divineflames

Anti-corruption movement in India and the role of an Independent Anti-corruption agency like Lokpal

2011-10-24T22:31:00.001+05:30

Dear FellowIndians,

I take thisopportunity to present a very clear, third and un-biased angle onanti-corruption movement going on in India and the world. Here is the completetranscription of an Interview with Mr Mr. Tony Kwok - the anti-corruptionsoldier, former Operations Head of ICAC Hong Kong. This interview is veryimportant because of the fact that lots of people have different opinion on thewhole Jan Lokpal Bill movement, and they think everyone else is biased withtheir own views because of various reasons... very soon the video and audiofiles will be updated on this blog... but this interview will be an eye openerfor many of us...

Mr.Tony Kwok: Let me give the keypoint; let me give my message first because I have done this many times in manycountries. That’s the interesting part - wherever you go, people go, my countryis different. But that’s not true - no country is different in terms ofcorruption.

Corruptionis a crime. We cannot say that atheft or bank robbery is different from one country to another.

Ihave been to 25 countries to provide consultancy and training onanti-corruption. But there have been common misconceptions. Wherever I went,people say: "My country is different, our culture and the nature ofcorruption is different." Corruption is very serious and widespread andtherefore some of them say that it is probably impossible to fight it in mycountry. Some say it would take a decade or generations before changes areseen. What I always tell them is that these are ALL EXCUSES. Hong Kong'sexperience shows that, when it was very corrupt in the 60s and 70s, providedyou have the political will and the right methodology, you can change thesituation within 3 years. Within that timeframe, HK had already changed from a verycorrupt place to being less corrupt. In the olden days, corruption in HK waspart of daily life - it used to be described as from "the womb to thetomb" - it was all open and syndicated. But after 3 years, it was nolonger open and syndicated. That is not to say corruption was entirelyeradicated - that claim can never be made. But my main message is that within ashort period of time, corruption can be controlled.

Question: Some people say HK is a city of 7 million people,whereas India's population is 1.2b. So the HK model cannot be replicated inIndia. Are you saying that is not true?

Mr.Tony Kwok: I cannot say that this isnot true. This is a question that has been posed to me before. Just becausethat we are only a city-state and that we have different cultures, religions sothe same model will not apply. I challenge them that if there is the will, whynot set up an ICAC in your capital city, say, for the first 2 years - that is,start small. When you talk about capital, of course Delhi has a larger populationthan Hong Kong, but that is still comparable. If you can model the ICAC thereand start with that, then you can show the rest of the country that it can bedone. Then the model can be applied to other provinces as well. Of course, I amnot able to provide any concrete proof that it can be done. Because in the past50 years, there are only two examples of countries which were notoriouslycorrupt and then transformed/converted into relatively clean countries -Singaporeand Hong Kong. I would be curious if there is a 3rd example.

Question: Neither Singaporenor HK is multi-party, vibrantdemocracy like India is. There is so much corruption tied to politics. Do youthink that is an impediment to fixing the problem?

Mr.Tony Kwok: When you say vibrant democracy,we must qualify whether it is a successful and fair democracy. Coz I see manyexamples of so-called democracy, which, in my view is itself a source ofcorruption. They have corruption because of democracy. In a democracy, you gofor elections, and if you do not have a proper system or effective enforcementof fair election practices or prevent bribery, then politicians need money tobuy votes and once they get elected, then they need to get their money back.This explains the close ties between democracy and corruption in many places -Africa, Eastern Europe etc. First thing they got democracy and next thing wascorruption. I don’t know enough about India, but for you to fight corruption,you need to look into the election system and examine how widespread is themalpractice and bribery there. If an MP can easily/successfully be electedthrough malpractice - if it is easy, then it is a big impediment to fightingcorruption - since these people will not have the political will to fightcorruption and without it, you can all go home. You can never fight corruptionwithout political will. So you must make sure that the top men are reallycorruption-free and have a genuine desire to fight corruption. If not, thencorruption must be on the top of the agenda during every election and peoplemust choose to vote for someone that is clean.

Question: How bad was corruption in Hong Kong before the ICACcame into being?

Mr.Tony Kwok: Corruption was describedas from the womb to the tomb. I remember when my mother went to the publichospital to give birth to my younger brother; she brought, along with othernecessities, a bag of coins. Why? Every time she needed a glass of water or atowel or any other service, she had to pay the helper a dollar. This has becomethe norm. Although they were government servants and it was their job to dothis service, it was actually an offence for them to seek these kind offavors/bribe/tips.

Then,if you have to go to school, you need to pay - same with jobs or promotions,you need to send gifts. Even if you die, you have to pay before you can get adecent burial.

Question: This is sort of the same situation in India today.

Mr.Tony Kwok: It was probably evenworse in Hong Kong then. For example, the fire brigade would not douse a fireunless given money. There is a Chinese saying that 'water is money'. The jokegoes that the firemen would say, 'No water, no water', 'Have water, get water'.If your house is on fire, you have to pay the fireman before they tackle thefire. If you require an ambulance- no money, no delivery. This was in the 50s,60s. Everybody could witness it. People used to smoke opium and gamble behindcurtains in shops. It was clear police were also involved even though it wasillegal at the time. At the time, everybody accepted it as a way of life.Corruption was very syndicated and well organized. It was part of the systemand everybody knew.

Question: What opposition did the people proposing the ICAC faceand how was it overcome? Do you see similarities to the movement in India?

Mr.Tony Kwok: Key success factor inHong Kongwas political will. There is a lot of similarity between India andHong Kong- we were both corrupt and the movement gathered pace because ofpeople power, protests and demonstrations that force the government to dosomething. Hong Kong was lucky that after the protests, the governor wassomeone very genuine and wanted to eradicate corruption. Apparently, he gave ablank cheque to the first commissioner and promised all resources he wanted to getrid of the problem. So, Hong Kong's ICAC is one of the most well-funded andstaffed anti-corruption organisations in the world. This is very important forit to be effective.

Politicalwill can [and should be] measured by the extent to which the politicianprovides resources to the anti-corruption agency. For a yardstick, in HongKong, around 0.3% of annual government spending is reserved for ICAC whereasthere are many other countries where only peanuts (<0.01%) is budgetedfor the anti-corruption agency. So, one lesson for India is that the Lokpalsystem should be provided sufficient resources to employ the best people to beeffective. In Hong Kong, we were able to hire the best talent from places likeUK- that way, they were totally disconnected from the happenings in HK andcould be unbiased and effective in their jobs in the ICAC. This was also a wayto ensure the independence of the organization and very important for thesuccess of the ICAC.

Myadvice would be for India to follow a step/step approach. Firstly, you get astrong Lokpal bill passed and secondly, get the right person to be the firsthead of Lokpal and thirdly, this head should ensure that the Lokpal is properlyresourced (budget etc.). And this does not take much money. Take Hong Kong'sexample- we are well-resourced while using up only around 0.3% of the annualgovernment budget. So any government that is genuine about fighting corruptioncan easily spend 0.3% of its budget on it, should it see it as a major problem.

Sothe key success factors are strong law; well-resourced agencies withprofessionals and independence; and freedom from political interference.

Onthe subject of removal of a person from Lokpal: I don’t quite understand howyou can REMOVE people from Lokpal. Once a commissioner is appointed, he/sheshould be able enjoy a period of total independence (3-5 years) and duringthis, he should be free to pursue cases of corruption and should be removedonly if there are serious allegations via impeachment which also requires legaland parliamentary processes.

Question: One of the criticisms of the Lokpal bill is that itdoes not address corporate corruption. What is your view?

Mr.Tony Kwok: One of the reasons HongKongwas successful was that we did not have double-standards. If you want tofight corruption, you should fight it anywhere, whether politics or business.If you allow the double-standard, no way can the society become clean. So whatyou need is a policy of zero-tolerance. This means 2 things: (1) you deal willcorruption both at the very top of the government and the very bottom; with onemillion rupee as well as 1 rupee. What would vary is only the punishment and(2) you deal with corruption both in government, SoE's and private sector,education etc.

Youhave seen headlines in Hong Kong, covering cases in government as well asprivate sector. That's what you need for a clean society.

Question: Is it a good idea to start with political corruption(and public sector) given a country as large as India?

Mr.Tony Kwok: I think you need a clearmessage to the country from the beginning that you have zero-tolerance tocorruption. However, given the size and scale, you could first allocate moreresources to deal with selected cases in a specific area, just to demonstrateserious intent. For example, we invested 90% in the early days on investigationand on government sector corruption and only 10% on business. That changed withtime. Now, after 30-odd years, it is about 50-50. Even within the investigativearm, around 70% were focused on major corruption cases but 30% still focused onpetty corruption. This way, the message of zero-tolerance was conveyed to thepublic. People would read in media about government cases as well as somebusiness sector, hospital malpractice etc. This ensured that someone could notthink they were still immune and could continue their corrupt ways. The sameapplies to the provinces as well - strong messages need to be sent.

However,it is not possible to spread your wings too wide too early, so it is a questionof allocating resources.

Weemphasized zero tolerance from the beginning and followed it up with action.That is probably what made it so successful.

Regardsthe enforcement strategy, when you start, it is important that you tacklehigh-profile cases. That is what gets people's attention. People seeing pettycorruption cases will not be so easily transformed. So you must have the'big-fish' case as soon as possible to demonstrate your determination andindependence. The closer to the prime minister would be the best to also showthe independence of the agency. that will get the attention of the public.Along with it, you also target smaller cases which are close to common peopleto show them that no one is immune.

Question: Is the bribe-giver on same terms of liability as thebribe-taker?

Mr.Tony Kwok: This is an importantprinciple which was also enforced. The giver and taker are EQUALLY culpable inlaw. But we need to look at it on merit as well - perhaps the giver was coercedinto paying the bribe. In Hong Kong, both in the law and in our publiceducation and awareness programs, we always emphasise that both giver and takerare equally liable. In some countries, giver is not liable but it is difficultto claim a clean society without this. In other countries, solicitation is notan offense because you only asked for it, but that is also ridiculous. This isall just to protect the government and the corrupt employees.

Question: People who man an anti-corruption agency must haveimpeccable credentials for it to be effective. How has the ICAC ensured that,at every level, their people's personal probity is unimpeachable?

Mr.Tony Kwok: There are two areas wherethere are checks and balances. First, when someone is recruited, we look forthe best talent; carry out integrity check, background check. Any doubt wouldautomatically be cause for rejection irrespective of performance in theinterview. Second, we set up an ICAC within ICAC. We have a small unit, about10 people, who are responsible for staff monitoring (Vinod: likecounter-intelligence in spy agencies). In addition, as an on-going rule, wehave very stringent rules for f the employees. While government employees haveto declare assets every year (senior) or when they join (junior level), ALL ICACemployees have to declare their ASSETS and LIABILITIES every 6 months. Forexample, you buy stocks and shares; you declare it within 2 weeks.

Thereare also rules regarding declaration of conflict of interest. If any publicservant is involved in a official situation of conflict of interest with hisprivate interest, he should declare it. If not, it is punishable as an offence- even if you are NOT the direct benefactor (for example, a relative wins acontract thanks to your position, it must be declared else you are punishable).This is very important since this is what the MPs typically do, isn’t it? Abusetheir position to help their families and others. This is vigorously enforcedin ICAC and civil service.

Wehave an open complaint system where anyone can complain against anotherperson/institution. We have directives to investigate them.

Internally,we also have a hotline so anyone can complain directly to a concerneddepartment without going through the normal channels.

Wereceive both named and anonymous complaints. Anonymous complaints on corruptionare assessed but not always investigated. On average, we might investigate 1 in5 anonymous complaints since further information to start off is very difficultto obtain in such cases. However, EVERY anonymous complaint against an ICACofficial is investigated without exception.

Question: Is that the whistleblower provision?

Mr.Tony Kwok: Hong Kong does not havesuch a provision. Whistleblower helps but not a lot in fighting corruption. Inthose cases, whistleblowers need to be part of witness protection, a provisionthat Hong Kong has. IF you are classified as a witness, we are legally bound toprotect your life and identity.

Question: ICAC had experienced cases where witnesses have beenlost, run away, refused to testify etc. What has been done about that?

Mr.Tony Kwok: You need a legalprovision to protect the witness. You have to do it professionally. You dontand should not use another agency, like police, to do it. In ICAC, we have ourown witness protection unit; they are authorized to carry arms and trained onWP.

TheLokpal law should be properly written so that all the offenses are listed, thepolicy should reflect zero tolerance and should cover loopholes like bribegiver/taker, witness protection. It should provide adequate power fullinvestigative powers - arrest, search, detain, investigate, surveillance (withcourt approval), phone tap etc.

Tofollow up on the law, a comprehensive approach is needed - Hong Konghad adoptedsuch an approach. For example, ICAC has a 3-pronged approach - enforcement,prevention and education. So your Lokpal should have at least three distinctivedepts: investigation, prevention- and the third dept should looks into thesystem like government procurement to look for loopholes and reduce theopportunities for corruption. Another department could focus on publiceducation with experts educating the public - put material into the schooleducation system and so on.

Question: Is the judiciary also covered? If so, did HKgovernment have to make any amendments or judicial process to accommodate it?

Mr.Tony Kwok: The law clearly said thatANY public servant (and this includes judiciary), that is, anyone who is paidby government is under the ambit of the law. It also included the ChiefExecutive (Editors: The PM, in the case of India). The procedures toinvestigate judges are no different; however, for the Chief Exceutives it is aseparate procedure, which is reasonable, but they are still covered.

Question: Did judiciary feel they should NOT be part of this lawand outside?

Mr.Tony Kwok: Corruption is a crime. Soit does not matter who committed it. Whether the judge committed a bank robberyor theft or murder, it is the same, and he should face a criminal investigation.Therefore, this cannot be claimed as infringing on the independence of thejudiciary. Of course, he has his rights and if wrongly accused, he knows theremedies. There should not be any difference when it comes to zero tolerance ofcorruption.

Question: How do you guard against frivolous complaints (becausereputations could take a hit)?

Mr.Tony Kwok: Malicious or falsecomplaints are treated as a criminal offense under law. There are 2 aspects: ifyour complaint is false or malicious, you go to jail; secondly, for anyinvestigation, the fact-finding mission is always a secret and no one isallowed to divulge the nature and identity of the suspect or the investigation.Even the media is not allowed to publish it. If it does, it is an offense.However, after this, once ICAC is ready to take action, the nature of thecomplaint should be established. That’s how frivolous complaints are targeted.

Wehave taken action against media in this regard before. Media claimed thisinfringed on their independence. At that time, Hong Kong was a British colony,so they appealed to the Privy Council in London, but the Privy Council upheldthe law as proper to protect the integrity of the investigation and of thesuspect. This is important to pacify the parliament, judges and people insenior positions that the investigations will not be made public unless thereis a good amount of evidence.

Question: Do Legislative Council members have any privilegesthat they can invoke?

Mr.Tony Kwok: Only privilege is thatthey cannot be arrested when in the chamber. You have to wait till they getout. Just to maintain their dignity.

Mr.Tony Kwok: What is needed when theythe Lok Pal organization is set up you should have an advisory meeting withLokpal head and invite consultants to train, advise them, staff them etc.

Question: Why not strengthen existing agencies like CBI, CVCinstead of bringing in a new organization?

Mr.Tony Kwok: It is an issue of public perception. If the current perception isthat these existing agencies have not been effective, then you should have anew organization if you are serious about fighting corruption. If they arealready perceived to be effective, then you don’t need a new organization – youcan focus on strengthening the existing ones. For ex:, FBI in the USisperceived to be effective in enforcement & investigation, so no changerequired. However, if the existing agencies do not have a strong voice and arenot independent, the perception in spite of changes will not help fightcorruption. In many corrupt countries that I visited, police in the front linemay also corrupt. People in these countries also doubt the anti-corruptionagency’s investigations as influenced and not independent.

Therefore,for it to be effective, you need an independent agency to fight corruption.Also, the current agencies might not have people with the level of integrityrequired by the new agency.

Question: Corruption in cases of relationships between thegovernment and the market.

Mr.Tony Kwok: Key aspect is thatgovernment must act in public interest. Therefore, a conflict of interestmechanism needs to be in place.

Question: 2G scam; Telecom was responsible but Finance and PMOwere also involved. So who is responsible in your view?

Mr.Tony Kwok: Was it because of incompetenceor on purpose? If the decision was made on purpose to favor individual companybe causer of gain or personal interest, then it is corruption.

Question: The need for change in people’s mindset to corruption–how did ICAC address it?

Mr.Tony Kwok: The public education armof ICAC was responsible for this. We used PR, education experts to spread themessage. But it has to start effective enforcement and be supported by publiceducation – you show examples and then tell the public, ‘look what happened tothat guy, if you are corrupt, you go to jail as well’.

Mediaplayed a big role in the 70s for public education. Every evening, people arebombarded with commercials about how bad corruption is. At that time, everyoneknew our hotline number because of the bombardment. Even today, we haveretained the same hotline number to maintain continuity and make it easy forpeople to report corrupt practices. Our commercials were actually award-winningand useful in changing people’s attitudes.

Usually,public education arm followed the enforcement arm. For example, if there was amajor case in a govt. dept… after the investigation and closure, the publiceducation arm would then follow up and train that dept. on avoidance in future.

Citizen’scharter is good. Lot of corrupt countries have it, but important point is theenforcement and monitoring system to ensure that the charter is being followed.Either ombudsman or civil society does the monitoring and there is an effectivemeans to report any complaints.

Question: Your opinion on having different agencies enforcingdifferent parts of the system?

Mr.Tony Kwok:You cannot rely on one single agency/person but on thewhole society. Need a mechanism for coalition. You need a central agency forthis – could be Lokpal which chairs a coalition council. It will invite therepresentatives from the right agencies as appropriate but these reps should beunder one body, preferably the ICAC/Lokpal

Insteadof citizen’s charter, try a Prime Minister’s workshop. He should demonstratepolitical will by inviting heads of government agencies and have a facilitatorto discuss how each agency should fight corruption within its own walls. Thiswill create an action plan for each agency (anti-corruption action plan),vetted by the ICAC/Lokpal and approved by PMO. Once approved, the head of eachagency then prepares a quarterly report about the progress. The whole thing ismonitored and followed-up by ICAC. Then have a yearly review followed uprefinements and another workshop. This kind of a system ensures each agency tofight its own corruption, through PM’s leadership, while being monitored andpossibly advised by the anti-corruption agency.

Ihave done this in Philippines, Serbiaand Mongolia.Mongoliais a good example:they had a PM’s workshop just few months before the elections when hispopularity was low. He got re-elected. In the 2^ndyear, he expandedcoverage from 30 to 100 govt. agencies and then expanded scope to theprovinces. Now all SoE’s also get to do the workshop.

NowI am integrating this into a business course and trying to get it to businessesto maintain ethics and integrity in your own house. Every company should havean integrity plan and appoint an integrity manager. He knows how todesign and implement an anti-corruption action plan and be an internalauditor/watchdog.

Question: Personal question: have you been asked to pay a bribe?

Mr.Tony Kwok: When I was young, whenyou try to apply for telephone then in HK, it used to take years. I was astudent then. We finally got it, and the men came to install it, and it workedfine. We were very excited. And then the linesman said ‘you know what to do’.But we did not understand. When he left, by the time he reached the groundfloor, the phone did not work. My mother said that we should have tipped him.My mom gave them some tips and then it started working again. I was very youngthen.

Question: Should Lokpal official be given authority for removalof a corrupt public official?

Mr.Tony Kwok: NO. That should be anindependent, judicial process. Lokpal should only investigate and prosecute. Ifthere is not enough evidence, the agency should have a monitoring mechanism onwhy no action was taken.

InHong Kong, we don’t prosecute. The Secretary of Justice team would thenprosecute.

Question: Parallel courts?

Mr.Tony Kwok: We only have standardcourts. In some countries, when the judiciary is perceived to be corrupt,typically they come up with an anti-corruption court. Also helps fast trackcases.

.../ends.

An Expert Panel Discussion on Jan Lokpal Bill Movement & Way Ahead

2011-09-26T11:48:00.000+05:30

Hong Kong Indians submitted petition in support of Jan Lokpal Bill

2011-08-31T12:50:00.000+05:30

India 2.0 - Work In Progress

2011-08-08T21:26:00.006+05:30

I feel good that some people at least have a say, a point of view unlike many other youths who prefer to remain silent! History curses those who chose to remain silent (remember Dhritrashtra, from our very own mythological stories)...they say Corruption is unstoppable. I understand that corruption is deeply rooted within our socio-political system. But, Friends! Just because something is difficult or seems impossible to achieve, we must not stop trying for...and thats the only success factor behind human growth and modern civilization. If we would have stopped trying, we wouldn't have grown. No one had imagined of Telephones even, forget about the cellphones..it was not even in dreams... what I mean is we must walk that extra mile which is followed by success. And right now a Strong Jan Lokpal Bill is the only instrument which promises a better picture of our Nation. It will take time to change the culture n attitude of Corruption but not impossible, its just that we all need to stand together without loosing our hearts...!

Look at the courage of a 74 year old grandpa. He started walking with a Clay Candle of Honesty in His Hands, against storm of corruption, and made many of us realize that we can also be torch bearers, we all have right, energy and opportunity to fight with Kingdom of Darks. I am sad that some of us still feel the age of darkness is better than light of honesty, still some of us love to debate whether there should be such a strong, independent anti-corruption institution or not... Folks from Fantasy Land! Wake up, you still have time to cherish the right thing, you can always talk, discuss, debate, suggest what you think is right but to do that please stand on right side, unite and bring more positive energy, join the movement of reforms! It's just a BEGINNING!!!

I have been hearing/reading lots of arguments on not to support something good i.e. a strong anti-corruption law which promises (it doesn't just promise but they know it will walk the talk) to nail down those who are corrupts :-) One of them and most common myth is --- 'We all are corrupts,we must Fix ourselves first before doing anything to the system'. Our friends not supporting anti-corruption movement with this argument must understand that only individual's correction won't help, we need JLP Bill because once we have it, firstly - we will not have opportunity to be corrupt because of (knowing) the consequences of being corrupt when system is in place. One of my friend quoted on Facebook, that "Once I evaded taxes by using false House rent slip, but I never tried that in Hong Kong. Why? Is this some sort of Change of heart..? No! Just that its risky in Hong Kong. It's as natural as now-a-days-corruption in India, when we know the harsh consequences of our actions, we don't dare to repeat such acts. This is one of the reason why our present Government is trying hard to pass a weak, ineffective Lokpal Bill which actually will protect Corrupts. And second - if I have done something wrong yesterday it doesn't mean that I have lost the right to be right today, at the same time if I am asking to fix the system by implementing a strong anti-corruption law then it goes without saying that I am allowing the system to punish me if I am wrong and thus the process of individual purification already started...So still its not too late for them to join hands together. Spread the awareness, connect with more people and ask them to unite for one BIG reason i.e. Corruption Free India.

Dear Fellow Indians! We could potentially witness when History will be written but only if we face the truth, and don't turn our back from reality. Quit all the ego, pretentious acts, and prejudices, and forget about how much change our individual effort may bring, just be with the flow, go with the wind in same direction where millions are flying for and you will become a STORM to take out the empire of deep rooted corrupt SYSTEM!!! We are the Kings of our own Kingdom, sons of Mother India, we will settle in nothing less than Jan Lokpal, it's India 2.0 - WIP.

Jai Hind!

IAC - Hong Kong Team

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"We are against corruption, India is against corruption, how about you...? Feel free to get in touch with us if you have any queries related to anti-corruption movement"

Our previous protest organized in Hong Kong on 09 April, 11

2011-07-19T07:23:00.000+05:30

Protest to Support Anticorruption Movement

2011-07-19T07:16:00.001+05:30

First Cut - from Hong Kong

2010-12-27T20:49:00.000+05:30

मेरा जीवन दर्पण

2010-11-15T20:18:00.000+05:30

जब अंतर्मन का गाँव मेरा सूना होता है,
तब याद तुम्हारी दीप फुलझड़ी बन जाती है |
जब जीवन रंग हीन सा लगने लगता है,
मुस्कान तुम्हारी होली गुझिया बन जाती है |
तुम सिर्फ प्रेमिका नहीं मेरा जीवन दर्पण हो,
तुम पत्नी, पूरक, श्रद्धा और जीवन दर्शन हो |

The Three Winning Strategies

2010-04-02T22:14:00.001+05:30

Dear Friends,

In my presentations, I keep talking about 3 winning strategies; Power of Observation, Desire of Execution and Art of Persuasion. I have already promised to some of my friends to elaborate my idea on it, and here I am trying to keep my words.

Since my childhood I have been listening from my elders or I have been reading in books that “Experience is the best teacher”. In a way, this statement has an in-depth meaning, and has got a valuable truth as well but I never found it aligned with my idea of a Best Teacher. I tried to analyze and then I realized there is even a better teacher within us, and that is not the Experience, but I called it Observation, which comes (for me) before Experience. Experience as a general concept comprises knowledge of or skill in some thing or some event gained through involvement in or exposure to that thing or event (The history of the word experience aligns it closely with the concept of experiment). I found that there is one ingredient that plays a major role in placing the phenomenon of ‘Experience is the best Teacher’, and that ingredient is ‘Time’. It has been assumed that if one experience something as the time passes, that persons can gain expertise. This never sounded good to me (I mean you all can have a different way to explain it but still it did not sound good to me). I think Observation is more appropriate and precise word, to replace the word ‘Experience’ and to make it look like ‘Observation is the best teacher’. If we do not observe then the experience means nothing, on the contrary, in this case if there is person who is so called Experienced Person, is as good as a blind person, sitting near window seat, passing through a beautiful road, without noticing a single thing out of it.

Thus, we can see that Observation is either an activity of a living being (such as a human), consisting of receiving knowledge of the outside world through the senses, or the recording of data using scientific instruments. Observation is the process of filtering sensory information through the thought process. Input is received via hearing, sight, smell, taste, or touch and then analyzed through either rational or irrational thought.

The more observing we are, we will be productive in a better way. To prove that we have been traditionally giving more importance to Observation than the Experience, I would like to take you to one of our Mythological story of the King Parikshit, who was cursed to be killed by a snake-bite. In his last days, he wished to listen Srimad Bhagvatam before he dies, and for that reason he started looking for some great scholar across the universe that can chant the verses and make him understand the essence of it. That time lot many Rishis, Mahirishis and Brahmarshis were there but the King chose just 16 year old Shukdev ji to help him. We can see (or we can observe…) that for him, the Experienced Scholar did not matter but what mattered is that Intelligence that came to Shukdev by Observation in a very short age. When I tell you this, I do not mean that Experience has nothing to do with Quality output, but rather I want to say that Experience without Observation is nothing at all. Observation is more important than anything, first Observe it as deeply and as closely you can and then you go to next level. It goes without saying that Observation is completed only when our brain get into touch with any stimulus and effects our minds, otherwise it’s not observation but just another piece of experience. The importance of Observation has been accepted by many western scholars and thinkers, e.g. "Observe always that everything is the result of a change, and get used to thinking that there is nothing Nature loves so well as to change existing forms and to make new ones like them." Meditations. iv. 36. - Marcus Aurelius

To activate our ‘Power of Observation’, two things are required. First, we must shut-up. That's right, stop talking - both to yourself (in your mind) and to others. When our mouth is closed, our ears and eyes magically open wider.

The second step is to gather verbal and non-verbal information without thinking about it. This is easier said than done, but can be mastered with practice.

There are lots of benefits of an enhanced Observation skill, for example we can have a better understanding of friends and rivals, good and bad, can improve our decision making skills, we can learn a better way to help people, we can learn how to influence others, finding new ways to solve persistent problems and last but not the least, seeing Opportunities and Problems before they happen. With benefits like these it's no surprise that confidence and self belief improve too.

One of the strangest things about being a human is the way we have to unconsciously ignore most of the information available to our senses. And because of this nature, the ‘Power of Observation’ becomes very relevant and important for us.

After practicing ‘Power of Observation’, we need to move towards the next level, which can help us win the battle. Yes, I am talking about the ‘Desire of Execution’. ‘Desire of Execution’ is second most important factor. To accomplish anything, there has to be a strong desire, driven and motivated from within because this desire only will decide how far we can travel, how much of hardship we can take, to fetch our wagon beyond stars.

A strong ‘Desire of Execution’ is when you don’t just sit back and worry that how will you reach your goal, whether you will reach your goal or not but rather you keep working on it. This ‘Desire of Execution’, for me, works as fuel to sail through any problem and reach my destination. I would like to quote here the example of our own former CTO and present CEO Mr. N. Chandrasekaran. Nobody would ever think that certain people could run a marathon. If the person desired to run it, but never did anything about it, then it would never happen. If the person focused on execution, then that person would start to run every day. First that person would run 1 mile a day. Then the person would increase that to 2 miles a day. Gradually the person would increase the difficulty until they reached 26.2 miles. This is because that person focused on execution, with a very strong desire of doing it. And that is what our CEO did, by finishing the Marathon.

There are millions of people on our planet, who wish to be rich or have some similar very high ambitions. Sometimes, they even think also that how they can be what they wish to be. But they lack in this strong ‘Desire of Execution’, they don’t have this fuel to help them. They consistently do not think of new ideas, and constantly pitching those new ideas and trying to create some value out of it. Are they…? Of course not, and that is why I like one of most successful innovators Mr Disney’s statement that ‘‘Get a good idea and stay with it. Do it, and work at it until it's done right’.

So, the next time you think of a new goal, consider whether or not you are acting with ‘Desire of Execution’. Don’t just sit around but wake up, don’t stop till you reach your goal.

Now, let’s move towards the third and final winning strategy i.e. ‘Art of Persuasion’. Here also I would like tell you a small story. My grandfather used to tell me one story in my childhood. The story was about Lord Krishna and Maryada Purushottam Ram. It goes like this: Once all the Gods and goddesses had a meeting headed by Lord Brahma, to decide between Rama and Krishna, who deserve to be worshiped as God and who is not. Everybody started working on it to come up the final decision. And then it was decided that Krishna will be worshiped by the world as God and not the Rama. Someone asked – why is it like that? Then Lord Brahma answered. To be a complete soul, to be a God, one needs to have all the 16 Gunas (16 traits of personality). Ram is having only 14 Gunas and thus he is a perfect Man that is why he will be respected as Maryada Purushottam (Respectful and perfect among all Men). On the other side, Krishna possess total of 16 Gunas, 2 Gunas more than Rama, that is why he deserves to be worshipped as the God. And those Gunas are, when asked he answered: first is Krishna knows how to dance and second is he also knows how to make other dance. As I grew up I heard similar stories from other sources as well. I started thinking over it again and again. I found that actually those 2 Gunas that Krishna had with him, are nothing but ‘Art of Persuasion’ – if we put it together. Yes, that is what the ‘Art of Persuasion’ is all about. You can understand it in various ways. For example, if someone is good in communication skill, he is supposed to speak well, but at the same time he is supposed to be a great listener as well. If I want to make my thought understood by someone, I have to understand his/her words as well. This is what Krishna was having – he dances and makes others also dance with him. This ‘Art of Persuasion’ is something that can lead you to success if you have it. You just need to learn how to pursue something, with your 100% of heart. Once you have learnt this art, you can sell ideas, you can still sell Desktops, you can sell computer architectures, software - in short from paper pin to airplane anything you can play with the way you want to.

You just need to know and practices carefully few things in your life – the things that can help you to be an Expert of this Art. I have mentioned above Mr. Disney's statment ("Get a good idea..."). What did he mean when said this, what does this statement refer to…? Within this statement, he also talked about this ‘Art of Persuasion’ indirectly that get an good idea, stay with, and keep pursuing it with you full heart, dedication and passion, and don’t quit until you get it done. Let’s try to find out couple of practices that we ought to bring into our daily life and see how it changes our whole world:

1) Speak only those words that sound good if spoken to you

We should always try to put ourselves in the other’s shoes (if we really care to know where it’s pinching) and understand the situation from their point of view. Set aside your personal interests and concentrate on them. Ask yourself if you are them, what would you do? What would be your opinion? Then take the appropriate action that would be beneficial to them.

2) Try to behave the way other one is behaving

People feel comfortable with those who are like them. Copy the person you are trying to create a connection with. Observe how they act, how they speak, and how they think. If they rub their forehead while they think, act like them. If they speak at a clear and slow pace, try to do the same thing. This is called mirroring. In due time, the people you’re mirroring will subconsciously feel more comfortable with you. It’s as if they see themselves in you. Proceed with caution, however. Do not let them be aware that you are copying them. They might interpret it as mockery and you’ll just get into trouble.

3) Accept all the people as they are, and be cheerful and nice to them

Our parents were always right when they taught us to be nice and gentle to all. People like others who brighten up their day. Make a sincere compliment to raise their spirits. Little things like these go a long way to breaking the ice and setting the relationship off to a good start.

4) Walk the talk, and show your sincerity and trustworthiness

Make them feel that whenever they need help or just someone to look up to; you’ll always be there to lend a hand. People tend to be more receptive to those they trust. If you have a boss or client you are trying to please, over deliver and exceed their expectations. Soon, they will notice your efforts and will be more than glad to grant your request.

5) Express effectively and provide them with all compelling evidence

Explain to them how your ideas or suggestions could be the most effective techniques to implement. Show them undeniable proof that you have the best product by way of testimonials, before and after scenarios, and detailed comparisons against your competitors. Just make sure that all your claims are true and verifiable. Always maintain a good reputation.

6) Personalize the content being delivered or to be delivered

This is the most important thing to remember when persuading anyone. People are self-centered. They always put their own well-being before others.

No matter how close you are to becoming like them or how overwhelming your evidence is, if it does not satisfy the "What’s in it for me?" test, your persuasion efforts will not produce satisfactory results. If you can prove that your proposal will provide more advantageous benefits to them than to you, they are more likely to accept it.

7) Walk the way of ‘Servant Leadership’ and make them feel that you really care for them

Focus more on their interests, desires, needs, and expectations, so you can satisfy their craving for attention, and establish mutual trust and respect. It also shows that you really care about them and that will make them more likely to trust you and want to work with you.

Dear Team! These are couple of things, that I had in my mind and thought share with you all because we never know what can be helpful to someone at what point of time and I also believe that we should all let the noble thoughts come to us from every side. The three winning strategies that I have tried to elaborate, have come from own observation. You also might have observed something similar to this. I don’t claim that this is the only way to be successful; rather I strongly believe we all can have different ways to reach our Goals but the ideas that I have been talking about are the soul of any success mantra, which is, if practiced, going to make a difference for sure. How we are going to implement these 3 winning strategies in our daily life may differ, depending upon our personalities, because Personality is ‘dynamic’ organization of individual’s psycho-physical characteristics that determine his/her unique adjustments with his/her environment. So, your environment and your characteristics will definitely play an important role when it comes to apply the above explained fundamentals. What I can say is that all the very best for all your true efforts and may you all be effective in your lives.

With loads of positive energy, I am looking forward to hear about your thoughts/comments on this piece of article.

Thank you.

Regards,

Dilip K. Pandey

A Point of View: Spirituality and Religion

2010-01-31T21:37:00.003+05:30

A visitor to Orkut Community - Divine Flames, raised a question, that I thought to share with you all...

"Dear dilip,

Can you pls differentiate between one being a religious & one being a Spiritual?

Are they cross-linked?

I am in a dilemma because i think most us want to be spiritual, & we choose the path of religion to take us to that spiritual infinity.........But it is following this religion which infuses fanaticism & rather than making us spiritual, it leads to possessiveness towards one particular sect & hatred towards all other......

I believe it is root cause of most of the problems we are facing today.......Thousands are being slaughtered in the name of religion, sect & language....while everyone is trying to be spiritual through these actions!!!!!!!!!!

So don't you think it's time to look beyond the horizons of religion & become spiritual in real sense? "

and I tried to answer his queries this way:

Hi Friend!

Thank you for visiting the community and posting a query. The question you have raised is very relevant, and for most of us this concept is somewhat misunderstood. We really need to understand the details of being religious and spiritual. There are indeed differences between the two. Why I am saying because one can be Spiritual but not religious at all. Spirituality, what I think is a state of mind, that reflects through our behaviors and shows up that the individual has attained a position wherein he/she is contributing either less to the entropy (a doctrine of inevitable social decline and degeneration) or not at all contributing to the entropy. They have less selfishness, are less materialistic or not materialistic at all. I believe anybody, who understand what to do and what not to do, who understand the benefits of being fearless, or who understand what can bound their actions and what can make them feel free, or someone who understands that all souls in this universe are actually one, and one is into all, is in a way Spiritual.

He/she is also spiritual who thinks his/her life is not just for himself/herself but for many other souls in this universe and thus they must optimize their senses for betterment of mankind, help one another understanding the meaning of being a Human, such actions are manifestation of Spirituality. But, at the same time I would like to confirm that all religions (in its most commonly (mis)understood definitions) try to base their teachings on Spirituality. Spirituality comes under religion's subject matter. Now, I would not like to discuss here upon what I think about religion or what a religion should be good at, but being religious might help you being spiritual (not always). Today, whatever the slaughter is happening is not at all religious. That is more than 100% wrongly spread stuff by some particular misguided souls. Religion never teaches to kill rather it teaches to protect. It teaches Peace but it also recommends to revolt if it is required to preserve the Peace for humanity. So, to conclude, I would say if you really understand the true essence of your religion or your way of spirituality, nothing matters for you and you will be good to man kind. I hope that I have tried to answer your queries. You can continue if this text has raised some more doubts in your mind, I would like to put my thoughts on same.

May the Force be with you.
With loads of love n' wishes,
Dilip

P.S.: Post is open for your comments.

भारत-पर्व

2009-08-20T07:52:00.004+05:30

जन गण मन उपवन हो जाये ,
जब जब शुभ स्वातंत्र्य मनाये |
हृदय रंग जीवन तरंग भर ,
आओ सब भारत बन जाये |
गर्व हमें हम इसी धरा के ,
संत रचे जहाँ वेद ऋचाएं |
सच्चे बालक बन माता के ,
आओ हम सब कष्ट मिटायें |
जाति धर्म के भेद भुलाकर ,
सब मानववादी बन जायें |
एक गगन है, एक धरा है ,
एक भाव और प्रेम बढाएं |
निज मानव जीवन सार्थक हो ,
जब सेवा में इसे लगायें |
तब ही राष्ट्र सर्वोन्नत होगा ,
जब सेवा को धर्म बनाएं |
देश हमारा संगम ऐसा ,
संस्कृतियों की मिले धाराएं |
भाव पुष्प और गंध प्रेम के ,
जिसकी मिटटी में बस जायें ,
अखिल विश्व में अद्वितीय भारत ,
हम भारतवासी कहलायें |

ज़िन्दगी क्या है...

2009-01-18T20:34:00.006+05:30

वो हमसे पूछते हैं हाल-ए-ज़िन्दगी क्या है,

और हम उनसे पूछ बैठे ज़िन्दगी क्या है|

शीशा-ए-दिल है यहाँ, खून-ए-जिगर भी है यहाँ,

खेलने वाले बता तेरी आरजू क्या है|

हमने बाजों को बनाया है मसीहा अपना,

फंस गए पंजो में फ़िर बाज़ की गलती क्या है|

जिस्म बर्दाश्त करना सीख गया काला धुआं,

रूह भी सीख ले ये हुनर फ़िर मुश्किल क्या है|

ज़िन्दगी जा रही है किस तरफ़ ख़बर ही नही,

ख़ुद से कोई पूछ ले ज़रा, 'मेरी मंजिल क्या है?' |

On Being A Common Man...

2008-12-03T16:08:00.002+05:30

The country is facing attacks, explosions repeatedly, and resulting into common man loosing their lives. That makes us feel like what are we waiting for, when will stand up and clean our house. Mumbai, where millions manage their bread and butter, now has become a battle ground, where for a common man, the question is to Stay Alive first, not the Food. There are so many questions, which are left behind after these incidents. Those who have been chosen by us, for our nation, for its citizen, have to answer those questions. By this time, everyone would have understood that whatever happed, starting from 26t's night, is not an extempore play, but a result of well planned and practiced act maniac mind. The terrorist, who according to Police Sources and Media, arrived same day or a day before on scene using some boat, are not the only who are involved in this activity. There must have been several others who were staying in the city, and would have been executing the mock trials this act. Those who arrived from somewhere, they just gave the plot to this havoc and provided the initial thrust to whole activity. Like may be, some terrorist were already staying in Oberoi and Taj, and have been observing strategic positions, so that they can have an edge on Security arrangements, because only guns and explosive can not let them do what they were intended to. There were indeed some people, already checked in hotel with some guns/explosive etc. Because the way they were using their ammunition, it seems they have huge amount of it, 2-3 person can not carry that much of explosive to fight the nation’s so called Top security forces for 2-3 days.
Now the very first biggest question that arises is that all these explosives should not have even reached Mumbai. What is our Border Police meant for, and what Coast Guard has been doing then? Just think if these malicious minds would have been stopped on border, we might not have been forced to face this condition. This type Lack in Security Arrangements also put a question mark on utility of our Intelligence Agencies, what they are meant for, if they are working like some state police.
Second question is that, unfortunately, our country has been facing terror attacks since years, we have witnessed enough blood shed of our brothers and sisters, was that all not more than enough to open the eyes of our Great Politicians, who boast to be our true leaders, to enhance the security arrangements, beef up the safety arrangements and groom up intelligence activity, pack all the three land, water, and air borders, review and update the Security Policies to put a check on each and every small and big doubtful activity? Why was there only some Policemen fighting with Terrorist using their Service Revolver and old junk rifles for hours, while their opponents were having sophisticated automated weapons? Why do we not have advanced security measures in sensitive areas? Why the Terrorism has got the first priority when we talk but it’s missing from our Actions?
When everything was over, it was not a good morning indeed...the scene actually there was something where the mass was responding to the current situation beyond the limits of words...?Some reputed news channels were propagating the same old rhyme that “its Mumbai…it goes on…etc.” knowing that it does go on but not because it has guts.But it’s because common man have no other choice. They are feeling helpless.Those innocent common men are asking questions to themselves that “Is there nothing we are left with to hold the control of our own lives? And those poor people are forced to answer their own question with a real “BIG NO”. More or less this is the theme everywhere else in our country...And those self centered, squirt politicians who are being chosen by us are the one playing football with our heads...We are so unfortunate that our protector is the head of manslayer...
Similarly there are many more questions that must be answered, but whatever is being inscribed here is the voice of Common Man, without any Statistic and Analysis, which is the favorite act of our loving and caring Politicians. In current scenario, I feel that Lack of Leadership is the worst curse, and this is what making a common man feel helpless...that we are left with nothing we can count on...and we can go to someone and say. “Dear Sir! Please do something for heaven sake... and don’t let us die like insects.” We are forced to live with a kind of intermediate anger blended with fear that tomorrow we have to reach office to keep managing our bread and butter...There is no question of guts absolutely. During conversation with one of my friend I said “I feel like I am choking when I found myself bound to live with this kind of imbalance and havoc everywhere...it sucks when I breathe...” He replied “It’s same everywhere brother. It’s like pollution and you have to live with it. Our body adjusts to pollutions and our minds to such acts.” He is very true, in present scenario. But my problem is that “I don’t want to carry the blame of transferring this kind of society and place to our coming generation... but is it like really there is no other way to run? That friend of mine, still foresee some rays of hope, amidst the fog of dashing hopes and says that “We are reluctant to find a way, it seems now.” Adding to his thoughts, he concluded that when there were Kings like Shiva Ji Maharaj, then too there were intruders and invaders like Afzal Khan, Shahiste Khan but they were handled by our Prajaa-Paalak. And now days also, still we have them; we term them as Terrorist but unfortunately our Rulers lack in handling them. We are unfortunate enough to have that Janta Raja again in our Country, who respects the glory of our nation as mother-land and not just as a piece of land to live and die.
And at last but not least, media is loosing the sense of responsibility towards nation and its citizen. During more than 51 hours battle against terrorist, there have been several occasions that keep media in witness box. They started covering the whole scene as if they are in some kind of race, to spread any rubbish type of news, let it be the news that spread out about Terrorist having killed their mastermind in some boat, or rumors on number of Terrorists, or the spicy approach of showing visuals of terror site or helping terrorists by covering each and every activity of Security Team and there are many more. Wake up brothers and sisters, our country need us. May those who lost their lives, their soul rest in peace, and their force remain with us, and help us to come out of our sub-consciousness to protect our mother-land. Vande-Maataram.

बांसूरी और बन्दूक...

2008-11-18T12:05:00.001+05:30

बंदूकों ने पैठ बना ली बांसूरी के गाँव में,
फूलों ने तब ठान लिया हम चुभेंगे पाँव में.
जिन गलीयों में हमेशा बसती थी सोंधी खुशबू,
रक्त रंजित रिश्ते क्यों पनप गये उस ठांव में.
जाने कैसे प्रेम-पथिक हम बन गये असुरानुयायी,
सजने लगे लाशों के ढेर पीपल की छाँव में.
बच्चों की किलकारियां गूंजनी अब बंद हो गयी,
बारूद जबसे बिकने लगे खिलौने वाली नांव में.

(मात्रा सम्बन्धी अशुद्धियों के लिए क्षमा करें - दिलीप)

दुखांत...

2008-11-15T16:12:00.000+05:30

ख़ुद को बचाते हुए,

सहेजते, सजते, सवंरते, और समेटते हुए,

बढ़ रहे हैं हम सभी,

उसी ओर, नष्ट होने के लिए...

Gyan-Deep

2008-10-29T10:13:00.001+05:30

A walk with Cloud...

2008-06-24T14:22:00.000+05:30

I was running along with a cloud,
On the road, that leads to success,
Suddenly, the cloud disappeared,
That Cloud turned himself into rain drops.

The Cloud dissolved himself for earth,
To quench her ever existing thirst,
Lost his existence so that others can exist,
And nature can give new birth.

Then I realized the Glory behind Sacrifice,
I learned how to exist forever in this materialistic world,
And between Give and Take, how to make a choice,
I have decided not to run after something which is absurd.

Now, I will not live my life only for my shares,
I will find my reason to smile in eyes of others,
And then only we can make this world a place to live,
When we all will do the same what that Cloud did…

Science and Philosphy : A Conversation

2007-12-09T19:53:00.000+05:30

Dilip K. Pandey:
Philosophy is the Mother of Science,wat do u thnk?
Hi Friends,Should we believe Francis Bacon when he calls philosophy "the mother of the sciences," or John Locke when he calls her a "handmaiden to the sciences"? I believe we willdiscover that here, as in the case of most false dilemmas, the truth lies somewhere in between. Let's explore the extent to which philosophy and science need each other... Let us work out for 'Unification'.

Sudeep Bhattacharya:
It is Very Difficult to Conjugate Philosophy and Science.Philosophy is more about beliefScience is more about facts;they call it rationaleIt is more of an antimatter of Science.What do u say....?"u belive in what u see, rest all is philosophy....."

Dilip K Pandey:
@Sudeep,
Yes, you are absolutely right when you say that "It is Very Difficult to Conjugate Philosophy and Science.",even I dont want to do that, but the driving force behind this topice for me was in my early ages, I used to read that "There is only one Ultimate Power or Force which driving our whole universe"...(as you said this is something about philosophy- "Philosophy is more about belief") and the same time I was taught about different types of Forces in Science...this was really out my understanding capabilities during my childhood...years passed...after almost an decade suddenly I read that a Group of Scientists is working on "Unification of Forces"...that made me recall all that was just a philosophy for me long back ...and I realized what this "Unified Force Theory" is going to be...
This is just an example of one of the reasons that make think in the direction which leads to a Belief that "Is the Philosophy mother of Science...?"...After all, even if Philosophy, directly or indirectly, provides a ground which you cant see("u belive in what u see, rest all is philosophy....."), then too its worth talking about such a topic, isn't it ?

Anushree Ghisad :
Philosophy gives you a distinct vision to prcieve the life, it can expand your thinking horizons, provides you new dimensions........science can take you upto certain limits and well explain the reasons for something happening, but it cannot always provide you with certain logics, and here where philosophy comes to its aid.Also, there are many evidences in science where there is no concrete proof for many basic laws.Take for example zeroth law and very popular first law of thermodynamics.First law says ` energy can neither be created nor be destroyed, but total amount of energy in the universe remains constant`, or in other word it is impossible to create a machine without expenditure of work.
There is no mathematical proof for these laws, but they were declared as laws only because nobody could violete them or prove them wrong.And see,chemical engineering, mechanical, thermal and power engineering have used these laws as basis of entire engineering. in chemical industries, this is the crux of unit operatins and process calculations.

Anushree Ghisad :
All I want to say is, science cannot provide concrete reasoning for everything, because it has got limitations..........but philosoophy is all about belief, and aptly said in BHAGVADGITA ,` a man is made by his beliefs. As he believes, so he is`philosophy can explains reason behind everything, absolutely everything in this universe. Scince is created by man, but philosophy is immortal. At certain point in our lives, we are bound to accept it there is a HEIGHER FORCE which is guiding you, it is the ultimate truth in the universe, it is watching us all, all human being, those who have created science, so it ought to be far more superior than scinnce.....

Dilip K. Pandey:
@Anushree
Great thought...I wish this process be to much stronger...keep on writing...

Complete only with yin and yang

2007-06-11T12:56:00.000+05:30

To deny the feminine aspect of self is to deny a complete life. The completeness of God is owing to this melding of both the female and the male aspects. Sacred feminine therefore is a pursuit of those looking to achieve God-like completeness...

A FRIEND ASKED me once about my thoughts on being a devotee of sacred feminine. I did would like to share with you what I conveyed to him. As far as my concept of divinity is concerned, I believe God is beyond number, count and gender. God is one and more than one. God is both male and female and beyond the male-female dichotomy. We may worship the divine in any form we choose and God responds in kind. Lord Krishna says: “In whatever form people relate to Me, I respond in the same form.”

Several relationships with the Divine are described: the Divine as father, as mother, as friend, as husband or wife and as child. In our country, the Divine is worshiped in all these forms, and by true nature I accept all the people as they are (but it does not mean I follow them...). And, I am, from my basic nature, Matri-shakti Upasak. So, you can call me a devotee of sacred feminine.

Not just in India, but there is a resurgence of interest in the sacred feminine, especially in the West. Recently, the whole world was discussing about the Da Vinci Code and an analysis given by Dan Brown, which is as follows.
Early Christianity entailed "the cult of the Great Mother". Mary Magdalene represented the feminine cult and the Holy Grail of traditional lore
She was also Jesus’ wife and the mother of his children
Magdalene’s womb, carrying Jesus offspring, was the legendary Holy Grail (as seen in Da Vinci’s encoded painting, The Last Supper)
Jesus was not seen as divine (God) by his followers until Emperor Constantine declared him so for his own purposes
The "truth" about Christ and Mary Magdalene has been kept alive by a secret society named the Priory of Sion that was lead by great minds like Leonardo Da Vinci and Isaac Newton.
I would say that we could be truly human only through our connection to the sacred feminine. She is part of us and we are part of Her. If we deny our feminine aspect, we lead incomplete lives. She helps us to integrate our body, mind and soul. It is the integration of our masculine and feminine aspects that makes us whole and holy. We can be gentle and strong, intuitive and intellectual, inward and outward, reflective and active. We can love one another and care for each as brothers and sisters, as husbands and wives. We need the Goddess in our lives to repair, to nurture and to heal.

I don’t expect anyone to agree with all these, but just put what I have been thinking about our Feminine Aspects of Nature... and I am sorry to say that I havn’t read much of philosophy. But I think the phenomena that everybody is talking about, has already been there in the roots of our country… it is not like whatever the screnario (unluckily a bitter truth of male dominance) is there, is there from the start, it is all man-made, and nowhere mentioned in any of our Veda/Upnishad/Aranyak or Sanhita, and I am sure that everyone who has written the Bhashya (which is nothing but individual’s understanding of Veda) or tried to explain the concept of Sacred Feminie, has just accumulated the ideas from those roots. Sometimes I wonder so much is said and too little is followed. If you will go through our creation story (as it is mentioned in Brihad-Aranyaka Upanishad or the Book of Forest Teaching), you will find that in the beginning was the Self in the form of Purusha, or the Great Being. He looked around and found none else but himself. And, the Great Being said Aham in Sanskrit, or I am. That is how the Self came to be known as I am. He was afraid. But then he said to himself, "Of what am I afraid? There is none other than myself. Once he realized this, the fear was gone. But he had no delight, for one who is all alone, does not rejoice. The Great Being desired a second. He caused himself to grow as big as a man and woman closely embracing. He then caused himself to fall into two parts, and from this, a husband and wife were born.

Sage Yagna-valkya says: “One is like a half fragment, and this incompleteness is filled by a woman. The Great Being united with her, and thus the human race was born. But the woman reflected, how can he unite with me after producing me from himself? For shame, I will conceal myself. Thus followed the game of hide and seek between him and her. She hid herself becoming the cow. He became the bull and united with her; the bovine creation followed. She concealed herself as the mare; he became the stallion and the horse race ensued. She became a female-goat, and he a billy-goat, and from their union all goats were born. Thus followed several orders of creation, down even to the ants.” Says the scripture, “The Great Being then created the five elements: fire, wind, earth, water and space. He then created speech and names and forms to distinguish one from the other. God also created the fourfold order of society. Finally, he created Dharma, the Law that holds together the whole Creation.
Once the creation was in place, He saw that He Himself was the creation for indeed He had released it from Himself. The creation is He Himself. And he who realizes this truth of creation becomes himself a Creator for he is identified with the creative process and the Creator. To know is to become. So, in this creation story, the whole existence is One, for it originates from the One. It is the One Self that has entered into every object and into these bodies, down to the very tips of the fingernails. God therefore is not aloof from His/Her creation.

The creation is a manifestation of the powers and potentialities that reside within the Divine. Creation is not an illusion, or Maya. If God is real, then this creation is real since it originates from God. So, the Divine assumes a double form at the very moment of creation. The Great Being becomes two: male and female. God’s dual form represents two sides of One Reality — positive and negative, yin and yang, him and her.

If you will observe then you will find that the act of creation is joyful and fun-filled. So, I will conclude it on the note: "To know is to become."