Too Services Heavy?

The current decade is meant to be a 'make-or-break' decade for India. The notion that India has somehow 'arrived' or 'destined' appears to be a gross exaggeration unless some key challenges are overcome. There are challenges that retard and challenges that we need to overcome to become empowered and capable. 

The ones that retard include:

1. Corruption
2. Political disquiet
3. Bureaucratic sluggishness
4. Chronic laziness

Empowerment comes from:

1.  Infrastructure development
2. Energy security
3. Skills development
4. Entrepreneurship

A bigger structural problem is the fact that the productivity of our agriculture has become stagnant for over two decades now, and manufacturing accounts for a relatively small share of the economy. Services alone are unlikely to carry India down the growth path on a sustained basis.

While infrastructure and energy are predominantly issues of capital availability the last two - skills development and entrepreneurship - need massive collaboration of human networks to train and mentor. I look forward to participate in these as PanIIT Alumni initiatives and other collaborations.

श्रीमद भगवद्गीता

इस वर्ष की पहली तारीख को मुझे न्यू जर्सी में अर्षबोध केंद्र में स्वामी तदात्मानंद का प्रवचन सुनने का मौका मिला. यह अनुभव इतना शालीन और मन को छू लेने वाला था कि इसके बारे में लिखने की बड़ी इच्छा हुई.

स्वामी जी अमरीकी हैं और इंजीनियरिंग की शिक्षा पाई है. उन्होंने बाद में स्वामी दयानंद से शिक्षा पा कर सन्यास की दीक्षा ली है. अमेरिका में भारतीय मूल के लोगों के सहयोग से वे यह आश्रम चलाते हैं. उनके कार्यक्रम बच्चों, और किशोरों के लिए भी हैं और वेंदांत के विषयों पर हैं.

स्वामी जी की वेब साईट पर उनके प्रवचन और कक्षाओं की ऑडियो फाइलें हैं. उन्होंने प्रत्येक श्लोक का छंदबद्ध अनुवाद किया है जिससे गीता को अंग्रेजी में भी गा कर पढ़ा जा सकता है. संस्कृत के श्लोक तो पहले से ही छंदों में हैं.

उनकी व्याख्या बड़ी सटीक और सरल है. और वे सबको श्लोकों को गाने की सलाह देते हैं. 

गाने का महत्व असाधारण है. 

उन्होंने एक बार दिल्ली में गीता जयंती के अवसर पर इसका पूरा उच्चार किया. उस समय तक उनका संस्कृत ज्ञान इतना अच्छा हो गया था कि उन्हें श्लोकों के अर्थ अच्छी तरह समझ में आ रहे थे. गीता के श्लोक इतने गहरे और इतने उत्कृष्ट हैं कि इस अनुभूति में विह्वल हो कर उनकी आँखों से आंसू छलक पड़े. आंसू अंतःकरण को शुद्ध करते हैं. भक्ति में आंसू आना अनिवार्य माना जाता है. ऐसी गहरी अनुभूति का उल्लेख कुछ मुस्लिम विद्वानों ने काबा में जाने पर होने का किया है.

संस्कृत की शालीनता तो असाधारण है. गीता के श्लोकों का उच्चार और उनकी व्याख्या सुनना एक अत्यंत ही प्रिय अनुभूति है.

Discovering Geeta

The new year experience this year (2012) has been quite revealing during a visit to Arsha Bodha Center in New Jersey. 


There is Swami Tadatmananda, an American engineer turned a Swami, trained in traditional Indian style of learning from the guru. This session was about Shanti Path where a gathering of some 500+ people chanted many Vedic shlokas wishing peace and happiness for ALL.


What was remarkable was that the audience a) sung these, and b) with the correct pronunciation. Sanskrit means elegant. And well sung Sanskrit is magically beautiful. And all these verses were wishing peace and happiness for ALL.


Then I went to the website of the Center and downloaded the many lectures of the Swami. I started listening to his talks on the Geeta (Shreemad Bhagwadgeeta). He makes the audience sing the verses (which, I realized for the first time, were in in the right technical meter). His explanations are clear and logical. In fact, I have heard some Indians talk about Geeta but this was the clearest and quite easy to relate to. He has even translated Geeta into English in the rhythmic meter.


He related an anecdote of participating in Geeta Jayanti (the Geeta Day!) where participants gathered and recited the full Geeta. By that time the Swami had mastered Sanskrit enough to understand it fully. The verses are so powerful that he said he had tears flowing from his eyes. Tears in these experiences are an expression of pure feeling from the soul. I have heard some Muslim scholars talking of similar tears when they had an occasion to visit the Qaba.


Swami's translation into English should hopefully give a similar feeling to those comfortable in English.


I have heard several of his lectures already and its been such a joy! I realize how my thoughts have got somewhat western in terms of study and learning techniques. Listening to and chanting Sanskrit is absolutely elegant. Highly recommended.