Technology

Winston Churchill famously remarked "The empires of future would be empires of mind". He had the foresight to envision and predict the role of technology in times ahead even when the whole world was struggling with the hysteria of two world wars.

Technology benefited the growth process of western nations. They had sufficient capital earned from the loot of colonization which was channelized in right spheres. The capital along with the risk taking spirit of westerners to explore the unknown led to innovation and inventions. This spiraled the process of development.

However, the third world has not witnessed similar developmental trajectory. Here the technology-economy-demography fit is yet to occur. The magic wand of technology has produced mixed results.

On one hand, technology has made life easier for us. Take health for instance. Our mortality rate has come down from sixteen to approximately seven, life expectancy has increased from thirty three to sixty five since independence. Today a large number of jobs are created in IT sector which is at the forefront of technological revolution. New kind of jobs like computer reservation centers, cyber cafe and the sophisticated call center jobs are the direct result of technology.

However, there is a flip side as well. Technology has created churn in the job market. So on one hand we witness creation of new job profiles, but on the other hand we see a large number of jobs turning obsolete. For example, introduction of phone led to large employment opportunity at PCO booths. However, within a decade, the PCO became an artifact of past and people working as PCO operator became an extinct species.

The same is going to happen with mobile recharge or ticket reservation counters. Today a large segment of population is moving to next generation of technology i.e. smart phone. This has led to culture of apps where every single need or workflow is captured through mobile based software. The software eliminates the human element and automate the whole process. As a result, I can recharge my phone without having to go to nearest mobile recharge shop. Similarly, I can order my vegetables or book my movie tickets or wash my cloths just by a click of button.

In the age of technology, it is not about education or no education. Rather it is the individuals ability to learn unlearn and relearn which decides ones employability.

In this context, technology has unfolded in very curious manner. Every economy thrives on the interplay of four factors of production namely land, labour, capital and entrepreneurship.
Strangely, technology was never given the space in the factors of production.

In Indian context, land is limited and per capita land availability is nearly 30 times lesser than USA. So land is not our strength.
For capital, we are already in the process of liberalizing the economy. Our PM is visiting country after country, selling the ideas of Make in India, First develop India, Incredible India, Stand up India, Skilled India to investors and Indian diaspora abroad. So we are left with two other factors. One is labour and other is entrepreneurship. The foundation of technological spring board needs to be put on these two pillars. This would in-turn decide nature of India based enterprises and how they set out to achieve demography-technology-economy fit.

From labor perspective, our workforce needs to mentally prepare themselves for this churning. Given the abundance of labour, we need to thrive of labour intensive technology instead of labour displacing technology. So while technology can help us in feeling real shopping experience through online simulation tool, It should create parallel job opportunity for large number of delivery boys who could deliver things at home in line with Japanese principle of Just-in-time management. Secondly, labors should be mentally prepared for the churn. Thirdly, there is no replacement of a skill based job. Skill provides the ultimate hedge against any kind of vulnerability of the economy. Fourthly, labour workforce should compensate the land factor. For example, We do not have space for parking in some areas in Karol Bagh so technology should enable a solution where I could find a valet parking guy whenever I need and I could get my car at the desired spot within stipulated time.

From enterprise perspective, we need people who have the moderate risk taking ability and possess out of box thinking. India does not need monopoly organizations like USA. This wont fit here. Instead we need multiple local players each catering to their own territory. For example, Nandini brand dominating Karnataka. Amul dominating Gujrat and Mother Dairy dominating Delhi. Thus, we need state level or city level entrepreneurs. Secondly, we need social entrepreneur. This is the least tapped domain. Whoever is able to crack and monetize this could make huge social-economic impact. This would be definitely low profit margin business but one could realize decent turnover in scale. The underlying point is we need employers who believe that technology is not for displacing people. Instead technology along with people could make better, easier and comfortable.

'Richard Branson' had said In future we'll have just two types of jobs, one is entertainment and other is technology. India is poor on land front and dependent on foreign investors for capital. Therefore, our focus should be on utilising labour and enterprising spirit in the individual to create right kind of technology enabled ecosystem where general profit oriented ruthless
approach could be subdued.

Glimpse of the past

So I was collecting my thoughts on the Idea of Nation blog. I had this faint memory that I have compiled the thoughts on the fusion history of India somewhere earlier. I began sorting through my notes. And in the process, I found my diary of 2014. It was written when I had just failed in third mains and I was contemplating my future course of action.

I often find myself helpless in discouraging my sister from her unproductive passion of photography. First, she takes photos, photos in all the nonsensical poses. Though thankfully she has not come down to the level of pouting and tough flashing. She fits people in all permutation and combination to take maximum numbers of photos possible. And this is what irritates me most. But she is the photographer of our family. Then, she comes home and from time to time she put those photos on big screen and watch them in slideshows. For me, it is like wasting your present on memories of past.

However, I fell in the same trap with my diary and started reading it. It was somewhat nostalgic to read those unabashed thoughts. Here on the blog I use backspace a lot. At times, it is censored. But those thoughts were the real me. It was pleasing to see how I faced that tough time. I could see how little I have changed over the years. Though I am more calm and relaxed but even then I felt that piercing restlessness and desire to "do everything" in my behavior.

One of the very good habits I followed back then was I used to list all the behavioral and attitudinal mistakes in my daily routine. I used to analyze people around. I was not judgmental but I did my analysis to understand the diversity around. It helped me grow a lot personally.

Back in the years, If I get into any argument then my face would become stiff and unsmiling. But now I can smile while fighting back on an argument. And many other things.

It was also little depressing to read that diary. It prompted me to make comparison of my current efforts with my earlier efforts. My passion then and my indifference now. It felt little bad. It shakes confidence a little.

Anyway, Enough for now. Want to write a lot but possibly not on this public blog. And one thing, with all the critic of my sister's photography, whenever I go out, I wish my sister is around so that I can offload the task of taking some minimum photos though I do not know why or for what purpose?

Muslim contribution in freedom struggle

When Atal Bihari government came to power in 1999, the one of the first things he did was the reconstitution of a committee to look into the issue of a biased history of India. Many ideologues have rued about the present shape of Indian history. Right wingers consider it as a history of congress. Left wingers term it as a history of elite upper-class Indians. Dalits term it as a history of upper caste coming to power.

Left has got some space in the current history because left cadre and Congress has certain linkages. Rightists have taken care of themselves by developing their alternate literature praising Savarkar and developing their own class of organic intellectual. They have established a chain of schools "Saraswati Vidya Mandir" where children are taught other side of history as well. Further, with gains in the foothold in the center, they can revise the history to reduce its distortion. Dalits found their voice in enormous work done by Ambedkar. Unfortunately, Muslims contribution was totally overshadowed by Muslim league. That is why many of us would find it difficult to even name five Muslim freedom fighter.

Recently, honorable minister Mr. Rajnath Singh was giving the speech in Rajya Sabha on the issue of freedom of expression. And in the process, he was remembering the contribution of Muslims in Indian freedom struggle. One could see him at a loss of words when he was recounting the names. He could mince beyond Ashfaqullah Khan. Though he managed the situation well but the same is true for most of us. Many Indians see Muslims as a cause of partition and forget the immense contribution in the freedom struggle by many Muslim luminaries based in India or abroad.

The list is quite long so no one article or an even a book can do justice with the topic. But I would mention some of the important and lesser known one highlighted by respected Sugata Bose in his speech in Lok Sabha on Intolerance. He began with the rightist territory and mentioned that It was Abid Husain who was the sole companion of Netaji during his difficult voyage from Europe to Asia. When Netaji planned his great escape from India, it was Mian Akbar Shah who received him in Peshawar. The first commander of INA northeast division was Mohammad Zaman Kiani and It was Shaukat Malik who had hoisted the first tricolor in Moirang. And remember who was the only Indian companion of Netaji in his controversial final flight , It was Mr. Habibur Rahman. And for whom the slogan of "Lal kile se aayi Awaz, Sahgal Dhillon ShanNawaz" were shouted? It was Shahnawaz Khan, an Indian Naval army officer.

If we move to some familiar names then It was Saifuddin Kitchlew in Punjab for whom support, Jaliawala Rally was organized. It was Prof. Maulana Barkat Ullah who was a founder member of Ghadar movement in Canada. It was Mohammad Obidullah Sindhi who established the first independent government of India in exile in Afganistan. In fact, when all the top leadership was in jail during quit India movement, it was Abdul Kalam Azad, our first education minister who was spearheading Congress.

The list is endless. The whole leadership of India's first independent movement during 1857 was Muslim as claimed by rightist history. Bakht Khan was first to lead the revolt in Meerut. Begum Hazarat Mahal in Oudh, Khan Bahadur Khan in Bareilly, Liyakat Ali in Allahabad provided decisive leadership but all we tend to remember is Tatya Tope and Rani Jhansi.

The contribution of Syed Ahmad Khan and Kavi Nazrul Islam could not be undermined by any ideology-driven interpretation or any wave of the history of freedom struggle. The leadership of congress party itself tells about the role of Muslims in building congress and keeping the momentum of the freedom struggle. The learned Badruddin Taiyyab Ji provided guidance in the initial years. Hakim Azmal Khan, Mukhtar Ahmad Ansari, and Hasarat Mohani each served as president of Indian National Congress. But how many of those names a common man or even a home minister remembers?

It is high time that we should also have a Muslim perspective of Indian history. I am sure that scholars must have worked on these front. But it should not remain limited to textbooks. Rather it should be taught actively in our schools so that the large proportion of frustrated, prejudiced and Musalman abhorring and Musalman suspicious junta will get their facts right. As Plato once mentioned, One who know the right thing will do the right deed. So if we wish to kill the evil of communal fundamentalism, we need to know the right history.

Idea of Nation

The most difficult task about writing after deciding on the topic is "where to begin or how to start"? So lets start with a territory with which most of us are familiar because all the digital media anchors are shouting at the top of their voice in their prime time shows about this. It is "The idea of Nation and idea of India as a nation".

Recently some right wingers asked other political whos-who to prove their patriotism by shouting "Bharat Mata ki Jai". After JNU debates the idea of nationalism had anyway gathered some fire. The denial of some parliamentarian to shout "Bharat Mata ki Jai" added fuel to the whole issue. The issue got mired into petty politics but it raised some substantial questions. Questions like "what is the Nation and what is Nation-state"? "How Nation-state is different from State"? "What do we understand by India as a Nation"? "What is the difference between nationalism and patriotism"? and does shouting "Bharat Mata ki Jai" hold any relevance in the debate of nationalism?

The idea of nation came into existence after treaty of Westphalia in 1648. The European countries were realigned on the lines of national identities. Nation-state as a new term was coined. While Nation is described as abstract or imagined community ( Benedict Anderson), hyphenating it with state added some geographical substance to it. Nation was considered a purely social concept to identify people with similar language, culture and living practices. After 1648 treaty it was extended with concept of sovereignty which is internal supremacy and external independence.

Therefore the idea of Nation-state is understood as entity with 4 dimensions. It should describe a definite geography. It should have its own army. It should be habitated by people who identify themselves with the land. The people should have certain common cultural practices. In short, geography, army, people and culture define the concept of nation-state. State on the other hand remains purely geographical term with no cultural connotation.

India as a nation stands tall as an exception. Scholars like Fitch and Herder had predicted that any nation with more than one language will be broken in equal number of nation-state as many are the number of language spoken. India has nearly 24 major constitutionally recognized languages and nearly 263 dialects. However India stands united refuting all the western thinkers. The culture of our land changes every fifty kilometers. The 6 C's namely cuisines, carnivals, communication (languages), costumes, customs, and creed changes with every single unit of longitudinal and latitudinal traversal.

To understand the idea of India, one will have to walk in the history. This is the land where Greek-Bactrian invaders Kushana adopted Shaivism. The named their kids as Vasideva, an Indian name for a foreign invader. Our culture integrated him into itself. Here King Ashoka gave a secular code of conduct Dhamma and muslim ruler Akbar proposed Din-E-Ilahi. It is the land where Mahavir Jayanti and Muhharram fall on the same day and are celebrated peacefully without any disturbance. India is a place where a hindu king contributed to Jains and Budhdhist art and architecture. Rashtrakutas helped in building Ajanta and Elora caves which became prime symbol of cultural history of both the religions.

Here King Akbar donated the land for Sikhs holy shrine Golden temple in Amritsar. Tipu Sultan of Mysore renovated the ancient Sharda temple. Here the text of Ibrahim Adil Shah finds frequent invocation of goddess Saraswati. The Akbar of Kashmir Zamiul Abidine forbade Cow slaughter and abolished jajiya. In many instances Muslim rulers went on to marry inter-faith. The two wives of Akbar were from christian and hindu religion respectively.

Even from the perspective of development of history, It was williams Jones who decoded Brahmi script which helped us in knowing about ancient kingdom of Ashoka. It was Max Mullar, a german scholar who translated Riga Veda in Sanskrit and Halhed who translated Geet Govinda and Manu Smriti, basis of our caste identity. There are numerous references of Alauddin-Khilji, Muhammad Bin Tughlaq and Akbar protecting and conserving identities of other religion.

Even in the freedom struggle, second person behind Gandhi's famous Dandi march was a muslim Imam Sahib. From Ashfaq Ullah Khan to Frontier Gandhi, the contribution has been immense. People from all faiths participated enthusiastically in giving a free character to our nation and helped in awakening its soul.

Even today, Meghwal hindus in Rajasthan keep fast during Rojas. People of Hyderabad immerse the idol of Ganesha in a lake named after muslim ruler Husain Sagar which has a statue of Budhdha installed in the middle of it. Any cross section of people and you can find people from eight different religions namely Budhdha, Jains, Hindus, Sikhs, Parsi, Zorastrian, Jews and Christian. India is a land where all the 90+ division of Islam are practiced. It is the land where a person from minority community with nearly 1% of total population, Dr. Manmohan Singh went on to become prime minister and was given oath by Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam a Muslim. And the leader of coalition was a christian woman of Italian origin, Smt. Sonia Gandhi.

Even from religious perspective, diversity and mutual respect is evident in common day life. The major lord of west, Lord Rama is minor god in the east, state of Bengal. Similarly the goddess of east , Durga is portrayed as prostitute in the tribal and southern culture. There, the devil Mahishasur who was killed by Durga is worshipped as god.

Examples are numerous. The mutual interdependence, respect, tolerance and acceptance of principle of Anektantvad lies at the base of idea of India. Whenever this land received any new thing, it adopted, accommodated and integrated the novelty into its own whole. Thus expanding the whole bigger and bigger each time. Possibly that is why our ancient text says for us, Vasudhaiva Kautumbakam.

In such historical, cultural and social context any one definition of nationalism would not justify our rich cultural attitudinal heritage. Any one ideology can not claim the monopoly over concept of nationalism. And from ideological point also, we see as many differing opinion as there are number of Ideology. Centrist says India as nation in progress, rightist call it Nation since beginning of time and leftist says no nation at all. Who is right and who is wrong can not be judged by few text book principles and scholarly intellectual debates. Instead, our history, our culture and very existence of our vibrant harmonious society in a nation of 125 crore should act as a touchstone of concept of nationalism.

However, there are certain behaviours which needs to be rejected outrightly as not falling into category of nationalistic sentiment. These are lies, hypocrisy, violence and polarisation of the culture and society. For example, people gathering at the corner of street to shout Bharat Mata ki Jai and later rob the same Mata by not paying due taxes, acting violently and disturbing its cultural fabric. This is where we need to differentiate between nationalism and patriotism. Patriotism is much stronger and value based concept. Nationalism is shallow. We need to be patriotic means we need to love our culture, society etc. Nationalism as a sentiment arises when we compare ourselves with some other entity. Thus Nationalism has a negative connotation. George Orwell described it as worst enemy to peace. Even Tagore described nationalism as narrow domestic wall which are fragmenting the world.

No one should be asked to shout Bharat Mata ki Jai to prove his nationalistic credentials. Instead, a better way would be to ask the person to plant 10 trees or serve a poor family to prove his nationalistic sentiments. This would helps more in binding our society in common thread of peace, diversity, tolerance, respect, interdependence and harmony. Remember we should not make Aurangzeb as our focal point of history when we have the historical benchmark set by Akbar, Tughlaq and Zamiul Abidine.

Kohli

Indian cricket has evolved through various era. First we saw era of Gavaskar. Then came era of Tendulkar. Now after yesterday innings we have entered era of Kohli.

When Sachin would be on the crease, Indians would not shy to bet for India's victory irrespective of target or opponents. It was as if some miracle man is standing in the middle. The placards on the ground would read "If cricket is religion, then Sachin is my god" or "Commit all your sins now, even god is watching Sachin's batting". With yesterday innings Kohli has gone one step beyond.

Kohli's inning was class apart, very ethereal and perfected to the extreme. His shot selection, running between the wickets, and powerful strikes were a treat to watch. It was not against a toothless attack. Rather some of the balls he converted into fours were wicket taking balls. His hard work on his game, body, and most specifically on his mind was completely on display during the last few overs.

Most important was his controlled aggression and calmness under pressure situation. He played deflated shots except for one long on six, picking right gaps and right areas beating the most electric fielders.

After Sachin's retirement many of my friends had stopped watching cricket but with this inning and the twenty-twenty effect, we are sure that game would be as thrilling and exciting as they were before. Surely, With players like Kohli, we can bet on Indian victory with confidence.

Till last night, Many Indians would have been skeptical about anyone who could break Sachin's records. But with this class display, Kohli has certainly entered in the "Sachin zone".

Possibly, the time has come to redesign some placards with slogans like "If cricket is religion and Sachin is its god then Kohli is Sachin reincarnated".

Is Modi a god gift to our nation?

The 15th LokSabha elections were viewed as a make or break case for India's global aspiration by political pundits around the globe. Primarily, such call for a perform or perish situation was attributed to the policy paralysis at the center level. But, it was also due to desperation for a strong leader who could shoulder the intricate reforms. Mostly heralded as second and third generation reforms, these are the need of the hour for the political, economic and social progress of the country. Bills like women reservation bill, reforms like introducing economic basis of reservation, uniform civil code and making manufacturing as our engine of the economy were viewed as real challenges which needed a big heart.

Democracy has a self-correcting mechanism. People know what is best for them and deliver a decisive mandate when it is needed most. India needed someone with a big heart. Vox populi chose the 56-inch chest for shouldering these complex reforms. Democracy has a tendency to fall for outward perceptions. Nobody knew about the size of his heart so people assumed that bigger chest would mean a bigger heart. Mr. Modi made inroads in national politics and people's decisive mandate firmly placed him on the seat of prime minister of world largest, vibrant and chaotic democracy. The rightist brigade went berserk. His cabinet colleague went on to declare him as 'Hindu Hridya Samrat'. He was heralded as the first Hindu leader in 800 years of Indian history. Some started finding his reference in Nostredemes cryptic all-meaning-possible useless book. The paeans of his victory still continue as ministers and party worker try hard to come in his good books. The recent entrant was his cabinet colleague who termed 'Modi as god gift to India'.

This prompted me to assess the Modi leadership vis-a-vis previous gods i.e. former prime ministers of the country. Let's begin in chronological order.
Jawahar Lal Nehru was the greatest of all the prime minister as he steered the country in most difficult times. He reclaimed India's respect and place in the World order. He remains the senior most guardian of the nation after the godfather of nation Mahatma Gandhi. Gandhi Ji took the title of Rashtra Pita so Nehru was rightly installed as Chachaji of the nation. Nehru's effort on institution building, procedure formulation, democracy and image makeover of the country is incomparable to any prime minister till date.

Indira Gandhi did her bit to the nation by converting East Pakistan into Bangladesh. Had 1971 war not happened, one could imagine the kind of double whammy India would have been bearing from two fronts. She also showed courage to carry out operations like 'Smiling Buddha'. We became a nuclear power of the world. Later she dealt with Khalistan demand with firm hands and brought peace in the region. She could be discredited for dark spots of emergency in her history of government.

Rajiv Gandhi with all his failings like the kitchen cabinet, Shah Bano case or Ram mandir issue, did one of the greatest task for India's digital revolution. He brought Sam Pitroda back to his motherland. Sam Pitroda in turn, brought Telecom revolution in the country. The proliferation of mobiles, computer and rise of services industry specifically Information Technology could be considered his contribution to the national progress.

Narasimha Rao also had a great challenge to manage the possible consequences of the fall of USSR and economic crisis in the country. In those turbulent times, he spearheaded the transition of the economy from mixed model to open and liberal principles. He took cautious steps in making new friends in foreign policy like starting 'Look East' kind of policy.

After Rao, India needed some one who could take India forward with style and confidence. Then came, Atal Bihari. He could be called people's prime minister. A first non-congressman to complete the full term and leader of big coalition dominated by rightist thought. He showed to the congress and the world that rightist thought of India can ably lead the nation and it is not a threat to our secular credentials. He conducted nuclear test which propelled Indian profile on world politics. The World took note of us, seriously. His curtailed the Kargil adventure of Pakistan. Respect.

Next came Manmohan Singh. A renowned economist and able administrator but unfortunately not a great politician. The country entered into 9% growth territory. He brought reforms like RTI, RTE and Right to food security. We graduated from welfare politics to the right based politics. India progressed visibly under him from 2004 to 2014. Though his second regime was marred with corruption incidents and he was poor on marketing himself.

In 2014, India was Modi-fied. People gave him an absolute majority to carry out all the second and third generation reforms which were pending for last 10 years. The jobless growth needed to turn into job oriented developmental inclusive growth. He had a mammoth task at his hand. nearly 24 months have passed. But we are yet to witness any of those most-awaited second or third generation reforms. Modi has shown intent and commitment to his words. He speaks well. He speaks extempore. It is really a big deal. He has great vision but is that translating into any sort of action on the ground?

Visibly nothing much has changed from social, political angle in the country. Unlike other prime ministers, Modi is yet to prove himself. He has nothing to showcase which he could term larger than life reform. Though he has time left and we should not be premeditated in our judgment but India's asking run rate is increasing exponentially. Every month 8 lakh new graduates or job seekers are entering in the job market. Therefore, the onus lies on the government to get the ball rolling as soon as possible.

Modi needs to show to people that he not only possess a large chest but also a big heart. He has certain measures which would be fruitful in the long term but people are getting impatient. And even he has not taken the full stride. Therefore, any of his minister should think twice before terming his god. No one becomes god or god gift while alive. This is especially true for politicians whom media image is well guarded and managed when they are in power. Only when he retires or quit politics, people should give him angelic status like god's gift. No one can build reputation on what he is going to do. Reputation has to be claimed. and It is claimed through one's work. So Modi uncle, please get your act right so that we can proudly put you in the league of your great predecessor. You have shown the commitment and intent but sadly that is not enough.

Binaries of life..

Life runs in binaries. This could not have been truer at any other time in the history as it is for our generation. Parents ambition vs. kids ambition. Happiness vs. Success. love marriage vs. arrange marriage. Social pressure vs. self-wish. Money vs. peace. Money vs. Family.

Why do one have to leave his home in the pursuit of the job? Why do one have to take a job which society regards as better than pursuing his own wish? Why do we need to fight for survival? Why has the economy become a base for our existence?

I often wonder whether Earth is a beautiful place or a miserable place. People tell me it is beautiful but all I see around me is the struggle, fight, sorrow, hardships. And on top of this, huge indifference, apathy, selfishness. But can I blame it on people for turning apathetic? No, comes the answer. The environment is so vitiated that no one can remain sane or happy. If you want peace of mind, you will have to turn apathetic and indifferent. Resources are limited and the fight is tough. Machiavelli noticed this long back. Even, Chanakya took note of it.

How can I convince myself to the one way of life when the whole world is going the other way? How can I remain happy when everyone around is sad? Even if I give the semblance of being happy, is it not self-defeating or delusional?

I was meditating and some mosquitoes began biting and bleeding me. Now What am I supposed to do? If I just shove them away, they will come back. If I sit quietly then will bleed me and would not let me concentrate. And then What use is of such self-induced pain? If I stand up and kill them then I feel guilty. They were not doing it intentionally rather they were doing it out of their need and nature.
And ultimately it boils down to the question, why am I meditating? Is it to attain some supernatural power? But these power do not come if you long for them. Is it for peace of mind? But how can I be at peace if a mosquito is biting me and I can not do anything about it? One or two bites I can tolerate but here the whole army is piercingly sucking my blood.

Life is complex. The same situation translates into real life. When You are living your life, seeking inner joy and some people around bug you. What to do with such people? Should we ignore them? Or should we giving them the taste of their own medicine or should we just push them away? But pushing is half solution. They will come back. It's their nature. Ignoring means either you get used to such biting or turn vairagi. but when I am living in the society, how could I turn vairagi. I don't want to be seen as meek or weak. and If I give them the taste of their medicine then it again enters into my head. Because that's not my nature.

I think the best strategy is to evaluate the situation, assess people and use the middle path. All fingers do not have same size. Keep in mind diversity. Use sam-daam-danda-bheda to turn the situation in your favour. Use the psychological tactics. Don't be afraid of hitting people's ego and seeing how far they can be pushed. But never misuse this tool. Use it only for your own defence.

In the end, I believe Darwin is more suitable than Mahavira for living a worldly life. Here only fittest survive the battle. But enjoy the battles. One has nothing to loose.


Some random thoughts. It does not relate to my life. :)