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Let
me wish and greet you on the occasion of the 63rd
Republic Day of our country.
I am
pleased to share some of my thoughts on this important day in the
history of our country. After some deliberations, I have chosen to
speak on the theme “Spirit of India”.
To
me, Spirit of India represents diversity, inclusiveness and an
ability of self-renewal. It is well known that our country has a
great tradition, civilization, culture and intellectual
accomplishments. Some noteworthy contributions of our country
include,
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The Vedas, Epics, Scriptures and other ancient literary works
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The contribution of number ‘zero’
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A
deeper understanding of phonetics, grammar, language,
literature, astronomy, architecture, sculpture, music, dance and
drama.
Not
only India had a vibrant activity on these areas, it also
contributed significantly in all these areas to the global
community.
India
as a country has promoted the concept of “Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam”
which depicts the whole universe as a single connected family.
The
modern India is characterised by a vibrant democracy, stable
political environment and leadership and an independent, fair and
transparent judiciary. Modern India, truly represents its inherited
heritage of local excellence and concern for global issues. The
recent book by Dr.APJ Abdul Kalam titled Target 3 Billion*,
(A.P.J. Kalam and Srijan Pal Singh, Penguin Books India 2011) is a
classic example of this.
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* Edited version of the speech delivered by Dr. N.
Ravichandran, Director, IIM Indore on the occasion of the 63rd
Republic Day celebrations at IIM Indore.
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Two
great Indian epics Ramayana and Mahabharata depict the benchmarking
character of an individual and the strategic dispensation of
activity orientation respectively. They collectively emphasise that
we need to perform our Karma and Dharma without fail under any
circumstances.
Let
me take this opportunity to narrate to you a small story. This story
relates to Lord Krishna as a child. As all of us know, Bal Krishna
was fond of butter and ghee and he enjoyed consuming them by
stealing it. Knowing his uncanny nature of stealing, his mother
Yashodha tried to hide butter and ghee in various places. But she
did not succeed in her efforts. Finally, she decided to store them
in a pot and hang the pot from the roof top by a hook so that the
young Krishna would not be able to reach it. In addition, she
attached a bell to the hook so that should Krishna possibly reach
the source of butter and ghee, the bell will sound and draw the
attention of Yashodha and other servant maids at home so that the
stealing of butter and ghee can be prevented.
Krishna, as an young child, equally smart, made an attempt to reach
the treasure by using a ladder. He noticed the bell attached to the
hook. He knew that the bell would sound if he made an attempt to
reach the butter and ghee. Therefore, he prayed and made a contract
with the bell that it would not sound when he was reaching out the
butter and ghee from the pot. Taking pity on Bal Krishna the bell
accepted that it would not sound when he made an attempt to reach
the pot of butter and ghee.
Based
on this assurance, Bal Krishna reached the butter and ghee from the
pot which is hanging from the roof at the top and started consuming
the same. Instantaneously, the bell broke its silence. Krishna was
surprised and asked the bell “Why did you violate the promise that
you made to me?”. The bell replied, “Oh! Lord Krishna, I am used to
the habit of sounding whenever there is Aarti and / or Bhog to you.
On these occasions it is mandatory for me to sound. Since the
Bhog is in progress, it is my own duty to sound. This made me
to violate the promise I made to you. Please forgive me for doing my
duty because doing my duty is nothing but my second nature.
This
story tells us a message that performing our Karma should be our
second nature. This should happen in spite of expectations,
acceptance, recognition, reward or otherwise. If we practice this in
our life, we will not only bring glory to our Institute but also to
the nation.
It is
a matter of great pride that we have an opportunity to work for a
nationally important institution located in Madhya Bharat. The
environment in which we are located has unique managerial challenges
which are to be addressed rapidly and effectively. We should make
every possible attempt to address the managerial challenges of
Madhya Bharat and see whether some of our solutions can be
replicated in the global context as well.
This
is possible only with the practice of excellence in all our
activities. This is required not only for the faculty members of
the Institute, but also for the administrative and other supporting
staff and business partners of the Institute.
May I
suggest we take this opportunity to
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re-dedicate ourselves to perform our Karma without fear, favour
or hesitation ?
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to refocus our energy to achieve excellence in our professional
and personal life.
Such
a dedication and commitment would enhance the academic and social
stature of this institution and contribute to the well being of our
nation.
My
warm greetings to you on this very important occasion of our
country.
Jai
Hind |
