Dear all, We are delighted to share the sixth issue of OM RISE Magazine with you. For this issue, the theme is Managing VUCA (Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity, Ambiguity). VUCA can be felt at an individual level as well as in organisations and society at large. Some experience VUCA as crisis and may lose their perspective […]
Day: June 20, 2023
Signs of Hope in the Present Crisis: Perspectives from Hinduism
The past months have shown how vulnerable human life can be. Many are faced with the harsh consequences of a lockdown due to the pandemic. This lockdown is not a local but a global phenomenon. Some countries are still hit hard, other countries seem to have the situation somewhat under control, for the time being. […]
Dying and Living on
असतो मा सद्गमय । तमसो मा ज्योतिर्गमय । मृत्योर्माऽमृतं गमय ॥ asato mā sadgamaya, tamaso mā jyotirgamaya, mṛtyormā’mṛtaṃ gamaya. From falsehood lead me to truth, From darkness lead me to light, From death lead me to immortality. Bṛhadāraṇyaka Upaniṣad (1.3.28.) If there is one certainty in life, it is that we are merely mortal. And […]
Understanding and Managing VUCA
With the COVID-19 pandemic, the world has experienced high levels of VUCA (Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity and Ambiguity) on the one hand, and on the other hand, a total interconnectedness. The term VUCA was first coined at the Army War College, which is the graduate school for future generals (Johansen, Euchner, 2013). In the management context, […]
Managing VUCA: Gāndhī’s Experimentation
This article examines an interesting question: What lessons can we learn from Gāndhī’s experimental approach to help us cope with COVID-19? Mahātmā Gāndhī, for example, tapped into indigenous sources of knowledge to work for the welfare of society. One of his main approaches to putting his learnings into practice was experimentation or exploration of his […]
The Phenomenon of Entrainment in Managing VUCA
I am confident that we have all experienced the phenomenon of entrainment in daily life. Think about the experiences of ‘being on the same wavelength’, or ‘being in sync’. They typically generate an elevated emotion or feeling. Also physiologically, many of us have witnessed the adjustment of our bodies that occurs when we change time […]
The First Hindu Temple as a Vaccination Site: An Expression of Community Building and Hope
I am a medical student in my fifth year of my studies. I have one more year after this and it is dawning on me that I am getting closer and closer to being a doctor. It is a strange time for the world and an especially strange time for doctors and medical students. Many […]
Euthanasia in Hinduism as an Alternative to Endless Suffering (Part 2)
We find a strong reference to euthanasia as a solution to unbearable suffering at the end of the Mahābhārata. The Kauravas, who personify injustice and wickedness, are defeated by the Pāṇḍavas who personify justice and goodness. King Dhṛtarāṣṭra, akin to the Kauravas and the symbol of ignorance, weeps and wails over his sons and family […]
Brahma Muhūrta (ब्राह्म मुहूर्त) and Entrainment
As per the Hindu scriptures, our body shares a divine connection with the universe. This belief manifests in several practices of Hindu culture. These practices or rituals are largely governed by the Pañcāṃga (Hindu Calendar) in Bhāratīya (Indian) tradition. The calculation of time in this calendar is based on the natural cycles or movement of […]
Book Review: Ken jezelf: Het einde van je nepik
Gerrit Broekstra. 2020. Ken Jezelf: Het einde van je nepik (Know Yourself: The End of the fake I, Dutch translation of the Aṣṭāvakra-Gītā) Leidschendam: Uitgeverij Quist. ISBN 978-94-91918-24-7. Pp. 448. Some classical Sanskrit texts can be translated dozens of times without losing their timeless relevance when a new translation appears. The best example is the […]