Some musings from trip to Sikkim with college friends
Recently I went on a short trip to Sikkim with my college buddies. This is the second time we have done this “boys” trip over the past two years and it is proving to be a hugely enjoyable ritual. It is a great opportunity to let your hair down and be boys again with buddies one has known for over 20 years. In the midst of all the fun we also end up having some rather profound discussions – perhaps reflecting that most of us are now on the other side of 40!!
Late into the 3rd night of our trip, we started questioning ourselves on the biggest learning in our lives over the past two years. My friend Pawan posed what all of us felt was a great question – is life momentary or momentous?
All 6 of us in the group are high-achievement, high-intensity type of guys, so this was a soul-searching question. Pawan’s question brought the realization that the beauty of life is in the present moment. The present moment is real while future is uncertain. However, in focusing on future goals, we often miss out on living the present moment fully. We often don’t appreciate all the beauty and joy that is around us – our families, our friends, our passions, the simple joys of a leisurely cup of morning tea, hearing the birds chirp, gazing at the night sky and many more. If we live all the moments of life fully then it will be a life well lived. It is a string of beautiful moments that make our life momentous. If we do the small things right, the big things have a greater chance of happening. Or as we often say in my company Fidelity, if you take care of the pennies the pounds will take care of themselves.
At the same time, there is a counter point. While being happy in the present moment is important, there is a risk that we just float through life without making a difference. If one lives with the attitude of “here and now”, nothing wrong with that, however, no progress can ever be made if lived by that rule. Life is a great gift. Life is about being the best you can be and leaving a positive legacy. All of us have the opportunity to do something momentous with our lives, but it is easier said than done. It takes vision, effort and perseverance. It is not just going with the flow but keeping the bigger picture in mind. It is about having the courage to dream and to shape the future. Human race has progressed over civilizations because of momentous achievements of many. All of us have within us the seed of greatness and the opportunity to create lasting positive impact.
This dichotomy – is life momentary or momentous – became very real as we ended up discussing how we can contribute to positive change in India. On a side note, it is a sign of the times (I think a very positive one!!) that 6 intense professionals ended up spending a lot of time late in the night on a boys trip discussing how we can contribute towards creating a better India!! Our views on how we make a positive impact were very different. Some felt that we should be like a “jugnu” – a firefly – and spread light in our vicinity. In other words, lead a principled life, do the best we can and be a good example to others. There was a strong alternate view – the problems of India are so massive that we need significant system change. Just being a “jugnu” is wasted effort. It will not make a real difference. We need momentous change that requires great thought, massive mobilization and sustained action.
My two cents:
Life is full of contradictions – Ying and Yang, Good and Evil, Birth and Depth, Happiness and Sadness, and many more. There are so many dualities in life that co-exist and we have to find the golden mean across them. Similarly, life is both momentary and momentous and we have to live at both levels. We absolutely should live every moment fully as if that is the final moment we will live. Being in the present moment makes us happy and stress-free. However, while life is about being happy but it is also about making a positive difference. Life is momentous when one believes that one is not alone but a part of the whole. This view allows one to create not merely for one’s own consumption but for that of the others, for the future, for the world. This however, requires one to expand one’s consciousness, be detached from the outcome of one’s labor, for sometimes, the fruits may not even be visible in one’s own lifetime. We need to be “Karmayogis” – to seek a higher purpose, to be the best we can and to leave a lasting legacy.
The beauty is that Momentary and momentous need not be contradictory, they can not only co-exist but support each. As mentioned earlier, it is a string of beautiful moments that make our life momentous. Living life fully in the present moment creates intense, memorable experiences. These moments generate the energy, confidence and passion that can take us forward in life. Moreover, progress in life is often because of fortunate accidents. Living the moments fully creates more such opportunities. In addition, being in the present moment allows us to better spot and realize the opportunities that life offers us to move towards our higher purpose.
Going back to our earlier discussion on driving change in India, off course our country faces huge problems that need massive system change. However, the size and complexity of the problems are so daunting that they can lead to inaction. For most of us it is natural to think that how can one individual make any real impact and we end up not doing anything. That is where it is important to be a “jugnu”. If all of us can do the right thing and make some positive change around us, it will start moving the needle and could lead us to the tipping point where the system starts moving. At the same time we need to realize that this is not a deterministic equation of cause and effect, so we should not be disappointed if results are not immediate. However, we need to take positive action and to persist with it. Action, however small is much better than inaction.
Moral of the story – going for the momentous should not stop us from living the moments fully. At the same time living the moments should not mean that we lose sight of the momentous. It is about finding the right balance. Where we draw the line is a personal decision. I hope all of us find the right balance and have the good fortune where we live the moments of life fully and also realize the momentous in our lives!!
All the best!!
