EVERYDAY LESSON

Words of wisdom are afloat all around us. Each person has a favourite quote, sometimes there own, often someone else's wisdom.

If followed, they help in making life simpler. My father always said, "The family that eats together, stays together." We always followed that rule. No one had the freedom to say that they were not hungry and would eat later. The choice that was given to us was, that one could eat as much as was needed. However, food would be laid on time and all were to come and eat. It was a good system as, it was convenient for the person who had made the food, and also the person who would pick up afterwards. The servants could also finish their work at one go. There was no need for heating, reheating and waiting. He always said in a sing song way, "On the table at 8 o' clock for breakfast. On the table at 8 o' clock for dinner." People were out at lunch time in school or work or whatever, so there was no rule for lunch. The routine was such that each one of us would be home on time and eat together. It was good discussion and bonding time for the family.

Another teaching of his was that we should never tell a lie. He insisted that we should never lie even jocularly. We followed this teaching.

My mother used to tell us to chew our food properly. She as a child had been told to chew every bite at least 32 times. I know, it sounds far fetched, but think about it. If one chews so many times, the feeling of satisfaction will set in faster. One would eat less. The feeling of wanting to keep on eating would not be there. In the end, it would result in a trimmer and healthier person. We normally keep on eating without the need to eat a bit more and yet more....

TNN my husband used to tell me never to threaten the children with threats which I would not be able to carry out. Also never make promises that were not possible to fulfil. I saw a lot of wisdom in that. I followed the dictum and it has stood me in good stead.

When we got a dog, when we were trying to train him, Ujjwal my brother said to me, never beat him, only threaten him with the rolled newspaper. Because if you beat him, he will know the extent of distress it can cause, and then he will not be scared. It is only the unknown of which one can be scared of.

There is so much of wisdom and good lessons given to us in simple everyday practices. Honesty, togetherness, compassion, concern and care for each other is a virtue that can only lead to happiness and peace. Small steps taken by each family leads to improvement in the culture of the society which one inhabits.

We are so quick to be shocked by behaviour of all and sundry in society. If we try at our small unit level of home to instil proper discipline, teach respect for each other and also ensure to treat everyone equally, there would be a lot less injustice in society as a whole. Our own bias, our treatment of servants, our behaviour with people of lesser standing in society all are seen and copied by our family members. Our own behaviour and attitude has to be exemplary, only then can we point a finger at others for their shortcomings.

HUMAN BEINGS - THE CREATORS

This morning sitting at the Streatham Rookery, looking out at the vast expanse of greenery spread out in front of me, I was reflecting on the beauty of nature. Then it struck me that it wasn't nature that was beautiful. It was the way the garden, the trees, the forested areas were laid out, which made the impact of the layout, so very attractive. The view was green - a huge variety of green. The grass, the trees and hedges, and a whole vista of designed layout added to the attraction.

We take things so much for granted, that often it does not strike us that nothing is really as simple as it looks. We marvel at the beauty of nature. We are thankful for the bounty of nature. However, it is actually the work, designing, pruning, planning done by a human being which actually makes most natural objects develop into marvels, or an object of beauty and grandeur.

An uncut diamond becomes a gem and is able to shine in its total glory only after it is cut. Gold and silver have to be mined and turned into objects to shine and be useful. Marble is cut and polished and made into Taj Mahal. A forest left to grow on its own, is not as attractive as a properly laid out garden. A rose also is pruned, a lot of grafting is done to get various colours and shades of the flowers. Almost all natural flowers are developed and pruned to get the best blossoms. A variety of grass is cultivated to obtain rice-the staple diet of almost the entire population of the world. Human beings domesticate and use a number of animals for making their own lives more comfortable. The horse, cow, buffalo, bullock, dog, donkey, camel are a few animals which come to my mind readily and immediately. Human beings use various products available naturally to improve their own life and living conditions. The minerals, gases, oil, available under the surface of the earth and in the sea are extensively used as fuel. The vegetables, fruits, roots, nuts, grains available abundantly are used for food. There is more value added to all of these, with a few exceptions, which provide us with all the nutrients, and substance to enable us to live.

The importance of the human hand, the ingenuity of the human mind, is seldom given its due recognition. How often have we thanked God for all that we have received? The bounty of nature given to us by- again - God-Another man made creation!!! Has a thought been given to this?

Is it really possible for one - "something"..or "someone" to manage, plan, observe, punish and reward each and every person living on this earth? All the organisations, offices, factories, need people to work, supervisors, managers, directors, investors, share holders, controllers to actually make the organisation work, succeed and become profitable ventures. In every household there is usually one person who manages the house, makes sure that each person gets enough food to eat . That person nurtures, takes care, and makes sure that the family stays together, healthy and happy.That person usually is called "mother", and in some cases "father". In a family this management becomes possible as the number of members is small. A government also requires a system of administration to govern. How then is it possible for one omnipresent to control the lives of crores of living entities? It is not only humans whose lives are controlled - it is also all the different species of birds, bees, animals and every living thing who is supposed to be his subject. Amazing-isn't it??

We are always very ready with our gratitude. Our success is due to the grace of God. A calamity is the will of God. A person who succeeds in adverse circumstances had it in his destiny. A failure in spite of best efforts "of others" is suffering due to the effects of the sins of a past life. There is a never ending list of things which are attributable to this man made creation.

Recently I read that Rupees 23 crores were found in the house of a VHP( Vishwa Hindu Parishad) person. How does a person acquire that much of money, which he keeps in his house as bundles of notes? He belongs to a religious group, steeped in politics. They play with the sentiments of simple people. God fearing people, who do not think. People who like sheep blindly follow their leaders. It is their hard earned money, which they give to religious foundations in some guise of charity or for building temples or carrying out some religious rituals. Some people wonder at the way all this ill begotten wealth is misused. People wonder if there is no fear of God, in the minds of those who collect this money and then use it for their selfish ends? I am surprised at the questioning multitude. Is it not very obvious that these people who ask in the name of God, are actually those who know that there is no such thing as a God, who is watching and can actually punish. The only sad part is that they have no morals. They are too materialistic. They do not think about right and wrong. They are happy to be immensely practical and immoral. Stealing, misguiding and misusing ill begotten wealth from innocent people does not hurt them. Yet, most people still venerate godmen and religious leaders.

Let us sometimes stop to think of our own actions. Our thankfulness to the bounty of and grace of God. Let us ponder over the thought whether there can be a superior being who can control, direct and run the lives of each and every being on this earth. We meditate, pray, fast, follow a lot of rituals for fulfilment of certain desires. To achieve our goals, we seek the favour of the entity that we call God. Do we simply perform all this and sleep tight? No, we do not sleep and allow the God to fulfil our desire. We work hard to achieve our goal. We plan, strive, work to succeed. Then why do we not thank our own selves for our hard work? Why can we not accept that we succeeded as we worked for it. Why do we want to share that achievement with another? When we pray, are we not actually working on our innermost strength of our own self? Are we not awakening our own conscious? Our own wisdom and knowledge that we have acquired over a number of years? We awaken our own self and yet give the credit to someone else.

Shall we try to reason sometime? Try to be rational and practical. At least raise a doubt in our mind?!?!