WORK AND HAPPINESS

HAPPINESS @ WORK

GEMS OF ANCIENT WISDOM

Spouses and Success

Behind every worldly successful person, there has to be a supporting spouse at home. Not many can fight and win at two fronts- in the professional world and at home. In 1905, freedom fighter Subramnia Bharati met Sister Nivedita at Calcutta. On her asking whether he was married, Bharati answered in the affirmative, “Then why don’t you include your wife in your fight against the British? Freedom would be meaningless if half of the population i.e. women remain enslaved.”

The marriage of Marie and Pierre Curie was partnership of love and genius. During the day, they researched together in Pierre’s lab. They studied till late in the night at home. Together they discovered two radioactive elements- polonium and radium – and shared the Nobel Prize fir physics in 1903 with Henri Becquerel. Chennama of Keladi had no blue blood in her. But when Somashekhara Nayak, King of Keladi (in Malnad area of Karnatka), married this merchant’s daughter in 1663, she quickly learnt archery, horse riding and the royal etiquettes with her husband’s active support. After her husband’s poisoning, she lost the kingdom to the Jannapont –led Bijapur army. She won it back and was crowned queen in 1671. She was one of the few rulers who defied Emperor Aurangzed by giving passage to Shivaji’s fleeing son Rajaram.

Even while her husband Bhimrao earned a reasonable salary, Ramabai managed the household on meager amount as her husband was planning to go to London to study.

She also saw to it that Bhimrao’s studies were not disturbed on any count.   With her support, her husband Dr. Bhimrao Ambedkar went on to write the Constitution of world’s biggest democracy- India.

Nationalist Prabhavati found the right match in Jayaparkash Narayan. Not only did she pose no hindrance when JP decided to go to USA for higher studies, but she also stayed in Gandhiji’s Sabarmati Ashram during that period. Later when JP was lodged in Deoli jail she unsuccessfully tried to smuggle out a packet of letters from JP to other freedom fighters. The Prince of Wales was scheduled to visit Calcutta on December 24, 1921. So, Deshabhandu Chitranjan Das asked volunteers to sell khadi in the streets and observe ‘hartal’ in protest. His wife Basanti Devi was one of the first to be arrested for doing so.

Let your better half make you the best!

Source: The Tribune, Wednesday                                   -