SANT KABIR’S PRAYER

SANT KABIR’S PRAYER

“Come, let’s start praying,” said Sant Kabir to his disciples. It was Kabir’s usual practice to pray in the evening. And it was also a usual practice of some antagonists to harass him. When Kabir and his disciples sat to pray, these rowdy people started shouting and making a lot of noise by drum beating and hooting.

Kabir, sitting at the head of the congregation, was a picture of concentration. The eyes shut out the visible world and ears kept out all the noises and sound. It was a his disciples who were most disturbed. They could shut their eyes but not their ears.

Anyhow the prayer was over. Sant Kabir was in the same position, straight, erect and calm. After a while he slowly opened his eyes. The eager students immediately complained to him; “Guruji this is the limit.”

“What’s the limit, my friends?” asked the Sant.

“Oh, they were creating a lot of noise. And Guruji, you did not tell them anything!”

“Did they really make a noise? Did you hear it?” asked Kabir surprised.

“Yes indeed.”

“And pray what were you doing at that time?”

“Praying, of course.”

“Then,” said Kabir “You would not have heard the noise. Prayer requires complete concentration.”

LET THE WORLD KNOW WHAT IS CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY"?

THANKS TO TKV KARUNA
THE NEWS WE DO NOT KNOW! 

The Tata Gesture 

1. All category of employees including those who had completed even 1 
day as casuals were treated as on duty during the time the hotel was 
closed. 

2. Relief and assistance to all those who were injured and killed. 

3. The relief and assistance was extended to all those who died at the 
railway station, surroundings including the vendors and the shop 
owners. 

4. During the time the hotel was closed, the salaries were sent by 
money order. 

5. A psychiatric cell was established in collaboration with Tata 
Institute of Social Sciences to counsel those who needed such help. 

6. The thoughts and anxieties going on people’s mind was constantly 
tracked and where needed, psychological help provided. 

7. Employee outreach centers were opened where all help, food, water, 
sanitation, first aid and counseling was provided. 1600 employees were 
covered by this facility. 

8. Every employee was assigned to one mentor and it was that person’s 
responsibility to act as a “single window” clearance for any help that 
the person required. 

9. Ratan Tata, personally visited the families of all the 80 employees 
who in some manner – were either injured or killed or affected in any 
way. 

10. The dependents of the employees were flown from outside Mumbai to 
Mumbai and taken care off in terms of ensuring mental assurance and 
peace. They were all accommodated in Hotel President for 3 weeks. 

11. Ratan Tata himself asked the families and dependents – as to what 
they wanted him to do. 

12. In a record time of 20 days, a new trust was created by the Tata’s 
for the purpose of relief of employees. 

13. What is unique is that even the other people, the railway 
employees, the police staff, the pedestrians who had nothing to do 
with Tata’s were covered by compensation. Each one of them was 
provided subsistence allowance of Rs.10,000/- per month for all these 
people for 6 months. 

14. A 4 year old granddaughter of a vendor got 4 bullets in her and 
only one was removed in the Government hospital. She was taken to 
Bombay hospital and several hundred thousand were spent by the Tata’s 
on her treatment. 

15. New hand carts were provided to several vendors who lost their carts. 

16. Tatas will take responsibility of education for life of 46 children of 
the victims of the terror. 

17. This was the most trying period in the life of the organization. 
Senior managers including Ratan Tata went to each funeral over the 3 days. 

18. The settlement for every deceased member ranged from Rs. 36 to 
85Lakhs [One lakh rupees translates to approx 2200 US $ ] in addition 
to the following benefits 

a. Full last salary for life for the family and dependents. 

b. Complete responsibility of education of children and dependents 
anywhere in the world. 

c. Full Medical cover for the whole family and dependents for rest of 
their life. 

d. All loans and advances were waived off – irrespective of the amount. 

e. Counselor for life for each person 

B. Epilogue 

How was such passion created among the employees? How and why did they 
behave the way they did? 

The organization is clear that it is not something that someone can 
take credit for. It is notjust training and development that created 
such behavior. It has to do with the DNA of the organization, with the 
way Tata culture exists and above all with the situation that 
prevailed at that time. 
The organization has always been telling its people that customers and 
guests are their number one priority 

The hotel business was started by Jamshedji Tata over a hundred years 
ago when he was insulted in one of the British hotels and not allowed 
to stay there. 

He created several institutions which later became icons of progress, 
culture and modernity. IISc is one such Institute. He was told by the 
rulers that time that he can acquire land for IISc to the extent he 
could fence the same. He could afford fencing only 400 acres. 

When the HR department hesitatingly made a very rich proposal to Ratan 
– he said – do you think we are doing enough? 

The whole approach was that the organization would spend several 
hundred millions in re-building the property – why not spend equally 
on the employees who lost their life? 

None of this was COVERED BY Any of the Indian NEWS CHANNELS. 

THIS INCLUDES JOKERS RUNNING AAJTAK, ZEE NEWS , IBN - CNN, NDTV. 
They were busy SHOWING DOG/CAT Fight and Cricketers on Ramp. 

Forward this to all people who you know to show what Ratan Tata DID 
for his Employees and other Indians, if you wish so! 

LET THE REST KNOW WHAT "CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY"? IS ALL ABOUT. 

Believe where others doubt; Work where others Refuse; Save where 
others waste & Stay where others Quit. Dare to be different. Believe 
in urself 

FOOLISH DOG

A man once approached a Mahapurusha and asked of him, “Oh learned one! Who was your Guru?”

The seer said, “A dog”. 

Astonished, the man asked, “A dog? How can that be possible?” 

The seer explained, “Once, I was resting under a tree, on the bank of a stream. I noticed a dog, a common, mangy, stray dog standing nearby. It looked both hungry as well as thirsty. As I watched, it went towards the stream, but no sooner did it bend to drink, then it dashed back whining piteously. I understood that it had been scared by its own reflection in the water. It sat afar for a while. But thirst overcame its fear of the ‘other dog’, and it slowly approached the stream at another point and bent to drink. And once again the same story. Whining piteously it retreated. 

Here the Mahapurusha said, “The dog is not a very intelligent animal. It has a small skull and therefore, not much between the ears.” 

Continuing the story he said, “The dog then dashed to the other side of the stream, no doubt, thinking cleverly that the fearsome ‘other dog’ was on the other bank and so it could safely quench its thirst. But you can guess what happened. Finally, overcome by thirst, it leaped into the water. Drenched, swimming to keep afloat, it nevertheless could have its fill of water.” 

“So it is with us humans too. We sit to meditate but when faced with our own reflections we draw back in horror and quit, like the foolish dog. 

Remember, you are existence-knowldge-bliss. Revel in the self.”

Always look for the Silver Lining

A great example of positive thinking... and a worthwhile read. 
We too need to choose the right person for the right job.... A tall task, but who knows. 

Tour boats ferry people out to the USS Arizona Memorial in Hawaii every thirty minutes. 
We just missed a ferry and had to wait thirty minutes. I went into a small gift shop to kill 
time. In the gift shop, I purchased a small book entitled, "Reflections onPearl Harbor " by 
Admiral Chester Nimitz. 

Sunday, December 7th, 1941--Admiral Chester Nimitz was attending a concert in 
Washington D.C. He was paged and told there was a phone call for him. When he 
answered the phone, it was President Franklin Delano Roosevelt on the phone. He told 
Admiral Nimitz that he (Nimitz) would now be the Commander of the Pacific Fleet. 

Admiral Nimitz flew to Hawaii to assume command of the Pacific Fleet. He landed at Pearl 
Harbor on Christmas Eve, 1941. There was such a spirit of despair, dejection and defeat-- 
you would have thought the Japanese had already won the war. On Christmas Day, 
1941, Adm. Nimitz was given a boat tour of the destruction wrought on Pearl Harbor by 
the Japanese. Big sunken battleships and navy vessels cluttered the waters every where 
you looked. As the tour boat returned to dock, the young helmsman of the boat asked, 
"Well Admiral, what do you think after seeing all this destruction?" 

Admiral Nimitz's reply shocked everyone within the sound of his voice. Admiral Nimitz said, 
"The Japanese made three of the biggest mistakes an attack force could ever make or 
God was taking care of America . Which do you think it was?" Shocked and surprised, the 
young helmsman asked, "What do mean by saying the Japanese made the three biggest 
mistakes an attack force ever made?" 

Nimitz explained. Mistake number one: the Japanese attacked on Sunday morning. Nine 
out of every ten crewmen of those ships were ashore on leave. If those same ships had 
been lured to sea and been sunk--we would have lost 38,000 men instead of 3,800. 

Mistake number two: when the Japanese saw all those battleships lined in a row, they 
got so carried away sinking those battleships, they never once bombed our dry docks 
opposite those ships. If they had destroyed our dry docks, we would have had to tow 
everyone of those ships to America to be repaired. As it is now, the ships are in shallow 
water and can be raised. One tug can pull them over to the dry docks, and we can have 
them repaired and at sea by the time we could have towed them to America . And I 
already have crews ashore anxious to man those ships. 

Mistake number three: every drop of fuel in the Pacific theater of war is in top of the 
ground storage tanks five miles away over that hill. One attack plane could have strafed 
those tanks and destroyed our fuel supply. That's why I say the Japanese made three of 
the biggest mistakes an attack force could make or God was taking care of America . 

I've never forgotten what I read in that little book. It is still an inspiration as I reflect upon 
it. In jest, I might suggest that because Admiral Nimitz was a Texan, born and raised in 
Fredricksburg , Texas --he was a born optimist. But anyway you look at it--Admiral Nimitz 
was able to see a silver lining in a situation and circumstance where everyone else saw 
only despair and defeatism. President Roosevelt had chosen the right man for the right 
job. We desperately needed a leader that could see silver linings in the midst of the 
clouds of dejection, despair and defeat. 
THANKS TO VISHWANATH WHO SENT THIS TO ME