Why Running Matters | Keep the faith alive

I kind of empathise with Dean's blog. Dean Karnazes is a renowned ultramarathoner and the author of several books chronicling his long-distance, international running exploits. My recent experience at outdoor runs has impelled me to take a deeper look into why running holds such power. Why is it so important. When you distill it all down, here is what I’ve uncovered.

Fundamentally speaking there are so many things in life that divide us, that separate us and tear us apart, take us away from each other, be it race, religion, creed, color, socioeconomic level, nationality or any diverse factors. But running is something that we all share in common. Regardless of any of these divisive factors, we all run in the same way. It is a commonality we humans share in a world that emphasizes our differences.

Running unites us and brings us together because, in the words of the great Bill Rodgers, “We sweat the same. We struggle the same.” Running is a simple, primitive act, and therein lays its power. For it is one of the few commonalities left between us as a human race.

Toeing the starting line of a marathon, regardless of the language you speak, the God you worship or the color of your skin, we all stand as equal. Perhaps the world would be a better place if more people ran.

Keep the faith alive. Keep Running, Keep living

Human Paradox

I met a guy today in a coffee shop. I had escaped my gym routine today. 10k run yesterday morning with barely any proper sleep had definitely taken a toll on my body. The muscles were hurting and the body felt tired. After the daily grind of the office, driving back home listening to some country music, the soul inside me couldn't escape the thought of sipping in a coffee. I ordered one at a nearby barista on the way back home. A tiny timid guy in his early 20s came in to serve the same. The place barely had human souls. Blame the 9:30 slightly cold night after a busy Monday for commoners; most of them would preferred to go back home. So I tried striking a conversation with the guy who served my coffee. The young timid guy courteously kept the cup on the table and walked away. I said - "You seem to be new here. Do you work here during evening hours ? " He didn't reply. I couldn't control my urge. I asked again - "Hey". The guy just walked away. For a moment I took his behavior to be rude. I tried ignoring him but the human tendency of being ignored couldn't just sublime. Leaving my coffee midway , I strolled past the gate and went to the counter to talk to the cafe manager. I asked him why does he have such a rude staff and if they treated their customer same. He apologized and said, "Sir, I would like to apologize on behalf of him, but unfortunately he is deaf and cannot speak too".

I was left speechless. Coming back to my table I thought, how quickly and easily we judge someone without knowing the other side of story; How easily we expect from people without knowing the other side of story, how easily we extrapolate without knowing the other side of story. I thought, here is a guy who cannot speak and cannot hear but still he is working hard to make a living for himself, who still respect himself and not let his weakness come in between his survival quest. As he came back to collect the left over's from my table. I stood up, shook his hand. He smiled back. His smile sounded so comforting. The coffee tasted much better now.

As I was driving back I pondered paradoxes in the human context are abound. We are all human; but few are humane. Most of us think we are virtuous; but few are bereft of vice. We are all uniquely blessed with the power to imagine, extrapolate, inquire and to perceive beyond immediacy but so few see beyond the reach of their noses and so much consumed by the grind of daily existence. Many of us feel self-righteous; but few shrink from hurting the weak and vulnerable. To be fallible is to be human but individually we think we are infallible. Why does human intimacy rob mutual respect and interpersonal relationships so hard to sustain when man is so gregarious and craves for human contact? We are endowed with the unique power of reason, viveka (wisdom) andvichakshana (discrimination) but we act so often without them. We are infinitely creative but often mindlessly destructive. Instead of feeling ashamed for our anger and avarice, we use them as a cover and justification for their actions arising from them.

We make daily choices but often avoid facing the consequences.

Power of Dream

There is something beyond books and grades. The system has to get out of red tape and mediocrity. Every school should teach students to remove such words as mediocrity and compromise from their dictionary. Teach them about the power of dreams, passion, having a subject like biography or autobiography and tell those stories from the Wings of Fire, Made in Japanand many more. Every student should know about the great dreamers and achievers and the likes of Akio Moritas,and the Einsteins.

A very pragmatic and radical approach towards education is bound to take this nation to greater heights and would make the future citizens of the country to question the answers rather than answering the questions.

An educational system should foster a culture of change, a culture of dreaming high with a personal vision and a culture which would breed confidence in children. It is the sole responsibility of the educational system to blend the personality of the students at a young age and not that of the industry to start from scratch. The deciders of a future economy are the students of the present economy, but some one called a teacher (I would rather call them mentors and sculptors of the future economy) is required to catalyse the mindset of the future economy. A mediocre teacher teaches, a good teacher motivates, an excellent teacher inspires.

The power of dream is so amazing. It instills hope, the will the challenge the status quo. A new year, a new beginning, hope we dream more and dream big.

Happy New Year

Crisis of Intolerance

What we confront today is, above all, a crisis of intolerance. It is the fountainhead of our problems, for failed marriages, broken homes, social strife, and religious bigotry. Intolerance leads to irritation, irritation to anger and anger to violence and hatred. If hatred is the child of intolerance, self-righteousness is the father of intolerance, an almost visceral feeling that one is always right.

Tolerance cannot be transplanted particularly in an adult mind. It has to be germinated, nurtured and nourished from the embryonic stage, from childhood, at home and at school. Our most basic instinct, that we are always right, even more the other man is always wrong has to be tempered and tamed. Conflict and contention are inherent and inseparable from life. They have to be managed without resort to violence and injury to others and turned into a creative force.

What role can education play ? Well it essay a good role. A child should be taught that there are no absolutes; there are at least two sides to every situation; no one is ever completely right or wrong, good or bad and in life there is always a middle way of compromise and conciliation. Above all taking things for granted or being taken for granted is not going to help either of them. Character building and conflict management ought to be the main purpose of education. Stability and tolerance in modern societies are possible only if religion is restored to its original place and intent. Religious leaders of all faiths should take the lead in this endeavour. Technology should be kept on short leash and used to alleviate suffering and to better the lot of the weak and vulnerable.

We cannot talk about human species and human nature in abstract terms. It is but a conglomeration of all of us, no more, no less. In the ultimate reckoning, we have to look inwards for solutions. Buddha said on his deathbed "be a lamp unto yourself". Lord Krishna took pains to educate, instruct and guide Arjuna on where his duty lay. He did not proclaim "I say it; so you do it". A few days before Godse put a bullet into the already broken heart, a distraught Gandhiji said "follow your inner voice". Are we up to it or are we condemned not to listen?

The Regional Fundamentalism

The sole purpose of education was to make us better individual, to build a up a society free from the stigma of caste, religion, and other factors which are so insignificant when it comes to differentiate a person from another. It's depressing to see that these stigmas still play such a big factor in people's lives. We talk about nation building, we talk about building up a free and liberated society, we talk about space, research, scientific developments, we talk about rapes and molestation but somewhere forget that the regional fundamentalism has somewhere still plagued our lives. We talk about so many things but fail to apply the same in our own lives, we fail to apply the things which we believed are wrong. It's always tough to stand for it but may be humans are born weak, may be humans were never strong.

I never understand why the educated class fall prey to these stigmas. The concept of empowerment and liberated thinking can never be re-inforced unless we apply it and free our own lives. I feel sad to see people around me getting convenient day by day, taking paths that are easy and can be easily justified. We are trying to justify our weakness by pushing ball to other people's court, wrapping our in-competencies in the delicious wrappers of easy to be justifed thoughts.

We have this thought. "I cant really do anything about it". Well let me tell you - if you can't do anything about it, if you can't fight against it, don't talk fancy stuff. High time we get our 101 courses correct before even proceeding to advanced levels. Better give a right to someone else to be educated, someone who can fight for what you are. Poverty and illiteracy aren't the biggest problem we are facing today, it's our daily compromises that we make which is the biggest problem we are facing today.