Dear students

As you prepare for your final semester-end examinations, I shall like to wish you good luck.  I would wish to keep you reminded of the fact that more than the marks that you obtain, it is important to have better understanding of concepts. And further this understanding should help you solve problems, both in the organizations that you choose to work for or your personal life that brings challenges of different kinds, in different sizes and shapes, as you embark on your onward journey.

These exams are just six monthly academic rituals that you are expected to follow, attend, and enjoy with gained and accumulated energy and enthusiasm.  As you prepare for any ritual or festival, you need to prepare yourself for this as well.  As time and context change, nature of examinations and type of rituals change, process and practice change, and as Heraclitus stated – change is the only thing constant, we need to prepare, ourselves to adapt to these changes in order to remain relevant and for unstoppable journey – charaiveti, charaiveti (चरैवेती-चरैवेती), keep walking.

You do not need to bother much about what marks you are going to get, but surely you should bother about developing deep understanding and its application.  Believe me when I say no theory is absolute, no solution is perfect, no individual is expected to know everything, and no answer is permanent. Hence you need to understand yourself and your own competence, your own ability, and perform your best in order to answer the questions that are there in the examination. This is a very very small part of your large and grand life.  Ultimate goal of your education is not to obtain highest marks or grades rather it is to lead a good, peaceful, and happy life.  And marks and grades do not promise you that.  What gives you confidence and comfort is your knowledge, your understanding, your wisdom, your learning, your experience, your attitude, and your sense of perseverance.  And this is what provides you strength to respond to ups and downs of life.  And that is what makes your life challenging, livable, enjoyable, peaceful, and comfortable.

The marks you obtain are just some assigned numbers to your performance.  Though it seems very objective yet it is not real measure of your ability and competence.  The grades you get might be a differentiator today yet it would not determine real talent you possess through your dedication, honesty, and determination.  Though at times you would be judged on the basis of your marks and grades, yet it would not be fool-proof and perfect.  What would be perfect is your own honest assessment of yourself.  You have to decide as to why to work hard.

So whatever you have done to the best of your ability shall get converted into some numbers of some kind of some denomination, so do not bother much about it.  You are the best judge of your ability, competence and efforts so just believe in your judgement and take the life forward.

Academic rituals called examinations like these ones are just to help understand yourself little better.  At times you do not perform your best on a given day, it is just a chance; at times you are not in your best spirits, hence you spoil your performance; at times one small error costs heavy. Just be your original self and try learn from the journey, how you could improve yourself and keep working on that. Be sure your efforts would always reap you good fruits.

So your trust and believe in yourself is the best examiner.

I hope you would be able to carry forward with the attitude of learning, exploring and sharing. Keep in touch and feel free to interact and share your views. I shall be more than happy to help you in the best of my ability.

Best wishes for whatever you do, in examination hall or otherwise.

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