft of peace. The word ‘Islam’, therefore, signifies this great truth. The people who follow Islam are called Muslims. The Arabic word Muslim also carries the meaning as to one who is in a state or condition of submission to God’s will and therefore is peaceful. (The word Islam and Muslim have the same root letters s,l,m). To attain peace and to give peace are a Muslim’s primary duties.

‘A person who does not harm others either through words or deed alone is a true Muslim’. ‘A person who safeguards lives and possessions of other people alone is a true believer’. ‘A person who has a sumptuous feast while his neighbour is hungry is not a true believer’. These are some of the sayings of the Prophet (pbuh) that further endorse the basic meaning of Islam as peace.

Some people call Islam as Mohammadan religion and call Muslims as Mohammadans. However, these words have slowly faded away from usage. If we accept the term ‘Mohammadan religion’, then it follows that Islam was founded by Prophet Muhammad (pbuh), which is not true. As we have seen earlier, Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) was the last Prophet. He came to expound the truths that were already told by the earlier Prophets.

Say ye: “We believe in Allah, and the revelation given to us, and to Abraham, Ismail, Isaac, Jacob and the Tribes, and that given to Moses and Jesus, and that given to (all) prophets from their Lord: we make no difference between one and another of them: And we bow to Allah (In Islam)” (Holy Quran 2:136)

From the above verse it is clear that the Prophet (pbuh) did not initiate a new religion. Mohammadan would imply that Muslims worship Prophet Muhammad (pbuh). But truth be told, Muslims do not worship Prophet Muhammad (pbuh). They worship the only God. They regard Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) to be a messenger of God and as a role model to be followed. Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) always maintained that he was also human and that he would die one day.

Islam was created by God. It is, therefore, true that it is not linked to any particular person or race. In this universe, all creations, both animate and inanimate, except man act as ordained by God. They do not have the capacity, knowledge or freedom to deviate from these laid down laws. The Earth rotates at its pre-determined velocity. It cannot deviate from its pre-determined path, speed and time. This rule is applicable to everything that exists in this universe except man. Hence all these creations, perhaps except man, are acting peacefully.

Man alone has been bestowed with the privilege of thinking and acting as per his will. When man attempts to misuse this privilege, then he loses peace. ‘Drinking is the mother of all evils’ said God. Instead, man converted that as the mother of all earnings. This has resulted in family quarrels, divorces, murder, loot and sexual violence. ‘People are progeny of a single man and woman. Therefore all are equal’ said God. However, man created all types of inequalities. The result is that society is divided on class or communal lines with incessant conflicts. ‘Don’t even go near shameful acts’, said God. Man stepped beyond his limits engaging in prostitution, illegitimate and forbidden relationships resulting in sexually transmitted diseases, AIDS and deteriorating moral standards. Hence God addressed these people saying ‘and peace to all who follow guidance’. (Holy Quran 20:47)

Man will attain three types of benefits if he follows the commandments of the Lord. They are peace with God, peace with creation and peace with self. Islam shows the way for all these three types of peace.

1. Peace with God

Accepting the only God, worshipping HIM and surrendering to HIS commandments will lead us to peace with God. HE has created us as the crown jewel of creation and has provided us with capabilities, means of livelihood and guidance. Therefore, if we remember HIM and be grateful, we shall be peaceful. When HIS likes become our likes and when his dislikes become our dislikes, then we become worthy of God’s love. ‘By remembering God, mind becomes peaceful’. (Holy Quran)

2. Peace with creation

We can be at peace with all of creation if we accept that all men, nations and languages are equal; grant human rights; discharge our duties and responsibilities properly; act with justice and be loving.

3. Peace with Self

We can attain peace with ourselves if we keep our mind and body pure. We need to discard some of the negative thoughts or traits like being overly materialistic, being obsessed with one’s position, ostentation, arrogance, jealousy and a vindictive attitude. Instead, if we cultivate love, compassion, truthfulness, forgiving attitude, sacrifice in our mind, then our mind will become peaceful. ‘Truly he succeeds that purifies it’. (Holy Quran 91:9)

We can attain also attain peace of mind if we keep our bodies also clean like our mind. We need to abstain from drinking, drugs, smoking, illegitimate and prohibited relationships. We also should not indulge in self-harm. ‘Make not your own hands contribute to your own destruction’. (Holy Quran 2:195)

Islam advocates greeting each other with the phrase ‘As-salam Alaikum’ which means ‘peace be unto you’. Islam also reiterates that we need to greet in the same manner when we finish our prayers as also while entering the house. Islam, therefore, endeavours to create a peaceful man and a peaceful society.

ISLAM - A Perspective (Prophet Muhammad-pbuh)

noreply@blogger.com (NSG) — Fri, 02 Mar 2018 12:14:00 +0000

Muhammad (pbuh) was born around 570 CE to Abdullah and Aminah. He was a posthumous child. He lost his mother also before he was six. When he was a young boy, he was a cowherd. When he was 10, he was involved in his paternal uncle’s business and visited Syria as a part of the trade delegation. In his 25^th year, he became well known in Mecca for his qualities of integrity, honesty and discipline. He came to be called AL-Amin (the trustworthy) and AS-Sadiq (the truthful) by the people. People entrusted their valuables to him for safe keeping. In case of any disputes, people accepted him as their arbiter.

Impressed with Muhammad’s (pbuh) integrity, Khadija one of Arabia’s distinguished and well known baroness, entrusted her business to him as a caretaker. Later, attracted by his personality and charisma, she married him. Khadija was already twice widowed at that time and she was 40 while Muhammad (pbuh) was only 25.

Around his 35^th year Muhammad (pbuh) spent lot of his time in a cave known as mount Hira near Mecca. In solitude, he spent his time on contemplation. He reflected upon the evils, injustices and false beliefs prevailing in Mecca then. In the year 610 CE, in his 40^th year, during one such contemplation, the holy scriptures were revealed to him.

“Proclaim! In the name of thy Lord and cherisher, who created man, out of a (mere) clot of congealed blood: Proclaim! And thy Lord is most bountiful, HE who taught (the use of) the pen, taught man that which he knew not.” (Holy Quran 96:1-5)

When Muhammad (pbuh) heard these dialogues, he was shivering with fear. He became confused. He was overcome with fright as to whether he was possessed by some evil spirit. Again he heard the words “Muhammad, you are a messenger of God. I am angel Gabriel. Therefore Proclaim.” Muhammad (pbuh) responded “I do not know how to proclaim!” Again the voice reiterated “Proclaim!” He returned home perturbed. However, his wife assuaged him with the words “Do not worry. I shall be by your side always as a source of strength. No harm will come upon you. You are giving plenty as alms to the poor. You are supporting the orphans, widows and the destitute. God will not abandon you”.

She then took her husband to her relative Waraqah bin Nawfal, a Christian scholar. After hearing out Muhammad (pbuh), Waraqah responded “Muhammad, it was indeed the angel Gabriel that commanded you. He was the angel that commanded Moses as well. Your people will criticize you as a liar. They may persecute you. They may even banish you from your city”.

After this event, Muhammad (pbuh) gained the status of a Prophet. Just like the earlier prophets, the holy scriptures were revealed to him in stages. It started in 610 CE and continued for 23 years till 632 CE. He started disseminating this in secret initially but later did it openly. His teachings primarily focused on telling people to discard false beliefs handed down by their ancestors, worship the only God, do away with social inequalities, and not earn wealth through inappropriate means. He was against drinking, gambling and usury. He also spoke about giving rights to women, abolishing slavery, not exploiting the poor and treat orphans with dignity. He also proclaimed that the poor had a right to the wealth of the rich.

These teachings were not well received by the influential and the wealthy leaders of the time. They believed that these teachings would put an end to their political, social and economic well being. They were disturbed that they would lose the wealth that they were earning by administering the Kaaba. They feared that Muhammad (pbuh) may even assume leadership of Arabia. Hence they fiercely opposed Muhammad (pbuh) and his followers. They tortured them to the extent it became unbearable.

Seeing the cruelty being inflicted on his followers, Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) sent a group of his followers to nearby Abyssinia (in Ethiopia). He also told them that the Christian King who was ruling that country, Najashi, was a good man and would protect them. The Christian king also gave them refuge.

In the year 620 CE, 13 years after he had started his preaching, he could see light at the end of the tunnel. Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) got an invitation from the people of a city called Yathrib (presently Medina) which was about 200 miles away from Mecca. They declared that they would follow his teachings, provide him with security and accept him as their leader. Accepting this offer, Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) migrated permanently to Medina along with his followers. This incident is referred to as ‘Hijra’. This event also marks the beginning of the Islamic year and calendar. This also turned out be a turning point in his life. The people of Medina accepted Prophet Muhammed (pbuh) as their political and religious leader. Those days, there were people who did not accept Islam as also Jews. The Prophet created a common political manifesto for all concerned. The Jews were given full freedom to pursue their religion and culture.

The people of Mecca, who could not bear the growth and popularity of Prophet Muhammad (pbuh), started wars on Medina many times and failed. Finally a truce treaty was signed between both parties in the year 628 CE. This was called ‘The treaty of Hudaybiyyah’. After this event, Islam spread fast to various parts of the Arab peninsula. The people of Mecca, at times, violated the peace treaty. Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) marched towards Mecca with about 10,000 soldiers and instead of retaliating, granted them amnesty. He assured them that there would not be any retribution. Realizing Prophet Muhammad’s (pbuh) magnanimity, the people of Mecca also embraced Islam.

In the year 632 CE, in his last year of earthly sojourn, Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) came to Mecca along with his followers and completed his Hajj duties and released a ‘Declaration of Human Rights’ (which would be discussed in detail later). Later that year, at 63, he passed away. During his time, Islam spread to about 10 lakh square miles and about 5 lakh people embraced Islam.