Madness of Human Malady

It is incredible to imagine what the human beings are really capable of! It was only the human race which was able to unravel many of the mysteries of the universe, and life on earth; it was the human mind which is capable of travelling back in time and space, and at the same time travel to the distant future and predict what is in store for them. Unfortunately no other animal had been given that privilege to re-create the earth we had been handed over; and it is hard to say if we have made the world better or worse! Our children would be in a much better place to answer such probing question.

At the table during dinner, our conversation came back and forth to what the human beings are capable of! They would do any thing crazy in order to prove to the world that they mattered, and what they were convinced of was God's word! We recalled to mind the air craft pilot who took the US plane to blow the Twin Towers! It was not merely a matter of "guts" to even blow one's own self, which can never be refitted, but to be convinced that they were doing something good and worthwhile! Many fanatics may name them martyrs, but were they really so? Especially when we see hundreds of people murdered due to the plot hatched and executed by them!

Or think of the 25/11 attack on Mumbai! I simply admired the amount of work that had gone behind such a masterplan! No ordinary people would be capable of planning and executing such a complicated plot! Great minds were involved in such an attack, and the very fact that these people who executed the plot for the most part went "missing" during the time of the blow, was ample proof that there could not have been anything left for chance! That really is proof of human ingenuity, and what they are capable of achieving. But unfortunately, much of the human positive energy is wasted!

If only all the human energy which is wasted with unhealthy practices and destructive schemes and plots, is preserved to do good to humanity and to the universe, there would not be so much of disparity, inequality and poverty in the world! Just imagine how much money, time, energy and resources are wasted by corporate houses, not so much to keep them on the top, but to keep the competitors down. Millions of rupees/dollors are wasted in maligning the competitors, suing them with cases which are next to non-sense, just to disrupt the production of things which may put the other corporate house in jeapardy.

The amount of money spent on advertisement is targeted not so much to introduce new products and goods, but to show how their product is better than the rest; how their goods are the best in the world! There is no question of comparative degree here, but only the superlative ones. Will it be possible for humanity to ever realize the futility of investing so much of energy, time, and resources in things which can only harm humanity, and shorten the life on earth! Will good sense ever prevail on earth, and rival nations, groups and sects ever be able to put aside the differences and seek similarities, which alone can bring respite to the otherwise fast disappearing species on earth, the human race!

Never-Loser!

I don't much believe when people say that healthy competition can bring the best out of people! I don't really think any competition can be healthy, because of the simple fact that human beings cannot easily tolerate others when it comes to a race. When you announce a wonderful prize, even the lame would think of joining the race, and if people want to win by all means, then they will not bother about the means they choose to achieve their goal. It might become a matter of life and death, and where is the scope for friendly competition, and getting the best out of people. In fact, competition may be the occasion when not only the best, but the worst may also surface.

It always happens on the road. When I am on the road on a motorbike, and see a stranger speeding and passing by me, I am hurt, and I turn the gear spontaneously with the hope of throwing this stranger behind me; there is a silent competition, and I cannot let the stranger ride his bike faster than me. Unconsciously I feel I am a loser in comparison to this stranger, who is a completely new person and whom I will never meet in life! But on the road, you cannot talk about healthy competition. If someone is going to over take me in speed, it is shame on me, and I have to show that person I can ride the bike faster than him. The joke is that that person may not even be aware that I felt threatened and wanted to over take him!

The fact is, it happens all around us. Not only on the road. When I go for a walk in the evening at the nearby park, I often would like to make sure that no one overtakes me, that I am faster than all the others. When there is a smart looking youngster over takes me, I feel terrible. I chase my feet, at times even putting undue pressure on the poor legs. Wherever and whenever there is a competition, I would like be the winner, whether I am qualified to even take part in it. There is an in-built mechanism in me to win all the time, irrespective of the field of specialization or the occasion. Does the notion of healthy competition ever occur to me? I really don't remember that happening in real life situation.

But I cannot allow myself to enter into uninvited competition in all the places at all time; that would only lead me crazy. I cannot stop getting into the road, lest someone overtakes me; nor could I stop going for my customary evening walk. I have felt a way of handling this situation and it is quite simple. Before I get into my motorbike, I tell myself that I am not the best rider on earth, and instead of entering into an uninvited ad hoc competition, I would acknowledge that I am not going to compete with anyone, not even with myself. I don't really care if someone wants to show off that he/she can rider better than me, faster than me! It really does not matter to me. If I really mean these words, then there are possibilities that I may return home sane and safe.

There is a secret way how I can always win in a competition - it is for me to determine if I win or lose. The magic mantra is this : I deliberately and consciously decide to be out of competition. I am not going to prove to anyone (least of all to myself) that I am better than all the rest. I am aware of what I am, and am satisfied with my performance in the past and in the present. I am happy with my credentials, and need no more, especially from the once-in-a-life-time strangers. This sort of self-talk can take me a long way in reaching the full potentiality I am truly capable of.

Karmanye vadi karaste…

It was wonderful listening to a leader who wields power next only to the Roman Pontiff, the Superior General of the Society of Jesus, Father Adolfo Nicolas, who has spent a large part of his active years in Japan as missionary and professor of theology, talk about the Japanese ways and beliefs. At one point of his discussion about common apostolic discernment here in Monto Cocco retreat house off Rome, he said that one of the biggest diseases plaguing the universe today is the search for success. Unfortunately success has become the key word in all spheres of life today, and one can never think of failure, and that may mean the death-knell of not only one’s career, but also one’s whole life. No one wants to face failure, not even the children, who are taught to aspire higher and higher in the success ladder. A year ago we had a class three student, aged 8 years, in one of our prestigious schools, who apparently committed suicide. It was shocking news to all of us, for what would a child of eight years know about committing suicide, and he was not afraid of failure, because he was a brilliant student. His problem was that he could not score 25 out of 25, but only score 21, and was afraid that his mother would beat him for not scoring higher, and so ended his life. Another version tells that the mother beat the boy to death, and complained to the police as if the boy had committed suicide.

But that is the reality we are dealing with today. The lowest rung of the ladder is expected to be success, and one is to climb higher and higher. It does not matter if one is happy or not; that is immaterial. It is believed that more and more of success would automatically bring in happier life, and to a large extent success is put in direct proportion to happiness, though in reality it does not happen that way. It is a way of enticing humanity in showing the way of success as leading to guaranteed happiness, so that people are attracted to aspire towards success. Granted that success in life is accompanied by sweat and blood in most cases, but one does not mind hardships in life, provided with success in life, happiness is awarded or rewarded. The present competitive world not only entices, but also opens up gateways to achieve success in life, of course for a heavy price. At the expense of foregoing one’s personal needs and necessities, curbing social ties, even breaking one’s closest ties with families and siblings. The modern day gurus advocate all means in order to succeed in life.

If half of the fraternity in the commercial world were to know that success does not guarantee happiness in life, they may think twice before jumping into the success-band wagon. Fortunately by now half of humanity has knows that what truly matters in life is happiness, and not necessarily success, but they are yet to know the fact that success does not guarantee happiness. Those who make use of the ignorance of the whole lot of people, have even devised methods of making shortcuts to success; there are crash courses to achieve success at a very short period – you may have to dole out a lot of money, may even forego one’s honor and prestige, should even be prepared to lose all shame and all the virtues we had been taught from the time of childhood. It is a competitive world we are entering into, where what matters is the personal gain, even slaying one’s kith and kin. But that is the business ethics today, the unwritten law of success taught in all management schools, though not in open, but in close circles.

Three of the major religions of the world – Christianity, Hinduism and Buddhism have taught one truth that the modern generation will not buy today : do your duty and leave the fruits to me. But perhaps it was articulated in the most emphatic way in the Bhagavad Gita, when Lord Krishna advices his disciple Arjuna to do his duty and not to think about the fruits. What happens if the Lord wants me to be a failure in my work? My mind reacts immediately and retorts, but how can the Lord want me to be a failure? I may have to remember that what is success in the eyes of the world, may truly be failure to the Lord, and what is failure in His/Her eyes may be in fact success. If the fruits of a particular action is success or failure is not for me to determine, but for the Lord. If only I am prepared to embrace even failure, and better still not to be bothered about the fruits of my labor, then I can be a happy person; because one can be happy even one’s failure, when one knows that one had done one’s best, and was satisfied by the sincere efforts made. But the algebra of happiness truly lies in our mental disposition, and not in the objective fruit it yields.

Is it possible for me to forego the desire to be successful? Or let me put the question reverse: will I be prepared to embrace failure? Granted that sometimes failure is thrust upon me, and I may not find an alternative to it; but if I am given an option to choose success or failure, will I have the courage and strength to choose deliberately and voluntarily failure? Today I pause for a while, and go through the different actions of mine from the early morning; I will also remember the kind of fruit I expect and anticipate. Let me take each of the actions and consider their fruits in negative, namely all my efforts ending up in failure. Let me feel deep within what would be the kind of feeling I would experience deep within. If I am able to rise above success and failure, then I would surely rise above happiness and sadness, and such are the persons, whom Lord Krishna calls in the Bhagavad Gita, dear to him (9:16-20). Here is an easy way then, to become close to the Lord, and enter into true happiness, and here it is guaranteed by the Lord himself, and we have nothing to worry or lose. (Rome)