Power of one

“There is only one God who is omniscient; only one caste, the caste of humanity; only one language, the language of the heart, and only one religion, the religion of love.” The notion encompassed by the above quotation is that in a nutshell, one should not underestimate the power of “One.” There has been even a book entitled “Power of One,” which was followed by a movie of the same name in 1992.

 Here, however, we are concerned how in several instances, it may not be the multitude of people, situations and circumstances that work for one, but instead could be the one all-encompassing raison d’etre that nails the whole dilemma and makes the cut. Sometimes it is the quality of the one person that surpasses even quantity. For recall, didn’t it take just one “half naked Fakir” (as Winston Churchill called him) to shake and intimidate the entire British Empire in India? The hero during this phase of Indian history of India attaining independence from despotic British rule is none other than Mahatma Gandhi.

 Indeed, to prove the immense, unprecedented and conclusive power of “One,” think of this quotation, “One machine can do the work of fifty ordinary men. No machine, however, can do the work of one extraordinary man.” If the person is ingenuous and brilliance personified, he can be instrumental in bringing about a revolutionary change in the milieu. He may even possess far-reaching influence on the people that may even surpass the power of a technical machine sans human brain. The late Shakuntala Devi found out the 23rd root of a 201-digit number in 50 seconds – thus beating out a computer by 10 seconds! How can one ever underestimate the power, potential and ability of the “One” entity?

 Indeed, one needs to discern that “One” can be very powerful and ingenuous which can turn the tables and even turn lives around. Indeed, one should not dwell on the dozens of reasons something won’t materialize but instead focus and zero in on the “One” reason why it can succeed – and it will. For all the doubting Thomases out there who still have niggling doubts about the Power of “One”, heed the following beautiful quotation, “One smile can start a friendship. One word can end a fight. One look can save a relationship. One person can change your life.”