Develop Habit of Learning

Kautilya said, “Do not allow a single day of your life to pass away without learning something good and useful”.

It will be accurate to say that all men are born equal as far as knowledge is concerned. An infant begins with nothing and with the passage of time he/she learns new things. Then comes a stage where the pace of learning slows down and as a result, the acquisition of knowledge slows down as well. This stage of life should be addressed properly and if someone fails to do so then definitely there exists a reason to worry.

There is money, physique, status, and several other important components that define/evaluate the worthiness of life. Among them, knowledge is surely the key component. Wise men consider it as the root of all good/bad things that happen/can happen/will happen to a man. Roots are invisible but are very significant. A tree with chopped shoot can survive, but will it survive without its root.

He who has knowledge; knows the trick to do the job. This makes him eligible for the job and his eligibility adds to his worthiness. On the other hand, the case is totally opposite for a person who lacks in knowledge.

Every person without access to time machine has just 24 hours in a day do whatever he desires. Still, the level of inequality is so huge. Allow me to explain it with an example of a civil construction site. There you will find laborers, stonemasons, engineers, and the contractor. The laborers do most of the hard work are paid the least, stone masons are next in line, engineers usually have a good package and the contractor who’s hard work is least (comparatively) takes the lion’s share of profit. This is nothing but the perceived worth of those people by the person who is paying them.

You look for courage in a foot soldier and intelligence in a commander. Can you tell why?

Why keep Learning?

Someone with too much intelligence might put up this question? If you are asked, then following points might help you.

• Life is lived at all fronts. No one is just an employee, or just an employer, or just a father, or just a son, or just a patriot, or just one thing. You live multiple roles. It will not harm a person well-versed in engineering to refer book of good parenting or a bit of accounting.
• The World is dynamic. What’s new today will turn old tomorrow. Therefore, it becomes important to stay updated.
• The facts and ideas you keep gathering are like those fancy looking tools in your toolkit that you don’t use very often, but when the day arrives you’ll be needing them.

So, remain curious throughout life.

* Chanakya has also said, “He whose knowledge is confined to books is like a blind man holding a mirror”. Therefore be practical in your approach. Put your knowledge to practical use.