An Ordinary Life: Portrait of an Indian Generation

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THE WORLD CONSISTS MAINLY OF ORDINARY people leading simple lives. Their stories remain unheard as they haven't been written about. But their lives inspire because they are a vindication of certain lasting values that survive in every society and keep us connected with the unseen forces that govern us.

In An Ordinary Life, former Election Commissioner of India Ashok Lavasa tells one such warm story. He weaves the experiences of his father, Udai Singh, into the narrative of a fast-changing India to show how his Bauji's principles served as a moral compass in his life- and can in ours too. Through a series of incidents, he explores the virtues of honest living and illustrates that it is possible to prosper in a world of rising aspirations and cut-throat competition while preserving one's ideals.

Reflective and philosophical, An Ordinary Life is imbued with the grounded wisdom of an earlier Indian generation and its way of life, which is both ordinary and extraordinary, unique and universal at the same time.

A SPORTS ENTHUSIAST, AN AVID READER, a passionate traveller in love with nature. and a compulsive writer who has an eye for photography, Ashok Lavasa is also a former civil servant.

He was born in Jaipur, received his primary education in Gujarat, completed his schooling at the Belgaum military school, studied at Delhi University for his master's in English literature, obtained his MPhil from Madras University and went to Southern Cross University in Australia for his MBA

An IAS officer of the 1980 batch, Lavasa served in various capacities in his cadre state Haryana and in the Government of India. He was Secretary in the ministries of Civil Aviation, Environment, Forest & Climate Change, and Finance. After retiring as Union Finance Secretary, he served as one of the three Election Commissioners of India overseeing the 2019 general elections. He resigned from the post in August 2020.

He is currently Vice President of the Asian Development Bank in Manila, Philippines.

Tell me, Sir, in which field could I make a great career?" the "child asked. The father replied: 'Be a good human being. There is a huge opportunity in this area and very little competition.'

This book is the result of the personal experience of being a child of one such father. It is a biography of my genes. Seeing him live was like reading an uplifting story and reading his diary was a pilgrimage. Those are the sources of my work.

The diary begins with a quote from S. Radhakrishnan: 'Let no one look upon work as a burden. Good work is the secret that keeps life going. While one should not hanker after results, life without work would be unendurable.'

That work which we fill our time with gives us reward, remuneration and restlessness. It produces conflict, it offers choices, it throws up challenges and produces many dilemmas.

Amid a dual quest for material prosperity and mental peace. what can provide an anchor to individuals and institutions? What can serve as a guide as we navigate through turbulent waters, both in personal and public life?

Every incident in the book is from real life and it powerfully underscores the role of core values in life. It is possible to prosper in the world, especially in a developing country, where there is a revolution of rising aspirations and cut-throat competition, and yet preserve one's principles. Paying the price for adhering to those principles might seem painful, but that is like the pain that a mother feels while bringing new life into the world. It is inescapable, it is joyous and it is the axis around which the world moves.

Honesty and truth are not merely ideals that remain elusive. They form the survival kit of many whose lives don't seem extraordinary because they are not popular. Their stories are not heard because they haven't been written about. These are stories that represent an era, an entire generation. These stories are not over. Every generation will need these stories when it has exhausted its amoral quest of pure materialism or reached the apotheosis of its permissiveness and compromises.

These ordinary lives may not be well known or heroic in popular perception. In their own limited world and for those who come in contact with such men and women, such people are individuals who have lived life on their own terms. They have faced trials and tribulations, traumas and triumphs but remained afloat because they had a hard inner core. They may not be icons, recognized and idolized. Their life inspires because it is a vindication of certain lasting values that survive in every society. Such lives provide hope and keep us connected with the unseen forces that govern us.