Superannuated Or Enlightened? Poem by Daniel Trevelyn Joseph

‘Hanh, you were Under Secretary’, said the shareholder,
After the EGM at Tata Tele Maharashtra in YBCCentre,
I, retired and enlightened, smiled kept moving outdoors.

Forty-two years ago, as a Supernumerary Assistant Collector,
In Satara, I remember how we took great offence if referred to
As Deputy Collectors, though public held them in great esteem.

As IAS officers we were and had to be called Assistant Collectors!
The caste system in this particular field was strong, and visible,
The imperial legacy had faded little in three independent decades.

Ten years later, as Joint Secretary in Maharashtra, got stumped
To get a reply from Vidwans, Director, Bureau of Economics
And Statistics, ending with Kahlil Gibran’s ‘Who are you? ’

And how he went silent in answer to that question. Twenty
Years on, I went with my brother-in-law to Thiruvannamalai,
And heard how Ramana Maharshi kept at this, ‘Who am I? ’

Adam, says the Bible, named them all: and many don’t like
Their names being mis-spelt or being called by a mistaken one,
As if they own their name: reckon, would be difficult to prove!

Young and struggling to climb up the ladder, for recognition,
The designation is important – for, it carries powers, duties,
And responsibilities. How do I, the superannuated man, care?