Monday, August 10, 2009

YOURS TRULY, SOMEONE
I heard this story during my childhood - if you grew up in a similar geography,I am sure you would have heard it many a time too. A community decided to contribute to a Temple in so many ways on the occasion of the sanctification and inauguration ceremony which is known in native parlance as 'Kumbhabishekam' which literally means 'immersing the pyramid of the temple in holy water and auspicious substances such as milk etc'. The community divided itself into various groups one of which was to contribute milk. This group was extraordinary in its collective years of experience and wisdom in handling all such events. Each member exactly knew as to what to do. So after great deliberations about the milk, where to source it from, quantity and quality etc, the members were unanimous that each family will contribute 10 litres of milk. And there were 10 families to contribute a total quantity of 100 litres which was thought to be adequate for the Kumbhabhishekam. As this group was extraordinary at the level of individual member, each member by telepathy thought the same way about the logic of the contribution. The members thought that if it is going to be 90 litres of milk from the remaining 9 members, 10 litres of water should not make any difference for the proposed immersions, after all, when the liquid reaches the repositories for distribution to the devotees, it is better the milk is lighter and that much better for consumption. A noble thought in deed. The story ends with the Kumbhabhishekam happening in absolute water free from any contamination of milk as such! This happens with intellectuals of equal ability, experience and wisdom. I would liken the current intellectualisation of the great recession in various economies to this story. This is a great event to carefully cope with for improving the economy. The whole community of intellectuals has to set about various priorities and see that the event goes through without hurt to anybody and the economy steers through the exercise. Everyone knows exactly what to talk on business channels, how to speculate and theorise. And everyone believes that the contribution is going to happen from someone else! I have a pet theory for the intellectuals, arm chair philosophers and the overarching tribe of the fortunate employed as such. My theory, to put it simply is, be yours truly someone!Be that someone who can help the economy turn around by being more alert to the grave situation and doing your bit - forget the 90% of others and care to belong to the 10% of someones. What does yours truly someone do and how does it help? Let me explain this in terms of choices that yours truly someone can make:

i. If there is a small technical maintenance kind of job that can be done by hiring someone or by yourself, please hire someone and pay him up. Do not try to save that money.

ii. When you are hiring auto or taxi, avoid a hard bargain. Remember, in the current situation, there is an impact on the topline for these people too. Try and accommodate them so that they can absorb their costs. Most of them do not own the vehicles and without a reasonable passing on the cost they cannot survive.

iii. If you usually shop once in a month, try to do shopping more often. One visit tires you, try and distribute your shopping into fortnightly or weekly visits. There may be decent bargains and improvements to be done at home. It is worth your while.

iv. If you are a movie buff try and watch more movies in cinema halls, rather than economising with the help of pirated CDs.

v. You wanted to upgrade yourself by way of a good two wheeler - go for a car which is fuel efficient.

vi. If you are not fully engaged in your job due to lower business confidence and lesser travel, try and invest yourself either in professional education or in tourism, depending upon which propels you better.

vii. In case, your servant or driver hailing from village needs an advance from you for helping their dependents suffering from the ill effects of a bad monsoon, be liberal and deduct the loan through easy instalments. This may be a contribution to mitigate against the increased risk of suicide.

viii. If a vegetable vendor or a fruit vendor or a flower vendor is after you for buying the fresh arrivals, try and see how much you can buy. They are not asking for charity, they are just seeing how they can survive the onslaught of bad time in the economy - they do not have a roof over them for their shop - they are just at the mercy of your attention for a fraction of a second. It makes a difference to their lives.

ix. If your children want something outside the curriculum like art or game or whatever, please be liberal. Every shopping by them is an incremental benefit to some cottage industry somewhere in the country.

x. Avoid a hard bargain with street vendors - assuming they are exploiting you, think that that is the only way you can help them carry on their life, without becoming a naxalite or terrorist or a criminal. Compared to the exploitations you have gladly accepted from various forces, these are too trivial to react to.

xi. See the brighter side of life during bad times - get connected to nature. Go places. Take the long postponed holiday and travel. Every time you break your routine, you would have lit up a lamp in somebody's family. You would have been yours truly someone, who has been kind and helpful to genuine individuals whose endeavours are so ethical, that they do not stretch arms before you without offering a value for you in terms of products or services. That is the greatness of your society from where you have grown up from.

Be that some one.

Be yours truly, someone.

Posted by gopalan parthasarathy at 10:29 AM 2 comments