Homebound...

10th Sept 09

Homebound… few hours away from amchi Mumbai, as I wait for boarding…
A local friend/colleague mentioned he just finished a book, Gandhiji’s autobiography. He comes across as one of the few who has read a lot on Bapu and appreciates/respects and is inspired by the teachings and life of Gandhiji. I was wondering how many of our own young Indians, both resident and non-resident, share that kind of respect and awe for him. I am reminded… ‘For generations to come…’ that seem to be already happening already !

Against this backdrop, it was great to hear President Obama’s response to a grade-9 student – given a choice, among all the greats who are alive/dead, the President would opt for a dinner with Gandhiji. The influence of the non-violent movement on their own civil rights movement was highlighted. If the most powerful man on earth is inspired by Gandhiji, world has hope…surely…

Always aim at complete harmony of thought and word and deed. Always aim at purifying your thoughts and everything will be well - Mahatma Gandhi
Very recently, there was another report how youngsters would go to any extend to get a dinner meeting with a top-notch CEO. But the Chinese are going a step further. The young Chinese students, yet to enter the corporate world, are already going for plastic-surgery to improve their marketability ! They don’t want to lose out in a close race… We were complaining about excess focus on grooming, metro-sexual , et al. While the world is already going crazy to ‘look younger’, these developments are quite surprising !

In the final analysis, all aspire for success and peace. Bapu’s advise on the spiritual peace is: Always aim at complete harmony of thought and word and deed. Always aim at purifying your thoughts and everything will be well

Too lazy to continue…. Signing off for now ( will ‘post’ later though!) Next post will be from Amchi Mumbai!!!

TO BE CONTIUED

Vacation, at last...

Sept 11
It was great to land at Mumbai, though on Sept 11...( a day, few years ago, the world made a paradigm shift, for the worse!)
The trip was comfortable, no sign of any extra-security at Mumbai airport. Thanks to the projects to upgrade airports in India, finally things are moving in the rifht direction.

But only for the air-travelers, and not for the common man on the street, not yet!

Sad to observe the state of our road infrastructure. On a personal level, the western express highway, for last 9 years has failed to clear the bottlenecks. While few overhead bridges for pedestrians were a welcome sign, the traffic moves at snail's pace. The bridge at ToI, Malad may enter guiness books, for the sheer delay. And at what cost !!! Central and state govts have been unfair to Mumbai by failing to provide the transport infrastructure. In spite of the spirit of mumbaikar, these gaps add to loss in productivity.

It is election time... Once again time for politicians to make empty promises. Mumbaikar's life will go on as usual, with all its inherent struggles !

At 8 AM, the city was bustling with energy. Even after 9 years since making Mumbai my home, the spirit of mumbaikar continues to inspire me. Mumbai rocks...

Nobel Peace Prize for President Obama

The Committee definitely surprised all by conferring this prestigious prize on Prez Obama. The doubt people have 'was it too early? '

Going by his track record as President, perhaps it is too early. ``His extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and
cooperation between peoples,'' the Norwegian Nobel Committee said, citing his outreach to the Muslim world and attempts to curb nuclear proliferation. That is very fair.
He is one of the few real hopes among the contemperory world leaders...He could make a difference to our generation, and thus may be for our children.
He has inspired many people to dream big. You can not forget that big contribution...He will continue to inspire many underprivileged to work hard to join mainstream.
For us Indians, he may not be the most India-friendly president. But, his belief in Gandhian values shows his character and value-system.
Lastly, this will inspire him to look beyond mere American interests and work for the larger interests of humanity.

PS: He may have to talk to fellow Nobel peace winners, such as Dalai Lama. :) Also, just read a report,A Failure to spread wealth by Tony Allen-Mills on another laureate's efforts to 'improve' lives of the poorest through micro-finance

Jet Airways Strike

We were always proud of the brand Jet and the way they transformed flying in India. I have had the opportunity to interact with few seniors at their corporate office, while working in Mumbai ( Jet was one of my key accounts and one of my favourite). As I grew in the organisation, I reached the Platinum level of their frequent flier program. Even here, in gulf, while trainers would talk about the service quality at Ritz Carlton as an example, I always gave the example of Jet, even if the local listener(s) were not familiar with the brand.

I personally do not look for any travel option other than Jet, for my family & self. At times I have ended up paying a premium, but I could count on the professional service of Jet.

Sometime back, I was delighted to spot Mr Goyal at Mumbai intl airport to flag-off his inaugural flight to Gulf!

This episode is taking away all the goodwill and reputation they have built over the years...Going by the press reports, both sides are sticking to their unreasonable stand, at the cost of the passengers.

Thankfully, as I travel to India today, I am not booked on Jet. But after two days, I am...keeping fingers crossed ! This annual vacation could hinge on Jet flights sticking to their schedule, a factor I had always taken Jet for granted ( to be punctual!)

A reminder to all at Jet, from their website: Jet Airways launched its Yellow Rose campaign. People are like roses, and like the flower they require friendship, warmth and caring.

Life is a Game...

My son sent a sms checking if he could buy a computer-game... I was in the middle of something serious at office... and he was seeking permission after his shopping for clothes, a MJ CD, etc. I replied, 'LIFE IS A GAME, PLAY IT.... BIG!

He would have expected a prompt & simple, Yes or No...Usually I say 'Yes', unless it is a real unreasonable demand. It was more due to my frame of mind, that I responded so...I was not in favour of a 'Yes' and as always, reluctant to say 'No'

Part of my value system as a parent, minimise the number of 'NO' to the child. I am conscious to ensure he does not take advantage of it...

He did not give up, asked for the meaning of the phrase. How can anyone explain through SMS

how life is a game, that we have no choice but to play ( can't be mere spectator)
how critical it is to play it well,to the potential and the right/fair way... and
how to play BIG! A Sachin/Tiger/Federer in this game too...that is minimum benchmark.

Keep Playing!

Being Vegetarian

Saw a blog on Times of India, about the dilemma a bong-guy to find a vegetarian bride!! ( http://blogs.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/justso/entry/of-brides-and-vegetarians#comment-form)

The blog was a dissappointment. But some of the comments were interesting and more to the point. I am a converted veg, my wife & son are non-veg. Life, family/marital, is more than mere food-habits. When a die hard non veggie ( I used to eat four times a day, same as our pet dog!) opts for veggie for spiritual reasons, the whole perspective changes, which has to be experienced. Also, we overcome one of our weaknesses in life, food...at least to a great extend. Living in Gulf, it is difficult. More disgusting is when people at big brands (When asking for veg meal, employees at McDonalds/Pizza hut, etc0 looks at me as though I am from outer-space. couple of times I have reacted for their insensitivity, with little impact on them.

We are what we eat.
Our teeth, unlike that of animals, are not originally designed for eating meat.
We kill ( check out how Sushi appears on the dining table).
The impact on environment is tremendous....

Still, let me add, it is a personal choice and we should respect.

Thursday Thoughts, Spiritually

Someone asked, why spiritually is specifically added to my weekly (Thursday) posts, esp when I maintain everything is spiritual.


Everything is 'spiritual', but the fact is I (we!)am not always spiritual, at every moment. And that is the goal, for sure. We forget our true nature, which is of happiness/bliss or Sat-Chit-Anand. To be in that constant awareness is being truly spiritual...

One more Onam is behind us... Last year, I was in India, enjoying my vacation. Looking back, had posted this ( Happy Onam @ http://subublog.blogspot.com/2008/09/happy-onam.html). My feelings/greetings are no different this time either. The spirit of Onam just got more relevant today, compared to last year...
But this year, we lost two dear people ( one in family & other closer than family). Hence, as per custom 'no celebration'... So, I chose it to be more spiritual! Not only on the day of Thiru-Onam, but the 10 days before that. It was beautiful...

Festivals, as a child, was more of fun, food, new clothes and family get together to play with cousins and friends ( with no pressure from parents to 'study'!). Later on, it became religious. But it was Onam celebration at PSN I re-discovered the true spirit of Onam. Of course, my perspective of all festivals, of all religions and faiths, changed for ever, for better.

The reign of Mahabali was one when all were equal, there was no crime of any kind .... and all were happy. Today, when Mahabali visits his favourite kingdom, once a year on Onam-day, he would find it shocking! He would be tempted to call off his annual visits!!!

The Golden age, which each of wish, is within our reach. It starts with us, with ME....

Ethics & World of Finance at SSSU

Financial system, world-wide, is put to severe test.
When we look back, it dawns on us how we messed up the banking system and created this near-GD type situation.
We can attribute to several factors: failure regulatory agencies, over-trading, non-compliance to credit/risk norms... etc. But if we further analyse it, it boils down to individuals, Leaders and the members of the teams. It is leadership failure, no collective/individual responsibility.

Across all levels, we just failed to stick to the basics of banking and prudent norms. Short-term goals for organisations and individual-level (eg hefty bonus) were the drivers. Sadly, what goes up has to come down.. in such cases it comes down with a thud, not a smooth landing.

Not surprisingly, Islamic banking has been relatively insulated from the vagaries of this crisis. .The strong fundamentals of the concept and the general passion to implement same in letter & spirit, being the contributors to the success



In this backdrop, it is most appropriate the senior bankers in the country assemble at SSSU to deliberate on Ethics & World of Finance. The five human values (Satya, Dharma, Shanthi, Prema, Ahimsa) are the integral part of Sai Philosophy, including the educational institutions. 'Satyam Vada, Dharmam Chara' is the motto of the university.

Throughout the educational-journey, students are inculcated values such as
Money comes & goes, Morality comes & grows...
Education is for Life, not for Living...
Love all, Serve all/Help Ever, Hurt Never

SSSU is the right platform to deliberate on this.

This must have been an eye opener for the senior bankers too, having got the opportunity to 'reflect'.

Mumbaikar takes home the lowest, UBS Study

Acc to a study by UBS, Price & Earnings 2009, employees in Zurich & Geneva take home the highest net wages in the world, amchi Mumbai at the lowest ! This is based on the study which compares the income and purchasing power of employees in over 70 cities across the globe.

This may come as a surprise for the Mumbaikar. But, that is the reality!

But the study does not evaluate or measure the spirit of the citizens... on that front, Mumbai must be right on top...

Jaswant Singh's Book on Jinnah

Indian politics always throws up its own twists and turns, like a soap opera. The latest episode is sarrounding Jaswant Singh, his book on Jinnah, his expulsion from BJP and in the process a lot of proverbial washing of dirty linen in public

The book will sell a few thousand extra copies thanks to all the hue and cry. The author plans to travel to Pak to promote the book. The Indian/Pak diaspora itself can help the publishers generate a decent sales numbers.

We can not and should not deprive Jaswant Singh of his freedom of speech and expression. Let us be matured enough to look at the book purely from the final product. What is important is the quality of the work. How much of research has gone into it and does the book give references to the research-sources ?

(ICHR) Chairman S Sabyaschi Bhattacharya has said, " There is nothing novel in the book. Many authors and historians have already stated that Jinnah was not in favour of partition or creation of Pakistan,"

Unfortunately there is lot of bad-mouthing of our national leaders, Gandhiji, Nehru and Patel, apart from Jinnah. Again, let us not forget what they have done. They also may have committed mistakes. Also, we need take cognisance of the volatile situation at that point of time. Let us analyse so as to learn and move on. These events should generate the right debate so that the two nations mature as democracies, true to the dreams of their founding fathers.

Best sportsman

In his article, "IN THE ERA OF WOODS, FEDERER, THE LITTLE CHAMP STANDS TALL", Sunil Gavaskar says Sachin is the best of the lot. While all the three and many others have reached the pinnacle in their respective sport, Sachin stands out for his character on field.

I agree with Sunny, with the pressure that is on an Indian cricketer, Sachin's composure is truly saint-like. Cricket is supposed (used ?) to be a gentleman's game. But in contemperory cricket, Sachin is a true gentleman. A gentleman, with that kind of record, makes him one of the all-time greats.

Thanks to the credit crunch and other stress on our lives, there is a change in our behaviour and response-patterns. We can look around to see the change, while the experts do an extensive research. In such situations, sportsmen like Sachin inspire us to remain cool and be the best.

Ten years of Blogging

The art of blogging is ten years young... ! 10 yrs is definitely a milestone, for anything that is on such a popular, free-to-use and evolving medium.

The medium has evolved from pure text-based to picture/video etc.

While most of bloggers took it up as a hobby, there may be few who are doing for other personal reasons. For me it remains a hobby, a medium to express my thoughts/feelings/views, take a stand, and not be part of a silent majority...

Thursday Thoughts

A relative celebrated her 84th birthday. She is loved and respected in the family, and beyond. Society, because she was a teacher by profession and a devoted one. As for the family, she was loving and kind to all. Relatives are happy, but with a tinge of sadness... While she remains physically fit(thanks to God), she has lost her memory totally. She is second in the extended family, both from same generation/branch of family-tree. After seeing the snaps on Picassa, I mulled over it. Yesterday, at the lunch, discussed briefly with cousins, all from the same 'tree'...

Any spiritual question lingering in our thoughts gets addressed to, sooner than later. But, I was surprised to hear a talk on the radio on the brain, this morning, in line my earlier thoughts on relative.

A neuro-surgeon from Australia spoke eloquently regarding the rapid strides being made by science through research in the area of human brain.
When asked on how to take care of the brain, he stressed the importance of physical and mental fitness in our lives.

Mental fitness is as important.
1. For that, physical fitness is the basis.
2. Mental activity, without stress.
3. Mental exercises( eg Sudoku)
4. M E D I T A T E

We live in a far-more complicated world and are more stressful. The impact on our system can be bad, with likely future complications.

I would summarise, Spiritual Living is the key. The doc gave a good example, how he would go beyond his normal call of duty.

He quoted Einstein, 'Spirituality begins, where science ends'. Master corrects, both are one & Divine...

Life of a Forced Bachelor...An Autobiography

I have been getting some queries on mail/sms/phone, 'how is life, being a forced-bachelor?'. Family is away and I have to manage:take care of myself, my peculiar food habits, poor time management and few pets... all alone!( Spiritually, I am NEVER alone!)

Last week-end was lost, courtesy flu/fever. Thankfully it was a simple flu and fever and I am back on track. With Swine flu et al, the world population has moved into high risk zone. I am no exception. Hence the big responsibility to take care of myself (mom keeps reminding, almost on daily basis). I am no social animal. This situation has given me the option to withdraw further into the cocoon of home and do things I prefer. Poor pets are at risk though!

Pets include five hamsters ( plus couple of new born!), two fish tanks ( one belong to a friend's family, enjoying vacation in Eastern coast of India)and my dog (needs no intro though). Also, the birds I feed every morning, outside. The sheer responsibility to feed them, bathe the dog every week, keep things out of reach of dog which picks up virtually anything to chew... pretty tough on my puny shoulders ( I am reminded of Wooster of PGWodehouse. He had the luxury of Jeeves, how lucky!)

Years ago I chose to become a veggie. I am almost knocking at the door of being a vegan and a strong supporter of anything that resembles PETA/environmental impact/satwik, etc. Now that makes it impossible to eat out! So while the stock in refrigerator (courtesy a caring wife) lasts, I may not lose weight dramatically!

Trying to catch up on some of the things on hold - music practise ( poor pets have to put up with my cacophony!), writing, reading, etc. Reading two books now, one on management and one spiritual ( more of it for later posts). Struggling to find time for meditation, my no.1 priority ( need better proof of my time management skills?). Got delivery of three books from amazon this morning... ( cost of book is less than shipment cost!) But now more pressure on time, to read these books asap!

To top it all, last night I discovered cooking gas was over#$%@$*!! Back to hot plate...:( Slow food and every thing slow is fine, but not slow tea-making & slow cooking! Thankfully, gas cylinder delivered today and I am back to tea-making and some cooking, with a revenge !

Stand by for more updates...So, boring you with a bit of autobiography ! Just for a change... Feel free to comment :)

PS: Studying in Hyderabad, it was common to tell when someone gets into a self-dabba mode, 'why don't you write an autobiography, so that I can read at my leisure'!

Khan detained at US Airport

Our media has got yet another topic to sensationalize. After Swine flu all these days, the media can highlight how SRK was detained at a US airport.Someone was doing his job and we should appreciate. I liked the comment of a UP Police official who appreciated the work-ethics of the cops in US.
Thankfully over 70 % on ToI polls felt we were over-reacting. Media can pursue more pressing topics even at the cost of few TRP, in service of the nation. ( We just celebrated our ind day!)

We do not want anyone to be treated badly, including our popular stars. But let us not over-react either. esp Govt of India, pls.

It is unfair to complain cops in US are picking up on our khan only. Bob Dylan went through a similar experience on Saturday !

Talking about responsible reporting by media, the concluding episode of Witness on Al Jazeera International, on Super 30 at Patna, was very inspiring... How couple of people are making a difference by enabling the aspiring students from poor background to reach I I T... hats off to the channel and people behind a noble ventures such as Super30

More interestingly a 12 year old US kid is in the process of building an on line tv empire which will specialise in reporting only that is good. Food for thought for the entire media fraternity, world over ! Google ' US kid embarks on good news dream' for more info.

Independence Day

India celebrates Ind Day... Indians world over celebrate being Indian ! Wow... you become more patriotic when you are out of India. Three cheers to my motherland... maa tujhe salaam....

years ago, my dad suggested how about me following his footsteps and joining defense services. Somehow I was not very keen. Thankfully, he did not persuade me and gave me 'the freedom' to choose my career path. One of the reasons was I wanted to be independent. Having seen army-life very closely, I thought there was limited freedom once you opt to become a soldier. But today, after years in corporate life, I confess, 'being independent is very relative'!

I am aware 'being independent is a state of mind'. It has nothing to do with my job, my environment or anything external. True independence is when I am not a slave of my mind, body, senses...

PS : In that context, army life would not have been a bad idea, I would have been physically fit and strong too...

Time Management

After some posts on spiritual/current affairs, etc I am in a mood to reflect on a different aspect, Corporate Life. We spend most of our time @ work, so what we achieve/under-achieve there is of great relevance to our Journey of Life, Spiritually, as always!

A forward of Robins Blog, No Idling-$2,000 Fine, caught my attention. How true....! We have no luxury to waste time. As suggested, we should fine ourselves for every moment wasted and I would add, when we did not give our very best. Afterall, every moment is Divine.

Master gifted one of His devotees a wrist watch. This devotee, a senior army official, told Master, 'I don't waste time'. Master said, 'I know, I know'... Perhaps the underlying message was the army officer still had opportunity to save time. If so, all observers/devotees had a long way to go...

Robin Sharma's concluding message is You can't idle and get to great. Make a choice.
Procrastination is very natural to us. The choice is ours: good or great. And how we manage time is of great relevance.

Thursday Thoughts, Spiritually

It is Swine Flu all over... India joining the bandwagon, Pune sadly gaining the slot of 'epicenter of swine flu' and all cities virtually hit in varying degrees...! This just when the world finally seem to be shrugging off depression-like blues. Germany and France are officially out of it, China & India are leading from the front!

There are whole lot of natural disasters, now happening a lot frequent. The world is definitely getting 'less cool'. I am troubled by the thought, most of it is just because of me and my fellow world-citizens :( We can not blame nature or any one else.

With the swine-flu vaccine still a few months away, other options are being talked of. Apart from the hygiene and improving fitness level, other suggestions include homeo medication, vitamin c, to take gifts of nature such as tulasi leaves/garlic and also camphor!.... As always, fitness of body and spirit is what matters. Our immune system can handle any flue if we just get our basics right. While body can be taken care by exercise & food habits, spirit can be taken care by genuine spirituality. Rather, look at every thing holistic and spiritual ! The world badly needs more spiritual vibrations...

Journalists freed:Release of Laura Ling & Euna Lee

My previous posts were on Friendship Day (an international celebration) and Raksha Bandhan ( more Indian-specific). Thank God, I am in a position, physically/mentally/Spiritually, to appreciate NOW & HERE. It is against this background I look at the release of these two journalists from North Korea.

International relations are beyond the comprehension of mortals such as us. But the outcome... kudos to all the parties involved, including on the Korean side. A brilliant job by President Clinton.

What is important is we learn the lesson from this episode and move on, and not to try to win brownie points/blame-game. That is the way we should handle all problems. Then this world will be a lot better place...

Sister's Day Raksha Bandhan

My previous posting was on the friendship day, when I tried to connect with many of my friends...I am a mail-guy, not a talk/phone guy. So, the option to 'pen' thoughts on my blog and try to reach out to as many friends possible was a natural thing to do. Thanks to all those who responded. Also, for the encouraging words on my new obsession, blogging :)

Rakhi is very special... very different. So beautiful !