595. A Father's Advice

Industrialist Arumugam, the Chief Guest for the anniversary function of the college, addressed the students:

"I am not a person with good education. I have not even completed my schooling. I hail from a poor family. Having not had the facilities for education, my education stopped at the level of fifth grade. I don't know what message I can deliver to college students like you. I am standing before you, because I felt that courtesy demanded that I accept the invitation extended to me by the principal of your college.

"I think I will share with you some of the things taught to me by my late father. Like me, my father was also not well-educated. So, I don't know how far what he had taught me would be useful to you. But, I don't have other knowledge to share with you.

"There was a pond in our village. It had some water plants like lotus, lily etc. If you had observed water plants, you would have noticed that the flowers borne by those plants floated on the surface of the water. The stems bearing the flowers would be submerged in water. With some plants, a short length of the stem below the flower may be visible, if at all.

"Some times, the water level in the pond would be high and some other times, the level would  be low. But, whatever may be the water level, the flowers would be on the surface of water and the stem beneath the surface. This was surprising to me. Assuming that the water level in the pond was five feet, the length of the stem under the water would also be about five feet, won't it be?

"Let us say, the water level came down to three feet. The length of the stem being five feet, only three feet should be under the water and the remaining two feet should be protruding above the water. But it was not so. I didn't understand how this was possible. I asked my father about this.

"He told me, 'The length of the stem would match the level of water in the pond. If the water level goes up, the stem will extend its length to reach the surface of water. If the water level falls, the stem will shrink in length so as to be at the water level.' When I asked him why it was so, he told me that it was the way things worked in nature.

"Once he asked me to throw a ball ahead. He showed me a spot a few feet away and asked me to throw the ball to reach that spot. After I threw the ball a couple of times, he asked me to throw the ball to reach a spot, a little farther from the previous spot. When I said, 'I can't throw that far,' he told me, 'Have a determination in your mind that you you are going to throw the ball that far and then throw the ball.'

"The first time I tried, I couldn't throw it that far. My father encouraged me saying, 'You have thrown the fall farther than you did last time. This is an improvement. Keep trying and you will succeed. Following his advice, I kept trying and I was able to throw the ball to that spot. Not only that, subsequently, I was able to throw even farther than that distance.

"This advice given by my father had been the basis for my actions in my life. I cultivated the belief that if we set high goals and work towards them with determination and persistence, we would achieve our goals. I did things following this belief and I was able to achieve things. This is the message I want to convey to you today. How high you can go in your life will be determined by how high your goals and beliefs are. Therefore, set high goals, have a firm belief that you can achieve your goas and work with determination and perseverance. You will definitely achieve success."

On completing the speech, Arumugam received a big ovation from the students.

After the applause had subsided, one student got up and asked Arumugam, "Sir, I have a question. You told us about your father's advice to you. Can you tell us whether your father implemented this advice in his own life and achieved success?"

Arumugam looked at that student for a few seconds and then said, "I appreciate your intelligent question. The answer to your question is: My father did not utilize this advice in his life!"

There was a stunned silence in the hall.

Arumugam continued:

"You may be wondering why my father, who gave me this advice, didn't follow it in his own life. The fact is that my father didn't give me this advice. My father died when I was a child. I don't even remember his face.

"When I was invited to address the students of this college, I contemplated on what I could speak about. My first thought was to ask my secretary to write out an appropriate speech and deliver it. This is what I often do, when I have to speak in meetings of professional bodies I am invited to. Then I thought that if I could share with you a few things I had learnt in my life, it would be useful to you. But if I were to deliver a speech filled with dos and don'ts, it would sound like a classroom lecture. So, I chose to deliver my speech in the form of a story, by presenting it as an advice given to me by my father. I think telling you this truth at this point is fine, because I can see that the message I wanted to convey to you has been deeply ingrained in your minds. I could decipher this from the interest shown by you while listening to my speech. Thank you."

The ovation Arumugam received now was bigger than it was earlier.

Thirukkural

Section 2

Materialism

Chapter 61

Possessing Zeal

Verse 595 (in Tamil):

veLLaththu anaiya malar nIttam mAndhar tham
uLLaththu anaiya uyarvu.

Meaning:

The depth of water determines how high an aquatic plant will rise;

zeal in the heart dictates how high a man will grow.

(This is the English version of the Tamil story 'appA sonna aRivurai' by the same author.) 

Verse 596 (Soon)
Verse 594

594. When Expectations Were Exceeded

"For the past two years, you have been making vigorous efforts to market your product. But the market has not been receptive to your product. It will be better if you wind up this business and take up a job. Even if the salary is low, we will at least be sure of a steady income for the family" said Meenakshi, feeling frustrated.

"If people who had been making efforts to achieve something got frustrated by failures and gave up their efforts after a while, the world would not have seen so much progress in various fields" said Ramkumar.

"Philosophy won't feed us " said Meenakshi.

Ramkumar learnt about a firm that might be interested in buying his product and visited the firm's office.

After hearing Ramkumar explain the features of his product, the General Manager of the firm told him, "We will think about it and let you know."

This being the stock reply Ramkumar had been hearing from many of his prospects, he got up to leave, feeling frustrated.

The Managing Director of the firm who came to the General Manager's cabin to ask him something, seeing Ramkumar, asked the General Manager "Who is this person?"

"He met me to explain about his product. I told him that I would contact him, if we intended to buy his product" said the General Manager.

Sikamani, the Managing Director, observing the frustrated expression on Ramkumar's face, told him, "Come to my cabin and tell me about your product. Let me also know about your product" and led him to his cabin.

After Sikamani went into his cabin with Ramkumar, the General Manager told his assistant who was sitting nearby, "I don't know how good this gentleman's product would be. Our MD is a compassionate person. He may give him an order, out of sympathy. That is why I don't let any sales person to meet our MD!"

Ramkumar explained the features and benefits of his product to Sikamani.

After listening to Ramkumar patiently, Sikamani told him, "Mr. Ramkumar! Even if we were to buy our entire requirement from you, it won't help you much, since the quantity required by us is quite small"

Disappointed by Sikamani's reponse, Ramkumar told him, "Sir! I will be happy, even if you give me an order for a small quantity."

"Of course, I am going to give you a small order. But listening to you, I feel that your product has good market potential. I will make use of your product and if I find it of good quality, I will take up the distribution of your product. I have a good dealer network. Once I take up the distribution of your product, your sales will increase substantially in a short time. In fact, you may even have to increase your production. Are you ready for it?" asked Sikamani, smiling.

"Definitely, sir. I came her expecting to receive only a small order. I never expected to be presented with such a big opportunity" said Ramkumar, overwhelmed by joy. 

Thirukkural
Section 2

Materialism

Chapter 61

Possessing Zeal

Verse 594 (in Tamil):

Akkam adharvinAych chellum asaivilA
Ukkam udaiyAn uzhai.

Meaning:

Wealth, on its own, will find the way to reach

those with unflagging fervor.

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

Verse 595
Verse 594

136. An Evening of Pleasure

"Friends! We have come here to enjoy. All of you can feel free. There are no differences here based on your rank or designation in the company. The General Manager and the Junior Assistant will both be at the same level here!" said Manibharathy, the Managing Director of the company. 

"It is only to ensure that we could enjoy ourselves freely that we have not invited women employees to this party" said Murugan, the General Manager.

The company had the practice of bringing all its male employees to the resort on the hilly town for a day out. Women employees, who were fewer in number, had a day out for themselves at another place, also hosted by the company.

It was six months since Madhavan had joined the firm. This was the first time that he was participating in the day out. The scenes of the General Manager who was hissing like a snake in the office and the Managing Director who never stepped out of his cabin, mingling with employees at all levels, cheering them, shaking hands with them, placing their arms on their backs and joking with them appeared amazing to Madhavan. 

The entire day was spent on outdoor activities like visiting different places, boating, hiking etc, in keeping with the interest of each individual.

After returning to the resort in the evening and relaxing for sometime in their rooms, every one assembled at the banquet hall, for the evening get-together. 

On the table at the front side of the banquet hall were placed various alcoholic drinks and glasses. A few bartenders were in attendance to mix the drinks as required by the guests. 

People picked up the drinks of their choice, came to the chairs, sat in small groups and began to converse among themselves, sipping the drinks in a leisurely pace.

Madhavan was sitting alone in a place, a little away from where others were sitting and drinking.

Mukesh, who was senior to Madhavan, with whom Madhavan began to move closely after joining the firm, came to him and said, "What, Madhavan? You don't drink! Try some beer. You will then get used to drinking. Shall I bring you a glass?"

"No, Mukesh. I don't want to drink."

"In the beginning, I was also like you. But, after joining this company, I changed myself, so as to give company to my friends! In a few minutes from now, we are going to watch a performance. After watching it, you will get an impulse to drink!" said Mukesh.

"What kind of performance?"

"A cabaret dance!"

"Cabaret dance?"

"Yes. That is the specialty of this resort. We can't watch such a show even in city hotels."

"No, Mukesh. I am not going to watch it. I will retire to my room" said Madhavan.

"Don't be a fool. People play a couple of thousand rupees to watch a cabaret dance in some city hotels. They have to watch it under fear, since those shows are illegal and are offered secretly to a select number of customers. People watch the dance, feeling nervous about the prospect of getting arrested by the police, in the event of a raid. Our company has arranged for this show, by spending money under the head of entertainment expenses, to provide us an exotic enjoyment. You want to shut yourself off, refusing to watch this show!"

"No, Mukesh. I apprehend that if I get exposed to such pleasures, I may become addicted to them and it may lead to my life getting ruined. That is why I want to keep away from this kind of pleasures."

"You seem to have taken the Thirukkural verses you studied in the school serious. You said you won't drink. I didn't force you to. But, how can watching a cabaret dance impact you? Don't you watch glamorous dances and scenes in films?"

"In the types of films I watch, such a dance may be featured for five minutes. But I don't go to a movie to watch such kinds of dances!"

"Hey, ascetic! You are not going to grab the girl perfoming the show with your hands and dance with her. What is the big deal in watching a seductive dance? Has anyone become ruined by watching a dance?"

"Yes, of course. Even ascetics have been ruined by watching such seductive performances."

"Can you name one such ascetic?" asked Mukesh, in a challenging tone. 

"Sage Viswamitra!" said Madhavan, calmly

Thirukkural

Section 1
The Path of Virtue

Chapter 14
Possession of Propriety 

Verse 136 (In Tamil)

ozhukkaththin olgAr uravOr izhukkaththin
Edham padubAkku aRindhu.

Meaning:

The strong-willed will not slacken in their observance of the proprieties of life, knowing that the misery that such transgressions can lead them to.

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

Verse 137 (Soon)
Verse 135

593. Meeting A Friend After A Long Time

Selvam was my classmate in the college . 

After graduating from college, I, like most of my friends, sought employment, got a job in Kolkatta and settled down there. 

Selvam had a goal of starting his own business. He didn't apply for any job.

Some of my friends were skeptical of Selvam's plan.

One friend said "Selvam hails from a poor family. His parents would have struggled to fund his college education. If he takes up a job and starts earning, it will help his parents. But, he intends to start his own business. How can we start a business, when he doesn't have money to invest?" 

The rest of us also had a similar view.

However, Selvam somehow managed to start a business with a small investment and succeeded in making his business grow big over the years.

Since I was working in Kolkatta, I was not in touch with Selvam, who was running his business at Chennai. I heard about his business growth through my other friends.

Some of my friends admired Selvam for his entrepreneurial spirit, determination and perseverance. 

"Initially, many of us thought that Selvam had set an unrealistic goal and that he won't succeed in his efforts. But it is remarkable that Selvam had not only started a business, but also built it up to this level" said one of my friends.

"His passion for launching a business, his determination to achieve his goal, his dedication and hard work and his perseverance that enabled him to overcome all hurdles and march ahead are the factors that contributed to his success" said another. 

I made it a point to meet Selvam during my visit to Chennai. 

When I went to Selvam's house, he received me with enthusiasm and warmth. 

We chatted for a long time recalling our college days and sharing information about the developments in our lives after we left the college. Our conversation was replete with warmth, excitement, humour and friendly tease, the way it had been during our college days. It was as if two friends studying in a college were chatting.

A couple of days after I had met Selvam in his house, I met Sundar, another friend of mine. I told Sundar about my visit to Selvam's house.

"Was he in the same address? Has he not yet moved to another house?" asked Sundar, showing surprise.

"He told me that he would be moving to another house. He had some of his things packed. His children had been to their grandmother's house. There was no furniture. He seemed to have already moved the furniture to his new house" I said.

"No. He has sold all the furniture!"

"Sold! Why? Is he going to buy new furniture for his new house?"

"Obviously, Selvam has not told you about his present position. He incurred a huge loss in his business. His house is going to be auctioned. He has sold the furniture, his wife's jewelry and other moveable assets. He has rented a small house, where he will be moving. He has sent his children to his father-in-law's house, intending to bring them back, after he gets settled in his new house" said Sundar.

"My goodness! He didn't tell me about this. He was speaking to me with so much excitement! His wife appeared to be somewhat dull. I thought that perhaps she was not well."

"Since you were meeting him after several years, he would have decided not to talk to you about his misfortune and make you feel sad for him. He told me that he would be starting another business soon. When I observed the determination in his tone and considered his past actions, I felt that he would rise up and reach a high level soon. I have no doubt about it" said Sundar, feeling certain.

Thirukkural
Section 2

Materialism

Chapter 61

Possessing Zeal

Verse 593 (in Tamil):

Akkam izhandhEm enRu allAvAr Ukkam
oruvandham kaiththudaiyAr.

Meaning:

If a person with an enduring zeal were to lose his wealth for some reason, he won't bemoan the loss.

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

Verse 594
Verse 592

135. Reached the Target, But...

As the Sales Manager, I was interested in the performance and career growth of all the sales executives working under me.

Of the 15 sales executives in my team, I was worried about two men. Both had good skills. My concern was that they had not been using their skills effectively.

Of the two, I was well aware of the problem Naresh had. Well, every one in our team knew about it - except, of course, Naren himself. He had the habit of constantly watching what other sales executives were doing. If someone performed better than him during a particular month, he would make some frivolous allegation about that person. 

I had advised him many times, saying, "Why do you keep watching what others are doing? Focus on achieving your target."

But, Naresh had not changed his ways.

Because of this attitude, Naresh had been unable to perform well. His relationship with other executives had also become strained.

I resigned myself to the prospect that unless Naresh realized his problem and chose to change his ways, his performance would remain poor and his career growth stunted.

The other person who had a problem was Prasad. I couldn't understand what his problem was.

Every sales executive had a monthly target for sales. If someone exceeded his target, he would get an incentive.

Most of the sales executives struggled to achieve their targets. They worked hard to reach the targets before the end of the month.

In contrast, Prasad often reached his target within the first ten or fifteen days of the month. But, after reaching the target, there would not be any further sales. If I asked him about it, he would say, 'I am trying.' But I knew that he was not.

During some other months, he won't get any sales till the 20th of the month. But he would get orders after the 20th and reach the target before the end of the month.

It was very clear to me that Prasad was working only for ten or fifteen days in a month and that he was not making any effort during the remaining days. If he worked hard during the remaining days also, he would be able to earn a substantial sum as incentive. I couldn't understand why he was not doing so.

It appeared to me that Prasad had some problem at home. That could be the reason for his working hard for a few days and after achieving the target, shifting his attention to the family problem on the remaining days. 

I decided to visit his house and find out what the problem was. I went to his house during a time when he was not home.

Prasad's father was at his house, at the time of my visit.

When I introduced myself, Prasad's father became perturbed.

"Any problem, sir?" he asked me, with anxiety.

"No such thing. I have come here, hoping to help Prasad. I want to learn a few things about him."

"Sir! Prasad is a good boy. He won't commit any wrong. Addiction to drinking is the thing that has been pulling him down."

"What do you mean, sir?" I asked, in shocked disbelief.

"Yes, sir. He spends a major part of his salary on drinking. Since I have been getting a pension, we are able to run our family. Prasad has been telling me that he is good at his work and that there is no problem at the office. If he has committed any mistake, please don't sack him, sir. If you do so, our family won't be able to survive" he pleaded, still feeling perturbed and tense.

I understood Prasad's problem. 

He worked hard for a few days in a month and achieved his sales target. After that, he stopped focusing on sales, kept drinking and whiled away his time!

I regretted feeling how addiction to a bad habit stunted the performance of a person.

Thirukkural

Section 1
The Path of Virtue

Chapter 14
Possession of Propriety 

Verse 135 (In Tamil)

azhukkARu udaiyAn kaN Akkam pOnRu illai
ozhukkam ilAn kaN uyarvu.

Meaning:

A person who has envy has no wealth. A person who has no propriety has no growth.    

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

Verse 136
Verse 134

592. After the fall

At the time Mala got married to Damodaran, he was working as a Sales Executive in a small firm.

After a few years, Damodaran quit his job and started a small business of selling goods on commission basis. 

After tasting some success in his business, Damodaran invested a small sum of money as capital and expanded his business by buying goods from wholesalers and selling them to small shops.

Damodaran's graded approach helped him make good progress in his business over a period. 

After a few years, he ventured into manufacturing activity in the name 'Damodaran Industries.' This activity brought him more profits and made him prosper even more, at a faster phase.

Mala's father was elated by his son-in-law's growth. He told Mala, "When we got you married to Damodaran, he was holding a mediocre job in a small firm, with a modest salary and riding a career with lacklustre prospects. But today, he has become an industrialist. You are a lucky girl."

"It is Mala's luck that has catapulted her husband to a high position" said Mala's mother. 

"You attribute my husband's success to his luck. You won't give credit to his dedication and zeal which have been driving him!" said Mala, disapproving of her parents' comments.

"Look at the way our daughter stands up for her husband. Have you ever spoken in support of me?" Mala's father teased his wife, in a lighter vein.

"What a great misfortune has befallen me!" lamented Damodaran.

"What has happened to make you feel so depressed?" asked Mala.

"What more should happen? I started from scratch, worked hard and came up gradually. I suffered a huge loss in one deal and this loss impacted my business in a big way. I won't be able to continue my business. I will have to wind it up soon. And, we have to sell all our assets to meet my liabilities. We have lost everything."

"What if we lose everything? Two things I found in you when we got married still remain with you" said Mala.

"What are the two things you talk about?" asked Damodaran, feeling irritated, even while he was curious to know what his wife was referring to.

"Zeal and persistence. Over the years, you achieved many things, only by using these two attributes of yours. Since you are still in possession of these attributes, you can achieve many more things again" said Mala. 

"I am beginning to get the confidence that as long as you are here, reminding me of the two attributes I have, I will be able to achieve success and regain the wealth I have lost" said Damodaran, his enthusiasm stimulated by his wife's words. 

Thirukkural
Section 2

Materialism

Chapter 61

Possessing Zeal

Verse 592 (in Tamil):

uLLam udaimai udaimai poruL udaimai
nillAdhu nIngi vidum.

Meaning:

Possessing passion is the true possession; all other wealth

is transient and will vanish.

(This is the English version of the Tamil story 'eppadi irundha nAn' by the same author.) 

Verse 593 (soon)
Verse 591

591. The Dividend Cheque

After interviewing prospective candidates for venture capital funding, the Selection Committee of the Venture Capital firm met to select people from among the candidates interviewed, for extending the finance. 

The firm had a plan to finance five entrepreneurs that year.

After discussing for about an hour, four applicants were selected.

"There are three candidates remaining among the applicants shortlisted by us. We need to select one out of the three" said Karthikeyan, the Chairman of the Selection Committee.

After a short discussion, one person among the three was eliminated. 

"There are two promising candidates. Which one are we going to select?" asked Karthikeyan.

"My choice is Murthy. His academic background is impressive. His financial position is also sound. His family background suggests that he has good contacts. Considering all these, I feel that the chances of his succeeding in his venture are very bright" said Shanmugam, one of the members of the committee. 

Some other members endorsed his view.

Ramani was silent.

"What Mr. Ramani? What is your view?" the Chairman asked Ramani.

"If we can select two people, I will support selecting Murthy. But, if we have to choose just one person, then my choice is Senthil" said Ramani.

"I am surprised by your choice, Mr. Ramani. In fact, I wonder how Senthil was shortlisted in the first place. I think we shortlisted him because the product he intends to manufacture was appealing to all of us. I had some reservations about him, even at the time of shortlisting him. But I thought I could express my view at the time of final selection and refrained from objecting to his getting shortlisted. He is a first generation graduate. His communication skills are poor. During the interview, he struggled to reply cogently to the questions posed by us. Neither his economic background nor his social background is impressive. Don't you think that for a person to succeed in business, it is important that the he has a good economic and social background?" said Shanmugam, in an emphatic tone.

"Yes, they are important. But what are even more important are enthusiasm and perseverance. Given the weaknesses of Senthil as outlined by you, it would have been an easier and more convenient option for Senthil to focus on his studies, score well in the examinations and aim to get a good job. But, driven by a missionary zeal, he focused his efforts on developing an innovative product and succeeded in his mission, undergoing a lot of struggles in the process. In spite of facing many hurdles and failures, Senthil succeeded in his efforts, by keeping his enthusiasm alive. Did we not hear him narrate the struggles undergone by him, during the interview? Did you notice how excited he was while talking about his efforts? It is my strong opinion that his zeal and perseverance will help him succeed in his venture" said Ramani.

"I think that if we decide to finance his venture, we will be taking a huge risk" said Shanmugam.

"The very objective of venture capital is to fund ventures involving risk" quipped Ramani, smiling.

When the Chairman put the matter to vote, the majority of the members voted in favour of selecting Murthy.

"See this!" Ramani showed a cheque to Shanmugam.

"This is a cheque issued by someone in your favour. Why are you showing it to me?" asked Shanmugam.

"This is a dividend cheque. This has been issued by Senthil's company!"

"Senthil...Who?...Oh, the person who had applied to us two years back for venture capital funding! But, we didn't finance him. How did you get a dividend cheque from his company? That means..." 

"Yes. Your guess is right. After our company rejected Senthil's application, I financed him in my personal capacity. His energy, enthusiasm and perseverance made me feel confident about the success of his venture. So, I took the risk and invested my own money. In two years, his company has become profitable and paid dividend to the shareholders!" said Ramani, with a felling of pride and elation.

'But, Murthy's company is yet to take off!' thought Shanmugam.

Thirukkural
Section 2

Materialism

Chapter 61

Possessing Zeal

Verse 591 (in Tamil):

udaiyar enappaduvadhu Ukkam ahdhillAr
udaiyadhu udaiyarO maRRu.

Meaning:

If a person has zeal, he possesses everything. If he doesn't have zeal, he possesses nothing, notwithstanding what else he has in his possession.

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

Verse 592
Verse 590

590. A Job After Retirement

"Two months have passed since you retired. You were in a good position as the Purchase Manager of a company. Your earnings were good. You have done everything you should have, for the welfare of our family. Why are you so dull, after your retirement?" Vasanthi asked her husband Sivakumar.

"Sometimes, I feel frustrated thinking that I got only this much for serving my company so long" said Sivakumar.

"You got your retirement benefits like the provident fund and gratuity! What more can you expect? " said Vasanthi, surprised. 

"Perhaps, my frustration stems from my being idle, after having been active for many years."

 

Sivakumar said this by way of explaining his feeling of frustration to his wife. He couldn't share with her the concern he had been feeling deep inside his mind.

"Vasanthi! I have got a job!" said Sivakumar, with excitement.

"You are going for a job again! What kind of a job? What is the salary?" asked Vasanthi, surprised by the news,

"I have got the job as a consultant in a firm. You will be astonished to know what my salary is. It is twice the sum I was getting in my last job. I don't have to commute to the office. I can work from home using a laptop. The firm is also providing me spacious accommodation and a chauffeur driven car."

"It is really astonishing. You are getting such a good salary and perks like house and car in a post-retirement job! However, we don't need the house. We are residing in our own house, after all."

"We will let out this house and go to the house provided by the company. It is not only more spacious. It is also located in a prestigious locality."

When Sivakumar revealed the location of their new house, Vasanthi found the news incredible.

"I have heard that only the top among the elite of the city, like company chairmen, senior government officials and wealthy individuals, can afford to reside there" said Vasanthi, in an excited tone.

"Yes. Most of the people who reside there stay in houses taken on lease by their companies. Even people with high salaries can't afford to pay the high rents prevailing in that locality."

"When did you apply for this job? You didn't go for any interview!" 

"I didn't apply for this job. The CEO of this company came to know of me through my former employer and offered me the job on his own. He didn't call me for an interview. He offered the job to me over phone and asked me whether I would accept the offer."

"What did you say?" 

"I said that I could consider it but that the salary offered was quite low!" said Sivakumar and laughed, enjoying his own joke.

Vasanthi felt elated that such an opportunity had come, at a time her husband was in low spirits after retiring from his job.

After moving to their new house, Sivakumar kept one room as his office. He was working from that room, on his computer.

Vasanthi observed that Sivakumar was spending only a short time in his office room and most of the time, he was sitting in the living room reading something, watching the television or chatting with her, She concluded that his workload in his new job was very light.

Even without her asking Sivakumar about this, he told her, "I have been hired as a consultant. A consultant will have work only on certain occasions, when his services are needed for specific issues. The number of hours I work doesn't count. It is the value of my services that counts."

Vasanthi enjoyed the facility of going out in the chaffeur-driven car, provided to Sivakumar for his personal use. 

"How are you, Mr. Sivakumar?" asked the person who spoke to him over the phone."

"I am fine, sir. I am thankful to you for everything" said Sivakumar.

"You might have seen the Tamil film Kalyana Parisu, released sometime in the late fifties, or early sixties. In that film, the comedian Thangavelu played the role of a bluffmaster. He would call himself the Manager of a non-existent firm called Mannar & Co. He would pretend to go to office every day, but would spend his time sitting in a park and playing cards solo! Like him, you had pretended to be working as the Purchase Manager of a non-existent company, but secretly worked for the intelligence department of the government. You undertook a lot of covert operations. Your contribution to the the cause of safeguarding our country's security is remarkable. You deserve to be compensated appropriately for your services. As you know, we have to be very discrete, to ensure that no one knows about the role you have played. That is why we took some time to arrange for a retirement package you really deserve, in an inconspicuous way. You might have been disappointed that you were retired from your 'job,' with a nominal retirement package befitting the position you had ostensibly holding!"

"No, sir! I never felt that way" said Sivakumar, though, inwardly, he knew that what his superior officer had stated was true.

"Even now, I am prepared to do the kind of jobs I had been doing during my service," he added.

"No, Mr. Sivakumar. We have given you this 'job' involving no work, as a reward for your highly valuable contributions during your service. Enjoy your retirement!" said the person at the other end of the phone and ended the conversation.

Sivakumar set out to resume watching the film he was watching on an OTT platform on his computer. But noticing that his wife was entering his room, he switched over to another tab on his computer screen.

Thirukkural
Section 2

Materialism

Chapter 59

Managing Intelligence Operations

Verse 590 (in Tamil):

siRappaRiya oRRin kaN seyyaRka seyyin
puRappaduththAn Agum maRai.

Meaning:

Do not honour a spy in public. Doing so would result in exposing a secret mission to the world at large.

(This is the English version of the Tamil story 'Oyvukkup pin oru vElai' by the same author.) 

Verse 591
Verse 589

589. Three Days' Time

"Why did you want to see me urgently?" asked the Minister.

"I have received an important intelligence report" said Nirmal, the Intelligence Chief.

"Tell me."

After hearing the report given by Nirmal, the Minister was upset.

"This is a serious matter. I have to bring this to the notice of the Prime Minister immediately and decide on the appropriatecourse of action" said the Minister,

"Not yet, sir. Please wait for a while" said Nirmal.

"What for? Don't you realize how critical this information is?"

"Of course, I do. That's why I sought an urgent meeting with you. But, the intelligence I received from another source of mine is at variance with this."

"Why this confusion? Why did you involve two sources to gather intelligence on the same matter? Apart from wasting manpower, this has also resulted in confusion" said the Minister, with annoyance.

"Sir! There are certain established practices in intelligence gathering. I have learnt many finer points about gathering and analyzing intelligence from my seniors and mentors. One unwritten rule is that any kind of critical information has to be confirmed through two different sources." 

"Spare me the rationale behind your approach, Mr. Nirmal. Please tell me which of the two reports you are going to accept?"

"Please give me three days' time."

"If we delay, will it not aggravate the situation?"

"I think delaying our decision by three days won't have any adverse effect on the situation. If there is any important development, requiring urgent intervention on our part, I will contact you.

Without waiting for the Minister's reply, Nirmal stood up from his seat, took leave of the Minister and left.

"What is this, Mr. Nirmal? I have been trying to contact you for the last two days. You had switched off your phone. People in your office said they didn't know about your whereabouts. From the time I heard the disturbing information from you, I have been feeling tense" said the Minister, as soon as Nirmal entered the Minister's cabin, even before he could take his seat.

"Pardon me, sir, but I have come to you with news that could only increase your tension. The intelligence I had shared with you three days back has been confirmed to be correct. We need to act immediately" said Nirmal, as he was taking his seat.

"My goodness! We have wasted three days. If you had confirmed this that day itself, we could have taken action by this time" said the Minister, accusingly.

"How can I help it, sir? Getting confirmation for this kind of information is not easy. The reason we use two sources is only to ensure that the information we gather is accurate. But, when the contents of the intelligence gathered from the two sources are at variance, we need to use a third source that we can rely upon."

"Like using a third umpire in cricket matches, perhaps" said the Minister, with a smile. His tension seemed to have eased a little. "But, instead of using the two sources, you could have used the third source, even at the beginning" he added.

"They don't conduct the cricket matches, using only the third umpire!" said Nirmal, smiling.

"But, how did you get a third source immediately? And how can you be sure that the third source is dependable?"

"The third source has been there always. But we should use it only occasionally, the way they use the third umpire in cricket matches. As per his dependability, I can say that he has considerable experience."

"So, you have trust in him?" 

"How can I not trust myself?"

"What do you mean, Mr. Nirmal?"

"I flew to that country and made the assessment myself, based on the information I had received from the two sources. No one in my office knew about my trip. That was why my office was unable to give you information about my whereabouts" said Nirmal.

The Minister looked at Nirmal with admiration and enhanced respect.

Thirukkural
Section 2

Materialism

Chapter 59

Managing Intelligence Operations

Verse 589 (in Tamil):

oRRu eRRu uNarAmai ALga udan mUvar oRumukki
soRRokka thERappadum.

Meaning:

Lead the sleuths such that they don’t know each other;

when three of them concur on an input, you know it is reliable.

Note: While this kural says that three of the spies should give a concurrent input, this story slightly deviates from this concept by suggesting that if there are discrepancies between the intelligence gathered by two spies, the intelligence has to be obtained from a third spy.

(This is the English version of the Tamil story 'mUnRu nAtkaL avakAsam' by the same author.) 

Verse 590
Verse 588

588. Naresh's Grievance

Summoned by Gupta, the Intelligence Chief, Naresh went to the Chief's cabin.

"Mr. Naresh! You are a senior official of our department. Your contribution to our department has been immense. Because of the intelligence gathered by you on various occasions, through the surveillance activities managed by you, I have earned a good name from the top echelons of our government. I have also been constantly appraising my superiors about your valuable contributions" said Gupta.

"I am aware, sir" said Naresh, tersely.

"But I observe that, of late, you have been feeling unhappy about something. Do you have any problems in your personal life?"

"No such thing, sir."

"Tell me. What is the problem you have here?"

"I don't have any problem, sir" said Naresh and paused, as if hesitating to say something.

"If it is not a problem, it should be a grievance. Shoot!" said Gupta, encouragingly.

"It is nothing, sir... Last month, I gave you a scoop about a secret plan of our enemy country. My contact in that country had taken great risks and gathered the information."

"Yes, of course. I had shared that information with my superiors and they acted on it. It was on the basis of your information that the government launched an important operation. I am not expected to tell you this, but I have recorded your good work in your personal file too."

"Oh, thank you, sir!" said Naresh, enthused by what Gupta's words. "But..." he added.

"But?"

"You didn't accept my report straightaway. You got it verified through a friend of you working in the intelligence agency of another country. Only after he had confirmed the correctness of my information, did you inform your superiors about this. This made me feel that you didn't consider the intelligence gathered by me reliable. I should admit that this has dented my confidence and enthusiasm" said Naresh.

"Mr. Naresh! I am going to show you a file. This is my personal file."

Gupta opened a small cabinet near his seat, took out a file, opened a page and showed it to Naresh.

Naresh read that page and quietly returned the file to Gupta.

"This happened two years back. The intelligence was gathered by me through my contact in the foreign country. But since the issue was highly sensitive, I wanted to confirm it, through another source. Just as I did in your case, I asked a friend of mine working in the agency of one of our friendly countries to verify the information and confirm. The feedback I got from him was shocking. The information I had received from my source had been somewhat outdated. My contact had sent me the information, without knowing about a subsequent development, which had changed the scenario. If I had sent the information collected by me through my contact to the government, it would have led to some wrong decisions by the government. After that experience, I have made it a policy to double-check all intelligence on sensitive matters. So, don't feel that I have underestimated the value of your work."

"I understand now, sir. It was my folly that I didn't understand this earlier" said Naresh, feeling remorseful.

Thirukkural
Section 2

Materialism

Chapter 59

Managing Intelligence Operations

Verse 588 (in Tamil):

oRRu oRRith thandha poruLaiyum maRRumOr
oRRinAl oRRik koLal.

Meaning:

A king should get the intelligence gathered by a spy verified

by deploying another spy.

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

Verse 589
Verse 587

587. In Search of Evidence

"I can say with certainty that Ramgopal has received a huge sum as kickback for this contract. But we can't prove it. How helpless we are!" lamented Santharam, the Managing Director.

Vigilance Officer Dayalan remained silent. It appeared to him that the Managing Director was indirectly rebuking him for his inability to book an employee of the company, who had blatantly committed an irregularity.

Dayalan approached a friend of him, who was running a detective agency and requested him to arrange to closely watch Ramgopal for the next few days. 

He explained to his friend that though he was asking for the surveillance in connection with a matter involving his company, he was getting it done at his own expense, since he didn't want to involve the company at that stage and requested him to do the job for a concessional fee.

After three days, Ramgopal received information he considered valuable.

The detective agency found out that Ramgopal had the habit of going to a club with one of his friends every Saturday evening.

Dayalan paid for the service rendered till then and and told his friend to end the surveillance.

That the charges for three days' surveillance were not substantial was a matter of relief to Dayalan. But he was still uncertain whether the information he got from the agency would be useful to him. 

'If my efforts succeed, I can get the amount spent by me reimbursed by the Managing Director' he thought.

"Brilliant! How did you record this?" asked Santharam, feeling excited and elated.

"I found out that Ramgopal had the habit of going to a club with a friend, every Saturday evening. I have learnt from experience that crooks like Ramgopal would brag about their wrongful acts to people close to them, as if they were proud achievements! So, I approached his friend who had been accompanying him to the club, gave him a mobile phone and asked him to call me from that phone and keep the call alive during the time the two were chatting in the club. I also gave him a list of questions, he should ask in a natural way, during the conversation. 

"For the last three Saturdays, I was spending three hours of my evening, listening to their conversation. Ramgopal spoke about so many things, but not about the matter we are interested in! His friend, knowing that I was listening to their conversation, was speaking with a lot of circumspection and fear, choosing to be reticent, as much as he could be! I hit pay dirt the fourth week. That day, Ramgopal spoke to his friend proudly about how he cheated you and received a kickback for the contract. I am sorry" said Dayalan.

"That is fine. I am not bothered about his bragging to someone about making a fool of me. I was fooled, after all! But, you got Ramgopal's conversation with a friend recorded in your phone. Is it legal?" asked Santharam.

"Don't worry about it, sir. If I summon Ramgopal to my room and play the recording in front of him, he will confess to the misdeed committed by him. People like him, who project themselves before others as strong men, are cowards at heart. They commit wrongdoings and constantly live in the fear of  getting caught. A call from the vigilance officer will, by itself, create panic in them! In my experience, I have seen many such people. Even if Ramgopal doesn't admit his guilt, his friend will testify about what Ramgopal told him. That will seal Ramgopal's fate."

"How did Ramgopal's friend agree to your request? Why did he agree to play a role in exposing the misdeed of his friend?"

"Making him agree to my request was not easy. I had to dig up his background, unearth a wrong he committed in the past and threaten to expose him, if he didn't agree to co-operate with me!" said Dayalan, smiling.

"You are a dangerous man. I should be careful with you, myself!" said Santharam, laughing.

Thirukkural
Section 2

Materialism

Chapter 59

Managing Intelligence Operations

Verse 587 (in Tamil):

maRaindhavai kEtkavaRRu Agi aRinthavai
aiyappAdu illadhE oRRu.

Meaning:

A spy should be capable of extracting what is hidden,

and verifying their veracity beyond doubt.

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

Verse 588
Verse 586

586. Ten Gold Coins

"We have come to another country on a spiritual mission. We should confine ourselves to carrying out our activities and take care to ensure that we don't get involved in any controversy or contentious issue" said Swami Santhananda.

His three disciples nodded their heads in acceptance.

A few days after their settling down in that country, Santhananda and his three disciples were arrested by security guards and taken to the Chief of Security.

"Tell me the real reason for your visit to our country. If you speak the truth, I will ensure that you are given minimum punishment" said the Chief.

"Sir! We have come here to propagate our spiritual philosophy. If you don't like our spreading our message, we will go back to our country. Please set us free" pleaded Santhananda.

"How can we set you free? We have been coming across many cases of foreigners masquerading as spiritual teachers or saints and spying on our country. Even recently, we caught two such saints. When we interrogated them, they spit out the truth that they had come here not on a spiritual mission but on a mission of espionage" said the Chief, with a mischievous smile.

From the tone of the Chief's words and his use of the phrase 'spit out,' Santhananda and his disciples realized how the spies that were caught would have been made to spit out the truth.

"Just because some people who came to your country in the garb of spiritual masters were involved in espionage activities, is it fair to assume that all those who come to your country on a spiritual mission have the intention of intelligence gathering?" asked Santhananda.

"Our suspicions are not without any reason. We have information that a person, who could be a suspect, visited your monastery"

"I can say with certainty that no such person visited our place." 

"A guard had noticed a person leaving your place surreptitiously through the backdoor. When the guard called him to check on him, he ran away" said the Chief.

"Someone might have entered our place stealthily, intending to commit robbery and finding that there was nothing valuable to steal, might have run away through the backdoor, when he was sighted by your guard. We never allowed any visitor to leave through the backdoor" said Santhananda. 

"No. Our guard saw someone from your monastery talking to a person standing near the backdoor. Our guard also says that it seemed that the person from your monastery placed something on the palm of the suspect. We suspect that that man had given you some information and someone from your monastery gave him money in exchange for the information."

"This is preposterous" said Santhananda,

"I am going to award ten whiplashes to each of you. If you won't come out with the truth even after that, I will understand that you aspire for more rewards and shower more rewards on you. The rain of rewards will keep falling on you, till at least one of you come out with the truth" said the chief.

The Chief then signaled to a guard, who went inside to bring the whip.

"There is no need, sir. I will tell you the truth. The incident mentioned by you did happen. It was me who gave ten gold coins to that person and sent him out through the backdoor of our place" said Gunaseelan, one of the three disciples.

Santhananda and the other two disciples looked at Gunaseelan, with surprise and shock.

"Ten gold coins? What did that traitor sell you for such a low price?" asked the Chief, with indignation.

"Sir, he is a traitor alright. But, he didn't betray your country. He betrayed a poor man like me, by deceiving me and collecting ten gold coins from me!" said Gunaseelan.

"Tel me what happened, in detail" said the Chief, feeling impatient. 

"Sir! This is the second time I have visited your country. When I came here last year for the first time, I met a young woman called Poovizhi. She was working as a construction labourer. I fell in love with her. Even after returning to my country, I was tormented by my love for her and craved to meet her again. I had no money to travel to your country. I learnt that this saint was planning to visit your country. So, I became his disciple and came here along with him. After coming here, oneday, I went to a construction site and enquired about Poovizhi, hoping that someone would be able to give me information about her. A man working there told me that he knew Poovizhi. He offered to bring her to a specified place to meet me, if I paid him ten gold coins. Since I had no money with me, I asked him to come to the backdoor of our monastery at a specified time. I stole ten gold coins from the cash box at the monastery and gave it to him. But he never came back. I realized that he had cheated me after receiving the money from me" said Gunaseelan.

"You scoundrel! You have used the noble practice of asceticism to subserve your quest for lust. You have brought disrepute to me and to my other disciples by your deceptive act" said Santhananda, angrily.

The Chief told Gunaseelan "How do I know that you are speaking the truth? I am going to imprison all the four of you. Our guards will give a special treatment to you alone, by treating you to whiplashes, to see whether any more truth is coming out of you. In the meanwhile, if we are able to catch the person who ran away from your place, we will extract the truth from him." 

He then turned to Santhananda and told him in an apologetic tone, "If what your disciple says is verified to be true, I will apologize to you and send you back to your country, with all honours due to a saint. Till that time, you will be treated as a royal guest. That is to say, though you would be confined to a guest house and your movement restricted, you would be given all the facilities inside the guest house. Of course, you won't be given the 'rewards' your disciple is going to be given!"

Saying this, the Chief chuckled.

Gunaseelan's body was rife with lacerations caused by whiplashes he was receiving every day. Gunaseelan continued to maintain that he was speaking the truth and that he had nothing more to add. The guards could not trace the person who ran away from the monastery.

After ten days, all the four of them were released, taken to the border of their country and made to step into the territory of their country.

"Welcome, Gunaseelan! Have your wounds healed?" asked Bhupathy, the Intelligence Chief, warmly receiving Gunaseelan, who came to meet him, a few days after returning to his country.

"That is not my name, Chief!" said Gunaseelan, smiling.

"You are right, Kathirvelan! You are no longer Gunaseelan, since Gunaseelan's mission has been completed! The intelligence you have gathered is highly useful. Congratulations. It was good of you to have sent me the full report through one of our agents immediately on returning to the country, with the message that you would meet me in person after your wounds healed to some extent. It was great of you to have protected Santhananda and his two disciples from being hurt by your captors, by telling the captors that they were not aware of your being an impostor."

"Yes, Chief. Though I was not a genuine disciple of my Guru, I believe that my saving him from being subjected to ill-treatment by my captors was a kind of Gurudakshina* to him.

*Gurudakshina - an offering made by a disciple to the Guru, as a token of his gratitude for the learning bestowed on him by the Guru.

Thirukkural
Section 2

Materialism

Chapter 59

Managing Intelligence Operations

Verse 586 (in Tamil):

thuRandhAr padivaththAr Agi iRandhu ArAyndhu
en seyinum sOrvu iladhu oRRu.

Meaning:

A spy should be able to go incognito, posing as as an ascetic and others, infiltrate all places, and tirelessly gather intelligence by any means and never disclose his secret, whatever suffering or pain is inflicted on him.

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

Verse 587
Verse 585