कविता : जरूरी तो नहीं                                    
                                                                                                * मिलन  सिन्हा 

तुम जो चाहो सब मिल जाये, जरूरी तो नहीं 

तुम जो कहो सब ठीक हो, जरूरी तो नहीं .

दूसरों से भी मिलो, उनकी भी बातें सुनो 

वो जो कहें सब गलत हो, जरूरी तो नहीं .

सुनता हूँ यह होगा, वह  होगा,पर होता नहीं कुछ 

जो जैसा कहे, वैसा ही करे, जरूरी तो नहीं .

जिन्दगी के हर मुकाम पे  इम्तहान  दे रहा है आदमी 

इम्तहान  के बाद ही परिणाम मालूम हो, जरूरी तो नहीं .

संघर्ष से मत डरो, प्रयास हमेशा तुम करो  

हर बार तुम्हें हार ही मिले, जरूरी तो नहीं .

कहते हैं बेवफ़ाई एक फैशन हो गया है आजकल 
पर हर कोई यहाँ बेवफ़ा हो, जरूरी तो नहीं .

जनता यहाँ शोषित है, शासक भी है यहाँ शोषक 
हर शासक अशोक या अकबर हो, जरूरी तो नहीं .

जानता हूँ 'मिलन' का अंजाम जुदाई होता है 
पर हर जुदाई गमनाक हो,जरूरी तो नहीं .

Did you like the poem? Do comment. Will meet again with Open Mind.All the Best.

हास्य व्यंग्य कविता: गांधीवादी परम्परा

                                                                                                      * मिलन सिन्हा 

हमारे  नेता जी काफी चर्चित थे 

जनता से

 जो काम करने को कहते थे 

उसे पहले 

खुद करते थे 

इस  मामले वे अपने को 

पक्के सिद्धान्तवादी-गांधीवादी कहते थे .

एक बार उन्होंने कहा,

हम गरीबी हटाकर रहेंगे 

अब गरीबी रहेगी या 

 हम रहेंगे .

 सिद्धान्त के मुताबिक  उन्होंने पहले 

अपनी गरीबी हटाने का प्रयास किया 

और जल्दी ही 

कई गाड़ियां खरीद लीं, 

चार-पांच मकान  बनवा लिया 

और भी न जाने 

क्या-क्या जोड़ लिया .

इस तरह उन्होंने

एक नयी परम्परा को जन्म दिया 

जिसका अनुसरण करते हुए 
अधिकांश नेता गांधीवादी (?) बन गए 
और पहले 
अपनी-अपनी गरीबी हटाने में जुट गए .

           How did you like it? Do comment & Enjoy your Sunday. 
                      Will meet again with Open Mind. All the Best.

BALANCING OUR OWN LIFE

                                                                                    -By Milan K Sinha
       

        The human mind is a powerhouse of variety of thoughts & ideas. Our mind does act like a pendulum which oscillates between two extremes. And, in the process of this extremism, many a times, we forget to learn the basic lessons of life. We know, life is very precious & जिंदगी ना मिले दोबारा, और दिल तो बच्चा है जी, और यह दिल मांगे मोर ....So, the great predicament /confusion has always been: what do we do? 

       During the course of his journey of life Lord Buddha found a solution of this complex problem of life and propounded his philosophy of middle path which he defines as a path of moderation between the extremes of sensual indulgence and self mortification. He says, our life is like the strings of Veena (Lute), the music comes only when the strings are neither too loose nor too tight, but just in the middle." This, according to Buddha, is the path of wisdom.

•  Aristotle says, "For both excessive and insufficient exercise destroy one's strength, and both eating & drinking too much or too little destroy health, whereas the right quantity produces, increases or preserves it. So, it is the same with temperance, courage & other virtues... This much then is clear: in all our conduct it is the mean that is to be commended."
• Zig Ziglar says, "I believe that being successful means having a balance of success stories across the many areas of your life. You can't truly be considered successful in your business life, if your home life is in shambles."
• Gordon B. Hinckley says, "The major work of the world is not done by geniuses. It is done by ordinary people, with balance in their lives, who have learned to work in an extraordinary manner."

        Good enough. We got some insights. But the issue is still open. How?  We all have 24 hours a day, we all are social human being, we all have certain ambitions/aspirations/wishes in life, we all have certain obligations/duties/ jobs which we wish to perform or are required to perform. Now, the question which comes to our fore more often than not, is how to manage this 24 hours properly to do at least reasonable justice to what is stated herein above? How to strike that delicate, yet effective  balance between the various activities that we are to perform during that fixed cycle of 24 hours? 

      We may do the following : Divide 24 hours in three parts with occasional reallocation of plus/minus 10 to 15% depending upon some urgent requirements: 8 hours for vocation or profession or job etc., 8 hours with your family & friends for social,cultural, spiritual and/or other extracurricular activities  and remaining 8 hours for your rest including sleep. Yes, while following this routine, sincerity of purpose should get its due honour. 

    Pl. try and experience the difference. Hope, it would be a pleasant one.
                          Will meet again with Open Mind. All the Best.

END THE MALADY OF STARVATION DEATHS

                                                                                         - By Milan K Sinha

           

In a sovereign democratic republic like ours which has been registering relatively better GDP growth for some time now and has the largest pool of youth force in the world that claims to have adequate food to feed its population, is it not shameful to find that still millions of poor Indians cannot afford even a single meal and more than two and half million fellow Indians die of hunger every year?

The situation is even more shocking when one comes to know through Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IME) report  on global food wastage that says, 'India stands out for its glaring lack of infrastructure and food storage facilities due to which 21 million tons of wheat - equivalent to the entire production of Australia - goes waste in the country'.

Here, it is quite pertinent to see what United Nations as well as the Indian Constitution promise:

United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights (U.N. 1948) Article 25 states, "Everyone has the right to a standard living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and his family, including food."

Article 21 of the Constitution of India, 1949 states, "No person shall be deprived of his life or personal liberty except according to procedure established by law."

Article 47 of the Constitution of India, 1949 states, "The State shall regard the raising of the level of nutrition and the standard of living of its people and the improvement of public health as among its primary duties."

Now, let us find some startling ground level facts and data on the subject:

• Every day more than 7000 people die of hunger in India.
• India is topping the list of countries in World Hunger Chart.
• More than 30% of the world's hungry population lives in India.
• Over 200 million people sleep hungry every night.
• About 850 million people survive on less than Rs. 20 a day.

We have plenty of laws and hundreds of law enforcing agencies with millions of officials drawing thousands of crores in salary in the name of protecting and safeguarding the basic interest of Aam Aadmi (common man) of the country. Now the question is, how long the country should wait to see things happening as per the constitutional provisions and election promises? And how long the ruling political class wait for FDI and foreign loans/grants to take care of even the most basic ground level problems without first ensuring 100% internal resource management?

Paradoxically, however, the ruling political class in the centre and the states alike celebrate and advertise their India Shining, India Rising, Incredible India and other such make-believe stories and slogans through big ads, sponsored programs etc. in a very big way by spending hundreds of millions of public money.

To say the least, in such a situation, can any right thinking person justify the pattern of governance the country has been witnessing for the last 65 long years after the independence?

It's time for all of us to voice our views collectively and effectively as per the constitutional provisions in order to convince and pressurize the political class across the board for taking urgent concerted effort to end the malady of starvation deaths on highest priority without indulging in political blame game.

# Published in Patna Daily.com

                                          Will meet again with Open Mind. All the Best. 

  

3R RELATIONSHIP FOR BANKS' BETTERMENT

                                                                                 -By Milan K Sinha

                Whenever a person enters the premises of a Bank, a minimum expectation accompanies him. He looks around to find out where his expectation is going to be fulfilled. Here, the front line bank staff  having fast response time and eagerness to  attend to his job with a smile  leave the first indelible impression on the  mind of the customer. We know, Courtesy always pays and often pays handsomely. Acting & performing the job in consonance with the feeling of extending the same courtesy that one expects and at times demands from the staff of any other organisation where he is himself a customer makes all the difference. To say, the staff wins  half the battle if he begins putting himself in customer's place. Offering an opportunity to the customer to form the impression that he is being served grudgingly is just short of asking him to move out of the bank. Instead, a cheeerful greeting puts the customer at ease, and cosequently foster a sense of goodwill besides bringing good business for the bank.

बस थोड़ी -सी मुस्कुराहट, मानवीय व्यवहार  और समय से काम 

इतने से ही ग्राहक हो जायेंगे खुश, मिलेगा बैंकिंग को नया आयाम . 

            Moreover, in order to serve a customer well, one must listen well to find out what actually are his problems. The  level of banking service has been as good as one's understanding of customers' need, requirements & his immediate expectation. Notwithstanding, a situation may confront the staff where it is not possible to satisfy the customer at that moment for valid cogent reasons, but he should not say 'YES' only to please the customer momentarily. Here, the banker should again act by following the valuable advice of Gandhiji, "A 'NO' uttered from the deepest conviction is better and greater than a 'YES' merely to please or worse to avoid trouble". Yes, it is a great art to say 'NO' and still keep the customer not dissatisfied.

           Any successful Bank will have to have ever growing loyal customers to whom it keeps adding value and consolidate  the on-going relationship. But, its not an easy task to add loyal customers to its fold on regular basis. Yes, to achieve this most sought after goal  of a Bank, it is of utmost importance to let all its personnel understand well  that the transaction effected by a customer is not an one-off-interface, but is the beginning of a long term relationship. And Recognising, Respecting & Rewarding (3Rs) the relationship with customers has been a sure and certain way also to image building exercise of a bank, besides sustained business growth. This strategy of 3R relationship always makes the customer feel special and prompts him to act as the goodwill ambassador of  the Bank.

   I shall continue to be on banking related issues.Will meet again with Open Mind. All the Best. 

कविता : रिश्तों की बुनियाद

                                                   
                                                        * मिलन  सिन्हा 

पहले खुद  पर ऊँगली उठा सको तो जानें 

पहले गैर के आंसू पोंछ सको तो जानें .

जानना समझना तो अभी बहुत कुछ है यहाँ 

कितने अज्ञानी है हम, पहले यही जान सको तो जानें .

भाई - भाई में झगड़ा, बाप-बेटे में मतान्तर 

 रिश्तों  की  बुनियाद अब क्या है बता सको तो जानें .

जिसे देखो वही पैसे  के पीछे भाग रहा है 

पैसा में ऐसा क्या है  समझा  सको तो जानें .

आँख  होते हुए भी बहुत लोग अंधे हैं यहाँ 

इन आंखवालों को नजर दे  सको तो जानें .

गोदाम भरे पड़े हैं, पर गरीब भूखा है यहाँ 

इन गरीबों  के लिए कुछ कर  सको तो जानें .

सुनता हूँ गरीबी, बेकारी, बेबसी अब नहीं रहेगी यहाँ 

हरियाली,खुशहाली से 'मिलन' कब होगा बता सको तो जानें . 

Enjoy the poem & post your comments, please. All the Best.

HAVE LOTS OF GOOD FRIENDS - IT'S INVALUABLE

                                                                                      - By Milan K Sinha

You too might have received and enjoyed this philosophical SMS message:

7 Colours Make a Rainbow 

7 Chords Make Music

7 Days Make a Week, 

7 Continents Make a World, and

7 Beautiful Letters Make Us Friends.

Truly so. Each one of us relishes our friendship moments whenever we get an opportunity in our relatively busy and fast life. The mythological story of Lord Krishna and His poor Brahmin friend Sudama has been very popular and inspirational for all generation all over the world. It is because the true friendship doesn't distinguish between high and low or between rich and poor. William Shakespeare narrates the virtues of a friend in this way: 'A friend is one that knows you as you are, understands where you have been, accepts what you have become, and still gently allows you to grow'. The old time tested saying, "A friend in need is a friend indeed" always reminds us the value of having a real friend. The poem, 'True Friends' by Emily is worth enjoying at this point:

Best friends stick together till the end

They are like a straight line that will not bend.

They trust each other forever 

No matter if you're apart you are together.

They can be your hero and save the day

They will never leave your side they are here to stay.

They help you up when you fall

Your true friends are best of all.

The old proverb: 'A man is known by the company he keeps'- in a way clearly tells us the importance of having such friends who can add and enrich good human values both during our days of prosperity and adversity. To say, in all probability, a man becomes what his friends are - if he has good company, he becomes good and vice 'versa. Investigating agencies, in general have been engaging their machinery to find out the who's who of the friends to know about the target person under investigation. The interesting theory behind this is that if you go and stay in a perfume shop your clothes will acquire good smell whereas even a better man who works in company of fish sellers, smells bad.

William Penn rightly says, "A true friend advises justly, assist readily, adventures boldly, takes all patiently, defends courageously and continues a friend unchangeably". But, is it so simple to be blessed to have real/true friends in today's life? Surely not because the friendship in its real sense of the word demands some basic prerequisite such as trust and reliability, honesty, loyalty, mutual respect, sense of caring and sharing etc. to be fulfilled. It's not one stop deal; instead it is an exercise which requires time for thoughtful nurturing. I believe nobody wishes to have friends who don't have these qualities because everyone wants what Henry Ford said, "My best friend is the one who brings out the best in me".

Otherwise, you will have to experience what Lord Gautam Buddha is to preach, "An insincere and evil friend is more to be feared than a wild beast. A wild beast may wound your body, but an evil friend would wound your mind".

Finally, before signing off, a small word of caution - mutual understanding is the pillar of friendship, but a small misunderstanding proves to be the killer at times. So, be matured, try to behave like an adult in those trying moments and sing this song from famous Hindi films, 'Dostana':

बने चाहे दुश्मन ज़माना हमारा,

सलामत रहे  दोस्ताना  हमारा .

# Published in Patna Daily. com

                                                           Will meet again with Open Mind. All the Best.

* Do visit my site : http://www.milanksinha.com/