2012, scientists at the cern laboratory discovered the latest subatomic particle – the higgs boson – named after the nobel prize winner in physics peter higgs, and known by its nickname the “ god particle ” in popular media outside the scientific community. the higgs boson is thought to give everything else in the universe mass and to keep the universe from destruction. it is part of shiva ’ s tandava dance. is it a coincidence that the statue in front of the cern complex is none other than shiva nataraja – the dancing shiva? for many modern physicists, shiva ’ s tandava dance is seen as the dance of subatomic matter. the tandava thus unifies ancient mythology, religious art and modern physics. here at the central bank, some would say that our monetary policy is similar to the tandava dance, as we move our policy interest rate to destroy inflation, create the conditions for growth in the non - energy sector, and protect the foreign exchange market. or they might even say that the clico crisis has been a process of creative destruction, with the pain of thousands of policyholders making way for new and stronger insurance regulation and supervision. two weeks ago, professor angus deaton won the 2015 nobel prize in economics. professor deaton has changed our thinking about world progress. his popular book the great escape : health, wealth and the origins of inequality, traces the ways the world has gotten better over the last 250 years, as billions of people have become healthier and happier as gdp has grown. but he notes crises can interrupt progress, and he worries about the millions of people who are being left behind by this progress, especially in developed countries where inequality is growing and economic growth is slowing. professor deaton ’ s works reminds us that pain and gain are inextricably linked to creative destruction. hopefully, you will leave here tonight with a greater appreciation of the message of divali. remember the act of lighting a deya is creative destruction, destroying evil and darkness and creating a new opportunity for the satyam, shivam, sundaram ( truth, goodness and beauty ) of the universe to unfold. i wish you and your family shubh divali 2015. may your paths always be lit ; may your minds always be illuminated. i hope you enjoy lord shiva : creative destruction. bis central bankers ’ speeches

who was egotistical, shiva was cutting the root problem of the mind that thinks too highly of itself. why replace the boy ’ s head with the head of an elephant? the elephant represents both gyan shakti and karma shakti. the large head of the elephant signifies wisdom, understanding and discriminating intellect. elephants don ’ t walk around obstacles, neither are they stopped by obstacles. by replacing the boy ’ s head with the head of an elephant, lord shiva replaced it with something that was beneficial to the world and for the betterment of the people. although the birth of lord ganesh appeared to be destructive, it was indeed creative and would benefit everyone involved. bis central bankers ’ speeches the message associated with the birth of lord ganesh has relevance for us here at the central bank. our power and authority to manage the financial system comes from the people of trinidad and tobago. we must exercise this great power without being egotistical. we must exercise our power in a fair and just manner, with knowledge of what actions are best for the overall health of trinidad and tobago ’ s economy. tonight, we will also see another aspect of shiva as both the creator and the destroyer. in this capacity, he is often represented as the shiva nataraja, the lord of the dance. his tandava dance is the dance of the universe, as it endlessly moves from creation to destruction, destruction to creation. until recently, scientists considered the atom to be the fundamental particle in physics. we now know there are sub - atomic particles ; some make up matter and some carry forces. movement of sub - atomic particles involves a set rhythm. this is called laya in indian thought. laya is the attribute of shiva in his tandava dance. the movement of these subatomic particles creates energy. where does this energy go? well some of you may be familiar with the term “ big bang ” ( and i am not talking about the cbs hit comedy with leonard, penny, sheldon and the rest of the gang ). i am talking about cern or the european organization for nuclear research, an international organization based in geneva, switzerland. scientists at cern are using the large hadron collider ( lhc ), the most powerful particle accelerator on the planet, to recreate the primordial conditions of the universe, and create a small version of the so - called ‘ big bang ’, by smashing atoms at near - light speed. in july