The Essence of Devotion to God

The Essence of Devotion to God

Introduction

I like to hear Carnatic Music and particularly songs composed by Saint Thyagraja, Annamacharya,  Bhadrachalam Ramadas  Papanasam Sivan etc. These songs were composed in Telugu and Tamil. Though I know these two languages but my knowledge is not proficient enough to understand the meaning and philosophical intent behind these songs. It took some time by constantly hearing and reading various commentaries to understand not only the meaning but also the “bhakthi rasa” (devotion to god) behind those songs. I understood the meaning of these songs by reading books and also going through some of the commentary on the songs written by some of the writers and music lovers. Every time when I hear the song and read the commentary the level of dedication to god amazes me. It is single minded pursuit of these holy saints that made impossible to possible. When I think through and do an analysis of those songs, the meanings and the level of devotion was so pure and high which an ordinary man may find it difficult to scale to that level.

There are many songs composed by Saint Thyagaraja that reveals great meaning. His pancharatna kirtis, Rama Nannu Brovara, Nagumomu and thousands of songs will illustrate how Saint invokes Lord name every time to protect him. For this blog I just took Ksheerasagar song which I like so much. (Music lovers can hear this song sung by K.J. Yesudas in You Tube) In Song of Ksheerasagara composed by Saint Thyagraja he requests Lord Rama to take him to his fold by quoting various examples.

Ksheerasagara Song

Telugu version                                                  English Translation

kṣīra sāgara śayana nannu cintala peṭṭa valenā rāma	O Lord reclining in the Ocean of Milk!     O Lord Rama! Should You keep me in misery?
vāraṇa rājunu brōvanu vēgamē vaccinadi vinnānurā rāma		I have heard about Your coming quickly   to protect Gajendra, O Rama!
narī maṇiki cīraliccinadi nāḍē nē vinnānurā dhīruḍau rāmadāsuni bandhamu dīrcinadi vinnānurā nīrajākṣikai nīradhi dāṭina nī kīrtini vinnānurā tāraka nāma tyāgarāja-nuta dayatōnēlukōrā rāma			I heard long ago about Your giving sarees to Draupadi;    I also heard about Your ending the incarceration of the       brave Ramadasa; I even heard about Your fame in crossing the ocean for the sake of Sita; O Lord whose name carries one across (the ocean of Worldly Existence)! One praised by Thyagaraja! O Rama! Please govern me with compassion.

Saint Thyagraja is simple devotee and he does not know anything other than Lord. He petitions Lord to take him to his fold. He request Lord to care of him and quotes few instances where Lord has taken care of some of his subjects by taking some extraordinary steps. Saint in his song quotes the following instances and compares himself to some of the best known devotees and finally request Lord to take care of the Saint.

Gajendra Moksham

A celebrated exploit of Vishnu, from the Bhagavatam was when Lord rushed to the aid of the king of elephants, Gajendra. Gajendra had been a great devotee of Vishnu in his previous birth, and was born in that form, due to a curse. One day, when he went to the waterfront for a drink, a crocodile attacked him. Gajendra, receiving the worst of it, prayed to Vishnu, who interceded on his behalf. The moral of this story  is that the Lord hears the prayers of all beings including Animals. Indirectly the Saint questions the Lord as how Lord can ignore Saint when he can hear the voice of an Elephant

Protection of Draupadi

In this para he quotes the instance in Mahabharat where Lord protected Draupadi when Kaurava disrobes Draupdai and how he protected Draupadi.

Protection of Bhadrachalam Ramadas

Bhadrachalam Ramadas was another great devotee of Lord Ram. Bhadrachalam Ramadas was a minister in Nizam government and he was accused of spending money from government coffers to construct temple for Lord Ram. Nizam was misled by few of his cronies and he orders the arrest of Bhadrachalam Ramadas and was imprisoned. During his imprisonment, Nizam orders to lash Bhadrachalam Ramadas on daily basis. Unable to bear the torture Bhadrachalam Ramadas cries and Lord Ram finally appears and protects Bhadrachalam Ramadas. The song “Ishvakukula Thilaka”of Bhadrachalam Ramadas will reveal the extent of prayer of Bhadrachalam Ramadas to Lord to rescue him.

Crossing of Ocean

Lord Ram crosses ocean over a floating bridge of stones, into Lanka, to fight Ravana, who had abducted Sita.

Finally Saint requests Lord to show compassion on him as Lord is also praised by him on day to day basis. In this entire song Saint petitions Lord and he compares himself with Gajendra, Draupadi, Bhadrachalam Ramadas and finally with Sita. If one look at the sequence in songs he starts with Gajendra which is considered as King of Elephants, then he quotes Draupdai as “Narimani”i.e gem among women, he quotes Bhadrachalam Ramadas as Lord Ram gave Gold coins to Nizam with his seal to rescue Bhadrachalam Ramadas and finally Saint quotes how Lord had to cross ocean to protect Sita. In all the instances Lord had to take some extraordinary steps to protect his subject who are in difficulties but to protect Saint Thyagraja he does not have to take any extraordinary step but to accede simple request of taking Saint into his fold.

Conclusion

In this song and in any of his compositions, Saint never asks money, wealth, pleasures but merely request Lord to take him to his fold. The essence of devotion is that not to look for pleasures from Lord but ask for his protection which is most valuable than all material and money. I am not sure how many of us in today’s world will get that sort of dedication as all of us are influenced by our day to day routines as even today saints are also influenced by material and jets. Today if we close our eyes for a minute all our materialistic pleasures, all our desires and all our day to day issues comes before us.  The essence of devotion which is single minded is not based on offering of diamond crowns, Gold coins and material to god but a simple devotion alone will please the Lord.

Life After 25 years- Learning and My Prayer

Introduction- Professional Journey so far

I was checking on some of the dates some time back and I realized that I almost completed 28 years of professional life and 26 years in tax. I started my career in July 1985 as CA articled clerk and in tax in November 1986 immediately after my CA Intermediate exam. My boss at that time found something in me in tax and inducted me into tax. I was recollecting the exams leave for writing CA exams that I used to get those days on a different occasion. The leave for CA exams which my Partner used to give me was less than a month and for my final it was hardly 15 days. My then Partner Mr.N.Meenakshi Sundaram (whom we fondly called as NMS) was a seasoned tax expert and was handling some of the best tax matters in Chennai those days. After my intermediate exams in 1986 my audit partner whom I have never seen him losing temper in any worst crisis (whom we fondly called as TSR) asked me to meet NMS for an audit assignment. But true to my surprise NMS asked me some questions on tax and audit.  Surely the answers must have impressed him and he asked me to do tax work with him and with another qualified CA who was part of his team. The first day in my journey in tax profession started with his blessing and it continues still and whatever the little success I achieved in last 25 years is due to the initial fire ignited by him. I have not met both TSR and NMS in the last 10 years but certainly I should pay respect to them through this as my first few years in tax were fuelled by their knowledge and wisdom.  Certainly I owe my success to the seeds planted by him on how to think on tax in my initial days. I only hope I will get a chance to meet both TSR and NMS in the days to come.  Recently I wrote an article on late eminent tax lawyer Mr.K.R.Ramamani in his memoirs and to my surprise my article on such a senior and reputed lawyer was published along with some of the best known professionals in India which included NMS too .

Post 1988 when I qualified I developed association with some of the best known tax professionals in Chennai from whom I learnt lot and those learning’s helped me so far. The relation which started in 1988 with some of the best professionals like Hari, Ranga, Sekar, Ramanujam etc continues even now and it continues to be stronger. In addition to that I cannot forget my interaction with Mr. U.Suresh Rao of Brahamya &Co who mentored and tutored many professionals in Chemplast. Certainly tax was one of his favourite subjects and the way he used to interact with us and encouragement to some of us made me to shed the fear and allowed me to work so freely.

Later I cannot forget my stint in Nagarjuna days for a period of 6 years where I have had an opportunity to interact with some of the best professionals. That is the place where I learnt not only the legal issues, but was forced to think differently on most of the issues and challenges as every meeting with bosses and professionals within the group those days was always a great interaction. The famous adages “Every Challenge gives an opportunity to think you differently”. “Necessity is the mother of invention” were just not confined to writing in walls but people were encouraged to put into practice.

In addition to the above, the other significant aspect which I learnt was the value of human relation and value of human bondage. The successful person is not based on how much intelligent he is but how much he is able to take the people with him and give them respect. I recall the words of one of the best executive of Nagarjuna “Human bond and emotional connect is more important to achieve in organization in addition to intellect”. To recall an instance, in those days some  of the Organisations used to insist on bond to serve a minimum period failing which there would be some financial liability arising out of bond or legal issue for breaching bond. In one of the interviews, an entrant who was fresher from reputed college during the interview asked the question to the well-known executive in Nagarjuna group on how much years he should give bond. The answer from the executive was “We believe in human bond and not in legal bond”.  A great words which made me to think on values of human relation which is more important than legal nuances.

 Movement from Hyderabad to Bangalore

I moved from Hyderabad to Bangalore. The movement from Hyderabad to Bangalore was triggered due to professional and personal reasons. Sometimes in life certain incidents happen without us contributing except that we are impacted by the incidents and we need to take a decision on our next steps. Same thing happened in my life too in Hyderabad. I was part of the dream project of Nagarjuna on Steel ad Power which was created as a part of Vision document. I was hoping that steel project and power project in which I was part would become operational and I was dreaming to be a CFO or if not at least a leading corporate person. But unfortunately the project did not take off. Not sure what should be next steps and in 1997 the opportunities were also limited. I cannot forget the chance call which I made to good friend Ranga in Chennai which changed my profile from Industry to consulting.  Due to the project  experience and also due to my tax background, my good friend Ranga from Chennai encouraged me to move to consulting. My boss in Nagarjuna at that time also advised me to choose consulting as a profession.  At the same time my personal life was also impacted by an emotional loss which made me to move from Hyderabad. Post my relocation from Hyderabad to Bangalore, god has been extremely kind enough and I have been successful so far. I turned into consulting into 1997 and during last 15 years I met and interacted with more professionals who helped me in every part of my life.

Again a chance call to my good friend Ramanujam in 2002 changed my course again and he introduced me to present leadership team of Deloitte and I joined Deloitte.  My present Organisation made me what I am today. My present organisation found something in me and encouraged me and made me what I am. I salute my present organization in which I have been an integral part for last 12 years (my longest stint so far) which has contributed very significantly to my professional and personal growth.

I have still long way to go and I believe at least I have 25 more years of professional life. I only hope the lessons I learnt in the last 25 years will be a good foundation for me in next 25 years. 

Emotional Life- Ability to overcome

The biggest challenge for me for the last 25 years and the years to go will continue to be my emotional life.  It is said in Gita that “Your Strength is weakness”. My strength is Emotions which made me to be more determined but at the same time the ability to take emotional loss or emotional failure is very less. The first emotional loss was my father’s death in 1989 which made me to work hard. I cried and I continue to cry even now when I do some good thinking of my dad.

My father always used to say “God brings the man in deep water not to drown him but to cleanse him”. I never realized the importance of the statement but I realized later in another instance. Though I left Hyderabad in 1997 and came to Bangalore but in the process I lost the friendship with one of the persons whom I considered as very close friend in Hyderabad. Precisely the date was on October 1 1997 when I was travelling in train from Hyderabad to Bangalore. I cried to myself and I was in tears completely due to the emotional loss. It was very difficult to hide it. The first failure in a friendship or relation which hurt me more made me to realize not to get closer to any person in any way and keep a distance from every person so that one would not have to go through the pain of loss or disappointment or a one sided friendship. But life is not easy. We may decide to lead life in particular way but circumstances will force us to relook at our thinking.  God continued to test my emotional life even after my relocation to Bangalore and particularly the period from March 2009 to July 2011 was very severe. The intensity and the impact on me were very severe but I cannot afford to allow my professional life to be impacted because there were lots of expectations from me as a professional. Thanks to God and I fully realize now that but for his blessings I am not sure whether I would have navigated the most testing part of my life. This time though the impact was severe but I managed to float without impacting my professional life .

Respect for other

The important aspect which I learnt from my father and from some of the best professionals is the integrity and value for others. If one needs to be successful, it is just not intellect but it should be accompanied with integrity and more also respect for others. I have come across people who are certainly more intelligent and more knowledgeable but they are not successful as I expected them or promised.  The issue is not on intelligence but lack of respect for others thus leading to arrogance. Very often the term” aggression” is misunderstood. People use this term without understanding the real meaning. In my view one can be aggressive on your views but lack of integrity and lack of respect for others will lead to downfall. If a person adopts the arrogant approach, he will overestimate himself and underestimate others. In this process one lose sight of facts on both side, and the consequences leads to disaster.

I don’t want to sound arrogant that I mastered the art but certainly I introspect every action and I try to take corrective measures to ensure that people around me does not get impacted adversely due to my actions.

My prayer to God

Every day is learning experience in life and experience of others will teach us more.  Hence I would like to learn on continuous basis. My entire life so far is based on only one belief that “God will not give you unless you work hard. Further he will give you only if you deserve it. If you don’t deserve you will not get and even if you get it will not stay with you.”  I pray to god to enhance my attributes for the following:

·         Let me not be greed on money, wealth and position

·         Let me not go after power, money and wealth.

·         Let me and my mind should search for good things which increases the intellect quotient

·         My mind should search for good and better things which would lead to improvement in the quality of life.

·         I need to stay positive through my life. Even if I get hurt for any reason I should take it into my stride and I should not tell other person that I get hurt or show to other person that I get hurt.

·         Give me strength and ability to fulfill my commitment to others notwithstanding the issues or difficulties which I face from the same people whom I have committed.

·         Let me not think that I own everything, as it would make me easier to give up something. In life one should have the ability to give up something, if we need something and more so when we are keen to build a relation or a friendship.

·         My favorite star Rajinikanth used to say in one movie” God will not give you everything you ask for. Every person born in this world will have to miss something and will have at least one issue or problem to think about. No man is free from problems.”  I pray to god that, make me to think or brood about issues in which I have been facing and not to give any other issues or problems in which I don’t have experience.

·         I have tried to be good to the best of my abilities. I considered some people as very special. I love some people much more than any normal person will shower love. My only prayer to god is that allow me to continue to have this trait and make me more useful to those people whom I love, who matters to me notwithstanding  the less favorable treatment or impertinent treatment which I receive from them.

·         It is said “The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched. They must be felt with the heart” Let my heart be happy with good thoughts, good acts and positive mind.