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Selected
Articles ::
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Giving is
Life ::
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Ne of the most gracious
art of living is the art of giving. In gratitude for
God’s gift of life and the abundant gifts of life
nurturing elements like air, water and sunshine etc., we
should share our spiritual wealth with others. In
giving, a man receives more than he gives and in
multiplication of the worth of the thing/thought/deed,
given.
The finest art of living is in giving and sharing, the
best of what we have - our skills, knowledge, ideas,
joys and enthusiasm. Unlike money, these things do not
become less but instead they multiply when we share and
give the sum total of ideas, knowledge and happiness
increases. |
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There is a story in
Hindu mythology that proves the point. Once God
invited all devas (godly and pious beings) and
danavas (unholy, selfish and cruel creatures) to a
grand feast. Finest delicacies were prepared. The
atmosphere was filled with brilliant flavors. Before
the food was served, God asked the arms of each
guest to be tied in such a way that none could lift
his hands to reach their mouth. The devas and
danavas were seated in separate enclosures and the
delicious smelling food was served. Shortly
thereafter unable to take their food to their
mouths, the terrible hunger was leading to
frustrations in the danavas gathering but the devas
seemed to be happy and cheerfully enjoying the
delicacies. Danavas patience was getting exhausted
and their restlessness was growing. Just then an
elderly danava walked up to devas enclosure to see
the difference. What he saw rang a bell in his mind.
Unable to eat by themselves, devas had devised a
technique of feeding their neighbor and hence every
one was eating and happy. Moral of the story is
obvious.
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When we give, we feel
an inch taller and our self-esteem increases. On the
contrary, when we ask for a favour, we feel small
and inferior. When we give some food or money to
needy, we feel elated and superior. When we seek
similar favours even from our parents; there is
sense of smallness and dependence. Most youngsters
yearn to be able to start earning on their own, so
that they can stop asking. It is a natural desire
because asking is pain and giving is pleasure but
many of us never tire of asking, taking and
sometimes grabbing and snatching. In the process, we
lower our stature in our own eyes. When we collect
wealth, material comfort and position by unfair
means, we become worldly rich but really weak and
small within our own self.
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Giving or Taking
Consciousness
A murderer and an army officer both kill people. A
criminal kills for taking revenge or for material
gains and to satisfy his egocentric desires. He is
liable to be punished by society and law of land.
His consciousness also punishes him and dreadful
memories of the pain of his victims keep haunting
him throughout life. An army officer also kills
people (enemy) and for the similar act of killing,
he is honored by his people and the country and is
rewarded for his heroism and patriotism. He rejoices
by counting the number of enemies eliminated by
him. The difference is the thoughts in his mind
while killing. The one has a taking consciousness -
selfish egoistic state of mind, while the other is
operating from a giving consciousness - an
enthusiasm born out of dedication to the larger
ideal of defending his country. It is not always the
nature of action but more important is the
consciousness with which an act is done.
When going into any
business or profession, if we adopt
‘giving-consciousness’ instead of
‘taking-consciousness’, we are bound to achieve
tremendous success. If our business is based on
giving our expertise, skills or knowledge to make
our customers’ life easier and better, then they
will come to us again and again, because we shall be
fulfilling some of their needs. On the other hand,
when starting or operating a business, if our sole
aim is to make money either fairly or unfairly, then
sooner or later our customers will desert us.
Does it mean that
money earning is not an ethical objective? Far from
it, profit and money are central objective for all
commercial ventures. Creation of wealth is a very
laudable activity. Money indeed is very important
and integral part of business money must not be the
sole aim of business and industry. Once we provide
much needed products or services to improve the
quality of life of our customers, money will
automatically come in plenty.
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Besides salary or
wages, every employee gets several tax-free benefits
as additional privileges and perquisites from the
organisation he/she works for:
1) A sense of belonging.
2) Prestige and status in his personal circle of
family, friends and society.
3) Opportunity for self development and achievement.
4) A
built in circle of friends and acquaintances around.
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Hence apart from
remaining physically present in the organisation at
designated places and timings, he/she has a moral
responsibility to give following to the organisation:
1) Total benefit of his/her education and
capabilities.
2) Enthusiasm to perform effectively.
3) Total Commitment.
4) Complete loyalty.
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Thos who give the
above and many other offerings willingly and
happily, also rise faster on the ladder of
personal growth and status within the
organisation. Giving more in this area is a very
intelligent approach. Doing what we are expected
to do is fine. A giving consciousness and giving
much more than expected is what makes all the
difference for the better.
Giving of gifts to
those we love is a very graceful act and is
always appreciated. The gift of things can
always be bettered by giving the precious gift
of kind and loving thoughts. Emerson said,
“Rings and jewels are not gifts but apologies
for gifts. We give of ourselves when we give
gifts of the heart - love, kindness, joy,
understanding, sympathy, tolerance, forgiveness
and prayer.”
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We also give of
ourselves when we give gifts of the mind - ideas,
dreams, appreciation, encouragement, inspiration,
courage, guidance, peace and faith.
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We Should Give
1)
Ourselves a decent personality.
2)
Our
wife, a devoted husband.
3)
Our
children, a nurturing and caring father.
4)
Our
business, profession, company and customers a
good value addition.
5)
Our
friends, a sincere and loyal friend.
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6) Our
neighbors, a friendly and co-operative neighbor.
7) Our employees, an understanding and
supportive boss.
8) Our country, a loyal citizen.
9) Our civilization a gift of
constructive and creative life.
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The more a man gives,
the more he receives. There may appear to be no
connection between the good deed done and the return
received, yet there is always a return for every
good deed. ‘The Law of Karma’ is eternal.
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Law
of Karma
Every physical act or
deed performed by a person is called Karma. Such
action may stem out of the likes and dislikes of a
person or be propelled and influenced by attachment
or otherwise. The actions may be undertaken with or
without the co-operation of his mind or intellect.
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The Law of Karma
is based on the theory that for every action
there is a reaction. For every cause there has
to be an effect. “As you sow, so shall you reap”
is an old proverb and yet it is true all the
time, at all places.
For some actions the reactions are instant. For
example if a person is thirsty, drinking water
will generally quench the thirst immediately or
a hand put in a burning fire knowingly or
unknowingly, intentionally or unintentionally,
will immediately feel the heat and burn
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And yet there are
other actions whose reactions are not immediate. For
example, when you appear for examinations it takes
some time before the result is declared. When a
mango seed is planted it takes several years for the
tree to bear fruit. In such cases the effect or
reaction of action takes time to mature.
If you hurt someone, the reaction may be instant in
the form of a return slap or abuse or the person may
decide on a slow process and file a legal suit
against you for damages. He might even decide to
hold on to feelings of revenge in his bosom. A legal
case may take several years to be decided. Even the
feeling of revenge may take a long time before being
translated into action.
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The Law of Karma is
that no action is ever lost without reaction. No
cause is ever lost without effect. No sin goes
unpunished. No pious deed goes un-rewarded. There
may be a time lag - sometimes minutes, sometimes
days and sometimes even a few lifetimes, but the
reaction or effect will definitely come and will
have to be faced. There is no exception to the rule
- no escape from effect. No amount of influence,
favouritism or corruption can thwart the effect of a
person’s actions. The law is very straightforward
and strict.
Many dishonest, corrupt or immoral men, rascals,
rogues, smugglers and black marketers perform all
kinds of illegal acts and sins and appear to get
away with it. At the same time many gentle, pious,
honest and hard working persons appear to suffer
interminably. They have little food and insufficient
resources to take care of their family. They suffer
and starve.
According to the Law of Karma, this reward or
punishment is the effect of their earlier Karmas.
The effect of their current Karmas may take some
time to mature. Every man irrespective of his caste,
color, religion, sex, and station of life is
rewarded for his good and pious deeds and receives
punishment for his sins and wrong deeds. The Law of
Karma never fails to operate.
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Giving More or
Getting More
Mostly people feel
that it is much smarter to get more than what we
give. But giving more than what one gets is
self-motivating and is a source of authority. This
is how a mother seems to draw her authority from.
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A mother has generally
no hierarchical authority. She normally does not
have money power or business expertise. Her
authority is derived from her love – eternally
giving consciousness. Right from birth, every child
knows that the mother is giving and that is why the
mother tends to have a lifelong authority. Examples
of grown up sons going out of their way to do their
mother’s bidding are all round us. Mother’s
decisions are well respected and are considered
binding in most social and family matters. Giver has
an authority over the takers or receivers. Employer,
voter and a traffic policeman are some of the other
glaring examples.
To sum up, let us understand that giving is
the highest expression of power of a person.
The more a man gives the more he receives
eventually. Getters do not really get so
much happiness as the givers do. |
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