Coordinator’s View                               Power of Selflessness?

 

 

Most widely cited verse in India is from the most revered scripture Bhagavad Gita,  contained in Chapter II -47 which reads -

कर्मण्येवाधिकारस्ते मा फलेषु कदाचन । मा कर्मफलहेतुर्भुर्मा ते संगोऽस्त्वकर्मणि॥

(Meaning: You have a right to perform your prescribed duty, but you are not entitled to the fruits of action. Never consider yourself to be the cause of the results of your activities, and never be attached to not doing your duty.)

This is the theme of Karma Yoga, the most important way of life along with the other three Gyan Yoga, Bhakti Yoga and Raj Yoga.  Often, many saints, seers and philosophers have come up with their own treatise on this verse.

A different point of view is being presented here with ground level experience on a selfless educational endeavor of nearly nine years. The initiative does not crave in for expected fruits, yet it aims at to regulate efforts for the best possible results. These results are not always objective and commensurate to measurement. Many of its benefits are intangible and lead to a reform on thought process and are long term objective of education. It is an effort to look beyond literal meaning of the verse.

The endeavor is an unusual blend of objectivity and subjectivity. Objectivity is in results and subjectivity is in approach driving the initiative. It is an outcome of sensitivity, sensibility of human concerns in a selfless manner. It has created a phenomenal conviction and induced enormous power in the persons pursuing it. It has imbibed among them an ability to face challenges arising out of resistance to the cause. We see in it power of selflessness.

Mission, vision and operations of  The Gyan Vigyan Sarita are inspired with the sense of Personal Social Responsibility (PSR).  Its flagship is Interactive Online Mentoring Sessions (IOMS) for students coming from deprived or unprivileged families. It is founded on a financial model Zero-Fund-&-Zero-Asset (ZFZA), where it welcomes complementing of efforts by facilitators through leasing out of infrastructure and/or to reimburse expenses incurred in pursuit of the initiative, to the extent they find the endeavor trust worthy. Yet, the initiative neither own funds nor resources as stipulated in ZFZA. This is a small group of compassionate persons. Inspired with the sense of PSR.

In this initiative thrust is to groom competence to compete among the target students. It is a purely non-organizational, non-remunerative, non-commercial and non-political initiative. In addition to IOMS, it is engaged in building Mentors’ Manual and a monthly e-bulletin which in its Fifth annual issue of October 2020 issue has been upgraded to Web-Bulletin All of it is a free web-resource, without any kind of advertisements or social networking. This initiative embraces students from elite families but, it is without either discrimination or any kind of preferential treatment.

If this is not true, then what is the reason to observe secrecy and keeping their operations close to the chest by the promoters? Despite a huge lobby of philanthropist, why do disparities in society not seem to be narrowing? Truly, an honest philanthropy is to bridge socio-economic anomalies and bring the deprived ones into the main stream. The task is so humongous that none howsoever omniscient, omnipotent and omnipresent can singularly accomplish it. Instead, it requires collective wisdom and complimenting of efforts by one and all who are inspired with the sense of PSR.

Pursuit of the initiative with PSR in a manner elaborated above is seen to attracts three kinds of responses. First is straight unwillingness to walk along. The basic reason of such respondents is that they don’t find any substance in it that caters to their self-interests; its fulfilment is primary for them to either act or react. Yet, such respondents are welcome as they leave us to explore new options. Second is of those who initially take a few steps along. Soonafter realizing challenges involved in it they backtrack. Such respondents on one hand lead to wastage of efforts and on the other infuse an element of caution towards any response that is apparently favourable. Third is acceptance to the PSR proposition. Respondents of  the third type can be classified into two sub-categories. In first sub-category involvement is limited and to the extent it does not jeopardize their existence and operations. It is quite fair and welcoming. While, respondents in the second sub-category are those who have led their satisfactory life and are prepared to live and look beyond selflessly. They wish to make their following part of life, Gift of God, purposeful and are desirous to reach out to deprived ones so as to groom competence among them to compete. This is equated to Vanprasth Ashram in ancient Indian culture, a spiritual way of life. It does not call for either going into exile or renunciation; it can be pursued while living with the near and dear ones in the family.

This brings in a need to understand duty and responsibility. These notions are more often confused as same but in different names and hence are used interchangeably. Nevertheless, duty and responsibility are distinctly different notions both by the purpose and the stimulus causing it.,

Duty is directly connected to motivation, Motivation caters to aspirations and expectations of an individual. Duty is assigned to a person commensurate to one’s position in the system. One is compensated for performance of his duty. This compensation can be in the forms of salary, remuneration, honorarium, award or reward. There is negative aspect of under- or non-performance of duty and it is inflicted upon a person in the form of punishment or penalty.  Thus stimulus for duty is the motivation for the compensation or fear of the punishment. Thus, the purpose of performance of duty is to look and live for motivation. Therefore, duty performers are followers while motivation providers are the masters. Eventually, duty performer is a slave of his own needs and interests. They act and react to align themselves with the motivation.  

On the contrary, responsibility is a sense of performance fueled by inspiration. Responsibility performers don’t look for any kind of return for self but, their focus remains on reaping of outcome by targets persons who were neither connected in past nor in present and with negligible possibility of any interaction with them in future. Such an inspiration comes from sensitivity and sensibility to suffering of deprived ones. Exercising such an inspiration with continuity and consistency of dedication and commitment with selfless patience, pursuance and perseverance so as to groom in them requisite competence. It is essential to enable them to get integrated into main stream. It is a spiritual democracy. It is no different than undertaking a reform for the larger good. It gives a sort of self-actualization, a spiritual experience.

Such a spiritual pursuit is easy to talk but difficult to walk. This is vouched on experiences that we have lived. Looking at the journey in prevalent world of commercially competitive growth, it was sufficient time for the initiative to have got either scrapped or flourished into at least a multi-million corporate. Neither of it has happened. But, it has definitely survived tough phases, and graduated from Chalk-N-Talk mode of mentoring to IOMS. It has happened nearly four years before the entire world was gripped with Covid-19 pandemic. The IOMS is the cheapest and most effective model with only one constraint, which is  net connectivity to the target students. This section of society scarcely connected to any kind of reform. Despite, the small group of volunteers on the initiative has become more coherent, and a few more have come forward to collectively complement efforts.

Need of social distancing in prevalent times has been largely seen as a commercial opportunity. It created a mushroom growth of online education models being oblivious to its challenges and barriers. Education is incomplete in absence of interaction between mentor and students. It is most crucial to education of school students, especially those coming from deprived families. Mentor has to make extra efforts to invoke interaction They need more of hand-holding than the web access. Soonafter the outbreak of Covid-19 pandemic in India, summer vacations started. Seamless continuity offered in  IOMS was seen as an opportunity by elite persons to keep their children engaged in purposeful activity during vacations. Some of the most accomplished persons even tried to obtain personalized mentoring of their child, with some tempting indications. But, the IOMS being purely selfless reach for the larger good no such access was granted. Eventually, the rush of students faded out quickly. Yet, some of the students, though in small proportion, who could realize strength of IOMS, are continuing.

During pursuance of IOMS, problems keep surfacing. These are particularly caused by lack of interaction of the participating students. The very nature of the selfless mission infuses power in it to maintain a firm bottom line in respect of participation. It does not exercise resilience to keep students intact. Any moderation in approach or methodology is based on conviction of its necessity in line with its basic philosophy and mission. This kind of power and firmness is possible only due to selflessness of the initiative. We are at the initiative with full conviction and are not deterred with its slow growth. We believe that there are no shortcuts to knowledge and excellence. Therefore, proactive participation of students, parents and school is must for mentoring to be effective. Moreover, proper educational environment is collective responsibility. It is not an exclusive responsibility of those who own it with PSR. Therefore, everyone must realize, sooner than later, that the shine of education is being camouflaged by glitter of marks, position, admissions, placement, package, power wealth and belongings; these are all attributes of commercialization in education. Yet we do accept all the problems and challenges with full austerity and a belief that this seed will fructify to usher in reforms. It is needed at the root of social peace, harmony and wellbeing.  We can afford it because our emphasis is on the quality of reform that perpetuates, and not the quantity conveying economics of scale. Moreover, faith bestowed upon Ramakrishna Mission School, Sitanagaram,  run by Ramakrishna Mission, Vijayawada by continuing IOMS in its Fourth year and periodical review its management, principal and teachers reinforces our power and confidence in this selfless endeavor.

Conclusion: Selflessness is a virtue which can be most appropriately pursued by elite persons. As they advance in their age most of them  have lived their life successfully. It is the stage to pass off the baton for succession. Succession can be delayed but not stopped. Therefore, let us reap the benefits of volunteering succession, before it is too late. Let us not waste the God blessed opportunity and take forward steps to collectively complement for social reforms in a selfless manner. Longer we live greater is the opportunity. When each of us joins in the cause none can stop the social, economic, physical and spiritual growth of the country. In addition, it will create a legacy for our descendants to flourish and relish its fragrance. We vouch that pure selflessness is the most powerful tool of a reformer, and imperceivable and robust shield against all sorts of assaults.

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