123. Junior, Junior!

"Hope our senior has not yet walked in!" asked Rajesh, in a whispering voice, as he entered the office.

"Not yet, luckily for you. You are late, today also!" said Siva.

"Well, if we can leave the office in time, we can also come in time in the morning. Every day, it is about 8 or 9 pm, when we leave the office. I am not even able to go for an evening show, with my lover!"

"Oh, you have a lover. You never told me!"

"Not really. I just made it up. I am yet to scout for one, but where do I have the time or it, when I am working as a junior for our great lawyer? I can't be wedded to the job, the way you are. Sometimes, I curse myself for having studied law. People who do other courses in the college land a job, earn a salary and live happily. It is only in our profession that we, after studying law, have to work as an intern under a lawyer for a few years, before we can practice as a lawyer."

"Hey! Don't speak in a loud voice. The senior may walk in any time. Fortunately, Suganthi, the typist is on leave today" said Siva.

Even as he was saying this, Ramadurai, the senior lawyer entered the office.

Seeing Siva and Rajesh get up from their seats, Ramadurai said, "Sit down. Siva, have you prepared the brief I asked you to ?"

"Yes, sir. I have kept the brief on your table."

"Ok. What are you  working on now?"

"Sir! Mahadevan's property matter is coming up for hearing, next week. I am collecting the reference judgements for that case."

"Good. If you don't get a good reference in our library, go to the High Court Library and check. Tomorrow, I will go through the references collected by you and tell you whether anything more is needed. Rajesh, what are you doing?"

"Sir, I am arranging the papers for Mr. Ramakrishnan's insurance case."

"This is what you have been saying for the last three days! It appears that you don't do any work, when I am not in the office."

"No, sir. There are a large number of documents to be checked and compiled."

"Don't I know? It shouldn't take more than two hours. Working as a Junior under a busy lawyer like me is a great opportunity. If you don't make use of it, you will be the loser. Ok. I am leaving for the court now. I will come in the evening and check what you people have done. If anyone comes to see me on any important matter, give me a call."

Ramadurai left the office, after giving the above instructions. 

"What he is paying us is pittance. But the amount of work we have to do keeps piling up" said Rajesh, with disgust.

"Did he not tell you just now that this is a learning opportunity? If we make proper use of this, we will then get the earning opportunity!" said Siva.

"If you are so gullible, people will continue to exploit you. We have been Mr. Ramadurai's juniors for the past six months. What has he taught us during this period?" asked Rajesh.

"Rajesh! This is not a college, where professors will teach us the subjects. We have to learn things by doing the tasks given to us by our Senior. If we work in this office patiently for two years, doing the tasks given to us and learning things by concentrating on our work and by observing our Senior, we will gain the competence to practice on our own" said Siva.

"That is what you think! Our Senior will keep practicing till the age of ninety and you will be working as his Junior, till the end. Neither will he allow you to practice on your own, nor will you leave him and start your practice."

"Ok. But, what are you going to do?"

"I have waited for six months. He doesn't pay us well. Nor does he give us important tasks that will help us to learn. We can only sit next to him in the court and give him the papers that he wants. We will never be able to argue a case in the court. You will see that in two month's time, I will get a client of my own and start my practice!"

After two months, Rajesh quit as Ramadurai's Junior and started his own practice.

After about a year, Siva met Rajesh in a function.

"How is your practice going?" asked Siva.

"It didn't go as per my expectation. So, I have become a Junior of Lawyer Swaminathan."

"I have not heard his name. Is he having a good practice?"

"What can I say? He doesn't have many cases. So, I don't have much work either. Since his income is irregular, he has not been paying me regularly. I should have continued to work under Mr. Ramadurai. I now feel that I took a hasty decision and quit my job. But, how are you?"

"As you know, Mr. Ramadurai is a busy lawyer, with a number of cases to attend to. So, I have a lot of work to do. In the process, I have been able to learn a lot. Mr. Ramadurai told me that by next year, I would be able to practice independently. So, to equip me for my practice, for the past two months, he has been giving me opportunities to argue cases in the court."

"You are a lucky person" said Rajesh.

"I don't know whether I am lucky. But I have believed that if I remained patient, worked hard and learnt things, I would be able to come up in my profession. I am hopeful that my belief will come true."

"Once you start practicing on your own, I will work under you as your junior!" said Rajesh.

Siva was not sure whether Rajesh said it in a lighter vein or he really meant it.

Thirukkural

Section 1
The Path of Virtue

Chapter 13
Restraint

Verse 123 (In Tamil)

seRivu aRindhu sIrmai payakkum aRivu aRindhu
ARRin adangap peRin.

Meaning:

The greatness of one, who is wise and follows the right path

by being restrained, will be recognized and appreciated.

(This is the English version of the Tamil story 'junior junior' by the same author)

Verse 124 (Soon)
Verse 122

526. Prabhu's Anger

"Prabhu is a benefactor. He helps every one, particularly his relatives. That's why all his relatives consider him a member of their family."

"Yes, I have noticed that he is often visited by his relatives. Well, if one is wealthy, it is only natural that he is flocked by his kith and kin."

"No, not that way. It is true that wealthy people are respected by people around him. I also have wealthy relatives. If I meet them occasionally, I just greet them and move away. I have no regards or affection for them. Prabhu is different in that he loves his relatives and helps them in many ways. That is the reason for the intimacy between him and his relatives."

"I agree that Prabhu has been helping his relatives. But, I have heard that he is an irascible person. He often bursts out at his relatives and uses harsh words against them. His relatives have been putting up with his irascibility, only because he is wealthy."

"I don't think it is true. There is a difference between tolerating a person and being affectionate towards him. We have to put up with our boss in the office, whatever may be his behaviour towards us. But if the boss, rather than display his authority, treats us with kindness and consideration, won't we have a liking for him? The affection Prabhu's relatives have towards him is similar to that."

"Going by your own example, if our boss is cantankerous, will we have respect or concern for him? We will just be tolerating him, because we have no choice. I think Prabhu's relatives tolerating him is also similar to this."

"How do you say Prabhu is cantankerous? As far as I have observed, he has been genial towards all."

"I will share an anecdote I heard about him. Once, when there was a delay in his getting an approval from a government department, he went to that office and shouted at the official concerned. Hearing his yelling, all employees rushed to the spot. The public visiting that office also witnessed his outburst. Rattled by his angry outburst, the official pacified him by promising to look into his case immediately and kept his promise by giving the approval in a couple of days. Prabhu's anger is so notorious!"

"I have also heard about this anecdote. But there is a twist to this narrative. The official concerned had demanded a bribe for giving the approval. That is what made Prabhu angry. In fact, I have heard people close to Prabhu remark that Prabhu displayed his anger in public, only to expose the official and make him behave. So, Prabhu is not an irascible person at all. It is only because Prabhu is kind and helpful that his relatives flock to him, not because he is wealthy."

Thirukkural
Section 2

Materialism

Chapter 53
Assessing Before Acting

Verse 526 (in Tamil):

perum kodaiyAn pENAn veguLi avanin
marungudaiyAr mAnilaththu il.

Meaning:

None on this earth can have better kin than a person who gives generously and is free of anger.

(This is the English version of the Tamil story 'prabhuvin kObham' by the same author.)

Verse 527 (Soon)
Verse 525

525. Wealthy Relatives!

When the car stopped in front of the marriage hall, several people came out from the hall to receive Murthy and his wife Meenakshi, who got down from the car. They received the couple with respect, led them to the marriage hall and got them seated.

No sooner than Murthy and Meenakshi took their seats, one person came near them and told them politely, "Please have your breakfast first" and took them to the dining hall. 

He made them sit in a row of tables, not occupied by anyone, called the servers and told them, "Serve them!"

Sensing that the two people seated in a separate row were important people, the servers hurried up to the table, carrying the vessels filled with the breakfast dishes.

The person, who had led the couple to the dining hall, was standing nearby and ensuring that the duo were being served properly.

Murthy told him, "Please carry on with your activities. We will have the breakfast and come back to the hall."

But, the person continued to stand there.

Even as Murthy and Meenakshi were having their breakfast, a few people - their relatives - came to them and greeted them. 

Velu, the bride's father also came there.

"Welcome, Murthy and Meenakshi! I am happy that you are attending the function" said Velu.

"Velu! You are the bride's father. You will have many chores to attend to. Why do you have to leave your tasks and come here?" asked Murthy. However, his face showed his pride at the importance being given to him, by every one.

"Oh, it's fine. Greeting guests like you is also one of my duties" said Velu.

"Has Sivaraman come?" asked Murthy.

"Yes, he has. He just had his breakfast. He is sitting in the hall."

"Ok. You may be wanted at the stage. Go ahead and attend to your tasks" said Murthy.

Velu took leave of him, saying, "I will meet you, after the ceremony is over."

After Velu had left, Meenakshi asked Murthy, in a whispering voice, "Why did you particularly ask about Sivaraman?"

"As you know, among Velu's relatives, only Sivaraman and I are well-to-do people. Others are of modest economic status. Both Sivaraman and I make it a habit to attend all the functions in the families of our relatives and show our bonding with them. I knew that Sivaraman would attend this function. I just wanted to check whether he had come already" said Murthy.

After coming home from the wedding, Meenakshi told Murthy, "I observed one thing. Your relatives showed you a lot of respect, alright. But, they appeared to have more intimacy with Sivaraman. Have you ever observed this?"

"Yes, I have noticed it. Though my relatives are poor, I attend all the functions in their families. I give them gift cheques for a considerable sum rather than give expensive gifts, so that the money could be useful to them. I invite every one to the functions in our family and extend my hospitality to them. I also oblige them, if they seek financial help, from me. I think Sivaraman also treats them in the same way. But, people seem to be more intimate with Sivaraman, than they are with me. If Sivaraman and I were to contest an election, most of my relatives would vote for Sivaraman! But I don't understand the reason for this. Perhaps, Sivaraman has a kind of charisma, which I don't have" said Murthy, smiling.

'Sivaraman has the habit of using pleasant words, while speaking to people. You don't use sweet words, even when you speak to me or our children. How will you speak pleasantly with your relatives? You don't understand what you are lacking!' thought Meenakshi. 

Thirukkural
Section 2

Materialism

Chapter 53
Assessing Before Acting

Verse 525 (in Tamil):

koduththalum insolum ARRin adukkiya
suRRaththAl suRRappadum.

Meaning:

One who practices generosity and uses kind words will be encircled by an extended family.

(This is the English version of the Tamil story 'paNakkAra uRavinargaL' by the same author.)

Verse 526
Verse 524

524. Visiting A Relative

"How much time is there for the flight?" asked Arulmozhi.

"We will have to leave for the airport in about one hour from now" said his Personal Secretary Muthiah.

"In that case, we should leave immediately. I need to go to my relative's house too!"

"Sir! That house is located in the opposite direction. If we go there and then leave for the airport from there, we will be delayed."

"We have one hour time. It will take only 20 minutes for us to go there and another 20 minutes to come back. I am going to be there only for 10 minutes. That still leaves us a cushion of 10 minutes."

Arulmozhi and Muthiah got down from the car and walked to the house that was situated in a narrow street.

When Arulmozhi rang the doorbell, the elderly man who opened the door, expressed surprise at seeing Arulmozhi on his doorstep and said, "Hey, Arul! When did you come to Coimbatore? Come in."

He also greeted Muthiah asking him, "Come in Mr. Muthiah! How are you?"

Even as Muthiah replied, "I am fine, Sir," his eyes reflexively looked at his wrist watch.

"When did I come to Coimbatore? I am departing from Coimbatore! I have got just five minutes for you. Please don't offer me coffee or tea. I have to catch my flight. I have squeezed in a few minutes just to see all of you" said Arulmozhi, as he stepped into the house. He turned to Muthiah and said, "Only five minutes, precisely." 

Muthiah nodded his head and went out.

Arulmozhi spent exactly five minutes talking to his relatives and came out of the house. He joined Muthiah, who was anxiously waiting for him outside the house. Both walked fast to the car.

After getting into the car, Arulmozhi looked at his watch and asked Muthiah, "Hope we can make it to the airport in time."

Muthiah nodded his head, more in hope than in certainty and said reluctantly, "Sir, I am aware of your habit of visiting your relatives living in the places we travel to, on business. But today, the time was quite tight. That was why I expressed my reservation when you started for this place." 

"Most of my relatives are poor. I am the only person who became a businessman and attained a higher economic status. But I want to be intimate with all of my relatives. They are understandably reluctant to move with me, daunted by my higher economic status. It only for the purpose of removing their reluctance and making them feel comfortable to move with me as a relative that I have been visiting my relatives as often as I can and keeping my relationship with them strong" said Arulmozhi.

Thirukkural
Section 2

Materialism

Chapter 53
Assessing Before Acting

Verse 524 (in Tamil):

suRRaththAl suRRappada ozhugal selvandhAn
peRRaththAl peRRa payan.

Meaning:

To live surrounded by the kin is the benefit gained by acquiring wealth.

(This is the English version of the Tamil story 'nEram illai Ayinum' by the same author.)

Verse 525
Verse 523

523. Fighting Loneliness With Coffee!

"Want some coffee?" asked Mala.

"You know I had coffee only a few minutes back!" said Nathan, somewhat surprised. "There was a time when you would be annoyed, if I asked for coffee, and complain 'how many times in a day should I make coffee for you?' But now, you are asking me whether I want to have coffee!" he added.

"Those days, we had children growing up, whose needs I had to take care of. The household chores would be unending. I would have felt fatigued and shown my annoyance some times."

Nathan was quiet for a while. He then asked Mala, "Shall we go for a movie?"

"Only last week, we had been to a movie. Nowadays, we have a lot of movies on the TV. Movie on demand! I don't have the desire to go to a theatre to watch a movie. But, if you want to see a movie, then we can go" said Mala.

"No. I don't have any such desire. I asked you only for your sake."

After a few minutes, Mala came to the living room with a cup of coffee in her hand and handed it to Nathan.

"I told you I don't need coffee" said Nathan, even as he received the cup from Mala's hands. "Perhaps, you wanted to drink coffee!"

"No. But, I felt bored by sitting idle. So, I prepared fresh decoction and made some coffee."

"Usually, doing routine chores will be boring. But you say, you did some work to overcome boredom!" said Nathan, smiling, enjoying his own 'humour.'

"Yes. Sometimes, getting fatigued by doing some work is better than sitting idle, pined by thoughts that cause both mental and physical fatigue."

The smile on Nathan's face vanished immediately.

"What can we do? Our daughter has settled down in the U.S and our son in Australia. They call us whenever they have time. We can be happy for a few minutes talking to them. After the call, we could extend the happiness for some more time, by talking about what we talked to them! At other times, we just have to sit idle, gazing at the ceiling or the wall or at the idiot box. We soon get mentally fatigued" said Nathan.

"But, we don't have to be like this. I don't have any relatives from my side, but you have many relatives. But, you didn't allow any of them to get close to you. Eventually, we have lost touch with almost all of them. If we had been close with our relatives, they would be visiting us now and then and we would be visiting them too. We would also have been talking to them over phone occasionally" said Mala, in an accusing tone.

"My relatives were not well-to-do people. They were much below me in economic status. I thought that if I allowed them to get close to me, they would ask me for financial help or other favours or otherwise take advantage of my position and power to get things done for them. That was why I kept away from all of them. Only now, when we feel empty, do I realize that I should have maintained good relationship with them. If I try to reach out to my relatives now, they don't show any interest" said Nathan, feeling remorseful.

"We have received the invitation for the marriage of your father's brother's daughter' son, being held next week. Though the wedding is held at a far off place, we will attend that wedding. We will get a chance to meet some of our relatives, interact with them and get close to them."

Thirukkural
Section 2

Materialism

Chapter 53
Assessing Before Acting

Verse 523 (in Tamil):

aLavu aLAvu illAdhAn vAzhkkai kuLavu aLAk
kOdu inRi nIr niRaindhaRRu.

Meaning:

The life of a person who doesn't have intimate relationship with his kin will be like a tank full of water, but with no bund.

(This is the English version of the Tamil story 'kAppi kudikkalAmA' by the same author.)

Verse 524
Verse 522

522. An Ode to the Kin

The Silver Jubilee function of Raju Enterprises was being conducted.

Raju, the founder of the firm, honoured the senior employees, the long-standing customers and suppliers and several others, who had contributed to the growth of the firm, by giving away prizes and mementos.

The dignitaries invited for the function narrated how, starting small, Raju built up the firm through his hard work, dedication and innovation.

At the end, Raju spoke, acknowledging the felicitations and thanking every one.

"I am very happy to have got an opportunity to honour various kinds of people, who had contributed to the growth of this firm. But, I have not been able to honour some others, who had also played great roles in building up this firm. They belong to two categories. One category includes banks, various government agencies, industry associations etc. The second category comprises my relatives!"

People listening to Raju were somewhat surprised by his mention of his relatives. Though it was customary for people to acknowledge the support given by their family members, Raju's mention of his relatives was intriguing. The audience was curious to know whom Raju specifically referred to by the term 'relatives.'

"When I said relatives, I meant not only my family members, but also my relatives, both from myside and my wife's side.

"At the time I set out to start my own business, I was holding a good position in a large company. Generally, if someone got a job in a company like that, people would say that that person's life was settled. This was because that kind of a job was expected to ensure lifelong job security, growth and comfortable living. 

"I was married and I had a five year old son. I didn't have my own house or any other property. I quit the good job I was holding and started this firm, using my savings as the capital. Both my wife and my mother were opposed to my decision. Their apprehension that I was putting the future of my family at risk was reasonable and understandable.

"Many of my relatives who learnt about my decision also thought that I was being reckless. Some of them, who had never visited my house earlier, came to my house and advised me to give up my decision. They narrated the experiences of people known to them, who had taken a similar step, but were ruined within a few years, by the setbacks they faced in their business. I was angry with my relatives who tried to dissuade me. I thought 'who are these people to advise me on my professional matters?'

Within a few years of my starting the business, I encountered several problems. At one stage, I even considered winding up my business and taking up a job. But my wife and mother, who had earlier opposed my decision to start my own business, encouraged me. 'You started the business with confidence. Continue to run it. You will be able to come out of the problems soon!' said my wife.

"There was nothing surprising about my wife and my mother standing by me and motivating me. What was surprising to me was that even those relatives of mine, who had earlier advised me against starting my own business, provided moral support and encouragement to me at that time. 

On learning about my facing obstacles in my business, my relatives, rather than proudly gloat that they were proved right, encouraged me, saying, 'Don't worry. This is a passing phase. Things will become alright soon.' Some of them tried to boost my morale, by philosophizing about ups and downs being normal in a business. People who had earlier narrated the stories of those who were ruined by their dream of having their own business, now shared the stories of people who came out successfully, after facing what appeared to be insurmountable problems!

"While earlier I was angry with my relatives, for advising me on my decision to start a business, I was overwhelmed by the support and encouragement they gave me, when I was facing problems. I realized that on both the occasions, my relatives only acted out of their concern for me. I take this opportunity to convey my gratefulness to my relatives, who had kindness, concern and affection for me." 

Thirukkural
Section 2

Materialism

Chapter 53
Assessing Before Acting

Verse 522 (in Tamil):

viruppaRAch chuRRam iyaiyin aruppaRA
Akkam palavum tharum.

Meaning:

If one gets kin who never lose their love for him, he will get more and more good things in life.

(This is the English version of the Tamil story 'uRavugaL vAzhga' by the same author.)

Verse 523
Verse 521

521. House To Let

"How many more days do we have?" asked Sukanya.

"We just have one more week to vacate our house. We need to rent a house to move in before the deadline" said Alagesan.

"How are we going to manage? We have two school-going children too!" said Sukanya. She felt like crying.

Till a few months back, Alagesan's family was living a comfortable life. At least, that was how Sukanya had been thinking.

Alagesan didn't tell Sukanya about his business traversing a downward path since the past few years. Alagesan was in the grip of the blind faith held by people facing difficulties that somehow everything would be resolved soon enough.

However, the inevitable had happened. At one point of time, Alagesan realized that he won't be able to continue running his business, with the losses mounting day by day. 

It was only after he had decided to wind up his business, did Alagesan realize how disastrous his financial status had become. He had lost every thing, including the house he owned. He had to vacate his house and hand it over to the bank which had enforced the mortgage against his dues to the bank.  

He sold all his movable assets including his wife's jewels. There was hardly anything for him to take along, while moving out of the house. 

"What are we going to do?" asked Sukanya, feeling desperately concerned.

Alagesan felt overwhelmed by the concern and sense of shared responsibility that reflected in his wife's asking 'what ae WE going to do?' rather than 'what are YOU going to do?' in an accusing way.

'"Don't worry! I will go for a job and take care of the family" said Alageasan.

"I have no doubt that you will. I am asking about finding a place for us to move in after vacating this house. We don't even have the money to pay the rental deposit for the house we rent."

"That is the problem troubling me too. But one good thing is that we don't have household articles to be packed and carried in a transport vehicle. We can pack our clothes in a suitcase and walk out" said Alagesan, with a wry laughter.

The realization that Alagesan, despite being in a heart-broken state, was trying to be humorous only to mitigate her own grief made her agony even more accentuated. 

"He requested you to reduce the rent by one thousand rupees. You could have agreed to his request. He would have been a good tenant. Why didn't you consider his request?" asked Sumathy.

"Why should I reduce the rent? The rent we are asking for is lower than the rent prevailing in our area for a house like ours. Don't worry. We will get some other good tenant" said her husband.

"If you had agreed to reduce the rent even by five hundred rupees, he would have accepted."

"Why should I do so?"

"How are you, Anbu?" asked Alagesan.

"I am fine. You are my cousin. But it has been several months since we met. We have been seeing each other only in the family functions of our relatives. I don't even have your phone number. I got it from Murugan" said Anbu, speaking from the other end. 

"Yes, Anbu. I didn't have your number either."

"Let me come to the point. I heard that you have sold your house, due to some problem in your business and that you have been looking for a house to rent."

"Yes..."

"If you won't mistake me, I will make a suggestion. I have a house that has been vacant for some time. I didn't intend to give it for rent. You can stay in that house for some time."

"Thanks, Anbu. But..."

"I understand your situation, Alagesan. For the time being, you need not pay me any rent. We can talk about the rent, once your financial position improves, or, you can rent another house and move out."

"Anbu! I am overwhelmed by your kindness. This is a great help from you. I don't know how to express my feelings of gratitude for your gesture. I will be taking up some job soon. After that, I will pay you the accumulated rent in installments" said Alagesan, his voice choking with emotions.

"There is no need to talk about it now. After all, I am only letting you occupy a house that has been lying vacant. You may come to my house any time and collect the key from me" said Anbu.

"Well, when a prospective tenant asked you to reduce he rent by one thousand rupees, you were adamant about not reducing the rent even a bit. Now, you are giving our house free of rent to your cousin. You even told him that you didn't intend to let out the house!" said Sumathy. 

"As you have mentioned, I am only helping my cousin. When a relative faces a problem, should we not go to his rescue? Alagesan wouldn't have accepted my help, if he had known that I was losing the rent by asking him to occupy my house. That's why I told him that I didn't intend to let out the house" said Anbu.

Thirukkural
Section 2

Materialism

Chapter 53
Assessing Before Acting

Verse 521 (in Tamil):

paRRaRRa kaNNum pazhaimai pArAttudhal
suRRaththAr kaNNE uLa.

Meaning:

Even when all wealth is lost, it is the kin who will maintain their ties.

(This is the English version of the Tamil story 'chengalvarAyanin  chellap piLLai' by the same author.)

Verse 522
Verse 520