“At the stroke of the midnight hour, when the world sleeps, India will awake to life and freedom. A moment comes, which come but rarely in history, when we step out from the old to the new… India discovers herself” – Jawahar Lal Nehru (on Indian Independence Day, 1947).
After reading the above statement, did you feel the goose flesh, to be honest I did. I have to confess I am proud to be an Indian. Most of us are aware of, however, just to refresh our memories, after more than two hundred years of British rule, India finally won backs its freedom on 15th August, 1947. All the patriotic hearts rejoiced at seeing India becoming a sovereign nation and the triumph of hundreds and thousands of martyred souls. It was a birth of a new nation and a new beginning. The only fact that marred the happiness of the fruits by the blood of martyrs was the fact that the country was divided into India and Pakistan and the violent communal riots took away a number of lives. It was on the eve of 15th of August, 1947 that India tricolor flag was unfurled by Jawahar Lal Nehru, the first Prime Minister of India, on the ramparts the Red Fort of Delhi.
Also, find below an extract from Family Wisdom by Robin Sharma, which I believe is important to share. “The third discipline of Personal Greatness is to ‘walk with the giants regularly.’” “Walking with the Giants is all about spending time with history’s greatest people. Letting the most remarkable people of this world become your mentors of the mind. Would you like to spend some time with Mother Teresa later tonight?” How about relaxing with Nelson Mandela or reflecting with Gandhi?”
The gift of knowledge age we live in is that you & I, and everyone around us, have the privilege to spend time, each and every day if we choose, with the greatest thinkers who have walked on earth.
In spending time with history’s wisest human beings, you cannot help but come away from the experience of fundamentally better person. Associating with great minds is definitely one of the best ways to improve the quality of your own mind. It’s like when you play someone who is better than you in tennis.”
“So when you read the books of our world’s mental, philosophical, scientific and spiritual giants on a regular basis, the way you think and act will improve correspondingly. You will rise to their level. You will find yourself thinking thoughts you have never thought before and behaving in positive ways that just might startle you.
As Thomas Bailey Aldrich wrote: ‘A person in known by the company their mind keeps.’ And Gandhi once said ‘I will not let anyone walk through my mind with their dirty feet.’
Great books represent hope. They represent the promise of a better life. They help envision a wiser and better world. And that makes books, and the daily habit of reading them, one of the life’s most important pursuits.”
Like i said in my previous blog (http://selfimprovement-leadlifewithpurpose.blogspot.com/) lately I have become an individual who walks his talk and lives his message, I have to confess, over the last three years, I have developed the habit of reading life of great people who have walked on earth. To be honest I am deeply inspired & filled with hope. To say the least the experience has indeed made a difference in my life.
On that note, as my tribute to the hundreds and thousands of martyred souls & visionary leaders of India I present to you the Wall of Inspiration. Believe you me, it is proudly hanging on my bedroom wall & fills me with joy & hope every single day. For those of you who would like to have a copy of the same, a high resolution image is available under the link below: http://picasaweb.google.com/arch.abhijeet/TributeToMartyrVisionaryLeadersOfIndia?authkey=Gv1sRgCK-utaCd5q2sfg#5505267018806135266
After reading the above statement, did you feel the goose flesh, to be honest I did. I have to confess I am proud to be an Indian. Most of us are aware of, however, just to refresh our memories, after more than two hundred years of British rule, India finally won backs its freedom on 15th August, 1947. All the patriotic hearts rejoiced at seeing India becoming a sovereign nation and the triumph of hundreds and thousands of martyred souls. It was a birth of a new nation and a new beginning. The only fact that marred the happiness of the fruits by the blood of martyrs was the fact that the country was divided into India and Pakistan and the violent communal riots took away a number of lives. It was on the eve of 15th of August, 1947 that India tricolor flag was unfurled by Jawahar Lal Nehru, the first Prime Minister of India, on the ramparts the Red Fort of Delhi.
Also, find below an extract from Family Wisdom by Robin Sharma, which I believe is important to share. “The third discipline of Personal Greatness is to ‘walk with the giants regularly.’” “Walking with the Giants is all about spending time with history’s greatest people. Letting the most remarkable people of this world become your mentors of the mind. Would you like to spend some time with Mother Teresa later tonight?” How about relaxing with Nelson Mandela or reflecting with Gandhi?”
The gift of knowledge age we live in is that you & I, and everyone around us, have the privilege to spend time, each and every day if we choose, with the greatest thinkers who have walked on earth.
In spending time with history’s wisest human beings, you cannot help but come away from the experience of fundamentally better person. Associating with great minds is definitely one of the best ways to improve the quality of your own mind. It’s like when you play someone who is better than you in tennis.”
“So when you read the books of our world’s mental, philosophical, scientific and spiritual giants on a regular basis, the way you think and act will improve correspondingly. You will rise to their level. You will find yourself thinking thoughts you have never thought before and behaving in positive ways that just might startle you.
As Thomas Bailey Aldrich wrote: ‘A person in known by the company their mind keeps.’ And Gandhi once said ‘I will not let anyone walk through my mind with their dirty feet.’
Great books represent hope. They represent the promise of a better life. They help envision a wiser and better world. And that makes books, and the daily habit of reading them, one of the life’s most important pursuits.”
Like i said in my previous blog (http://selfimprovement-leadlifewithpurpose.blogspot.com/) lately I have become an individual who walks his talk and lives his message, I have to confess, over the last three years, I have developed the habit of reading life of great people who have walked on earth. To be honest I am deeply inspired & filled with hope. To say the least the experience has indeed made a difference in my life.
On that note, as my tribute to the hundreds and thousands of martyred souls & visionary leaders of India I present to you the Wall of Inspiration. Believe you me, it is proudly hanging on my bedroom wall & fills me with joy & hope every single day. For those of you who would like to have a copy of the same, a high resolution image is available under the link below: http://picasaweb.google.com/arch.abhijeet/TributeToMartyrVisionaryLeadersOfIndia?authkey=Gv1sRgCK-utaCd5q2sfg#5505267018806135266
‘Bizarre omissions, weird inclusions’ – I can hear you muttering now. I have to admit, identifying 60 visionary leaders from a never ending list is a tedious task. However, this is an honest effort and I had my criteria to choose them.
Tomorrow is 15th August 2010, my country - India will celebrate her 64th Independence Day; the journey has indeed been filled with excitement, happiness, hope, disappointment, remorse, frustration, despair, expectations etc etc.. On the podium of Lal Quila (Red Fort), Delhi, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, will host the Indian flag, deliver his speech & promises will be made.
Today’s India no doubt is stronger than ever before & is progressing; however, like any other country it is confronting its problems & challenges.
I am not a specialist in economics, foreign affairs, politics etc. however, I have to confess I am a people’s person & have the capability to identify an individual’s strengths & weaknesses. To keep matters simple I have identified key areas of concern, over the next few months I shall describe them in detail.
India
- History
- Pre-independence
- Post-independence
Exploiting Democracy
Poverty – Check out the website: http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/columns/Chandrasekhar/article520543.ece
Population
Even though the data is dated 6th Jan 2007, I am sure most of the cities have retained its ranking. Did you know Mumbai is the densely populated city in the world? Not to mention Kolkata, Delhi, Bengaluru, Hyderabad etc. Check out the website: http://www.citymayors.com/statistics/largest-cities-density-125.html
Also, check out the website: http://www.prb.org/Educators/TeachersGuides/HumanPopulation/Urbanization.aspx
Infrastructure & Facilities
Quality of Education
Facility for Sports
Corruption – India is ranked 64th corrupt country, check out http://www.worldaudit.org/corruption.htm
Attitude – Most of the individuals are filled with Cynicism
Religion
Quality of Journalism – It is sadly deteriorating
Moral Policing
Quality of Life
Traffic
Vandalism of Public Property
Building Industry (Since I am an Architect)
- Compliance to Standards & Codes
- Governing Technical bodies
- Lack of skilled workmanship
- Social & Professional Responsibility
Before I conclude, bearing in mind the sacrifice made by hundreds and thousands of martyred souls, let us ask ourselves, “Is today’s India a vision of Gandhiji, Netaji.. Shaheed Bhagat Singh, Swami Vivekanada?” To be honest, my answer is no, however, let us pledge to do our best to make a difference and make India a better place to live in. I have always believed change for good is good, let’s contribute & be a part of stronger India.
All the best!
Abhijeet Dutta
Tomorrow is 15th August 2010, my country - India will celebrate her 64th Independence Day; the journey has indeed been filled with excitement, happiness, hope, disappointment, remorse, frustration, despair, expectations etc etc.. On the podium of Lal Quila (Red Fort), Delhi, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, will host the Indian flag, deliver his speech & promises will be made.
Today’s India no doubt is stronger than ever before & is progressing; however, like any other country it is confronting its problems & challenges.
I am not a specialist in economics, foreign affairs, politics etc. however, I have to confess I am a people’s person & have the capability to identify an individual’s strengths & weaknesses. To keep matters simple I have identified key areas of concern, over the next few months I shall describe them in detail.
India
- History
- Pre-independence
- Post-independence
Exploiting Democracy
Poverty – Check out the website: http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/columns/Chandrasekhar/article520543.ece
Population
Even though the data is dated 6th Jan 2007, I am sure most of the cities have retained its ranking. Did you know Mumbai is the densely populated city in the world? Not to mention Kolkata, Delhi, Bengaluru, Hyderabad etc. Check out the website: http://www.citymayors.com/statistics/largest-cities-density-125.html
Also, check out the website: http://www.prb.org/Educators/TeachersGuides/HumanPopulation/Urbanization.aspx
Infrastructure & Facilities
Quality of Education
Facility for Sports
Corruption – India is ranked 64th corrupt country, check out http://www.worldaudit.org/corruption.htm
Attitude – Most of the individuals are filled with Cynicism
Religion
Quality of Journalism – It is sadly deteriorating
Moral Policing
Quality of Life
Traffic
Vandalism of Public Property
Building Industry (Since I am an Architect)
- Compliance to Standards & Codes
- Governing Technical bodies
- Lack of skilled workmanship
- Social & Professional Responsibility
Before I conclude, bearing in mind the sacrifice made by hundreds and thousands of martyred souls, let us ask ourselves, “Is today’s India a vision of Gandhiji, Netaji.. Shaheed Bhagat Singh, Swami Vivekanada?” To be honest, my answer is no, however, let us pledge to do our best to make a difference and make India a better place to live in. I have always believed change for good is good, let’s contribute & be a part of stronger India.
All the best!
Abhijeet Dutta
