The action (actually, inaction) of the service chiefs with regards to implementation of the Sixth Pay Commission recommendations has drawn flak from several quarters. It is being viewed by the critics as insubordination, indiscipline. Fingers are also being raised on the propriety of sending out signals to all ranks informing them of the delay.
The fact of the matter is that the politicians and the bureaucrats have been caught in flagrante delicto in their attempt to rush through the implementation, warts and all. This, despite that it has been pointed out that the final recommendations have glaring discrepancies as regards the armed forces. The inexplicable down gradation of Lt Cols and Lt Gens, and the reduction in pension of the jawans, defy logic and cannot stand scrutiny. Interestingly, these discrepancies were not part of the original pay commission report, but were introduced by the Committee of Secretaries during review.
Attempts to browbeat the services into accepting the award along with discrepancies, with the unconvincing assurance of looking into the issues post implementation, did not work. The principled stance of the chiefs, uncharacteristic of the incumbents in recent years, took them by surprise. The chiefs probably realized that once implemented, the urgency in rectifying the discrepancies would no longer exist, and the issue would get mired in typical bureaucratic delaying tactics. It is notable that the anomalies of the fourth and fifth pay commissions have still not been removed. The lowered status and pensions of the armed forces would have similarly become fait accompli.
Ethos of the armed forces is centred around loyalty – a concept difficult to understand for outsiders in today’s self serving opportunistic environment. Loyalty in the forces has many dimensions – loyalty towards the country, towards the services, towards one’s unit or ship, your superiors – and most importantly, towards the men under your command. The ‘Chetwoode Motto’ is deeply ingrained in the psyche of every officer :-
"The safety, honour and welfare of your country come first, always and every time.
The honour, welfare and comfort of the men you command come next.
Your own ease, comfort and safety come last, always and every time."
The stance taken by the service chiefs is in pursuit of these ideals. Individually, the chiefs have no personal stake in the removal of the anomalies. They have been well compensated in the pay commission report. On the contrary, in taking a strong stance, they have possibly staked their personal self interests such as post retirement appointments. It is only their strong sense of loyalty to their subordinates that prompted this action.
Unlike all other services affected by the pay commission, the armed forces have no unions, no associations. The jawans and officers have absolutely no mechanism of expressing their dissatisfaction with the pay commission discrepancies. They would have no option but to ‘lump it’. Life would carry on, the soldiers and officers would continue to spill their blood securing this nation. But, as the chiefs are well aware, it would be yet another blow to the already beleaguered edifice of the morale of the services, another threat to its basic fabric.
The move to withhold the implementation till a final decision on the anomalies was the only way the import and urgency of the issue could have been highlighted, since all other quarters had only drawn assurances. It also made administrative sense, since it would avoid having to do the salary calculations of more than 15 Lakh people twice in (hopefully) a month or so.
As regards the signal informing their command of the delay in implementation, it was perfectly in order to keep all ranks of the services informed about an issue that every one of them is obviously monitoring closely and is affected by. This is as per the best practices of command, to avoid rumour mongering and ensuring the correct picture is known to all.
The chiefs were sanguine that loyalty to the nation lay in being loyal to their services and their subordinates, and acted accordingly, even at potentially grave personal costs. It is probably for the first time, after the late Field Marshal Manekshaw insisted on delaying the commencement of operations in 1971 till the army was fully ready, that such a principled and selfless stance has been taken by any service chief. They have lived up to the line in the NDA Prayer – “Help me to choose the harder right instead of the easier wrong.”The nation, media and the government must view their actions in this light, and not now go on a witch hunt, lest they cause irreparable damage to the morale of the armed forces.
Isn't it a matter of introspection for the Indian authorities that while the US homeland has been free of terror attacks ever since 9/11, India has been suffering them with alarming regularity. Hardly a month passes without a major terrorist incident in one of India's major cities. What are the lessons that we need to take from the US ability to keep terror at bay? What are the factors that make India so much more vulnerable? Following are possibly some.
Although America is a much more open society in terms of freedom from restrictions on civil liberties and imposing on citizens through intrusive checks and balances, the law enforcement and intelligence agencies appear to be doing a better job of preventing any incidents. One aspect is sheer competence, which needs a drastic improvement in our case. The second, I suppose is techincal support available to the US agencies, which is not unachievable for us. The third aspect is the sheer size of our population and the unorganised or disorganised nature of our society at large. Fourth, I suspect is the fact that in the largely anglo saxon population of a country like the US, the perpetrators of such incidencts who would by and large be asian, would stand out, affording better monitoring ability.
Besides, there are some more serious issues in our case. The politician - criminal - police nexus on one hand, and the policy of vote bank politics leading to minority appeasement, or at least exaggerated sensitivity to minority sentiments in dealing with terrorist suspects, on the other, are other factors that facilitate the perpetrators of such hideous acts in India. US, on the other hand, apparently is free from such encumberances when it comes to dealing with terrorism, which it very rightly treats with the severity that it deserves.
It is high time that our political class wakes up, takes a reality check and putting national interest over and above any other considerations, personal or political ambitions notwithstanding. They must strengthen the hands of our law enforcement and intelligence agencies in every way possible. The country must have effective legislation to deal with terrorism, which is nothing short of war on the nation and humanity. The issue of terrorism must be tackled with complete political consensus, rather than playing petty politics on the issue to score brownie points.
The time has come for our country to stand up as one and face the menace of terror in a concerted and decisive manner.
An Old Story: The Ant works hard in the withering heat all summer building its house and laying up supplies for the winter. The Grasshopper thinks the Ant is a fool and laughs & dances & plays the summer away. Come winter, the Ant is warm and well fed. The Grasshopper has no food or shelter so he dies out in the cold.
Indian Version: The Ant works hard in the withering heat all summer building its house and laying up supplies for the winter. The Grasshopper thinks the Ant's a fool and laughs & dances & plays the summer away. Come winter, the shivering Grasshopper calls a press conference and demands to know why the Ant should be allowed to be warm and well fed while others are cold and starving. NDTV, BBC, CNN show up to provide pictures of the shivering Grasshopper next to a video of the Ant in his comfortable home with a table filled with food.
The World is stunned by the sharp contrast. How can this be that this poor Grasshopper is allowed to suffer so? Arundhati Roy stages a demonstration in front of the Ant's house. Medha Patkar goes on a fast along with other Grasshoppers demanding that Grasshoppers be relocated to warmer climates during winter. Mayawati states this as `injustice' done on Minorities. Amnesty International and Koffi Annan criticize the Indian Government for not upholding the fundamental rights of the Grasshopper. The Internet is flooded with online petitions seeking support to the Grasshopper (many promising Heaven and Everlasting Peace for prompt support as against the wrath of God for non-compliance) . Opposition MPs stage a walkout. Left parties call for 'Bengal Bandh' in West Bengal and Kerala demanding a Judicial Enquiry. CPM in Kerala immediately passes a law preventing Ants from working hard in the heat so as to bring about equality of poverty among Ants and Grasshoppers.
Lalu Prasad allocates one free coach to Grasshoppers on all Indian Railway Trains, aptly named as the 'Grasshopper Rath'. Finally, the Judicial Committee drafts the ' Prevention of Terrorism Against Grasshoppers Act' [POTAGA], with effect from the beginning of the winter.
Arjun Singh makes 'Special Reservation ' for Grasshoppers in Educational Institutions & in Government Services. The Ant is fined for failing to comply with POTAGA and having nothing left to pay his retroactive taxes, its home is confiscated by the Government and handed over to the Grasshopper in a ceremony covered by NDTV. Arundhati Roy calls it ' A Triumph of Justice'. Lalu calls it 'Socialistic Justice '.
CPM calls it the ' Revolutionary Resurgence of the Downtrodden ' Koffi Annan invites the Grasshopper to address the UN General Assembly. Many years later... The Ant has since migrated to the US and set up a multi-billion dollar company in Silicon Valley,
100s of Grasshoppers still die of starvation despite reservation somewhere in India,
..AND
As a result of loosing lot of hard working Ants and feeding the grasshoppers, . India is still a developing country…!!!
It is easy to fob off kids with irrelevant or non commital answers when you do not want to actually respond to their innocent little queries. You can tell them that they will find answers when they grow up, or that they are too young to understand. Or even with a simple "I don't know". But doing so for genuine queries that childlike curiosity throws up every now and then, and in most cases more now than then, is actaully stifiling a very healthy habit of investigating their surroundings.
It must be our endeavour to be as patient as possible when dealin with our children. The gift of patience and of our time is the best that we can give them. It is the best way of imparting our values to them, the DNA of real life that will see them through the evolution from childhood dreams to the cruel world of adulthood.
Physically, Pranayam appears to be a systematic exercise of respiration, which makes the lungs stronger, improves blood circulation, makes the man healthier and bestows upon him the boon of a long life. Physiology teaches us that the air (Prana) we breathe in fills our lungs, spreads in the entire body, providing it with essential form the body, take them to the heart and then to the lungs, which throws the useless material like carbon dioxide out of the body through the act of exhalation. If this action of the respiratory system is done regularly and efficiently, lungs become stronger and blood becomes pure.
However, most of the people do not have the habit of breathing deeply with the result that only one-fourth part of the lungs is brought into action and 75 percent remains idle. Like the honeycomb, lungs are made of about 73 million cells, comparable to a sponge in their making. On normal breathing, to which we all are accustomed, only about 20 million pores in the lungs get oxygen, whereas remaining 53 million pores remain deprived of the benefit, with the result that they get contaminated by several diseases like tuberculosis, respiratory diseases and several ailments like coughing, bronchitis etc.
In this way, the inefficient functioning of the lungs affects the process of blood purification. Heart weakens because of this with a constant possibility of untimely death. It is for this reason that the importance of Pranayama has come to be recognised, for a healthy long life. Several diseases can be averted by regular practice of Pranayama.Hence, it is obvious that the knowledge of the science of Pranayama and its regular practice enables a man to lead a healthy and long life. It is for this reason that in several Hindu religious rites, Pranayama is found to have been introduced as an essential element.
Some rules for Pranayam
Select a clean and peaceful place for doing Pranayama.
The sheet or cloth (cotton or wool etc.) on which you sit must be a non-conductor of electricity.
Breathe only through the nose, because by doing so the air which you take in, is filtered. During daytime when you are not sitting for the performance of Pranayama make it a habit to do respire only through nose and not through mouth. Nasal respiration keeps the temperature of the Nadis (Vessels) even. It also prevents foreign and harmful objects from getting into lungs.
Like 'Yog', Pranayama should also be performed four or five hours after taking food. In the morning Pranayama should be done after finishing daily routine acts like cleansing mouth, emptying of bowels etc., it should also be done before Yogsana. In the beginning Pranayama should be done for five or ten minutes gradually the time may be increased up to about 1/2 or 1 hour. Maintain a specific number of repetitions and do not variate. Maintain a specific rhythm.
Keep your mind calm and composed. However, Pranayama can also calm down the disturbed mind and keep one happy.
If you feel fatigued in the course of doing Pranayama , rest for sometime and then begin deep breathing, which will remove the fatigue.
Pranayama does not mean just breathing in, keeping the breathed air in and exhaling it. It also means establishing control on the entire breathing process, and maintaining mental equilibrium, and concentration of mind.
See that while doing Pranayama , none of your organs such as mouth, eyes, nose, etc. feels any strain and it should be done gradually without any undue stress or strain. All the organs of the body should be kept in normal condition. While doing Pranayama sit in an erect posture. Keep your spine and neck straight. This is essential for reaping the full benefit of Pranayama .
If possible Pranayama should be done after your usual morning functions like cleansing of mouth, evacuation of bowels, bathing etc. However, if it becomes necessary for you to take bath after Pranayama , keep an interval of about 15 to 20 minutes between Pranayama and bathing.
Different treatise advocating or dealing with the subject of Pranayama describe several methods and each of them has its own importance. However, it is not possible for most people to do all these exercises daily. Hence, with the blessings of our teachers and in view of our experience, we have evolved seven methods of Pranayama , which incorporate into themselves, almost all the peculiarities of Pranayama rendering them scientific and useful from a spiritual point of view. All these seven types of Pranayama can be done, as a routine and in a time bound programme of about 20 minutes.
Exercises
1. Bhastrika Pranayam
Procedure : Hold your right nasal with thumb, breathe in from left. Now open right nasal and close left nasal with middle and ring finger and breathe out from right nasal. Now breathe in from right nasal. Now close right nasal and open left and breathe out and in from left nasal. and so on. Duration : atleast 10 mins. Benefits : heart, high BP, heart blockage, vat-cuf-pit, arthritis, cartilage, bent ligaments, sinual fluid reduced, parkinson, paralysis, neural related, depression, migraine pain, asthma, sinus, allergy Tips : breathe into lungs not to stomach. no organ in stomach absorbs oxygen. Do not hurry. Do it slowly. Rest whenever needed (in any pranayam).
Detailed Procedure
Sit in a comfortable Asana. Breathe in through both the nostrils forcefully, till the lungs are full and diaphragm is stretched. Then breathe out forcefully also, but see that the abdominal cavity does not blow up due to the air breathed in. Depending upon the capacity and health of an individual, this Pranayama can be done in three variable speeds viz. slow speed, moderate speed and at high speed. Individuals with weak lungs and heart should do this at a slow speed while performing Recak and Puraka A healthy individual and one used to doing it, should do it initially at a slow speed and then gradually increase the speed to moderate and then high. This Pranayama should be done for 5 to 10 minutes.
Special Notes:
Those suffering from high blood pressure or from any heart disease should not do this Pranayama.
While breathing in the abdominal area should not blow up. You have to fill the air in the chest area, i.e. up to diaphragm, so that the part of the chest with its ribs swells.
In summer season, reduce the number of repititions of this Pranayama.
One must do this Pranayama for the duration of three to five minutes every day.
Incase both the nostrils do not open on account of ailments like severe cough or sinus etc., for such persons they should first close the right nostril and do respiration (exhalation as well as inhalation) through the left nostril. Then the left nostril should be closed and respiration should be done by the right nostril. This method of alternate breathing should be continued at the desired speed viz. slow, moderate or fast, till both the nostrils open simultaneously.
Procedure : Push air forcefully out. Stomach will itself go in. Duration : Start with 30 times or 1 min. increase upto 5 mins min. upto 10 mins max. Benefits : aabha, tej, obesity, constipation, gastric, acidity, Croesus(liver), hepatitis B, uterus, diabetes, stomach problems, cholesterol, allergic problems, asthma, snoring, concentration, and even cancer and AIDS. Tips : heart and high BP patients, and weak people do it slowly.
Detailed Procedure
‘Kapal’ means forehead and ‘Bhati’ means light. Hence, Kapal-Bhati refers to that exercise which makes the forehead luminous and lustrous. Kapal-Bhati Pranayama makes its Sadhak’s head luminous. This Pranayama is a little different from Bhastrika Pranayama. In Bhastrika Pranayama, Puraka and Recak are done with the same amount of force, where as in Kapal-Bhati more attention is to be given to the act of forceful Recak. In Kapal-Bhati, the Puraka is to be done with normal, usual force but the Recak has to be done with as much of force as is at your command. In doing so, the abdominal area, also makes inward and outward movements and considerable force is applied to the Manipura,Svadhisthana and Muladhara Chakra. This Pranayama should easily be done for five minutes. In short, breathe in normally and breathe out forcefully, so as to influence the organs of the abdominal area. Persons suffering from acute and chronic diseases must practice if for 15 minutes or more as per the capability.
Duration:
Do this Pranayama at the start for a period of three minutes and gradually increase it to five minutes. Initially, if you feel tired in between, take rest for a while and resume. After practice of about two months, you will be able to perform this Pranayama for five minutes at a stretch without any fatigue. This is the total duration for which it should be done. In the beginning, you may feel a little pain in the back or abdomen. But this will disappear after some practice. So do not give up. People whose glands secrete lots of bile inside the body are termed as Pitta Prakriti. They should not do this Pranayama for more than 2 minutes during summer season.
Procedure : Breathe air out, touch chin to chest, squeeze stomach completely and hold for a while. then release chin, breathe in slowly. Duration : 3 times to 5 times normally. max upto 11 times. and extremely max upto 21 times (in winters). Benefits : stomach(udar), hernia, urinal, uterus Tips : not for heart and high BP patients
Link - http://in.youtube.com/watch?v=lrCuWpHsQ8s (in this video, only the first part is relevant).
4. Anulom Vilom Pranayam
Procedure : Hold your right nasal with thumb, breathe in from left. Now open right nasal and close left nasal with middle and ring finger and breathe out from right nasal. Now breathe in from right nasal. Now close right nasal and open left and breathe out and in from left nasal. and so on. Duration : atleast 10 mins. Benefits : heart, high BP, heart blockage, vat-cuf-pit, arthritis, cartilage, bent ligaments, sinual fluid reduced, parkinson, paralysis, neural related, depression, migraine pain, asthma, sinus, allergy Tips : breathe into lungs not to stomach. no organ in stomach absorbs oxygen. Do not hurry. Do it slowly. Rest whenever needed (in any pranayam).
Detailed Method:
Prana breathed in through left nostril represents energy of the moon, which symbolizes peace, and has a cooling effect. Hence for purification of Nadis, beginning of this Pranayama has to be made by the left nostril. Close the right side nostril with the right hand thumb. Inhale slowly through the left nostril till the lungs are filled. Then close the left nostril with the second and third fingers. Open the right nostril and exhale through it. Repeat this exercise slowly in the beginning, and with practice, increase the speed. When you are able to practice this exercise for a long time, inhale with as much force as is possible for you, then exhale also forcefully. This practice of inhalation and exhalation alternatively through the right and left nostril, as indicated above with force, should be done for 3 minutes. If you feel tired, rest for sometimes and resume. Regular practice will enable you to do this Pranayama for 10 minutes. After some practice being established, this Pranayama should be done for 5 to 10 minutes daily, depending upon one’s capacity. However, in summer season it should be done for duration starting from 3 minutes and up to a maximum of 5 minutes. Method to close the nostrils: To be done by closing the nostrils one after another, close the right nostril by the right hand thumb, and likewise close the left nostril by the 2nd and 3rd fingers (Madhyama and Anamika) fingers keep the palm of the hand in front just above the Nose.
Link - http://in.youtube.com/watch?v=o9mzcVkqw3I
5. Bhramri Pranayam
Procedure : Close ears with thumb, index finger on forehead, and rest three on base of nose touching eyes. Breathe in. And now breathe out through nose while humming like a bee. Duration : 10 mins Benefits : tension, hypertension, high BP, heart, heart blockage, paralysis, migraine pain, confidence, concentration
Detailed Procedure
Breathe in till your lungs are full of air. Close your ears with both the thumbs and eyes with the middle fingers of your hands on respective sides with little pressure. Press forehead with both the index fingers lightly. Close both the eyes. Then press eyes and nose bridge from the sides with the remaining fingers. Concentrate your mind on Ajna Chakra (between eye-brows) . Close your mouth. Begin slowly exhaling, making humming sound of a bee, while reciting “OM” mentally. Repeat the exercise 11 to 21 times according to your capacity.
Link - http://in.youtube.com/watch?v=GI9JQb6UZyc
6. Udgeeth Pranayam
Procedure : Breathe in deeply, and chant 'Om'kar. OOOOOOm ( long O and small m ) Duration : 10 mins or more Benefits : meditation
Details
"Omkar Japa" (Muttering the mantra “OM”) After performance of the five Pranayamas mentioned here above concentrate your mind on the respiration and meditate on the sacred mantra “OM”. God has fashioned the shape of our brows like OM. This body and the universal cosmic body are filled with this mantra. It is not the figure or expression of any individual thing, but it is divine energy, which regulates the entire functioning of the universe. With every act of breathing in and breathing out, mentally go on repeating the mantra “OM”. The speed of respiration should be so slow and subtle that you yourself also may not be aware of its sound, even if a piece of cotton is placed in front of the nostril it should not move by the effect of the air exhaled out. Slowly practice and make the duration of one inhalation and exhalation to one minute. Likewise, try to visualize the breath inside the body. Initially the breath can be felt only in the nostrils but gradually it will be felt deep inside. In this way, visualizing the breath and continuous chanting of ‘OM’ will lead to Dhyana automatically. Your mind will develop a feeling of concentration and your body will be filled with the feeling of OM. The Gayatri Mantra from the Vedas can also be chanted meaningfully along with Pranayama. This way the Sadhaka can attain the joyful stage of Samadhi by going through the various visualizations of god and supreme powers. Also if this is practiced at bedtime, one will get peaceful sleep without any perverted dreams etc.
I Came across this description in a very interesting book called 'Modern India' by an American called Curtis, written in 1903. A third person unbiased view of India under the British rule at the turn of the twentieth century. I feel that the observation is still quite valid today - though I do feel that he used 'Hindu' as a generic term for Indian.
"... a Hindu immediately becomes a politician as soon as he is educated. It he does not succeed in obtaining an office he becomes an opponent of the government, and more or less of an agitator, according to his ability and ambitions."
