CHARITY BEGINS AT HOME

THE APPLE STORE IN NEW YORK (THE BIG APPLE)

Despair, sorrow and all kinds of derogatory thoughts keep flooding the minds of most Indians, most of the time. We look at poverty, children begging, old people left to fend for themselves and the deteriorating standards of teaching in India and sitting in our air conditioned room with a laptop in hand we express our sorrow, helplessness and disgust.

Are we not Indians, who are part of that culture? Have we not grown up seeing all those disgusting sights? Have we actually done anything to change the situation? Can we  simply sit back and express our disgust?

We look at rampant corruption. We see money being collected in the name of charity and used for purposes which can best be described as charity for self! I think some people exploit the saying, "Charity begins at home".

A lot of Trusts and Organisations take money from Charity as well as money from the Government to line their own pockets. A lot of money and grant is given by the government to help ashrams run for orphans, children or helpless and destitute. Sadly a lot of that money is used elsewhere and therefore the people for whom the money is received, at the end of the day remain as they were. Destitute, hungry, and in despair.

The basic malady that is very rampant is exploitation and corruption. Every person wants to siphon off something for themselves before taking care of the next person. As they say in the airplane,  "In case of an emergency first put on your oxygen mask and then help the next person" However we have made it a rule to be followed always! There are worldwide organisations that collect a lot of funds. A lot of these funds go for religious preaching. 
We are very religious people. We have umpteen number of Gods and any number of festivals. We pray, do penance, visit temples and bribe our Gods in routine!  The fear of God is not enough to stop misuse of authority. There is a saying that we get punished for our wrong deeds and rewarded for our good deeds, in this very life. Yet, that does not stop us from exploiting the weak. We have found simple solutions to make sure that our misdeeds do not get the deserved punishment.  We have a ready made formula for overcoming our sins and exploitation. One dip in the River Ganga  is enough to wash away all our sins. Once our sins are washed away, there is no question of punishment. One can always donate to the temples and make sure that God is happy. How many times have we offered Sawa rupay ka prasad in return for grant of a boon from God? We promise to feed a number of people. We promise to shave off our hair. We promise to go barefoot or backwards or rolling on the ground to a Temple. This is all to wash away our sin and to do penance for all the wrong deeds that we have performed.

How about thinking that perhaps a better way would have been to do service for those that we have exploited, cheated or pilfered from. Would that not serve a better purpose? Why try to please a statue of stone in a beautiful palatial building, called a temple? How about serving those who are human, who need us?

If only all the money that is collected by various organisations abroad reach the correct people, our country would really flourish as it is meant to. If only all the money that the Government of India gives for Homes is used meticulously, honestly and for the purpose that it is given, my country would be second to none. Most of the people I know or talk with, do want to do their bit for helping the poor, down trodden or helpless. However they lack trust in the organisations that come to them for charity. 

If all the people who are sad, and despair at the sad situation, take up cudgels on behalf of those who are not able to fight for their rights, perhaps my country would be a happier place to live in. Long ago in the Sarv Siksha Abhiyaan of Government of India, there was a slogan, which is very dear to my heart. It says, "Each one teach one". How many of us have done that?

If we use our resources to at least educate one child of our domestic help, we would have done some bit for society.  Believe me, this is really an easy way to repay society,one does not have to work too hard to achieve this. If we try to improve the life of at least one person, by teaching them good values in life, we could rest in peace and feel happy about our contribution to society. We are in that position, where we can help. Either with time or money.

We could try to bring about change in a lot of our orthodox ways of life. Instead of giving a Brahmin bhoj on the death of a family member, if we give food for a meal in an orphanage, we will be able to spread some happiness. At some rituals I have seen Brahmins wait to be fed. They look very well fed as it is. They first open their dakshina to see if they have got a good gift. They see the clothes that have been given and then eat the good food that is served to them. I really wonder when we will stop believing that this food will reach the dear departed person.

Service to humanity must come before service to God.  God, and good, as words are very close to each other. Similarly Khud and Khuda are also very close. If we trust our own capabilities then everything in this world is achievable. One does not have to go anywhere for happiness, salvation and peace. It is all within our own self. We are responsible for everything that happens in our life. Do good and good will come back to you. Similarly, do bad and it will find its way back to you.

NATURAL BEAUTY IN SWITZERLAND.

IT IS NEVER TOO LATE TO LEARN

COLD AND STARK

All my life I have lived in India. While driving on the roads, I have seen immense poverty, squalor, small children and old people begging on the streets. I have seen very small children performing tricks on the busy road crossings trying to eke out a living for themselves and also for their families. All that I can do is feel very sorry for them, pity them, give them some alms and move on.

Later with friends, over a cup of coffee or chit chatting on the net, I get into arm chair discussions about the state of my country. We talk endlessly about feeling sad for these roadside children and about the risk that they face on the roads for a pittance. Then we all turn our anger at the inefficiency of the government, the state, and the authorities that be, for allowing this state of affairs to continue, in our country. We talk, vent our anger, pay for our coffee and go to our respective homes, driving or being driven through those roads, full of beggars at crossroads.

This happens quite often, and I and my friends are not the only people who indulge in this discussion. There are millions of Indians doing this day in and day out.

Have we actually bothered to think about what we can do to change this situation? This dependence upon some other governmental body to bring about change is so rampant, that we the people of India, simply side step the issue and rave and rant and discuss and put the blame somewhere and rest in peace in our own sanctuaries called "home".

I have the chance to visit America, as my son Anurag works here. He lives with his wife Jharna and daughter Aaria. This year within three weeks of my coming here, I have attended two programmes which were fund raisers for charity to be done in India. 

From thousands of miles away, spanning so many time zones, there are people in this country, whose heart beats for their poor fellow Indians. They do not sit over endless cups of coffee, whiling away their time, fixing the blame for inadequacies in the country which they have left temporarily. They come together to raise money to set up homes for children, widows and destitute. They raise funds for Hospitals, and schools. They simply lend "helping hands". They serve my nation better than most of us living in India. These good Samaritans, who do not have to see poverty stricken faces of small children while driving to work every morning, get together to wipe tears from faces which they may not have ever seen.

I attended an event in April, where funds were raised for "Ekal Vidyalaya". This is an organisation that opens one man schools in the remotest villages of India. In one evening money was raised for opening 83 Ekal Vidyalayas. Amazing feat indeed!! 

WITHERING IN WINTER

SMILING IN SPRING

I also saw young people of Indian origin work tirelessly for organising charity events in New Hampshire State of USA.  For a particular event to be held on the 30th of April in Nashua, my daughter in law, Jharna would ask every person of Indian origin that she met in the park, the street or store to attend the event, as it was for a good cause. This was of course besides all the other work that she was doing for organising the event.

 This event was organised by India Association of New Hampshire(IANH) on 30th April. The purpose was to raise funds for setting up of a hospital by "Udavum Karangal". These words literally mean 'helping hand', in Tamil. The evening began by honouring select teachers of the State, who have honed the talents of young people in their native cultural identity in various Art forms. This was followed by a  musical performance by the group "Aaroh" followed by an  auction of a good many things like an I- Pad, jewellery, sarees, 7 nights stay in Orlando(Florida), 2 nights stay at a hotel in Times Square(New York), stay at Radisson Hotel at Nashua, A Spa gift, A beauty salon gift, A gym gift,  and breakfast on Mother's day at the Alpine Lodge. I was indeed very proud when my son was the first bidder as soon as the auction started. He bid for Breakfast on Mother's Day. He bid much more than what it was shown as priced at, because he thought it was going for a good cause. An I- pad, the cost of which was shown as $500, went for over $1000, as again, in the words of the donor Sapna, it was for a good cause. I was totally floored by these acts of generosity. Our emcee at the auction, Ranjini Saigal, was an amazing lady. She was totally in control of the hall and its audience. She spoke beautifully. People were mesmerized with her lovely words of encouragement, provocation and appeals to donate. This was followed by absolute magical performance by DJ Yogz, who literally got every person on their feet with beautiful Indian Bollywood numbers. No one could resist getting on the floor to sway with the beat. It was an evening very well spent. It was a huge learning experience for me.

Young couples with small children and babies, were doing their bit for charity. They all enjoyed an evening which was spent for a good cause, and surely went home happy, because they had contributed to help wipe a tear from the face of some unknown person back home. Some had donated precious time, some donated money, and some bid in the auction much more than the cost of the item, as it was all for a good cause. 

I wish that after going back to India, I will be able to inspire my friends to do their bit for helping those who need our help. I would like to see us stop grumbling and take in our own hands a few responsibilities which we expect others to perform for us. I worked in the biggest Bank of my country for thirty years. I thought that I had done my bit for the Nation, when I gave loans to those who needed the money. I now realise that I only worked within the norms and time set out by my Bank!

After having spent a good portion of our lives waiting for others to go wipe someone's tears, how about us taking some task in our hands to do something constructive and meaningful? It is said "boond boond se sagar bharta hai!"

COLOURFUL AND VIBRANT