Knowledge is Power !

Greetings !

With an exponential surge in the technological advancements over the last decade, access to information has taken a shift from the libraries to smart phone. Is this a welcome change? A poll conducted in the heart of Chennai city revealed that most of them were in favour of this change.

Phew ! The transformation from Thesaurus to Google wasn't overnight. The sanctity of the information along with the retention of core essence in delivering the information was definitely a challenge. As we embraced these changes, we also witnessed the metamorphosis of a mobile handset from the black & white model with a keypad to a smarter upgrade. Through these changes, there was something that remained 'constant' - learning. We learnt to adapt to all these changes - something which we are proud of. Learning has always been an important trait in us - be it through a formal session or through an experience. Once the information is learnt, it becomes 'Knowledge'

The importance of knowledge has often been highlighted in our ancient scriptures. The below verse in Sanskrit etched on the Pallava cult in Kanchipuram which further goes on to accentuate the importance of knowledge with respect to the characterization of a person

स्वगृहे पूज्यते मूर्खः स्वग्रामे पूज्यते प्रभुः ।

स्वदेशे पूज्यते राजा विद्वान् सर्वत्र पूज्यते ॥

The above verse translates as :

Although a person is foolish, he is still adored in his own home. The leader of a small group / council (village) is looked up to by the whole surrounding. A king commands respect from the entire nation.

The above 3 persons are valued only within their own boundaries. But, a learned person is respected and honoured universally ! His glory and munificence is beyond boundaries.

Such is the power of learning - the feeder for knowledge and wisdom.

Have we reached the highest level of knowledge? Did the technological advancements help each one of us to reach this zenith? I leave this unanswered for the readers to reflect on themselves !

Let's shift from the Pallava cult to Northern part of China. It's definitely not the first time we hear of this relationship ! Thanks to Bodhidharma - the Pallava king with immense knowledge in medicine and mixed martial arts. He went on to light this lamp of knowledge with the Chinese people for the overall benefit of humanity. With all due respects to this King & Learned Master (विद्वान् सर्वत्र पूज्यते), we will explore the importance of learning together !

A master set out to the forest with his twelve disciples to teach them on "Spiritual Enlightenment"

One curious disciple from the pack asked the master, "Master, everyone says that to find the spiritual connect one has to venture alone. If it's true, why a dozen of us have gathered here to learn about spiritual enlightenment?". The Master had a wry smile on his face and patted his disciple on his shoulder. The Master replied, "A tree in forest is always stronger than a lone tree. Varied trees and plants grow in the forest thereby helping each other in making their roots stronger and more deep". Similarly, this process of learning and helping each other would make us stronger in terms of understanding and realization.

So, one should set out a path for learning and when the learning is shared with others, it promotes different views and in the process, be a better person (i.e.) knowledgeable person !

Share the 'Known' with others and break all the 'Ledges' in the process. "Learn something today so that the knowledge helps you to earn something for tomorrow"