8/3/2019 Indian Ethos for Management Means the Application of
Principles of Management as Revealed in Our Ancient Wisdom Brought
Forth in Our Sacred Books Like
1/3
Indian ethos for management means the application of principles
of management as revealed in our ancient
wisdom brought forth in our sacred books like our Gita,
Upanishads, Bible and Kuran.
There are 6 basic principles, which come to light in the holy
books applicable in todays management world. They
are :
1. Each soul is a potential God2. Holistic approach3. Equal
importance to Subjectivity/Objectivity4. Karma yoga5. Yogah Karmasu
Kaushalam6. Co-operation
Each Soul is a potential God
A human being has a soul, a spark of the Divine. The divine
resides in the heart of a person. The Divine means
perfection in knowledge, wisdom and power. Therefore a human
being has immense potential power or energy for
self development. Thus human efforts can achieve even an
apparently impossible goal and convert the impossible
into a reality. The partnership of God and Man can bring about
extraordinary or miraculous results; only if man
chooses willingly to collaborate with God and actively
participates in the affairs of the society by right action
under
his guidance and grace. He can bring about not only personal
development, harmony, happiness but also
prosperity of his own organization and the society without
injustice to others.Of course here, also, God helps those who help
themselves.
Holistic Approach
Holistic approach in Managementis based on spiritual principle
of unity, oneness, non-dual or Advaita concept.
Under this principle of unity, the universe in an undivided
whole where each and every particle is connected with
every other particle. Thus, entire Humanity is ONE.
Such an integrated human personality of self-developed manager
and worker can assure best and competent
management of any enterprise, involving collective works and
efforts. It will achieve perfection or excellence in
whatever sector you work. This is the ideal of Indian ethos :
Atmano Mokshartham Jagat Hitya Cha.(For gaining
perfection in individual life, as well as for the welfare of the
world.). This is the message for all managers and
workers given by the Indian ethos for management.
Equal Importance to Subjectivity / Objectivity
Indian ethos for management distinguishes between subject and
object. Subject is subtle and intangible. Object is
concrete and tangible or visible.
We have the concept of the third eye, the eye of wisdom. It can
see even that which the normal two eyes cannot.
It can see the intangible i.e. invisible.
Human and ethical values or qualities such as courage, vision,
social awareness, fearlessness, integrity, pure and
clear mind, truth, etc. are subjective, subtle and intangible
concepts. These subjective or subtle qualities are as
important as money, materials, machines, information or data as
well as human skills. Inner resources of human
beings are more powerful than external resources.
Creator is subjective. Creation is objective. Insight i.e.,
creator is more important thanOutsight i.e., creation. Our
body, senses, intellect, mind,etc., are objective, seen,
tangible. But our soul atman is unseen, intangible, subtlest
and subjective. Hence, wisdom manager/ worker is much more
important and valuable than knowledge manager/
worker.
Therefore, manager must develop his third eye, Jnana Chakhu ,
the eye of Vision intution, insight, foresight and
such other divine qualities or values. This is the essence of
Indian ethos for management.
Karma Yoga
It is yoga of selfless service to others. Karma Yoga is all
about identifying your priorities and trying to achieve
them. Also, a person should have accountability i.e. he should
always hold only himself responsible for whatever
goes right or wrong. This brings about the union of human being
with the Divine.
Gita says that do your duty without ego and without calculations
of gain or loss. One should believe in Nishkama
Karma i.e. fruits of work should not be thought of while
performing the duty.
The memorable words of Gita are To work only you have the right
and you have no right to the fruits of work.
However, this does not mean that one should work day and night
and the returns that he gets should be almost
negligible. What the Gita tries to say is that let not the
fruits of action motivate you as they might just divert your
attention from work. When you are doing a job, put your heart
and soul in to it. One has no control over the future
hence never waste your present in useless dreams of future hopes
and fears of present actions.
Why Do I Work?
8/3/2019 Indian Ethos for Management Means the Application of
Principles of Management as Revealed in Our Ancient Wisdom Brought
Forth in Our Sacred Books Like
2/3
1. For my own salvation and personal growth.2. For the good of
the world.
The inner joy of doing something gives the doer a sense of
achievement and also helps him in respecting himself
more than he used to. Money is important but running behind
money all the time leads to tension, stress and total
loss of peace. Self-motivation can assure self-development. When
work is performed without passion, hatred,
arrogance and desire we have individual development and social
good.
Indians always had two great truths of successful, harmonious
and happy life:
1. Divinity of life can be used through self-development for
personal growth and also for social welfare.2. I cannot cheat you
and nature without cheating myself. Working for harmony and peace
results in a sense
of fulfillment.
It is becoming clear that a chapter, which had a Western
beginning in business management, will have to have an
Indian ending. Karma Yoga is not just meant for the common man
but also for leaders and managers who if act
responsibly will in turn influence the behavior of a number of
people.
Karma Yoga thus is a good pathway for:
1. Self-purification and Self-development.2. Individual growth
and welfare.3. Collective growth and welfare.4. Minimum play of
passion, jealousy, hatred.5. Team spirit and Teamwork.6. Autonomous
management, minimum control and supervision.7. Manager acts as a
Mentor.8. Self-motivation.9. Perfection.10. All round happiness and
prosperity.11. Skills and values united.12. Conflicts resolved by
integration.
Yogah Karmasu Kaushalam
Yoga means excellence at work. Seek to perform your assigned
duty or work in an excellent manner. Kaushalam
denotes doing work with devotion and without attachment i.e.
without being a work-a-holic. Such detatched
attitude enhances its values and improves the concentration and
skill of the worker. You work with smartness,
determination and ability. Your head, heart and soul co-operate
with your hands. You do not hanker over the fruits
of action. You have no anticipation of reward, or personal gain.
You become a tool of God to perform the work. Any
work carried out with full concentration, dedication and with
all abilities that a person has, becomes valuable and
the person also becomes valuable to others as well as to
society. In total quality management(TQM) Karma Yoga
and Yogah Karmasu Kaushalam provide valuable contributions.
Under this slogan we have one hundred percen
concentraion coming from within. The extrinsic incentives e.g.,
money, other perks, etc. play a very minor role as
motivators.
Co-Operation
Healthy competition is a powerful motivator for excellence and
success, especially business success. The idea of
cut-throat competetion is founded on the concept of struggle for
existence and survival of the fittest.
Indian ethos says that for human beings the royal road is
co-operation as a powerful motive for team work. We are
human beings having mind and power of discrimination.
The Gita says : By co operation and mutual help all shall
achieve the highest human welfare. Unity is strength.
Even in the holistic approach, we stress the co-operation
integration, synthesis and team spirit for extraordinary
performance, for enduring harmony and peace, because in our
hearts chamber is living the pure conciousness of
the Divine, i.e., Purnatman. Peaceful co-excistence, harmony,
not struggle is the rule. Indian insight endorses this
in the management of any enterprise.
Excessive competetion at work can destroy many young people and
our social life. Co-operation, united efforts and
striving for success leads to all round prosperity and success
leads to all round prosperity and success in any field
of human enterprise.
Features of Indian Ethos and Insight
