Time Travel

The glass office walls shimmered thanks to the glittering rays that emanated from the sun. The aesthetically appealing corporate structure housed thousands of employees who worked there to earn bread and butter for their families. Ramanand had been the head of the "Rama Consultancy IT Services" who also happened to be its discoverer. His son Dixit had been the chief executive officer of the company whereas his daughter Dipika had been the chief financial officer of the company. Fifty-five-year-old Ramanand had seen his company grow from a five-employee small startup to a colossal thousand employees global company that catered to the IT services of the customers. His relentless hard work was a testament to his company's exponential growth. He envisioned to open one more branch outside Bengaluru. His children had been as disciplined as him and he knew his next generation would put in the required hard work to sustain the business and to open many more branches not only across the country but also across the globe.

On an eventful Friday evening, Ramanand left the office premises after striking a million-dollar deal with the customers. His brilliant mind visualized the cutting-edge technologies that need to be quickly leveraged in his company to ensure they don't remain stagnant in the coming years. Little did he know about the fierce storm that was about to hit his company. Dixit and Dipika both stayed in the office premises busy with their respective works. The employees too found themselves catering to the needs of their projects. Multiple masked men with black attires climbed out of the bus and barged towards the company entrance. The security officers couldn't act immediately as they all ate a bullet into their chests. This was going out of control. The terrorists zoomed past the office corridors and broke open the glass shields. They let loose a hail of bullets depicting their ruthless attitude. Many innocent employees died on the spot. Their modus operañdi was to kill the employees and bring down the office in full capacity. They went on a bullet-hitting spree consuming innocent lives. Dixit and Dipika came out of their chambers after hearing the irresistible commotion that materialized outside. They couldn't believe their eyes. They didn't know how to grapple with the devastating situation that unfolded in front of their own eyes. Dixit tried to call his father but was soon hit on the head by a terrorist, who had a sturdy physique. He kicked him brutally and sent a bullet through his chest thereby rendering him motionless. Remorseless masked men kept on killing people and destroying office premises. The ammunition-equipped terrorists did not spare anyone. Dipika hid behind her office cubicle and slowly dialled her father's number. She could hear the rain of bullets creating chaos everywhere. A long man noticed her presence and quickly shot her. With her attire smeared with blood, she breathed her last widening her eyes. The opulent corporate structure got pulverized into rubbles courtesy of the terrorists. All that was left was a gory scene of thousands of employees' motionless dead bodies. It indeed looked like a horrific graveyard. After executing their planned attack, they all vanished as quickly as possible before the police force stepped into action. Ramanand's heart skipped a beat upon knowing the grave reality. He just witnessed his decades of hard work going up in smoke in a matter of an few minutes. Why did this all happen? He just couldn't fathom what he just witnessed. The expensive structure that glistened hours back had now become all concrete. His beloved children who worked day and night to take the company forward fell victim to the vicious onslaught of the terrorists. His heart throbbed and his wounded breaths suffocated him. Is this real or is it just a bad dream? Can't this be reversed through any technology? He went on his haunches assaulted by millions of questions.

The following day, the police ascertained the fact that terrorists are let loose in the city to destroy software companies. They had managed to escape abroad and police were on a lookout for them. The wails and hue and cry of the parents who lost their son/daughter reached crescendo. The aftermath of the tragic incident deeply depressed Ramanand who went to the Himalayas. He couldn't digest the double whammy of his hard work going down the drain and the loss of his children and employees. He had lost interest in life. That is when he accidentally met a powerful seer who grasped his whole life story just by a gaze.

"You look to be disturbed."

"Just days back, I was thinking about the rich fortune of my company but in a matter of hours, all my dreams came crashing down like an avalanche. I can't bear these torrents of painful emotions unleashed upon me by God," he broke into tears.

"What if I told you, you can revisit and change the past?" the seer had a beaming smile on his face that reflected his powerful aura.

"I can't even laugh at it. There is no way we can change the past," he looked helpless.

"I will allow you to go to the past and place you exactly at a point where the terrorists carried out the attack."

"How is that possible?"

"God has brought you here and I must give you a chance to redo the past provided you live the life of a monk for two months," the seer asserted.

Ramanand felt it would be remiss of him if he did not trust the words of the seer. He overcame the confusion that had sprung into his mind and eventually gave a nod to the seer. The seer gave him the address of the monastery where he had to stay for the next two months. The questions kept sprouting in his mind as to how the past could be changed according to the laws of science but the divine aura that emanated from the seer strengthened his conviction. He went to the monastery to serve the next two months as a monk.

Ramanand who usually used to get a grand welcome in his organization did not get the same when he attended the monastery. All monks had been busy with their work. Dressed in saffron robes, he looked himself at in the mirror. The spider had cast a web on the mirror and he couldn't see himself properly. He reminisced about the days when he plodded flashy expensive suits to the office. He went ahead to clean the mirror but a fellow monk stopped him.

"It takes a lot of hard work to build a building and how does it feel when someone demolishes it?" he asked.

The question took him aback. How does he know about my life?

"The spider has worked hard to build this web. Isn't it cruel if we demolish it's hard work?"

His words made a lot of sense. The spider has worked hard to build the web and we just kill it's hard work and won't even regret it. We take things for granted but when the same happens to us, we cry and crib about it.

He was quite gripped by his words interspersed with wisdom. He saw a long queue of monks with plates in their hands waiting for food. In his times as a corporate leader, he never had to wait for food. The food was served at his desk on time. He had the luxury to order whatever he desired. He joined the line and waited for his turn to have food on his plate.

"We develop patience standing in the line and we understand that we need to wait for food and not vice versa," a fellow monk said.

Ramanand scanned around and saw that not even a single monk had wasted even a small piece of rice. In his corporate days, he used to waste food if he did not like it.

"Plenty of people in this world don't even have food on their plates. When we do have, we must not waste it. We must extend our gratitude to God and understand the significance of food," another monk explained.

In the evening time, he saw several monks chanting God's hymns diligently for hours. He had never done that before as he was always lost on the corporate work.

'We are the children of God. We see people who give excuses if we ask them to chant God's name even for five minutes. We are in the world created by God. All material success endowed upon people is because of God's blessings. Can't we spend even ten minutes a day to thank him?" a tall monk said.

Ramanand saw monks sleeping on a mat. He went back to memory lane where he enjoyed the comforts of a cosy bed to sleep. The monks are the ones who have understood the subtleties of life and can read between the lines. They have understood the spiritual significance that transcends the boundaries of material landscape.

He was shocked to hear that some of the monks in the monastery were gold medallists, highly accomplished individuals but still they chose to become monks. They quickly discerned in their lives that the real growth was spiritual growth not the material growth. What you carry to your next life is not your material wealth but your karma. He too meditated along with other monks. He too joined other monks who preached the significance of spirituality to the community. A fresh wave of joy and tranquility brushed past him as he enjoyed his two months stay in the monastery.

He juxtaposed his monk avatar with the corporate leader avatar and could make out stark differences. As the head of his organization, he had no time to look within thanks to his busy office schedules whereas here it is an inward journey to learn about yourself. As a corporate leader, he was used to having servants who looked after his daily needs whereas here you got to do all your tasks and nobody will do it for you. The material life and the spiritual life and their contrasting differences. He appreciated the differences and felt proud to be able to live the life of a monk for two months. After serving two months as a monk equipped with wisdom, he went back to the seer who had promised to give him a chance to change the past.

"I have evolved as a person in the last two months and I have no regrets if I have to continue being a monk for the rest of my life."

The seer appreciated his words. He could see the sense of detachment that had taken over him.

"You still have material life left in you. Thousands of employees who relied on your company for their livelihood need to get a chance to earn back their lost lives. Your material dream to see your business grow is meant to materialize. You don't have to resort to only sannyasa yoga for spiritual growth, you can do karma yoga too for a spiritual growth which you are capable of," the seer closed his eyes and opened a realm engulfed with glistening fires.

He motioned Ramanand to enter the realm. To his utter surprise, he had just dialled back to the same day that had wreaked havoc upon his dreams. A surreal feeling indeed. An unprecedented miracle hitherto never seen before. He felt blessed to have met the seer. Now, it was time to act to save his business. Can he succeed in doing so? He quickly called the police and alerted them of the forthcoming attack. They quickly provided security to his office and confiscated the vehicle laden with terrorists. Everything fell into place as he was able to leverage the police security to avert the perilous danger. He heaved a sigh of relief after having foiled the terrorist attack. He could see his employees still breathing alive; he could see his children still breathing alive. His office still standing tall. His business still flourishing. Just like that, he could see himself coming back to the present. What a magic! He secretly sent kudos to the seer who indeed came as a God to create magic in his life. He cherished his stay in the monastery which taught him deep lessons which he incorporated into his corporate business and reaped rewards as well. Every month, he invited monks as a special guest to expound the spiritual philosophies to the employees who too were immensely benefitted in their lives.