Remembering a Ingrained thought

I recall my college day when as a young voluntary member of SPIC-MACAY (Society for Promotion of Indian Classical Music And Culture Amongst Youth) I had the privilege of staying with late Ustad Bismillah Khan for three days at Indore.

While there remains no doubt that he was a simpleton at heart, feet firmly on ground, and passionate for his art form Shehnai, what I remember today are few of his words of wisdom which came out of his experience and his learning of life.

The story goes something like this : When called upon stage to say a few words about his art-form and make a speech, he just spoke as little as

“shukriya, hum kya bolenge, hum se jyada to hamari shehnai bol jati hai” (what will I say, my instrument speaks more then me). Bade bhudo se sunte aa rahe hai, wahi aap ko sunate hai ( i am just passing on learning of my life to you). Bachpan se bus ek hi kaam kiya hai, aur abhi bhi karte aa rahe hai (I am just practicing one thing from childhood and still learning it).

and then the words of wisdom which were : “ek sadhe sab sadhe, sab sadhe sab jai” (be in pursuit of only one thing, if you follow all you will loose all).

How beautifully he summarized his success mantra. No jargon, no management science and no frills.

Why I bring this topic today, because I am convinced that if we practice this in our professional lives, we may never fail. Very important to assess what we are good at and practice it, and not get lured by plethora of choices which life would offer. Two key words to highlight here ” Important to assess what we are good at
and “persistence to follow it“.