Category: Misc

With every other gadget today, running on rechargeable batteries, I cannot think of a better analogy for the ebb and flow of one’s morale. When you are fully charged, literally nothing or no one can upset you, and when fully drained out, anything or any one can hurt you. Most of the times we are somewhere in between, coasting along, with occasional surges and dips.

Morale is generally defined as “The state of the spirits of a person or group as exhibited by confidence, cheerfulness, discipline, and willingness to perform assigned tasks.” I might also add “capacity to tolerate fools and to accept nonsense”

Can every activity in life be categorized into energy drainer, energy neutral and rejuvenator. If so, can your life be so organized that you are always well ‘charged’ to take on the good and the not so good people and events in your stride. Is it possible to move from one mode to the other at will in a normal work environment ? You are in great spirits and one phone call from a person you particularly dislike and you are 50% drained and is it possible to pick an activity (like listening to your favorite music) to recoup that lost energy? Then, just as among rechargeable batteries, there are good batteries and dubious ones, does ‘the quality of battery’ differ from person to person . Can you ‘train’ your battery to charge faster and to last longer ?

Ideally, your work or home environment should be such that you are doing only what you want to do; so it is all life rejuvenating activities, and there is hardly any energy drain. But as mere mortals, we may have to work at jobs we do not always like, with people we don’t always get along, and share a home with people not always in agreement with us ; and in short, we may live at occasional or frequent disagreement and dissension at home and work place. I am sure, most people have their own ways to resolve their problems.

While I was posted at an Army public School, I made it a point to walk through the corridors of the school during a recess. Just a couple of cheerful greetings from children can recharge your battery to face a long, difficult conference.

A General officer at Bareilly used to take a circuitous route to his office so that he can go through the recruits training area. An officer from the Gorkha regiment can’t be faulted for getting his highs seeing recruits training. Different strokes for different folks.

How is it that some people always look ‘Thrilled with Life’ and some look “Disgusted with Life’ ? (TWL or DWL as we used to say in the academy.) If you have more Life Rejuvenating Activities (LRA) than energy draining activities, I suppose you are always on top , in any situation.

Just as a battery has limited capacity for storage, I suppose we too have our limitations. So the life rejuvenating activities have to be built into our day to day routine so that a person is always in good spirits. can we quantify this ?

For eg , let us take a typical day; getting up in the morning for work can be a pain to most people. Then you have a refreshing cup of coffee or tea. A good bath and prayers can really pep you up. Then commuting to work can be stressful. So, before we get sucked into the office routine, can we squeeze in some short term LRA like meditation, music, or a phone call to a friend or family member ? By the time you get home, anyone at home can make out if you had had a good or a lousy day at office. Whatever be, just as you put your laptop or cellphone on charge, it is time to engage in some long term LRA, followed by a good sleep to face the next day.

By now I have been with NCC cadets, for about seven years and I keep wondering as to what keeps them going. I have been through three different states, poles apart, socially and culturally. Financial Support from the State Govt, the standard of Educational Institutions and the work culture are so different in every State. Yet, one thing that is common is the enthusiasm displayed by the cadets. How can you keep attending camp after camp? After all, these are not five star camps, in the garb of adventure tourism, where all possible amenities are provided under canvas. The accommodation provided is partly built up and partly tentage, generally the less used portion of the local school or college, with some support provided by the local municipal body.

The routine starts at six in the morning and may well go on past the midnight. If lucky, you might get some hostel accommodation, with cooking and dining facilities, but most of the times, the camps are held under abysmal conditions, going by the normal standards of urban lifestyle ; ie a place to cook, a place to eat, a place to wash and bathe, hot meals, amenities like electricity, running water, TV, decent working hours etc. Living in tents is okay for 3-4 days but carrying on for 3-4 months is beyond my understanding. There are at least seven camps in the run up to the Republic Day Camp at Delhi. The competition is so stiff that no one dares to fall sick even for a session leave alone a day; his or her place would immediately be taken by one of the cadets sniffing at his heels. There are cadets who are dropped in the last camp and the subsequent year, to my surprise, they are back again for the grind. What’s more, they are ever so cheerful; so much so that, being with them you forget all about the heat, dust, and deprivations. You just feel refreshed and energized in their company.

Recently I had a chat with one of the cadets who had done umpteen number of camps in 2009 and this is what she had to say …. we all are missing the camps sooooo bad…… i’d die if i don’t get to attend another one…..

What is it that keeps them going ?!

taking a leisurely stroll in a cantonment, i am amazed seeing children behaving so free and happy… so confident and so spontaneous. The cantonments have lots of open space and yet have the kind of facilities big cities boast of. the kids are so free with the “bhaiyas” (soldiers) who run these facilities.

In the thick of the battle in Srilanka, the tamil kids used to wave at the burly, ferocious looking, dark skinned sardars of the “SIKHLI REGT”..one is reminded of Tagore’s Cabuliwallah. wherever men are away from their families the soft spot within the tough exterior comes to light. It is a pity that only children notice it.

I am reminded of the lines I read somewhere, ” the world over, children like soldiers; soldiers like children; perhaps soldiers are children.”

Staking claim to territory/space or fighting for territory is prevalent among all creatures.

As times change the game of ‘my space and our space’ is manifested in differnt ways,; in the office it is a cornor office or a larger cabin and while travelling it is a window seat or front row. At home , it is not so obvious, but every one including the family pet, finds the most comfortable place for himself/or herself.

While the mundane aspect may be a matter of physical comfort, the more important factor would be the need for privacy, or the need for company. A four year old, may jockey for a place closer to his dad(or mum ).

A couple may look for a place to relax by themselves.

It is not that only the well to do people ‘find’ theirspace. Look at this villager comfortably perched on a roof top watching the sunset. He seems to be as much at ease, as a sophisticated lady in her drawing room.

It is always a balance between too much proximity which can be intrusive or too much distance leading to loneliness. At Ahmadnagar, during one of the many army courses I have been through, I made it a point to go for an early morning jog. At the end of the run I would stop to enjoy the sunrise. It was a kind of lonely place , a gently sloping ground, in the middle of nowhere. Everyday, without fail, en elderly couple would be sitting there well before the sunrise. They would sit about four feet apart , never closer nor farther. Since the place was desolate, there was no dearth for space. Probably, getting closer would crowd them and getting farther would be lack of company; In any case there was no verbal communication.

There is a requirement of someone near and dear within earshot distance yet non intrusive. To some extent this requirement is fulfilled by non stop FM radio or TV. An added advantage with this surrogate companion is that you can set the volume or turn it off when you want.

The comforting sound of pots and pans, or bangles accompanied by the aroma of cooking can actually be better than a non stop chat. This being the male perspective, I am sure ladies would find it good to have some signs of the presence of a man around; non intrusive I mean. Some music, a game on TV, ruffling of newspaper, cursing or even snoring. Of course, the signs of children in the house is generally distracting , but the absence of the mess they create may be disturbing or even depressing.

My daughter appeared for a music theory exam at bhopal. the music teacher had assured her that she would be helped, to which my daughter had shot back , “i don’t cheat”

Eventually the exam was conducted on the terrace of a friend’s private house (music teacher’s freind) . most of the candidates were adults, who were not only copying from books but had also to be helped by the invigilators to do just that. my daughter kept watching the whole thing while she refused to be part of the cheating that was going on.

her music teacher saw her answer paper, and was surprised to find that many of the answers were correct. He was referring to a book and could find some answers incorrect and offered to help ,”just two lines….”. My daughter refused flatly. then came the gem,

” aapka mummy bahut strict hai, papa to normal hai na?”

when i heard that i actually felt so offended. what does it mean when an average indian today, specially on the northern side of the Vindhyas call you normal?

What is a ‘normal’ person expected to do in this time (kaliyug) and space (bharatvarsh) ?

At the workplace

– Do minimum work and get maximum pay, perks and privilages and ‘the other income’; hardwork even a donkey can do, we are human’s na ?

As a parent

– admit your child in the institution where you want him to be, after buying/making necessary certificates and negotiating the right price for the right service

As a student

– get maximum marks with minimum studies after all you are training yourself to do the same at the ‘workplace’

As a trader /businessman

– Obtain maximum returns for minimum services or goods, afterall you have to get rich quick to prove yourself.

As a taxpayer

– What tax and why ? just pay whatever it takes to avoid tax.

As a teacher

– Earn more from tutorials while conserving time and energy at regular teaching

As a doctor

– Expend your time and effort only on such treatment that maximizes the bill.

As a general citizen

– Spit in public places
– buy a platform ticket, parking ticket or traveling ticket only where absolutely necessary
– follow only such laws/rules where infringements are monitored and where the rates for bribe is higher than the cost of abiding the law.

…..and many more

under such circumstances, It would definitely be a compliment when you hear someone say “Oh, he is abnormal”

the other day my daughter was ticked off by her mother, for not taking off the shoes in the bed room; probably something that happens between all mothers and daughters. It went something like this:-

mom : it is so irritating.. keeping your shoes on, in the bed.
daughter : a ‘so what ?’ look …
mom : take them off.
daughter : no reaction

after sometime i suggested, “i am not getting irritated but it definitely is a bad habit”
promptly , my daughter took her shoes off.. to my wife’s surprise.

she later explained ” if mom got irritated it is her problem, but if i develop a bad habit, it is my problem”

yashodaragautama says 58 times
detachment brings
divinement
non expectation brings
deliverance
after deliverance
what is there to
call life///////////////

death is welcome as long as life goes on
but when death comes wonder why struggle
to beat it back as anyhow life has
become a living death

Ahhh! dues to creditors of life
child, mother, father , husband , son etc etc unpaid
want to rest restless mind, soul, body, eyes
but scared of the rest too
as still hoping to live a life which
not know how but?????????????

death is scary
life is wary
a third choice
wish i had

train journey is a great time to read. take a thick book, heavier the contents better it would be; a book like “The tao of physics”.
After every paragraph, look outside, at the scenic beauty and leisurely cudchew on the contents.

There are no easy answers

Today we have more choice than we can handle
and there are no easy answers

it starts from coffee or tea, indian, or south Indian (??),
Chinese or Thai cuisine

marriage or living in
for short term or long term

organization or freelance ..
family or friends

live in your home town or
make a home where you make a living

what about children and parents ?
to what extent you live for them and what do you expect from them ?

what are your rights and responsibilities
to family, society, country and to yourself.

Adopt or follow an established religion, complete with its core beliefs and rituals
or customise one , blaze a new track ?

today, more than ever before, there are more questions than answers;
and there are no easy answers.

————————————

Swami Vivekananda and Subramanya Bharathi
Some amazing coincidences

Swami Vivekananda and Mahakavi Subramanya Bharathi are perhaps the greatest personalities in 18-19th century to have influenced the youth.
Both died young at the age of 39 years. Both were philosophers with an aggressive patriotic fervor. Everyone knows that Sister Nivedita was the disciple of Swami Vivekananda but few are aware that bharathiyar himself was a disciple of Sister Nivedita. Sister Nivedita’s parents were active members of Irish Home Rule Movement and it was natural that she encouraged the freedom struggle in India.