Rtn. Deepak Nath Chalise Vice President RCKNE

     We have often heard general people talking about Rotary as an organization of Rich People. I thought a lot about it and came to conclusion that it is partially right. I would like to share my thoughts with all fellow Rotarians. Meaning of being a Rotarian, a part of the massive movement worldwide and a huge organization called Rotary revolves around the interpretation of the word Rich. In Rotary "Rich" does not only mean having lot of money. I t means having richness in life and its perception, broad acceptance of the joy in giving and sharing for novel causes which contributes to ameliorate other's sorrow and boosts human dignity.
    There are rich people who spend lot of money (in Rupees or US dollar) throwing parties only to satisfy their ego and show off that they are rich in terms of money, but rarely wish to part away with small amount for the good of other needy people. Only having dhan (material property) does not mean in anyway that people wi ll feel the satisfaction in reducing other's sorrow by giving a small portion of one's dhan, if one is not matched with man (soft heart). People with man do great many things give and share for the good of desperate people. At the same time, just having man may not be adequate to contribute to services towards the humanity; one needs to have a little dhan too. But the magnitude of the dhan required is not huge that professional people having a reasonable job can not manage it.
     If it required only millionaires to become a Rotarian, the growth of Rotary from few members in the first club at Illianois , USA in 1905 to more than 1.2 million today would have been impossible. I could never have been able to join .the Rotary. The growth was possible because the Rotary is |a movement of people - dreamers and doers. Rotarians dreamt of a Polio Free Globe, did whatever was within ; their capacity, networked with others, raised colossal amount i of fund by consolidating small giving too; and behold they did it, a dream realized - now the world is free from Polio and nobody should suffer from this formidable disease anymore. Imagine the happiness in the Man of a giver, whose small donation has contributed to the lessening of suffering to the humanity itself. Yes, this is the type of richness that is part of the Rotary movement.
     Rl President Wilfred J Wilkinson's words at the opening session of 2007 International Assembly at San Diego while unveiling the 2007-08 Rl Theme "Rotary Shares" are:"Sharing does not mean giving away what you have to spare, what you do not need for yourself; sharing means giving yourself selflessly for the good of others." Let us try to apprehend the great philosophy within those words. Link it with Hindu Adhyafma (Spiritualism) and one realizes that it always promotes living life for others and giving oneself for the sake of whole mankind (for that matter for the sake of all living things). It always links one's Karma (deeds), which, if they are good, leads to Mokschha (Nirvana).
     A person who dedicates oneself for the good of others is always equipped with better opportunity to draw respec t from outsiders than anyone who does well only for oneself. At the same time, it is a truism that these people get much more self-satisfaction from inside, hence are happier at the end of the day. For a person who understands this aspect of life, it is very easy to become a Rotarian. This attitude is seen in people, who are rich in man first. Such people easily manage the dhan part.
     World is a heterogeneous place wi th people at various level of development in terms of morality, education, ethics and proper ty. There are multitude of people suffering from diseases, hunger, exclusion and what not? Few are very rich in terms of money indulging in over consumption. Critical mass in between these two groups comprises ones who try their best to bridge the overwhelming gap between them. Ma jority of Rotarians belong to this middle group. If someone in the Rotary fraternity is from higher echelon of the society with both man and dhan, who is willing to help the downtrodden ones...what is wrong with it? Hence, i t will be unjust to label the Rotary as an organization of only people, who are rich (in terms of money).

IPP Sudip K Sharma

     Somebody wrote in my computer while I was not there, but it is great! So I am sharing the thoughts with you all here because it is so logical and timely at the present context o f our thoughts and work. Now let us see what is this all about...Sharing,
     Of course, he speaks about sharing as the greatest attribute of Rotarians. Anyone can share. The essence of sharing is not what is being shared, but how much of what one has is being shared. The best motivation for sharing and for practicing sharing is that the more one shares, the more one has. More often than not, it is on ly by giving up something that one would find what one really needs. It follows that sharing is not the exclusive domain of the haves, the rich and famous, the wise and erudi te, and so on. The Bible tells of Jesus commending a poor widow's giving of a very small sum as the biggest and greatest gift; and the Bible also tells us how one should give.
     Sharing requires courage; the courage to give some thing that others may not take, or the courage to accept rejection. In the end, it is the volition or motivation of the sharing that counts. Spiri tual sharing often exposes one's apparent weaknesses for public examination; and what some would argue makes one vulnerable. But look at Paul, St Paul, in his Letters, who boasted about nothing but his own weaknesses. Indeed, it is only by sharing one's weaknesses that one can get stronger. After all, one does not need to be as strong as one thinks he needs to be to do great things. The battle is no t always to the strong or the race to the fast; otherwise we would not have so many weaker brethren among us.
     One needs to be sincere in sharing and one ought not to expect any return from such practices. Rotary used to have a motto "He profits most who serves the best" which I suggest is a variation of why one should practice sharing.The faithful believes that they would be rewarded manifold for their giving and sharing when practiced wholesomely; and history is full of examples of how great men and women were honored for giving and sharing their time, talents and resources selflessly, generously and unconditionally.
      Leaders are expected to lead by examples and to share more of his time, talents and resources that they do not even know they have or in con trol. Alas, we live in an imperfect world; and i t would not make i t more perfect to dwell on unreasonable expectations, particularly when we all profess ourselves to be leaders of our own respec tive circle, communities or profession. It is such understanding and compassion which would make the process of sharing complete. In sharing, we need to be generous and open-minded with what the other par ty shares with us on the one hand, and we should also be responsive and be prepared to reciprocate what the other party has shared with us on the other, no matter how little or insi gnificant the sharing may appear.
      After all, sharing is an art and needs constant practices to perfect. So, we all should be able to understand the real them behind the phenomena of "sharing" and should adhere to this practice in the Rotarian Society if it is to be a real socie ty intended by its founders.
       Thank you for the anonymous writer who left this write up in my computer without my knowledge and for the special reason that I am able to share here with our fellow Rotarians toady.