Maharshi Karve

Maharshi Dhondo Keshav Karve  -  Biographical Literature on the Story of his Life and Work.

[  Reviewed by VIKRAM WAMAN KARVE  ]


In my own small way I wish to present a review of biographical literature on Maharshi Karve in order to enable readers, especially the students and alumni of educational institutions who owe their very genesis to Maharshi Karve like the SNDT University and the numerous and multifarious women’s schools and colleges under the aegis of the Maharshi Karve Stree Shikshan Samstha, get an insight into the life and work of this great social reformer whose ceaseless efforts played a cardinal role in transforming the destiny of the Indian woman.  

 

I have before me three books on Maharshi Dhondo Keshav Karve:

 

(i) His autobiography titled ‘Looking Back’ published in 1936.

 

(ii) Maharshi Karve by Ganesh L. Chandavarkar published in 1958 by Popular Prakashan Bombay (Mumbai)

 

(iii) Maharshi Karve – His 105 Years published on 18 April 1963 ( His 106th birth anniversary) by Hingne Stree Shiksan Samstha Poona (Pune) 

 

Allow me to tell you, Dear Reader, a bit about these books which describe the life and times of Maharshi Karve and tell us about the monumental pioneering work of one of the foremost social and educational reformers of India.

 

LOOKING BACK by Dhondo Keshav Karve - Autobiography

 

It would be apt to start with his autobiography – Looking Back, and let Maharshi Karve describe his life and work from his own point of view in his simple yet fascinating style.

I am placing below a Book Review of his autobiography (which I had reviewed a few years ago) for your perusal:

 

 

Book Review of The Autobiography of Maharshi Karve: “Looking Back” by  Dhondo Keshav Karve (1936)

 

 

Dear Reader, you must be wondering why I am reviewing an autobiography written in 1936.

Well, sometime back, for six years of my life, I stayed in a magnificent building called Empress Court on Maharshi Karve Road at Churchgate in Mumbai.

I share the same surname [ Karve ] as the author.

Also, I happen to be the great grandson of Maharshi Dhondo Keshav Karve.

But, beyond that, compared to him I am a nobody – not even a pygmy.

 

Maharshi Karve clearly knew his goal, persisted ceaselessly throughout his life with missionary zeal and transformed the destiny of the Indian Woman.

The first university for women in India  -  The SNDT University and educational institutions for women covering the entire spectrum ranging from pre-primary schools to post-graduate, engineering, vocational and professional colleges bear eloquent testimony to his indomitable spirit, untiring perseverance and determined efforts.

 

In his preface, Frederick J Gould, renowned rationalist and lecturer on Ethics, writes that “the narrative is a parable of his career” – a most apt description of the autobiography. The author tells his life-story in a simple straightforward manner, with remarkable candour and humility; resulting in a narrative which is friendly, interesting and readable.

 

Autobiographies are sometimes voluminous tomes, but this a small book, 200 pages, and a very easy comfortable enjoyable read that makes it almost unputdownable.

Dr. Dhondo Keshav Karve writes a crisp, flowing narrative of his life, interspersed with his views and anecdotes, in simple, straightforward style which facilitates the reader to visualize through the author’s eyes the places, period, people and events pertaining to his life and times and the trials and tribulations he faced and struggled to conquer.

 

Dr. Dhondo Keshav Karve was born on 18th of April 1858. In the first few chapters he writes about Murud, his native place in Konkan, Maharashtra, his ancestry and his early life– the description is so vivid that you can clearly “see” through the author’s eye.

 

His struggle to appear in the public service examination (walking 110 miles in torrential rain and difficult terrain to Satara) and his shattering disappointment at not being allowed to appear for the examination (because “he looked too young”) make poignant reading.

 

“Many undreamt of things have happened in my life and given a different turn to my career” he writes, and then goes on to describe his high school and, later, college education at The Wilson College Bombay (Mumbai) narrating various incidents that convinced him of the role of destiny and serendipity in shaping his life and career as a teacher and then Professor of Mathematics.

 

He married at the age of fourteen but began his marital life at the age of twenty! This was the custom of those days. Let’s read the author’s own words on his domestic life: “… I was married at the age of fourteen and my wife was then eight. Her family lived very near to ours and we knew each other very well and had often played together. However after marriage we had to forget our old relation as playmates and to behave as strangers, often looking toward each other but never standing together to exchange words…. We had to communicate with each other through my sister…… My marital life began under the parental roof at Murud when I was twenty…” Their domestic bliss was short lived as his wife died after a few years leaving behind a son… “Thus ended the first part of my domestic life”… he concludes in crisp witty style.

 

An incident highlighting the plight of a widow left an indelible impression on him and germinated in him the idea of widow remarriage.

He married Godubai, who was widowed when she was only eight years old, was a sister of his friend Mr. Joshi, and now twenty three was studying at Pandita Ramabai’s Sharada Sadan as its first widow student.

 

Let’s read in the author’s own words how he asked for her hand in marriage to her father – “I told him…..I had made up my mind to marry a widow. He sat silent for a minute and then hinted that there was no need to go in search of such a bride”.

 

He describes in detail the ostracism he faced from some orthodox quarters and systematically enunciates his life work - his organization of the Widow Marriage Association, Hindu Widows Home, Mahila Vidyalaya, Nishkama Karma Math, and other institutions, culminating in the birth of the first Indian Women’s University (SNDT University).

 

The trials and tribulations he faced in his life-work of emancipation of education of women (widows in particular) and how he overcame them by his persistent steadfast endeavours and indomitable spirit makes illuminating reading and underlines the fact that Dr. DK Karve was no arm-chair social reformer but a person devoted to achieve his dreams on the ground in reality.

 

These chapters form the meat of the book and make compelling reading. His dedication and meticulousness is evident in the appendices where he has given date-wise details of his engagements and subscriptions down to the paisa for his educational institutions from various places he visited around the world to propagate their cause.

 

He then describes his world tour, at the ripe age of 71, to meet eminent educationists to propagate the cause of the Women’s University, his later domestic life and ends with a few of his views and ideas for posterity. At the end of the book, concluding his autobiography, he writes: “Here ends the story of my life. I hope this simple story will serve some useful purpose”.

 

Maharshi Dhondo Keshav Karve wrote this book in 1936. He lived on till the 9th of November 1962, achieving so much more on the way, and was conferred the honorary degree of Doctor of Letters ( D.Litt.) by the famous and prestigious Banaras Hindu University (BHU) in 1942, followed by University of Poona [Pune] in 1951, SNDT Women’s University in 1955, and the LL.D. by Bombay [Mumbai] University in 1957.

 

Maharshi Dhondo Keshav Karve received the Padma Vibhushan in 1955 and the India’s highest honour the “Bharat Ratna” in 1958, a fitting tribute on his centenary at the glorious age of 100.

 

It is an engrossing and illuminating autobiography, written in simple witty readable storytelling style, and it clearly brings out the mammoth contribution of Maharshi Karve and the trials and tribulations he faced.

 

Epilogue

 

I (the reviewer) was born in 1956, and have fleeting memories of Maharshi Karve, during our visits to Hingne Stree Sikshan Samstha in 1961-62, as a small boy of 5 or 6 can.

My mother tells me that I featured in a Films Division documentary on him during his centenary celebrations in 1958 (I must have been barely two, maybe one and a half years old) and there is a photograph of him and his great grand children in which I feature.

It is from some old timers and other people and mainly from books that I learn of his pioneering work in transforming the destiny of the Indian Woman and I thought I should share this.

 

I have written this book review with the hope that some of us, particularly the students and alumni of SNDT University, Cummins College of Engineering for Women, SOFT, Karve Institute of Social Sciences and other educational institutions who owe their very genesis and existence to Maharshi Karve, are motivated to read about his stellar pioneering work and draw inspiration from his autobiography.

 

 

Reviews of two biographical books on Maharshi Karve

 

As I have mentioned earlier, two other good books pertaining to the life of Maharshi Karve which I have read are:

 

Maharshi Karve by Ganesh L. Chandavarkar, Popular Prakashan (1958)

 

And

 

Maharshi Karve – His 105 years, Hingne Stree Shikshan Samstha (1963).

 

 

 

The biography ‘Maharshi Karve by Ganesh L. Chandavarkar’ was commissioned and published by the Dr. DK Karve Centenary Celebrations Committee on 18th April 1958 the birth-centenary of Dr. DK Karve.

(Thousands attended the main function on 18th April 1958 at the Brabourne Stadium in Mumbai which was addressed by Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, the Prime Minister).

 

The author, GL Chandavarkar, then Principal of Ram Mohan English school, has extensively researched the life of Dr. DK Karve, by personal interaction with the great man himself, reminiscences of his Professors, colleagues and students, and his two writings Looking back and Atma-Vritta.

 

The author acknowledges with humility: “This is the story of the life of a simple man who has risen to greatness without being aware of it in the least. It is being told by one who can make no claim to being a writer” - and then he lucidly narrates the story of Maharshi Karve’s life in four parts comprising twenty four chapters in simple narrative style.

 

Part I, comprising eight chapters, covers the early life of Dhondo Keshav Karve, from his birth to the defining moment in his life - his remarriage to Godubai who was widowed at the age of eight, within three months of her marriage, even before she knew what it was to be a wife.

The first chapter vividly depicts the life and culture of Murud and Konkan in a brilliantly picturesque manner and is a fascinating read. The narrative then moves in a systematic manner encompassing the salient aspects of Maharshi Karve’s life till his birth centenary in 1958.

The biographer comprehensively cover Maharshi Karve’s marital and work life, but does not throw much light on his relationships with his four illustrious sons, who were well-known in their own respective fields of work.  

 

The author avoids pontification and writes in friendly storytelling style which makes the book very interesting and readable, making it suitable for the young and old alike.

I feel an epilogue covering the remaining years of his life would make the biography more complete.

 

There is a reference index at the end and I found this book to be quite a definitive biography which could serve as a source for knowledge and inspiration to readers interested in the life and work of Maharshi Karve.

The 233 page book was published by Popular Book Depot Mumbai in 1958 and I picked up a copy priced at rupees forty at the International Book Service at Deccan Gymkhana in Pune a few years ago. 

 

 

 

Maharshi Karve – His 105 Years, published on his 106th birth anniversary, is a pictorial album depicting the life and activities of Maharshi Karve.

In today’s parlance it may be called a ‘coffee table’ book, but it is a memorable reference book of lasting souvenir value which is a must for every library.

The chronologically arranged sketches, photographs and captions tell Maharshi Karve’s life-story in a seamless manner. There are photographs of historical, heritage and sentimental value highlighting important milestones in his life and work.

[If you want to see my picture, turn to page 98 and have a look at the small boy holding Maharshi Karve’s hands and looking at the camera. I may have been just one and a half years old then and barely able to stand!].

 

This book is indeed a ‘collector’s item’ and was priced at a princely sum of rupees ten at the time of publication.

 

If you wish to learn more about Maharshi Karve and draw inspiration from his life and work, do read these three books.

And please do let us know if you come across literature on the life and work of Maharshi Dhondo Keshav Karve.

 

 

 

VIKRAM KARVE
 

Copyright © Vikram Karve 2010
Vikram Karve has asserted his right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 to be identified as the author of this book review article.

 

vikramkarve@sify.com  

 

http://vikramkarve.sulekha.com

http://www.linkedin.com/in/karve

Time Management – The Value Paradigm

SPEND TIME, ADD VALUE

Time Management, Event Control – The Value Paradigm

By

VIKRAM KARVE 

 

Time is a series or succession of events.

Controlling life means controlling time.

Controlling time means controlling events.

Thus “Time Management” is “Event Control”.

 

Time Management is inextricably linked with event control and boils down to selecting, planning and managing your events or activities.

For every event or activity you do, you spend time and add value – yes, ask yourself, are you adding enough value to your life when you spend a time, a vital resource which once you spend is gone forever and you can never replenish.

This value-addition can be in various domains – material, intellectual, familial, health, spiritual – and spending more time on a certain activity may get you value-addition benefits in the domain of your interest, your cardinal values.

 

Do you value happiness?

If so, how much time are you spending on activities that make you happy?

It is in your hands to exercise control on your activities, actions and events.

If you can control the events in your life you can manage your time and achieve inner peace and happiness. 

Some events are in your control and some are not.

You must learn to distinguish between what you can control and what you cannot control and focus on those events you can control and gradually increase your span of control.

 

As long as you live your life in such a way that your happiness is dependent upon things you cannot control, you will be a puppet in the hands of external circumstances and entities.

Remember happiness happens “inside-out”, not “outside-in” - happiness comes from within you, not to you - it is a product of the mind, of attitude, of thought.

So the best way is to spend maximum time on "high value activities" – the highest value uses of time comprise things which advance your overall purpose in life and things you have always wanted to do.

Introspect, analyze and find out your own high value and low value uses of time.

 

We have all the time in the world.

Reflect on what really matters to you.

Stop doing anything that you do not value or doesn’t make you happy. In case it is not possible to totally stop, reduce the time your spend on such low value activities to a bare minimum and gradually try to phase them out of your life.

Be eccentric in your use of time.

Slow down.

Purge your diary.

Allow an hour each day for exercise that you enjoy; for instance, most people who don’t think they are athletic still enjoy a good walk in the country alone or with a friend.

Dump your cell phone.

As long as it won’t get you fired, stop going to meetings or events that bore you.

Reclaim all your trivial uses of time so you have more time for yourself, people you care about and things you value the most.

Spend Time, Add Value.

 

VIKRAM KARVE

Copyright © Vikram Karve 2010

Vikram Karve has asserted his right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 to be identified as the author of this work.

http://vikramkarve.sulekha.com

http://www.linkedin.com/in/karve

vikramkarve@sify.com

LOVE

LOVE
Ancient Wisdom
A Story
By
VIKRAM KARVE

Here is an inspirational story I read somewhere:

Long time ago in China there was a time when people used to have gardens outside there houses. Almost all the families had one.

This story is about one such ordinary family having a modest house with a garden in front.

The family was going through a tough phase as the husband was not doing well in his career, the family was financially quite badly off and this was causing discord in their home.

One evening the wife was strolling in her garden waiting for the husband to come home from work.

From the corner of her eye she saw three old men standing in the far corner of her garden.

She gradually started walking towards them.

As she came closer she noticed that they were noble looking elderly men with long white beards.

She did not recognize them, but being a kind woman, she said "I don't think I know you, but you must be hungry. Please come in and have a cup of tea and something to eat."

“Is the man of the house home?” they asked.

“No”, the wife said, “my husband is out.”

“Then we cannot come in now”, they replied.

In the meantime her husband returned home from work after another gruelling day.

He was obviously not in a good mood since, as usual; he had a bad day at work.

The wife immediately told him that they had guests standing outside and suggested they invite them.

Initially the husband was reluctant but then he finally agreed after being persuaded by his wife’s insistence, so he said, “Okay, go and tell them that I am home and invite them in.”

The woman went out and invited the men in.

“We do not go into a house together,” they replied.

“Why is that?” asked the puzzled wife.

One of the old men explained: "His name is Wealth," he said pointing to one of his friends, and then pointing to the other one he said, “He is Success, and I am Love. Only one of us will come into your home. It is for you to decide which one of us three you want to invite into your home.”

Seeing the confusion on her face, they told the wife, “We suggest you go in and discuss with your husband which one of us you want in your home.”

The wife went in and told her husband about what the three old men had said.

The husband was overjoyed. “How nice,” he said, “Let us invite Success. He will make me successful in my career, I will no longer be a loser, a failure, and all our troubles will go away.”

But his wife disagreed, and said, “My dear, why don't we invite Wealth? Let him come in and fill our home with plenty of wealth – it will make us rich and prosperous and you won’t even have to work and we all can enjoy throughout our lives.”

Their daughter was listening from the other corner of the house. The daughter wanted peace and harmony in the house so she said: “Let us invite Love. Our home will then be filled with love – that’s what we need most now!”

At first they did not agree with their daughter’s suggestion but the daughter was very stubborn and would not change her mind so the two parents finally gave in and agreed to invite Love.

“Okay, we will do as our daughter says,” the husband said to his wife, “you go out and invite Love to be our guest."

The woman went out and told the three old men, “We wish to invite Love into our home.”

Love stepped forward and the wife started leading him towards her house.

As she conducted Love into her home she noticed that the other two Success and Wealth also followed and entered the house.

Surprised, the lady asked Wealth and Success: “I only invited Love. Why are you two coming in?”

The old men replied together: “If you had invited Wealth or Success, the other two of us would have stayed out, but since you invited Love, wherever he goes, we go with him. When Love comes into your lives, into your home, into your family…Success and Wealth automatically follow.”

I am sure you agree, Dear Reader, wherever there is Love, there is also Wealth and Success, and even if those two, Wealth and Success are not there, it is Love that matters the most…


VIKRAM KARVE


http://vikramkarve.sulekha.com



http://www.linkedin.com/in/karve



vikramkarve@sify.com

LIVING WITH A DOBERMAN

LIVING WITH A DOBERMAN

By

VIKRAM KARVE

Here is an article I wrote a few days ago for a pet website.

A few years ago a cute little baby Doberman girl came into my life. We named her Sherry, Sherry Karve, and she brought a flood of happiness in our lives and I have enjoyed the best moments of my life with my best friend Sherry. 

Actually, Sherry is not a pure Doberman – her mother is a pure Doberman and her father, I suspect, is a Caravan Hound – but let me tell you, being a mixed breed she is a tough, hardy, agile, loyal, loving, intelligent and clean dog who hardly requires any grooming or maintenance and can hold her own ground in any situation owing to her strong and fearless disposition.

So read on Dear Reader, and decide for yourself, whether a Doberman or a Caravan Hound is the dog for you…

HER MASTER’S VOICE

Sherry Karve listening intently to her Dad Vikram [Baba, as she calls him]

Dog's Name & Age: 

Name: Sherry Karve. Age: Hey, you don’t ask a girl her age…!

In a Word, My Doberman Is… 

Loyal, Loving, Strong, Fearless, Fit, Agile, Intelligent, Protective Friend

Best Characteristics of the Breed 

Highly Intelligent, Easily Trained, Superb Guard Dog, Playful Active Loving

Most Challenging Characteristics of the Breed 

One-man dog, does not like to be left alone, aggressive temperament, especially with cats, other dogs, and intruders who try to enter her “territory”, a Doberman needs firm handling at times

When, Where and How I Got My Doberman Pinscher 

Sherry was the runt of the litter - the eleventh pup, female, very weak - they said she would barely survive. My wife took an instant decision - picked her up, brought her home and gave her to me. We looked after her like a baby, child, and brought her up and today she is the apple of our eye, my constant companion, the healthiest, smartest and happiest dog in the neighbourhood.

I'd Describe My Dog As… 

Highly intelligent and active, a bit headstrong, needs firm handling, superb guard dog, very protective of her family and territory, fearless, loyal, playful, wary of strangers and children, very easily trained, responds beautifully, needs lots of exercise, loves long walks, vigorous games, hates to be left alone and wants to be a part of the family, loves human company, a fantastic friend and devoted companion, robust and redoubtable. Her Story:
My name is Sherry. Sherry Karve. I am a naughty young girl and I live with my family in a lovely spacious bungalow surrounded by plenty of greenery. I wake up early in the morning, jump off my sofa, go to my father’s bed, rub my cold wet nose against his hand and give him a loving lick with my warm soft tongue. He grunts and growls and opens his sleepy eyes, and the moment he sees me his face lights up and he lovingly caresses me and says, “Good Morning, Sherry.” Then he gets up from bed and opens the main door to let me jump out into the garden. First I do my ‘little job’ at my favorite place near the mango tree. Then I generally dig with my paws in the soft morning mud and sniff around with my keen beautiful black nose to find out if there are any new morning smells, not forgetting to run and welcome the milkman the moment he comes on his cycle. When I return I find that my father is back in his bed and my mother is up and about. She pats and cuddles me and goes about her business making tea in the kitchen while I loiter around the house. The moment the newspaperman comes on his cycle and shouts ‘paper’, I rush to the gate and fetch the newspaper in my mouth, gripping it just right between my teeth, and hold it up to my horizontal father, who gets up, takes the paper from me and gives me the dog-biscuit he’s been hiding in his hand, as my mother, who has rushed behind me, watches me with loving pride in her eyes. My brother and my sister, who till now were fast asleep in the other room, call out my name – “Sherry! Sherry!” – and as I dart between their beds wagging my tail, they both hug and cuddle me all over saying, “Good Morning, Sherry. Sherry is a good girl!” Everyone is cheerful and happy and my day has begun! My human father named me Sherry – the same name of his earlier canine ‘daughter’. By the way ‘Sherry’ means ‘beloved’ – not the wine drink you are thinking about!

Advice 

• You must be physically fit and ready for outdoor exercise (playing and long walks) with your dog
• You must have plenty of space, a bungalow with a large playing area, garden
• You must devote at least three hours a day exclusively for the dog, follow regular routine without exception
• Doberman is a one-owner dog, likes company of master, is overly protective of master and territory, hates loneliness
• Superb Guard Dog. Does not like strangers, cats, other dogs and children, ready to attack intruders
• Not advisable for families with small children
• Highly intelligent, easy to train
• Ideal Companion and Friend

A Doberman requires companionship and hates to be left alone. She requires firm handling and lots of playing and physical activity. Also a Doberman tends to be a highly loyal "one-man dog" and loves me more than the other family members and even gets jealous at times.

The only grooming I do to Sherry is to give her a nice bath once a fortnight followed by a nice vigorous brushing. She is a very clean dog who grooms and licks herself clean every evening.

I love my cute Doberman girl Sherry. I haven't docked her tail or cropped her ears or clip her nails as I feel it is cruel and unnecessary.

My pet Doberman Sherry has given me loyal jovial companionship and unquestioning affection forever, filled me with buoyant happiness and my life has become bright and breezy.  I love to come home to the enthusiastic greeting and genuine welcome that Sherry gives me each time I and this fills me with supreme love and joy.

Do you want to experience this highest form of love, agape love? Simple, just get yourself a pet Doberman, a nice cute little puppy, and make a commitment to look after it as your own child. You will learn The Art of Friendship from your Doberman.  There is nothing to surpass the strong affection, warm attachment, unselfish loyalty, total trust and true friendship of a pet dog who will love you unconditionally for its entire life. 

Your girlfriend or boyfriend may dump you, your spouse may divorce you, your children may abandon you, your parents may disown you, your relatives may distance themselves from you, your colleagues may shun you, your neighbours may ostracize you, but your Doberman will always love you, be loyal to you and never leave your side.

So tell me Dear Reader, are you ready to live with a Doberman…?

VIKRAM KARVE    

Copyright © Vikram Karve 2010

Vikram Karve has asserted his right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 to be identified as the author of this work. 

http://vikramkarve.sulekha.com 

http://www.linkedin.com/in/karve

vikramkarve@sify.com

HOW TO DELIVER A LECTURE

PUBLIC SPEAKING

A Teaching Story

By

VIKRAM KARVE

Whenever I begin to deliver a lecture, before I start speaking, I tell myself this apocryphal story:

A renowned Management Guru entered a large lecture hall to deliver a lecture on Motivation to the employees of a large industrial organization.

To his horror he found that the large hall was empty except for a young man seated in the front row.

The Management Guru asked the solitary audience who he was.

“I am a Cook in the Industrial Canteen,” said the young man.

The Management Guru, pondering whether to speak or not, asked the Cook, “You are the only one here. Do you think I should speak or not? Tell me frankly, should I deliver my lecture?”

The Cook said to the Management Guru: “Respected Sir, I am a simple man and do not understand these things.  But, if I came into the Dining Hall and saw only one man sitting there, I would certainly give him food.”

The Management Guru took the Cook’s insightful answer to heart and with full gusto began to deliver his lecture.

He spoke passionately for over two hours delving in great detail on each and every aspect of the theory and practice of Motivation.

Immensely proud after his virtuoso performance, the Management Guru felt highly elated, on top of the world, and wanted his audience to confirm how fantastically illuminating and effective his lecture had been.

So the Management Guru pompously asked the Cook, “How did you like my lecture?” 

The Cook answered, “Respected Sir, I told you already that I am a simple man and do not understand these things very well.  However, if I came into the dining hall and found only one man sitting there I would feed him, but I wouldn’t give him all the food I had prepared in the kitchen.”


VIKRAM KARVE

Copyright © Vikram Karve 2010

Vikram Karve has asserted his right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 to be identified as the author of this work.

 

http://vikramkarve.sulekha.com

vikramkarve@sify.com 

Appetite for a Stroll

SHOR Paradigm - An Effective Decision Management Model in Situations of Uncertainty

Whenever you are confronted with a crisis, a conflict, a disaster, or any decision making situation, personal or professional, in situations of uncertainty, you must remember that between Stimulus and Response there lies a space, and in that space lies our freedom to choose a course of action, and in that choice lies our wisdom

SHOR Paradigm

By

VIKRAM KARVE


"The man who insists upon seeing with perfect clearness before he decides, never decides" …Frederic Amiel

Decision-making is so pervasive that everyone, professionally or personally, is involved with making a variety of decisions.

In today's fast-moving world, the timing of a decision is of paramount importance in many decision-making situations.

In real life even the "perfect" decision may not be optimal if it is made too late.

Information is a vital resource in decision-making.

One of the most important characteristics of successful managers is the ability to make the correct decision when confronted with imperfect or insufficient information (i.e.) Decision-making under conditions of uncertainty.

In the context of decision-processing, two realms or domains of uncertainty are:

1. Information Input Uncertainty which creates the need for hypothesis generation and evaluation;

2. Consequence-of-Action Uncertainty which creates the need for option generation and evaluation.

THE SHOR PARADIGM

A decision taxonomy: The Stimulus – Hypothesis – Options – Response (SHOR)paradigm, formulated by Wohl, is useful in such decision situations.

The SHOR paradigm represents a qualitative, descriptive, model as distinct from a quantitative, predictive model, and comprises the following primary decision-making task elements:

S: Stimulus Input Data Processing
H: Hypothesis Generation, Hypothesis Evaluation, Information Processing [What is?]
O: Option Generation, Option Evaluation, Decision-Making [What if?]
R: Response Output Action

The SHOR paradigm is basically an extension of the classical Stimulus – Response (SR) Paradigm of behaviourist psychology.

The SHOR paradigm provides explicitly for the necessity to deal with information input uncertainty and consequence-of-action uncertainty, and helps us understand some of the peculiar human factors that affect the quality of the decision-making and answering questions such as:

What makes some decision-makers perform better than others, especially in placing high-value assets at risk, in business?

What are the sources and dimensions of "poor" performance?


HUMAN ERRORS IN DECISION-MAKING

Based on the SHOR Model, human errors in decision-making appear to lie in four domains:

(S) Stimulus: "I didn't know…"
(H) Hypothesis: "I didn't understand…"
(O) Options: "I didn't consider…"
(R) Response: "I didn't act…"

Stimulus based errors of the type "I didn't know…" result from lack or inadequacy of information, the true inability to obtain information.

"I didn't understand…" is the fundamental result of information input uncertainty, while "I didn't consider…" is the product of consequence-of-action uncertainty.

It is possible to have accessed all significant information, to have developed the correct hypothesis and to have selected the best option and yet fail to take appropriate action.

The two possible reasons for the "I didn't act…" type of response error are:

1. Paralysis: This is a complete failure to act, the pathological ‘observation of an inevitable course' without intervention. It is caused by an over-riding emotional struggle in which some internal factor is being placed in conflict with the course of action selected by the decision-maker. The final scene in the evergreen classic film The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957) exemplifies such a situation.

2. Misjudgement: The decision-maker correctly decides what to do but errs in either or both of the two dimensions – how [the specifics of the action] or when [the timing of the action].

Prediction of the critical consequences of inaction may be of some help in dealing with paralysis whilst the ability to perform sensitivity analyses may assist in alleviating misjudgement.

Any Decision-Maker [and designers of decision proccesors and aids] must address the four cardinal types of errors epitomized by the SHOR paradigm: "I didn't know…", "I didn't understand…", "I didn't consider…" and "I didn't act…"




DECISION MAKING IN UNCERTAINTY

In the context of decision-making in uncertainty, the conflict theory paradigm developed by Janis and Mann may be apt.

This paradigm postulates five patterns of coping behaviour which tends to occur in such situations:

1. Unconflicted Adherence in which the uncertain, or risk, information is ignored and the decision-maker complacently decides to continue whatever he has been doing.

2. Unconflicted Change to a new course of action, where the decision-maker uncritically adopts whichever new course of action is most salient, obvious or strongly recommended.

3. Defensive Avoidance in which the decision-maker evades conflict by procrastinating, shifting responsibility to someone else, or constructing wishful rationalisations and remaining selectively inattentive to corrective information.

4. Hypervigilance wherein the decision-maker searches frantically for a way out of the dilemma and impulsively seizes upon a hastily contrived solution that seems to promise immediate relief, overlooking the full range of consequences of his choice because of emotional excitement, repetitive thinking and cognitive constriction. In its most extreme form hypervigilance is referred to as "panic".

5. Concerned Vigilance in which the decision-maker optimally processes pertinent information, generates and evaluates hypotheses and options before selecting a response as characterised by the SHOR paradigm.
In many real-life situations a decision-maker cannot always keep waiting until the entire information-input and consequence-of-action conditions are known a priori with certainty.

In most cases there is no such thing as "perfect" certainty.

If a single most important characteristic is crucial to a decision-maker in any field, it is the ability to make optimal decisions in conditions of uncertainty.

Qualitative descriptive models like the SHOR paradigm may prove useful in such situations.


To quote Frederic Amiel once again: "The man who insists upon seeing with perfect clearness before he decides, never decides".



VIKRAM KARVE

Copyright © Vikram Karve 2010
Vikram Karve has asserted his right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 to be identified as the author of this work.

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ENGINEERING MUSINGS

Science, Technology and Engineering

“Engineering” Musings

By 

VIKRAM KARVE 

If you look around you, you will find students pursuing studies for degrees in Science (B.Sc., B.S., M.Sc., M.S), degrees in Technology (B.Tech. / M.Tech.) or degrees in Engineering (B.E. / M.E.).

Tell me, do you know what is the difference between Science, Technology and Engineering…or can you tell me what is the difference between a Scientist, a Technologist and an Engineer…? 

Let me try to tell you, in as simple a way as possible...

SCIENCE and the SCIENTIST

The principal goal of a Scientist is to publish a paper.

Now-a-days, the sheer manner in which so many papers are churned out it seems that many papers are seen to be written, not written to be seen.

 
Of course, a genuine Scientist will try and ensure that the paper must be written to be seen and not seen to be written. Science is the reasoned investigation or study of natural phenomena with the objective of discovering new principles and knowledge of natural phenomena.

TECHNOLOGY and the TECHNOLOGIST

The principal goal of a Technologist is to produce some physical change in the world. 

Technology is the practical application of science.

Technology includes the skill, technique and knowledge of the manipulation of nature for human purposes, using scientific results and knowledge.

ENGINEERING and the ENGINEER 

The principal goal of an Engineer is to design, create and produce new tools, machines and systems for practical human means by exploiting technology.

        In order to exploit technology, the engineer applies scientific principles to practical ends such as the design, manufacture, and operation of efficient and economical structures, machines, processes and systems. Thus, Engineering is the professional art of using technology (the practical application of science) for achieving the optimum conversion of the resources of nature for the benefit of humankind.

CONCLUSION

In a nutshell, a Scientist studies nature, a Technologist manipulates nature, and an Engineer exploits technology for human purposes.

While Scientists may, at times, may conduct scientific studies for the sake of discovery, Engineers and Technologists always try to have in mind the ultimate benefit of humankind and results of their work are invariably beneficial for human purposes.

Engineering is the art of optimally using technology and is primarily concerned with how to direct to useful and economical ends the natural phenomena which scientists discover and formulate into acceptable. Engineering therefore requires the creative imagination to innovatively apply technology in order to obtain useful applications of natural phenomena. It seeks newer, cheaper, better technologies of using natural sources of energy and materials.
So it looks like the Engineer is the one who is most useful to society and humankind, isn't it?

Dear Reader, do you agree?

Please do give your views  - I will look forward to and appreciate your comments.

Now I tried to tell you in as simple a way as possible, but if you prefer Gobbledygook read on – The American Engineers' Council for Professional Development has defined Engineering as follows: [Engineering is] The creative application of scientific principles to design or develop structures, machines, apparatus, or manufacturing processes, or works utilizing them singly or in combination; or to construct or operate the same with full cognizance of their design; or to forecast their behavior under specific operating conditions; all as respects an intended function, economics of operation and safety to life and property.

I think I’ll end with a quote: "A good scientist is a person with original ideas. A good engineer is a person who makes a design that works with as few original ideas as possible. There are no prima donnas in engineering." - Freeman Dyson

VIKRAM KARVE 

http://www.linkedin.com/in/karve 

http://vikramkarve.sulekha.com 

vikramkarve@sify.com

THE CRACKED POT - A Teaching Story

THE CRACKED POT

A Teaching Story

by

VIKRAM KARVE

Let me tell you one of my favourite teaching stories. 

This one is for parents, teachers, mentors… especially those who want to achieve their unfulfilled, unrealised and unrealistic ambitions vicariously through their children and protégés and hence put a lot of pressure and drive the poor kids, overwhelm them with high expectations…and everyone wants their kids to stand first (winner takes all and loser is left standing small philosophy).

This story is also for those perfectionists, at the workplace and at home, who expect everyone to be perfect like themselves and this quest for perfection makes everyone’s life hell…

Read on…

A water bearer had two large pots, one hung on each end of a pole which he carried across his neck. 

One of the pots had a crack in it, and while the other pot was perfect and always delivered a full portion of water. 

At the end of the long walk from the stream to the master's house, the cracked pot always arrived only half full. 

For two years this went on daily, with the water bearer delivering only one and a half pots full of water to his master's house. 

Of course, the perfect pot was proud of its accomplishments, fulfilled in the design for which it was made.

But the poor cracked pot was ashamed of its own imperfection, and miserable that it was unable to accomplish what it had been made to do.

After two years of enduring this bitter shame, the contrite cracked pot spoke to the water bearer one day by the stream, “I am ashamed of myself and I apologize to you.”

“Why are you feeling so guilty, so penitent, so repentant …?” the water bearer asked the sad cracked pot, “Tell me, what are you so ashamed of…?”

“I feel sorry that for these past two years I have been able to deliver only half my load because this crack in my side causes water to leak out all the way back to your master's house. Because of my flaws, you have to do extra work and you don't get full value from your efforts,” the pot said full of remorse.

The water bearer felt sorry for the old cracked pot, and in his compassion he said, “As we return to the master's house, I want you to notice the beautiful flowers along the path.”

Indeed, as they went up the hill, the old cracked pot took notice of the sun warming the beautiful wild flowers on the side of the path, and was consoled somewhat.

But at the end of the trail, the cracked pot still felt remorse, shame and a feeling of guilt because it had leaked out half its water load, and so again the pot apologized to the bearer for its failure.

The bearer said to the cracked pot, “Did you not notice that there were flowers only on your side of the path, and not on the other pot's side…? That is because I have always known about your flaw and I took advantage of it. I planted flower seeds on your side of the path, and every day while we've walked back from the stream, you've watered them. For two years I have been able to pick these beautiful flowers to decorate my master's table. Without you being just the way you are, he would not have this beauty, these lovely flowers, to grace his house.” 

Moral of the Story:

There are no winners and there are no losers – everyone is a winner in his or her own way. Each of us has our own unique flaws. We are all cracked pots. But it is the cracks and flaws we each have that make our lives together so very interesting and rewarding. You've just got to take each person for what and who they are, and look for the good in them – most importantly, we must look for the winner within us, maybe hiding deep inside our own selves.

There is one more thing I want to say.

Most of us seem too self-conscious about our weaknesses and spend too much energy and resources in the process of trying to correct our imperfections and hence neglect our strengths.

Why not forget our weaknesses, our imperfections, and focus all our resources on improving our strong points…?

That is what great persons do…they just ignore their frailties and concentrate all their efforts on enhancing and bettering their strong points, their forte, and achieve great heights…so that’s the way to excellence – nourish your qualities and ignore your weaknesses and be a winner…it works…you can take my word for it…

All the Best

VIKRAM KARVE 

http://vikramkarve.sulekha.com 

http://www.linkedin.com/in/karve 

vikramkarve@sify.com

CREATIVE THINKING

ACADEMIC DUEL  -  Scientist versus Philosopher

A cerebral game of wits

By

VIKRAM KARVE

A learned foreign scientist said he wanted to challenge the wits of the most knowledgeable person in the city.

The townsfolk called for Mulla Nasrudin, the wise philosopher.

When Mulla Nasrudin arrived, the foreigner drew a circle in the sand with a stick.

Nasrudin frowned, took the stick, and divided the circle in two.

The foreigner then drew another line through the circle that divided it into four equal parts.

Nasrudin pretended to gather three parts toward himself and to push the remaining part toward the foreigner.

The foreigner then raised his arm above his head, and wiggling his extended fingers, he slowly lowered his hand to the ground.

Nasrudin did exactly the same thing but in the opposite direction – he moved his hand from the ground to a height above his head.

And, that completed the foreigner's tests, who bowed his head in deference before Mulla Nasrudin who smiled cannily at having won the academic duel and then walked away.

Later the renowned foreign scientist explained his game of wits privately to the city council..."Your Mulla Nasruddin is a very clever man," he began, "I showed him that the world is round – and your Mulla Nasrudin confirmed it but indicated that 'it also has an equator'.

Then when I divided the world into 4 parts, he indicated that it is '3 parts water and 1 part land', which I can't deny.

Finally, I asked him ‘what is the origin of rain’ and Nasrudin answered quite rightly that 'water rises as steam to the sky, makes cloud, and later returns to earth as rain.'"

When they got him alone, the ordinary townsfolk asked Mulla Nasrudin what the challenge was all about? 

Nasrudin said, "Well, that other fellow first asked me, 'suppose we have this round tray of halwa’?

So, I said, 'You can't eat it all by yourself, you know. So, I'll take half.'

Then that haughty foreigner chap got a little rude, saying, 'What will you do if I cut the halwa into 4 parts?'

That upset me, so I said, 'In that case, I'll take three of the parts and only leave you one!'

That softened the impertinent foreigner scientist a bit, I think, because then, with the motion of his hand, he said, 'Well, I suppose I could add some walnuts and pistachio nuts on top of the halwa.’

I cooled down too and said, 'That's fine with me, but you'll need to cook it under full flame, because an ash fire just won't be hot enough'.

When I said that, the scientist knew I was right, so he gave up the game, and conceded defeat..."

Thus Mulla Nasrudin, the Philosopher, defeated the Scientist, in the battle of wits... intuitive right brain creative thinking always prevails over logical left brain analysis, isn't it...?

VIKRAM KARVE

http://vikramkarve.sulekha.com

http://www.linkedin.com/in/karve

vikramkarve@sify.com

The Art of Debate

Battle of Wits
A Teaching Story
By
VIKRAM KARVE

Some students asked me the meaning of the term COGNITION.
As I was in no mood to pontificate, I told them this story:

Once upon a time only two monks were permitted to stay in a Zen Temple.


If any other wandering monk wanted to stay in the temple he had to engage in a battle of wits and defeat a resident monk in debate.


If the new monk won the argument he took the place of the defeated resident monk who then had to leave the temple and move on. If the resident monk won he continued to stay in the temple and the wandering monk had to go away.



In a temple in the northern part of Japan two brother monks were dwelling together.
The elder one was learned, but the younger one was stupid and had just one eye. 



A wandering monk came and asked for lodging, properly challenging them to a debate about spirituality. 



The elder brother, tired that day from much studying, told the younger one to take up the challenge.


“I am tired and want to sleep,” the elder learned monk told his stupid one-eyed younger brother, “so you go and request the dialogue in silence.”

So the young stupid one-eyed monk and the stranger went to the shrine and sat down to debate in silence.

Shortly afterwards the traveller rose and went in to the elder brother, bowed his head in reverence, and said: “Your young brother is a brilliant scholar. He thoroughly defeated me.”

“Relate the dialogue to me,” the astonished elder monk said to the visitor.

“Well,” explained the traveller, “first I held up one finger, representing Buddha, the enlightened one. So he held up two fingers, signifying Buddha and his Teaching. I held up three fingers, representing Buddha, his Teaching, and his Followers, living the harmonious life. In reply he shook his clenched fist in my face, indicating that all three come from one realization. Thus he won and so I have no right to remain here.”


With this, the traveller bowed and left.

“Where is that fellow?” asked the younger monk, running up to his elder brother.

“I understand you won the debate,” the older learned monk said.

“Debate? What debate? There was no debate and I won nothing. I am going to beat him up and thrash the hell out of him,” the young monk shouted in anger.

“Beat him up?” the perplexed elder monk said, “tell me what happened.”

This is how the stupid one-eyed younger brother described his version of the silent debate:
“The minute he saw me he held up one finger, insulting me by insinuating that I have only one eye. Since he was a stranger I thought I would be polite to him, so I held up two fingers, congratulating him that he has two eyes. Then the impolite scoundrel held up three fingers, suggesting that between us we only have three eyes. So I got mad and started to punch him, but he ran out and that ended the debate.”

Dear Reader, I am sure you are now enlightened about the concept of cognition. If not, I’ll have to tell you another story!

VIKRAM KARVE

http://vikramkarve.sulekha.com

http://www.linkedin.com/in/karve

vikramkarve@sify.com