Swami Parthasarthy in conversation with Abhimanyu Acharya

What kind of a management improvement system do you conduct? How unique is it from other systems and how beneficial is it in today's work culture?

The concepts taught here are essentially derived from the Vedas, the Upanishads and the Gita. I use this wealth of information and adapt it to the modern context. The knowledge that I disseminate here is necessary for survival whether one has a career or not.The institute is the fruition of the unstinting efforts contributed by corporate executives who believe in this philosophy and the benefits that it can bestow on mankind. Accordingly a trust was set up, land was acquired and the necessary funds were collected to give shape to the academy. We now have sixty-five students.

The academy admits students who are sixteen years old. Is there any particular reason for this age preference?

It is the right age to take in students, as they are most receptive. An interesting incident occurred that led me to reconsider the admissible age for students into the academy. Sudhakar, was our first undergraduate student, who despite repeated requests ensured that he got in. I have never had cause to regret the decision as I discovered that students just out of high school were more open and receptive to new ideas.

Do you conduct any more programmes apart from Time Management? Has any research been undertaken for the workshops done on corporates?

Stress management, science of productivity, work ethics, value systems, and leadership are the other subjects that I hold programmes on. Though not professionally done, we do conduct surveys to get feed back from those participating in our programmes and seminars. A speech and hearing course is conducted at the graduate and postgraduate levels are available in Hyderabad, Bombay, New Delhi and Chandigarh. Students with a science background are preferred.

Do you sponsor the students' stay at the academy? At the end of a three-year stay in the academy, what are the student's options?

The academy is a charitable institution and there is no tuition fee. I equip them with knowledge of what life is all about and how to deal with it. The students are taught how to face the world. Everybody believes that it is the world that is the cause of joy or sorrow, nobody understands that it is the individual that causes pain or pleasure to oneself, and you make or mar yourself. It is difficult to find happiness within oneself but it is impossible to find elsewhere.

Do you have anything that you would like to share with the readers who are at the threshold of their career? Do have any suggestions for people who suddenly find themselves in a kind of doldrums in the middle of their career?

It is like a specific disease. Your question is similar to the person who has found that he has TB or, one who is in the middle or advanced stage. It is the same book that has been written twenty years back. They have to start from the very beginning all over again.

Tell us something about your teachings.

I focus on management workshops and seminars. I see life being divided into the individual and the world. Knowledge is necessary for survival; it is the oxygen or the food we need to live. If you look at the world today, you can broadly divide it into two segments. The active and productive part of it is the western world that is highly dynamic and prosperous. Yet by their own admission, they no longer have any peace of mind.

Two months ago I was lecturing in the United States. I mentioned how the divorce rate in the US had crossed 55% when an American got up and commented, ``Swami the rate of divorce here has crossed 67%. This is a terrible state of affairs. I am not criticising them but consider the state that country or the west is in. However, here in India you will find people relatively peaceful and happy though there is no action, production, and little prosperity.''

According to knowledge contained in our ancients texts thousands of years ago, it gives you that capacity to be active, dynamic, and productive. An American once wanted to know what exactly rest meant. Individual perceptions of rest differ; I believe intense work signifies rest as explained by Swami Ramathirtha.

Once out of academy, if your students do not have employment, what is their source of income?

They just stay put. Students from our academy do not per se actively seek employment but are rather sought after for by most organisations. For instance, two corporate companies from Calcutta wanted to employ students from our institution. People come, attend our courses and that gradually develops and snowballs into classes. This gently takes care of them. I exercise no control over them after three years. There is no need as it happens that conviction and courage to stay with out any activity arises of its own accord. It is almost like freelancing and not a nine to five job. One of our attendees was a well-known industrialist, who proved to be an earnest student. This slowly led to various industrialists and corporates evincing interest in our institution and the students who study here. I cannot claim that any of our graduates have gone for regular jobs after a three-year stint at our academy.