Shastri, 120. Bharat Ratna, second PM, Lal Bahadur Shastri was a graduate in philosophy and ethics. His government’s agenda: Socialist democracy; freedom and prosperity for all; world peace and friendship with all. He inspired and mandated Dr K to replicate AMULs via creating National Dairy Development Board, Operation Flood, and White Revolution. He seeded Green Revolution via C Subramaniam, MS Swaminathan and their teams. Popular ‘Jai Jawan, Jai Kisan’ was his slogan. He led the country to win the India-Pakistan war. He was Gandhi’s eminent follower since 1921, and the President of Servants of India Society. Remains a life inspiration.
Bapu. Gandhi, 155, is still inescapable. Mahatma is an Inspiration. Led Congress since 1920; led achieving Indian independence; considered Father of the Nation. Variously referred as: Greatest Indian since Buddha; Asian of the Century; Greatest man of the millennium. His values: Satya, Ahimsa, Brahmacharya, Asteya, and Aparigraha. Apart from the famous autobiography ‘The story of My experiments with Truth’, he wrote Satyagraha, Hind Swaraj and many more thereafter, with ‘no rights reserved’. Edited Harijan, Indian Opinion, Young India, and Navajivan. 50,000 pages of writing. 150 countries have released stamps; have statues; statue in UN ‘uncompromising advocate for peaceful coexistence’; no town in India is without a Gandhi statue, Gandhi road/street; his image on all currency in India; and some temples too. An Asteroid is named 120461 Gandhi. Einstein famously said “Generations to come will scarcely believe that such a one as this walked the earth in flesh and blood”. Dalai Lama, Lech Walesa, Martin Luther King Jr, Cesan Chavez, Aung San Suu Kyi, Beningno Aquino Jr, Desmond Tutu, and Nelson Mandela are considered Gandhi’s children and his spiritual heirs to non-violence. There is a district in the US named Mahatma Gandhi district. Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act. Mahatma Gandhi’s cleanliness and sanitation drive.
His birthday – International day of non-violence. In 1948, the Nobel Peace Prize Committee chose not to award the prize during the year to anyone, and commented: “there was no suitable living candidate”. Gandhian Thought, Gandhian Economics, Satyagraha, Sarvodya, Antyodya, Gram Swaraj, Nai Talim, Appropriate Technologies, Environmental stewardship, and sustainable living offer a compass to India’s journey ahead, Amrt kaal and beyond.
Sustainable, non-dying, and God. Akshara, 26. A small network of professionals to meet the professional needs of the development organizations – for the people, of the people. By the people. In 10 years, Livelihoods, today and tomorrow magazine, monthly, in English and Telugu (jeevanopadhulu) has started coming. Print gave way to Telugu print, English electronic, in turn, became a total electronic version. Now, it is going strong as a daily ‘livelihoods update’. Yogakshemam, a column within, became more frequent to twice to four times, to daily, read as: 5-days a week. Network helped, worked with many Livelihoods Support individuals, organizations, and enterprises. Akshara Livelihoods emerged. Experimented with Programmes in Livelihoods Management to take into Development management and leadership courses, as a Practitioner-Academic. Visioned many development organizations. 7L Coexistence emerged. A new lease for A-portfolio in the offing in Amrt kaal. Next 10,000 hours each of 100+ practitioners. Own ways. Many in 6Os. Can we do it?
Yes, we can. If we coexist, flow with the charmed, willing. In N? krsnaarthayoga for 7L.
Click here for a compilation of Yogakshemam updates.