Life is beautiful... "Change Minds, Save Lives"
"In the sky, there is no distinction of
east and west;
people create distinction out of their own
minds & then believe them to be true".
- Lord
Buddha
Let us model the 'Indian Society' as an organization which has been
following a Mechanistic Structure
wherein the tasks associated with each of the four layers (CEO, Upper White
Collar , Lower white Collar, and Blue Collar) under this structure have been
clearly defined.
1.
Chief Executive Officer (CEO) - The CEO layer is considered as the Priest's layer; members of this layer can marry only within their
own CEO layer. If any daughter/ son, born and bought up in this layer tries to
marry someone from other lower layers, that marriage is not being acknowledged
either by the group of CEO's or by the organization as a whole. According to
these puritans, 'this will dilute the reputation and also affect the PRESTIGE of their Priest's layer.'
2.
Upper White Collar (UWC)- The UWC layer is considered as the Protection
layer with similar rules as that of the CEO's layer to protect PRESTIGE of this layer.
1.
Lower White Collar (LWC) - The LWC comprises
what is to be the Business layer
with similar rules as that of the CEO and UWC layer to protect PRESTIGE of this layer.
2.
Blue Collar (BC) - The BC is considered
to be a part of the Servant layer.
This layer doesn't have any other choice but to serve the above three layers.
Earlier they didn't have the right to education, to visit temples, to read holy
books, to share food and other stuffs. But gratefully, at least a few things
have been improved what with OCM (Organisational Change Management) and OD
(Organisation Development) as subjects having been introduced in the curriculum
of this organization. Credit goes to the authors of such books like Jyotiba Phule, whose remarkable influence was apparent in the field of education for women and
the downtrodden, agriculture, caste system, women and widow upliftment
to a certain extent; credit is also due to Swami Agniwesh,
who belongs to the CEO layer of the organisational structure but has been
constantly contributing to the upliftment of the
lowest layer of the organisation i.e. Blue Collar. Now, the BC's class has the
right to education and the right to go inside temples. However even in the 21st
century, in few places they don't have the right to marry anyone from any of
the above 3 layers. It doesn't matter if they have risen/ can rise to the layer
of UWC/LWC/ CEO by their sheer hard work and good conduct but if they are born
in the Blue Collar's class, they WILL be treated as a Blue Collar's.
The structure of this
organisation has been divided further in sub-layers. For e.g. In the CEO layer,
we have the High class CEO, Middle class CEO, Lower class CEO, Pure CEO, Veg.
CEO, Egg eating CEO, Non Veg. CEO, Theist CEO, Atheist CEO, and the list goes
on.... And the other three layers are no different where the same division is
being followed!
Inevitably, our organization has
been splitting up like an endless Chain Reaction. Is there any end to this
division? Should we blame the founders of this organizational structure or
should we blame those who are still following this culture in 21 century? These
are the few prevalent questions which beg for an answer.
Fortunately, there
exist various subsidiaries of this organization which usher in restructuring in
its culture processes. There are many liberal and rational employees in these
subsidiaries who understood the meaning of the words 'humanitarian values'. But unfortunately, most of these subsidiaries
invariably end up following the same old culture. And to prevent this rigidity,
they can stoop to the lowest possible level. Even to the extent of killing
their own sons and daughters for their so-called Prestige/Honour!!!
Buddhism
& Sikhism are the independent
organizations which have been formed to get rid of this societal-based
irrational structuring and to create a flat structure within their
organization; to create a good culture without any discrimination so that
people should get incentives based on
their deeds and merits, not by their birth.
The Irony is - People who belong to Sikhism
and Buddhism have also created the same structures in their 'pure'
organizations. The influence of this irrational structuring is so powerful that
no other religion is being spared and this has also
moved beyond the boundaries of India wherein people take this cultural baggage
along with them to foreign countries as well. There is growing evidence that
caste is rearing its ugly face in other countries. E.g. Recently in
U.K., the Anti -Caste code bill has been passed.
Times of
India- Newspaper Article, April, 2010;
an article which stirred our soul and whose output was a short film "Prestige-
A delusion defeating dignity": a daughter was killed by her own mother in the
name of so-called honor. The reason - Her daughter belonged to the CEO's class
and fell in love with her equally potential batch mate who was unfortunately
born and brought up in the Blue Collar's class.
If we consider killing as a Prestige/ Honor, then in the same
breath, we should rate Osama Bin laden and other terrorists as the most
respectful and honorable people of this planet. And Nobel Peace laureates like
Mother Teresa and Nelson Mandela as the least ones!!
I've been travelling around and visiting the
temples of India since 2003, covering almost all different religious places:
like Hinduism- Temples of Mathura, Ayodhya, Shirdi, Puri, Islam- Chisti Dargah at Ajmer, Christianity- Churches at Delhi and
Chennai, Sikhism- The Golden temple -Amritsar,
Budhism-
Lord Buddha's place at Shravasti.
Simply I love all places and respect all
religions. . . I love to gorge on a garma-garam halwa at the Golden temple, I love to attend the 3.30
am mangal-aarti
at the Hare Krishna temple, I love to revel in the serenity at a Church, I love
to hear the qawwali
at a Dargah, I love to indulge in the calmness and
peace at a Buddhist pagoda but I found nothing Rational in this irrational structuring within the religion and
society and nothing Honorable/Prestigious
in killing of their own children!!!!!
"No Religion...
is better than Love & No Caste... is better than Humanity..."
Life is beautiful... "Change Minds, Save Lives"
With Love & Hope
Rahul KG
PGP13
Student,
Indian
Institute of Management, Kozhikode