Indian Ergonomics Discussion Forum...

As an extension to my previous blog, which is a microcosmic view of how one can cultivate the ideology of being a responsible citizen and help propagate the progress of the country, thus envisioning the growth of his/her homeland treating it as a divine duty; I also felt there were some key pointers that were missing from my own introspective analysis. These expressed henceforth, I believe can create a forum for intellectual  gathering of action-points on establishing a platform for national reforms. So, please feel free to express your opinion on this subject.

Recalling some of the core issues that I have raised previously, 

• we see a lack of ownership in effective deliverance of Public Administration responsibilities from dignitaries of people-elected high order offices, in terms of, lethargy towards the discharge of assigned duties, the emerging outlook of corruption in the political or socio-political environment of the country, lack of common-will of policy-making, and such.

• Adding to that, there is also prevalence of dilapidated sense of security and measures taken to ensure a fail-safe blanket of security system provision for the citizens of India.

• The economic down-slide on the growth and progress indicators coupled with, rising civil unrest spread across the nation.

Being an eternal optimist, in retrospect with what is said above, over the past couple of decades, one can  notice tremendous improvement in the content & structure of the Indian socio-economic environment as compared to post-independence era (1960-1990) , where the multi-fold increase in the purchasing power of  Indian middle-class segment has paved way for a linear rise of consumerism. This potential has opened doors for a plethora of changes to occur such as,

• Prominence of manufacturing sector contributing to the overall GDP, 

• The stalwart growth of the services sector in-turn fuelling the rise in education & employment, rise in development of technology drivers, rise in scientific research, rise in agricultural output, and such.

• There are also noteworthy advancements made in the financial and retail markets integrating together to provide a efficient and streamlined outlook on the Indian consumer market & its PPP (Purchasing Power Parity).

• All the above causing well-targeted initiatives in Public Utilities & Infrastructure industry, thus drawing a huge confidence from the investor forum to see a heavy in-flux of foreign investments, making India  enviable peer on the global power map.

As a macro-cosmic view, some of the critical challenges that needs to be addressed currently, in order to have a longevity for sustenance of such a growth pattern are,

• A well-defined path for delivery in-order to fulfil the energy requirements of the country from a long-term perspective, as I believe this to be a prime-driver of growth for any nation in coming years.

• Inclusive monetary and fiscal reforms that can ensure the improvement of domestic investor confidence  (Due to the notable upsurge in the entrepreneurial endeavours and SMBs, which form a crucial layer) along with foreign investors, so there is a mitigation on exclusive dependence of  in-flow of funds from foreign community. 

• A better policy making environment with focus on implementing a quicker approval methodology for infrastructure and high-ticket projects that help scale the Gross product output of  various industries.(where the average of 5-6% prevalent now can be easily pushed to 9-10% )

• A more refined structure for the deliverance of high-quality output from the education sector to the employment sector.

• A better conflict-management system to ensure a more peaceful cohabitational of various demographics within the nation.

• Adoption and implementation of technological and scientific instruments to ensure a well-rounded defence measure against both internal & external agents of chaos & terror.

Apart from this, there also is a strong need for amendments to be made in Public Administration mechanics  such that  there is transparency and stream-lined focus in ensuring timely deliverables. Of course, these are idealistic norms that will face hurdles in realisation to actuality, mainly due to the diverse nature of Indian demographics and also due to the sheer volume of resources that needs to be managed.  Nonetheless, with this as a vision, there is a  need for more efficient functioning of system at all strata of Indian community in order to pave way for new India.

Please Note: Some excerpts here are inspired from a program called 'In conversation with Mrs. Shikha Sharma (MD & CEO of Axis Bank)' presented on Bloomberg TV this Sunday. 

Divine Mother and my journey towards her ... Part 2

After a hard day's work in the office, I was home watching television, surfing news channels and I stumbled across a couple of programs, one a political debate on the Coal-gate scam and another a financial debate on the GAAR tax policy. After watching these programs, I was generally talking to my wife on how the current affairs of this country are depressive, to which she retorted asking me if I expected any improvement in near future.This made me think long and hard.

• The various scams that have plagued the country in the past 25 months - CWG (Commonwealth Games) scam , 2G Spectrum scam, Coal-gate scam, and many more;
• The number of political leaders taken into judicial custody or under investigation for misappropriation of public funds; 
• The battling of various political parties to establish a common will of policy-making;
• The civil unrest spreading in various parts of the country for various instigated, trivial reasons;
• The constant slide of the growth rate and increase of inflation in the most recent span of time; 
• The rise of crime crate and unjust acts of moral conduct towards the women of this country; the thinning interests of foreign investments in this country; and
• To my very city of residence a Garden city so called once being hailed now as a Garbage city.

Looking at all of this, I wondered "Was my wife right about having vain, fictitious hopes of improvement of this country?". The answer is no. I have come to realise a wonderful insight here.

There is a belief in the Hindu Vedic principles of after-life and multiple re-births of a human soul, wherein it is said that a human soul passes through a number of cycles of birth & death, to evolve at every cycle with a cumulation of knowledge and devotion to the divine, to escape into a realm of ever-lasting happiness (salvation) as a final destination. The fact or law of nature so defined is that along with the cumulation of knowledge and devotion to the divine, he/she will also have to pass through a lifetime of pain-suffering. They are said to be two sides of a coin or an ironical parlance of unison of duality.

Now, I lack the knowledge or the maturity to debate on this principle, but what I could conjure with my intelligence is that change is imminent. India as a country, has evolved through many decades of creation and destruction of its own public administration reforms, that it passes through these suffocating periods of corruption & lethargy (towards discharge of duties & responsibilities), all the while cumulating prosperity (by integrating its services produced with the global markets)  & an image of power (through its sheer volume) that progress will no longer be opaque and subject to variation, but will become visible and consistent in nature.

As a responsible Indian citizen, it my duty to ensure that I adhere to the laws of the land and maintain transparency in my conduct, so collectively one day our great nation can be driven to the pinnacle of progress and be known as a developed nation (not just by roads or rails but from all finer aspects of civilization). Simple things like, exercising my constitutional rights judiciously and intelligently - right to vote and such, taking ownership for the protection of the environment I live in, lending a helping hand in communal and social activities or even having a good civic sense, abiding by the laws and non-violation of rules and regulations set by the govt, all of these when followed persistently, add to a greater cause. This is a glorious way to reach the Divine Mother and find ever-lasting happiness.

Divine Mother and my journey towards her ... Part 1

How can you be a better person ? What does it take to make your life better ? Where can you find happiness ? Why is there so much of pain and suffering in life ? Who are the people that matter to you ? When is the right time to do things ? ...

These and many more such questions haunted me for a long-time now. I have read books, articles, discussed  with people, argued with myself fervently in-order to find the right answers, but met with little luck. Many weeks ago, sitting in my mother-in-law's house, I was watching a television program where a learned person was delivering a theological speech. Certain aspects of the program instigated a strange passion in me to understand the deeper meaning of SELF and GOD. I stumbled across a unique perspective of life, in my quest for the deeper meaning of SELF and GOD. This perspective brought forth many answers that I have been searching for, so long. Here is an abstract of that unique perspective. I am writing this abstract in a hope that,  I will be able to read and bring myself back unto the path of knowledge and action , whenever I deter away from it, from time to time.

Having an agitated mind and heart was causing troubles in my day-to-day life. There was a very strong need to control my mind and heart. So, I initiated and pursued the technique of meditation to control my mind and heart,  through JAPA of GAYATHRI MANTHRA,

OM  BHUR BHUVA SWAHA - TAT SAR VITHUR VARENYAM - BHARGO DEVASYA DHIMAHI - DHYOYONAH  PRACHODAYATH OM

 I did not know the meaning of this mantra nor I had an understanding of what the implications were on reciting this mantra. I had read a book - 'Meditation and Its Practices' by Swami Adiswarananda (Minister and Spiritual Leader of the Ramakrishna-Vivekananda Center of New York); where it was instructed that, to perform this technique of  control over mind and heart through JAPA of GAYATHRI MANTHRA,

• one has to maintain a pair of clean clothes, which he/she has to wash themselves regularly with their own hands, 
• one has to maintain a sacred place  in his/her house which he/she cleans every day (preferably, facing east or north direction or even north-east direction), 
• one has to wake up before the break of dawn, finish his/her daily activities, take a shower, put on the clean clothes he/she has set aside for this activity, place himself/herself on a raised seat in this sacred place of one's house, sit crossed legged, fold his/her hands in devotion and offer a prayer of gratitude to GOD for all that is provided to him/her,
• Light a lamp, and begin recital of the mantra for 108 times. During the time of recital,  he/she could open their eyes and gaze upon a form of SRI GAYATHRI DEVI or close their eyes and focus on a form of lotus flower , a lamp or a dot of light between their brows. The recital has to be maintained within one's self (with no sound emanating , not even the lips moving) where he/she becomes one with the stillness and calmness of the morning air physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually.
• This has to be performed 3 times a day, at the break of dawn, during mid-day and before dusk, for 21 days to make it effective. Also, if the practice of vegetarian meals (Satvic food), abstaining from intoxicants and any kind of abuse (verbal, physical and by any other means) can be imbibed during this period of 21 days, it makes the technique very potent and effective.

So I followed the instructions, with an exception of performing the recital 3 times a day, as I had work to attend to during the daytime, which made it not possible for such an adherence, nonetheless, I performed the recital equivalent to 3 times during the break of the dawn itself. 

At first, it was nothing but a mere mechanical way of reciting the manthra, with my mind away playing tricks and conjuring unnecessary thoughts. There was a restless feeling in the body, always on the lookout for time to finish the exercise and move away. My heart fluttered constantly with emotions, fear and conflict. Within a week's time, I could get a grip on the restlessness of the body, I began to have a rhythmic way of breathing, which held my body at ease; Within another week's time I could bring my mind to focus for the period of JAPA without any wavering thoughts. This soon followed, by a grip on emotions of the heart in the consequent week. Yet, the real sense of control was elusive.

I couldn't abandon the practice of this exercise, in-spite of not realising the results, as the body, mind and heart were so conditioned that it almost became reflexive in nature.  The latter days of  this practice brought with it an everlasting impact. Unfortunately, I have no education of the Sanskrit language, yet due to similarities prevalent between Sanskrit, Hindi and Telugu (my mother-tongue), there was a hazy understanding of the manthra I was reciting. This haziness dissipated and real meaning fortified within me, when one day during the time of ritual, there was a striking bright light in my mind behind my closed eyes, a voice echoed through, "I am the Universe; Everything between Heaven and Earth; I am the Supreme of all living things; The source of all life and knowledge; I am the one to whom everybody prays in faith and devotion; Submit yourself  and pray to me, for enlightenment."  Hence I submitted to the Divine Mother and prayed. This is the real sense of control that had been elusive to me all along, to submit to the Divine Mother and pray.

Keep it Simple !!!

A very fascinating thought crept into my mind as I was reading an article in the newspaper about Indian politics and the election fiasco happening at this time.  I pondered on the thought for a while, it led me into writing this blog now. A forewarning, I love to be philosophical, so the follows the nature of my writing.

Everyone has their own  ideals and principles, everyone follows some faith or the other, and they hold unto their beliefs which is quite a natural phenomenon. In my view, this forms a foundation for a particular personality to take form. In time, as they progress in life, they face many challenges, riddled with problems, blessed with happy occasions, so on and so forth. These occurrences add flavor to their personalities. Now the problem is from time to time, due to the impact of the occurrences one has in their life, their personality grows or shrinks. As a result, the form that has taken shape as an initial personality, based on the ideals, principles, faith and belief systems starts to fade away. What follows then is chaos, unrest ... Now many would suggest techniques like meditation, yoga to keep once self at peace. In my view, one needs to primarily understand the root-cause for such a thing to happen in the first place. Such an introspection would lead them down to more trouble, because then one would discover all the hidden flavors that have become a part of their personality. Life would then look cumbersome, how many devils can you fight at one time ?

My theory is very simple and there you have the answer to all the questions. Surprised ? Let me explain. If one has a strong understanding of basic mathematics, you would know that linear equations are always solved by bringing them down to their simplest form, where you find the value attached to each variable in its simplistic form. Its the same with life, when you start to make things simple, removing all complications one step at a time, you will find the true form of your personality based on your own ideals and principles, faith and belief systems. Thus you will end up with the truest form that you are originated with. Hence, justice served for a very old-saying of life - "Be yourself at all times". Every problem has a solutions in itself, you have  to carefully take away the unnecessary portions that complicates an aspect into a problem and you will find the solution to be presented in its simplistic form. Now our mind is so designed, the immediate question that would crop up is HOW.

How can you remove the complications, when everything is inter-dependent and everything is linked together, doesn't that disturb the balance of life ? The answer is yet again very simple. Let me explain. It is true, since life is so dynamic in nature, we cannot discard away portions to say lets make it easy and simple. For this would make us realize in our effort to iron out our problems in one aspect of life, we have only managed to further complicate every other aspect of life. Now looks like I am complicating this whole theory. Let me make it simpler for understanding. For instance, if you ever visit a village market early in the morning, you will notice that the farmers from respective villages bring their loads of produce of different varieties and bundle them together in one place.They then watch the quantities of each variety of crop carefully and accordingly fix a price collectively, along-with the retailers and distributors of the respective villages being involved. The important term to watch for here, is 'collectively'.  We do-not live in this world alone. We are born into a family, with father, mother, brothers, sisters, relatives, so on and so-forth. With time, the number of people involved in our lives, increases multi-fold by friends, colleagues, wife, husband, kids, so-on and so forth. Now at any given juncture in life, there are a handful of people who become our companions with whom we share everything about ourself. Based on the trust one holds in another, we can collectively work together to make our life easy with the help of simple-thinking.

Many of us, rather most of us are so caught up with the pace of life that is prevalent now in this modern world, we fail to realize that we are not the only people living in this world and we overlook the fact that life is to be lead with a smile on our face and peace in our heart. Its not about how popular we are or how much money we have accumulated, or how safe and secure we have made ourself. Open your eyes to simplest of the truth that we all belong to one race and we can make the world a better place by keeping our thoughts simple and living with one another in harmony. So keep it simple people !!! 

Rise & Rise Again - Until the lambs become Lions

What are your limits? 

When you ask people this question - you get such different answers. One might say, I can work for 18 hours straight without moving from my desk, one might say I can endure pain to no ends, one might say I can lift 50 kgs of weights at gymn, one might even say I have no limits, the list just continues endlessly...

what is the real question here ? Does one mean what a mind can conjure, does one mean what a heart can withhold or does one mean what a body can withstand - what is this limit we are talking about? Its an old saying that not all fingers on the hand are the same, so are all people different. Hence it is no surprise that the answer to the  question of limit varies from person to person, to what their understanding of their self is.

I beg to differ from the common crowd, limit of one's self is rather based on what the situation they are put in. So as common to people's belief, it is not a controllable aspect of life, but is weaved into you as a person with the pattern of life, one lives. Now I know there are extra-ordinary people who have broken limits defined or seen in this world. Their stories are used as examples for motivation & inspiration for the rest on how one can surpass their limits - which of course highlights  personality traits like hard-work, dedication, focus discipline, so on & so forth. 

Does this mean the rest of them who have not broken barriers are lazy, ill-disciplined, aimless....?

The answer is no. Everybody is born the same in this world, it is how your life mould you as a person, the situations that you are put in, that make make you or break you. These situations help us to understand our limits. The highlight of defining one's limit is that it is a never-ending process. You are always re-defining your limit with every situation you face in your life. According to me, a real-understanding of one's self comes to people very rare & to a very few, most have this glimpse only in their death-beds.

As many people as I have come across always try to challenge the situations, maybe because it is not in-line to their wishes & wants. Instead, you accept the situations, learn & grow so to see & understand how these situations are helping you to define yourself, then you know what your limits are. In this movie called, 'Robin Hood', there is this dialogue which always rings a bell in my head, " Rise, & rise again ... Until the lambs become lions" ..... What this signifies is, dont let anything stop you. For the lambs to become the lions, they need to learn every time, they rise what it takes to be a lion. To do this, they must first realize as lambs what they can do & cannot do.

Dont define your limit, rather define yourself by learning from the situations life has to offer & one day you will see yourself to be the Lion.  

                      

Breaking out......

I remember saying this to my very good friend once, "Dude ! you are stuck in a loop and it is playing over and over for you....Break out of it, start fresh and you will see things getting better." But do we really break out ???

I have seen quite a bit so far in my life, and I always noticed that people are eager to do something new, they are always on a lookout for something out of the routine. A very few handful people that I know or have come across have been content with a routine. There is always an unfulfilled emptiness in people. Now this is where some people jump off planes, swim across deep seas, and do all kinds of crazy stuff. At the same time some are quite focused , you know becoming a corporate bigwig, establishing a career or making loads of money and stuff.  But in both the extremes, you will realize that the emptiness will always return back to haunt us. Now English language has many words for this kinda  thing, enthusiasm, motivation, so on and so forth. Of course the usage of these words is quite contextual. But, none can really define this emptiness, I am talking about. The irony here is that, the same routine that we try so hard to break out of becomes our life. It is like seasons of nature always following the same path, yet it is so well disguised that we people in all our ignorance believe that we have matured, progressed, evolved, finally broken free. Now that is the beauty of life. 

The fact is we are small little kids that we are born as even when we reach the age of 70 or 80. New things fascinate us, we are inquisitive to see , to learn , to hear, to express and to feel. It is the eagerness to fill the void that drives us all along. Now I have read a few philosophical books, and most of them say control on mind, heart and body will erase this void and bring contentment to life. None I know ever will or ever can achieve that level of control. Honestly, no one would want to either. Who in their right mind would want to do such a thing. Then you are missing out on all the good things, isn't it? 

You fall in love with a wonderful man or woman, you dote on your lovely kids, you work so hard to achieve success, you buy an amazing car or a beautiful house, you go on a holiday to the most exquisite place in the world, you get into adventures that can make your head spin with adrenaline, you take care of your old and ageing parents , you do charity to help the needy & poor,  you are forever inspired. The greener side of the hill always  beckons to you. 

I believe life is a journey meant to travel enjoying every moment of it....I am glad there is a void in my life. I so look forward to all the good things I am about to do....I wouldn't want to break out , do you?