Kuolachalie Seyie
Considering the present competitive globalised world, our only hope and future lies in our originality and integrity, be a different person, start making the more excellent choices in every area of our life, even the mundane. Never make poor and blunder choices, instead be always aware that we are good representative of the Almighty God on earth carrying out His purposes successfully. The theme for today’s general conference and the foundation day of Khonoma Students’ Union is: Examine the past glories and strive for excellence. If this is to be theme in our life, then our declaration should be: we have a positive mind filled with good thoughts for a life of excellence, not thoughts for defeats and evils. By faith in the Lord we are able, equipped, empowered since we are anointed; our thoughts are guided by God’s direction in every detail. No obstacles whatever it may be can defeat us because our minds are programmed for excellence, integrity and victory. Let’s check ourselves, is this our true declaration? Then we will be able to overcome the strong wall of Jericho in our lives as we are sure of God’s favour hand upon us.
Our forefathers firmly stood by their originality and integrity, they were courageous, fear and dependency were unknown to them, were strong at heart as well as of body, master of themselves, landlords, hardworking, hospitable and completely independent making many heroic histories of their time. Most important of all was that they would not only work for the whole day but also work in moonlight, almost all the time in empty stomach. Then they would give different sequence grades of feasts, firstly to their near relatives than to the whole village. Those feasts are known as (1) “Lhiganyi” (2) “Kriegagei” (3) “Phichüpelhie” (4) “Kesiemero” (5) “Thinuoge” (6) “Rühe” (7) “Chücha” (8) “Chüchacha” (9) “Chüchacha la” (10) “zhachϋlie” (11) “Lishülie (12) “Kerhitsiechü” (13)“Rüziehi“ (14) “Seikichü” (15) “Khwehouhou” (16) “Ketsietha” (17) “Kerhitsiechü la” (18) “Cuzalie”. These grading feasts for patriotism and status in the society were their common characteristics which speaks the volumes of their integrity, excellence, honour and victorious life they had in the past.
In today’s world also if we posses this quality of integrity and patriotism we will have no difficulty to sincerely commit 12-17 hours of study a day as a student without complaining of our food, cloth or institution, be it in Nagaland or outside of Nagaland. In such a case whatever we do, we will be able to do it, giving our best efforts and do it as if we are doing it for the Lord, in going the extra mile to achieve for excellence with integrity and patriotism so as to be successful in life with abundance, survived in the competitive globalised world. Our Jericho wall or Goliath in life today is not poverty but our lack of attitude, commitment and integrity.
I am from New Socüno of Medziphema area. A neighbouring village of ours has 101 houses, who sold out all their lands mostly for their children education, today only 2 houses own TRC Fields (TRCF). Similarly 4 other villages also has 180 houses with only 7 TRCF, 150 houses with 5 TRCF, 104 houses with 4 or 5 TRCF, 160 houses with 10 – 15 TRCF. Other villages in Medziphema, Chümukedima, Dimapur & Jalukie areas are a little better. They think that they can no longer survive with old traditional method of unscientific cultivation. But in most of all cases of their attempts to change their professions by investing their money on their children or on any other professions fails. This habit simply left them without any profession or work to be relied open. Rich buyers of their lands simply replace them with Mias and Biharis to cultivate the same. The villagers were well to do landlords about 10 to 20 years ago. Try to imagine their average family consisting of 7 – 8 members without any profession or work to do. We have enough experiences that the empty handed Nagas either comes out with daos or guns; as such our land today is full of extortions, kidnappings and fratricides. I am not shocked that the people in the USA did not vote for Barack Obama to power, they knew him who he is but they voted for their own jobs reservations and economic policy of Obama. Their jobs and professions are on great threat, robbed by other nationalities. This is globalisation.
Globalisation in short means liberalisation of almost everything without boundaries, decontrol with minimum reservations, unlimited competitions where the fittest only survived. You may or may not like it but globalisation has come to stay and it will stay. This globalisation is coupled with rampant corruptions as a result we can clearly see that almost everywhere, too much money and lands are chasing too few people in a shocking manner, creating terrible imbalances between the haves and have not’s in the society.
Globalisation will take you to the top in no time, provided you have capabilities or specialisation in something either big or small but globalisation will overwhelmed, stumped and crushed you to the ground if you just slumber. On the other side of globalisation, let’s say for example TAMU, a small town between Manipur and Myanmar alone or Moreh can provide unlimited thousands of self employments to the adventurous and aspiring youths. By becoming stockists, distributors, transporters, whole sellers and retailers throughout the country, by dealing with competitive goods coming from various foreign countries through TAMU by roads.
I believe the solution lies in our declaration aforesaid as much as the wise advise of a top business consultant of USA. He tells us to be as hardworking as other successful people, eat and sleep as less as successful people but think and act as much as successful people and come out of above average otherwise this globalised world has no time to listen anyone complaining of high living cost. Henry Ford also said “The harder you work the luckier you get”. Commitment and integrity is the need of the hour to solve our problems of the day. I met a big business man of Dimapur in Dimapur airport after 15 years, for few minutes, we had exchange our mobile phone numbers and I enquire about one of his Naga business partners he said “He has cheated me badly” then when I enquire about another man of his partner “Oh! He has kidnapped me” was his reply. These behaviours of ours if not immediately checked, our community is under great threat to become a very cheap society. Only few Nagas are spoiling the image of the whole Nagas, I am sure we do not behave like them but are we displaying our true identity, integrity and originality that can cover the doing of such minorities and regain our reputation? Lie is a lie, big or small and theft is theft, whether it is one rupee or a billion rupees.
God our creator wants us to be people of integrity, people of honour, people who are trustworthy so that his goodness and mercy is always upon each one of us. A person of integrity is open and honest. He does not have any hidden agendas or ulterior motives. A person of integrity is true to himself and is true to his words and commitments as our forefather did. No legal contract is needed with him: his word is enough bound for others. People of integrity are the same in private as they are in public. If we will commit our time and heart in our studies or professions with the standard of our forefathers in integrity and originality in mind God promises to reward us with abundance, we shall not be the tails but the heads. If you want to live your best and successful life now, start aiming for excellence and integrity in your life by enlarging your vision, doing a little bit more than you are required to do as a habit at all cost and always. Go the extra mile in the original qualities of our forefathers aforesaid to sow good seeds for the future generations to heal our land and shine in the globalised competitive world.
(The above article was presented during the Khonoma Students’ Union Foundation Day on 10th January 2013, Khonoma)
