122. Conceited?

"What is the point of being a renowned scientist, if he doesn't know how to respect other people? Conceited and arrogant!" Sambandham, burst out angrily.

"Whom are you talking about?" asked his friend Guna.

"It's only about our great friend, the genius called Dr. Sekar!"

"What about him?"

"Our college wants to felicitate Sekar. Our Principal called me and said, 'Sekar was your classmate. Please talk to him and get his consent for participating in the Felicitation function being organized by our college.' I felt excited, called up Sekar, told him about our proposal and asked for his consent to participate in the function. But he acted strange!"

"How? Did he say no?" asked Guna, surprised.

"Yes. And he spoke to me insultingly, as if I had offended him by making this request. He is a renowned scientist, known all over India. But, what are we, after all? We are mediocre people with little education, holding on to some job in a college and eking out our living. It is natural for him to look down upon us" said Sambandham, expressing his disappointment.

"First of all, we are not in a state of mediocracy. You and I are well educated and well employed as professors in a well known college. Secondly, Sekar is not a person who would have an attitude of looking down upon people" said Guna.

"It has been several years since you had met Sekar. Do you expect him to be the same person that was always sticking to you in the college, like a child to its mother? He has changed. Have you ever wondered why he didn't contact us even once all these years?"

"We have not been touch with our classmates who were close to us in the college. Since you and I are working in the same college, we remain close. It is true that Sekar and I were intimate in the college. But, I have also not tried to contact him afterwards. Since he is a reputed person, we keep hearing about him. Otherwise, we wouldn't have known his whereabouts. So, we can't fault him alone for having not been in touch. Did you speak to him over phone?"

"Yes. As you know, he lives in Hyderabad."

"You spoke to him over phone after several years. You can't judge him based on your telephonic conversation with him. I am going to Hyderabad next week. At that time, I will meet him in person and talk to him about this" said Guna.

"Let us see whether he accepts the invitation, if it comes through you!" said Sambandham, sounding skeptical.

When Guna called up Sekar while he was in Hyderabad, Sekar spoke to him enthusiastically. He invited Guna to his house for dinner.

When Guna went to Sekar's house, both the friends were delighted at meeting each other after a long time. They conversed heartily for a long time. 'How did Sambandham consider him conceited!' wondered Guna.

"Sambandham invited you to our college to participate in a function to felicitate you, but you declined his invitation. Why?" asked Guna.

Sekar's face expression changed immediately. "Let us not talk about it" he said.

"Why? Do you have any grievance against Sambandam?'

"No way. It has been several years since we saw each other. How could I have any grievance against him?"

"But he got an impression that you spoke to him in a disrespectful manner."

"Yes. I might have spoken to him somewhat harshly."

"Why did you speak to him like that?"

"Guna! I hope you will understand me. I have to be very cautious."

"Cautious about what?"

"Well. I don't know whether I can explain this to you clearly. If I had politely declined his invitation, what would have happened? He would have tried to persuade me in a stronger way, thinking 'He says no initially, just as people normally do, but if I persuade him, he will accept.' After that, it would have been difficult for me to say no to him. Thinking that if I strongly decline his request even at the outset, he won't press me further, I declined his request in strong terms. That is the way I speak to people who approach me for felicitation, or who praise me for my achievements. This is the only way I will be able to block these kinds of felicitations and praises."

"Why are you so keen on preventing people from praising you? If someone praises you, you may listen to that praise politely and thank that person!"

"You don't understand my thinking. People who have money deposit hem in the bank. They keep their jewelry in the bank lockers. Why?"

"They do it for safety. They want to protect their money or jewelry from being stolen. "

"In the same way, I want to safeguard the asset I have."

"What is that asset? Your intellect? How will your intellect be endangered by your listening to the praises showered on you by other people?"

"I don't know whether I have the asset you call intellect. I was referring to my sense of humility, which I consider the most precious asset I possess. It is only my cultivated belief, 'what I know is very little' that facilitates my continued learning. If I listen to these kinds of praises or felicitations, I will unconsciously develop a belief that I am a great person, I am somewhat special or superior to others in some way. Such a belief will destroy my humility. After that, I won't be able to learn anything, nor will I be able to use my thinking faculty effectively. That is why I am very cautious about safeguarding my precious asset called humility. Please make Sambandham understand this and ask him to forgive me."

Guna was surprised at the irony of the very humility of Sekar that he was keen on preserving, having been perceived as conceit by Sambandham!

Thirukkural

Section 1
The Path of Virtue

Chapter 13
Restraint

Verse 122 (In Tamil)

kAkka poruLA adakkaththi Akkam
adhanin Ungu illai uyirkku.

Meaning:

The attribute called 'humility' should be safeguarded as a precious treasure. Nothing can be more beneficial for the growth of a person.

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

Verse 123 (Soon)
Verse 121

513. Choosing the Treasurer

"Minister! Our Treasurer wants to retire on account of old age. We need to appoint a new person in his place. Whom do you recommend?" asked King Keerthiverma.

"Your Majesty! It had been a practice to appoint a wealthy person to this post. But I feel that we should appoint a person on considerations of of his merit, rather than on considerations of his wealth. If you accept my suggestion, we may appoint a suitable person based on certain criteria" said the Minister.

"What could be those criteria?"

"Your Majesty! A person holding the position of the country's Treasurer should be a man of wisdom. The Treasurer has the responsibility to impose and collect taxes from the people. He has the discretion to give tax exemptions to some people on compassionate grounds. Therefore he should have the sense of discrimination to decide whom he should be strict with and whom he should treat with compassion. Moreover, since the Treasurer will be handling a large quantity of funds, he should be a person free from greed."

"How do we identify such a person?"

"I have assessed the people working in the palace on the basis of these attributes and shortlisted three people who have passed my assessment. Your Majesty may choose one among them as the Treasurer."

"Let the two of make the selection together. Ask the three of them to come to my court tomorrow."

After the King and the Minister had interviewed the three shortlisted candidates one by one, the King told the Minister, "I find that all the three candidates hail from poor families!"

"Yes, Your Majesty! As I had mentioned to you earlier, it had been a practice to appoint a wealthy person as the Treasurer, perhaps on the premise that a wealthy person won't be tempted to misappropriate money from the Treasury. But I suggested to you that it would be more appropriate to appoint the Treasurer on considerations of his merit rather than on considerations of his wealth" said the Minister in a subdued tone, apprehending that the King had not found his idea acceptable.

"Yes. I have accepted your idea. I mentioned this fact only to point out that unlike in the past, this time, the Treasurer will be a man hailing from a poor family. I think that the third candidate would be the best choice. What do you think?"

"Your Majesty! I feel proud and elated you have chosen the same person that I have considered the best among the three!" said the Minister, feeling excited.

"We will appoint that person as the Treasurer, then. Some wealthy people who have been expecting to get this coveted post will feel disappointed. But that can't be helped" said the King, laughing heartily.

Thirukkural
Section 2

Materialism

Chapter 52
Assessing Before Acting

Verse 513 (in Tamil):

anbu aRivu thERRam avAvinmai innAngum
nangu udaiyAn kattE theLivu.

Meaning:

Choose men, who are endowed with love, wisdom, clear vision and freedom from greed.

(This is the English version of the Tamil story 'mannarin thErvu' by the same author.)

Verse 514 (Soon)
Verse 512

512. Election Manifesto

"Which party are you going to vote for - Tamil People's Party (TPP) or All World Tamils Party (AWTP)?"

"It is only for deciding this that I have been studying and comparing the election manifestoes of both the parties."

"Will studying the election manifestoes suffice? Should we also not consider the policies of the parties, the qualities of the leaders of the parties and the good and bad things done by the parties when they were in power?"

"Of course, we should. But, let us look at the election manifestoes primarily. After all, the election manifesto will be the action plan of a party, if it were to be voted to power."

"It is true. But many of the promises made by both the parties in their manifestoes are similar, if not identical. Are we to see which party has given the higher number of promises or promises with higher monetary values?"

"Well. In the past, people had voted by looking at the promises in that perspective and got disappointed by the kind of government they got. That's why, now a rule has been enunciated requiring political parties to give a detailed plan of action for implementing the promises they make in their manifestoes." 

"Yes. I saw that the manifestos contained a lot of details and workings. But I don't have the patience to go through these details."

"If we can patiently go through the details, we can learn a lot both about the seriousness and about the feasibility of the promises made."

"Okay. Tell me what you have learned by studying the manifestoes."

"One of the two parties has made several attractive promises. But its manifesto has not clearly stated how the finances needed for implementing those promises would be mobilized. The manifesto gives only some vague ideas and is short on specific facts and figures. On the other hand, the other party has presented a blueprint about how it will generate additional income for the government by making better use of the resources of the state, outlining the details of steps to be taken and giving figures for the additional income that could be generated from each of the steps proposed. The manifesto goes on to explain the financial outlay required for implementing each of its promises and how this can be met from the additional income generated by the steps outlined in the manifesto."

"Oh!"

"Not only that. The manifesto even discusses the possible hurdles the government might face in implementing the plans and how the government would overcome those hurdles. The environmental issues that would arise while implementing certain schemes and ways to resolve them have also been discussed. For example, the manifesto explains how and where the people, evicted from the houses built on lands that were water bodies earlier, would be rehabilitated. 

"Surprising! It appears that the manifesto has been prepared in consultation with experts in different fields. Doesn't the manifesto of the other party have such details?"

"No. It doesn't. As I had said earlier, the manifesto gives only vague and sketchy information. Pages have been filled to create an impression that details have been given in line with the requirement of the rule. But, there are no concrete details."

"Now, tell me which party has given the relevant details in its manifesto?"

"TPP."

"So, are you going to vote for the TPP?"

"Yes. What about you?"

"My vote will also be for the TPP!"

"But, you said we should look at some more factors!"

"It is known to everyone that going by those factors, we could vote only for the TPP!"

Thirukkural
Section 2

Materialism

Chapter 52
Assessing Before Acting

Verse 512 (in Tamil):

vAri perukki vaLam paduththu uRRavai
ArAyvAn seyga vinai.

Meaning:

He who has tapped all productive sources, increased the revenues, and brought prosperity and who has the capability to analyze and overcome the hurdles is the one who should be entrusted with the task of doing things. 

(This is the English version of the Tamil story 'thErdhal aRikkai' by the same author.)

Verse 513
Verse 511

511. The Chief Minister's Route

"This is the route from your home to the Secretariat. This is the route to the party office. If you give your approval, we will clear these routes" said the Security Officer.

"Clearing the routes means?" asked Tamilmani, who had been sworn in as the Chief Minister only that morning.

"We will regulate the activities on the roads."

"Regulating the activities means?"

"We will clear the shops on the pavements" said the Security Officer, hesitatingly.

"Ok. Show me on this map the spots where the pavement shops are located" said Tamilmani.

The Security Officer pointed to some spots on the map.

"Can I travel through some other route - through roads that don't have pavement shops?"

"Yes, sir. You can. But the length of the route will be three kilometers longer" said the Security Officer.

Tamilmani was silent for a few minutes, reflecting on the choices before him.

The Chief Minister's Personal Secretary, who was listening to the conversation, told the Chief Minister, "Sir! There is a proposal for constructing a commercial complex and moving the pavement shops to the shops allotted to them in the complex."

"Yes, I am aware of it. That scheme was conceived by me when I was the Minister for Urban Development, five years back. But the new government, that came to power after us, dumped the scheme, since the ruling party felt shy of implementing a scheme conceived by the previous government, run by a rival political party!" said Tamilmani,

"We can implement it now, sir."

"Yes, we are going to. But it will take a couple of years for the scheme to be completed. If we evict the shop-owners from the pavements now, how will they earn their livelihood, till the new complex comes up? No, I don't want their livelihood to be affected" said Tamilmani to his Personal Secretary. 

He then turned to the Security Officer and told him, "Please finalize the alternative route shown by you. But, even in that route, not a single hawker should be evicted. There should be no hardship to anyone else, either."

"I will do accordingly, sir" said the Security Officer.

"Sir! You have made a public statement that since the finances of the government are under strain, every government department should focus on cutting costs and reducing the expenditure" said the Personal Secretary, hesitatingly.

"Since I will be traveling through a route longer by three kilometers, the fuel expenses for my car, and for the security vehicles that lead and follow my car will be considerably higher. Thus, I will be going against my exhortation to the government departments. Isn't this your point?" asked Tamilmani, with a smile.

"Yes, sir. The media and the opposition parties will make this an issue."

"Whether they make it an issue or not, the fact is that this arrangement will lead to increased expenditure!" said Tamilmani. He then asked the Security Officer, "How many security vehicles will accompany my car?"

"Nine,"

"Is nine a lucky number? Reduce the number of vehicles to six. This will even lead to a decrease in the fuel expenses" said Tamilmani.

"It can be done, sir. But..." The Security Officer hesitated.

"I understand your concern. I appreciate the importance of security. But, think of it this way. If we have twelve vehicles instead of nine, won't it enhance the security? But we have settled for the protection given by nine vehicles, haven't we? Let us tweak the arrangement a little more and accept the protection given by six vehicles" said Chief Minister Tamilmani.

Thirukkural
Section 2

Materialism

Chapter 52
Assessing Before Acting

Verse 511 (in Tamil):

nanmaiyum thImaiyum nAdi nalam purindha
thanmaiyAn ALappdum.

Meaning:
One should examine the benefits and the harm resulting from an act and should execute the act in such away that it yields only benefits. 

(This is the English version of the Tamil story 'mudhalvar sellum vazhi' by the same author.)

Verse 512
Verse 510

510. The New General Manager

Thangappan, who, since the time he had joined the firm, been working, for long, in the branches of the firm located in the Northern part of India, was promoted as the General Manager of the Southern Zonal Office of the firm at Chennai, on the retirement of Nambi, the incumbent General Manager.

When Thangappan joined the office at Chennai, Nambi, who had a few days for retirement, introduced the office staff to Thangappan.

"This is Ramesh, my Personal Secretary. He has been working in this firm for the past ten years. He has been serving as my right hand. He is capable of doing the jobs I do, as efficiently as I could, if not better than I could. More importantly, he is highly trustworthy. I am sure that he would be of assistance to you, as much as he was to me" said Nambi, introducing Ramesh to Thangappan. 

Ramesh greeted Thangappan. Thangappan reciprocated his greeting, even as he was wondering whether Nambi's praising him so high over his face won't make him feel conceited..

"You have been working only in the North. The atmosphere there would have been different. The market, the customers, the office environment, work culture will all be vastly different here from what they are in the North" said Nambi.

"I hail from the South, having been born in Tamilnadu" said Thangappan, with a smile. 

"I am not suggesting that you are unfamiliar with this territory. I meant that it would take some time for you to get adjusted to the atmosphere here. Till that time, the assistance of people like Ramesh will be useful to you" said Nambi, by way of clarifying his remarks. 

"I understand" said Thangappan. But, a thought that he should not rely too much on Ramesh was registered in his mind, even at that moment.

"Come in, Ramesh" Nambi greeted Ramesh, who visited his house. "How is the firm going?"

"Sir! It was to talk about the state of affairs at our firm that I came to meet you" said Ramesh. "After Mr. Thangappan had taken over as the General Manager, we are facing a lot of problems. There are issues relating to internal management as well as managing the customers. A couple of our long-standing customers are likely to leave us!"

"Why? Thangappan is an experienced person. Though he is new to this office, he should be able to function effectively, by taking the help of able and trustworthy people like you What is the problem?"

"The General Manager, in general, doesn't accept my suggestions. Many times, he doesn't even discuss issues with me. Of course, that is his privilege. But, you know about Vinayakam, working in our office..."

Yes. Vinayakam, the 'all-knowing' Accounts Assistant. He is a good-for-nothing fellow. He has no knowledge about our business or about office procedures, but he will keep interfering in all matters, offering unsolicited advice. As you are aware, I have reprimanded him a couple of times. What about him?"

"He is the main advisor to the General Manager, these days. The General Manager consults him on most of the issues. Most of his decisions, taken on the advice of Vinayakam, have gone wrong, resulting in more and more problems to our firm. But the General Manager has not realized this."

"A person holding a responsible position in an organization should study the people working under him, assess every one's capabilities and shortcomings and should decide whom he should listen to and whom he shouldn't. If he fails to do this, and acts on the advice of someone, blindly trusting his judgement, it will cause harm to him and to the organization. What is it we can do? It is for Mr. Thangappan to think clearly, choose his advisors wisely and function efficiently" said Nambi, with a deep sigh.

Thirukkural
Section 2

Materialism

Chapter 51
Assess Before Accepting

Verse 510 (in Tamil):

thErAn theLivum theLindhAn kaN aiyuRavum
thIrA idumbai tharum

Meaning:

Selecting a person without assessing him, and doubting a person after selecting him will both ensure enduring distress.

(This is the English version of the Tamil story 'pudhiya nirvAgi' by the same author.)

Verse 511
Verse 509

509. To Buy or Sell?

"Sir! We bought the shares of 'Alpha Delta' before three years. We bought the shares at 65 rupees per share. The price has fallen to 52 rupees now. They say the price will fall still further. Every one says that it is better to sell the shares now" said Vivek, the Personal Secretary of industrialist Ramanathan.

"Who is 'every one?'" asked Ramanathan.

"The financial experts who give investment advice on television channels."

"Ok. I will think and decide."

After a week, Vivek told Ramanathan, "Sir! Last week, I told you about selling the shares of 'Alpha Delta.' Now, the price has fallen further. Today, it has opened at 48 rupees in the exchange."

"It is good that you reminded me of this. Buy 1000 more shares, when the price comes to 45 rupees" said Ramanathan.

"Sir! It will be risky. They say the price will go further down."

"Who? The investment advisors who appear in the TV channels?"

"Our Finance Manager is also of the same opinion."

Ramanathan chuckled and said, "If it is a matter relating to our firm's finances, I will go by the advice of our Finance Manager. For my personal investments, I have another advisor. As far as stock market investments are concerned, I can only go by his advice."

"Yes, sir. You have told me about him. But, when his opinion is divergent from that of most of the other experts, will it be wise to go by his advice?" 

"Vivek! I understand your concerns. Your question whether my advisor's opinion can be relied upon, when it differs from that of other experts is quite reasonable. But, you know about me. Before I select anyone, I will make a thorough assessment about that person. I have selected you also only that way! 

"Investment advice is an art. Apart from a thorough knowledge about Finance, the Economy and the market, giving such advice involves incisive analysis and some instinct or intuition too. Not every one can excel in this expertise. Most of the investment advisors give their advice based on the market conditions and price movements. Their advice may go wrong on many occasions. 

"But, my advisor is a professional. He gives his advice after making a deep study of  the performance of a company, the country's economy and the long term market movements. He will not be perturbed by short term price movements in the market. 

"I selected him as my advisor only after studying his approach and his track record. In the past also, his views about some shares have been at divergence with that of many other people. But on those occasions, he was proved right. 

"Once I have selected a person as my advisor, after making a thorough assessment of him, it is only proper that I act as per his advice. It is possible that his advice may turn out to be wrong this time. But, this is likely to happen with all kinds of experts. I am going to strictly follow his advice. So, once the price comes down to 45 rupees, buy 1000 shares more" said Ramanathan.

Thirukkural
Section 2

Materialism

Chapter 51
Assess Before Accepting

Verse 509 (in Tamil):

thERaRka yAraiyum thErAdhu thErndha pin
thERuga thERum poruL

Meaning:

Don't choose anyone without assessment; once chosen,

trust the person to deliver on the assigned tasks.

(This is the English version of the Tamil story 'viRpadhA vAnguvadhA?' by the same author.)

Verse 510
Verse 508

508. In the Footsteps of His Father

"We feel sorry about your seeking retirement, sir" said Ponmozhi.

"Young lady! Generally, one is expected to retire at the age of sixty. I am seventy now. If I don't retire now, then when?" asked Adikesavan, smiling. 

"Someone is still sticking to his job, even after he has turned seventy five. If he leaves, we will be happy" said Nathan.

"Even if he decides to leave, our Proprietor won't allow him to go!" said Velu.

Adikesavan didn't say anything. 

"Sir" You know about the state of affairs of our firm. We are talking freely, because Mr. Santhakumar is on leave today. The proprietor is also not in the office now. Mr. Santhakumar is the Manager of this office. I remember a scene from an old Tamil film, in which, Nagesh, the comedian, would call the manager 'damager,' due to a slip of his tongue. That description will perfectly fit our Manager. He has been causing damage to our firm and also causing problems to us in various ways. Because of his wrong decisions and actions, our firm had to encounter various problems. But our Proprietor has been blindly following his advice, treating it as gospel. But the onus of sorting out the problems created by Mr. Santhakumar's arbitrary actions fall on us. I don't understand why our Proprietor has not been able to understand the situation" said Murthy. 

"Sir! You have been source of great support to us. You have been protecting us from the consequences of Mr. Santhakumar's arbitrary functioning. Our Proprietor gives weight to your words" said Ponmozhi.

"No. It is not true. Our Proprietor would politely listen to me, alright. But he would only act as per Mr. Santhakumar's words. He respects my age, not my words!" said Adhikesavan.

"Why is it so, sir? Why does our Proprietor give so much importance to Mr. Santhakumar. We all know that Mr. Santhakumar is not a person with knowledge about running a business. Nor did he have any experience before joining our firm!" said Nathan. 

"Yes. His entire experience has been in our firm. But he doesn't seem to have learned anything, working here!" said Velu.

"Please tell us, sir, why our Proprietor gives so much importance to Mr. Santhakumar. Mr. Santhakumar doesn't have even a fraction of your knowledge or experience" said Ponmozzhi. 

"It is not right to say such things about a person who is the Manager of our firm" said Adhilesavan. After a pause, he said, "This firm was established by the grandfather of our Proprietor. He was an enterprising person, with a business acumen. He made the firm grow well within a short period and established a strong business base for the firm. After his demise, his son - our Proprietor's father - took over the reigns. He took his friend Santhakumar giving him a responsible position in the firm. I joined this firm, sometime after Santhakumar had joined. Santhakumar had no knowledge about our business. He had no work experience before joining this firm. He had no inclination to learn things, either. But, since he was the Proprietor's friend, in the firm, his word was the law. Some of us spoke to the Proprietor about the problems created by Santhakumar's arbitrary decisions. But he paid no heed to our concerns. He didn't live long. The present Proprietor took over the business, after his father's demise. Believing that Santhakumar was his father's guide, he began to blindly accept Sathakumar's advice. Even after seeing how Santhakumar's wrong advice had created many problems to our firm, he continues to toe Santhakumar's line. I don't know how long and how much this firm is going to suffer because of our Proprietor's intransigent attitude towards Santhakumar.

"There is a saying that the puppy's bark landed the mother into trouble. Here, it is the reverse" said Velu. 

"It is surprising how the blunder committed by our Proprietor's father in giving a responsible position to Mr. Santhakumar, without assessing his capabilities, has affected his next generation too!" said Nathan.

Thirukkural
Section 2

Materialism

Chapter 51
Assess Before Accepting

Verse 508 (in Tamil):

thErAn piRanaith theLindhAn vazhimuRai
thIrA idumbai tharum

Meaning:

Choosing a stranger without knowing his traits will result in harm that may affect even the next generation.

(This is the English version of the Tamil story 'thandhaiyin adichchuvattil' by the same author.)

Verse 509
Verse 507