King Vikramaditya stood on the roof of his Palace and looked ahead into the horizon. The rain clouds were departing and a fresh breeze was blowing clearing the clouds away. The evening twilight was fading into the dark night and the Moon's light was breaking out of the clouds lap to hide the carpet of stars. The King took a sigh even amongst his deep thoughts. His coffers and grain stocks were full and all was well.
The days rolled by and months passed by into a year. The Sun was refusing to reduce its intensity and the land had started parching. There was no trace of the clouds return. The evening breeze was dull and Vikramaditya stared hard into the horizon. The drought had set in and the just King opened his coffers and granaries for the needy people. The drought had no intentions to leave and the Kingdom began its depletion cycle. The revenues started falling and the population began to feel the pains of dwindling. The King had a *Dharma Sankat* at his hand.
One day, even as the drought kept squeezing the Kingdom, a Priest arrived into the Durbar of the King. He had an offer to make. The King listened to him intently. The Priest's offer was compelling and yet compounded with difficulties. The *Dharam Sankat* was staring into the King's eyes and he thought hard for his inner calling. He lifted his tall, well built frame, climbed his favorite Horse and leapt out of his Palace to begin a journey to fulfill the Priest's wish. The *Dharma Sankat* was too daunting for Vikramaditya not to take the decision to look out for the *Baital* (The Ghost). The King had to bring *Baital* to the Priest and the Priest had promised to bring in the rain clouds! The game of a lifetime had begun with no clear path.
Vikramaditya's journey was fraught with dangers enroute. He was determined to get his Kingdom out of the penury situation and would do all that he could to regain the grounds. He braved the travails of the journey and arrived where *Baital* (The Ghost) was hanging upside down on a tree inside a crematorium.
Vikramaditya commanded *Baital* to come down and accompany him. The Ghost listened to his narrative and agreed to accompany the King! But, he set forth two conditions for the journey back to the Kingdom:-
A) The Ghost would tell a story and the King would have to answer if he knew the answer. On answering, the Ghost would re-inhabit the tree.
B) If the King does not answer the question of the Story, then his head will be broken into pieces!
The King and his *Dharma Sankat* had no choice but to accept the conditions laid out by the wily *Baital*.
However wily the *Baital* was , but the *Dharma Sankat* bound King had no clue about the trick being played by the Priest who had promised to finish the Ghost and return Kingdom's prosperity.
The story goes that after 25 story attempts, the *Baital* accompanied the King back to the Kingdom. Along the way, he guided the King about the Priest's actual intentions and revealed his identity as a sorcerer. King was a possessor of 32 virtues and Sorcerer had intended to sacrifice the King alongwith *Baital* to give him control over King and *Baital* kinds.
The King gets the better of the Sorcerer and sanity of his Kingdom remains.
The tales of King and *Baital* are 25 in number. These tales have a method which can be used to teach Management. Each of life's vagaries is actually a problem seeking to be solved. The solution only proves that the leader is capable of leading and the one who can take a call in the face of any adversity. The ethos of training is to transform *Boys into Men*.
At each stage of life, we find *Baital* who are hanging upside down with a topsy-turvy view of things. They question everything and provoke for a (angry) response. This is where knowledge coupled with multiple leadership traits comes to the forefront. The King has to come to the Ghost and not vice versa.
The action field is like a crematorium where the King comes to fetch the *Baital*. It is not a mere ritual. It demands discipline of every kind. Only those who succeed to take *Baital* out of the crematorium are able to build the Kingdom. After all, no King is permanent but a Sorcerer and *Baital* do remain pervasive for every King.
The King is always given a common advise- *Do not think too much*! There is a fear of chaos. This is unfortunate as such advise has the inherent ability to turn counterproductive as time moves. This is where King Vikramaditya shows the path - *Dharam Sankat* is all pervasive, will remain, create VUCA environment and demands a call to act. Only action kindles self-esteem in one self and ability. This in turn helps all related dimensions of human existence.
Salute everyone as who knows who is the proverbial *Baital* who can ask the question to create the King Vikramaditya. Afterall, it is the Vikramaditya who will overcome the Sorcerer and maintain the balance to move out of *Dharma Sankat* (The Crisis).
No comments:
Post a Comment