Luck, Humility, Fortitude

I landed at Heathrow Airport on a rainy day. The cab driver who picked me up at the airport was about my own age, a man in his forties. “Where did you fly in from today?” he asked in an accent that clearly indicated that he was an immigrant to the UK.

“India”, I answered proudly. “India is doing so well!” my driver said. I puffed up with pride. And from there, the conversation (where I was doing most of the talking) was about India’s remarkable achievements over the past few years, the digital revolution exemplified by Aadhaar and UPI, and how India had overtaken the UK’s GDP. I also may have boasted about how hard my generation had worked for the past 25+ years to drive the growth of India’s software industry.

“Have you read Kishore Mahbubani’s books?” the driver asked me suddenly. I was taken aback – a cab driver knowing more than me on an Indian-origin, world-renowned scholar on foreign policy! I answered humbly that no, I had heard of Mahbubani’s name, but not read his books as yet. The driver (let’s call him Jake) smiled and gave me a short synopsis of one of the recent books by Mahbubani on the rise of China.

I now wanted to know more about Jake. How come such a well-read man was making a living driving a cab? Was he a professor who drove on weekends? Maybe he was a behavioral sciences expert who was making me the subject of his research! I asked Jake where he came from and how he got into this line of work.

Jake started to tell me his story. He had been a student activist in his native country. This was an authoritarian regime, and the government didn’t like the fact that this young man was asking them questions and encouraging his fellow students to do the same. Jake was hauled off into jail and held there for 7 years. He was tortured physically and mentally. The lowest point was when he was forced to witness some executions. Suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, Jake was then released under a promise of good behaviour, after his family put up their home as surety.

With the security services breathing down his neck, Jake felt he had no option but to escape from his country. He came to the UK as a refugee, not knowing a word of English. A charity organization helped him through years of rehabilitation, including psychiatric counselling to overcome his PTSD. Jake was helped to learn English, and he took up work as a cab driver. He started being interviewed regularly by news channels on conditions in his native country.

But Jake’s family was still vulnerable. The family home had been confiscated because Jake had fled. Now, his family members faced harassment every time Jake’s face appeared on a foreign news channel. Jake was compelled to take a step back from making any overt political statements.

Jake worked for many years, saving money and sending it back to his family to pay for purchase of another house. When I met him, he was nearing the successful end of this effort. I asked Jake, what is next for you?  

Jake said with a smile that in his forties, he is now reaching a point where he can look to the future and start with a clean slate. He plans to get back into some form of academia in the UK and register for a masters or a PhD, while continuing to work. And maybe, at some point, he will publish his diary of all his experiences!

Reflecting on this conversation with Jake, I am struck by how much our life journeys are determined by luck. My generation was born in a democratic setup in India. We were extremely lucky to come of age in the 1990s – riding the wave of economic progress in India that in turn enabled the growth of the software industry, giving people like me a globe-trotting career.

Meanwhile, Jake grew up in a country where you could have your life and liberty taken away for asking questions to the  ruling regime. But he then had his share of good luck – coming into contact with a noble charitable organization in the UK that housed and fed him, helped him through his rehabilitation and got him back on his feet.

Through good luck and bad luck, you need to stay humble and face any adversity with fortitude. My friend Jake the cab driver (and hopefully, future professor and bestselling author) has certainly taught me that!  

#luck

#fortitude

#humility

Beer - An Introduction

 It is a hot summer day in 1980. An excited six year old boy is travelling with parents and siblings on a highway in rural Maharashtra, heading to the town where the child's father is currently posted. The child is infamous for being violently carsick at the slightest sign of turbulence - to the intense displeasure amd disgust of the child's elder sisters, who have to keep a wary eye on him whenever the family is on a road trip. And, all this is in an era when car windows have to be kept open - air-conditioning is unheard of.  The hot breeze comes in, slow-baking the  family. 

 Thankfully on this day, the road is clear and smooth, because the said child does not get carsick. The family stops at a highway restaurant for lunch. 

(As with most highway restaurants, this one  serves all kinds of patrons, and advertises  a "permit room" at the back - a fascinating signboard  that the child notes mentally for future exploration.)

The  children are allowed by their strict mother to order "cold drinks", fizzy stuff that would be frowned upon on normal days. Accordingly. a bottle each of the market-dominating brands Thums Up cola,  Limca lemon drink and Gold Spot orange make their appearance. But along with them, something very different is served to the father -  a tall, dark brown bottle, which dwarfs the smaller soft drink bottles. The label says "Golden Eagle" - and when opened, the bottle disgorges yellowish liquid, that is frothy and has a strange sour smell. It is altogether far more interesting than the Limca that is in front of the child. Immediately, the child demands the frothy stuff, not the soft drink. 

 The father indulgently says, certainly, you can have a taste and decide for yourself. Elder sisters and mother do an eye roll. 

The boy is less sure of his impulsive decision, the closer he goes to the mug. The liquid smells even worse at close quarters, and doesn't look all that appealing now. But, having been given permission by the father, it will be really cowardly to decline a taste now. So, closing his eyes, as if it were an undesired medicine, the boy sips the contents of the mug. 

And it is even worse than what the child has imagined. This liquid has a bitter an after-taste as well! Multiple gulps of Limca are required to get rid of the foul taste. The adults laugh at the child's bemused expression and feel they have cured him of any alcohol-inclined explorations. 

But they haven't. The impression of sour-smelling, bitter-tasting, golden-coloured liquid is stored in the child's memory as "to be retrieved and continued at the right age". And that bottle of Golden Eagle lager has certainly paved the way for countless beer drinking, brewing and experimenting sessions in the years since! 

Landing in India

<Written in 2019, pre-pandemic> 

Arriving in India, your mood can swing wildly depending upon the queue at passport control, at baggage collection and at the exit. If you are lucky, your flight has dodged the rush hour, and you will get through passport control in a couple of minutes. But if you happen to land along with two or three other flights, then you have had it - you need to be prepared for 30 minutes or more, waiting in queue.

These days, of course, Indian airports are expected to be far more efficient than any American or British airport - it is a huge change from 30 years ago when “third world” airports like Mumbai were considered hell-holes by  visiting foreigners compared to the beautiful airports in their home countries. Singapore and Middle Eastern airports are still a little way ahead of India today, but Mumbai, Delhi, Hyderabad and Bangalore are all world-class in every respect.
While our airport infrastructure has improved dramatically and offers a standard, global-standards experience, our culture remains uniquely Indian - and two experiences I had around 2009/2010.

One experience was very negative while the other one was the polar opposite and brings a smile to my face even today.

Let me start with the negative experience.

I was living in the UK then, and travelled frequently to India for work. The IPad had just been launched and I had purchased one. In my rucksack, I was carrying my work laptop as well as brand-new IPad.  The flight landed in Mumbai around 10 am. While I was going through the final baggage X-Ray just before exit, a white-uniformed customs officer called me aside. A Mumbai police constable was with him - a nice brotherhood in corruption between the union government and the state government! 

The customs officer told me that it was not allowed to bring two laptops into the country (The Ipad was a new product and probably was genuinely considered a laptop.) He asked me who the Ipad was for. I said truthfully (and in retrospect, maybe foolishly) that I was not sure. I would gift it to my father if he liked it, or I will use it myself. The customs officer saw his opportunity. He said I should either get into a queue and pay Rs. 10,000 in customs duty at the State Bank of India counter, or “settle with him directly”!

I looked at the customs officer. He was a North Indian, tall and smart-looking in a crisp white uniform with epaulettes. He was in his thirties, about the same age as me. Would such a person have entered government service a crook, calculating from the very beginning how he could make money on the side? Or, had the system slowly turned an idealistic officer into a corrupt one, where he thought he was forced to take bribes to fit in? And what thick-skinned shamelessness this officer had developed, to demand a bribe in a crowded airport, in broad daylight! 

Meanwhile, the elderly Mumbai police constable stood by, senior in years but clearly the junior accomplice in this double act. I was reminded of an eager dog waiting by the dining table, for the master to throw some scraps.

My reverie would probably have lasted a few seconds. The customs officer brought me back to the present and rudely asked “So what have you thought? What do you want to do?”

I was feeling really tired after a long economy-class flight. Once again, I said the first thing that came to my mind - I blurted out, “I just want to go home.” And to put off the bribe demand I said “My father is a government officer; and he would be really unhappy if he comes to know I did anything underhand”
Unwittingly I had uttered the magic mantra. “Government officer” meant to the bent customs official, someone who could potentially trace him out within the system and government network, and cause him unwanted trouble. 

There was an immediate change in the officer's demeanor. He now said - with significantly more respect than earlier - “Sir, all I need is an assurance from you that you will take this extra laptop with you when you depart India.” In response, I said “Yes, I assure you” or words to that effect, and I was allowed to leave without any further ado.

I’ve thought of this incident several times in the years since. It is a fact that many Indians are crooks. We don’t trust the system, and we dislike rules, so we try to find ways around them. And the people who are responsible for the system being maintained are fellow Indians, some of whom will naturally sniff out the opportunities to be corrupt. 

That morning in Mumbai, I was small fry. Maybe the officer realised that every minute he wasted with me, he was losing out on opportunities to locate genuine offenders who could be shaken down for a bigger bribe!

Thankfully, I have had just one such experience in 20 years of international travel to and from India.

Many Indians may be crooks, but many other Indians are genuinely warm and friendly- and one of my favorite airport memories is from the same Mumbai airport, a few months after the IPad experience.

I had arrived around 11 am after a long, sleepless flight. This one was memorably bad - while I had managed to get an exit row seat (more leg room), I had managed to seat myself  right next to two  babies - both of whom had howled non-stop throughout the flight!  

The queue at passport control was not very long, and as I came up to the counter I smelt Masala chai. The officers were being served tea on the job, someone was going from counter to counter pouring out steaming tea into small paper cups! The fragrance was delicious.  Handing over my passport for stamping, I said to the officer “ The first thing I am going to do when I go out, is get a cup of masala chai! You don’t get such nice tea in London!” 

And the officer smiled at me and said, “Why wait till you go out?” - he passed me the cup he had just been served himself, while the tea-boy poured him another one. He stamped my passport and waved away any attempt by me to pay for the tea!

The tea was beautiful and hot, and more than the tea, it was the small gesture of friendship and humanity that charmed me. How much would the tea have cost? Maybe 5 or 10 Rupees. How long will I remember this gesture? For the rest of my life. So thank you Mr. Satarkar, wherever you are now, for restoring my spirits that day and making me remember that Indians are warm as well.

3 weeks of Lola

<Now that its almost 1 year of Lola, re-sharing what I wrote in March 2021, 3 weeks after Lola's arrival>

 Weather prediction systems are so advanced nowadays that scientists predict cyclones and hurricanes with the exact dates and accurate intensity. We humans can plan our lives, take the preparatory steps and take evasive action if needed, so that the storm doesn’t impact us.

And then there are some storms which come completely unplanned and change your life so much, that it is difficult to imagine how things were before.

I am talking here of Tropical Storm “Lola”, a 3-month-old pup that adopted us on 8^th February.

To be frank, getting a dog was not entirely off my mind. I’ve grown up with dogs, and my boys had started asking for a pet. However, an 8^th floor apartment – even one with a terrace garden – is not an ideal place for a dog, as I thought. Hence my dog explorations were restricted to watching YouTube videos of dog rescuers and of adorable puppies. I had no intention to take it any further.

But that Monday morning, fate had other things in mind. On one of my increasingly infrequent morning jogs, I ran past a parked car in a side lane, and to my surprise the driver let a frisky little puppy out of the car – without a leash or a collar! I heard the pup running after me. Stopping to see what was happening, I saw the car turn around and head off quickly, ignoring my shout.

The little puppy was exploring the surroundings happily in the meantime, oblivious to having been abandoned. It was not interested in me at all!  Had I left it alone, it would have maybe survived on the streets, or maybe not. I could not bring myself to just walk away. So, I picked it up and took it home, unsure of the reception I’d get.

The wife – who had never had a pet as a child- was stunned to see me with a puppy in my arms! And she  immediately fell in love with the tiny female puppy. My mother superior has vast experience of handling baby animals, including leopards and hyenas, thanks to my forest officer father. Mother was equally thrilled. Our dog-loving friends found a foster home for the pup within half an hour, but the two powerful entities of the household were unanimous in their quick decision – that our family had gained a new member. Our boys woke up to find a curious puppy wandering around the house, not traumatized in any way by the way she had been dumped on the road a few minutes ago.

As new pet-parents we quickly started experiencing the different aspects of this subculture. An immediate visit to the vet pronounced the dog to be in good health. Apart from advice on feeding and deworming, we were also given valuable information of the psychology of ‘indie’ dogs – they are extremely intelligent, mistrustful of humans and are masters of dominating the home! You have to be alert and patient in asserting the human/parent dominance! The extremely capable and articulate vet gave more and better practical tips in ten minutes, than I had picked up in my past years of dog ownership.

Now came the question of feeding the dog. The vet had advised 2 days of dahi-bhat – curd rice – but this pup showed no interest in it at all! Our family driver then offered to get a packet of puppy food from the neighbourhood general store. I enquired about his seeming expertise on dogs – to find out that he has been a longtime dog owner, of a pedigreed dog no less. Our maid who was dusting also nodded knowledgeably at his points, and I enquired whether she was a dog owner as well – yes, she was, and she too had a proper ‘pure breed’ at home.

The pup was all excited to see the pet food packet and ate the chicken with relish. Meanwhile, I had circulated the number of  the abandoner’s car to our local residents group and duly, someone traced and spoke to the driver – who claimed that it wasn’t their puppy, it had come into their building and refused to leave, and so not knowing what to do, they decided to leave it somewhere else. Well, karma will catch up with wrongdoers – and as far as our family goes, it was our good karma due to which we gained a new family member that day.

The boys were fascinated with the pup and immediately started an argument over naming rights. She has the black-and-tan colouring of a Dobermann and picking up on the brown, the younger boy wanted to name her ‘Coco’. His elder brother thought “Nola” was a better name. So, we compromised between the two and started calling her “Cola”. But as a couple of days went by, we realized Cola wasn’t really rolling off the tongue. I don’t know how exactly Cola morphed into Lola, but that is what she has been from Day 3!

Indie dogs are reputed to be very intelligent – and indeed, the potty training has been amazingly easy. Over the past three weeks, there have only two or three accidents. She goes out onto the terrace lawn and does the job. You just must leave the door open for her.

Puppy eyes have evolved over millennia for dogs to be able to manipulate humans better – and Lola is an expert at manipulation! She is not content to sleep on her own cushion in the living room, and she finds her way into our bedroom sometime in the night. The wife is besotted with Lola and has become a complete “dog mamma”. Lola can rip a slipper to shreds, can chew up multiple things – but as far as mamma goes, it is our fault for leaving temptation in her way. The dog grandma claims to be an aloof disciplinarian, but I catch her often speaking to the dog, and trying to feed Lola supposedly healthy food such as the disdained curd rice.

The most pleasant surprise is the way the boys have taken on their job of carers. One does the afternoon meal and the other does the evening meal. Vitamins, protein, carbs, all mixed and served to Lola on time without anyone needing to remind them! Are these the same boys who must be pushed to clean their room and do their homework?

The community of dog owners or ‘Pet parents’ stepped in to help us through the initial days. We were connected to the nearest Indie owner, and that is how the lovely 1 year old “Gaya” came over for a playdate with Lola. What a time Lola had! After non-stop running and jumping with Gaya for an hour, Lola was knocked out for the rest of the day (as were we all!)

Today the wife and I were thinking, it has been just three weeks since this storm came into our lives. For all our efforts to ‘dominate’ this tiny pup, the fact is that Lola has taken over and become the focal point of our household. And frankly, it has been great fun. I wouldn’t have it any other way!   

Mantra Pushpanjali and Corporate Presentations

Every year, the visit of Ganesha is a huge event in my home town Pune. In our home and probably many homes, two key elements of the pooja are singing of the Ganpati Aarti (which is in Marathi) and following this, the recitation of the Mantra Pushpanjali  (which is in Sanskrit).  

The Ganpati Aarti we recite is a song in praise of the elephant-headed deity, that was originally composed by the 17th century saint Samarth Ramdas. It may have been further popularised when Lokmanya Tilak made the Ganesh festival a "sarvajanik", public celebration. 

But why the Mantra Pushpanjali? This is a Sanskrit composition that has no mention of Ganpati (except a last line recited in some places, which seems to be a subsequent bolt-on). 

The Mantra is -

ॐ यज्ञेन यज्ञमयजंत देवास्तानि धर्माणि प्रथमान्यासन्|

ते हं नाकं महिमान: सचंत यत्र पूर्वे साध्या: संति देवा:

Om Yadnyena yadnya mayajanta deva stani dharmani prathama nyasan

 te ham nakam mahimana sachanta yatra purve sadhya santi devaha

ॐ राजाधिराजाय प्रसह्ये साहिने | नमो वयं वैश्रवणाय कुर्महे

स मे कामान्कामकामाय मह्यम्| कामेश्वरो वैश्रवणो ददातु|

कुबेराय वैश्रवणाय | महाराजाय नम: ॐ स्वस्ति

साम्राज्यं भौज्यं स्वाराज्यं वैराज्यं पारमेष्ठ्यं राज्यं माहाराज्यमाधिपत्यमयं समंतपर्यायी

स्यात्सार्वभौम: सार्वायुष आंतादापरार्धात्पृथिव्यै समुद्रपर्यंता या एकराळिति

Om Rajadhirajaya prasahya sahine Namo vayam vaishhravanaya kurmahe

Sa me kaman kamaya mahyam kameshwaro Vaishravano dadatu

Kuberaya Vaisharavanaya Maharajaya Namaha 

Om Swasti Samrajyam Bhoujyam Swarajyam Vairajyam Parameshthyam Rajyam

Maharajya Madhipatya Mayan Samanta Parya Isya Sarvabhaumah Sarvayusha 

Antada Parardha Pruthivyai Samudra paryanta ya Ekarala Iti

तदप्येष श्लोकोऽभिगीतो मरुत: परिवेष्टारो मरुत्तस्यावसन्गृहे

आविक्षितस्य कामप्रेर्विश्वेदेवा: सभासद इति

Tadapesha Shloko Bhigeeto Marutaha Pariveshtaro Maruttasya Vasangruhe

Avikshitasya Kamapre Vishwedevaha Sabhasada Iti

A google search for the literal translation of this mantra gave me 3 disjointed verses. 

These may have made sense individually, but were collectively meaningless to me. Of course, there were several intrepretations by various learned individuals on what this mantra could mean. But these focus less on the literal meaning and more on the larger intent of this mantra - meaning it is an individual opinion and not necessarily the truth. I was looking for a more down-to-earth explanation. 

Here, The Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute gave me a fabulous lead.  BORI researchers had worked for over four decades to compile and publish the critical edition of the Mahabharata. The polymath Bibek Debroy then translated all 10 Sanskrit volumes into English. In this English translation, I came across the story of King Marutta and his yadnya. 

The third verse of the Mantra Pushpanjali refers to this amazing story. Working backwards from the third verse, I think I've figured out the three part structure of this mantra. 

In my opinion, the Mantra Pushpanjali is structured in a very similar way to a modern corporate presentation. Replace the presenter in the boardroom with the priest conducting a yadnya and reciting this mantra - the flow will be similar. 

Verse 1 - Om Yadnyeya onwards - 

This is the initial Context Setting, which gives the listeners an overall view of the importance of the yadnya. 

This verse explains the importance of conducting yadnyas  and making sacrifice/offerings  to the almighty. It says that even the gods themselves attained divinity by doing yadnyas.

Verse 2 - Om Rajadhirajaya... is the Main Body of the mantra.
While the priest is conducting the yadnya, the priest is asking the almighty for good things to happen to the sponsor or the 'yajman', the host for whom the yadnya is being conducted.

In this verse, you can see mentions of many good things such as the wealth of Kubera, the kingdom stretching across the earth to the ocean and so forth. 

Verse 3 - Tadapesha Shloko... is the Case Study - every good corporate presentation or pitch must have a few case studies. And this mantra has a wonderful story to tell - the story of a a very successful and famous yadnya that was conducted in ancient times; and this is what I was able to understand thanks to BORI and Bibek Debroy.  

The story goes like this - King Avikshit was the most powerful king on earth, and his royal priest was Brihaspati. With time, Avikshit passed away and his son Marutta ascended to the throne. King Marutta wanted to conduct a yadnya, and accordingly he requested Brihaspati to officiate.

But there was a problem. And here is an event that we see often in the corporate world - Brihaspati, had in the meantime been ‘head-hunted’ by Indra, and he now had taken up the more prestigious role of being priest of the gods. Brihsapati thought it beneath him to officiate at a ceremony for a mere human - and so he declined  King Marutta’s request.

King Marutta was in a fix. However, there was a potential way out - the divine bard Narada came to him and informed him that Brihaspati had a brother, Samvarta, who was as capable as Brihaspati. Only, Samvarta was living in disguise in Varanasi, having left his brother after a tiff, and had stopped being a priest. Marutta would need to go to Varanasi, find Samvarta and convince him to officiate at the yadnya.

King Marutta accordingly made his way to Varanasi, and located Samvarta after much efforts and some smart thinking. After much cajoling by Marutta, Samvarta finally consented to conduct the yadnya. Preparations for the yadnya commenced. Marutta being the most powerful king of the time, this was “the” event of the year - everyone who was anyone, was looking forward to attend it.

Seeing the publicity and preparations for the yadnya, Brihaspati was now extremely jealous, foreseeing that his brother Samvarta would now be as famous or even more famous than him. Seeing his key staff member with a morose face, Indra like any good leader, probed Brihaspati on the issue. And after understanding Brihaspati's problem,  Indra came up with an ingenious solution. The first offering in a yadnya is always made to Agni, the god of fire. Indra told Brihaspati that “We will send the god Agni in person to accept the offering, and you can then take over officiating the yadnya from that point, as the priest of the gods”

The yadnya started. The first offering was made by Samvarta to the sacrificial fire - and the god of fire Agni himself appeared! The audience was thrilled. Agni appreciated the wonderfully organised yadnya and said that “as a mark of how pleased he is with you, Lord Indra is now going to send the priest of the gods Brihaspati to take over yadnya from this point.”
King Marutta respectfully declined the offer - “Thank you but no thank you, we have a perfectly capable priest here in the form of Samvarta.”

Agni tried to push his point, at which point an irritated Samvarta asked him to be gone. Samvarta mentioned to Agni “I have the power to burn fire itself” - at which point Agni made a hasty retreat, returned to Indra’s abode and gave a full report of the situation. 

Lord Indra realised that it would be wrong to substitute the priests or to obstruct the yadnya. This was a wonderful yadnya organised by a very capable priest and great king. And so Indra now instructed that not just Agni, all 24 gods, the “Vishwa-Devas” would go down to earth immediately and join the yadnya in person, as “sabha-sads”. And Indra’s personal attendants, the Maruts, would also join in and assist King Marutta with the yadnya.

And this is the story that is described in the last verse of the Mantra Pushpanjali. 

It is indeed a beautiful mantra. But why was this mantra - which has nothing to do with Ganpati - made an integral part of the Ganesh festival? I have no answer as yet - this will require more research and more luck.