सुखी जीवन: Happy Life (Bilingual: Hindi-English)

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A Bio-Note on Esteemed Madhodas Mundhra 25 February 1918 - 01 April 1999 Inclinations & Dispositions: A leading industrialist of India and an efficient administrator, Madhodasji Mundhra is a leading name in the infrastructure sector. He was the pioneer in construction work and pollution control mechanisms on a large scale in many countries. His inclinations, generosity and involvement for social work are legendary. The seer's contributions in the fields of education, culture, women's rights, rural development, medicine etc are in numerable. He was deeply rooted in the cause of religion, philosophy, the fine arts and spirituality.

I have read through the entire literary work composed by esteemed Shri Madhodasji Mundhra entitled 'Sukhi Jeevan'. The book contains eighteen essays. They speak of some means and measures through which a human being can hope to achieve a life of contentment and happiness.

The primary recourse to achieve this end is the information that it is well within the hands of man himself to make his own life happy or unhappy. Let me tell you a story I had read during my childhood. In a village lived a sadhu. He used to cook for himself. One day he prepared his meal as usual. He invited two persons from the village to join him for the meal. He had prepared a meal of lentils, rice, some greens with a chutney¹. While serving the two, he served both his invitees equal portions. But he discriminated when it came to the chutney. He served the chutney to one but not to the other. The deprived one kept on thinking why he was not being served the chutney. But he said nothing. The other invitee ate the chutney with relish. He asked for an extra helping. He was given that. Meanwhile, the other one was feeling very humiliated. As the meal was coming to an end, he could not stop himself any more.

Shri Madhodasji Mundhra was a living epitome of humane sympathy and fellow-feelings for the people around him. His landmark creation "Sukhi Jeevan" is the consummate symbol of the reflections of his exemplary life of restraint. That which is inherent within the pages of this rather slim book prevents one from the regrettable situation of being isolated from the mainstream of society and the family. Due to the advent of the vagaries and darkness of Western civilization the joint family system as well as the sociological system of human values have become deprecated. Today the tendency is more towards the seeking of physical pleasures. In this universe, there is not a single living entity that does not seek pleasure or joys. But the mere act of wanting does not make the one happy or contented. To achieve happiness or contentment, the principal requirement is the inculcation of self-discipline, restraint in the faculty of speech, and in our daily karma. Except for mankind, there is no other terrestrial, winged or aquatic creature in this universe that can speak of having a mind of its own. Without a mind, they can never feel that precious sense of the self, because all that exists within is mindless.

Revered Shri Madhodasji Mundhra was a most popular and sought after human being dedicated to the mission of culture. He leaves behind his praiseworthy and indelible footprints of cooperation and collaborations in almost each and every field of life. Apart from being an expert and prosperous industrialist, he had close ties with Indian culture. He had made significant contributions to institutions linked with the cause of religion, philosophy, the fine arts, education, social work, research work and medicine. His reflections on culture are documented in the books रसो वै सः Raso Vai Sah and भारतीय तत्त्व चिन्तन-एक में अनेक Bharatiya Tattva Chintan - Ek Men Anek written by him. His final creation सुखी जीवन Shukhi Jeevan is a mirror of the practical attitude and skills related to his philosophy of life in its true and supreme sense. With a great sense of grief, I observe that this esteemed personality left for his heavenly abode on 1 April 1999 while this book was still in the press. His demise led to a huge void in our cultural life. This loss can never be compensated for. He always inspired cultural activities. He was the founder-visionary of many a cultural institutions and bodies which are benefiting a lot of people today.