On Innovation

Once upon a time, a wheel was invented

Mother of them all, that invention was presented,

Nothing remained same after that hour of revelation

Life seemed bearable and work became a revolution

Inventors kept on inventing and making life easy

But I must say the innovators, they got really really busy

The former produced new items every now and then

The latter took the challenge and worked in their dens

Everything from light bulbs to fighter jets was invented

In the same breath all that, immediately was supplemented

Such is the power of that word we know as “innovation”

It never lets anything be in its original condition

Necessity is may be, the mother of all inventions

But no less pure are, the innovators’ intentions

To make better best is the call of the day

To make winters warm and summers cool in May

Innovation, friends, truly is the key to our progress

Otherwise it’s for sure that we perennially regress

Therefore I urge all to put on the thinking caps

Let go of our laziness and those untimely naps

Let’s make a difference that which really counts

Breach those so called barriers and surpass those mounts

“We pass this way but once” as someone has said

Let’s do our bit for the world, before we are dead

The Times in India

While I was sound asleep on the morning of March 12, 2014, I was woken up by my favorite alarm—the sound of the newspaper being shoved under my pillow. I woke up, picked up the newspaper, and as usual, started going through the headlines on the front page. And I thought, just thought, that I read Sunny Leone…Startled, I rubbed my eyes just to be sure that I was reading right.

And...I was right!

On the front page of the Pune edition of a widely read newspaper of the country was the news (?) Sunny Leone-II? American porn star is half-Indian. I read the piece and wondered what were the Times Of India people up to? I was not able to digest the fact that the personal story of some half-Indian American girl was being dished out to me on the front page of a prominent Indian newspaper! The story was jostling for space with other important headlines and was also drawing attention through Sunny Leone’s photograph!

The article described the financial plight of a young girl who had entered the porn industry (!) in America by choice to fund her education at a prestigious university in the U.S. The article went on to give up-to-date stats about the worth of the American porn industry, how much the porn film actors earn per session, and details about the college fees the girl needs to pay, apart from details of her family’s finances! The reporter also took pains to include the girl’s porn identity and her side of the story that made it clear that she selected the profession over all other because of the money involved and her own enjoyment!

Deep inside, I was infuriated. No, I did not want to play moral police and judge the girl. I wanted to assert my rights as a reader of news.

Why was this story on page 1 of the newspaper? Or better still, why was this story included in the paper at all? Was the story worthy of being called news? While this might be a topic of debate, I wanted to make my stand very clear. To me, it is not news because I feel the story is not relevant. For India and Indians, that is. While I am not sure of the practices that the TOI guys use to select news items, inclusion of this piece surely puts a big question mark on their ability to rationally choose from the available pool, as also on the journalistic standards of the country. True, I am no octogenarian who has witnessed the golden era of Indian journalism; I think I, as a consumer of news, should not be offered dirt early on in the morning.

Was the story included to show to us the moral degradation rampant in the west? Or was it included to paint a picture of the Obama administration’s failure? Or worse, was it included to incite our own young generation and show them that they are still way behind their American counterparts in devising ways of funding their education? I know not. Ah yes, was it included to remind Indian parents that things could get worse for them in the future and that they should be ready to handle a spiritually and psychologically malnourished generation?

I am still confused.

Was there a veiled agenda of certain people to assure the common Indian that things are better in India and that they are taking good care of our education system and women? Did the TOI people face acute dearth of news items of national or international importance because of which they decided to include this shining piece of their journalistic mediocrity? I think they would have done a much better and commendable job had they included the story of a local animal lover who regularly fed stray dogs out of his own earnings. In that case, I think, the space would have been very well utilized.

Or was it to inform the Indian movie lovers that they should expect, shortly in the future, to be treated by yet another half-Indian through the overt use of her body on screen? I failed to understand whether I was supposed to feel proud that yet another Indian, like Satya Nadella, was actually making waves in the U.S. and carving a niche for herself.

Was it to “inspire” our young generation to go out and “just do it” or was it to warn them about the dangers of the very expensive education system of the U.S.?

My mind, a common man that I am, failed to understand the agenda behind the article. I reminded myself about the International Women’s Day celebrations that were held only a couple of days ago. I reckon only the coming times will unravel the mystery in the form of another Bollywood dud that will leave a bad taste in the audiences’ mouth.

Design: A Different Viewpoint

Based on the meanings of design given in the image, we can interpret and discuss this topic at different levels. We can discuss man-made designs, nature’s designs, and the supreme designs of the Almighty. For the sake of brevity and to allow myself to give in to the lure of discussing the more interesting facets of design first, let us have a look only at the latter two, for man-made designs are no match to them. This is not to denounce humans or their designs, but I feel we’ve still a long way to go.

Let us have a look at the term design from a different angle. In this article, let us try to identify the purpose of designs that the Almighty has created. What I mean pertains not only to the tangible designs of nature, but also to the intangible designs of the omnipotent force. The general definitions given earlier are about physical matter. Let us make an effort to compliment the designs of nature, go beyond the obvious meaning, and make sense of the greatest design created by the Almighty—the design of our lives.

Let us deal with the natural tangible designs first. Nature is flawless in its design. Natural designs are perfect in all respects. It is as if nature takes tremendous amount of care while following the designing process. It creates all designs with a purpose and all natural designs serve their respective purposes exceptionally well. No matter how much we might marvel at the creativity of the human mind vis a vis its capacity to design, nature beats us convincingly. Nature proves—time and again—that it is the master craftsman in all things natural. We have always been inspired by nature and it overwhelms us by its nonpareil designs. The sea, the land, and the sky are full of marvelous natural specimens of wonderful designs. The flora and the fauna stimulate us to such an extent that we copy it in an unabashed manner and sometime, claim originality. The biggest of the big and the smallest of the small natural designs has its unique place in nature’s scheme of things. We can quote innumerable examples to prove this point. Flowers attract insects with their lovely colors and fragrances to serve a purpose in the greater design. Mighty carnivorous animals feed regularly on the less powerful ones—with the help of their impeccable designs—again to serve a greater purpose. The Chameleon changes its color to save and feed itself.

Through evolution, nature changes its designs so that the bearers of those designs adapt themselves to the surroundings and continue serving the purpose. No natural design is purposeless; all of them serve distinct purposes.

Having said this, let us now move to the other impeccable type of design created by the Almighty—the design of our lives. All of us, at some point or other, are perplexed by the question, “Is my life because of my choices or is it because of the chances given to me?” At certain occasions, we feel that we control our lives and that our choices wield the greatest influence on our lives. On some other occasions, we feel that we are plain lucky and whatever happens to us is by chance. I sincerely feel that our lives depend on neither of the two. I feel our lives adhere to a design, a blueprint that has already been sketched by the Almighty. The “choice” that we feel we have in our lives in matters personal and professional, is simply a design of the Almighty. Same goes with the “chance” part of our lives. Every choice we make and every chance we get is part of the big design. Every individual life plays a part in the grand design that is the cosmos. We are just specks in the big picture.

We can have numerous examples that would make it clear that the life each one of us lives is predestined. Let us take a moment and think about our past, the choices we have made and the chances we have got. On deep contemplation, it would be somewhat clear—if not crystal clear, for it is not in our capacity to understand the cosmic design completely—that we play assigned roles in the design of the Almighty.

Humor: The Best Medicine You Can’t Buy

Imagination was given to man to compensate him for what he is not; a sense of humor to console him for what he is.

~ Francis Bacon

Imagine a world in which there is no wit, no humor, no comic movies, no cracking of jokes among friends, and no comedy kings on the silver screen. Scary, is it not? But for the sake of this post, I would have never let this thought cross my mind. I cannot imagine life without wit and humor. Because sans humor, life and the innumerable sufferings it entails would have been impossible to endure and we would not have been able to live a life “well spent.” I intend to highlight the importance of humor in our lives and urge all to include humor in all walks of their lives.

Isn't it intriguing that the best things in life come for free? No matter how much money one has, one can’t buy these things. Humor is one of those parts of our lives that one can’t buy. Sense of humor is one of the best accessories that God has bestowed upon humankind for free, to make our stay comfortable and give us fond memories that help us make our twilight years full of jolly contemplation. Don’t we all have some childhood memories that are full of laughter and mirth? Don’t we cherish those jokes we shared with our friends on the way back from school? Don’t all of us have funny experiences that still bring an instantaneous smile on our otherwise burdened faces even today? The answer is a resounding “YES.”

No matter how rich or poor one is, irrespective of one’s social and financial standing, humor plays a very important role in making our journey worthwhile. Life, as it is today, is very fast and demanding. We hardly find time for leisure and fun. We run after things that give us momentary happiness and in doing so, we forget the seemingly insignificant little things that used to give us joy earlier. We need to revisit our carefree days as children to understand how to live a life without tensions and burdens and how to make life fulfilling, for ourselves and our loved ones.

They say that laughter is the best medicine. Nothing can be truer. The bard included the jester in his plays to mesmerize his audience. We have somehow forgotten to play the fool in our own lives. Without our realizing this dark fact, our work pressure takes a toll on us and unnecessarily makes our life miserable. Being happy is a state of mind. One does not need to be a stand-up comedian to create and enjoy laughter. Instead, we need to find humor in our daily life, in small happenings and incidents that keep on happening every day, in office and at home. We need to shed a few inhibitions and accommodate laughter in our routine. We need to learn to laugh at ourselves, every now and then. We need to understand that as humans, we are not perfect and that we will commit mistakes. As Oscar Wilde put it, “Life is too important to be taken seriously.”

The mushrooming of laughter clubs nowadays is a bright ray of hope. It shows that some of us have not forgotten the importance of laughter as a remedy for our ills. Having a humorous take on things does not mean that one is lackadaisical in approach toward work. Instead, humor makes life easy, increases productivity and helps us produce quality output. It is also known to make us feel young, energetic, and prolong our life. A smile on any face lifts the value of that face in manifold ways. A smile breaks barriers and gets people closer. A smile says a thousand words without them being uttered. A smile transcends boundaries, transcends cultures, transcends statuses, and binds people in the bond of happiness and wellbeing. And all this comes for free!!

With so much on offer, I think we should not resist the temptation of being supremely happy and making the world a better place to live. Let’s endeavor to smile at our colleagues, make tense moments in meeting rooms light, and create a healthy and conducive atmosphere that nurses happiness, joy, and wellbeing. Let’s also sometime go down memory lane to vicariously enjoy the times spent happily with our friends and count our blessings that God has given us freely. Let’s make a positive impact on the lives of people who surround us; let’s endeavor to spread cheer!!

Knowledge Sharing: The Real Panacea

Of all virtues that humans have invented by themselves to advance the human race, sharing of knowledge beats all other virtues hands down, if juxtaposed. It won’t be an exaggeration to state that while the innocuous concept of knowledge sharing has for too long been deliberately neglected and undermined by the nefarious of the lot; but for the generosity and altruism of some noble souls; humans have been able to continue their march undeterred.

I consider knowledge a commodity that will never go out of demand. The principle of demand-supply and vice versa does not hold true when it comes to knowledge sharing. Sharing of knowledge is more than a prerogative for the knowledge bearer; it is a moral responsibility that each one of us should undertake to fulfill, as a tribute to the source of our knowledge. We should look beyond the mercenary reasons for which some of us might have started to seek knowledge—to advance our social standing, our careers and to fulfill our selfish desires.

In an attempt to expound the ever-important-but-hopelessly-abandoned concept of knowledge sharing—through my anti-myopic thoughts that I have gathered in my lifetime—I have come up with the following nuggets about the topic at hand. Though my observations might appear as specks in the vast free-floating sea of information that is available on literally all topics today, I have tried to bring home the veracity of the hypothesis that has been stated in the very first line of this article.

Share your knowledge – the more you share, the more you grow

I have always believed more in the intangible than in the tangible. Knowledge is one intangible asset that the Almighty has bestowed upon the true seeker and believer of knowledge. We hurriedly run behind the palpable materialistic gains all our lives, only to understand the frugality of the purpose in the end. The virtue of sharing what we have with others does not even cross our minds during that childish marathon. We need to understand that sharing our knowledge with others will serve a much larger purpose. It will not only enlighten the recipients, but will also do a world of good to us. Sharing one’s knowledge will multiply it manifold, more than our wildest imagination. Sharing will give our knowledge many dimensions previously unheard of. In the process of sharing our knowledge, we will end up gathering more in return, making ourselves more knowledgeable. Knowledge is one of those rare commodities that multiply when divided.

Share your knowledge – it perishes if not shared

It is a rule of nature that we need to put to use what we have; otherwise our assets atrophy. Keeping our knowledge with ourselves will not add to it. Knowledge was created for the purpose of being distributed, unhindered and abundantly. We need to keep on adding to our existing knowledge in order to be relevant in today’s time. We cannot gain knowledge if someone does not share it with us. It’s the give-and-take attitude that is required to acquire more knowledge. Merely wanting more will yield nothing. The process starts with giving first. Give whatever knowledge you have to the seeker. In this process, your knowledge will get refreshed and you will be rewarded with more knowledge from others.

Share your knowledge – it makes immortals out of mortals

We all want to succeed. But Real success comes to those who acquire knowledge to innovate and then propagate their knowledge to humanity. We have numerous examples of great people who were common folks when they started on their journey to seek knowledge to share it with their brethren. Their heartfelt desires to succeed were granted because the purpose was pure. Imagine a world without Edison, Newton, Galileo, Darwin, Einstein, and Louis Pasteur, to name a few. These people have changed the face of humanity through their knowledge. Had these great souls not propagated the knowledge they acquired, the world that we call advanced today would not have been even a fraction of what it is. These people will forever live in the hearts of billions of people of all generations because they acquired the highest level of knowledge and shared it with all.

Share your knowledge – remember your teachers

We have a tendency to err and not acknowledge our errors. We comfortably forget the teachings of our teachers in pursuit of supposedly greener pastures. We also tend to forget the real first source of our knowledge. What we actually forget is the fact that our current cozy lives are all thanks to the knowledge shared by our teachers during our formative years. When we are young, we lap up the wisdom provided by our mentors. When it’s our turn to play mentors, some of us shy away from our responsibilities. All civilizations on our planet believe in sharing. The noble teacher-student relationship is based on the premise that what we receive today from our teacher, we share it later with others who seek it from us. We cannot in any other way repay the debt of our teachers, but by propagating the light of the knowledge they shared with us.

Share your knowledge – drive away the darkness of ignorance

Man is a social animal; or so we learnt at school. The transformation of a creature from an animal to a civilized social animal is no easy task. In our case, sharing of knowledge played a pivotal role in this metamorphosis. It has been a long journey for humanity to come out of the dark abyss of ignorance. Thanks to the efforts of some great human beings, we call ourselves civilized. But the work is not completely over. Even today, we come across individuals who are ignorant about the basic principles and tenets of life on which the pillar of our existence stands, among many other things. All of us should vow to know more, share more, and change the lives of the ignorant. Together we can share a whole lot of knowledge, which can make an enormous impact.

The light of knowledge, if shared generously, turns supposedly opaque minds into transparent ones, paving the way toward brilliance. Knowledge is known to transcend all boundaries, natural and man-made. Let us borrow this reputation, live up to it, and vow to make a real difference!