The Indian budget every year has always been an eagerly awaited event. For many decades, the best minds in economics, finance, tax, business and industry throng the media house to analyze the provisions shared by the Financial Minister.
Sometimes major events completely disconnected may be data points for the plans of the different powers around the world. The challenge is to discern what purpose they serve? More critically, what are we moving towards?
When the US Ambassador threatened India's "Strategic Autonomy" policy over India's friendship with Russia - much more than meets the eye was at stake. Let us unpack how the Ukraine war has fundamentally changed the US and the world. And why are we here anyway?
When beauty in the world dies, we all die a bit with it. Sometimes, we orchestrate it ourselves.
One spiritual tradition in India has been very special and beautiful, but its beauty and profundity was probably missed by many. Even those who carried it.
On March 30, 1699 – the 10th Sikh Guru – Guru Gobind Singh called a congregation of his disciples at Anandpur Sahib. The congregation gathered on a hill and a tent was pitched. He turned to the congregation with an open sword and asked for a disciple who was ready to give his head for his Guru. On the third call, a disciple named Daya Ram stepped forward.
For Daya Ram, his Guru at that point represented two things – his Devotion and his Death. Only when his Devotion to his Guru was stronger than his fear of death could he take his first step. There was no real reason for the death, but that Guru needed it. A devotion that transcends all fear of death – reasoned or unreasoned – then it has reached a place from where liberation is a certainty.
The “death scenario” has been used by other Masters as well to take their disciples to liberation, but Guru Gobind Singh used it amazingly.
That day, all the five disciples who stepped forward, attained their highest liberation. The religious say they tasted Amrit. Water was of little consequence, what happened inside the tent transformed spiritual landscape in India in many ways.
From this event, came forth a set of devotees who were very rare. They were innocent as a child, honest and wise as Sages and fearless and ruthless in war as the greatest warriors. These warriors rarely fought for their own motives. Their sword came up as a sacrifice or donation – almost as a contribution to a spiritual fire. Despite knowing the personal gain from a fight for a needy or weak was none, the Saint-cum-Warrior was driven to fight to his last.
Such beings and humans are not normal. They, like the other Bhakti Yogis (Meera, Chaitanya etc) need to live in way that rebels and revolts with the normal societal norms. Devotees, hopeless and remarkable, have been called crazy by all societies. For, the society just cannot understand as to why would someone be naive enough to not think of personal gain and be “foolish” enough to give up his life for someone else, just because it is the “right thing to do”.
Such craziness which adorns the highest devotion is a rare gift to any society. India got it in the form of “Khalsa”. But alas, we never realized the profundity of this gift.
Constantly trying to abuse, make fun of and, indeed, take undue advantage of such beautiful “naivette” that was born out of the highest devotion, we forced the “strange devotees” to rethink their engagement to the society. In an attempt to “align” themselves with a society that couldn’t care for the beauty – the devotee warriors lost their “craziness”.
In midst of such “crazy devotees”, the self-serving society should have aligned itself to their devotion. Unfortunately, for all of us, the opposite happened. Such would have been the severity of the abuse of this devotional gift.
It takes a rare Master to inspire devotees for centuries to transcend their fear of death, not for personal survival (which many do), but for upholding Dharma and righteousness. Such magic is not created easily. It is a loss that every Indian should be ashamed of, because we all had a possibility to transform ourselves, but we lost it.
The Indian budget every year has always been an eagerly awaited event. For many decades, the best minds in economics, finance, tax, business and industry throng the media house to analyze the provisions shared by the Financial Minister.
When the US Ambassador threatened India's "Strategic Autonomy" policy over India's friendship with Russia - much more than meets the eye was at stake. Let us unpack how the Ukraine war has fundamentally changed the US and the world. And why are we here anyway?
This visit of India left me with many questions. Many observations and inputs from different people and sections. Food for thought that I have tried to contemplate on and make sense of. Sharing all that with you.
When you analyze the last 60 years of the economic miracles of Singapore, South Korea and Malaysia versus the continued impoverished Indian economy, you get very interesting lessons. Can Indians have the wherewithal in them to do in one generation so that the coming generations may rise?
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