The Week That Was...

The week from 1^st to 7^th May, 2011 was quite an eventful one in context of happenings across the world. The killing of Osama bin Laden, Sony’s CEO Howard Stringer apologizing for the hacking of Playstations and offering $1 million per user in remuneration, more 2G scam revelations coming to light, the BSE rallying up and down, etc. were some of the events that occurred. We’ll focus on a few that really made the headlines in morning papers.

Osama bin Laden was reported dead on late Sunday evening. US Navy SEALS infiltrated into his Pakistan quarters and successfully killed him. This was timed perfectly to occur just before Obama begins his election campaign. Bin Laden wasn’t brought back to the US like Saddam Hussain and electrocuted on the chair! Instead, he was shot in the head and his remains buried at sea. A bit too convenient, it seems. And was bin Laden really responsible for 9/11? The documentary Zeitgeist proves otherwise; more so that it was an inside job. Also, the bin Ladens were especially close to George Bush Snr. and managed to get a lot of favours from Bush Jnr. right after 9/11. That is not to say that the news may not be true, but I have my reservations. What the news has done, though, is that it has spread a lot of euphoria amongst US countrymen. That, and additional jobs created, have increased Obama’s popularity drastically. He has almost reserved a stint for himself at the White House for the next few years. He can afford to spend nothing for his election campaign and still be a major contender for the position of President of the United States.

For the 9^th time this fiscal year, the RBI increased interest rates; this time by 50 bps. This, they declared, was one of the key measures in controlling inflation in India, though it was not investor friendly. This policy, along with possibilities of a global economic recovery, led to the SENSEX dropping for 9 successive sessions before rising on Friday. A lot of people also lost money invested in silver as it lost its shine by almost 30% in this week alone. Experts cite the reduction in imports into China as the main reason for this slide in not only silver, but other commodities also. This might encourage those investors to enter the stock market and possibly help it rally upwards in the near future. Crude also dropped to below $100 a barrel after long. This could spell good news for India and other countries as the prices of fuel may now not rise as sharply as expected. Also, a reduction in dependant palm oil and other raw material could reduce input costs and margin pressures for many industries. Also, reduction in edible and cooking oil could lead to control in food prices and positively impact inflation. That being said, all we can do is wait and watch if the Indian government proactively takes some more measures to benefit the common man.

Kanimozhi has finally been named in the CBI chargesheet and was presented in court this week. She looked extremely tense, bordering on tears. Ram Jethmalani defended her staunchly in court saying she claims her main fault is she is Karunanidhi’s daughter and hence she is being targeted though she had nothing to do with the 2G scam, and that it was all Raja’s fault. She now wants to be granted bail on the grounds that she is a woman. Strange... she did not think of all this when she was one of the main perpetrators in the 2G scam, something the evidence accumulated by the CBI clearly shows. It is amusing how Kalmadi, Sheila Dixit, Kanimozhi and other politicians amass all the wealth when they can, but blame the entire world when they are exposed. Anyway, I am sure I speak for most people when I say that I hope justice is dished out to all those guilty, man or woman.

Of course, I have not mentioned the Royal wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton. The who’s who of the world were present, and the paparazzi ensured the high profile wedding was covered from all angles; attendees, fashion, celebrations, etc. I didn’t follow it to be able to write a lot about it, though.

We didn’t have only one headline repeated over and over again this week, though the media were more than keen on constantly covering the death of Bin Laden. So the world did see highs and lows this week, and it was fun. It’s a pity such weeks do not come often to keep us interested and thinking. Now, the consequences of the events that have unfolded remain to be seen. Hopefully they will be positive; the world has witnessed too much bad news in the past few months.

20 Things To Let Go!

A wonderful article which my professor shared with me:

You are in an imaginary hot air balloon. It’s just you and all of your belongings in the wicker basket. Something went wrong and you are losing altitude fast. You will hit the ground in less than ten minutes if you don’t come up with something quick.
The only immediate solution is to get rid of excess weight and throw off at least half of your belongings. It’s that or hit the ground in ten. You look at the things and hesitate for a few seconds but then you do what you have to do and start throwing the things you have gathered half your life one by one. The cargo gets lighter, the descent slows down then you are floating up again back to altitude. You are relieved beyond comprehension.
This happens to all of us in less dramatic circumstances. We attach ourselves to things that we have accumulated over the years. Some of them might have some practical value. Others we just have attached ourselves sentimentally to over time. Some others are just clutter.

Our mental life follows the same fate. We carry with us a lot of things in our heads along the years – Our life story, emotional attachments, beliefs and other things which can linger in our minds for many years. Some of them are useless ideas that drag us down considerably. Some are emotional debris from difficult moments in our past. Some are just beliefs which we have attached ourselves to for no apparent justifiable reason. Some others are just self-destructive habits and fears.

So if you were in the hot air balloon situation, which of these mental barriers should we let go? I have listed down 20 here. Do you have any more?



1. Let go of attachments: According to Buddhist Philosophy, attachment is one of the roots of all suffering. I can’t agree more. We attach ourselves to all sorts of things even the most self-slapping stupid notions in the universe. Are you attached to something? How much are you attached? Is it keeping you back from something? Is it making you suffer? Look at it straight through – break the illusion. Know that every attachment can be detached.

2. Let go of guilt: Guilt has absolutely no function whatsoever. Think about it – what could guilt possibly resolve? It just holds you imprisoned to self-mortification and sorrow.

3. Let go of Negative thinking: Pessimistic thoughts and negative attitudes keep you locked in a dark aura that permeates in everything you do. It’s a dangerous line to follow. Know that thoughts influence the world around us. Enough said

4. Let go of self-criticism: Many times we are our biggest pain in the neck. We criticize ourselves with the best of intentions but then go over the acceptable limit. Criticism then turns to disempowering messages. Let go of it and be kind and gentle to yourself.

5. Let go of prejudice: Prejudice keeps you bitter and resentful. It restricts your opportunities to connect meaningfully with others.

6. Let go of compulsive thinking: Do you keep on doing something just because you feel you have to do it without any apparent reason? It’s time to honestly reflect on its usefulness and its side-effects.

7. Let go of the need for others’ approval: We often tend to seek approval by others. This is an attention-seeking behaviour and one which threatens our self-confidence and authenticity.

8. Let go of limiting beliefs: Most of our limits are self-imposed. Life doesn’t have defined limits. Our beliefs do. Learn to identify those beliefs which narrow down your possibilities for action and let go of them.

9. Let go of grudges: Let me put it this way – grudges are bad for your heart. Keep them long enough or numerous enough and your health will eventually suffer. Research is showing the relationship between heart disease and emotions such as anger and grudges.

10. Let go of the “I’ll do it tomorrow” attitude: This is a delaying tactic of your subconscious saboteur trying to keep you from accomplishing important tasks. Try to be aware of it when you think it and consciously push yourself to do at least the first part of it. Naturally you will then continue the whole task because the hard part is only the beginning.

11. Let go of anxious thoughts: These are born out of our fear of the unknown and uncertainty about the future. The thought that something unpleasant may happen is only an unreal thought we have created ourselves. Ask yourself: “Is this thought based on real evidence?”

12. Let go of past heartbreaks: A heartbreak can take quite a long time to heal. Your heart is locked as your mind keeps on hovering over the same thought. The thing to realize is that in heartbreaks it is not the loss that make you suffer but the idea you create in your heads about that loss.

13. Let go of bad memories: Sometimes we remember unpleasant things that stir up some sad feelings in us. Bad memories make you relive those sad moments in the present. Keep them where they are – in the past.

14. Let go of useless things: We also attach ourselves to things of all sort. Sometimes we clutter our life with useless objects. Let go of them and simplify your working and living environment.

15. Let go of bad company: If there are people around you that are insincere, harbour envy, are highly pessimistic or disempowering, keep away from them.

16. Let go of the idea that you are a product of your past: One very common mistake we fall into is the belief that we are determined by our past experiences. This limits our view on future possibilities since we are stuck in believing that the future can only be more of the same as our past.

17. Let go of identifying yourself with your job/role: This is one of the risks of modern day life. Since roles are always becoming more specialized we think that we are part of our roles. This makes us lose perspective of our true nature.

18. Let go of counterproductive habits: These are the repetitive patterns of behavior that obstruct or distract you from constructive and productive behavior. They can be anything from watching too much TV and overeating to self-destructive behavior such as drug abuse.

19. Let go of taking things too personally: Very often we are disturbed emotionally because we interpret people’s words and actions from a very subjective perspective. When we take things personally we get irritated, hurt and disappointed.  When you look at life from a more detached and objective point of view, we stay emotionally balanced and focused on our priorities.

20. Let go of the ticking clock: Time is one of our biggest sources of stress. Well, not time really but our perception of it. Sometimes we are enslaved by the concept of time even in our moments of leisure. This has devoured a lot of our genuine freedom and space. Learning to spend moments without the constant awareness of time can be liberating and finally productive.

The Thing About Silence Is...

We are used to it by now – watching people listening to their iPods, music players or talking on the phone when jogging, taking a walk, travelling, etc. alone. Maybe some of us are even a part of this recent fad! Music and friends keep us company when we are alone; they ensure that our minds are constantly occupied, that we are having fun, and that we feel connected to the world around us, and so on. Most people we see who have adopted this culture are until about the age of 40 years.

But why?

It’s probably the fear of being left alone. Today, no person wants to be left alone for the fear of negative thoughts engulfing his mind. Pressure at work, tussles with friends, ups and downs with family, road rage and much more probably are circulating in people’s minds when they have time to themselves. The thought of thinking now seems to frighten us and we constantly look for other things to keep us busy. Or maybe we don’t want to think anymore. This clutter of TV soaps, social networking sites, music channels, radio, etc. has made us so used to chaos that the calm now disturbs us. We reason that these so – called entertainment channels actually keep us informed about what is happening in the world. But is it really? There were a whole lot of generations who came and went before the idiot box and iPods took control of our lives; they turned out ok! Do we need to know how much is being imposed on us? And how much of what we know is actually true? Noted author Robin Sharma states that it is important for an individual to spend at least 30 minutes every day in complete silence. How many of us are able to achieve a target of even 10?

We now are proud to be a part of Gen Y – the Impatient generation, who get whatever they want in a jiffy. We are ready to substitute our need for human relationships with materialistic ownership and that is probably reducing tolerance in us. We do not want to adjust to others; rather vice versa. This is further reducing the overall life span of marriages, which seem to have hit an all time low recently. All this, because we don’t want to take sometime out to be silent, to think, to be with ourselves and reflect.

It is great to have things you want to possess; after all, they are made for you and that is what most people earn for. But it also helps to spend some time in silence. Maybe while travelling, or at night before going to bed, or anytime which you can squeeze in. It allows you to reflect on what happened in the day and what you could have done better. You can probably find where you erred or some situation you could have handled better to your advantage. It not only increases your focus, but also ensures you give back to society and enrich yourself - something I believe everyone wants to do. Invariably it helps in making you a better person. Almost all successful people I have known have adopted this technique of remaining silent for sometime in a day. Isn’t it about time we started doing the same?

Is it Criminal to Think Small in India? (An article by Gurcharan Das)

There are two spaces in the politics of India. And one of them is empty. The two spaces reflect the classic division between those who look ahead and aspire versus those who look back and complain. Our political parties cater to the second--to the victim in us through their politics of grievance. The present gridlock in the parliament is also symptom of the same dispirited politics—no party is sufficiently hungry for reform to break the logjam. No one reflects the spirit of a rapidly growing India. Nor is anyone thinking big--and it’s criminal to think small in India. Until the second space is filled, our politics will not be whole.

Congress appeals to the victim in the ‘aam admi’ with an ever expanding menu of job guarantees, food, gas and kerosene subsidies, and more. The BJP panders to the sufferer of historical Muslim misrule and to Congress’ minority vote-bank politics. Mayavati and caste parties focus on the historical injustice to Dalits and OBCs. The Shiv Sena gratifies the injured pride of the ‘Marathi manoos’. All of this is about the politics of grievance and injustice.

India, however, is changing dramatically. It is nothing short of a miracle that it has become the world’s second fastest growing economy in the midst of the most appalling governance. With high growth, mobility, and a demographic revolution of the young, Indians who aspire will soon overtake those who see themselves as victims. Pew surveys show that a majority of Indians believe that they are better off than their parents and that their children will do even better. The person who got the 750 millionth phone number last month was a village migrant whose dream keeps slipping as his calls keep dropping partly because A. Raja corruptly handed out the 2G spectrum. India’s 100 millionth internet user in 2013 will have information which only the most privileged could access twenty years ago. No one in India’s political life captures their hopes.

China’s politicians do a far better job. While we debate if growth is pro-poor, China talks about growing rich. It understands that performance is a function of expectations. Those with higher expectations get higher performance. China no longer thinks itself a Third World country—it is challenging America today. In India, only a few politicians-- Nitish Kumar, Sheila Dixit, and Narendra Modi--appeal to the aspirers. They speak the language of governance, roads and schools. But we need many more of them.

When I put this to a powerful Congress politician, he said that ‘India shining’ had died in the 2004 election. I gently reminded him that India’s high growth economy had delivered 300 million into the middle class; another 250 million had been lifted out of poverty since the 1980s. So, a total of 550 million aspirers are surely worth fighting over. ‘Ah, but there are still another 550 million whiners, and their votes are more reliable than the shiners!’ he said. If poverty were to magically disappear in India, the Congress party might lose its reason to exist.

Aspirational politics would tackle our problems differently. Take, for instance, food inflation. The politics of grievance applies short term bandages--it tries to catch hoarders, stops forward trading, forbids export of grains when the country has had a bumper rice harvest and expects a record wheat crop (while ignoring Rs 17,000 crores of grains rotting under the tarpaulins of FCI). The politics of aspiration would recapitalize and reform agriculture and raise long term supply—it would allow competition against FCI in the warehousing of food, permit foreign investment in retail to establish cold chains, and allow farmers to lease their lands in order to raise productivity.

Who will fill the empty space in Indian politics? None of our parties understands that we live in a time of revolutionary change. Could it be Rahul Gandhi? But so far he hasn’t given any hint that he thinks big. India has doubled its cotton crop in the past five years; yet there have also been suicides of farmers in the cotton growing areas. Both facts are correct. Rahul Gandhi has chosen to focus on suicides. The future, however, will be built by those who focus on the first, who think big and give young Indians a sense of limitless possibilities.

Courtesy - http://gurcharandas.blogspot.com/

Some Welcome News in Testing Times...

The last few months kept springing unpleasant news for us. Scams being unearthed, unrest in East Asian countries, petrol prices rising again, natural disasters in Japan, the SENSEX constantly falling, speculations of below expectations Q4 results and many more. Amidst all this negativity, we witnessed something exceptionally pleasing; India won the 2011 ICC World Cup.

India had started as favourites for the Cup, and they made it amply clear that they wanted to win this World Cup for Sachin Tendulkar, but the momentum seemed to be losing steam as time progressed. Some great batting displays at the top of the order were all that seemed to be making the team hold on against the opposition. Middle and lower order collapses and a seemingly toothless bowling attack saw India lose to South Africa and just about hold out against England and Ireland. The batting let India down against West Indies also but the bowling seemed to be striking some sort of form. Fielding was nothing to write home about in most of these matches. India had comfortably made it to the quarter finals, but I felt they were staring down the barrel here as they had to face the World champions next.

However, we witnessed a different team India from the quarter finals onwards. India’s fielding went up by notches against every opposition, and the bowlers seemed to strike some form as well. For the 1^st time in 12 years, the cricket world would witness a new world champion. After eliminating Australia, India performed very well against Pakistan under tremendous pressure to keep up the tradition of beating Pakistan in every World Cup match until date. Amir Khan was spot on when he said that India was facing 3 final viz. Australia, Pakistan and then the finalists. For the 1^st time, a home team had made it to the finals of the World Cup. The toss did throw up some controversy and the Indians did seem dejected. However, none of this impacted India when they bowled and fielded like a team possessed. While batting, it was very reassuring to see the youth brigade stabilize the innings and then Dhoni silenced his critics by scoring when it counted the most. India looked like the Aussies did for so long – INVINCIBLE. After 28 long years for us, and for the 1^st time for a team at its home venue, we are World Champions.

India’s efforts saw many of us Indians living a dream of feeling proud of having bagged the ultimate prize. The Indian team had stated they wanted to win the World Cup for Sachin, and they did. Not just the Indian cricket team, most of the country watching was also teary eyed as the fact started setting in. The team put up a brave face in all adverse conditions and almost every time came out on top. These last couple of months united all Indians, and the euphoria after victory can simply not be put into words. This World Cup has given us a lot to celebrate in these trying times. Forget the sarcasm, the criticism, the cynicism, match fixing allegations, etc. You guys did what you set out to do! You guys made us proud and made sure Sachin does not leave the game without the ultimate trophy. It is nice to see some people achieve what they promise, especially you promise to reach the very pinnacle. We are now no. 1 in Tests, and have won the T20 and the ICC Cricket World Cup. Dhoni and boys, take a bow! We love you!