It was a story I heard almost 27 years ago that started a journey for me that has been both meaningful and enjoyable. I was at an industrial program of Initiatives of Change (IofC) in Panchgani where a senior manager from Tata Motors shared an incident with a worker who had been introduced by IofC to the concept of being guided by the inner voice in times of silence.

The worker came up to the manager and said he was extremely happy. He said he had done something that day which he had never done before. The manager shared that it was normal for workers to get innovative on the shop floor and feel excited. On enquiring, the manager was completely surprised with the reply he got. The worker said that for 25 years his wife would wake up a 6 am in the morning and walk for 30 minutes to get water for the house. He said that in his quiet time he had a clear thought that he needs to start sharing that responsibility. So that day, he woke up at 6 am to get water for the house and was feeling extremely happy.

The story did not end there. The manager went on to say that from that day onwards, the worker’s productivity on his machine improved. Sitting in the audience, I remember thinking to myself – ‘as crazy as it may sound, it seems to be true; a man wakes up at 6 in the morning to get water for the house, and the net profit of Tata Motors goes up !’ It started my journey to understand and experience this magic.

The answer to what we need to do lies within us. Learning to listen and walking that path unleashes a power we could never have imagined. We start unraveling a dimension that we cannot always intellectually comprehend but need to personally experience. And as we discover things about ourselves, we magically start finding simple answers to what seemed like complex and sometimes impossible issues.

Even the best captain, no matter how intelligent and skilful needs a compass. The inner compass sets us on a path that builds bonds of love and joy with almost everyone around us. We start experiencing the very same people and things so differently, and life starts feeling magically effortless and enjoyable, in spite of the ups and downs.

But this is a journey we need to take alone to find out for ourselves how it can change our life. This alone journey does not take us away from people, in fact, it helps us connect better because we feel more connected with ourselves. We often marvel at the wonders we see around us in the world; this journey exposes us to the magic that lies within.

(Picture – IofC Centre, Panchgani)