A winners Eulogy

A Winners Eulogy:

My dadaji – my grandfather. A lot of you may remember him as a fighter, a soldier of academia. But he wasn’t a just a fighter – NO , not just a fighter. There are various kinds of fighters – some mediocre and others great. Fighters can belong to any side – winning or loosing. Prem, the kid whose family was shunned by society (for no error of his), belonged to a special breed of fighters – Winners! You see – Winners unlike others have a single minded focus towards the Top, they don’t just strive to be there, they belong there.

When society shuns you, there are easier ways to get back at it – look around, you will find plenty examples – criminals, thieves and thugs. Prem,  the boy who literally lived the childhood that Amitabh Bacchan portrayed in the movie Deewar, chose a different path. He resolved to bring his family out of rock bottom situation, and he found a way – by rocking the world of Academia. Thats the thing about winners, they make most difficult or extraordinary choices look easy and obvious.

Neither the choice was easy nor the path taken. He went to a primary school were Hindi was the primary language. But this still was the India where British ruled and English education was a privilege. When he moved into middle school, he joined students who were already were formally taught English. Unlike his peers who struggled in the new school, Prem wrote with penchant and impressed his teachers with his knowledge and grasp of English. Studies were not easy either, genius or not – you need books to study and books cost money – there was no money!. Prem, found a way out -”notebooks” were cheap, books were not. He borrowed books from his class mates … for one night. No electricity in the house meant he had to study on the streets below the street lights. Unfettered, he wrote … he wrote like his life depended on it and copied whole text books within a single night and returned the books the next day. These handwritten textbooks were his sole access to study material. And yet, he topped through school and through college. He collected many degrees and chose the profession to shape the future of Indian youth – a Professor.

His situations may have been impossible, his conditions dire but his spirit was never broken. He held the self-belief of a winner and the willpower of steel. Through his spirit, he not only led his family back into society’s graces, he mentored his kids and grand children into Doctors, Technocrats, IAS Officers, Researchers and other prestigious professions.

My brothers and sisters, when you are feeling down, with nothing to go on, when life seems difficult, you will suddenly become aware of a flame inside of you, egging you on, nudging you to keep moving, a sudden motivation out of the blue – that’s a part of my Dadaji inside of you. Whether he influenced you directly or indirectly that flame is a definite part of you – know it, feel it and believe in it. He was not just a winner , He was the granddad of many winners through whom he lives on.

Ceasing thoughts

A curious mind can look forward to ceasing the flow of thoughts …. for now, for more and may be for eternity. But thats not same as suicide. Suicide doesnt serve a purpose, cessation of thoughts does. Only with the power of channelizing the thoughts, controling their direction, can a curious mind stay afloat otherwise the wild forest of intertwined thoughts will just blur the whole world.

For this reason, the urge to end it all is not about ending the life, but to cease the flow of thoughts. Like weeds, thoughts can be extremely damaging, a healthy ecosystem needs balanvee and balance needs channelization. When thoughts grow at a rate faster than children are born around the world, its difficult to maintain coherence. A sharp stop at the deluge brief as it may be, will help revitalize the brain. A healthy brain doesnt just think healthy thoughts, but a healthy brain may be far more equipped to handle the deluge of the weeds… the bad thoughts … the negative ones. The power of brain is not just in the amount of thoughts it can generate, the power of the brain is to channelize them into productive and get rid of the rest. Thats what sepearate a cohenrent brain from the brain of a mad man.

I just understood the importance of meditation. its not to supposed to help me stop the flow of thoughts, its supposed to give me the rsted mind to handle the flow more efficiently. Thats important.

Note: For those who contemplate suicide, aren’t you curious what life has for you next? It may not be great, it may not be positive, but then if you are already contemplating ending it, you have nothing to loose, why not gamble and snicker.

Democratic thoughts

There is a fundamental problem in the way the democratic elections are made. The people who dont vote receive a lot of criticism for their inaction. The premise being that voting is not just a right, its a duty. I disagree … voting is NOT a duty … per democracy, “choosing a suitable candidate” should be the duty. If a voter doesnt agree with any of the candidates, the ballot never captures, their disapproval. There is no “I dont want any of the above” as a choice. If in the name of duty, you are asked to choose between the Devil and the Satan (letssay) … would it be wise to make a choice or pass?

The fundamental problem with democratic elections is that there is no attempt to record how many people didnt want any of the candidates and by virtue of that, the way democratic voting ballets are made undermine the democratic right of every citizen to let their choice known!