Rules and Regulations: It Could Trap Even those who Made it (thoughtlessly)!

Yesterday, I got a message on my mobile phone which was sent from an automatic short message service (SMS) facility of my bank. It reads as follows:

"Dear customer, RBI's KYC norms require Banks to update customer data periodically. To update records we request you to visit your nearest ICICI bank branch with latest photograph, original and self attested copies of identity and address proof" 

When I got it, the immediate  response which came into my mind was some thing that is unprintable. I cursed the government, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), my bank and all those fellows who think that they are above the people who could keep on troubling the people every now and then for all kinds of things that they think as right.

But today I felt a bit relieved after reading a news item which appeared in the Economic Times. Given below is the clipping:

The news gives the story of the ex-Reserve Bank of India governor, Mr.D Subharao facing problems in opening a bank account in his home town-Hyderabad- after he moved to that place after his retirement. Mr Subharao faced problems in producing a suitable address proof of his current residence to the bank which is mandatory as per the KYC rules of the RBI. 

The news further adds that it was Mr Subharao who was instrumental in making this mandatory rule for the banks to follow when he was the RBI governor. 

Perhaps he never imagined that such rules could make irritations for him when he is no more in power! 

Perhaps he never imagined the difficulties the common people of India would face with such rules which are made with no future thoughts! 

Any way the present RBI governor, Mr.Raghuram Rajan has opined that it is a shame that many in India are failing to get bank accounts due to the bureaucratic bottlenecks! I am not sure how is he going to make the same constricted bottlenecks expanded! 

Why do we need banks? Why do we need an RBI which keep making such idiotic rules every now and then does like this? 

Why do we need a government and the people's representatives who are so insensible to the problems of the people and do not have the sensitivity and the powers to intervene when some of the incompetent government employees make rules and regulations without any forethought? 

These are the common feelings of the people of India when they face such things. Indian authorities keep making such rules and regulations in the pretext of administrative controls without making any efforts to study the consequences and without making any infrastructural facilities for effective implementation of their rules!

It would not have caused much irritation to me had our banks operated the way they used in the past. In the past, I used to bank with a bank branch and the officers and the staff used to know me as a customer by face as I used to be a visitor to the bank for all my banking needs. I got my bank account because some other valued customer who knew me introduced me to the bank and the bank (means the officers of the bank) later got accustomed to me and my financial and other status on account of my dealings with the bank as a customer. They knew how to value a valued customer!

With the advent of computers and computerized banking services, knowing the customer by face became a non essential thing for the bankers. Passwords and alpha numeric identity (ID) words became the keys for banking transactions. Ordinary individual customers became relieved to a great extent as it was not required to go to the bank for most of the transactions. It was indeed a good progress that the banking sector was making so far.

Then came the era of the idiotic ideas in the banking sector! Some were good and essential while many were foolish and uncalled for!

One of those foolish ideas was this KYC! Now the banks were required to go back to the old system in a round about manner by introducing what is known as 'Know-Your-Customer' (KYC) system. 

What a ridiculous thing? The fundamental of banking service is that they admit a customer to transact with them only when they know the customer. How is it that the banks do not know their customers? In reality, in earlier days, the banks , the post offices and the educational institutions were the original authorities who knew a person rightly and who could vouch for sure about a person's good credentials. These very same institutions could certify the identity and address of any citizen! And that was very logical and reasonable!

Obviously, the rules and regulations for KYC were introduced by some one who did not know much about retail banking. 

It is now understood that it was introduced by an ex- RBI governor. It is common knowledge that RBI governors are political appointees and they need not have any previous experiences in banking! So, it is quite likely that such persons with their immense powers could force any idea on the system even if knowledgeable people advice them otherwise. They could proceed to implement rules and regulations the way they think as right!

Now what are the requirements of this new KYC norms that the banks have to ensure? The bank officers and staff have to get another form filled in and signed by the customers and get some documentary evidences as proofs of their identity and address.

People who fail to give this would not be allowed as customers of the bank even when they have been a valuable customer for the bank for years!

Ridiculous ? Isn't it? 

Only foolish people could make such rules and regulations! 

Now what are these proofs that they need? For identity proof they have given a long list and for address proof they have another long list of documents which are accepted. Nothing other than these schedules are accepted! 

Now all these documents need again the Identity proof and the address proof for getting it made from their respective authorities of the government. This implies that in this great country it would not be possible for any one who does not have any of this document initially to have those made if they want to proceed as a law abiding citizen following all the rules. 

So which one is the original document? The rule making babus (administrative officers and including their supporting staff) of India and their supervising political bosses are least bothered! These are silly issues for the people. There are ways and people would know how to do it. If any one is not knowing that is their problem! The authorities of India seemed to think like this. People also began to feel that the authorities made all these rules and regulations for perpetuating corruption and collecting unaccounted corruption moneys! 

Because it is not at all difficult for any one to get any of these documents if they are willing to shell out some money to the agents. 

There are ways and means. 

And for that matter one can make any number of official identities and address proofs! 

If a person wants he can exist in India with many officially certified identities! 

There are no rules and regulations in India on the manner or standard in which an identity document is prepared. That gives enough flexibility for the concerned authorities and their lower level staff to generate documents with irrevocable errors knowingly or unknowingly! 

There exist no inter departmental data exchange in the various governmental departments and organizations and every one goes ahead according to their own ways! No political party who came into power in India so far has felt it necessary to resolve this unique identity crisis of India about which I had written in a few blog articles earlier too. They all proceeded their own way to make things complicated at every instant instead of making things simpler! The Election Commission of India has been doing it for many years now by making the so-called voter i-cards with innumerable errors that any one can possibly imagine! Again, such erroneous voter i-cards are acceptable documents for Id and address proofs for any banks as the KYC document! 

Later yet another authority was created in an arbitrary manner called the Unique Identity Authority of India (UIDAI) which began to make id-cards for Indian residents. However, this authority was not so clear about the purpose of creating these id-cards!

Spending nearly 18000 crores of rupees for the so-called unique bio-metric linked identity card called Aadhar and finally making it an unfinished and failed exercise by UIDAI is the latest governmental actions done without any fore-thoughts in India, in this context. 

Identity card making has become an industry in India. In that process Indians have got the unique opportunity to exist under different identities if they so desire. Of course, no genuine citizen would make advantage of this loop hole. But that would not be the case with all those non genuine people. 

That means, the very objective of KYC is failed!

So what are the solutions? 

In my opinion, solutions are not difficult. It is easy and simple if the government is pro-people and sympathetic to the problems of the people. 

If the government allows its bureaucracy to work the way they like without any accountability to the people's legitimate questions and probes then things would happen this way only. 

When some governmental programs fail, the concerned people connected with the program should be held responsible and the parliament or the state assemblies should have the power to call them to get explanations. 

In India, unfortunately there is no such accountability at present. It is a free ride for all. Only authorities and no responsibilities! 

Will the future people's representatives ever consider this as some thing important to be debated and resolved?

Only time would tell.

Till that time me and you would remain fuming over all those idiotic rules and regulations forced upon us by the so called authorities of the country even when we live in what is supposedly a democracy!

I heard the potential future PM of India-Mr Narendra Modi-speaking out his vision about governance of India. 

"Less governance for better government" he was heard as telling.

Yes I agree with him fully. If he meant less and less rules and regulations by the term 'less governance' , it is indeed the right approach for a better government.

Because the more rules and regulations made by imperfect individuals would indeed make things complicated for any government to function effectively. The more you try to untie the knots, the more entangled you become! 

News and Media : Perpetuating Pessimism in the Guise of Creating Corrective Awareness !

Of late I am losing my interest in watching the News TV channels and reading the Print Media. I do not know the situation in other countries. But in this great nation of so-called pacifists, veggies and 'Ahimsawaadis' (proponents of non-violence) violence, cruelty and hatred are getting undue importance in the news media in recent years. 

It is a time of making material business benefits from even those activities that used to be considered semi-divine in some years ago. Yes, I am talking about journalism, teaching, preaching, healing and the like. 

Creating awareness about the evils of the society for possible eradication of such things in future may be a good idea. To that extent, propagating news about evil happenings might be tolerable.

But any thing in excess is bad and poisonous. Anything without applying the wise balance of mind is destructive.

'Breaking News' in red has become a continuous feature in the Indian TV channels that I am not able to differentiate the 'break' or the 'news'. And in reality, these neo news editors of these countless channels are breaking the heads of the viewers with these gimmicks which has lost its ingenuity. 

Most of the media men and women associated with the so-called national news channels seem to  loiter around the metros only with their cameras and microphones to look for road accidents and such human mishaps and disasters to be beamed to the millions of Indian households with such absurd impunity. 

They have now made the unfortunate sorrows of humans beings as a means of making money. They break the pathetic human agonies in to millisecond clips and beam it 24x7 with those ad-clips that run in to hours!

What kind of a media journalism is this ?

They have to be practical and cost effective, they might say. They give what the public want to see and listen. They go by the viewership statistics. News about bad things and evil incidences are what thrills the Indian viewers, they argue ! 

That reminds me of another story. Decades ago, a south Indian community in a central Indian city made repeated appeals to the railway ministry for linking their city with their south Indian home state with the convenience of a direct express train service. But the railway babus repeatedly rejected their genuine plea on the ground that their records showed no passenger demand on this route.How could that happen when there was no direct train service ? From where these babus could have got the relevant data of passenger load ?

So, when the TV fellows keep showing the those head breaking news of nonsense always, there is no escape for the viewers. The viewership would be cent percent on news highlighting the evil character of the Indian society. 

If feature films depicting evil stories are going to influence the minds of the majority people, especially the children,  as told by some of the wise social activists and psychologists, then the evil news propagation day and night would do more harm than that. 

Why do these media men and women flock around some peculiar characters associated with politics, cinema and sports and try to make them celebrities ? Are they getting some indirect benefits for glamorizing such men and women? Media plays to make some people celebrities and celebrities add to media popularity. It is a double benefit game. Only the common people are be-fooled in this game!

Media is called the fourth estate (read estate of power!) in a democracy. Yes, they are the ones who make and break deals. They are the ones who think that they are above all. They can break and make governments. Is it not something great ? 

But in the process they seem to forget their duties and responsibilities to the society. Just as the people who form the courts, the people who are the eyes and ears of the society also have to work with some self imposed ethics and codes of conduct. If not they are bound to perish some day together with the society they belong.

Why are they not projecting the good things from their society ? Why don't they project those good things with prominence ? Human achievements are much more desirable to be projected than human disappointments and troubles. The former propagates positive energy and helps in positive progress. The latter is negative energy that destroys!

Let us hope that our media men and women come out of their biasing influences and learn to do their duties and responsibilities the way it should be ! 

Let me conclude this by quoting an admonition to mankind from the superhuman authors of my favorite book of life guidance:

"As you view the world, remember that the black patches of evil which you see are shown against a white background of ultimate good. You do not view merely white patches of good which show up miserably against a black background of evil.

When there is so much good truth to publish and proclaim, why should men dwell so much upon the evil in the world just because it appears to be a fact? The beauties of the spiritual values of truth are more pleasurable and uplifting than  the phenomenon of evil." 

"Juvenile Justice Act Has Failed Miserably.....We Cannot Hold the Child Responsible For a Crime...!

The title above is part of a quote from a Judicial Commission Report submitted to the Prime Minister of India as quoted by a leading English Newspaper Online.

I read the news as well as the full report of the Commission. [You can also do the same here !]

The Commission Report is over 600 pages. Neither the PM nor his top officials would  have the time and patience to read the entire report. It would indeed a big problem for those down below to make a gist of the things from this huge report for the perusal of the higher ups.

In that process what is going to happen cannot be predicted by even those with divine qualities !

In short, the Commission's observation means that anyone committing a heinous crime is not responsible for that if he or she was not provided with the life as guaranteed by the Constitution during his or her childhood. I may be wrong, but that is what I understood !

There are many other issues that are covered in the report. Perhaps, individually no one in this country would ever be in a position to resolve any of those.

That simply means that it is futile for any one to expect any thing good coming out as a consequence of that report. The Commission Report itself points out to such an eventuality as it cites the fate of many previous Commission recommendations.

What should we do now, dear citizens of India ?

Massive protests and rallies are not going to work !

Commission reports are not going to make any dent !

Pray to God for sending another 'Avatar'. It is long time that the last one has left ! It's already due !

I was just thinking.

If all the destitute children of this country are recruited by the anti-socials just at the appropriate time to commit crimes of the highest order, they need not worry of getting any punishment. Atleast that is guaranteed by the government by enacting cent percent humane juvenile laws.

While guaranteeing the rights of the hapless, if some problems happen to the affluent class, that is just a pardonable thing. Nothing very serious !

Last week a high tech personality from north India dared to commit a high-tech house break and auto theft in a South Indian capital. He was made a celebrity by the committed media of India. And the efficient police from two states took him in their custody at lightning speed.

But what intrigued me was not this. It was the lightning speed with which a high profile criminal lawyer took up his defense even before the police could comfortably reach station with the said accused.

The lawyer admitted in a TV channel interview that he was retained by some people to defend the man and get him released on bail.

What does it convey ? All criminals who are capable of doing dare devil acts  of crime have invisible god-fathers behind them.

No courts or legal system can normally dare to touch such protectees ! At least that is how it appears !

The legal system is essentially drafted to punish law abiding citizens who err or take chances with the law. It is basically made to scare the common man and not to prevent them from the hardened criminals !

Now who makes or drafts the law ? What is the role of the so-called law makers whom the people have elected in making the laws ?

Perhaps nothing much ! Except  saying ayes or noes when they are whipped to do so by their respective parties for those drafts made and presented by someone !

Then there are many more such who's and how's.

Under such a situation how can any one hold anyone responsible ?

If no one is responsible is it not a big achievement that we are still surviving ?

Those aberrations here and there should be ignored !

It is simple Indian wisdom not to see, not hear and not to talk such things !

Have you not seen those three monkeys ?

[View the linked list of all Blogs of the Author Here ! ] 

Partnership Between Man and Woman : This Is How It Actually Is !

Are you a successful and complementary human husband and wife pair ?

If you say in the affirmative, my heartiest compliments for being complementary to each other.

Because such complementary pairs are becoming a rare lot now-a-days.

By natural make up human male and female couple are antagonistic to each other. But if they are capable of using their intelligent mind wisely they can convert that and progress towards being complementary to each other.

When you become complementary you become wholesome humans, the way God wanted you to become. Why God chose humans to be progressive like this is the prerogative of the Universal Creator. He could have created us perfect, though, just as He created many such perfected orders of beings in this Universe.

In this context, let me reproduce below some statements from my favorite revelatory knowledge book authored by such beings who are superior to human beings but exist invisible to us:

Every successful human institution embraces antagonisms of personal interest which have been adjusted to practical working harmony, and homemaking is no exception.

Marriage, the basis of home building, is the highest manifestation of that antagonistic co-operation which so often characterizes the contacts of nature and society. The conflict is inevitable.

Mating is inherent; it is natural. But marriage is not biologic; it is sociologic.

Passion insures that man and woman will come together, but the weaker parental instinct and the social mores hold them together.

Male and female are, practically regarded, two distinct varieties of the same species living in close and intimate association. Their viewpoints and entire life reactions are essentially different; they are wholly incapable of full and real comprehension of each other.

Complete understanding between the sexes (man and woman) is not attainable.

Women seem to have more intuition than men, but they also appear to be somewhat less logical.

Woman, however, has always been the moral standard-bearer and the spiritual leader of mankind. The hand that rocks the cradle still fraternizes with destiny.

The differences of nature, reaction, viewpoint, and thinking between men and women, far from occasioning concern, should be regarded as highly beneficial to mankind, both individually and collectively.

Many orders of universe creatures are created in dual phases of personality manifestation.

Among mortals [orders of living beings similar to humans of earth living in other planets in the universes], Material Sons [orders of immortal material beings similar but superior to human beings living in specially made non evolutionary worlds], and midsoniters [another kind of super human beings], this difference is described as male and female; among seraphim, cherubim, and Morontia Companions,[lower orders of invisible living beings] it has been denominated positive or aggressive and negative or retiring.

Men and women need each other in their morontial [ a possible first phase existence for some human beings after their death on earth]  and spiritual as well as in their mortal careers.

The differences in viewpoint between male and female persist even beyond the first life and throughout the local and superuniverse ascensions.[some of us are going to have successive and progressive lives to advanced forms after our mortal life on earth which is termed as our superuniverse ascension career]

 And even in Havona,[ the group of perfected worlds located near the centre of the present universe space] the pilgrims [those enjoying life even after mortal death and progressing ] who were once men and women will still be aiding each other in the Paradise ascent.

Never, even in the Corps of the Finality, will the creature metamorphose so far as to obliterate the personality trends that humans call male and female; always will these two basic variations of humankind continue to intrigue, stimulate, encourage, and assist each other; always will they be mutually dependent on co-operation in the solution of perplexing universe problems and in the overcoming of manifold cosmic difficulties.

While the sexes never can hope fully to understand each other, they are effectively complementary, and though co-operation is often more or less personally antagonistic, it is capable of maintaining and reproducing society.

Marriage is an institution designed to compose sex differences, meanwhile effecting the continuation of civilization and insuring the reproduction of the race.

Marriage is the mother of all human institutions, for it leads directly to home founding and home maintenance, which is the structural basis of society.

The family is vitally linked to the mechanism of self-maintenance; it is the sole hope of race perpetuation under the mores of civilization, while at the same time it most effectively provides certain highly satisfactory forms of self-gratification.

The family is man’s greatest purely human achievement, combining as it does the evolution of the biologic relations of male and female with the social relations of husband and wife.

God has a purpose in creating us man and woman.

He wants each one of us fulfill our relations responsibly and joyfully by being complementary by using our intelligence and wisdom and not remain static with our inherent antagonisms to each other.

Do you wish to learn more about your purpose of living in this world now ?

Why not have a serious look in the same book that I have mentioned above ?

The choice is absolutely yours. Yours alone !


[View the linked list of all Blogs of the Author Here ! ]

What Will You Do If It Happens in Your Life ?

Yesterday I got a call from a person whom I had known well some decades ago. Without him elaborating, I perceived that he was in great distress. He was hesitant to tell or ask for a help. He needed something at that moment to save him and his family from immediate financial ruin. I am happy that I could do something yesterday for him even though it might not sustain him for ever. That in any case is up to the invisible ministers of the universe administration who are all around us !

Any way to tell you the truth, giving is a great pleasure. A pleasure you have to know for yourself. Much more than what you get from receiving. Again, if you are in a position to give, it is a higher privilege vested on you !

I would like to tell some thing more about the person who called me yesterday. When I met him the first time, he was an engineering technician cum supervisor of an engineering construction company. This company was entrusted with some chemical plant erection contract for my company where I used to function as the engineer- in-charge. This was some time in the early 1980's.

He spoke my mother tongue and hence in another couple of days he became very close to me. I found him a very talented technician with superb skills in engineering erection and construction. He did not possess any worthy certificates of formal education. But his skills and knowledge he gained through practical experience and observations were commendable. He was also a good leader for his team of construction workers. I found that his company was making a good fortune simply depending on the skills of this man.

One day I pointed out this to him and encouraged him to set up his own construction contract firm. He acted on it with some initial guidance from me and soon established a very successful engineering construction company. He bagged a few independent contracts and soon his company prospered with very good profits and financial status. I remember the time when he brought his first graduate engineer and first qualified accountant he recruited for his firm to me and introduced them to me. 

Soon there after he became so immersed in his business that his contact with me snapped. For some more time I used to hear about him. By this time he had become a really wealthy man. Wealth and money with him were much more than an engineer like me could amass in a life time ! Later I also learnt that he was very influential in the local politics also as some of the political leaders who became very prominent later were his proteges.

Nearly two decades later, he appeared to me all of a sudden in a new prominent restaurant that was opened in the area where me and my wife had gone to dine. He was the owner of the restaurant. He told me that he had he had diversified his business. Though he was showing due respect to me, he talked much about his influences and holds in politics, police and the like. He offered me any help with his battalion of goons that he had raised for his protection and maintenance of business activities, if at all I needed some of those !

My God ! What a transformation money and power can bring about ! I thought .

Nearly another decade passed. One fine morning I was surprised to find him in my office.

This time, he was a ruined man. His money and wealth had all gone. He was now facing successive failures. But he was confident of making a come back !

Then I did not hear from him for another year. Then one day, he came to my house.

He wanted to tell me his story. I listened. He was still a ruined man financially. It was difficult for me to believe that he did not have anything even to buy food for the day.

But, yet he appeared to be happier and pious than he was an year ago when he met me in my office.

Then he told me another thing. He told me that he and his family are now followers of Jesus Christ.

It was something difficult for me to believe. He was a staunch Hindu and a supporter of a militant ideology earlier !

Who converted him ? None. That was what he said. He was converted to be a christian by none other than Jesus Christ ! Too difficult for me to digest, being a nominal christian my self !

Was it his financial ruin that forced him for this change of mind ?

Perhaps yes. But the financial ruin had forced him to attempt suicide en masse with his family. But at that time of great distress when they were about to die, it was Jesus who brought about a change in them. A change to live a different life ! That was what he told me !

I could read the sparkle of happiness in his eyes, even at the time of great uncertainty in continuing with his earthly life. Later I met his wife and his children. I found the same in their eyes too.

I kept observing him in his trials and tribulations of earthly life in his new way of life. Perhaps this time he was facing more troubles. But yet he and his family continued to sustain triumphantly. There were inducements to go back to his earlier way of life. Perhaps he could make his life materially successful once again. But I find them not willing to do that for the transcendental joys they have found now.

There are things in this world which are beyond our understanding !

While I type this in, another story also came into my mind which thought of sharing with you all.

While I was a small boy, I used to hear about one of the brothers of my grand mother, who at that time served the lone international airline company of India at that time as a pilot.

He was an aristocrat of our family having married to a lady from similar backgrounds while we all remained at our villages as their crude country relatives.

As a boy I had an immense desire to meet this great uncle of mine who flew airplanes, a rare fascinating machine of those days.

I used to hear our family members talking about his life styles, his salaries and the like. While we went to village schools, his children never went to schools for studies, which used to be for lesser mortals. Instead, they were taught at home by tutors to make them pass the prestigious Cambridge school certificate examinations.

We never had an opportunity to meet him or his family while he flew over the globe.

Then some time in early nineteen sixties, the news about his losing job percolated to the family circles. He was suspended pending enquiry for some irregularity at the fag end of his career.

For a couple of years he sustained by consuming all that were at his disposal to come to a naught at some time later.

He fell from a height, down to stark realities of life ! They had relatives and friends elsewhere. He could have approached some of them with whom he was in contact. Those who matched his life style earlier.

But the stark truth all of a sudden made him realize that such friends and relatives are of no use when you are in real trouble. Aristocrats have no time for failing fellows ! Even he would have done the same way had he remained in the same fashion !

So what is next for the aristocrat who was defeated in life ?

Death ?  Yes, that is what the rule book of theirs said.

So this great uncle with his entire family decided to end their lives one fine day. They had faced a humiliating reality of life with no possible solution.

But his youngest son in his pre-teens spoiled their plans.

It was this time that some of the other family members extended a helping hand.

My father was one among them.

That resulted in this great uncle living in our home for more than three years. As a high school boy at that time I got the opportunity to learn many things from this man who was also a royal air force pilot of world war-2. He had become a  down to earth friend of mine !

Many times this thought used to come to my mind.

What would I do if such a thing happen in my life ?

I do not know.

It's a difficult thing.

But it does happen with many in this world.

Money, wealth and power do come and bless many abundantly. But it also could vanish all of a sudden just as it came !

So what have I learnt from these ?

First, if I am not abundantly blessed with these, I should be happy.

God is listening to my daily prayer: " Father, give us this day the daily bread ."

But if He bestows more than that, it is an additional responsibility. I should be careful. I should consciously make efforts not to get carried away by this wealth, money or power.

I should make conscious efforts not to hurt others with these material power gadgets that are under my command. I should feel humbled and should think of using these for the benefit of others, if possible.

If I do not, what is going to happen ? Perhaps nothing.

But I would indeed lose the opportunity to help.

An opportunity to get refreshed by the joy and pleasure that the god within me radiated from deep inside me.

Observing all these, I guess,  I am learning the meaning of this prayer that Jesus taught:

"Our Father in heaven,

hallowed be your name.

Your kingdom come,

your will be done,

on earth as it is in heaven.

Give us this day our daily bread,

and forgive us our debts,

as we also have forgiven our debtors.

And lead us not into temptation,

but deliver us from evil."

That I have been reciting almost every day for years !

But now in real life situations, I prefer to go by the advice of Jesus to the rich man, as narrated in my favorite book :

" When in honest doubt about the equity and justice of material situations, let your decisions favor those who are in need, favor those who suffer the misfortune of undeserved hardships.”

What Makes You Consider (You, Me or They) As the Most Fortunate ?

Long ago, a friend of mine took me to one of his uncles living in a palatial house in the midst of the largest metro city of India.

The man was in his Seventies and was living with his old wife and a host of servants.

His house was a three storeyed one having many rooms and facilities like a star hotel. Guessing by the size of this modern house, I guessed that there would be some swimming pool too some where behind !

He was very courteous and welcomed his not so wealthy nephew and his friend warmly and took us to one of his posh guest entertaining rooms which had a mini bar at one side displaying exotic brands of liquors in various designs of  glass bottles in varying shapes and colours.

While entering the house through the security gate, I had observed a few imported cars in the compound, kept shining by regular care !

He made us sat on the luxurious sofas comfortably and sat by our side. He was making extra efforts to make me feel at ease with his magnanimous gestures.

Yet there was that unmistakable guise of artificiality in all his gestures, which had become part of his personality as a successful business man over the last few decades.

Within minutes an young lady, brought in to a few sparkling glasses in a tray. Obviously tea or coffee were for those lesser mortals. And he was not one of that kind !

I commented and appreciated him for his fortunes and worldly achievements of wealth !

But he seemed not content with his achievements.

He told me that he was a very unlucky man and a dejected father.

Unlucky because another business man of his city of his age, who had nothing a couple of years ago when he had millions, was now marching forward to become one of the richest in the world !

Dejected father because his only daughter who had become a doctor of eminence had rejected to accept the wealth he had amassed in his life and refused to look after his business empire in India. She had migrated to a foreign country !

For nearly two hours he kept telling us many things. Obviously he wanted some one to share his mind which was nearly absent in his palatial mansion like home !

In between he told me that the chair I was sitting was occasionally occupied by the first citizen of the state who was a close soul mate of him.

When I said he was a very fortunate bureaucrat he denied that and told us some real stories to prove the misfortunes of his soul mate.

Obviously this enormous wealth this old man and the enormous political power of his old friend were not making them fortunate in their own assessments during those years when they got the time to do the self assessments !

I was in doubt now. Should I benchmark my self with these so-called fortunate individuals who evaluated themselves as not fortunate !

If I do not, then how can I work out a standard for measuring my 'fortunes' or any one else 'fortunes' ?

I want to ask those who read this, about their views on this.

What makes you feel fortunate in life ?

[I no longer consider benchmarking wealth or power with any one. Nor do I consider possession of these by any one to be regarded as some thing fortunate in life. Instead, wealth and power, in the hands of any one as a great responsibility. A great responsibility to do greater service to others. If this responsibility cannot be taken up, wealth and power is a burden. If wealth and power are used for personal enhancement of pleasures, they would eventually become agents of destruction causing much distress and pains some time later. 

At this point I am compelled to quote a few things from my favorite book- the Urantia Book- which narrates the incident when a rich Roman citizen approached Jesus for his counselling regarding the use of his wealth. For brevity, I am reproducing only some select portions from the original narration:

After many intimate conferences this wealthy citizen asked Jesus what he would do with wealth if he had it, and Jesus answered him:

“I would bestow material wealth for the enhancement of material life, even as I would minister knowledge, wisdom, and spiritual service for the enrichment of the intellectual life, the ennoblement of the social life, and the advancement of the spiritual life. I would administer material wealth as a wise and effective trustee of the resources of one generation for the benefit and ennoblement of the next and succeeding generations.” 

But the rich man was not fully satisfied with Jesus’ answer.

He made bold to ask again:

“But what do you think a man in my position should do with his wealth? Should I keep it, or should I give it away?”

Jesus then decided to advise him some more as the rich man was willing to listen to his advice.

"As steward of inherited wealth you should consider its sources. You are under moral obligation to represent the past generation in the honest transmittal of legitimate wealth to succeeding generations after subtracting a fair toll for the benefit of the present generation. But you are not obligated to perpetuate any dishonesty or injustice involved in the unfair accumulation of wealth by your ancestors. Any portion of your inherited wealth which turns out to have been derived through fraud or unfairness, you may disburse in accordance with your convictions of justice, generosity, and restitution. The remainder of your legitimate inherited wealth you may use in equity and transmit in security as the trustee of one generation for another. Wise discrimination and sound judgment should dictate your decisions regarding the bequest of riches to your successors.

Everyone who enjoys wealth as a result of discovery should remember that one individual can live on earth but a short season and should, therefore, make adequate provision for the sharing of these discoveries in helpful ways by the largest possible number of his fellow men. While the discoverer should not be denied all reward for efforts of discovery, neither should he selfishly presume to lay claim to all of the advantages and blessings to be derived from the uncovering of nature’s hoarded resources.

As long as men choose to conduct the world’s business by trade and barter, they are entitled to a fair and legitimate profit. Every tradesman deserves wages for his services; the merchant is entitled to his hire. The fairness of trade and the honest treatment accorded one’s fellows in the organized business of the world create many different sorts of profit wealth, and all these sources of wealth must be judged by the highest principles of justice, honesty, and fairness. The honest trader should not hesitate to take the same profit which he would gladly accord his fellow trader in a similar transaction. While this sort of wealth is not identical with individually earned income when business dealings are conducted on a large scale, at the same time, such honestly accumulated wealth endows its possessor with a considerable equity as regards a voice in its subsequent distribution.

No mortal who knows God and seeks to do the divine will can stoop to engage in the oppressions of wealth. No noble man will strive to accumulate riches and amass wealth-power by the enslavement or unfair exploitation of his brothers in the flesh. Riches are a moral curse and a spiritual stigma when they are derived from the sweat of oppressed mortal man. All such wealth should be restored to those who have thus been robbed or to their children and their children’s children. An enduring civilization cannot be built upon the practice of defrauding the laborer of his hire.

Honest wealth is entitled to interest. As long as men borrow and lend, that which is fair interest may be collected provided the capital lent was legitimate wealth. First cleanse your capital before you lay claim to the interest. Do not become so small and grasping that you would stoop to the practice of usury. Never permit yourself to be so selfish as to employ money-power to gain unfair advantage over your struggling fellows. Yield not to the temptation to take usury from your brother in financial distress.

If you chance to secure wealth by flights of genius, if your riches are derived from the rewards of inventive endowment, do not lay claim to an unfair portion of such rewards. The genius owes something to both his ancestors and his progeny; likewise is he under obligation to the race, nation, and circumstances of his inventive discoveries; he should also remember that it was as man among men that he labored and wrought out his inventions. It would be equally unjust to deprive the genius of all his increment of wealth. And it will ever be impossible for men to establish rules and regulations applicable equally to all these problems of the equitable distribution of wealth. You must first recognize man as your brother, and if you honestly desire to do by him as you would have him do by you, the commonplace dictates of justice, honesty, and fairness will guide you in the just and impartial settlement of every recurring problem of economic rewards and social justice.

Except for the just and legitimate fees earned in administration, no man should lay personal claim to that wealth which time and chance may cause to fall into his hands. Accidental riches should be regarded somewhat in the light of a trust to be expended for the benefit of one’s social or economic group. The possessors of such wealth should be accorded the major voice in the determination of the wise and effective distribution of such unearned resources. Civilized man will not always look upon all that he controls as his personal and private possession.

 If any portion of your fortune has been knowingly derived from fraud; if aught of your wealth has been accumulated by dishonest practices or unfair methods; if your riches are the product of unjust dealings with your fellows, make haste to restore all these ill-gotten gains to the rightful owners. Make full amends and thus cleanse your fortune of all dishonest riches.

The trusteeship of the wealth of one person for the benefit of others is a solemn and sacred responsibility. Do not hazard or jeopardize such a trust. Take for yourself of any trust only that which all honest men would allow.

That part of your fortune which represents the earnings of your own mental and physical efforts — if your work has been done in fairness and equity — is truly your own. No man can gainsay your right to hold and use such wealth as you may see fit provided your exercise of this right does not work harm upon your fellows.”

If you have read this much, you possibly have understood what I concluded earlier!

Would you consider writing your own feelings here using the comments tool?

By any means did it occur to you to consider knowing more about the Urantia Book and reading it ?

If so click this Urantia-India website link.



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Ellanora: The Story of the Woman who Valiantly Resisted Lucifer !

Would you like to read and know about a valiant female who lived in a distant planet, not belonging to our solar system. We have been told about her achievement by some one who knew about it precisely. She is introduced to us as the lady named Ellanora who became the leader of the people of this planet called Panoptia.

I can imagine how your mind might have reacted to the above. I know, it is difficult for us, human beings of earth to imagine some one like us living in some distant planet because we do not have the so-called scientific evidence.

Well, if I say that this is just a fairy tale, perhaps you might continue reading. Now that option I leave it to you. You are at full liberty to judge it the way you like.

Ellanora was successful in making the people of her planet not to become followers of a deceitful celestial ruler named Lucifer and his celestial aids.

The name Lucifer is known to us human beings. He is also known in other names here as Satan, Anti-Christ, etc. But in this narration, I would like to treat them as separate personalities as per the latest information available to us.

Lucifer has been a brilliant celestial personality. He belongs to the order of celestials called the Lanonandek Sons of God. His order was created by the Creators of the Universe, perhaps millions of years ago, to function as efficient celestial administrators and rulers of the numerous groups of material worlds inhabited by intelligent lower order life forms called mortals similar to the human beings of earth.

Even though he is a super intelligent son of God with higher qualities and abilities than mortals and many other orders of spirit beings , he was  required to undergo various levels of experience and training before he could be entrusted with higher responsibilities of ruler ship.

Being very brilliant and dynamic, he was getting more and more impatient to assume higher responsibilities commensurate with his abilities. So finally that was accomplished. Some thousands  of years ago, he took charge as the sovereign ruler of a system of planets which included earth too.

His system of worlds had about 600 odd spheres, all in various levels and stages of material life development and homes to various kinds of mortal life similar to the men and women of earth. In the future course of time more and more planets elsewhere in this part of the universe are  also destined to be attached to his system of planets to make his system to its maximum designated strength of 1000. All these planets are physically suited for material life which evolved under the guidance of other orders of celestials in accordance with the universal laws of God.

When Lucifer became the ruler of the system, he had many juniors of his order to assist him. Satan was his trusted assistant, also a brilliant celestial son of God, similar to Lucifer but a little less experienced.

Lucifer ruled from his headquarters named Jerusem. Jerusem in fact was a cluster of specially designed globes much larger than earth and with its own superior life forms and activities.

Individual worlds in his system like earth have been entrusted with administratively efficient juniors of his order. The one in charge of earth is named Caligastia. This lower level son of God, who is invisible to human beings came to earth some 200,000 thousand years ago when primitive humans fairly established their activities on earth, being made to evolve from lower material life forms.

Lucifer had a fair amount of freedom to rule his system. But on certain issues he was subordinate to his superiors who ruled from the head quarters of various constellations, the latter being an administrative unit consisting of 100 systems. The rulers of the constellations are known as the Most Highs. The Most Highs in turn functioned under the Local Universe Sovereigns. The local universe to which earth belonged is named Nebadon. The Creator and Sovereign of Nebadon is a  Son of God originating from the Universal Father God, the First Source and Centre of all and everything in the whole of the universes. Nebadon is a relatively younger universe which contains now only about 3.8 million worlds similar to earth though ultimately, perhaps in another few million years time,  it is destined to hold another 6.2 million worlds.

Lucifer is no more our system sovereign. Neither is Caligastia presently our celestial ruler of earth.

They were removed from their coveted positions due to their over ambition. They conspired a type of rebellion some thousands of years ago  to become whole sole rulers without any kind of superintendence. Even though they were quite brilliant and super intelligent, over ambition and selfishness caused their superior minds to ignore certain fundamental truths.

They forgot that God is the provider of those essential things without which they cannot sustain their functions forever.

They forgot that they had superiors because of certain higher wisdom of God which is not yet understood by them.

They forgot that there is a superior wisdom of God prevailing in the way the universes are being organized and administered.

Just as there are many orders of life like many orders of celestials and the various types of mortals who are much below them in ability and intelligence, there also existed superior personalities. They failed to recognize this fact.

They devised false notions and tried to propagate it to all under their supervision and jurisdiction.

In the history of the universe this is recorded as the Lucifer Rebellion against the will of God.

Though the head of the system rebelled, just only 37 worlds in his system of 619 worlds became supportive to the rebellion.

Our earth was unfortunately one among this 37.

Ellanora's Panoptia could have been the 38th. But she was a determined mortal to lead her whole planet away from the rebellion sponsored by a high authority.

Through her, Ellanora became dear to the higher celestial authorities who function in the universes to prevail the will of God in all worlds.

Panoptians too got a special status in the universe. They have become eligible to advance their lives beyond the mortal existence. The Panoptians who are dead long ago are all living now in the system headquarters worlds with special duties assigned to them.

One of their duties now is to look after the prison world of the system head quarters where the ex system sovereign, Lucifer and his supportive associates, are detained awaiting final judgement on their fate from the higher authorities.

Incidentally, their supporter and celestial ruler of earth, Caligastia and his supporters, though not in the seat of power, are not yet imprisoned. They are moving freely on earth, invisible to human eyes, planning their nefarious activities and making those willing human beings pawns in their hands to work against God.

Even without much power, they are too egoistic and willing to accept extermination orders rather than repent and accept God's mercy and pardon.

Ellanora and her fellow mortals of planet Panoptia were not brilliant immortal beings like Lucifer, Satan and their celestial supporters. Yet they did not come under the influence of the latter and became known in the history of the entire universes !

They were not known to us earlier.

But their valiant story has been told to us.

Just in case we learn some thing useful from that !

[Adapted from my favorite book of universe history having super mortal origin]

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My Experiences and Encounters with Modern Medicine !

I do not know how the present day system of medical treatment got official patronage in most countries to be labelled as 'modern medicine' . What we know now is that this system of medicine is named allopathy which was named so by the German doctor who while practising the same found it not so good for alleviating the sufferings of the common people. [ You may brush up all about the history of allopathy here !]

Doctors and all those supporting people who serve in any field of medicine are special people who need to be admired by all for their services that they provide to other human beings in alleviating pain and sufferings due to illness or injury to body or mind.

So medicine men and women have been treated with great respect by all others. Those who have experienced the horror of illness and injury can never forget these visible gods who helped them to come out of the dread of death or pain or utter helplessness caused by their failed bodies and minds. If they could, they would be too happy to do anything for their doctors in return. This high regard and respect of the patients towards the doctors caused the doctors gaining a high position in the society, both in stature and wealth.

Very soon the modern medical field became the arena for all those who want to become rich and famous in the easiest manner by encashing the fear and helplessness of the sick, wounded and the dying.

There are unscrupulous people in all walks of life. Medical service field is no exception.

When there was not much opportunity for big money making, but only scope for earning the respect of the people, those who opted for learning medicine and becoming medical professionals were driven by the passion of service and empathy towards those suffered.

But some unscrupulous business people with the help of ignorant and complacent law makers soon made medical service field a goldmine of opportunity for making quick money from the helplessness of people suffering from diseases, malnutrition, genetic disorders and man made disasters.

The modern medicine branded as the allopathic system of medicine took the lead in transforming medical service into a money making business. Regrettably other systems of medicine too are are going forward in the allopathic way now.

Sufferings of mankind have become the market potential for those who didnot find anything wrong with making the human body a commodity of immense opportunities ! They are worse than the wild animals who might occasionally kill a human for their food !

This transformation is taking place in my beloved country too. This must be stopped. Unscrupulous elements must be prevented from taking the ultimate control of the medical services field.

To do that our concepts and ideas about the medical services need to be pragmatic, to begin with.

Let me discuss some such concepts and a few associated experiences that I have:

Concept-1 : Allopathic doctors or specialists are well trained and educated people and they know more than us about diseases and medicines.

Not always true. There are many doctors who happened to have obtained their medical degrees somehow without proper learning. Many of them also do not update their medical knowledge and are pitifully low in their common sense and basic skills. All doctors cannot be trusted fully under such a situation. It is better to have their opinions and advice varified by other means including seeking second or third opinions. I have come across doctors and specialist serving in big hospitals who do not know how to take the blood pressure of a patient properly or to interpret it. More damaging is their ignorance about the various medicines they prescribe to the patients. What they know about these medicines are what the medical representatives have told them. There also exists an unholy nexus between the medicine manufacturers (pharma companies), the druggists and the doctors.

Concept-2 : Big five star hospitals provide the best medical service. Not true always. Their charges could be five star rated, but not the services they provide. The bigger the hospital, the bigger the chances for negligence and fatal errors. Most often the hospital supporting staff are underpaid and exploited in such hospitals. A friend of mine who was otherwise well built and healthy became an unfortunate victim of such an error in a big five star hospital. He suffered from a viral influenza and had a severe cough for a few days. He was forced by his near and dear ones to go for a medical check up in a good hospital which made him visit this hospital as an out patient. The hospital people for one full day forced him to run here and there from morning to evening to carry out various tests ( a thing a good experienced family physician of yester years would need to assess the patient's condition!) By this exertion coupled with his cough and low fever made him further weak making the hospital admitting him as an inpatient. A drip and an oxygen mask were routinely fitted and a sedative was administered for him to remain remain motionless on the hospital bed for the night without disturbing any one. The sedative caused stomach convulsions causing him to vomit with the mask covering his mouth and nose and the vomit entering his lungs straight away. No one noticed immediately and when noticed some time in the night he had already dead almost. The hospital authorities kept this a secret to the extent possible and declared him of having a cardiac arrest in the night and kept him on artificial respiration for a few days there after only to remove the respirator later and declare him officially dead when they felt that his family would not be in a position now to pay the huge medical bills.

Concept-3: Surgical methods are the best treatments for getting a new lease of life for some more years and one must do it if you can afford at the earliest. A highly erroneous idea propagated by the so called modern hospitals. No surgery is safe and the chances are always 50:50. [ You have to sign the papers of agreement with these conditions at the last moment !] There exist non-invasive treatiments in other systems which might provide similar or better relief ! Only when the body is severely wounded, or non responsive otherwise, surgery  should be thought of. I know a few people who have been recommended for open heart surgeries some twenty years ago but didnot submit to it and living even now heartily !

Concept-4 : Expensive medicines are the best in effecting a cure. Not true always. On the contrary, expensive medicines can aggravate the situation and may even cause drug induced problems that could be even fatal.

Concept-4: Allopathy is scientific and all other medicine systems are quackeries. There is no substance in this. If you analyze the systems with objectively and with an unbiased mind, you find that all systems are equally good or equally bad. It is better to chose the system depending upon the ailment. Sticking to any one system stubbornly is foolish. I have found all the existing medical systems useful to some extent. It is better to keep it in mind that no system can extent your life beyond what God has determined!

Concept-5 : The more the tests the better the doctors understand the ailment and the treatment. Not always true. Tests do provide some information but it is wrong to assume that all kinds of tests are required for deciding the treatment course. Many times patients are required to undergo various kinds of tests for various reasons not always linked to the treatment. It is also important to keep it in mind that some invasive tests might cause more damage than good in some cases.

Concept-6 : There is a cure for all diseases and ailments in modern medicine if you can spend the money. Totally false. There are many diseases and health problems for which no system of medicine can provide a total solution.

There are more such things.

My only submission to my readers is to be cautious and careful when you or some relative or friend of yours need a medical assistance in the present day situation.

Be careful not to get entrapped helplessly in modern day hospitals established for the sole purpose of extracting money from the suffering people and suck out their life time earnings.

Some of those magnificent buildings out there posing as modern hospitals can turn out to be physical and financial death traps to some !

   

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