Report of Lectures on 'Transformational Leadership of Mahatma Gandhi and its Relevance in Jakarta and Bali, Indonesia

Transcription

1 Report of Lectures on 'Transformational Leadership of Mahatma Gandhi and its Relevance in Jakarta and Bali, Indonesia Universal Peace, Truth & Non-Violence By Shobhana Radhakrishna (Chief Functionary, Gandhian Forum for Ethical Corporate Governance, SCOPE, India) 10 th August to 21 st August 2017

2 Hosted by: 10 th August 2017:- University of Paramadina, Jakarta, Indonesia 12 th August 2017:- Jawaharlal Nehru Indian Cultural Centre, Embassy of India, Jakarta 15 th August 2017:- University of Indonesia, Jakarta, Indonesia 16 th August 2017:- University of Ngurah Rai, Bali, Indonesia 16 th August 2017:- Gandhi Ashrampuri, Bali, Indonesia 18 th August 2017:- STAHN Mpu Kuturan, Singaraja, Indonesia 21 st August 2017:- Gandhi Memorial International School, Jakarta, Indonesia Supported by: Jawaharlal Nehru Indian Cultural Centre, Embassy of India, Jakarta Consulate General of India, Bali Gandhian Forum for Ethical Corporate Governance, SCOPE, New Delhi Ship for World Youth Alumni Association-India (SWYAA-India) Ship for Southeast Asian Youth Programme (SSEAYP) International Indonesia 2

3 About the Speaker: Smt. Shobhana Radhakrishna Shobhana Radhakrishna s cherished aim is to reintroduce Mahatma Gandhi to the people of India as well those abroad. Mahatma Gandhi s thought and principles can guide the people as it has the strength to inspire and bring about change. Imbibing Gandhiji s values as she grew up in his ashram (settlement) in Sevagram in Wardha, Shobhana s focal point is the Gandhian way of life and serving humanity. She believes that the Mahatma inspired many and gave strength to bring about change. In an era where the moral compass is being compromised in the name of progress and pragmatism, her lectures and training programs have highlighted the relevance of ethics and values, as well as the great heights one can achieve with Mahatma Gandhi serving as the role model for transformational leadership, sustainable development and lessons of personal growth. Her lecture on Mahatma Gandhi and its relevance attempts to provide some principles, ideas and alternatives that can help us in our personal quest for greater substance and also help address the pressing social and ecological challenges of our times. These lessons gleaned from Mahatma Gandhi s life, offer us invaluable advice on leading an enlightened life-a more meaningful, self-aware, socially responsible and saner life. She is the Chief Functionary of the Gandhian Forum for Ethical Corporate Governance formed by the Standing Conference of Public Enterprises (SCOPE) New Delhi for promoting ethical business practices, organizational integrity in Public Sector Enterprises (PSEs) of the Government of India. The Forum aims to promote ethical business practices, organizational integrity and social responsibility in the public, private and manufacturing sectors. She is the guest faculty for the Company Director s training program being conducted by the Indian Institute of Corporate Affair (IICA), Ministry of Corporate Affairs of Government of India. She has regularly addressed young probationary officers of Indian Civil Service at the training Institute of Government of India. She has travelled internationally and given talks in South Africa, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Taiwan, Tunisia, China, Thailand, Singapore and Indonesia on transformational leadership, international peace, universal values and non-violence. She has visited Japan four times to deliver thirty four lectures in universities and local institutions. She has also spoken at UN-ESCAP, Bangkok. She has over 35 years of experience in social work in development projects in different parts of India. Her background of Gandhian constructive work and Sarvodaya for development and welfare of underprivileged communities has led her to dedicate her life to the cause of serving the poor in obtaining gender equity and self-reliance, peace, justice and dignity. She was given the Eminent Citizen recognition for the Ministry of Rural Development, Government of India. She is the governing body member of the Mahila Samakhya program of Government of Bihar and of the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan program of the Government of Tripura. She is an advisory committee member of the National Coalition on Education, India. She is the Chairperson of voluntary agencies DISHA and Uttaranchal Development Institute. 3

4 Brief description of lectures Mahatma Gandhi is the most well-known Indian in the world. His life was one of dedication and simplicity and he valued non-violence, truth and purity of means as the guiding principles of his life. He followed the inner voice that guided him throughout his life and he could justifiably say to the world that My Life is My Message. Mahatma Gandhi displayed the ability to lift the question of morals from that of the personal, and transform it into a question that reflects and impacts the ethics of all of humanity. There are few among the 20 th century leaders who can measure up to the standards set by Mahatma Gandhi in the practice of ethical leadership. Mahatma Gandhi proved that moral and ethical behavior is inexorably linked to the sincere understanding and practice of the philosophy of truth, nonviolence and purity of means. Mahatma Gandhi s thought and principles can guide the people in any part of the world as it has the strength to inspire and bring about change. The value based leadership espoused by Mahatma Gandhi in public life is a perfect model to be emulated in all spheres of our activities. Gandhian economics stands for commitment to values, ethical leadership conduct, transparency and makes a distinction between personal and corporate funds in the management of a company. He is a supreme practical leader for change whose life can inspire and guide the modern and aspiring youth in building and leading an ethical and sustainable ecology. Gandhi envisioned a world that would evolve towards peace and harmony- a world where different religions, cultures and peoples of the world would live together with mutual respect and tolerance, rather than in suspicion and animosity. In a century marked by two world wars, the holocaust and the atomic bomb when the world was torn apart by hate and intolerance Gandhi emerged as a powerful antithesis to man s cruelty and small mindedness. He became the voice of sanity and a beacon of hope for peace minded and tolerant individuals everywhere. The lectures attempt to provide some principles, ideas and alternatives that can help us in our personal quest for greater substance and also help address the pressing social and ecological challenges of our times. Lectures are about life of one of the extraordinary individual, Mahatma Gandhi and lessons of personal growth and transformation. These lessons gleaned from Mahatma Gandhi s life, offer us invaluable advice on leading an enlightened life-a more meaningful, self-aware, socially responsible and saner life. Although Gandhi was by no means perfect, he made significant and seminal contributions that spanned across such disciplines as economics, spirituality, ecology, conflict resolution, politics, sustainability, service to humanity and more. His name has become synonymous with non-violence, social justice, minimalism, peace and civil disobedience. Gandhi s contribution, his achievements and his life were extraordinary by any measure. Most importantly, however, the talks on Gandhi s life offers us better lessons on a living a meaningful, purpose driven, and morally awake life with societal commitments. 4

5 Lecture at the University of Paramadina Graduate School, Gdungo Tempo, Jakarta, Indonesia (Department of Philosophy and Civilization) The talk was held on 10th August, 2017 at the Department of Philosophy and Civilization from 9:00 am to 10:00 am in association with the Southeast Asian and Japanese Youth Program, Indonesia (SSEAYP Indonesia). The title of the lecture was A Soldier of Peace-Mahatma Gandhi s Use of Nonviolence, Peace and Harmony and its Relevance Today. Thirty eight participants had registered for the lecture which covered Mahatma Gandhi s experiment with nonviolent resistance for establishing justice and restoring the dignity of the Indian, both in South Africa and India. When as a youth Mohan Das Karamchand Gandhi came face to face with racial discrimination in South Africa he organized the Indians loving there to unite and raise their voices against the injustice. When the constitutional methods of petitions, letters, signature campaigns and repeated pleading did not yield much result, Gandhi offered nonviolent mass resistance to bring about the change of heart of the adversaries through love force, truth force and soul force, self-sacrifice and suffering. This he called as Satyagraha and named himself as the Soldier of Peace for which dedicated his life to bring about peace and harmony. He inspired and trained thousands of Peace Soldiers or Satyagrahis to take part in the struggle for restoring dignity in South Africa and in the freedom struggle in India. The participants were curious to know how these similar methods could be used in today s time of great intolerance and polarization in Indonesia. Everyone was keen to live in Peace and Harmony in their country which has its founding motto as Unity in Diversity ( Bhinnaika ---Eka ) and believed in Pancashila. As Gandhi s principles are eternal, universal and not bound by time, space or geographical boundaries the lecture focused on learning from Gandhi s leadership and applying it to suit today s context. Prof. Fatchiah Kertamuda, Faculty of Philosophy and Civilization received us and the Dean of the department Prof. Shiskha was present in the lecture. SSEAYP Indonesia was represented by Mr. Arief Rizky Abe, Secretary General, Ms. Devianti Faridz and Mr. Wira. This lecture marked the beginning of collaboration between the Ship for World Youth Alumni Association-India (SWYAA-India) and Ship for Southeast Asian Youth Program (SSEAYP) International, Indonesia. 5

6 Lecture at Embassy of India, Jawaharlal Nehru Indian Cultural Centre, Jakarta, Indonesia The talk on 13 th August was on the topic of A Soldier of Peace-Mahatma Gandhi s Use of Nonviolence, Peace and Harmony and its Relevance Today and was held at Auditorium in Embassy of India in Jakarta from 16:30 to 17:30 organized by the Jawarharlal Nehru Indian Cultural Centre (JNICC) of the Indian Embassy. The invited audience of about 30 was a mixed group of Indonesians and Indian diaspora in the presence of Mr. Manish, the Charge D Affairs and Mr. Makrand Shukla, Director of the JNICC, Embassy of India, Jakarta. The lecture focused on the life and thoughts of Mahatma Gandhi and why they matter in today world. To bring out the nuances of his life as of that of a soldier of peace the lecture focused on the resonance of Gandhi around the globe, his impact on the people nonviolent movements for justice and human rights across the various nations of the world, the reasons why he was a colossal figure and his unique qualities that made him stand out and why he was followed by millions who got inspired by his transformational leadership. There was a question answer session after the talk where students were interested to learn about the practical aspects of nonviolent people movement and how Mahatma Gandhi actually put it into practice in South Africa and India. According to the audiences it was a great opportunity for them to learn the relevance of Gandhi s life in current world. 6

7 Lecture at University of Indonesia International Office, Campus UI-Depok Jakarta, Indonesia On 15th August, the lecture was held at University of Indonesia International Office at the Campus UI-Depok and was coordinated by Ms. Inez from the International Visitor s Office, Universitas Indonesia for 150 graduate and post graduate student. Ms. Nurul Tri Wirastiningtyas, coordinator facilitation for International Cooperation welcomed the speakers while Ms. Suyanti Adi, external Opportunities and Promotion introduced the topic of the lecture. The interactive lecture focused on the transformational leadership qualities of Mahatma Gandhi and the learning s from his leadership in the contemporary world. The students listened attentively depth and were most interested in having an in depth understanding on Mahatma Gandhi s life, thoughts, messages, experience in the 20 th century. Students were interested to learn about India and the current situation in the country. In the question and answer session many questions were regarding the current situation in the world, violence, intolerance and how one needs to prepare to deal with these situations. Most of the students were interested in visiting India. 7

8 Lecture at University of Ngurah Rai, Bali, Indonesia The talk at the University was coordinated by Mr. R.O. Sunil Babu, Consul General, The Consulate General of India, Bali and organized by the Yayasan Jagadhita Universitas Ngurah Rai in their campus at JI, Kampus Univ. Ngurah Rai, Penath-Denpasar on 16 th August, 2017 fr0m 9:00-10:00 am on the occasion of the convocation of 135 post graduate students who had completed various courses from the university in the academic year and the entire faculty including the Vice Chancellor, the Rektor and senior professors from various departments. Welcoming the audience of around 180 persons, Drs. Nyoman Sura Adi Tanaya, M.Si described today s event as one of those rare occasions when the minds of the two great countries mingle together to see the ushering a vibrant future for the next generation. The program began with the performance of Balinese dance in their traditional ceremonial dress, performed as a social dance for entertainment purpose. The dancers expressed through the bodily gestures including gestures of fingers, hands, head and eyes. They danced to the melody of accompanying Gamelan, the traditional ensemble music of Java and Bali in Indonesia, made up predominantly of percussion instruments. This was followed by a speech by the Vice Chancellor and the lecture on Mahatma Gandhi that focused on the transformational leadership qualities of Mahatma Gandhi who as the most important political leader, revolutionary, religious thinker, freedom fighter, visionary and a writer left the most positive impact on the humanity. Recalling how education had played a very important role in his life, Gandhi had the opportunity to read up the works of Thoreau, Emerson, Tolstoy, and meet some of the greatest philosophers and thinkers of those times personally. He read up the religious books of almost all the religions and remained a student throughout his life. He kept constantly evolving by learning from his mistakes and his was an ever progressive personality. His life and thoughts continue to inspire millions as they embark on the life s journey to work for the betterment of the humanity. The lecture in English was translated in Bahasa Indonesia by Mr. Nyoman Riasa.Recalling Gandhi s greatest gift to humanity the lecture included his contribution on nonviolent civil disobedience and nonviolent resistance against tyranny as one of the most novel methods of fighting injustice and oppression that the world has ever come across. Countless struggles for greater freedom and rights have been inspired by Gandhi all across the globe and after India gained freedom in a nonviolent way 130 countries were free from the shackles of colonialism. The lecture also brought to the notice of the audience as to how Gandhi s life stands as a glaring example of Tri Hita Karana which is a harmonious relationship with God, with people and with nature and Trikaya Parisuddha meaning control of thoughts, speech and actions. Many examples were given in the lecture to illustrate and bring home these eternal truths from the Asian wisdom. The audio visual presentation was made by Mr. Ravi Chopra, the second speaker on Gandhi lives on 8

9 Lecture at Ashram Gaandhipuri Sewagram, Klunkung, Bali, Indonesia On 16 th August afternoon we visited the Ashram Gandhipuri Sewagram in the picturesque Klunkung area about two hours drive from Denpasar. The Ashram Gandhi Puri Sewagram is situated in a hilly area surrounded by trees and plants and when one gets down the slope to reach the ashram the very first statue is of Mahatma Gandhi. We were greeted by about 11 students of Mr. Indra Udayana, who runs the ashram. He has had a long association with India and continues to pass on the Hindu tradition and the teachings of Gandhi to his students whom he considers his children. Here he educates youth from the poor families up to seven years in the ashram, teaching them vedic rituals and ceremonies as well as the values of truth, nonviolence and compassion as preached and practiced by Mahatma Gandhi. These youth stay in the ashram and practically run the ashram with their own labour and are engaged in many constructive activities. They attend the regular school and college training outside the ashram in the day time and return back to the ashram. They then return back to their work of maintaining the compound, the ashram campus, building new buildings and maintaining the old ones, making the furniture which are collected from old buildings, growing vegetables in the kitchen garden, cooking in the common community kitchen for the morning and evening meals and taking part in the all religious community prayers. They learn Ashtangayoga and sometimes go out to teach Yoga which is very popular in Bali. The talk in the ashram Gandhipuri focused on leadership and the life in Mahatma Gandhi s Sevagram ashram in India. It was an interactive session held in the open air hall and translated in Bahasa Indonesia by their Guruji or teacher Mr. Indra Udayanam. The students were fascinated to learn about the ashram life, the daily routine, the ekadash vrata and the constructive programs that were part of the ashram life. They learned about Gandhi s unique leadership qualities of respecting an individual as individuals without attaching labels, pouring himself in their heart, being a very good listener, being very punctual, treating all work as god given task and carrying out all work with equal reverence. Each of the youth had aspirations to do well in life and help their family to lead a good quality life. They were also fascinated by the stories of Gandhi s childhood, youth and as the most important leaders and thinkers of the 20 th century. They themselves are leading a simple life of hard labor inspired by Gandhi and were eager to know more about his life and thoughts. The interactive session ended with the recitation of the Ekadasha vrata as it used to be sung in the morning and evening prayers in Gandhi ashram, Sevagram in India. 9

10 Lecture at STAHN Mpu Kuturan, Singaraja, Bali, Indonesia The seminar-lecture on the Transformational Leadership of Mahatma Gandhi was held on 18 th August from 11:00 to 12:00 noon in the Sekolah Tinggi Agama Hindu (STAH) Mpu Kuturan. The talk was coordinated by the CGI, Bali and the Consul General was very kindly present in the talk. In 2016, the IHDN Singaraja changed its name to Sekolah Tinggi Agama Hindu Negeri (STAHN) Mpu Kuturan Singaraja and was inaugurated. It is a hub of Hindu religious education. There are four study programs (Prodi) including education, lighting, philosophy and literature. STAHN Mpu Kuturan is playing a leading role in educating the children of the nation in addition to developing Hindu religious studies in the country. The talk was given to around 60 students and senior professors teaching Hindu Philology Agama (Sociology Agama), Veda (Weda), Tatva (Tatwa), ceremonials (Acara ), Yoga, Law of Hindu relgion ( Hukum agama ). Mr. Sunil Babu, Consul General, CGI, Bali introduced the faculty and introduced the topic of the seminar lecture. The focus of the talk was on the transformational leadership of Gandhi but highlighted his spiritual beliefs which are similar Dasar Negara or Panjor, the country belief. Like the Hindu s of Bali, the foundation of Gandhi s strength was in his belief in Almighty God also known as Ketuhonan Yanag Maha Esa in Bahasa Indonesia. Gandhi was very well aware that he had to be nothing more than an instrument in God s hands. He was to go wherever God led him and had to serve God all the twenty four hours of the day. His religion was the service of humanity exemplified in Kemanusiaan Yang Adil dan Beradab. The belief in God, that is Truth lead Gandhi could feel absolute oneness with each creation of God. He extended respect to everyone and loved them as his own. He could be one with joys and sorrows because of this feeling of oneness. This unity in diversity or Persatvan Indonesia as it is called in Bahasa Indonesia also gave him the courage to cultivate and practice nonviolence in thoughts, words and deed. In the lecture examples were given from Gandhi s life and his struggles for restoring justice and dignity of Indians who were under the British colonialist like Indonesia, which remained under the Dutch rule. Therefore, his attempt to restore equality, social rights for all citizens (like in Kedilan Sosial bagi Seluruh rakyal Indonesia ) and democracy ( like in Permusyawaraton ). In the question and answer session the students expressed their gratitude for telling them such inspiring thoughts which were similar to what they have been practicing over centuries in Bali. Many of them wanted to visit India to learn Yoga, which is again very much in demand in all parts of Bali. The seminar -lecture was concluded with a prayer of Gayatri mantra sung melodiously by a bright student of Sekolah Tinggi Agama Hindu (STAH) Mpu Kuturan. The seminar-lecture in English was interpreted in Bahasa Indonesia by Ms. Made Novita Devi Lestari. 10

11 Lecture at Gandhi Memorial International School (GMIS), Jakarta, Indonesia The Gandhi Memorial International School, a dynamic learning community, propagates lifelong learning and responsible citizenship through a challenging, multidisciplinary, internationally transferable curriculum fulfilling the diverse needs of students. The school provides an atmosphere where diversity is considered strength and where differences are seen as assets. We believe that students must value and respect the culture and traditions of the host country, Indonesia. The talk was organized by the JNICC, Embassy of India, Jakarta and coordinated by Mr. Makrand Shukla, Director of JNIC, Jakarta and the school principal Mr. A.P. Singh on 21 st August, 2017 from 9:00-10:00 am. The lecture was on the leadership qualities of Mahatma Gandhi which was attended by 700 students of the senior classes representing 41 nationalities. The focus was to correlate the main messages of Mahatma Gandhi of Truth, nonviolence and purity of means and their relevance in today s world. Other qualities like that of extending respect for all religions, tolerance, remaining a student throughout his life, questioning, introspecting, learning from mistakes, remaining truthful under all circumstances, being courageous, serving the humanity, valuing time were presented with examples. In t the question and answer session students showed interest in understanding more about how fasting helps, how can we make an attempt to be truthful under all circumstances whereas in some of the cased it is better not to reveal the truth and about the current situation of violence in the world and the role of youth to bring about change that they want to see in the world. Concluding the event, Mr. A.P. Singh mentioned that everything mentioned in the lecture was part of the school curriculum and being truthful and honest is one of the top most virtue truly valued and inculcated in the school. Likewise by questioning about Who am I the students are encouraged to understand about themselves and their role as part of the humanity and to find out the real purpose of their lives. He mentioned that these core values were reinforced through Gandhi s life and messages. 11

12 Meeting with Distinguished and Eminent People With Mr. Manish, Charge d'affaires, Embassy of India, Jakarta With Mr. R.O.Sunil Babu, Counsel General of India, Bali With Drs.Nyoman Sura Adi Tanaya, Rektor University of Ngurah Rai, Bali With Mr. A.P.Singh, Principal, GMIS and Mr. Makrand Shukla, Director, JNICC, Jakarta 12

13 With Mr. Indra Udayana, Gandhi Ashram Puri, Bali With Mrs Nurul Tri Wirastiningtyas, Coordinator International Partnership, University of Indonesia With Mr. Arief Rizky Abe & Ms. Devianti Faridz from SSEAYP International Indonesia With Officer In-charge, STAHN Mpu Kuturan, Singaraja, Bali 13

14 Invitation and Poster of Lectures 14

15 Performance at University of Ngurah Rai, Bali Contact: 13/88, Pocket 13, Block C-4/B, Janakpuri, New Delhi , India Phone: (M)