Indian Institute of Finance hosted the 23rd IIF Webinar series on “Essence of Life and Growth” by Dr Chandrakant S. Pandav, Member National Council for India Nutritional Challenges; Former Professor & Head, Centre for Community Medicine, All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), INDIA; Chairperson, The Coalition for Food and Nutrition Security (CFNS), INDIA; President, Indian Coalition for Control of Iodine Deficiency Disorders (ICCIDD), INDIA; Regional Coordinator, Iodine Global Network (IGN), South Asia. The Webinar was moderated by Prof. Aman Agarwal, Professor of Finance & Dean (IR) Indian Institute of Finance (www.iif.edu) and Executive Editor, Finance India (www.financeindia.org). The Webinar was attended by over 48 global participants from USA, Germany, Japan, Uzbekistan, Malaysia, India and others.
Dr. Pandav said life is a triangle. Unless and until the three vertices of the triangle which is knowledge, social consciousness and voice and statesmanship do not come together there will be disharmony. While formal education from prestigious institutions play an important role in shaping us as a person, lessons learnt from life and from experiences and from our gurus is of paramount importance to give it depth and balance. All answers lie in our culture, religion, mythologies and spiritual endowment. The Rig Veda in particular has solutions to many problems even to COVID-19 pandemic. Indeed the concept of Swarajya and Gram Swarajya now need to be practiced with vigor feels Dr. Pandav.
According to Dr. Pandav, the COVID-19 pandemic should not be looked upon as a burden but with positivism. The time has come when the focus should change from good health to holistic health which means emotional, spiritual, social, mental, psychological wellbeing. A lot of hidden treasure lies in our ancient wisdom, practices and in Ayurveda said Dr. Pandav. The new norm is to fold hands and greet on one hand to stop the spreading of the virus and traditionally to activate the nerves and energy of the body in the form of an asana and further to greet the soul residing in another being with respect. This also the time to learn new skills and be more productive. It has given us the opportunity to spend more quality time with our parents, family members and to emphasize on compassion, empathy and reaching out to those in need. The essence of life is to be grateful for what we have and to help others with compassion. God has given us two hands- the left for doing for ourselves (protect ourselves from the disease) and the right is stronger to do for others (protect others and make their lives better) said Dr. Pandav.
Dr. Pandav feels that the pandemic has been overrated and exaggerated. Viruses were there and as long as life is on earth bacteria and virus will continue to be there. What also needs to be redefined is the concept of social distancing said Dr. Pandav. He was confidence that life and business will be normal soon. We must keep positive attitude and work constructively together. It is important to learn to Celebrate life of what we have and what we can do to make it better. He appreciated the efforts of Indian Institute of Finance for bringing these series of Webinars full of positive thoughts of personalities from around the World at one platform to enrich human life and mindset for sustained growth and enriched living.
Large number of Questions from amongst over 48 participants were asked by Pro. Asoke K Laha (Founder and CEO, Interra IT, USA); Dr. Sonali Patnaik (Biologist, INDIA); Prof. Dr. Junzo Watada (Waseda University, JAPAN & Petronas University, MALAYSIA); Dr. Sujeet Ranjan (INDIA); Dr. Ravinder Reddy Tanidella (Principal, Hyderbad, INDIA); Mrs. Debarati Das (MBF Graduate, IIF, INDIA) and many others.
Indian Institute of Finance has initiated the interactive IIF Webinar Series on “Essence of Life and Growth” with the prime objective to bring forth positivity of life based on the life experiences one has gained over 3-4 decades of personal life experiences, professional life, the nation, the economy and the world at large, having seen different colours of life based on ups and downs one has witnessed.
