Take a BREAK !!!!

Take a BREAK !!!!

"I cant understand some guests of mine who travel miles for a holiday and fix themselves before the television sets in their hotel rooms", was a view shared by a friend, who works in the Hospitality industry. Giving few minutes to her views, I too have done this a few times in my travel , and I was reminded by a story of the famous Indian historical character Birbal - the most intelligent Minister in the court of the Emperor Akbar.

One evening, Akbar and his favorite minister were strolling on the streets, when Akbar said " Birbal I heard that there are many fools in my kingdom but I have not found any, so we shall set out this evening to find four fools".

And as they continued their stroll, they found a man riding on his horse and carrying a stack of wood on his head !. Curious to know, Birbal asked, " You are riding on the horse but why are you holding the stack of wood on your head ?". The man replied, " Sir, this horse is very precious to me. He is already carrying my weight, so I am holding this stack on my head to not allow more weight on my horse" .

Birbal looked at Akbar and said, " We have just met one fool in our kingdom" . Akbar nodded in agreement and said, "Now lets look for three more fools".

As they continued their walk, it was getting dark, and they saw a man searching for something on the ground. Birbal stopped and enquired what he was searching, to which the man replied. " I am searching for the coin I lost here yesterday".

" But why are you searching for it today?" asked Birbal.

"I was tired yesterday, so I came looking for it today, " answered the man.

" Did you loose the coin at this spot?" asked Birbal.

"No sir, I lost it on the other side of the road", said the man.

Absolutely amazed, Birbal asked, " If you lost it on the other side of the road then why are you searching for it here?"

" That's because it is dark on that side, sir. I cannot see anything there. Since there is a lamp here, it is easier to search here," said the man.

Akbar was amused. " Your Majesty! This is the second fool," said Birbal.

They came back to the palace and Akbar said, " Birbal we still have not accomplished our task. We need to look for two more fools tomorrow."

"Your Majesty! Our task is accomplished. We Have found all the four fools."

"How is that ?" , asked the Emperor.

" The two fools are right here" , said Birbal.

"Here? what do you mean? Who are the fools here? " asked Akbar.

" Your Majesty, for no reason at all I spent my valuable time looking for fools. Doesn't that make me a fool, too? "said Birbal.

"And who is the fourth one?" , asked Akbar.

"Pardon me sir, but you know, for no reason at all you accompanied me in looking for the fools. So you can guess who the fourth fool is!" smiled Birbal..

Akbar was greatly amused. In his search for fools, he had proved himself to be a fool.

Surely this story maybe a crude example to highlight the foolish view of spending our time and money on a worthy holiday. But like the man on the horse, lets not pack our television sets to our holiday destination and also search the signal strength of the channel away from home like the foolish man did in the story who searched on the other side of the road !.

We do earn a holiday from the maddening work-life imbalance which most of us practice. And while on this meritorious holiday let us spend the time to relax our minds, do a reflection on our personal self, amend our wrongs if any, give time to our family, get the spiritual quotient corrected, enjoy the new culture of the destination you are in, experience and relish the dishes of the place, explore the destination with some interesting photography, interact with the local community, learn & plan the days/year ahead etc etc. rather than waste the money on watching the television during the holiday which you could do even in the comfort of your homes!!

Mar†iN David

Image credit : www.whitedot.org

Story credit : Pustak Mahal Publishers

Breaking News!

We have seen this flash on our television screens all through the day - ‘The Breaking News’ on all the so called ‘News’ channels. How often we have strained our eyes and ears to know the story unfolding and spend the rest of the day to formulate our version of the story. Ironically, we forget the reporter most often has little information on the story, but we - the listeners detail the story during our coffee-table discussions.

The news media - specially the visual news media has tremendous power in influencing the mind of our society today. There is an influx of english and linguistic national and regional news channels. A large part of the freedom of media and expression is diluted with unethical business interest rather than service to the society. The ‘news’ conveyed from most of the media today is no more the truth or facts which ought to have been. I am afraid whether our generation is moving too rapidly from ‘Info-tainment’ age to the ‘decep-tainment’ age.

Today is the age of spin doctors!..Just incase you are wondering what area of specialization this is....read on...News Spin is what reporters, editors, or journalists put on a story to give it an edge. The edge may favour or go against the subject. A spin for example in political news can take either the left or right point of view. News that ought to be ‘facts’ carries more than the facts. Sometimes spin happens even if a reporter doesn’t mean for it to happen. The reporters opinions about the world determine the way they observe and report events.

In 2008 American presidential election, CNN was accused of running the media campaign for Obama. In India the most debated topic today is ‘paid news’. The story in part is first published or broadcasted as part of prime-time to beguile the viewer and later run a feature with a bias opinion. The concept of ‘paid news’ specially in the run up to the general elections and other important issues concerning the nation is a dangerously growing trend which would ultimately destroy faith in the media. Spin is different from gossip. Spin is also different from libel or slander. A reporter must be honest and truthful when reporting, but sometimes spin is what is NOT included in a report too. If a person doesn't hear both sides of the story, they may be uninformed. If this is done intentionally to give people a distorted version of the facts, then it is spin - a deception!

Today the news channels don’t just stop at ‘trying’ to share the ‘news’ but try the entertainment quotient too. This is done with the intention to attract a loyal audience, increase the TRP rating ( index of television viewership) and finally generate more revenue through advertisements. The entertainment factor has given rise to greed at the cost of ethics and morality. Why should I need to be informed of the extra-marital relationships of Brad Pitt, the latest muscle growth in Mr. Khan , the cost of the lingerie of J Lo, the exploits of Rahul in Big Boss, Live broadcast of Rakhi’s n’th Swamyawar etc etc ???? I am not watching the news channel to know what’s cooking in another’s kitchen! rather for quality information, for facts !!. Most often when the sales or viewership dips, they run a survey or a cover story with a subtle reference to Sex. It would either be extra-marital relationships, teenage sex , fashion trends, the masala of film industry etc!

There would never be a paucity for positive creativity, if the intention of the seeker is positive. True creativity is when you play within the rules of the game - and the rules here are values and ethics. If the News media adheres to its principles and the very reason of its relevance to society - then it would contribute in the nation building. If not their conscience would trouble them and hunt them down to dust sooner or later!

Hope with this highlight of today’s ‘decep-tainment’ news media, you would read the news and keep your point of view without the news influencing it !

Mar†iN David

"fide et labore" - " Faith & Toil"

image design: Aju Abraham - ideakitchen@gmail.com

YOUTH OF INDIA for PEACE

“Youth is the joy, the little bird that has broken out of the eggs and is eagerly waiting to spread out its wings in the open sky of freedom and hope” , author unknown.

India – the country with over 1 billion people is the second most populous in the world. India constitutes about 2.4% of world’s land area with 17.5% of world’s population. India is an agricultural country with most of the population in the villages. There are 6 main religious demographics, 29 official linguistic demographics and 1,652 languages in total, literacy rate of 71.7%, unemployment rate at 7.8 % , GDP at 8% etc etc. I can list more facts on various other categories but the most astonishing reality of India which I wish to highlight here is : 50% of Indian population is below the age of 25 and 65% hovers below the age of 35. This goes to say the average age of India at present is 25 and is expected to be 29 by the year 2020.

Yes, India is truly YOUNG !, The power of India lies with its Youth !! This is indeed a blessing in disguise contrary to the voice of the need to contain the population growth of our country. Though the irony of this power lies in the challenge of channelling them in its natural positiveness.

Rightfully the Catholic Church has dedicated this year to the Youth. Education and empowering the young India to persevere in PEACE at oneself, home, work, and society at large and thereby a harmonious living is the path to be taken. Mr. Rakesh Singh,former president of Indian Catholic Youth Movement (ICYM), in his address to the CBCI plenary assembly early this year said that active citizenship, inter-cultural understanding and social solidarity among young people are necessary to ensure equitable development, justice, peace and social cohesion.

“Without proper education, the demographic dividend could turn into a demographic disaster” says Nandan Nilekani, Chief of UID, Govt. of India. Every concerned citizen shouts the need for education in our country, but not many speak of the need for value driven education. If our country is facing corruption, lack of role models for today’s generation, dearth of visionary policy makers, unethical politicians and business practices then its their mentor’s at home and school to be blamed for not imparting the values during their formative years. Hence I strongly advocate if we are to build a society of PEACE & HARMONY, we need to start at the root and correct our system of education from ‘education as a business’ to ‘education as a service’, change the perspective of a teacher from ‘profession or job’ to ‘vocation or service’ for nation-building. The present ‘young India’ should stop running for monetary gains rather allow it to run to you. Visionary ‘Young India’ should also aspire to build our nation for peaceful tomorrow by embarking on imparting values in accepting the teaching ‘vocation’ as ‘The Honourable’ position and nobility that is attached to it in our society.

Another area which would foster ‘Young India’ for a peaceful and harmonious living is Community Initiatives for Youth. There are few such initiatives scattered across the country but most of them are oblivious to the mass. Community Youth Initiatives directing the zealous energy of ‘Young India’ into innovative, constructive, passionate and positive activities is the need of the hour towards our nation-building.

I recently met some students who have come together to put an organized initiative called MAD – Make a Difference , an initiative to impart English language speaking skills to the lesser known youngsters in various parts of Kerala,India. Last year few college students of Bangalore city came together to form Young Leaders Collective – an initiative to give a platform for young voices to be heard louder, to inform the rights of citizens and thereby create collective leadership. Jesus Youth – a Catholic Youth movement , a homegrown movement now with presence across 20 odd countries, is supporting 2500 underprivileged Kerala state children in their education, as part of their Jubilee year in 2010. Dr.Jayaprakash Narayan, a former government servant resigned from his position to start Lok Satta party which works towards enhancing the public policies and effective democracy. He encourages ‘Young India’ to not shun away from mainstream politics by calling it ‘dirty. These initiatives are small but incredible though not sufficient.

‘Young India’ also needs mentors to guide them forward. Mentors with integrity, vision and love to nurture leadership. Prime Minister Dr.Manmohan Singh said “ Next decade is the decade of innovation”. The judicial system needs innovation for speedy settlement of litigation. The agriculturists need innovation for productive and healthy cultivation. The research in healthcare needs innovation in drugs,vaccines,gene therapy, etc. Our government machinery system needs innovation in delivery to its citizens. Disaster management and prevention needs innovation in technology. Infosys foundation, spearheaded by N.Narayana Murthy has instituted awards for Science and Technology, Government of India has allocated funds for Techno-entrepreneurs for innovation. These are again small but incredible though not sufficient to channel the positive energy of ‘Young India’.

‘Young India’ can become a nation of Peace, where there is brotherhood and harmonious living only if everyone contributes to the best of his or her capacity and ability. Youth is wholly experimental and with the full utilization of the talents of the Youth, India will become a complete Nation. Let us decide today our role in nation-building, or let me rephrase – let ‘me’ decide today ‘my’ role for nation-building, a nation of peaceful and harmonious living!!
‘Youth is like a fire
It crept forward.
A Spark at first
Growing into a flame
The brightening into a Blaze’ author unknown.

Mar†iN David

"fide et labore"-"faith and toil "

Mother Mary in my Wedding !!

I am getting married to Tesmine Jose on the 13th february 2010. She is been so beautifully planned in my life by God’s grace and the immense presence and guidance of Mother Mary in both our lives.

It was a prophecy that we would meet at the Mother Mary of Velankanni Church in Chennai and at that 1st meeting we were blessed to attend the celebration of the Holy Mass . Further all incidents which has followed has been powerfully guided by Mother Mary in Jesus.

Our Engagement is on January 30 ,2010 at St.Mary’s Basillica Church at Cochin. Again here too, this particular Church was also providential.

Our Wedding is on February 13,2010 at St.Antony’s Church, Bangalore. Here too, the date was not intentionally planned, but today I realize that it is on the 13th of every month , that Mother Mary appears at Fatima to her children. And it is regarded that 13th is the day of the Lady of the Fatima.

My life has been specially surrounded and guided by Mother Mary in my walk to eternity to meet The Triune God!. Thank you Jesus for giving me your Mother as mine at the Cross. Thank you Mother Mary for your intercession and guidance so that I might meet Jesus in Heaven! Love you !

Mar†iN David

"fide et labore" - "faith & toil"

Wonder if you have heard the saying, “ensnared by a Jew”!!

While under the Romans, among other servile acts,

the Jews were forced by their conquerors to guide

them across the unfamiliar land — at knife-point.

This was a very humiliating experience for the Jew,

who was aware that he was one of the “chosen people

of God” and that he was “not to be a slave of

anyone”. (It is to such a people that Jesus says in

Matthew 5:41 “Should anyone press you into service

for one mile, go with him for two miles”!).

To achieve freedom from Roman slavery, many Jewish

terrorist organizations including that of Barabbas

sprang up. One of their favorite tactics was the

“guerrilla attack”. The Jewish insurgents would

waylay Romans and enslave them, to make them commit

all the humiliating acts that they forced upon the

Jews. Death was the only other option available to

the Roman.

Probably this is one source for the previously

mentioned saying.

Well, a Jew is popularly believed to “rest” or

“retire” only after completing or achieving his

task/goal. So if you are caught by one he will make

sure that his work is done. In fact, one such

instance — a Jew persisting till his goal is

achieved – is recorded in the Old Testament too. In

the book of Genesis, we read about Jacob’s struggle

with the angel — “I will not let you go until you

bless me” (Gen 32:25- )

Every person who has heard the name of Jesus — a

Jew — is ensnared!! Remember: A Jew always makes

sure that he completes his task/goal… Jesus has

pounced on you, to give you the experience of

salvation! …… Through you, to your family, and

then to make you an instrument for the salvation of the

whole world!

When Jesus entered Jericho on seeing Zacchaeus on

the sycamore tree, he looked up and said,

“Zacchaeus, come down quickly, for today I must stay

at your house”. (Lk 19:5). The result of this visit

was momentous, and creates a new Zacchaeus – a fact

that Jesus underscores, “Today salvation has come to

his house…For the Son of Man has come to seek and

to save what was lost”. (Lk 19:9-10).

Jesus entered the life of Zacchaeus… And, even now,

through the record of this conversion, Jesus wants

to come into the lives of all who read about him…

This is exactly our calling too! Jesus has come into

our life to save us, our families, and the world we

interact with.

In reality, what Jesus the Jew does is not to

“ensnare” but to “embrace”…When your face is

turned away from Jesus, one experiences the love of

Jesus as ”ensnaring”…On the other hand, when one

faces Jesus you feel his “embrace”.

An ideal testimony for this “embrace” experience is of

St.Stephen. Even while he was being stoned he feels the

loving embrace of Jesus… and he receives the grace

to repeat the same words Jesus uttered on the cross.

(Ref: Acts 7:54- ). Only because he was seeing him

face to face.

The smile on a child is the response of the smile of

the mother… If a mother is reluctant to speak, her

child also will be reluctant to speak ..

A reflection of Jesus is seen on the person whose eye

is fixed on Jesus… That is why the words of Jesus

on the cross is echoed by St. Stephen at his

martyrdom.!!

Reflection

List the areas where you do not experience the

“embracing” love of Jesus, (studies, finance,

family, job, etc). Jesus waits to give you his

embrace in these areas too!

Prayer

Dear Jesus, my Lord, as St. Stephen filled with the

Holy Spirit experienced your “embracing” love even

in his sufferings, I pray for a new in-filling of the

Holy Spirit to experience your “embracing” love in

these areas ( list them…)

Mother Mary, please intercede for me.

In Jesus name I pray. Amen.

( This article was inspired from the sharing given by my dear brother in Christ – Jaison Thomas)