Old Posts: Faith Redefined

(24-01-07/st) A long time ago, in a distant galaxy, there was a small planet called earth. It was formed just as all the other celestial bodies in the universe had but quite like our planet, it had something special about it. Its uniqueness lied in the fact that it had just the right size, the right kind of elemental particles and the right distance from a star. A miracle was about to happen and that miracle was life itself. Life, a term that does not have a definition but refers to a body capable of, well, bodily functions on its own. Sounds strange and I hope you get what I am trying to tell.

Life on this planet began to evolve due to the well suited conditions and gave rise to a number of species and sub-species. All of this planet earth seemed to be teeming with life and the perfect harmony and balance between all life forms was achieved. Evolution does not stop anywhere; it is the only thing that goes on with time endlessly. It resulted in a creature that could stand up on two legs, had a brain unlike that of any other creature before and had a very powerful physical tool, the thumb. The brain of this creature was remarkable. It had the capability to think beyond instinct. It had almost endless potential. When this creature evolved further, henceforth referred to as "man", it made attempts to simplify the way of its life. It no longer lived in small groups but in large numbers. as it worked toward the earlier mentioned goal, the complexity surrounding these groups and everything associated with it grew. Almost as soon as man started living in groups, new forms of emotions developed in them. emotions such as greed, jealousy, lust and similar ones soon found a strong foothold in both the hearts and minds of men. Men could be made to do terrible things through the use of any of these. Man had started to trouble its own kind and almost every other found by it.

For people who were deeply affected, it was necessary to have someone or something to which they could look upto. It is always comforting to know that one has always a form of hope for the better with him. This feeling paved the way for concepts such as heroism and idolism. As time passed, these few heroes and icons were not forgotten but were passed on to the next generation in the form of legends and stories. Since there was no way to record events at that time, the only way to do that was by word of mouth. Almost all of these heroes and likes were of a local origin. This locality of origin led men of different descents and locales to try to ascertain theirs as the finest of heroes. Till man developed forms to record events that occurred, these heroes had grown from being just great men or inanimate objects, to being entities that possessed skills that could only be imagined of. Other such heroes continued to attain origin as time further ascended. All of this and a few wise men, who were certainly good willed, thought of using this to make mankind more peaceful and happy. They took all that could be taken and made one body of guidelines that was to be followed by all. Here too, man proved to be his enemy and instead of one, several such bodies emerged due to hunger for power and greed. All these bodies contained in them, mention of heroes and their likes as examples to be followed by the masses. This process went on endlessly, evolving itself and adapting to man's progress with time. The one thing that could be observed was that the number of such examples decreased as man advanced in technology and rationality. All examples that were believed to possess and to have possessed skills that could share no explanation, were from the period when there was either no or a very primitive form of record keeping.
No generation could see an entity regarded as powerful as the earlier ones originating near their timeline. This was strange and commanded some thought into but the earlier laid foundations of belief were so strong that people turned ignorant and others dared not to distance themselves from convention. The extent to which this framed body satisfied the masses was miraculous. Progress of science made man ask more and more questions and to this, adaptation of the body which later came to be called religion, was great. The most powerful and old entities came to be called gods. The term god meant an entity capable of everything thought possible and much more. A god would always stand for the truth and what was righteous. Such was the following of idolism that man turned oblivious to the fact that it was more than mere coincidence that all that a god is, is mere symbolism. Symbolism for the guidelines man should follow to lead a
harmonious life. As it was known, man could not control himself well. People started giving more importance to gods, deities and other such entities. Soon enough, it was these gods who defined religion and life practices rather than the main principles for which these gods were created in the first place. It became popular culture and somewhere in between, all that stood for the greater good got lost forever. It was so cleverly disguised and transformed by some men that many who came later followed blindly. This was once again an example of how man would harm his own kind for personal satisfaction. This practice went on for a long time and it became taboo to think otherwise.

People would get offended on hearing anything that stated something different than their religion. It was amazing how so many people got mislead by themselves. They were satisfied and happy with the world of beliefs they themselves had created. Man had created his creator. It was the ultimate example of how much potential the human brain had and yet at the same time showed how little of it was used by so many. When confronted with the question of providing proof, man would always point at something that had not been defined theoretically by science then. Mankind happily followed this practice and continued to endanger their own
existence. Wondrous oblivion.

It is so much that we already have in us that does not let us acknowledge that very fact, such is the irony. Is not it real to think that whom we see now as gods may, then, have been great people who gave the rest something to hold on to when all else failed? Is it not possible that gods are only the product of a great transformation of the portrayal of these few great people who brought hope, courage and above all, truth? Why is it then that we don’t hear of a god who came into origin only a few centuries ago? If religion says god wants us to help ourselves now, I surely  think there is an ominous feel to the answer, don’t you think so? I believe the real question is, will you dare to? If you think I am mistaken in my beliefs, a discussion is most welcome. The truth is that I hope there is a god but I don’t think so. Think about what I just said.

Old Posts: A Lot Happens Over Coffee

(28-01-07/st) I was sitting at a coffee shop with an old friend of mine. It had been long since we last met. It must have been around four pm but the weather outside was pretty cold. You could see a lot of young people sitting around cozying up to all the cushions and leather provided. Almost everyone inside had a cup of nice hot coffee to look to after a cold and rather dull day as far as meteorology is concerned. The sweet aroma of freshly ground Arabica beans was luring more and more people from outside and the murmurs were drawing quite loud after a while. As me and my friend started sipping our own coffee, our conversation became rather animated. Its amazing how wide a spectrum of topics appear once you are around a large number of people.

Every face we looked at seemed to be providing us with something interesting to converse upon. Daylight began to fade and it seemed we were the only people left who had entered a couple of hours ago. Aah, city life, people never have enough time for anything. I and my friend finally decided that we had no more time to waste and so should leave I was about to ask for the cheque when, out of the corner of my eye, I caught one of the most unusual sights ever. A light so bright shining into the store that it blinded me instantly. The aroma of coffee had been overshadowed by that of tender lilac and it felt as if I had been transported to another dimension. My heart stopped for a moment as if to admire for itself, the sight it had been presented with. Suddenly, my left eardrums detected some sort of vibrations and as soon as my brain realized it had a body to control, I could make out that it was my friend asking me if I was alright. I looked at him and almost instinctively turned to where I was looking at before. It was then that I saw her. She was the most beautiful girl I had ever seen. Every feature of hers drew enormous attention from me and all my senses seemed to be fixed at her. Even though I could see everything in the shop, all I could visualize was her. Somehow I made a part of my brain send my body signals that gave me the ability to say to my friend that I would like it if we sat for a bit longer. My friend agreed to my demand. As I set my gaze upon her once again, it felt as if all of heaven's fortunes had been passed onto me. I was out of my head and for me, it was a special feeling as the only other time I could have that was when I would indulge in a sport. My brain had, by now, started normalizing bringing my heart rate down and transferring power back to my senses. My friend could see that I was taking keen interest at admiring her. Soon enough, my friend put forth a rather simple but inquisitive sentence. I was saved for by that time I was so full of thoughts I wanted to share that I would have had a seizure. As I started to speak with my friend, it seemed there were no words I could use that would even have come closer to what I was feeling then. I soon figured out that I was not making any sense with my words and my good friend was amused at how unbecoming of me it seemed. All pragmatism I had stood for had gone out the window and I had a new dogma infused into me. The way she wore her hair, the posture she had as she sat on the sofa, the gentle but lively motions of her hands and the strikingly radiant glow on her face seemed as divine as that of Aphrodite herself if not more. It felt as if one lifetime would not be enough to describe her beauty and I was trying ever so hard to find my way through words and at each step, only feeling as if underestimating it. Only a quarter of an hour had passed since her arrival but I could already see myself spending a lifetime with her. My friend looked like he had had enough of my talk for a more than a couple of lifetimes. He started an attempt to resurrect the old me to get me out from the bag of delusional contentment that had a firm hold on me. I must say he had some success and we decided to get ourselves some more coffee. I

could not stop myself from talking about her and my friend had to give in. as our conversation grew longer, it became more and more meaningless. A sip at my newly ordered coffee restored some of the practicality that I stood for. I realized that she could walk out at any moment and all that magic could be lost forever. Where I come from, it is hard to make a girl let her talk to you. It would be easier to get a lion to jump a rope than the former. There is a strange shell that envelops all these fine creations of the lord and if you get close enough, you will see these words clearly etched on "narrow minded". As soon as this thought crosses your mind, you are inevitably drawn into a discussion on the same. My friend seemed to have some peculiar thoughts on it. This discussion consumed us so much that we did not realize how late in the evening it had become. Only when my friend received a call from her mother, did we realize it was almost half past eight. The intensity of thoughts the sight of this girl had aroused in me had made me ignore her presence for a significant period of time. I turned quickly to where she was sitting before and to my horror, I saw an empty couch. I turned frantically to every corner of the shop and found that she had changed her seat to one where I could not always keep an eye on. I asked my friend to do that for me as a similar episode was almost apparent. It was now that I decided to not let the "shell theory" that we were discussing, get the best of me. I tried to muster up the courage to walk up to her and to try to brew a conversation. I knew that if I could get her to give me her phone number, I would live.

There was no lack of motivation from my friend and for a moment, I thought nothing could go wrong. A whiff of air as I stood up and the whole of earth trembled with each step of mine. Walking as though I was a titan towards her and suddenly something struck me. Strike me hard it did, and it was no other than reality itself. With a loud whoosh, the balloon of confidence around me deflated and I was reduced to a mere mortal. A mortal who had fear rooted deep into him. Embarrassingly enough, I made my way back to my seat and my dear old friend could not help the grin on his face. I tried to look sure of what I was doing but the color, which was rather red, on my face gave me away. Strangely but thankfully enough, my ego decided to stay down for a while and let whatever part of me that made any sense, come out. By now, it had been so many times that I had looked at her that she glanced back and then it happened. I was looking straight at her and her, at me. It seemed like a lifetime to me but my friend had to mention that it went on for about two seconds. I was sure I would kill somebody then and we know who. As I was trying to find a way to start a conversation with her in my head, my friend told me that she had laid her eyes upon me at least twice during that short while. With a deep sigh, I looked straight at my friend and I said to him that it had to be at that very moment itself. I said that the moment for me to deliver had come and that if I didn’t do it, I would forever feel sorry. A hand was placed on my shoulder by my friend then and it seemed to be the best gesture ever. I took my cup of coffee in my hands and emptied its final contents, as if it were a chalice of will, into me. At that moment, it seemed I needed nothing more to get through this troubling test of a time. There I was back to old glory and I got up from my seat. I could not find her. The realm of darkness had arrived. All that stood for and by the lord, vanished. Heaven was no more and so was I. I had been betrayed by time itself. There was no more I could do. It felt as if there was no more air to breathe. A lifetime of guilt, it seemed, was destined for me. My friend tried hard to make me feel better and nothing seemed to be working. We got some more coffee for us thinking it would be of help. I looked apathetic and that was scary to my friend. My friend took a good long sip at the coffee and then she spoke. She spoke, what seemed then to be, the most enlightening of words one comes across in a lifetime. She said “this is exactly what happened the last time we were here and I’m sure it'll happen again". I am over with that little incident now but there is a fact that goes with me. I will definitely face the same situation again and I cannot help but fare the same. Anyone had a deja vu yet? If you have ever been in such troubling and at the same time, funny times, let me know. Advice on better self control the next time it happens and on how to really walk up to a stranger and start conversation is really needed.

Old Posts: Somewhat of a Reminiscence

Crisp morning sunshine is not what usually wakes Mr. X every day. A mixture of hurried words, which is rather multilingual, uttered by none other than his almighty mother made up for it though. Every chore was meticulously dealt with and an innate tediousness made sure he would be late for departure. Mr. X took great interest in preening himself and made sure he looked his part no matter where. what he was to encounter after he left the safe enclosure he called home made him leave no stone unturned to make sure his persona was at its elegant best. Away he went, to the great land of enlightenment and where he would attain all that is necessary to be known as a sagacious life form. That land was known as college. A land where dictatorship was at its reformative best and where aliens interacted freely and supposedly, more often than not, benevolently. Three and a half long years had passed since Mr. X began his quest for the titanic archetype that all of mankind craved for. In simple words, three and a half years had passed since he had enrolled for college. The enlightenment business, as far as academics is concerned, was not going as intended. The other things that kept him busy were of primordial importance to him.

After Mr. X traversed the distance from his home to college, he dashed towards the hall where he was to attend the first lecture for the day. The professor could not help but ask him the reason for his absence since the beginning of the lecture. Coming up with an excuse for every working day in a week requires a plethora of talent. Our Mr. x was pretty good at creativity and ensured that the whole class had a good laugh with his answer. This, in fact, was the exact reason why every professor that Mr. x studied under, made it sure to ask him every day though they were perfectly sane. For as long as he was inside the lecture hall, time seemed to have come to a crawl. By the time class got over, Mr. X became stoic. As the professor walked out, more of humanity appeared. Mr. X met and shook hands with his classmates. It was all a part of the persona. First signs of a smile since he woke up appeared as a friend of Mr. X walked towards him. As a conversation began, the smile got bigger. Since waking up, Mr. X was now the happiest. The best time he had was when he was with his dear ones. College had given him a lot. He had found a group of people he felt very comfortable with. This was by far the best thing he had obtained from college.

All the time spent in college by Mr. X hade made him learn a lot of things. Everything he could use from that, he took and infused it into his persona. It was a never ending and adaptive process that could be very harsh at times. More often than not, Mr. x found himself hurt to an irreparable extent.

It hade made him thick skinned. It would not matter much now if someone hurt him after all that time in college. When I say hurt, it is pertaining to the mental state of it.

While still conversing with his friend, Mr. X realized it was time for the next lecture. He decided not to attend as it was next to impossible for him to let go of that feeling he got while with his friends. Mr. X and his friend walked off to the nearest concourse where they could find the rest of their friends. They were only a handful but each one special. They formed a coterie that always stayed together and was very hesitant to let anyone in as it had taken painstakingly large amounts of resources to form a circle of trust that had each one of them in it. Everything seemed perfect to Mr. Now. A decision was almost unanimously arrived upon to not attend any more lectures for the day as it had been long since the group had done that. So they moved towards the college canteen to try to find a place where they could decide what they could do and other similar interests.

Now, just a little more than a year later, Mr. X sits in his chair thinking of all that went by and often gets lost in the process. Some of the best things he has are still the ones he took from this short journey he undertook and surprisingly, the last few steps turned out to be better than he would have imagined.

Since then, life had taken its usual course and a few somewhat unpredictable and tortuous routes. Things had been somewhat of an emotional concoction of sorts. The important thing was that life was now better. Still pondering over these thoughts, Mr. X heard a voice from behind, calling for him. It was his dad and he said, "are you going to stop staring blankly into the night and join us for dinner?” Almost instinctively, Mr. x said, "Why yes", and made a beeline towards the dining table.

Functional Literacy: A new lens

(A word to the readers - this article has nothing to do with cycling but is something that everybody can think on)

A Background

Socialization, for humans, begins as early as when the brain begins to recognize faces. Consumer socialization soon follows suit; taking cornflakes out of a particular box every morning for breakfast, putting shoes, with three stripes across its face, on your toddler’s feet every morning etc are some of the simple and often considered trivial aspects that go a long way in shaping how an individual behaves as a consumer.

Every step that we observe and interpret serves to make our lives easier. This is mostly done through “Heuristics”, mental shortcuts that aid us when presented with a situation. When we look at a chair, we know what it is, we know of its uses, how it’s made, etc only because we have seen and heard of it earlier. This is how the human brain is wired to work and also the reason why an individual blind from birth will not be able to interpret visuals he receives from new found sight.

Heuristics is what makes the concept of “Functional Literacy” worth a pretty good look at. While Literacy may be easy to define, that of Functional Literacy would vary on a large number of factors and of course, a few imaginative minds. To simplify things here, Functional Literacy in a typical consumer environment would mean the basic skills required to be able to read product labels that differentiate offerings, the ease with which an individual navigates around in a shop complex, being able to calculate value of units rather than the pack size, totaling costs of purchased items etc. Having had an “Education”, if effective, would resolve any conflict mental heuristics has with cognitive rational processes. This means that an individual would then be able to create more complex but better decision processes  

How important can this term be for us?

We have more than 12% of the world’s consumers and approximately 70% of those reside in rural areas. In rural India, the total income has doubled from what it was in 2004-05 growing at a CAGR of 12%. Urbanization is rising rapidly. FDI norms on multi brand retail, albeit some riders, is on the verge of being opened up. The bottom-line is that soon, a large number of people will have access to large format retail outlets and hence, it would be safe to assume that a large number of customers who visit these stores could be “low” on functional literacy; this is not to say that such customers are not present today but the importance of this segment will rise manifold.

The Big Deal

Research has shown that people “low” on Functional Literacy tend to behave differently than individuals not “low” on this aspect. The behavior displayed by such individuals can be broken down and analyzed. This will benefit such consumers by bringing them into the mainstream and help organizations make a “mark” for themselves when competition skyrockets. The sad part is that almost all such studies have been conducted outside India. Knowing how we are, it would be naïve to assume that the same outcomes would hold true here as well.

From Cognitive Predilections to Trade-Off models, from Decision Heuristics to Coping Strategies for certain situations, all of these present immense opportunities. Eventually, the outcome of such consumer research would lead to the crafting of better products and service environments. It would lead to the creation of “seamless” thought and physical processes that empower all entities involved.

If we can successfully understand the “consumer” and the level of “integration” required to ensure a low turbulence shift of such consumers to the mainstream, the resulting Insights will truly be winning.