Anyway: The Paradoxical Commandments

My Dear Rishi,

We could not talk this weekend although I heard your voice briefly.

Today, I wanted to share with you The Ten Paradoxical Commandments. Rishi, I first came across these ten paradoxical commandments when I started my university. I bought some peanuts near the university and the peanuts were rolled in this paper which had the ten paradoxical commandments typed. It is amazing when you you are open to life and learning, opportunities just pop up, I believe there is a Buddhist saying which very eloquently expresses what I am trying to say here, "When the student is ready, the master appears". I had kept that piece of paper for longest time and than I finally wrote it in my diary. Once again I came across the same commandments when I was reading Mother Teresa's biography. Third time, I got the same message in an email. This poem has had a profound affect on me. Every time I come at cross roads in my life this poem appears. This happened again, when  I was browsing a book store, I saw a book called, " Do It Anyway" By Kent M. Keith. I immediately recognized the Ten Paradoxical Commandments, finally I knew the original author of these ten commandments was.  Till than every where I read, the author was anonymous.

I bought the book, "Do It Anyway"  and read it the same night.  I learned that Kent Keith wrote these commandments in 1968 while attending Harvard as an undergraduate student. He discovered that his inspirational words had taken on a life of their own, it was quoted by politicians and celebrities and in more than 6000 websites. These inspirational words appeared on the wall of Mother Teresa's children's home in Calcutta. In 1997, when Mother Teresa passed away the author found out that these commandments were on Mother Teresa's children's home in Calcutta. Thirty years after he wrote the Ten Commandments, and finding out Mother Teresa had this on her wall in Children's home (Sishu Bhavan) made a huge impact on the author. He ended up writing this book, "Do It Anyway".

Anyway: The Paradoxical Commandments

By Kent M. Keith

1. People are illogical, unreasonable, and self-centered.

Love them anyway

2. If you do good, people will accuse you of selfish ulterior motives.

Do good anyway

3. If you are successful, you will win false friends and true enemies.

Succeed anyway

4. The good you do today will be forgotten tomorrow.

Do good anyway

5. Honesty and frankness make you vulnerable.

Be honest and frank anyway

6. The biggest men and women with the biggest ideas can be shot down by the smallest men and women with the smallest minds.

Think big anyway

7. People favour underdogs but follow only top dogs.

Fight for a few underdogs anyway

8. What you spend years building may be destroyed overnight.

Build anyway

9. People really need help but may attack you if you do help them.

Help people anyway

10. Give the world the best you have and you'll get kicked in the teeth

Give the world the best you have anyway

Rishi, I have made an attempt to live my life by following these paradoxical commandments  ever since I read them. It has given me inner peace, taught me hope, to persevere, to face adversity with understanding and compassion and last but not the least, acceptance about transient nature of humans.  Hope you find these paradoxical commandments helpful in your life.

With lots of love, hugs and kisses,

Daddy