The Miracle of the Bhagavad Gita. Interview with G.Narayana.

[Guest guest]

The Miracle of the Bhagavad Gita At the time of the interview, G. Narayana was the Executive Chairman of Excel Industries, Pvt. Ltd., India. Excel is a highly respected manufacturer of agrochemicals, industrial chemicals and pesticides. In recent years the company has received special recognition for its focus on developing environmentally friendly bio-pesticides and solid waste management as well as for its spiritual-based leadership. ”My concept of business is the harmony of ethics, energy, excellence, economy and ecology with effectiveness and efficiency that leads to enlightenment." - G Narayana as Chairman of Excel Industries G. Narayana told how, as a young man, after successfully leading a number of companies, he had also established a computer services company called Prism which specialized in information systems. “In Prism, we purchased a hard disk computer. I invested all of my savings in Prism and my friends invested 50% of the capital. Within six months of our purchasing the hard disk computer, the personal computers (PCs) came into the market. PCs were much less expensive and had much more capability. Our

then outdated system could not compete with PCs and the people whom we trained had many opportunities outside because of the IT boom. As a result, people started leaving Prism. Prism had yet to pay a considerable amount of loans and at this point, my ego started melting. I realized that it was not my greatness that made things successful at Voltas and New India (companies he had led earlier), it was the greatness of those organizations.” Experiencing fear, doubts and confusion, he went to his native village. “The situation at Prism was so critical that suicide became one of the alternatives,” he said. “But that alternative was not correct as our children were very young. While at my native place, we went to the Godavari River, and there was an old temple nearby. While my wife and I, my cousin, and his wife were in the waters of the Godavari, I asked my cousin if we could go to the temple and get a memento from the ruins of the old temple. He said, ‘Wait!

Something is touching me in the river!’ He reached down and brought out two Shivalingams (elliptical stones representing the cosmos and that are worshipped as the ‘form’ of Lord Shiva in the Hindu religion) attached to a common base. He gave them to me. The two lingams represented Kaleshwar (death) and Mukteshwar (liberation). The message was clear: Liberation from my death-like situation was in the offing! I thought it was a fantastic day.” “In the afternoon, my wife Sujana and I reached her parents’ home where my brother-in-law was reading a book. I asked him ‘What is that book?’ He showed it to me and it was the Gita Makarandam, which is a commentary on the Bhagavad Gita. Till that time, I had not read even the first three verses of the Gita and I did not know Sanskrit. I always thought, ‘What is the need for Gita, when one is working 14 hours a day? In 18 chapters Gita is teaching about karma yoga (the

spiritual practice of selfless work) and that’s what I am already doing!’ I was about to return the book to my brother-in-law; then I remembered the good omen of the Shivalingams in the morning. I thought this book, the Gita, was another blessing and I should not lose the opportunity. I opened the book at random and the following verse was present.” Narayana quotes from memory: “‘Whoever works with full dedication and offers everything to me, who works relentlessly, him, I will take out of the river of death and put him on the bank.’ This was the best guarantee I had ever heard,” he exclaimed. Narayana then took the book to his home and studied the Gita for 18 days. “Now, I had the Gita. Since the Guru (teacher) did not come, but only the book, with its commentaries on the Gita came, I took it to Baroda where I lived. The author was a well-respected swami, so I thought of him as my Guru and I did an

18-day Yoga (spiritual exercise) of studying the Gita. What I did then, I now call ‘Gita yoga’. I read one chapter every day, eating only one time a day, and completely avoiding alcohol, non-vegetarian food (which I was not taking anyway), tobacco … I observed silence while studying the Gita and I underlined whatever appeared wonderful, although everything looked wonderful in the Gita! I practised celibacy during all those 18 days.” “It was a fantastic experience. At the end of 18 days, I stood up and the world stood up along with me. I went back to the bank and assured them that I would pay back every rupee of the loan. I told my partners that I would pay back their investment. During those 18 days, new understandings flowed in my thought and consciousness. My fear was gone. My mind frames changed. Then I did Vipassana yoga (a special type of prolonged meditation) and it helped me to further develop my qualities.” “When I took responsibility with this new spirit, things started occurring that turned around my situation. With the new confidence and consciousness, solutions were shining and problems were dissolving. Then companies approached me and I became a management and turn-around advisor.” “In 1985 I got the Gita yoga and the rest all flowed from that. Before 1985 my wife and I were enemies. My children would not give me a birthday card; they would give to my wife, but not me. After 1985 everything changed with my family, it was the change in me, not in them. We now have a fantastic relationship.” G Narayana with his 'role model' in Puttaparthi Today spirituality permeates G. Narayana’s entire being. He says: “Spirituality is experiencing divinity in others and self. Spirituality is inspired responsibility towards people, other living beings, and the world… seeing and relating with divinity in every aspect. Being responsible is being divine. Self-improvement plus world service equals spirituality.” “Being aware of all, inside and outside, reaching the hearts of others through love, and becoming a model… this is what Divinity is – reaching the hearts of others. Jesus is this kind of model,

so is Buddha; and now, Sai Baba. They never hurt; they have done so much for society. They have reached our hearts. This is what I strive for in my own life and leadership.” Life has taught Narayana that man can be what he chooses to be. According to him, this freedom to choose opens the door of immense potential within each of us. “The first measure of success is the happiness of all stakeholders. The customers must be happy, the suppliers must be happy, employees must be happy, all must be happy. The Gita says, ‘If you do good work, you will get the returns, so do not worry about them.’ If you go for the returns, the work will not get done. You must do excellent work and not worry about your individual return.” In this connection Narayana says that his spiritual purpose is: “to return added value to the world; to be a being of love; to contribute, endeavour, excel, and assist others to excel.” “Whenever any

person comes to me, in each transaction I evaluate: ‘When he leaves from my office, has he become small or has he become tall?’ I measure. If he has become small, I will not let him go; I make him sit. Only when he becomes tall he can go. Only when he becomes happy he can go. I may fight with him for eight hours, but I keep at it until he is happy. Only a happy man can escape from me. And everyone can judge whether the man is happy or not.” While G. Narayana is a vivacious, outgoing spiritual-based leader always on the go, the next person you will meet is on all these counts the opposite; he is quiet, introverted, and contemplative; he even refers to himself as ‘a man of silence’. Yet, in spite of the fact that he never wanted to become a leader, he is today a modern karma yogi, leading four companies in

Argentina . Ram ChuganiKobe, Japanrgcjp

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