Bhagavad Gita, the hip new ancient management text

[Guest guest]

Corporate America is embracing Hindu philosophy in a big way

The Bhagavad Gita

as the hip new ancient

Eastern management text

 

 

 

The following article in Businessweek:

http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/06_44/b4007091.htm

reflects some of the fundamental ethos of India as people deal with

the society and the environment. I am glad the Businessweek brings

out a decent exposure of issues, and hope more exposures will be

arranged through different fora, including academia.

<!--[endif]-->

 

-- Bal Ram Singh, Ph.D., Center for Indic Studies

University of Massachusetts Dartmouth

 

* * *

 

Excerpts:

===================================

Corporate America is embracing Indian philosophy in a big way. Says

Businessweek magazine in its latest issue, phrases from ancient Hindu

texts such as the Bhagavad Gita are popping up in management tomes

and on websites of consultants. Top business schools have

introduced "self-mastery" classes that use Indian methods to help

managers boost leadership skills and find inner peace in lives

dominated by work. The magazine calls it "Karma Capitalism" — a

gentler, more empathetic ethos that resonates in the post-tech-

bubble, post-Enron zeitgeist. While it used to be hip in management

circles to quote from the sixth century BC Chinese classic "The Art

of War", the trendy ancient Eastern text today is the Bhagavad Gita.

 

Young executives from corporate America gather in a suburban New

Jersey home to hear a Swami Parthasarathy, (a Teacher of Bhagavad

Gita from India), who is on tour of the US, counseling executives on

the central message of the Gita to put purpose before self, and

speaking about secrets to business success —"concentration,

consistency and cooperation." He has addressed meetings in B-schools

like Wharton and in financial schools such as Lehmann Brothers,

advising fund managers and venture capitalists about balancing the

compulsion to amass wealth with the desire for inner happiness.

 

-- Chidanand Rajghatta

(The Times of India, 25 Oct, 2006)

===================================

 

"You can't succeed in business unless you develop the intellect,

which controls the mind and body…You are the architect of your

misfortune, you are the architect of your fortune."

 

-- Swami Parthasarathy

<!--[if !supportLineBreakNewLine]-->

 

* * *

 

Excerpts

>From Businessweek online, October 30, 2006

===================================

Big Business is embracing Indian philosophy. Phrases from ancient

Hindu texts such as the Bhagavad Gita are popping up in management

tomes and on Web sites of consultants. Top business schools have

introduced "self-mastery" classes that use Indian methods to help

managers boost their leadership skills and find inner peace in lives

dominated by work.

 

More important, Indian-born strategists also are helping transform

corporations. Academics and consultants such as C. K. Prahalad, Ram

Charan, and Vijay Govindrajan are among the world's hottest business

gurus. About 10% of the professors at places such as Harvard Business

School, Northwestern's Kellogg School of Business, and the University

of Michigan's Ross School of Business are of Indian descent--a far

higher percentage than other ethnic groups. "When senior executives

come to Kellogg, Wharton, Harvard, or [Dartmouth's] Tuck, they are

exposed to Indian values that are reflected in the way we think and

articulate," says Dipak C. Jain, dean of the Kellogg School.

 

Indian theorists, of course, have a wide range of backgrounds and

philosophies. But many of the most influential acknowledge that

common themes pervade their work. One is the conviction that

executives should be motivated by a broader purpose than money.

Another is the belief that companies should take a more holistic

approach to business--one that takes into account the needs of

shareholders, employees, customers, society, and the environment.

Some can even foresee the development of a management theory that

replaces the shareholder-driven agenda with a more stakeholder-

focused approach. "The best way to describe it is inclusive

capitalism," says Prahalad, a consultant and University of Michigan

professor who ranked third in a recent Times of London poll about the

world's most influential business thinkers. "It's the idea that

corporations can simultaneously create value and social justice."

 

You might also call it Karma Capitalism. For both organizations and

individuals, it's a gentler, more empathetic ethos that resonates in

the post-tech-bubble, post-Enron zeitgeist. These days, concepts such

as "emotional intelligence" and "servant leadership" are in vogue.

Where once corporate philanthropy was an obligation, these days it's

fast becoming viewed as a competitive advantage for attracting and

retaining top talent. Where the rallying cry in the 1980s and '90s

may have been "greed is good," today it's becoming "green is good."

 

And while it used to be hip in management circles to quote from the

sixth century B.C. Chinese classic The Art of War, the trendy ancient

Eastern text today is the more introspective Bhagavad Gita. Earlier

this year, a manager at Sprint Nextel Corp. (S ) penned the

inevitable how-to guide: Bhagavad Gita on Effective Leadership.

 

The Ancient Spiritual wisdom of the Bhagavad Gita seems at first like

an odd choice for guiding today's numbers-driven managers. Also known

as Song of the Divine One, the work relates a conversation between

the supreme deity Krishna and Arjuna, a warrior prince struggling

with a moral crisis before a crucial battle. One key message is that

enlightened leaders should master any impulses or emotions that cloud

sound judgment. Good leaders are selfless, take initiative, and focus

on their duty rather than obsessing over outcomes or financial

gain. "The key point," says Ram Charan, a coach to CEOs such as

General Electric Co.'s (GE ) Jeffrey R. Immelt, "is to put purpose

before self. This is absolutely applicable to corporate leadership

today."

 

The seemingly ethereal world view that's reflected in Indian

philosophy is surprisingly well attuned to the down-to-earth needs of

companies trying to survive in an increasingly global, interconnected

business ecosystem. While corporations used to do most of their

manufacturing, product development, and administrative work in-house,

the emphasis is now on using outsiders. Terms such as "extended

enterprises" (companies that outsource many functions), "innovation

networks" (collaborative research and development programs), and "co-

creation" (designing goods and services with input from consumers)

are the rage.

 

Indian-born thinkers didn't invent all these concepts, but they're

playing a big role in pushing them much further. Prahalad, for

example, has made a splash with books on how companies can co-create

products with consumers and succeed by tailoring products and

technologies to the poor. That idea has influenced companies from

Nokia Corp. (NOK ) to Cargill. Harvard Business School associate

professor Rakesh Khurana, who achieved acclaim with a treatise on how

corporations have gone wrong chasing charismatic CEOs, is writing a

book on how U.S. business schools have gotten away from their

original social charters.

 

Vijay Govindarajan, a professor at Dartmouth College's Tuck School of

Business whose books and consulting for the likes of Chevron (CVX )

and Deere & Co. (DE) have made him a sought-after innovation guru,

links his theories directly to Hindu philosophy. He helps companies

figure out how to stop reacting to the past and start creating their

own futures through innovation. Govindarajan says his work is

inspired by the concept of karma, which holds that future lives are

partly determined by current actions. "Karma is a principle of

action. Innovation is about creating change, not reacting to change,"

he says.

 

There are also parallels between Indian philosophy and contemporary

marketing theory, which has shifted away from manipulating consumers

to collaborating with them. "Marketing has tended to use the language

of conquest," says Kellogg professor Mohanbir S. Sawhney, a Sikh who

discusses the relevance of the Bhagavad Gita to business on his Web

site. Now the focus is on using customer input to dream up new

products, Sawhney says, which "requires a symbiotic relationship with

those around us."

 

Kellogg's Jain, who is working on a book about the customer-centric

business models of Indian companies, believes that many Indian

thinkers are drawn to fields stressing interconnectedness for good

reason. "We have picked areas that are consistent with our passion,"

he says.

 

It's not surprising that thinkers from a country with as diverse an

economic and social makeup as India would have different perspectives

on the influences on their work. "We are a fusion society," says

Harvard's Khurana. As a result, many Indian management

theorists "tend to look at organizations as complex social systems,

where culture and reciprocity are important," he says. "You won't

hear too many of us say the only legitimate stakeholders in a company

are stockholders." What's more, India's extreme poverty imposes a

natural pressure on its companies to contribute more to the common

good.

 

Indian thinkers are affecting not only the way managers run

companies. They are also furthering their search for personal

fulfillment. Northwestern's Kellogg even offers an executive

education leadership course by Deepak Chopra. Chopra also is on the

board of clothing retailer Men's Wearhouse Inc. and has conducted

programs for Deloitte, Harvard Business School, and the World Bank.

 

Other B-Schools are adding courses that combine ancient wisdom with

the needs of modern managers. A popular class at both Columbia

Business School and London Business School is "Creativity & Personal

Mastery," taught by Columbia's Srikumar Rao. Many attendees are fast-

track managers who are highly successful at work but still miserable,

says Rao. His lectures, which include mental exercises and quotes

from Indian swamis and other philosophers, win praise from managers

such as Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS ) Managing Director Mark R.

Tercek. "Business schools ought to be championing this stuff," says

Tercek, a yoga practitioner. "We can hire the smartest damn people in

the world, but many of them ultimately don't succeed because they

can't motivate and work with those around them. I think the Indians

are on to something."

 

They may be on to quite a lot. Some Indian theorists have said their

ultimate goal is to promote an entirely different theory of

management--one that would replace shareholder capitalism with

stakeholder capitalism. The late Sumantra Ghoshal was attempting to

do just that. At the time he died, the prolific London Business

School professor was working on a book to be called A Good Theory of

Management.

 

As Ghoshal saw it, the corporate debacles of a few years ago were the

inevitable outgrowth of theories developed by economists and absorbed

at business schools. Corporations are not merely profit machines

reacting to market forces; they are run by and for humans, and have a

symbiotic relationship with the world around them. "There is no

inherent conflict between the economic well-being of companies and

their serving as a force for good in societies," wrote Ghoshal.

 

In their own ways, other Indian thinkers are picking up the mantle.

Khurana's forthcoming book, From Higher Aims to Hired Hands, looks at

the professional responsibility to society that managers and the

business schools who train them were initially designed to have.

 

The quest, says Prahalad, is to develop a capitalism that "puts the

individual at the center of the universe," placing employees and

customers first so that they can benefit shareholders. This is a

lofty if improbable goal. But if it is attained, business leaders may

find that India's biggest impact on the global economy may be on the

way executives think.

===================================

 

bsingh (AT) umassd (DOT) edu

Mon, 23 Oct 2006 16:02:55 -0400

Karma Capitalism: BusinessWeek - India's ancient thoughts.

 

 

The following article in Businessweek:

http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/06_44/b4007091.htm

reflects some of the fundamental ethos of India as people deal with

the society and the environment. This past weekend I attended the

Second Bioneers conference at UMass Dartmouth

(http://www.umassd.edu/communications/articles/showarticles.cfm?

a_key=867).

Many of the environmental issues raised will find practical solutions

in many of the communities of India even today, but I also felt there

was almost complete ignorance of those solutions during the

conference.

 

I am glad the Businessweek brings out a decent exposure of those

issues here, and hope more exposures will be arranged through

different fora, including academia.

 

Please note that The Center for Indic Studies is offering a course in

Business and Entrepreneurship in India (IST 444), in collaboration

with UMD's Charlton College of Business in spring 2007. The class

will meet TuTh at 9:30 AM. Further announcement will be forthcoming.

 

-- Bal Ram Singh, Ph.D., Center for Indic Studies

University of Massachusetts Dartmouth

285 Old Westport Road

Dartmouth, MA 02747

Tel: 508-999-8588

Fax: 508-999-8451

Email: bsingh (AT) umassd (DOT) edu

Web site: http://www.umassd.edu/indi

 

* * *

 

Now, US Inc swears by the Gita

By Chidanand Rajghatta

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/131942.cms

 

WASHINGTON: Corporate America is embracing Indian philosophy in a big

way. Suddenly, says Businessweek magazine in its latest issue,

phrases from ancient Hindu texts such as the Bhagavad Gita are

popping up in management tomes and on websites of consultants.

 

Top business schools have introduced "self-mastery" classes that use

Indian methods to help managers boost leadership skills and find

inner peace in lives dominated by work.

 

The magazine calls it "karma capitalism" — a gentler, more empathetic

ethos that resonates in the post-tech-bubble, post-Enron zeitgeist.

 

While it used to be hip in management circles to quote from the sixth

century BC Chinese classic The Art of War, the trendy ancient Eastern

text today is the more introspective Bhagavad Gita .

 

In an episode recounted by Businessweek, young executives from

corporate America gather in a suburban New Jersey home to hear Swami

Parthasarathy, one of India's best-selling authors on Vedanta, speak

about secrets to business success —"concentration, consistency and

cooperation."

 

The 80-year old Indian guru is on a whistlestop tour of the US,

counselling executives on the central message of the Gita to put

purpose before self.

 

He has addressed meetings in B-schools like Wharton and in financial

schools such as Lehmann Brothers, advising fund managers and venture

capitalists about balancing the compulsion to amass wealth with the

desire for inner happiness.

 

In one incident, a young investment banker seeks advice on dealing

with nasty colleagues. Banish them from your mind, he is told. "You

are the architect of your misfortune. You are the architect of your

fortune."

 

* * *

 

Special Report

Karma Capitalism

http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/06_44/b4007091.htm

October 30, 2006

<!--[endif]-->

 

Times have changed since Gordon Gekko quoted Sun Tzu in the 1987

movie Wall Street. Has the Bhagavad Gita replaced The Art of War as

the hip new ancient Eastern management text?

<!--[endif]-->

 

Signs of worldly success abounded as members of the Young Presidents'

Organization met at a mansion in a tony New Jersey suburb. BMWs,

Lexuses, and Mercedes-Benzes lined the manicured lawn. Waiters in

starched shirts and bow ties passed out vegetarian canapés. And about

20 executives--heads of midsize outfits selling everything from

custom audiovisual systems to personal grooming products--mingled

poolside with their spouses on a late September evening.

 

After heading inside their host's sprawling hillside house--replete

with glittering chandeliers, marble floors, and gilded rococo mirrors-

-the guests retreated to a basement room, shed their designer loafers

and sandals, and sat in a semicircle on the carpet.

 

The speaker that evening was Swami Parthasarathy, one of India's best-

selling authors on Vedanta, an ancient school of Hindu philosophy.

With an entourage of disciples at his side, all dressed in flowing

white garments known as kurtas and dhotis, the lanky 80-year-old

scribbled the secrets to business success ("concentration,

consistency, and cooperation") on an easel pad. The executives sat

rapt. "You can't succeed in business unless you develop the

intellect, which controls the mind and body," the swami said in his

mellow baritone.

 

At the Wharton School a few days earlier, Parthasarathy talked about

managing stress. During the same trip, he counseled hedge fund

managers and venture capitalists in Rye, N.Y., about balancing the

compulsion to amass wealth with the desire for inner happiness. And

during an auditorium lecture at Lehman Brothers Inc.'s (LEH ) Lower

Manhattan headquarters, a young investment banker sought advice on

dealing with nasty colleagues. Banish them from your mind, advised

Parthasarathy. "You are the architect of your misfortune," he

said. "You are the architect of your fortune."

 

The swami's whirlwind East Coast tour was just one small

manifestation of a significant but sometimes quirky new trend: Big

Business is embracing Indian philosophy. Suddenly, phrases from

ancient Hindu texts such as the Bhagavad Gita are popping up in

management tomes and on Web sites of consultants. Top business

schools have introduced "self-mastery" classes that use Indian

methods to help managers boost their leadership skills and find inner

peace in lives dominated by work.

 

More important, Indian-born strategists also are helping transform

corporations. Academics and consultants such as C. K. Prahalad, Ram

Charan, and Vijay Govindrajan are among the world's hottest business

gurus. About 10% of the professors at places such as Harvard Business

School, Northwestern's Kellogg School of Business, and the University

of Michigan's Ross School of Business are of Indian descent--a far

higher percentage than other ethnic groups. "When senior executives

come to Kellogg, Wharton, Harvard, or [Dartmouth's] Tuck, they are

exposed to Indian values that are reflected in the way we think and

articulate," says Dipak C. Jain, dean of the Kellogg School.

 

Indian theorists, of course, have a wide range of backgrounds and

philosophies. But many of the most influential acknowledge that

common themes pervade their work. One is the conviction that

executives should be motivated by a broader purpose than money.

Another is the belief that companies should take a more holistic

approach to business--one that takes into account the needs of

shareholders, employees, customers, society, and the environment.

Some can even foresee the development of a management theory that

replaces the shareholder-driven agenda with a more stakeholder-

focused approach. "The best way to describe it is inclusive

capitalism," says Prahalad, a consultant and University of Michigan

professor who ranked third in a recent Times of London poll about the

world's most influential business thinkers. "It's the idea that

corporations can simultaneously create value and social justice."

 

You might also call it Karma Capitalism. For both organizations and

individuals, it's a gentler, more empathetic ethos that resonates in

the post-tech-bubble, post-Enron zeitgeist. These days, concepts such

as "emotional intelligence" and "servant leadership" are in vogue.

Where once corporate philanthropy was an obligation, these days it's

fast becoming viewed as a competitive advantage for attracting and

retaining top talent. Where the rallying cry in the 1980s and '90s

may have been "greed is good," today it's becoming "green is good."

 

And while it used to be hip in management circles to quote from the

sixth century B.C. Chinese classic The Art of War, the trendy ancient

Eastern text today is the more introspective Bhagavad Gita. Earlier

this year, a manager at Sprint Nextel Corp. (S ) penned the

inevitable how-to guide: Bhagavad Gita on Effective Leadership.

 

THE ANCIENT SPIRITUAL wisdom of the Bhagavad Gita seems at first like

an odd choice for guiding today's numbers-driven managers. Also known

as Song of the Divine One, the work relates a conversation between

the supreme deity Krishna and Arjuna, a warrior prince struggling

with a moral crisis before a crucial battle. One key message is that

enlightened leaders should master any impulses or emotions that cloud

sound judgment. Good leaders are selfless, take initiative, and focus

on their duty rather than obsessing over outcomes or financial

gain. "The key point," says Ram Charan, a coach to CEOs such as

General Electric Co.'s (GE ) Jeffrey R. Immelt, "is to put purpose

before self. This is absolutely applicable to corporate leadership

today."

 

The seemingly ethereal world view that's reflected in Indian

philosophy is surprisingly well attuned to the down-to-earth needs of

companies trying to survive in an increasingly global, interconnected

business ecosystem. While corporations used to do most of their

manufacturing, product development, and administrative work in-house,

the emphasis is now on using outsiders. Terms such as "extended

enterprises" (companies that outsource many functions), "innovation

networks" (collaborative research and development programs), and "co-

creation" (designing goods and services with input from consumers)

are the rage.

 

Indian-born thinkers didn't invent all these concepts, but they're

playing a big role in pushing them much further. Prahalad, for

example, has made a splash with books on how companies can co-create

products with consumers and succeed by tailoring products and

technologies to the poor. That idea has influenced companies from

Nokia Corp. (NOK ) to Cargill. Harvard Business School associate

professor Rakesh Khurana, who achieved acclaim with a treatise on how

corporations have gone wrong chasing charismatic CEOs, is writing a

book on how U.S. business schools have gotten away from their

original social charters.

 

Vijay Govindarajan, a professor at Dartmouth College's Tuck School of

Business whose books and consulting for the likes of Chevron (CVX )

and Deere & Co. (DE ) have made him a sought-after innovation guru,

links his theories directly to Hindu philosophy. He helps companies

figure out how to stop reacting to the past and start creating their

own futures through innovation. Govindarajan says his work is

inspired by the concept of karma, which holds that future lives are

partly determined by current actions. "Karma is a principle of

action. Innovation is about creating change, not reacting to change,"

he says.

 

There are also parallels between Indian philosophy and contemporary

marketing theory, which has shifted away from manipulating consumers

to collaborating with them. "Marketing has tended to use the language

of conquest," says Kellogg professor Mohanbir S. Sawhney, a Sikh who

discusses the relevance of the Bhagavad Gita to business on his Web

site. Now the focus is on using customer input to dream up new

products, Sawhney says, which "requires a symbiotic relationship with

those around us."

 

Kellogg's Jain, who is working on a book about the customer-centric

business models of Indian companies, believes that many Indian

thinkers are drawn to fields stressing interconnectedness for good

reason. "We have picked areas that are consistent with our passion,"

he says.

 

Whatever the common themes, India, of course, is hardly a showcase of

social consciousness. While companies such as Tata Group or Wipro

Technologies have generous initiatives for India's poor, the country

has its share of unethical business practices and social injustices.

In addition, some Indian academics bristle at the suggestion that

their background makes their approach to business any different.

They're quick to point out the wide range of religions, influences,

and specialties among them.

 

Indeed, it's not surprising that thinkers from a country with as

diverse an economic and social makeup as India would have different

perspectives on the influences on their work. "We are a fusion

society," says Harvard's Khurana. As a result, many Indian management

theorists "tend to look at organizations as complex social systems,

where culture and reciprocity are important," he says. "You won't

hear too many of us say the only legitimate stakeholders in a company

are stockholders." What's more, India's extreme poverty imposes a

natural pressure on its companies to contribute more to the common

good.

 

Indian thinkers are affecting not only the way managers run

companies. They are also furthering their search for personal

fulfillment. Northwestern's Kellogg even offers an executive

education leadership course by Deepak Chopra, the controversial self-

help guru and spiritual healer to the stars. Chopra also is on the

board of clothing retailer Men's Wearhouse Inc. and has conducted

programs for Deloitte, Harvard Business School, and the World Bank.

 

In a stark, brightly lit classroom, Chopra, sporting glasses with

heavy black frames studded with rhinestones, led a class through a 20-

minute meditation in June. "Sit comfortably in your chair with your

feet planted on the ground," Chopra instructed the 35 mostly midlevel

executives from corporations that are as far afield as ABN Amro Bank

(ABN ) and sporting goods retailer Cabela's Inc. (CAB ) "Our mantra

today is: I am.' "

 

OTHER B-SCHOOLS ARE adding courses that combine ancient wisdom with

the needs of modern managers. A popular class at both Columbia

Business School and London Business School is "Creativity & Personal

Mastery," taught by Columbia's Srikumar Rao. Many attendees are fast-

track managers who are highly successful at work but still miserable,

says Rao. His lectures, which include mental exercises and quotes

from Indian swamis and other philosophers, win praise from managers

such as Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS ) Managing Director Mark R.

Tercek. "Business schools ought to be championing this stuff," says

Tercek, a yoga practitioner. "We can hire the smartest damn people in

the world, but many of them ultimately don't succeed because they

can't motivate and work with those around them. I think the Indians

are on to something."

 

They may be on to quite a lot. Some Indian theorists have said their

ultimate goal is to promote an entirely different theory of

management--one that would replace shareholder capitalism with

stakeholder capitalism. The late Sumantra Ghoshal was attempting to

do just that. At the time he died, the prolific London Business

School professor was working on a book to be called A Good Theory of

Management.

 

As Ghoshal saw it, the corporate debacles of a few years ago were the

inevitable outgrowth of theories developed by economists and absorbed

at business schools. Corporations are not merely profit machines

reacting to market forces; they are run by and for humans, and have a

symbiotic relationship with the world around them. "There is no

inherent conflict between the economic well-being of companies and

their serving as a force for good in societies," wrote Ghoshal.

 

In their own ways, other Indian thinkers are picking up the mantle.

Khurana's forthcoming book, From Higher Aims to Hired Hands, looks at

the professional responsibility to society that managers and the

business schools who train them were initially designed to have.

 

The quest, says Prahalad, is to develop a capitalism that "puts the

individual at the center of the universe," placing employees and

customers first so that they can benefit shareholders. This is a

lofty if improbable goal. But if it is attained, business leaders may

find that India's biggest impact on the global economy may be on the

way executives think.

 

* * *

 

Readers of "Karma Capitalism" Comment:

@

http://app.businessweek.com/UserComments/get_reviews;jsessionid

=090922117F9FBA610991F434FA15CE6C?action=all&productId=11262

 

 

Piyush:

Gita is a manual for humanity and it's nice to know that it's being

applied as business philosophy as well. Gita was not said in a

classroom or temple but on a battleground and today people are

fighting wars in business as well. The one who said was a great

politician and the one who learned was a warrior. Emerson and Henry

David Thoreau also got influence from Gita and Oppenheimer quoted

Gita after the first test of the nuclear bomb. Let this song of

divine bring divinity out of human beings...

 

Pb:

It is good that this article finally realizes the importance

of 'human' in this human society. The impact of Indian management

professors on businesses had to show up one of these days. These

professors of Indian heritage are not necessarily Gita scholars -

actually, most of them run away from it in order to look more secular

and mainstream. However, these philosophical thoughts are kind of

ingrained into them over generations, and they will have more and

more impact on the businesses as the new generations of executives

emerge out of our B-schools.

 

Brahaman:

The loss of touch of Gita is resulting in the loss of self identity

and self respect and hence ethics. Guiding post of Gita turns wooden

nickel into silver dime or a gold dollar. Gita is not causing a

firing revolution, but bringing silent and singing

revolution. "Sarvasy chaaham Hrudisannivisto"- concept of Indwelling

God--He is within me. Not only that, he is working with me -- "aham

vaishvanarobhootva"- giving new outlook to millions of downtroden

people/materialistic people in today's India. Stream is flowing and

one needs to feel sweetness of Gita as Saint Jnaneshwar said "Jyot se

jyot jalate chalo prem ki Gang bahate chalo" enlighten souls one

after another and feel the stream of love flowing from the feet of

God. Didn't it say in book of revelation "stream of life flows from

the feet of God?" Humans can write codes to make machine work, but

cannot uncode his own life. For that one has to take refuge in the

Gita.

 

 

Xaviola:

Yes, I agree the Gita is a beauty to behold. The truth is greater

than me. I guess we have to study ancient texts to get it rigth. I am

not Indian but African.

 

 

GAGE:

At the end of the day, what matters is that man was created for

giving and it is in giving that we find fulfillment. On the other

hand, everything in the world teaches us to take. Sacred books like

the Gita bring us back to our reality: Man's search for meaning.

Until we find the purpose of our lives we will keep on looking for

all sorts of new trends that bring us back to our reality, until we

find God, we will be restless.

 

Gitayogi:

Even though the article quotes Bhagwat Gita extensively, please note

that this "eastern wisdom" (which is also known to the western world

for ages) comes from many many texts (collectively called "Vedas").

http://vivekajyoti.blogspot.com/2006/10/corporate-america-is-

embracing-hindu.html