NO. 18 SPIRITUALITY AND EVOLUTION OF AN INDIVIDUAL
While in service you should impress your master with your hard work so much so that he starts depending upon you for successful completion of tasks. Then you will emerge stronger. Later, if you get an offer from some other organization and they offer a better salary package then you take an Appointment letter from them. Now you have two options. First, you can join the new organization and second, you can take the Appointment Letter to your present employer and request him for a raise all the while telling him that you hate to leave the present organization and wish to continue working under him. If the owner is impressed by your working, he will look at the Appointment Letter and give you a raise accordingly. You can then work in the job of your choice. One of my friends decided to work in the share market when he chose to trade. He started selling and buying shares every day. Somebody had told him that lakhs can be earned in this way. I had counseled him to not enter into this trade because he had no experience of how it works and one bad decision could cost him double of what he would manage to earn. Those who trade daily in the share market can never earn well in life. I can confidently claim that not one person would have profited in this manner. Only those who purchase shares and hold on to them for a long time make profit in the share market. This is a sort of official gambling. Because the government earns millions in tax every year from this sector, so it gives importance to share market. In life intellect and opportunism always clash with each other. It seems that time and destinies have come to a standstill. Man loses sight of his goals, removes himself from ground realities and gets lost in an imaginary world thereby losing happiness and joy. Intelligence is boundless like the sky- we know of no beginning and no ending but the start and the end of our desires are both in our hands. Opportunism can never be allowed to dominate our minds because it only gives respite for a few moments. Instead wisdom and alertness make our whole life productive and happy. They remain with us throughout our lifetime. Wisdom leads to honesty and truthfulness of heart. Both Laxmi and Saraswati bless an honest and pure soul. Thus it is clear that we should work with alertness and discernment and disregard opportunism. This is the true meaning of life. In life, brain is the seat of wisdom, mind begets contemplation and correct direction and heart breeds the principles to abide by. It is not important that how many years we have lived, what we have achieved during those years is important. If we think about it then we have probably lived for only about 10% of our lifetime. The remaining 90% does not count because during that time we have made negligible contribution towards self and society. This means that we have a lot to achieve in a very short time. Thus we must make good use of every moment to transform our life. Once during night time, I was deep in thought that it is our duty to live a life full of good deeds and high morals. Our religious beliefs make such thoughts possible in us and to convert such thoughts to deeds is karma. Positivity flows through our life only when there is a perfect balance between religion, actions and duties. This is refined excellence which drives away negativity. The next question to arise is Who am I? Am I consciousness or a reflection of an unconscious mind? Is karma an outcome of religion or is it the karma that brings contentment in life? Religion is a concept and to follow it in mind and spirit is the righteous path. This guides our karma towards nirvana. People fight over religion. On earth many battles have been fought over religion but no one gives enough thought to karma. In such conditions both religion and karma laugh at man. Religion is eternal truth which can never be defeated. If one follows both religion and karma properly they become the basis of happiness, joy and peace in life. In India there is a tradition of lighting a lamp on any auspicious occasion. When a wick, dipped in oil is lit in an earthen lamp it spreads light all around and drives away darkness. The wick burns till there is oil in the lamp and once the oil gets exhausted the flame dies down. Human life can be compared to a similar lamp. We live like a lamp after our birth. The education we receive and our values are like the oil put in the lamp. Our deeds are like the wick which is controlled by the oil i.e. our education and values and burns for the welfare of the society. This drives the darkness away from our life. When the oil gets exhausted or the wick gets totally burnt out, the lamp too becomes useless. In the same way this body too stops functioning and our life reaches its end. This is a continuous and an on-going process. One day man will leave this body behind and enter into oblivion with his religious beliefs and his karma. Both a lamp and a human live similar lives and it is expected that one should live a life which, like a lamp spreads light in society and nation. In present times even parents think that it is their bounden duty that after giving birth to their child, they should feed him well, provide him good education, teach him how to earn money for livelihood and make him self- reliant. They think that it is their duty and they religiously pursue it. This is not correct and if it were so, then how would we be different from animals? We are born human for a greater purpose which is attainment of spiritual knowledge. Parents should not consider their duty done in only teaching their children about the material world instead they should guide them towards spiritual living also. We have taken birth as human beings by the grace of the Almighty and while living a religious life ourselves, we should, right from our children’s childhood, start infusing spiritual and moral values in them. Lack of spiritual knowledge and moral values is the main reason behind the breaking family ties and prevailing evils in the society. If right from their childhood, children are given knowledge about the material and the spiritual worlds simultaneously then they will always follow the path defined by their culture, traditions and values.
NO. 19 WARRIORS - A DROP BECAME AN OCEAN
1. Prem Dubey - The Chairman of Jabalpur Chamber of Commerce, Mr. Prem Dubey, found the topic very important and relevant. Choosing any one out of job, business or industry is like redefining your life. Any young person, a graduate or a post-graduate becomes mature enough after getting his degree that he knows what he wants to do in life. He is able to make his own decisions. Even then he should seek the advice of his parents, teachers and well- wishers. While seeking such counsel he should remain confident about his choice and follow what his heart says. That is why it is said that listen to all but do what your heart says. Just in case something goes wrong he will only regret throughout his life. Be it a job, an industry or a business, along with earning money we also want to build a status for ourselves in the society. Even our parents wish that their children reach a respectful position in life and earn an honest living. I personally believe that subjects based on entrepreneurship should be taught at college level so that youngsters start thinking along the lines of becoming self reliant and enterprising. In fact I even advise the people in jobs that they should give up working for others, start a small business of their own and live life at their terms. Our Chamber of Commerce has detailed information of about 3500 small, medium and large scale industries available with it. This can be made use of by the young generation. I pray for a bright future for all youngsters and assure them that if ever they feel the need of an experienced counsel, my services are always available. For any detailed information they can contact at the following website – http://365days365businessideas.blogspot. com/?m=1
2. Vivek Agnihotri - Vivek Agnihotri has been working as a Programme Manager in the Communication and Technology Department, Government of America, in America for past 25 years. After completing his M.Sc. in Physics from Jabalpur he did his M.S. in Computer Science in America. He says that by the time a young person completes his post graduation he becomes mature enough that he can decide whether he wishes to take up a job or be self-employed. He believes that the corporate sector today brings you face to face with a very vast and interesting world because globalization and modern technology have made multitude of job options available. After completing education, it is very necessary to learn how to operate in a competitive environment of any good firm. Today many big firms not only provide you total freedom to be innovative and creative but give you a good salary and allowances too. With that you can have a bright future. Investing in any industry or business does not guarantee profits or losses. In my personal opinion, analysis of job and business is as follows – Analysis of advantages and disadvantages of a job.
Advantages of a job.
Gaining industry knowledge & exposure on a firm’s expense. Exposure to work with industry expert and experienced teams. Experience of proven policies and strategies. Extra benefits like medical, bonus etc. Higher career visibility and lesser unknowns. Flexibility in choosing or changing job.
Challenges / Disadvantages
Limited financial potential. Limited exposure. As in a corporation you are usually a part of a functional area or unit. Usually a fixed monotonous routine. Like 8am to 5pm etc. Limited space for innovation & creativity as immediate tasks and goals most important. Management and supervisors are in control and set the ground rules. Individual recognition is difficult in large teams.
Analysis of advantages and disadvantages of business -
Advantages of a business -
You create your own world. Be your own boss. High financial rewards. You make money for yourself and not for others. No one can fire you. You work as per your ground rules. Higher satisfaction as you work for your own dream and passion. Exposure to all aspect of a business.
Challenges / Disadvantages-
High risk/high reward endeavour. Business failure can result in loss of investments. Initial investments or loans can put extra pressure or burden. Rewards may come after long periods. It can take years and years sometimes to establish a successful business. 24x7 engagements. You might end up working really long hours. Complete responsibility of your product or service opens a door for lawsuits etc.
Thus, I have given a comparative analysis of job and business in the above two tables. Now you can decide which, job or business is better for you. Whatever you do in life, there will be challenges which you will have to face with patience and courage.
3. Sameer Lal (Canada) - Sameer Lal was working as a Chartered Accountant in Jabalpur (India) and is now employed in a high post in Technical and Risk Management in a bank. He is a well read author besides being a poet and a satirist. He says that adolescence is the time when our lives get a direction and during this time one should read motivational books, biographies of successful people, living styles of those who did well in life, how they became so successful etc. If you keep doing honest work with dedication you will definitely succeed. In order to choose between job, industry or business, you must focus upon a target and making a road map based on your liking and experiences of learned people start walking on it. Life without a goal is always lost and shattered. You must always keep your aim high and however small may be the steps you take; they should lead you towards that goal only. Whatever you do in life, do it with total dedication, seriousness and alertness. Without hard work no one succeeds. Your success story can only be written on your good intentions, morality, total honesty and commitment. Wherever you are, whether in your own country or elsewhere – the road to success is the same. May be, where business is concerned, geographical area is more, but success is attained in the same way. It could happen that success knocks late at your door but your efforts should continue relentlessly. Only hard work begets good fortune. I have experience of working in a job and being self – employed, both in India and outside and based on my experiences I would like to advise all young boys and girls that whatever be the stage of life and however old they might be, they should keep the learner in them always alive. They should always keep learning some new thing or the other. Change is the rule of life and in today’s changing scenario it is best to walk with the advancing technology. We will have to adapt with the changing times. I believe that the day you stop questioning and learning you close the doors to success with your own hands.
4. Smt. Rashmi Dhope - Shrimati Rashmi Dhope runs computer training institutes in Montreal and Toronto in Canada where she imparts training in AutoCAD and related soft-wares to engineers and architects. She says that even today well educated youngsters find themselves at a dilemma while choosing careers. There is a great deal of confusion in their minds between their expectations and aspirations. A youngster stands at the cross-roads, struggling to make the right choice of a career which would give him a secure future. I have seen that boys and girls are under a pressure of pursuing the career their parents have chosen for them. We give very little thought to capabilities, options and life’s aims. Our society is result orientedand associates success with monetary gains, fame and status. We fail to contemplate about joy, contentment and peace of mind. We fail to talk about these things with our children instead only insist upon them studying to get higher grades. This is the point where our culture differs from the western culture. During my visit to the different countries of the world, I have seen the education there is related to the facts of life and is relevant in their day to day life whereas we focus more on theoretical and academic knowledge. Self reliance is taught very early in the western nations and by the time the child comes to 18 years of age he is ready to earn on his own and has been trained for gaining higher education on his own expenses. In India parents provide everything on a silver platter to their children for a long period of time and take pride in this fact. They spend their entire life’s saving in their daughter’s wedding. They do not train their children to face the challenges of life, whether financial, emotional or any other. According to me, parents should play a very important role of identifying the talents and capabilities of their children while they are growing up and then guide them along the right path. It is also very important to determine the kind of life you want to lead. We all are in search of the joy of being able to identify the goals and standards important in life. Today I see many people in search of jobs in foreign countries and once they find one, they get so influenced by the flashy lifestyle there that they stop thinking about coming back to their own country. If you are an engineer or a doctor then you can get a satisfactory job in your own country too. You can earn well enough and live a comfortable life. In western countries ability, skill and expertise are highly rated and you are admired for these qualities. In order to generate strong patriotic and nationalist feelings in our youngsters it is very necessary to teach them these in their curriculum. Today, efforts should be made to build a positive approach towards overcoming all obstacles with strong determination and hard work. Often we keep working without any goal in mind and it is like trying to find a door in the dark. We should learn from our mistakes and remodel our ways of thinking. We should make conscious efforts to turn our defeats into victories only then will we succeed in life and lead a life enriched in happiness and spirituality because we have been able to walk the right path.
