Skip to main content

Being Ambitious or Being Progressive: A subtle difference between the two

By


It’s a tricky and contentious subject, I chose to write upon. I am sure it will invite a lot of favor as well as critic from the readers. Well, my objective anyhow was to stimulate a chain of thoughts in your minds.
This morning, the newspaper was abuzz with the news of Mr Azim Premji joining the Gates-Buffet charitable trust as the 1st Indian, where he vows to give away a major part of his wealth for philanthropy. Being such a rich man, he still drives a Toyota Corolla, prefers to not to stay in 5-star hotels and leads a very normal life devoid of any frills. I always remember what the great Warren Buffet once said, “If you want to be rich, stop acting rich”.
These are a few of those rare exemplary moments which have the potential to be a phenomenon. But unfortunately, in the world we witness today, even such novel ideas don’t have many takers. Please don’t assume that I am a profound philanthropist anyway but I certainly and firmly believe in the fact that un-necessary show of wealth is injurious to the entire humanity & if not at such high standards, one’s life ought to have a fine balance between many such extremes as a minimal effort from his side in order to contribute back to the society.
What I see clearly is that there exists a vicious circle being run perpetually by Greed and Ambitions. The show of wealth from a neighbor gives birth to Greed which in turn becomes an ambition for which one could even dedicate the whole life. This ambition once in existence transforms the person into a hungry animal. The Dark side of the person wakes up and without any realization he/she starts moving in a direction which gives only the materialistic benefits and actually is devoid of actual happiness and growth to be a real Human being. Those are the moments when the priorities are so much changed that the only important thing is to be the “First” among those myopic people running and competing against each other. Soon, the senses are lost so much that it’s only the “Position” which matters while the means by which the position is secured lose the importance. The sense of “Right and Wrong” goes berserk. Most importantly, this frame of mind of being ambitious is so addictive that the entire life loses the meaning behind the demon sized EGO.
I am an ardent follower of the great recital by Lord Krishna, Srimad Bhagwad Gita and I here see the world becoming a beautiful place if everybody just focuses on the Karma, they do. If the means to achieve anything is right, nothing wrong can ever happen. For such basic sense to prevail, one needs to love and respect the world he is into. I call such a person a progressive person who competes only with himself and always tries to be a better person/professional than his/her previous self. While, an ambitious person would see the world as his adversary, a progressive person would know the same world as his home and a teacher from where the greatest wisdom and knowledge to achieve the greatest is received.
May the lord bless all of us, may the world be a beautiful place to live, may the people be happy always. 
Labels:

Comments

  1. Rummy2/21/13, 10:50 PM

    I couldn't agree more with you..Half of the decisions modern India is making today are based on what others have rather than what they actually need..

    ReplyDelete
  2. abhisht5/23/13, 5:36 AM

    I am really speechless to see the depth of your writing. It reveals each and every bit you feel and want to express. Such a fine a writing.

    ReplyDelete
  3. The Iconoclast5/23/13, 7:06 AM

    thanks bro...:)

    ReplyDelete
  4. bhikubhai9/24/13, 9:31 PM

    Excellent write up. I felt happy to read, yet there are few deeper thoughts that came rushing in to my mind, which asked this question, that just the surface ego or self esteem is the cause of manifestation of Rat race or killer competition? or is there a sub-conscious fear of uncertainty/survival that silently sits on the driving wheel?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The Iconoclast9/24/13, 9:51 PM

      Thanks for the appreciation and your insight. I think there is no single reason which can explain such mind set, reasons vary for various people.... but yes, it could be a syncretic result of all those negative phenomenon. They say...the wild side of man is too wild for the nature to adapt with...:)

      Delete

Post a Comment

Must Read

O almighty, only you can do this all....

By
Only you can do this all I found an astonishing place far away from my home, travelled thousands of miles right there in Livingstone. The river Zambezi, placed there on the landscapes just right, And the grand Victoria falls showing me their passion and might. I see the river upside down hanging from that bungee rope, All faces smiling, all eyes beaming; it certainly is the abode of Hope. A small but audacious bird chirping and sitting on the Hippo’s back, And I clicked the moment timeously standing from the river cruise’s deck. The sunset over the river displaying the spectrum of color and shade And I, watching the phenomenon spellbound; wondering, how He made. Crossing the Victoria bridge right through the rainbows, While hearing the thundering sound of the falls coming from very close. That lonely tree still holding its grip on the edges of the fall, O almighty, you and only you can do this a...
5 comments
Read more

dare to be your true self

By
Dare to be your true self Standing on the beautiful landscapes of the Mount Entoto in Addis Ababa, the capital city of Ethiopia, I gazed at the sky and yelled at him; “why the results are not always as per the expectations”…..comes back the voice; “Calm down my son, because it just doesn’t matter”. I am surprised, where the voice came from…..is it from the sky? Is it the God himself? Oh, It’s from my inside….amazing, someone always within me, yet so indiscoverable… I asked him, who are you?? The voice came back, I am your friend, the one you never had faith on; I am the origin of everything, you never acknowledged; I am the creator, you never believed on…… “Why do you talk to me then?” I asked. “For the same reason, I talked with Arjuna during the epic of Mahabharata; he had wisdom to understand but yet he was confused; he was capable yet he lacked self-belief; he knew he was wrong yet he questioned to gain the better understanding. You question my presence too; I had no...
5 comments
Read more

The HUNT

By
“Yours is a strange and self-obsessed generation who just can’t get over your personal ego to believe in something. Above all, you take pride in hurting the sentiments of your elders, showing your angst and disbelief against the conventional wisdom”, that is my mother at her rhetoric best. Unfortunately, I could not understand her as she could never understand me. There are millions of parents having the same complaints from their kids. I can’t comment on all of them as I would be too naive and unaware of their feelings. But in my case, I can say that the chasm is not built based on our contrasting beliefs but on the contrary this is a gap between “blind beliefs” and “Questions”. Those who raise the questions and speak their minds can’t be politically correct always. I always say that Human brain confuses; now I also think that the brain is wired in such a way that it understands only polar positions. Anything in between, it finds it difficult to understand. We have given the...
2 comments
Read more

On Fire....

By
On Fire Today after several months, I finally got an opportunity to sit quietly and do nothing in the long flight. When I say quietly, it doesn’t necessarily indicate towards the vocal sounds emitting from the human face’s cavity surrounded by the lips, but this time it is the quietness of the mind. The tranquil state of the brain unknowingly opens those channels where from come the deepest of the thoughts. The silence deep in the heart is the place where resides the mind in it’s supreme state of solitude. I was wondering what this phenomenon actually is, how come sometimes, I don’t hear any noise outside and how come sometimes, it’s all blabbering everywhere? How can sometimes, one can be so unperturbed despite of the quaking external events around? Is it due to the happiness….No, it’s the sublime state of serenity, where one finds true bliss. Is it eternal…?? no, probably not. I still have not mellowed to a stage where I can experience “Eternal Bliss”; but don’t I lov...
Post a Comment
Read more