Ignited Minds

I read this great book titled ‘Ignited Minds’ written by former president of India-Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam. I found it very invigorating, exactly what I was looking for these days. Through this book, he has made a successful effort of unveiling the power of imagination in young. He dreams of a developed India by 2020 & emphasizes on developing a vision common to all citizens of India, to achieve the same. He mentioned that through his projects in space, defence & nuclear sectors, his interaction with children, industry leaders, teachers, saints & seers, he has come to know that Indian people have a fantastic mix of belief & knowledge which sets them apart from the other world; Indian people have ability to achieve the best in the world. The only reason, we are way behind is that our potential remains untapped because we have become used to being subjugated & docile. The book is all about breaking away the forces that prefer India to remain a nation of billion selling cheap labor and providing a large market for goods & services of other nations. The book asks us to ‘start moving.’ He says – Thinking is the capital, Enterprise is the way, Hard work is the solution. This book is all about developing that conviction in ourselves and discarding the things that hold us back. The book says that India is truly blessed with abundance of resources. Their scarcity is not the cause of our problems. The only problem seems to be the attitude problem. The trapped energies and suppressed initiative need to be freed and properly harnessed. Ancient India was a knowledge society that contributed a great deal to civilization. We need to regain the status & become a knowledge power.

The way to development has to be made through purposeful activity. Youth have to be guided to a proper direction with a vision & their creativity has to be allowed to flower. Certain educational reforms have to be initiated. The center-state efforts have to be coordinated in key areas & have to be taken up in mission mode. Our mindset needs to change, having willingness to take pragmatic risks. Success will follow. We need to realize that missions are always bigger than organisations, just as organisations are always bigger than the individuals who run them. It is a power that is deep within us.

The whole country struggled to achieve the first vision of independence, over decades. To protect it, it is our bounden duty & not a matter of choice & convenience. We again need a vision that is shared by the entire nation.

Ignite minds & think big!

A fresh start to the day!!

Let me begin by acknowledging the efforts put in by my roommate, Mr. Kirti (some people may better know him as future IAS) for becoming the reason for which I was able to experience a new side of nature. Its 6 in morning and the alarm clock rings (as said by my roommate which I couldn’t obviously hear as I have developed immunity to alarms J). He took the blanket off me & asked me to wake up for a morning walk. My only reply to him in half open eyes turned to be – “Yar, today is not the day we decided for, and otherwise, we still got 6 more months in PU to do such an adventure, why do such a thing in this chilly morning!!”  & again took the thick cover to protect me from the bleak hours. But since my tough roommate was determined to take me, he again took me (I guess we would have been bigot enemies in our last janams) & told me that we need to do this only once. Okay, I finally wake up hearing the once thing and the moment I put my feet on earth, he continued – “once in a week”. OMG…this was the time I would have just killed him, had my eyelids been fully open! (more than Obama would have ever wanted for Mr. Osama). Anyhow, we got ready by 6.25 or maybe 6.30 (as I am still in sleep) and stepped out of our hostels.

It was about 8-10 degrees outside and the moment I stepped out, which I expected to be one hell, to my surprise I was filled with an all time different and new energy. For the first time, I was enjoying the morning rather of shivering in those winter’s early biting hours. Oh wait...I guess I forgot to tell you the place we are headed to..its none other than the most beautiful place in Chandigarh – Sukhna Lake!!  The lake is at a distance of 5 kms or so from our campus & we, a group of five started to ramble to reach the same before sunrise (yeah, you got it right-we were on foot). It took us around 40 mins to reach the lake which entailed all forms of mobility-walking, running, jogging, jumping over cairns & even inside-out back walk! :) So finally we reached the place at around 7.10 or something. The stunning grandeur of the place at early morning is worth mentioning here. A cool breeze welcomed us with the birds’ soft pitched chirps. Although the icy breeze wanted to cut us thick, but we came well prepared with necessary warm attire. Nevertheless, despite being dressed properly, we could enjoy the lovely chill of the flowing air. On one side, I could see the trees and on the other, a seemingly unbounded lake beautifully placed with mountains. All the happenings of life suddenly disappeared and all I could wonder was the beauty of nature. Really saying, at this time I can’t get hold of words to describe that moment..the only I could term it is as one of the best touch of nature I remember.

But this wasn’t the place we were to stop, rather we were destined to reach the end of the lake, to the Garden of Silence. The lake stretches to around 2.2 kms. So, we set straight our shoes and started to jog along the stretch of lake. This is the time again worth citing when the cool breeze passes touching face, legs are about to fall out of fatigue but you are determined not to stop, brain tries to synchronize with those instrumental music in headphones, and you close your eyes & this is what you call a real feel (here, used as the common Hindi word). All the things seemed to fall in order and whenever stress tried to knock the door, the moment threw it out by saying-“Damn, can’t you see..m enjoying!” After a long struggle b/w legs and determination, we finally managed to reach the end, the Garden of Silence. And I should tell you, when you are totally burnt out after covering a long stretch along the lake, and you just sit at the Garden while beholding Buddha (for those who don’t know, a Buddha’s statue has been ensconced at the end of the lake, in the Garden of Silence), you get to discover your inner silence…a smile happens to come on you face for no reason! The nature just takes away all your stress & fatigue and restores your happiness. It shows the love and patience to you as it were your favorite thing or best friend. I was also lucky enough to witness the sunrise at the lake and I bet the moment was no less than the same experienced at Andamans, Kerala beaches or hilly areas. The scenic beauty and serenity of the place was heavenly. The golden rays of sun shined over the water to turn the moments into golden one. The flora & fauna got reinvigorated by sun rays and the melodious humming of birds, and collectively depicted the Mother Nature.

After enjoying the serenity of nature, we headed back to our campus at around 9.30 and enjoyed our breakfast leisurely at the student centre when making our way back to hostel. J