[Lesson - Imported]
Once upon a time there flourished a civilization, cut-off from the rest of the world by mountains. But as providence would have it, an epidemic diseasepurged the entire population in to hereditary blindness. Generations passed, and a new way of life evolved to cope with this challenge posed by material nature. Life went on without an event until a traveler lost his way in to this 'Kingdom of the blind'.
From amusement to amazement to sympathy - the traveler and the residents were swept by the same sequence of emotions. The traveler was amused at the sight of a completely blind civilization, then amazed at the evolved lifestyle before being submerged in sympathy- these people were missing so much of the variety of life! The residents were equally amused at the
arrival of an alien who 'felt' exactly like them. They were amazed when he spoke of the world beyond the valley. But when he spoke of things like 'seeing', they were sympathetic and considered the man crazy. 'Vision' had become a concept of the fairy tales, a mythological phenomenon!
Just as 'vision' was a mythology in the valley, many scriptural concepts seem to be mythological to the people of this world- beings with supernatural features and powers, ages wherein people had extraordinarily long durations of life, lands of talking animals etc. They find these subject matters difficult to understand. The Mahäbhärata therefore says,
acintyäù khalu ye bhävä na täàs tarkeëa yojayet. (Mahäbhärata, Bhéñma-parva 5.22) 'How can that which is beyond the imagination or sensory speculation of mundane creatures be approached simply by logic?'
Our logic often fails when we apply it to areas we have no experience in. For example, when a student of Newtonian mechanics tries to solve a problem in the sub-atomic domain, which consists of very small particles, he will find his logic failing repeatedly. Newtonian mechanics can deal only with big objects, whereas one needs Quantum mechanics to deal with subatomic
particles. But he gains faith in the validity of the latter when formulae of quantum mechanics are applied to big objects; the results match with that obtained using Newtonian mechanics.
Similarly we can gain faith in the scriptures when they deal with subject matters within our experience and then on the basis of that faith, we can 'see the invisible'. The Vedas, which were compiled five thousand years ago, provide us with information's which are relatively recent scientific discoveries- Description of the development of the human embryo within the womb, Earth consists of seven continents, Earth is round in shape, fire bacteria etc.
Besides, the Vedas even deals with the dynamics of our life within this world- eating habits, working habits, living habits, work environment etc. One can practically experience a more peaceful and happier life when these principles are taken in to consideration. Therefore unless one takes steps to understand the subject matter of the scriptures by practical application,
one misses so much of the 'variety of life' due to spiritual blindness.
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
Management Lesson
[Lesson - Imported]
One fine day, a bus driver went to the bus garage, started his bus, and drove off along the route. No problems for the first few stops - a few people got on, a few got off, and things went generally well.
At the next stop, however, a big hulk of a guy got on. Six feet eight, built like a wrestler, arms hanging down to the ground. He glared at the driver and said, "Big John doesn't pay!" and sat down at the back.
Did I mention that the driver was five feet three, thin, and basically weak?
Well, he was.
Naturally, he didn't argue with Big John, but he wasn't happy about it. The next day the same thing happened - Big John got on again, made a show of refusing to pay, and sat down. And the next day, and the next.
This grated on the bus driver, who started losing sleep over the way Big John was taking advantage of him. Finally he could stand it no longer. He signed up for body building courses, karate, judo, and all that good stuff.
By the end of the summer, he had become quite strong; what's more, he felt really good about himself. So on the next Monday, when Big John once again got on the bus and said, "Big John doesn't pay!"
The driver stood up, glared back at the passenger, and screamed, "And why not?"
With a surprised look on his face, Big John replied, "Big John has a bus pass."
Management Lesson:
"Be sure there is a problem in the first place before working hard to solve one."
One fine day, a bus driver went to the bus garage, started his bus, and drove off along the route. No problems for the first few stops - a few people got on, a few got off, and things went generally well.
At the next stop, however, a big hulk of a guy got on. Six feet eight, built like a wrestler, arms hanging down to the ground. He glared at the driver and said, "Big John doesn't pay!" and sat down at the back.
Did I mention that the driver was five feet three, thin, and basically weak?
Well, he was.
Naturally, he didn't argue with Big John, but he wasn't happy about it. The next day the same thing happened - Big John got on again, made a show of refusing to pay, and sat down. And the next day, and the next.
This grated on the bus driver, who started losing sleep over the way Big John was taking advantage of him. Finally he could stand it no longer. He signed up for body building courses, karate, judo, and all that good stuff.
By the end of the summer, he had become quite strong; what's more, he felt really good about himself. So on the next Monday, when Big John once again got on the bus and said, "Big John doesn't pay!"
The driver stood up, glared back at the passenger, and screamed, "And why not?"
With a surprised look on his face, Big John replied, "Big John has a bus pass."
Management Lesson:
"Be sure there is a problem in the first place before working hard to solve one."
Monday, June 14, 2010
Join 99 club
[Story-Imported]
Once upon a time, there lived a King who, despite his luxurious lifestyle, was neither happy nor content.
One day, the King came upon a servant who was singing happily while he worked. This fascinated the King; why was he, the Supreme Ruler of the Land, unhappy and gloomy, while a lowly servant had so much joy. The King asked the servant, "Why are you so happy?"
The man replied, "Your Majesty, I am nothing but a servant, but my family and I don't need too much - just a roof over our heads and warm food to fill our tummies."
The king was not satisfied with that reply. Later in the day, he sought the advice of his most trusted advisor. After hearing the King's woes and the servant's story, the advisor said, "Your Majesty, I believe that the servant has not been made part of The 99 Club."
"The 99 Club? And what exactly is that?" the King inquired.
The advisor replied, "Your Majesty, to truly know what The 99 Club is, place 99 Gold coins in a bag and leave it at this servant's doorstep."
When the servant saw the bag, he took it into his house. When he opened the bag, he let out a great shout of joy...so many gold coins!
He began to count them. After several counts, he was at last convinced that there were 99 coins. He wondered, "What could've happened to that last gold
coin? Surely, no one would leave 99 coins!" He looked everywhere he could, but that final coin was elusive. Finally, exhausted, he decided that he was going to have to work harder than ever to earn that gold coin and complete
his collection.
From that day, the servant's life was changed. He was overworked, horribly grumpy, and castigated his family for not helping him make that 100th goldcoin. He stopped singing while he worked.
Witnessing this drastic transformation, the King was puzzled. When he sought his advisor's help, the advisor said, "Your Majesty, the servant has now officially joined The 99 Club."
He continued, "The 99 Club is a name given to those people who have enough to be happy but are never content, because they're always yearning and striving for that extra 1 telling to themselves: "Let me get that one final thing and then I will be happy for life."
We can be happy, even with very little in our lives, but the minute we're given something bigger and better, we want even more! We lose our sleep, our happiness, we hurt the people around us; all these as a price for our growing needs and desires.
That's what joining The 99 Club is all about!!
Once upon a time, there lived a King who, despite his luxurious lifestyle, was neither happy nor content.
One day, the King came upon a servant who was singing happily while he worked. This fascinated the King; why was he, the Supreme Ruler of the Land, unhappy and gloomy, while a lowly servant had so much joy. The King asked the servant, "Why are you so happy?"
The man replied, "Your Majesty, I am nothing but a servant, but my family and I don't need too much - just a roof over our heads and warm food to fill our tummies."
The king was not satisfied with that reply. Later in the day, he sought the advice of his most trusted advisor. After hearing the King's woes and the servant's story, the advisor said, "Your Majesty, I believe that the servant has not been made part of The 99 Club."
"The 99 Club? And what exactly is that?" the King inquired.
The advisor replied, "Your Majesty, to truly know what The 99 Club is, place 99 Gold coins in a bag and leave it at this servant's doorstep."
When the servant saw the bag, he took it into his house. When he opened the bag, he let out a great shout of joy...so many gold coins!
He began to count them. After several counts, he was at last convinced that there were 99 coins. He wondered, "What could've happened to that last gold
coin? Surely, no one would leave 99 coins!" He looked everywhere he could, but that final coin was elusive. Finally, exhausted, he decided that he was going to have to work harder than ever to earn that gold coin and complete
his collection.
From that day, the servant's life was changed. He was overworked, horribly grumpy, and castigated his family for not helping him make that 100th goldcoin. He stopped singing while he worked.
Witnessing this drastic transformation, the King was puzzled. When he sought his advisor's help, the advisor said, "Your Majesty, the servant has now officially joined The 99 Club."
He continued, "The 99 Club is a name given to those people who have enough to be happy but are never content, because they're always yearning and striving for that extra 1 telling to themselves: "Let me get that one final thing and then I will be happy for life."
We can be happy, even with very little in our lives, but the minute we're given something bigger and better, we want even more! We lose our sleep, our happiness, we hurt the people around us; all these as a price for our growing needs and desires.
That's what joining The 99 Club is all about!!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
