SHARED THOUGHTS - 28.07.2014.
Art of Giving.
A month of fasting for Muslims world over has come to an end. Apart from
praying, giving for charity, zakat, is an important ritual that is important
in this period.
We all give for charity in varying measures. There are cases where the
recipients are grateful for what they received or there may be instances
where they are not only ungrateful, but have turned against you, for not
continuing to keep giving. Sometimes we tend to give away to the undeserved,
more than to the genuinely deserving.
We give when asked. In this case, our giving is perhaps proportional to the
degree of nuisance or impact they cause to us in their asking.
We give when unasked. Knowing the dire straits someone we know or care, we
give without expecting anything in return. Or we give expecting eternal
gratefulness..!!
We give as a matter of routine to be known as charitable, through NGOs,
where we are unaware of the end-use of our donations, but rely on their
credibility.
We tend to give more than we can afford. Or we give less than required.
We tend to think that Charity means giving away in financial terms. Money.
What would you call, giving away something more precious to give to a needy,
may be your own aged parent or an elderly relative. A piece of your Time.
Would this be considered as charity or what? For a parent, aged & forlorn,
the ‘time’ you have set apart, is more valuable than anything monetary.
“Love is not patronizing and charity isn't about pity, it is about love.
Charity and love are the same -- with charity you give love, so don't just
give money but reach out your hand instead.”
Mother Teresa.
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One has to learn the Art of Giving. Let us see varying examples of giving.
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"Rivers do not drink their own water, nor do tree eat their own fruit, nor
do rain clouds eat the grains reared by them.
The wealth of the noble is used solely for the benefit of others!
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Even after accepting that giving is good and that one must learn to give,
several questions need to be answered.
The end has come to Karna after the battle with Arjuna. But his soul is not
leaving the body. The Dharma Devata is around his body protecting the soul.
At that time, Bhagwan Srikrishna appears before him in the guise of a
Brahmin with a begging bowl. Knowing Him to be Bhagwan, Karna prays to Him
and asks him "What to give" since he has nothing on hand.
Bhagawan says " O ! Karna !! The Dharma Devata is protecting your soul. Pl
give away the Punya (blessings) you have earned by your Dhaarmic Acts, so
far, to me as Dhaana (charity). I have come to receive the Dhaana and
relieve you from this worldly attachment.
Immediately, without any hesitation, Karna removes the arrow from his chest
and with the handful of his blood gives away the Punya so far he has earned
through-out his life with these words " I give THEE the Punya whatever I
have earned so far, along with the Punya what I am now earning by this Act
of mine now."
That is Karna the King of Giving.
This is as quoted in Villiputhuraar Bharatham.
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The first question is: When should one give?
We all know the famous incident from Mahabharat.
Yudhisthir asks a beggar seeking alms to come the next day. On this, Bhima
rejoices that Yudhisthir his brother, has conquered death! For he is so sure
that he will be around the next day to give. Yudhisthir gets the message.
One does not know really whether one will be there tomorrow to give! The
time to give, therefore, is now.
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The next question is: 'How much to give?'
One recalls the famous incident from history.
Rana Pratap was reeling after defeat from the Mughals. He had lost his army,
he had lost his wealth, and most important, he had lost hope, his will to
fight. At that time, in his darkest hour, his erstwhile minister, Bhamasha,
came seeking him and placed his entire fortune at the disposal of Rana
Pratap. With this, Rana Pratap raised an army and lived to fight another
day.
The answer to this question how much to give is:
"Give as much as one can!
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The next question is: 'What to give?'
It is not only money that can be given away. It could be a flower or even a
smile.
It is not how much one gives but how one gives that really matters. When you
give a smile to a stranger that may be the only good thing received by him
in days and weeks!
"You can give anything but you must give with all your heart!"
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Next we have to answer: 'How to give?'
Coming to the manner of giving, one has to ensure that the receiver does not
feel humiliated, nor the giver feels proud by giving.
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In giving, follow the advice 'Let not your left hand know what your right
hand gives?
Charity without publicity and fanfare is the highest form of charity.'
'Give quietly!'
While giving, let not the recipient feel small or humiliated. After all,
what we give never really belonged to us. We come to this world with nothing
and will go with nothing. The thing gifted was only with us for a temporary
period. Why then take pride in giving away something which really did not
belong to us?
Give with grace and with a feeling of gratitude.
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"What should one feel after giving?"
We all know the story of Eklavya. When Dronacharya asked him for his right
thumb as "Guru Dakshina, he unhesitatingly cut off the thumb and gave it to
Dronacharya.
There is a little known sequel to this story.
Eklavya was asked whether he ever regretted the act of giving away his
thumb. He replied, and the reply has to be believed to be true, as it was
asked to him when he was dying.
His reply was "Yes! I regretted this only once in my life. It was when
Pandavas were coming in to kill Dronacharya who was broken hearted on the
false news of death of his son, Ashwathama, and had stopped fighting. It was
then that I regretted the loss of my thumb. If my thumb was there, no one
could have dared hurt my Guru?
The message to us is clear. Give and never regret giving!
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And the last question is: ‘How much should we provide for our heirs?'
Qur’an is explicit in Surah 4 : 11, on inheritance. But there is something
more than rigid numbers.
Ask yourself 'are we taking away from them the gift of work? - A source of
happiness?
The answer is given by Warren Buffett:
"Leave your kids enough to do anything, but not enough to do nothing!"
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I would conclude by saying: Let us learn the Art of Giving, and quoting the
Sant Kabir:
"When the wealth in the house increases, when water fills a boat, throw them
out (for good causes) with both hands!"
This is the wise thing to do
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“A bone to the dog is not charity. Charity is the bone shared with the dog,
when you are just as hungry as the dog.”
Jack London.
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“For Attractive lips, speak words of kindness.
For lovely eyes, seek out the good in people.
For a slim figure, share your food with the hungry.
For beautiful hair, let a child run their fingers through it once a day.
For poise, walk with the knowledge that you never walk alone.
People, more than things, have to be restored, renewed, revived, reclaimed,
and redeemed. Remember, if you ever need a helping hand, you will find one
at the end of each of your arms.
As you grow older, you will discover that you have two hands, one for
helping yourself and the other for helping others.”
Sam Levenson.
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Have a blessed week ahead … wishing all Eid Mubarak..
MOHANDAS. KP.
http://mohandas-sharedthoughts.blogspot.com/
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