A jumping jack is a worker who does not identify with a single task that he enjoys doing and wants to get done to the best of his ability. The jumping jack character or prototype wants to be all over the place, doing whichever task he wants without any standard in mind. The fate of volunteer organizations is that they attract many jumping jacks.
Have you heard the term haberdashery man? It also means a jack of all trades. I met a past pupil pumping petrol at a gas station in central. “You need to learn a skill. You will make more money.” Allan responded: “Sir, I know mechanic, welding and woodwork but work hard to get.” I did not venture further. I was only too happy to end the conversation. In the mandir today, the members refused to learn a skill that would enhance the activities of the mandir. Even the making of roti must be contracted outside the mandir! One would have expected such scarcity to be confined to playing the dholak!
How much more can be achieved if individuals can identify with a particular field? For example, an individual can say ‘I am a cook” and when pressed further, he says: “I make paratha roti,” and that is good enough. Such a person would focus on his skills as a ‘roti-maker’. He would be aware of all the great roti makers and their unique styles. Another volunteer may identify as a musician. In the music arena, he may be a dholak player and striving to be among the best. When he visits the mandir, his services as a drummer would be available.
India’s varna ashram or caste system is one of the roles or duties. A caste is not just a social group but has a role to play in the upkeep of society. A musical family would focus on the music industry and rise to the changing technologies in the field. From the great-grandfather who was a dholak player, the great-grandson has the potential to be a musical director in the Bollywood film industry.
By not identifying with a specific task many have no goals and generally fall by the wayside. It is like the pupil who goes to school to patronize the canteen, interact with friends, and have fun but never to learn. Such a pupil graduates with no skills and when thrown into the job market starts at a great disadvantage but indulges in a charade of empty rhetoric.
India is on the rise economically because its citizens understand job descriptions. The Indian doctor would not repair his car but take it to a garage where there are skilled personnel. The duty of the doctor is to focus on his field of expertise. Even his social interaction would be among individuals in the medical professions including his spouse and even his children would be cultured to follow in the medical field.
As individuals and families, we need to identify with a field- security, medicine, education, etc. What happens to a nurse who has a spouse who is a mechanic and daughter who is a fashion designer or a son who is a police officer? What is the future of such a family? Research must be done on families, their professions., and their progress. Such research would reveal much about job descriptions and their efficacy in the running of institutions.
What skill do you bring to the mandir? Are you skilled in IT? If so, then you can assist in developing a webpage and other programs to share the activities of the mandir with the wider community. Are you learned in accounting and finance? If so, you can improve the income of the mandir and ensure that the money is well spent to get the maximum benefits.
Allan may have some skills in welding and mechanic but how marketable are they? With hybrid and electric cars on the rise, is Allan knowledgeable about these new technologies in a rapidly changing industry? The choice is for Allan to enhance his skills and move on to a higher earning job or continue where he is pumping petrol in vehicles and earning minimum wage. As for a devotee, he or she can just visit the mandir, sit back and listen to a few bhajans, take prashadam, eat bhojan, and return home and sleep.