Swami Ishatmananda

Today a very important topic, Business Ethics, will be discussed by the Swamiji, the principal of a MBA College was introducing me to the final year MBA students. He concluded with the remark, Morality has eroded in every sphere of life. Business, commerce and trade are also affected. Hence, we have invited Swamiji to enlighten us all on Business Ethics. I was about to recite, as is my wont, a Vedic mantra before the talk, a student stood up and said, Swamiji, please tell us specifically about morality. Something is immoral for somebody but perfectly moral for many others. What is morality? Is it a list of dos and donts? I shall answer your question by asking you two questions, I said. A man killed another person and robbed his money Is this moral? All the two hundred or so students shouted, no, immoral. I asked again, a soldier in a battlefield, killed ten enemy soldiers is this moral? Again thundering reply, yes, moral. All students were happy, as if they were successful in answering the quiz contest. Then I asked again both of them killed, the man who robbed and killed only one person and the soldier killed ten persons. Both were acts of cruelty. Then why did you say killing one person is immoral and killing ten others is moral? There was perfect silence. It was a conundrum for them and I was enjoying their predicament, when, a young lady stood up and said, the first one killed to rob, so, immoral, and the second to protect his country and to perform his duty, hence, moral. It seems that the sense of morality is prevailing in the human society from the beginning itself. When human being started living together forming groups or society, it became obvious to maintain some code of conducts which slowly developed as a concept of morality. Many of the moral codes followed by different human societies at

Is This Moral?

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different places are found to be similar. It may be because of the essential identity of human nature. I have noticed wonderful values in the aborigines of Andaman Islands. When I was in Andaman, Jarwas, one of the groups of the aborigines who ferociously resisted interference from so called modern people through centuries, started giving the sing of friendship. Once or twice while passing through Jarwa inhabited areas, I saw a few of them from distance. The innocent faces of their children with bright intelligent eyes urged me to do something for them. I talked with the then Lt. Governor of Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Sri I P Guptaji, a broadminded administrator, and he appreciated my plan of starting a Jungle School for Jarwa children. Before approaching for formal approval from our headquarters, Belur Math, I wanted to gather different information and data. Sri I P Guptaji arranged my visit inside the jungle of Jarwas with Bush - police. Bush - police knew the best timing for visiting the Jarwas. They preferred to take me at a time when male folk were away for hunting and collecting foods. There were old ladies, one or two very old male and children from toddler to 14/15 years old. In the beginning they were skeptical about us and were hiding behind the bushes. We took some very attractive gifts for them coconuts, ripe banana, red color cloths and mirrors. The moment they saw the gifts, they came running to me. A little girl of 5/6 years old took the fancy to come near me. Her name, as it sounded to my ear, was Moo and I called her Black Moon. She first smelled my hand then hold my hand in her two little hands and rubbed her chubby cheeks. An elderly police constable explained that she was trying to tell me that she liked me and wanted to be my friend. She started using my hand as a swing and was having great fun. In the meantime policemen started distributing the gifts and all the children thronged near the jeep. I signed her to go and collect her share. She intently looked at me, as if were trying to read my lips. Then suddenly ran towards the jeep, touched few coconuts, bananas etc. and came back again to swing.

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I tried to convince her that if she left her things like that others may take those away but she paid no heed to me. Afterwards I noticed a wonderful thing when one Jarwa child was touching any item that was becoming his or her. Those who did not get did not quarrel or tried to take away others goods. Were they not moral? One act which is considered as immoral and unethical may become moral in a different situation, particularly when it is done for the benefit of others. Telling lies is always considered as immoral act but in the battlefield of Kurukshetra when Acharya Drona were killing the supporters of Pandavas in hundreds, it was Bhagawan Sri Krishna himself urged the truthful Yudhisthira to tell a lie to stop the fury of Acharya Drona to save the lives of many. A unique incident from the life of Sri Ramakrishna Ma Sarada may be cited here. Kaviraj Ganga Prasad Sen of Kumartoli, Kolkata asked the Master to give up water altogether. Ma Sarada Devi gave him plenty of milk daily and increased the quantity gradually without his being aware of it. One day Sri Ramakrishna asked her, How much milk is this? Mother gave prevaricate answer. Afterwards she explained, A white lie for feeding one is nothing bad in it Swami Ranganathanandaji Maharaj in a conversation was asked whether the holy men tell lies. To the surprise of all he in his characteristic reserved way said, Yes, and there was a commotion in the Auditorium. Revered Maharaj raised his right hand to calm them down and said a story There was a holy man who was known for his truthfulness. One evening when the holy man was sitting alone by the side of a road, a man came running to him gasping and panting. Swamiji, I am being chased by some cruel men who want to kill me for my money said the man. Swamiji looked at him but did not break his silence. The man ran to the left. After a few moments a group of ferocious looking people with dagger in hands came to the same holy man and asked,

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Did you see a man passed through this road? The holy man nodded his head in affirmation. Which way has he gone, they asked. The holy man pointed to the right which was untruth and dacoits followed that road. Swami Ranganathanandaji then asked the audience, In that situation whether the holy man practiced truth by telling untruth or not? The whole audience filled with clapping. Volumes have been written on morality and thousands of words have been used to explain it, still people are confused about the definition of morality. Once a young lady approached me with a request to admit her son, a boy of hardly 6 years, in our destitute home. When I enquired about the father of the boy, she said that he had left the island. In Andaman, though unfortunate, there are many cases of family desertion by the male folk who go to Islands to try their luck. I admitted the boy in our home and she left with a promise to visit her son at least once in a month. She kept her promise and visited our home frequently. After a few months she came along with a man of South Indian origin. She asked me to note the name of the man as the father of her son. Months passed, almost after a year or so she came again with another gentleman of local origin and wanted to put his name as the father of her son instead of the previous one. I did not say anything but from my face perhaps she could understand that I did not like her behaviour. One afternoon she came alone and wanted to touch my feet which I did not allow and perhaps showed roughness by asking her to seat in the varanda. She went out of my office room and sat on the floor of the varanda and burst into tears. I do not know why, but I did not feel any sympathy for her.

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I know why you hate me. I know a holy man like you can not tolerate a characterless woman. Please allow me to tell you a few words about my life. She then related her tale of woe. I have lost my mother immediately after my birth and grew under the care of my stepmother. My father died when I was 10/11 years old. We had a land for cultivation but no male folk to do that. One day when I returned from school, my stepmother told, get ready for marriage, and I saw a Hindi speaking labor, three times older than me sitting in the corner of our room. I was forced to marry him. That man of course was not bad and never misbehaved with me, only stopped my going to school. After a year or so, he had a fight with my mother over the share of the grain and he left our house. My mother allowed me to go to school again but only to stop after a few months when she found another labour for her agriculture. I had to obey her decision and this man continued for eight years and became the father of my son. Then again one morning I heard that he has left. By this time I became matured enough to understand that my stepmother was using me as a bait to get a labor for her land. Third time when she arranged another person, I secretly left home without knowing where to go. On board, I met a lady who informed me about you and your Ashrama and advised me to leave my son with you and join a stone factory as a daily labour. Swamiji, you are a holy man, you know many things but do not know the suffering of a woman without moorings. Just for the survival I had to marry the first person who was a driver and now for the same reason has taken the shelter of this gentleman. But swamiji, I promise that I will bring an end to my life when my son becomes 18 years old and become able to look after himself. Believe me Swamiji. Through her sobbing, she asked me a question Swamiji, am I immoral? I could not answer her question. Can you, readers? ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------This article was published in Prabuddha Bharata, 2008, Vol 113, No 4, pp. 235-237. Accessed at: http://www.advaitaashrama.org/pbarchive

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