Morality 'diluted'

And now the Shakespearean dilemma—Prostitution: to legalize or not? The honorable Supreme Court of India has put the Indian intelligentsia into a test by offering them a chance to come to a decision on legalizing the profession of prostitution. It has left many moralists sleepless as they are confirmed that such an act will far worsen the situation than it is otherwise. As a lame excuse for unemployment, a few more would take a plunge into it as it would be as dignified a profession as any other. The act that the Indian society abhorred so much so far would now get the public approval. The norms of the society would certainly take some time to change, but they will change for sure over a period of time. Once known for their sober nature and rich tradition and culture, the humans inhabiting this part of the world, would now be driven by the economic pursuits alone, irrespective of the means they use.

It seems as if the morality of the society has been diluted to a good extent. Or else, how could the Mumbai local court acquit models Milind Soman and Madhu Sapre in a 14-year-old obscenity case? Well, I guess you still remember the uproaor the advertisement created after they posed in the nude, wearing only shoes and a python wrapped around them.

And if the profession of prostitution gets a thumbs-up, hell may break lose—there’s hardly any doubt.

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Life: Long or Short?

In the beginning of the Creation, the Almighty was desperate to assign a unique life span to each of the different species of living beings. Somehow He decided to assign the average of the entire life span He had in store for the living beings. Thus it came out that all including the human beings have to be satisfied with the number 40. None but the human beings, His own mistake, showed disinterest in the decision. As an intelligent species, they need live longer—so argued they. The Almighty was about to end the matter with a blunt answer when the oxen suggested they need only 20 years. Anyway, they had sufferings and labour writ large on their forehead. What would they do with 40 years? The humans wondered if the oxen's share could be added to theirs. The Almighty agreed. The humans, greedy as they are, looked for still more. By that time, dogs came with their wish to give back 20 years as they wondered what they'd do with all that. Pleasure for the humans! With the Almighty's nod, they added 20 more to their kitty. Now it came to 60. Soon after the calculation was done, the owls hooted. The curious humans were on cloud nine when they got to know that the owls parted with their 28 years out of their share. They decided so because they didn't have the patience to sit for so long with the indifferent look in their eyes to things happening around them. The celebrations in the human camp ensured the Almighty that they had added up the 28 years from the owls and were quite happy with the number 108. (The Almighty must be wondering at the dizzy heights of greediness that the humans have scaled hours after their creation! In fact, they continue to do so even now!) All ready to settle with the new settings, the humans were ready to depart the place little caring for the Almighty's presence. 


The omniscient Almighty, the greatest magician as He is, could decipher what wrong He has done by conceding to the humans' demands. Therefore, He reminded the human beings that they have been granted 40 years to live as humans; that's all. The latter additions are respective to the original allotments. What He meant is that a human being can live 40 years as a human being, the next 20 years as an ox, the next 20 years as a dog, and the last 28 years as an owl. That goes on even now.


So, think again! Do you still need a long life?  See if Robert Louis Stevenson's words pull you out of the moral dilemma:
There is only one difference between a long life and a good dinner:  that, in the dinner, the sweets come last.

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Pro-napping Policy

I was engrossed in my work since the time I had been at office. In fact, I was trying to finish up the task and spare myself from the stress. At some point, I left it unfinished and had my lunch— a sumptuous one, and then, back at work, it was all hell. Was I dying to have a quick nap? No, wrong wordings there. In fact, I was fighting a loosing battle against sleep. I knew after hours of work and a nice lunch, I deserved a quick nap. But alas! My company policy was against that. I wish I had been at Google. Unlike my workplace, at Google, the employees get nap pods that prevent them from light and sound so that they can catch a few winks a day ...  so as to enhance their productivity. That's no joke. I heard there are a few other companies where a quick nap during busy work day is no blunder, hence does never pop its head in your quarter-end appraisal.


Wish my manager chances upon the October 2009 issue of the Harvard Business Review! There, Robert Stickgold, in his article The Simplest Way to Reboot Your Brain, advocates for a pro-napping policy in organizations that look forward to a faster growth, because, even a few minutes of sleep can sharpen the memory and problem-solving skills of the employees.

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Honor Dishonored

Not even a year at office, Obama has won the Nobel for Peace that eluded his role-model, the Mahatma, forever despite being nominated five times. There is unanimous applaud for his pro-peace initiatives and well thought of measures that would ensure a better world tomorrow. Yet, it was too early for him to win the award. If the Nobel committee was so sure that the burden of expectations would compel this man in the most powerful position to bring an end to the devastations that largely his predecessors have caused to the world, at least they could have waited for the time to slip by. Can Obama savor the reward for his words rather than action? His surprise at the declaration of the Nobel Committee has enough hints.

To many, it is a puff of fresh air ... with the aroma of hope. To me, it is some unwelcome sign: an honor dishonored.

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Tribute to YSR

Wish one could execute one’s plans as simply as one sees them in flashes when they take shape in the mind! But then, that would hardly be human a thing! The dictum Man proposes, God disposes would go awry! There will be lot of wrong things happening as cunningly as planned before they work out! Consequences would at the least be confusing for sure. But on the other side, right things could also come up so nicely as elegantly planned. YSR’s plan to pay a surprise visit to the people who he died for would be a surprise only … not unlike the way life offered him and his crew their last surprise! 

What he intended to be a two hour journey turned out to be an eternal journey to a place of no return. Now, you may question his casual stance towards flying despite worse weather conditions. There would have umpteen instances when he would insist on further precautions than what is customary. But this time, his fate writ large on his forehead would have uttered, Phew! Doesn’t Fate laugh at probabilities? And now, the nation loses a pro-poor CM, an able leader, an efficient doctor, and most importantly, a good human being. How true is Jacques Rigaut when he says God is growing bitter, He envies man his mortality?

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Kids Camaraderie

Reality shows—there seems no way to escape it if you are a TV buff. I am not spared, therefore. The worst thing is, the one I got addicted to runs till late night. That leads to ‘late to bed and late rise’. Sipping a cup of coffee, having a look at the news daily, and getting ready for the office, time slips by so fast! I missed an important part here: the breakfast worry. It becomes tough at times to have something that we love, in our breakfast, thanks to the reality shows! I often drop in at a roadside vendor nearby to fill my stomach, almost routinely.

Last time when I made it there, with the breakfast, I had one experience free of cost that still pushes me to a different realm. There were two kids whom their parents left sitting on their respective bikes parked nearby. I happened to observe them when I was standing in queue to get the parcel. They started conversing with each other with their smiling eyes. Slowly, the smile gave place to words. They kept talking to each other for a while. Probably when they seemed to have caught up with the desired level of camaraderie, one of the parents came and started to leave the place. The kid sitting clung to the back of her father was waiving hands to her newfound friend with such grace that you would be moved. Wasn’t that a rare piece of human emotion at its best, something that we die for every now and then?

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Feeling better

It’s been a tough phase again … for all these days to stay away from blogging … infrequent as many might say. Well, there is no special reason for this unplanned break. If there’s one thing that I can take excuse for, that is my lack of seriousness. And of course, to a large extent … my steady fall in the reading habit. Many factors come into play as we progress in life, personally and professionally. All those who relax showing added responsibilities as their excuses for not being able to pursue what their heart often so earnestly desires for, stay behind… curb their own growth… lend stagnancy to their otherwise vibrant life… Is it that the realization comes to me at the right time? I hope so. Nay, I strongly feel so. As they say, there is never a wrong time to start a right thing. For this quarter at least, there should be no breaks. Even when sick, work from home.

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