Power Corrupts Absolutely

There is so much talk of corruption in all walks of life – around the world in general and in India in particular – that one may think it as a new phenomenon. Corruption seems to have become a ‘way of life’ in some countries. Media and famous personalities are pointing fingers at people in high places. Everyone is holding ‘holier than thou’ view.

In 1887, Lord Acton said, “Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Great men are almost always bad men.” Lord Acton must have had deep understanding of human psychology while making such a remark. Indeed, corruption is not a new phenomenon. It is as old as the humanity. Each one of us carries seeds of corruption, which may sprout in appropriate circumstances. One may not know about it until thrown in such circumstances. Mahatma Gandhi once said that he would truly find out whether he is non-violent only when he is being shot and his heart is filled with compassion for his assailant.

It is ironic that he, who begins his fight against those in power with clean objectives and concern for masses, becomes like them upon getting the power himself. Power has such a magical power. Several fundamental transformations take place within one’s psyche when one gets power. He gets detached from the very mass that he represented. It becomes nearly impossible to resist the temptation to fall for the flattery that is showered upon him from all sides. All those privileges that once stared at him from a long distance are now at his disposal in abundance. He starts enjoying the very privileges, attention and comfort that he once criticized. Every passing day gives him a sense of immunity against law. With time he becomes so accustomed to this life style that he fears losing it. It is then that he turns to corrupt means of holding onto his position and power. Money is amassed in a hurry to ensure continuation of present lifestyle in the absence of this position and power. The question, therefore, is not who is corrupt, but who can guard against his weakness for corruption. Who can stay in tune with his conscience when strong winds of temptations are blowing all around him? Next time we point a finger at others, let’s not forget that the other three fingers are pointing at ourselves. World will be a better place only if more people starts minding their own business in ethical manner.

Quarter life at Crossroads

The article, “Quarter Life Crisis” (Wknd. 5 Nov 2010) was bang on target in highlighting the dilemma of today’s young generation. Advanced education and liberal upbringing should have enabled them to become anyone they wanted. Ever increasing resources of the world should have helped them achieve what they wanted with ease. Alas, things didn’t turn out this way. The root of the problem appears to be their not knowing ‘What they want’. Hence, transient temptations from every direction and instant pleasures are hard to resist. And yet, hardly anyone seems to be happy. Those in such a dilemma may take consolation from the fact that everyone before them has passed through this stage in varying degree. Further, I wish to share some thoughts on the ‘Way Forward’:

• Find what you are most passionate about doing consistently. Your definite chief aim in life can be found around this activity.
• Understand that mind is a great servant but a terrible master. It works best when instructed. Hence, use its power to your advantage by directing it to that in the world which would further your chosen goal. Don’t allow multitude offerings of the world, including Internet, Facebook, Blackberry, TV, etc. tempt you into mindless wondering. Use all of them with a purpose. Always ask, “Why am I doing this?”
• Until you find your definite chief aim in life, do whatever you are currently doing to the best of your ability. This will add dignity to the work and give you the much needed satisfaction and happiness.
• Understand that better opportunities will become visible only when your mind is relaxed. An anxious mind cannot attract any worthwhile opportunity. You will be locked-up in a Catch-22 situation.
• Never stop celebrating. The fact that you are alive is a reason enough to celebrate. There is a place and purpose for every atom in the universe. Why should you compare with or emulate anyone else? What a needle can do, a sword can’t. There is a seed of uniqueness hidden in everyone. Your only business in life is to discover it and express in its full glory.

Self-fulfilling Prophecies

It was nice reading a cute list of nice things that can happen to us, but don’t (“As good as it gets” Weekend, 22.10.2010). Grief is a wasted energy, but we often indulge in it. While blaming others for our miseries, we forget that everything in this world is controlled by the law of causation. We are in our current state of health, mind and circumstances due to our own past actions and decisions that we took or didn’t. Similarly, our present decisions and actions will determine what sort of future we shall inherit.

I believe that we are all victims of self-fulfilling prophecies. All the while, we are talking to ourselves in our minds. This rambling of thoughts, whether intentional or not, act as auto-suggestions to our sub-conscious mind. Our sub-conscious mind is like a giant computer which processes every suggestion it receives and translates into reality with the help of nature’s infinite power, without bothering whether the suggestion is ‘right’ or ‘wrong’.

Thus, a hopeful person sees opportunities all around him and reaps success, while a pessimist keeps missing them and meets with failures. So let’s first watch what we say in our minds and then watch what we do in the world. Henry Ford has rightly said, “Whether you think you can or think you can’t, you’re right.”

Why Read Fiction?

Iman Kurdi has raised an important topic with reference to the French writer Charles Dantzig’s book entitled: “Why Read?” (“Why do we love and need to read fiction? Here is why!”, KT, 12th Oct 2010). People often carry guilt of having wasted valuable time on reading fictional stories. Many consider reading a book of fiction as escaping from real life. If the work of fiction is cheap and intended to arouse only base feelings, then I agree with such observations. However, classic works of fiction are entirely different ball-game.

Life is nothing but a stream of experiences. Birth, death and everything in between, whether success or failure, are just experiences. Each experience shapes our personality, thoughts, habits, character and destiny. A life is rich and fulfilling if it is filled with a variety of valuable experiences. However, it is not possible for anyone to gather the entire gamut of experiences from different walks and eras in one life-time. A work of fiction fills this gap.

But for Shakespeare’s works of fiction, I wouldn’t have been able to experience the Victorian era and intense human emotions. But for authors like Robert Ludlum, Fredrick Forsyth, Alistair MacLean, Jack Higgins, Ken Follett and Ian Fleming, I wouldn’t have got the thrilling and chilling experiences of cold-war espionage. But for the engrossing works of Arthur Hailey, I would have remained ignorant of the intricate worlds of Aviation, Healthcare and Hotels. But for authors like Premchand and Sarat Chandra, I wouldn’t have experienced the value-based rustic rural life of Indian villages. Authors of fictional work create stories out of their own life experiences, beliefs and acute observations of the world around them. Thus, they are able to transport their readers into different make-believe worlds where readers can enjoy the experience of living those worlds. We unconsciously pick-up our role models from these stories and start emulating their character and ideals in our own specific walks of life. Ayn Rand’s book entitled, “Atlus Shrugged” continues to have a major impact on American society fifty years after its publication. Based on the principles of morality in public and corporate dealings, this work of fiction is being referred to by Americans as prescription to cure the current economic crises. It was rightly said by someone, “There is nothing true in History except name and date, while there is nothing false in a fiction except name and date.”

Comprehensive Website on Bapu

We seem to have forgotten Bapu’s Birthday on 2nd Oct. No TV channel showed any special program on him or his work. No newspaper brought out any special supplement. No new stamp was issued in his honour. No new bridge or road was named after him. No friend sent any sms to celebrate his birthday.

Then I came across this great website on Bapu, which was forwarded to me by a non-Indian. Bapu, we Indians may have forgotten you, but the world has not and will not. Long live your name and teachings.

Click on the link below :

http://www.mkgandhi-sarvodaya.org/

Looking for an ideal Life-partner

It was heartening to read a young man’s views on marriage (“Arranging love marriages: A fine balance”, by Aditya Mahajan, KT, 22nd Sep 2010). Love at first sight happens in stories and movies. In life, we are often attracted towards certain individuals. This attraction may become so strong for a certain individual that we may confuse it with ‘love at first sight’. In reality, more often than not, it is still an attraction based on certain strong sensory input, which often clouds judgment. No wonder, such love is ‘blind’ and the person is said to have ‘fallen’ in love. However, life cannot be lived with such blind love. It is important to establish that the attraction leading to certain ‘special’ feeling is beyond physical attributes and base interests. Subtler the source of this attraction, longer it will last. Marriage is not merely a union of two individuals; it is a fusion of many more things such as aspirations, values, life-styles, likes & dislikes, families and even cultures. Such fusion is not possible if both partners are rigid. Flexibility is the cornerstone of this fusion.

Looking for an ideal life-partner is similar to looking for utopia on earth. Since no one can claim to be perfect, how can one even attempt to find an ideal life-partner? The best one can achieve is a good match. For this, however, you have to start with yourself. An accurate assessment of your own strengths and weaknesses would help in establishing realistic criteria for your life-partner. While listing the criteria, you must include all aspects of the desired match, including family and society that you wish to live with. These criteria must be prioritized in order to give due weightage to the important ones. Finally, when you come across a matching partner, listen to your heart more than the mind. Mind has the tendency to trap you in the state of ‘analysis-paralysis’. It will always throw doubts on whatever you decide, while heart will always show you the right path.

A man marries a woman, not a wife. He must make a wife out of this woman through patience and understanding. Similarly, the woman must make a husband out of the man after marriage. The path of marriage is that of team building – starting with excitement, turning into a storm, leading to normalization and finally understanding. Love is what one discovers in this journey. As the understanding deepens, so does the love. How else would you describe the deep bonding between two aged people who have lost their physical attributes to attract each other? They are ready to give everything for each other without any trace of expectation. Love is not blind for them. It becomes the light in which they see everything clearly. They don’t fall in love. They rise to the pinnacle of love.

Pride of Possessing Books

Anthony F. D’Silva evoked nostalgic memories of yesteryears with his article “Is it time to bury the old tomes of knowledge?” (KT, 20th Sep 2010). I was particularly touched by his history professor’s purchasing an Encyclopedia Britannica instead of a car, when faced with a choice between the two. I wonder how many of us would have done this then as well as now. Books have been known to be our best friends, as they silently wait for us to be taken on a mind’s journey which enriches our lives. However, books are no longer the only tools of acquiring knowledge. Internet has almost completely overtaken books in so far as searching for any knowledge is concerned. But, how about the pride of possessing good books? Have we lost that too?

While acknowledging the value of instant access to any knowledge by the click of a mouse-button, I believe that we would never lose physical touch with books. Despite the Internet access to online Dictionaries and Thesauruses, I keep Webster’s Dictionary handy on my table. The joy of looking for various meanings of a word and its usage in a dictionary is unparallel. I still carry many books on my bookshelf from my younger days. Oldest one is Bhargava’s Anglo-Hindi Dictionary (in tattered condition) that was passed on to me by my elder cousin who was my role model when I was just entering my teens. I vividly remember the time when I used to feel certain honour in visiting Calcutta’s National Library. Scouring for some hidden treasures amidst heaps of old books on the pavements of College Street, Esplanade and Free School Street was a regular pastime. I remember becoming member of a readers’ club floated by Hind Pocket books through which I could purchase new books of my choice at discounted price. Waiting for the postman with the VPP (Value Payable Post) of my facourite new books was filled with some subtle joy. The pain of paying from my hard-saved pocket money was more than compensated by the look and smell of new books. Putting protective cover on every newly purchased book was an exercise of immense value. Personalising the book with a sentence (“This Book runs under the sweet care of…”) in the best of my handwriting on the first page was a matter of great satisfaction. Underlining quotations or important sentences and writing my own notes on the page-margins of the book was my way of making interactions with the author. Preserving books autographed by the authors or gifted by some close friends with sweet messages carried immense emotional value.

Can Internet and e-books ever provide these joys? Can they ever substitute the intellectually charged environment and smell of a well stocked library or your own study-room, where your thoughts develop wings? Can they ever become your trusted friends whom you can reach in your privacy without any electronic aid? No, I strongly believe that there will never be a time to bury the old tomes of knowledge.