Page 29 - Orientation Programme FINAL

F.3.2 Feel the Feelings

The students were asked, what would you feel if you were in that situation? After a couple of jovial
comments, they replied that it obviously would feel good. When asked to close their eyes and feel those
feelings, some replied that there would be positive feelings, they would feel gratitude towards the unknown
donor, etc. These feelings are what we have earlier called “continuous happiness”.

When the customers would give, they would also feel happy that they are leaving a gift for someone (rather
than paying for a service).

F.3.3 Chain of Life
One of the students pointed out that this is what life is. We get gifts from our ancestors, unknown people, and
the humanity at large. And when we pass away, we leave gifts for the coming generation. This is how life
is.

F.3.4 Gift Culture
When we build a society in which gift culture (give and give) is inculcated, it gives happiness to all around (to
the giver as well as to the recipient, who in turn can give for someone else).

In the example, when asked how much money would you leave for the next customer, many students
replied that they would leave an amount slightly more than the bill.

Now consider two situations, first, the one above, and second, a normal restaurant. In both the cases, the
meal is eaten, and the money is paid; however, in the former, feelings are generated as well!

F.4 Fair Transaction
The conversation moved to transaction, we are not against it. But the transaction should, of course, be a
fair transaction.

What is fair? Fairness is not determined by only legal viewpoint, which can give us only the minimum.
A wise society builds its culture and practices in which feelings get generated or enhanced in day to day
functioning, in its practices, in the transactions.

F.4.1 Example - Tea Vendor at a Station

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I was travelling on a train from Delhi to Kanpur on a cold wintery night. It was 3 January, 2011 and the time
was about 5 am. The train came to a stop, and I woke up.

On peeping through the window, I noticed that it was a very small station, where even the platform was of
quite low height. On getting down, we learnt that a train, just three trains ahead of our train, has had a major
accident.

While waiting to find out what would happen next, I went to a tea shop. It was the only tea shop, and it
was full because of the train and the cold wintery morning. The tea shop owner declared: Tea will be
served to everyone, at the same price, in the same proportion of tea leaves, sugar and milk. I have phoned
for milk, and more milk would be arriving soon. And sure enough, a couple of milk men with milk
containers on their scooters started arriving.

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