721. Why Did Ramkumar Lie?

Selvaratnam met Ramkumar, in a function.

Selvaratnam was the Secretary of the 'Association of Finance Professionals,' which had finance professionals as its members.

Learning that Ramkumar was a senior executive in the Finance department of a big company and that some of his research essays in the field of Finance had been published in reputed journals on Economics and Finance, Selvaratnam asked him, "Why don't you deliver a talk in our association, on a topic relating to Finance?"

"The members of your association would be experts in the field. What can I talk to them about?" replied Ramkumar.

"You have practical experience in handling finance. You are a scholar, who has academic knowledge and written articles in professional journals. I am sure you will be able to share something useful with our members" said Selvaratnam, encouragingly.

Ramkumar reluctantly accepted the invitation to speak in Selvaratnam's Sssociation.

"I will fix up a date next week and inform you the date in about two days" said Selvaratnam.

"What is the topic you want me to speak on?" asked Ramkumar.

After reflecting for a minute or two, Selvaratnam said, "The government has recently made some changes in the laws relating to non-banking finance companies. Maybe, you can speak on that topic."

"Okay" said Ramkumar. He then added, "Can you send me a brief profile of your members? If I know about their background, I can tailor my speech accordingly."

"In fact, I recently prepared a profile of our members for some other purpose. I will send it to you by email" said Selvaratnam.

After two days, Selvaratnam called up Ramkumar and gave him the date fixed for his lecture.

"Can you postpone the talk by one week" asked Ramkumar.

"Why?"

"An important work has come up in my office. I will be fully engaged for the whole of next week. I will have no time to prepare for my talk."

"No problem. I have not yet communicated the date of the meeting to our members. We will have your lecture on 21st, instead of 14th."

"Yes. That will be fine" said Ramkumar.

"Mr. Ramkumar! Your speech was excellent. It was well appreciated by our members," Selvaratnam told Ramkumar over phone.

"Thank you. After my talk was over, some of your members met me and conveyed their appreciation to me. I should thank you for the opportunity."

"It was my pleasure. By the way, when I suggested a date, why did you want the date to postponed?"

"I told you the reason already" said Ramkumar, somewhat defensively, perplexed why Selvaratnam asked the question now.

"You said that you had some important things to attend to, in your office. But, I think that was not the reason. Last week, when I had been to a place near your office on some other work, I dropped in to your office. I was told that you were on leave for a few days. If you had important work in the office, you wouldn't have taken leave at that time!"

"When I went through the profile of your members sent by you, I noticed that your members were highly qualified professionals. There were Chartered Accountants, Cost Accountants and other types of Finance professionals. I thought that most of them would be aware of the changes in the laws relating to non-banking finance companies, the topic on which I was to speak. They would catch even a small mistake or factual error in my speech. Therefore, I decided that I should make my speech thorough, without giving any scope for anyone to find even a small error in the facts or information I would be presenting. So, I wanted to take more time and prepare the speech thoroughly" said Ramkumar, with a slight discomfort. 

"Without adopting the attitude 'Let me present things to the extent of what I know,' you had resolved to make your speech perfect, free from even a small mistake and spent a lot of time to prepare well for your talk. I think that you took leave only for preparing for the speech. I appreciate your sincerity and commitment" said Selvaratnam, with a heartfelt feeling of appreciation.

Thirukkural
Section 2

Materialism

Chapter 73
Knowing Your Audience

Verse 721 (in Tamil):
vagai aRindhu vallavai vAy sOrAr sollin
thogai aRindha thUymaiyavar.

Meaning:

Those who are well versed in various kinds of speech,

will choose the right style for a forum, and won’t blunder out of fear.

(This is the English version of the Tamil story 'iLam pEcchchAlarukku oru aRivuRai' by the same author.) 

Verse 722 (Soon)
Verse 720

181.The Whistle Blower

Chandran did not expect that his sending the letter to the head office would lead to such a consequence.

Chandran, working as a junior officer in a government undertaking, had been watching with shock and helplessness, the irregularities and corruption in his office..

On several occasions, he brought the violations to the notice of Sundaravadanam, the Branch Manager. But Sundaravadanam's response to Chandran's complaints was lukewarm. In course of time, Chandran realized that Sundaravadanam had also a role in the irregularities taking place in his office.

The office where Chandran was working was functioning in a rented place. The branch decided to construct its own building for the office and got the approval for its proposal from the head office. Tenders were called for constructing an office building on a piece of land owned by the organization.

The files relating to the tender came to Chandran, as per the work allocation in the office. Chandran scrutinized all the tenders received and forwarded the file to the Branch Manager, recommending that the tender of a reputed firm that had quoted the lowest cost be accepted 

The file did not come back to him from the Branch Manager. After a few days, Chandran came to know that the file was allocated to another officer. He also learnt that the tender was decided in favour of a firm, which had quoted a higher amount.

Chandran thought that it was a good opportunity to expose the irregularities practiced in his office and sent a letter to the head office, narrating the developments relating to the tender. 

A few days after Chandran had sent the letter to the head office, he received an email message from the head office that he was suspended, for violating the rules of the organization. 

Filled with anger and dismay, Chandran went to Sundaravadanam's office.

"Why have you suspended me, sir? What crime did I commit?" he asked the Branch Manager, angrily. 

"I have not suspended you. The head office has" said Sundaravadanam.

"I am only asking you to tell me the reason."

"Mr. Chandran! You wrote to the head office and they replied to you. Why are you asking me for the reason?"

"How did you know that I wrote a letter to the head office? Was it not because they told you about it?"

"What do you expect me to do?"

"I wrote to the head office, informing them of an irregularity that has taken place in this office, giving all the details. Instead of probing the irregularity, the head office has suspended me. Is this not preposterous?"

"Mr. Chandran! You should have known that your writing a letter to the head office directly was improper. As per the procedures in place, you can send any communication to the head office, only through the branch office."

"Through you, you mean! My complaint was against you. How could I have sent that complaint to the head office, through you?"

"You could have brought it to the notice of the Vigilance Officer, posted in our office!"

"He works under you. And, the entire office knows that he is your accomplice!"

"Don't use words like accomplice. Speak in a responsible way" said Sundaravadanam, angrily.

"What is going to happen next, sir?"

"Usually, the head office will constitute an enquiry committee to go into the charges against the suspended employee. It will take several months for the probe to be completed. But, the General Manager told me that since he was visiting our office on Monday, he would conduct the enquiry himself and take a decision" said Sundaravadanam. 

"He was the one who suspended me. And, he is going to question me about the allegations against me! It is clear that everything that has been taking place in this office has his knowledge and blessings. He appears to be your partner in crime" said Chandran, with disgust.

"Mr. Chandran! You are making one mistake after another. I can record that you made a wild allegation about the General Manager and take action on you."

"You will do anything, sir. You have the authority, after all!" said Chandran angrily and came out of the Branch Manager's cabin. 

'In a fit of anger, I spoke to the Branch Manager, making an allegation against the General Manager. What if the Branch Manager carries this to the General Manager and the General Manager acts against me? I should have been more restrained' thought Chandran, after he came out of Sundaravadanam's cabin.

On Tuesday, Chandran went to Sundaravadanam's cabin to meet him.

"Did you meet the General Manager yesterday? What did he say?" Sundaravadanam asked Chandran.

"Sir! May I ask you something? The other day, in a fit of anger, I said certain inappropriate things about our General Manager. Did you tell the General Manager about it?" asked Chandran. 

"Did the General Manager ask you anything about it?"

"No. he didn't?"

"How could he have asked you about it, when I had not told him what you had told me about him?"

"You mean you didn't tell the General Manager about it?" asked Chandran, in astonishment.

"Mr. Chandran! I may be unhappy with you about certain things you have done. But, it doesn't mean that I will carry your words to others and indulge in backbiting. I am not such a person. If I had conveyed your words to the General Maanager, won't that have prejudiced him against you and clouded his judgement, when he probed the allegations against you?"

For the first time, Chandran felt a respect for Sundaravadanam.

"When will the General Manager convey his decision about my suspension?" asked Chandran.

"Did you not check your mail? The General Manager has already lifted your suspension, after giving you a warning. You can go to your seat and attend to your work" said Sundaravadanam, with a smile. 

Thirukkural

Section 1
The Path of Virtue

Chapter 19
Refraining From Backbiting

Verse 181 (In Tamil)

aRan kURan alla seyinum oruvan
puRam kURAn enRal inidhu.

Meaning:

Even if a a person doesn't speak of morality, but indulges in immoral acts, it will be good if it is said of him "he does not indulge in backbiting."

(This is the English version of the Tamil story 'chandiran seydha thavaRu' by the same author)

Verse 182 (Soon)
Verse 180

720. A Speaker's Experience

Chitrambalam, being a renowned speaker, known for his wit and wisdom, would often receive speaking assignments from various forums. The invitation received from the entertainment club was one such. 

Since it was an entertainment club, Chitrambalam thought that it would be appropriate to speak on a humorous topic. He prepared a speech on the topic 'The intoxication of fame.'

When Chitrambalam returned home after delivering his speech in the entertainment club, his wife Vanathi asked him, "Why are you looking so dull? Are you not feeling well?"

"No. I am okay" said Chitrambalam and sank into the reclining chair. 

"Are you running a temperature?" asked Vanitha, touching his forehead with her fingers, in an attempt to gauge the warmth of his body.

"No. I am fine, physically. But, I feel mentally exhausted, after speaking in the entertainment club. I realize that I made a mistake in accepting the speaking assignment at that club. I have never seen such an unruly and uncivilized audience" said Thiruchchitrambalam, with disgust.

"What did they do?"

"The major activity of the members of the club appears to comprise only drinking, chatting and playing cards. The secretary of the club had arranged my lecture, for a change, thinking that the members would have an opportunity to experience something different from what they usually do. It was as if he had told them that he would arrange for drinks to be served, only after the lecture got over! Almost every one sitting in the audience began to look at their watches, the moment the meeting had begun. I felt dismayed at that sight. Even as I was speaking, standing on the dais, the members were talking among themselves, sitting in their seats. The secretary appealed to them several times to stop talking and listen to my speech, but the members paid no heed to his words. I was delivering a humorous speech, but it was falling on deaf ears. Only a few people, scattered at different spots in the hall, listened to me and showed their enjoyment. Towards the end of my speech, one person stood up and asked me, 'Sir! I have a question relating to your topic, 'The Intoxication of Fame.' Will the intoxication of fame be as powerful as the intoxication of liquor?' 

"I prepared a speech for one hour, but, discouraged by the behaviour of the audience, I curtailed my speech to thirty minutes. The Secretary of the club apologized to me for the behaviour of the members. He told me, 'For the first time, I arranged for a speech in our club. But, our members had shown that they didn't deserve such good programs. I apologize to you for their behaviour.' I told him, 'I appreciate your gracefulness in apologizing for the behaviour of your members. But, I have a small piece of advice for you. Let this be the first and last speech you would ever arrange for your club members! Please don't invite any other speaker and humiliate him.' I feel like cooking a delicious feast and throwing it on a dirty surface" said Thiruchtrambalam, still not recovering from his discomfiture. 

Thirukkural
Section 2

Materialism

Chapter 72
Divining the Mind

Verse 720 (in Tamil):
angaNaththuL ukka amizhdhaRRAl tham kaNaththAr
allAr mun kOtti koLal.

Meaning:

Speaking before an audience who don't belong to your intellectual class is like throwing away the nectar into the drains.

(This is the English version of the Tamil story 'mana magizh manRam' by the same author.) 

Verse 721
Verse 719

719. Advice to A Budding Speaker

Many speakers spoke commending the young speaker, who delivered a maiden speech in the event.

Bard Senthilnathan, the last person to speak in the event, said, "Orators will receive many offers to speak in various events and functions. But, a budding orator should not accept all the offers. He should accept only those assignments, which involve speaking in an assembly of learned people, or people keen on listening to the speaker. If he gets a chance to speak in a forum comprising stupid or petty minded people, he should summarily reject it. This is the advice I would like to offer to any budding speaker."

After the event had got over, Gokul, a long-time associate of Senthilnathan, asked him, "Senthil, I was surprised by the advice you gave to budding speakers. Don't you think that only if a budding speaker makes use of all the opportunities that comes his way, he would be able to earn name and fame?"

"That was my idea when I was young. I accepted all kinds of speaking opportunities offered to me. But, I realized that speaking in an assembly of people not interested in listening to the speech had only made me depressed. Subsequently, I began to avoid speaking in forums or assemblies that would largely be composed of people with no interest in listening to the speakers."

"What kinds of audience responses would make a speaker feel depressed?"

"An audience with interest in listening to the speaker would listen to the speech earnestly, by paying attention to the speaker's words. Even if they didn't find the speech interesting, they would keep listening to the speech quietly, by way of showing their courtesy to the speaker. On the other hand, an audience, largely made of people with no intention to listen to the speaker, would openly display their lack of interest, through face expressions, gestures and other actions. They would raise both their arms, lock their palms and release them, as if they were trying to convey their boredom to the speaker! They would keep shifting their sitting positions, even without moving out of their chairs. They would engage themselves in whispering conversations with their neighbours. Some would do this, even while looking at the speaker through the corner of their eyes. Some would talk to their neighbours and laugh, as if sharing a joke, even while looking at the speaker straight in his eyes, clearly communicating a message to the speaker, 'you carry on. I have more interesting things to do, than listening to your speech!' Above all, some would do things diverting the attention of others, preventing others from listening to the speech, in the process. Now, in the cellphone era, they could resort to more creative speeches, to disrupt the speaker!"

"Were a renowned speaker like you also subjected to such experiences?" asked Gokul, with dismay.

"Gokul! The examples I gave just now were the experiences I had during my speech events!" said Senthilnathan, laughing. 

"This is surprising to me. I have invited yo to speak in many events organized by me. You politely declined some assignments, citing a health problem, or some other reason. Was your unwillingness to speak in an assembly of certain types of people the real reason for your doing so?"

"Gokul! You are my friend" said Senthilnathan, smiling. 

He didn't have the heart to tell his friend, 'Gokul! Most of the incidents narrated by me happened in the meetings organized by you!' 

Thirukkural
Section 2

Materialism

Chapter 72
Knowing Your Audience

Verse 719 (in Tamil):
pul avaiyuL pochchAndhum sollaRka nal avaiyuL
nangu salach cholluvAr.

Meaning:

Those who can speak lucidly in a learned forum,

should refrain from speaking in an unworthy forum, even by mistake.

(This is the English version of the Tamil story 'iLam pEcchchAlarukku oru aRivuRai' by the same author.) 

Verse 720
Verse 718

180. Dealing With Competition

"We have been in this business for the past many years. A person who started his business five years back has grown so much within a short time" said Madan, the Managing Director of Anand Industries, grudgingly.

"Sir, I think you are talking about Lakshmi Enterprises. They are operating at a much smaller scale than us. They can never be a competitor to us" said Sundar, CEO of the firm.

"No, Mr. Sundar! People have been talking about them, in the market. This is not a good sign. If we want to retain our market share, we should nip any competition in the bud."

"What do you suggest, sir?"

"Let us first gather complete details about Lakshmi Enterprises. I feel disturbed looking at their factory on the main road. It is a rented place. We should find a way to evict them from that place."

After two days, Sundar came to Madan, with information.

"Lakshmi Enterprises has taken their factory building on lease, for five years. The lease is going to expire in two months. The firm has been making arrangements to renew the lease" Sundar told Madan.

"We should ensure that the lease is not renewed. Get in touch with the owner of the building and request him not to renew the lease to Lakshmi Enterprises. If necessary, we can even buy that building from the present owner."

"Sir! We have not been able to make full use of the space we have in our factory building. Should we invest our funds in a new building?" asked Sundar.

"We may not be able to use the building, but we can give it for rent. Even if the building is going to remain idle, it doesn't matter. We should aim to drive our competitor out of business in six months and take over his customers."

"What if the owner of the building doesn't want to sell the building?"

"Offer thim a price higher than the market price. We will mobilize the required sum of money by raising some loans" said Madan.

"I don't understand why the owner of the building is refusing to renew the lease, at the last moment" Shanmugam, the General Manager of Lakshmi Enterprises, told Lakshminarayanan, the Managing Director.

"Ok. What can we do, if the owner of the property doesn't want to renew the lease? It will take two years for our factory building to come up in the land we have purchased recently. Till that time, we have to rent some other place for our factory. A factory building located in the industrial estate, has been vacant for the past six months. The building owner told me, when I met him in a meeting recently that he intended to give it on rent. We can rent that place. The area is slightly smaller than what we have now. But, I think we can manage" said Lakshminarayanan.

"Sir! I understand that Mr. Madan, the Managing Director of Anand Industries has given pressure to the owner of the building, not to renew the lease to us. It appears that Anand Industries is going to buy that building."

"Why should we be concerned about it? We have got another place to locate our factory."

"Sir! We should hit Anand Industries back in some manner. We can make a few of their top technical people quit Anand Industries and join us. I hear that the employees are not happy there. They will be willing to join us, even for the same salary they are getting there. We need more people, since we will be expanding our operations in two years' time. Mr. Madan will realize that this game can be played by both the sides, only if we hit him hard."

"Anand Industries is much bigger than us. But they want to grab our share of the business, which is quite small. Let, us not think like them and grab their senior staff from them. Let us just focus on our own business" said Lakshminarayanan.

"You have dropped a bombshell!" exclaimed Madan.

"The Government order is expected today. The government is taking over the land and building bought by us, for road expansion" said Sundar.

"Such takeovers will take time. Someone will get a stay from the court."

"This scheme had been announced by the government five years back. The implementation was pending, because of the cases filed by some people. With the cases pending in the court, everyone seems to have forgotten about the scheme. That was why this issue didn't come to our notice, when we bought the land six months back. Yesterday, the court gave a judgement in favour of the government. The government is acting swiftly, by issuing an order today. They will start working on the scheme without delay."

"But, the government will compensate us for taking over our land and building!"

"Yes, sir. But the price fixed by the government will be much below the market price. And, it may take a few years for the government to pay the price to us. They may even pay the price in two or more installments. We have purchased the property at a price much above the market price. The loss we will suffer may be substantial" said Sundar.

Madan began to wonder how much would the loss be and to what extent that loss would affect his business.     

Thirukkural

Section 1
The Path of Virtue

Chapter 16
Bearing No Envy

Verse 180 (In Tamil)

iRal Inum eNNAdhu vehkin viRal Inum
vENdAmai enum serukku.

Meaning:

Coveting the wealth of another, unmindful of consequences, will bring destruction. The nobility of living without coveting others' wealth will bring success.

(This is the English version of the Tamil story 'mARiyadhu kaNakku' by the same author.)

Verse 181 (Soon)
Verse 179

179. Lost and Found!

"There is no interesting news. Tomorrow's paper is going to be dull" moaned Viswanathan, Editor of the daily newspaper 'News Waves.' 

"Sir! There is a news item about a passenger in a bus leaving a bag containing cash of two lakh rupees in the bus and another passenger, who found the bag, handing it over to the police. We can follow up this news" suggested Anandan, a reporter.

"These kinds of incidents happen quite often. The headlines about an honest auto rickshaw driver have become stale."

"Sir! If a passenger leaves his cash bag in an auto rickshaw, the police will be able to trace the auto rickshaw. Therefore, an auto rickshaw driver will know that if he were to take the cash, he would be caught. So, he would feel wise to take credit, by handing over the cash bag to the police. But, if a bus passenger takes the cash bag left by another passenger, he cannot be traced. There is no system to trace the people who had traveled by a particular bus. The passenger who found the cash bag could have kept the money for himself, without anyone finding about it. Therefore, his handing over the cash bag to the police is a praiseworthy act of honesty. Why can't I interview that passenger? Readers will be keenly interested in reading such interviews" said Anandan.

"Ok. Interview him. Let us see whether he has anything interesting to say" said Viswanathan, without feeling enthusiastic about the idea. 

Anandan went to the police station, collected the address of the bus passenger who had returned the bag found by him, went to his house, interviewed him and showed the interview to Viswanathan.

Dhandapani had retired from his job as an unskilled labourer in a small factory. After his retirement, he was working as a security guard in a small firm, for a modest salary.

His son, after completing his studies, had been looking for a job. His daughter, who had completed her schooling, was working in a factory as a helper. Dhandapani's wife was working as a domestic help and contributing to the family's earnings. 

In spite of three of the family members working and earning an income, the earnings were not adequate to meet the needs of the family. Dhandapai had been hoping that if his son got a job, the financial position of the family would become comfortable.

Dhandapani was traveling in a bus to his place of work, to work in the night shift. Since he had to get down only at the last stop of the bus, he was taking a nap, without the apprehension of missing his bus stop. He did not notice who was sitting next to him.

Dhandapani woke up, when the bus arrived at the destination. He noticed a small leather bag on the next seat. He opened it and saw that it contained currency notes.

Since every one, including the conductor and driver of the bus, had already got down from the bus and dispersed in various directions, Dhandapani went to the nearby police station and handed over the bag. He was consequently delayed in reporting for his duty and was reprimanded by his employer for coming late.

After going through the above narrative brought out in the interview taken by Anandan, Viswanathan said, "Nothing of interest in the story. We will publish it anyway."

The interview was published the next day in 'News Waves.'  

During the next couple of days, the newspaper received a spate of letters from its readers, appreciating Dhandapani's honesty and sense of duty and responsibility. Some readers had sent a small sum of money to the newspaper, as a token of their appreciation of Dhandapani's honesty.

Following the publication of Dhandapani's interview in 'News Waves,' several other newspapers, magazines and television channels followed up the story, by interviewing Dhandapani and his family members and coming out with stories, covering various aspects of the life of Dhandapani and his family members.

In about ten days, 'New Waves' had received a total contribution of fifty thousand rupees from its readers, by way of showing their appreciation of Dhandapani's honesty.

Anandan went to meet Dhandapani, with a cheque for fifty thousand rupees in his favour.

Dhandapani told Anandan that through him he wanted to convey his thankfulness to 'News Waves,' its readers who had sent money to the paper for presenting to him, other media and the people who appreciated his gesture but that he could not accept the cheque brought in by Anandan. 

"Sir! If I had taken the money, it would have amounted to theft. Should I receive a reward, for not committing a theft?" Dhandapani asked Anandan.

'New Waves' published Dhandapani's refusal to accept the reward and his statement on the front page of the newspaper. This brought in even more accolades to Dhandapani.

After about a week, an industrialist came forward to offer a job to Dhandapani's son.

Dhandapani accepted his offer and conveyed his gratefulness to the industrialist, 'New Waves,' other media and the members of the public, who showed their appreciation and kindness to him.

 

Thirukkural

Section 1
The Path of Virtue

Chapter 18
Not Coveting Others' Belongings

Verse 179 (In Tamil)

aRan aRindhu vehkA aRivudaiyArch chErum
thiRan aRindhu AngE thiru.

Meaning:

Wealth will find means to bestow itself on those who, knowing the virtue of not coveting others’ property, wisely desist from it.

(This is the English version of the Tamil story 'thavaRa vitta paNam' by the same author)

Verse 180
Verse 178

178. Pawn Shop or Bank Locker?

Vajravelu raised his head and looked back at the glass cupboard fixed on the wall, behind his seat.

"The cupboard is full. There is no space to keep any new article that may be received for pledge" he told his accountant Kumaravel.

"How will there be space, sir? Either, those who have pledged their belongings should redeem them by repaying the loans taken by them, or we should auction the articles that have not been redeemed by the due date. Neither of these is happening" said Kumaravel. 

Vajravelu laughed, enjoying the sarcastic remark of his employee. "How could I have been running this pawn shop for the past ten years, if borrowers have not been repaying their loans and redeeming the articles pledged by them? Have I not been earning enough to pay the salaries and take home enough money, to meet my family expenses?"

"Sir! You are talking as if you are not aware of the way this business is run. No other pawn broker keeps the objects not redeemed by the borrower, for an indefinite period of time, without getting them auctioned and recovering the loan amount due."

At that time, a customer entered the shop. Kumaravel turned his attention to the customer. 

He looked at the receipt produced by the customer, checked the ledger, did some calculations using a calculator and informed the customer the amount of money he had to pay, to close the loan. 

After the customer had paid the amount, Kumaravel took out a silver lamp from the cupboard and handed it to the customer, after getting his signature on a document. 

The customer looked at Vajravelu, paid obeisance to him, by bringing his palms together and left.

"The promissory note got expired six months back. Our man Arumugam had been trying to reach him for the past six months, but couldn't get to him. The man has just repaid the loan and redeemed the silver lamp pledged him. He had had no fear that we might auction the silver lamp pledged by him!" said Kumaravel.

Vajravelu just smiled.  

"I don't understand how you are so patient with the defaulters, even at the risk of losing your money and your hold on the article pledged, with the promissory note getting lapsed."

"We are running the business of lending money for interest. If the borrower fails to repay the loan before the due date and redeem the object pledged him, we have the legal right to auction the object pledged and recover the amount due to us. But, I don't like to exercise that right. Though a borrower has pledged his belonging to us, it still belongs to him. I don't like to auction it and take the money due to me. After all, a person who has pledged his property will have the intention to redeem it. Therefore, acting on the faith that the borrower will repay the loan and redeem his property, sooner or later, I keep the property, without auctioning it."

"But, some borrowers may not be able to repay the loan!"

"Yes. It has happened. Maybe, it has not happened after your joining my firm. So, you may not be aware of such instances. After waiting for some time, I would call the borrower, hand over the object pledged by him to him and ask him to sell it and repay the loan. Some people have done so."

"Then, why are we taking something as pledge. We can lend money without taking any security!"

"Taking an object as pledge is only to create a sense of obligation for the borrower to redeem it, by repaying the loan."

"But, what is wrong in auctioning a pledged asset, if the loan is not repaid?"

"Nothing wrong. After all, it is permitted by law. But, I believe that our auctioning the pledged article, asking the borrower to sell the article and repay the loan is being fair to them. When the borrower sells the object, he gets to decide the price. But, when it is auctioned, the borrower may not get a good price." 

"Sir! As you know, before joining your firm, I worked in another pawn shop in this town. The owner of that shop was very strict. If the pledged object was not redeemed before the due date, he would auction it promptly, after giving a notice to the borrower. I have seen him getting good profit from his business. I think we should also be businesslike, since we are also running the business, only with the objective of earning a profit."

"Why did you leave that shop?"

"As I told you during the job interview, they were not paying my salary in time. My salary was pending for three months. That was why I left that firm."

"Why were they not able to pay your salary in time?"

"I don't know, sir. Though the business was making profits, there was a problem of cash shortage, most of the time. Sometimes, there was not enough cash in the shop to give new loans. Some borrowers had filed cases against the firm, for auctioning their properties. The firm had to pay the fees to advocates on frequent occasions, whenever the cases came up for hearing."

"You say that that firm was earning a good profit. But, it was facing the problem of cash shortages. I may not be earning a big income from the business. But, the capital I have invested is intact. We never faced the problem of not having adequate cash to give new loans. I have been getting enough income from the business, to enable me to lead a comfortable life. I derive my income from the interest paid by people, to whom I lend money. And, I have been running this business, by treating the goods pledged by people as the property of the borrowers and not as my property."

Another customer stepped into the shop.

"Two months back, I pledged a gold chain of my wife and borrowed money" he said.

"Are you going to repay the loan and redeem the chain?" asked Kumaravel. 

"No" he said, hesitatingly. 

He then looked at Vajravelu and said, "Please don't mistake me. We are attending a marriage tomorrow. My wife has no other jewel to wear for the function. If you can give me the chain, I will return it to you the day after tomorrow."

"Is this a pawn shop, or a bank locker?" asked Kumaravel.

"If I give you your chain, will you give me some other object for pledging, till the time you return the chain to me?" asked Vajravelu.

"I don't have any other valuable object, sir. If you want, I can give you my television set."

"No need. I trust you. We will give you your chain. But, bring it back day after tomorrow, without fail" said Vajravelu. 

He then turned to Kumaravel and told him, "Get a request letter from him with the promise that the chain would be returned to us on the specified date and give him the chain, after getting his signature."

'This is a bank locker, not a pawn shop. There is no doubt about it!' murmured Kumaravel.

Thirukkural

Section 1
The Path of Virtue

Chapter 16
Bearing No Envy

Verse 178 (In Tamil)

ahkAmai selvaththiRku yAdhenin vehkAmai
vENdum piRan kaip poruL.

Meaning:

The mark of lasting wealth is shown by not coveting others' wealth.  

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

Verse 179
Verse 177