The 2014 Gandhi Jayanti celebrations marked the launch of the Swachchh Bharat Abhiyan. Prime Minister Narendra Modi hopes that by 2019, the country will pay homage to the father of the nation with a clean India. The Swachchh Bharat movement is an idea whose time has come. After all, there is only so much stench and garbage that we can handle. But for the Swachchh Bharat Abhiyan to be truly successful, we will first need to change our behaviour and attitude. Thus, while the nation embarks on the task of cleaning the cities, rivers and streets of the country, each one of us also needs to look inward for attitudinal change.
You have to grow from the inside out. None can teach you, none can make you spiritual. There is no other teacher but your own soul. ~ Swami Vivekananda
A Mind and Behaviour Change
Human behaviour and habits are perhaps the most difficult to change. It doesn’t just need awareness and determination but also an understanding of how the mind impacts behaviour and vice versa. It’s widely acknowledged that the conscious mind deals with logic and voluntary action. The subconscious mind accumulates the information it receives from the conscious mind and holds it close. In many ways it’s a collection of past actions and learned behaviour. So if you’ve taught yourself that it’s okay to spit or relieve yourself in public, it is unlikely that you will bring about a change, without firm conscious decision.
like behaviour is learned with repetition, to unlearn it you require determination and practice too. Only when you consciously and conscientiously change behaviour, can you expect a change. Effort geared towards change needs to be made on a daily basis until it becomes an involuntary action.
Words have a tremendous impact on the subconscious mind. The more we reinforce our conscious and subconscious mind with positive dialogues, the stronger our convictions. Words have the power to influence perception and opinion, so it is imperative to think and choose the ones focussed on Clean India.
Similarly, the written word has limitless power. The brightest and wisest minds are those that read voraciously. They are willing to listen to viewpoints and opinions that are different to their own and still manage to take home some valuable lessons. Written words geared towards changed human behaviour leading towards Swachchh Bharat can be a major influence for the nation cleaning movement.
Civil society, community organisations and opinion builders need to come together to consistently reinforce the value and virtues of the Swachchh Bharat movement. They too can play a major influencing role in shaping thought process, behaviour and habits of the citizens of the nation. They need to calibrate their message around change from the inside out.
Finally, there is no other idea more powerful than symbolic leadership. The surest way to influence and bring about change is by doing and by action. It then becomes our own responsibility to ensure that we are keeping our surroundings clean. Bit by bit, we can all contribute towards the larger good of the nation. But for that to happen, we will first have to commit ourselves to change from the inside out. If not, the movement runs the risk of getting grounded after having got off to a flying start with the leadership and direct involvement provided by the Prime Minister.
There should be less talk; a preaching point is not a meeting point. What do you do thenIJ Take a broom and clean someone’s house. That says enough. ~ Mother Teresa
(The writer is a social & corporate leader and former COO for the Uttarakhand Government 108 emergency services)