Man is a selfish creature! He wants everything for himself. He is not ready to give! Even the child refuses to part with the toy in its possession. Attachment to things starts even from childhood. It is impossible to detach oneself from the various relationships that the child develops. The love and affection of the mother,father, brother, sister, and kith and kin increase the attachment and the desire for possession! As the child grows up it has new connections like friends and other acquaintances and attachments are strengthened! As such there is no possibility for man to think of giving to others! The greatness of man lies in giving to others! It is through sacrifice of that which is very dear to him that man becomes immortal! It is not through his deeds, people, or riches but by sacrifice alone that man attains immortality! The Upanishad declares, “ na karmana na prajaya na dhanena tyage naikena amrutatwa manasuhu”. It is by giving up or sacrificing what is very dear to you that makes you immortal! How many soldiers and great men have sacrificed their precious lives for the sake of the nation! It is because of their self sacrifice we remember them even today!
“Revel in giving rather than receiving” counsels Bhagawan Sri Satya Sai Baba! There is a pleasure in giving others who are needy. The feeling of contentment, joy and excitement of the receiver is a treat to watch! Service to Man is service to God! We see and realize God in the smile and happiness of the poor and downtrodden. We are very comfortable and lead a life of luxury but the poor are unable to have even a single meal a day! The rich can loosen their purses and help the poor and miserable. This requires a desire to give and sacrifice. Money,food,clothing, and any other material useful for them can be offered. Our Puranas and mythologies have many stories of kings and others who sacrificed themselves for the sake of others. The Bhagavata Purana speaks of the great Sibi Chakravrty, son of Usinara of Chandra vamsa. He was tested by Agni the God of fire and Indra king of Gods. Agni became a dove and Indra chased it as a hawk! The dove sought asylum at Sibi noted for his greatness. The hawk demanded its prey but Sibi refused to release it. The hawk demanded flesh from Sibi to compensate. Immediately, Sibi cut a portion of flesh from his lap,and offered it to the hawk! Appreciating Sibi's selflessness, both the Gods presented themselves before Sibi, blessed him and departed! This was in Treta Yuga and we remember Sibi even today in this Kaliyuga!
Will you offer your youth in exchange for old age? None will do so at present and it is impossible! Yayati was a renowned king who married Devayani, daughter of Sukracharya. His second wife was Sarmishta and he was very fond of her. Devayani grew jealous because Yayati neglected her. On her complaint, Sukracharya grew furious and cursed Yayati to lose his youth! Yayati suddenly became old and senile! But his obsession for conjugal life did not leave him! He called his sons and asked each of his sons to take his old age and give their youth! They refused but his last son agreed and exchanged his youthfulness!! But his last son agreed and exchanged his father’s old age with his youthfulness! He thus sacrificed his prime youth for the happiness of his father! Yayati satisfied his desire, blessed his son Puru, and returned his youth! He gave his kingdom to Peru and cursed his other sons for disobeying him
Emperor Bali is another example of the rare quality of giving away his kingdom to the young brahmin lad Vamana, the incarnation of Lord Vishnu! Having promised Vamana three feet of land he did not want to go back on his word. Guru Sukracharya warned Bali that on the pretext of three feet of land, Vishnu will take away his entire empire. But Bali was unruffled! He said that he is proud because Lord Vishnu himself had come begging for land from him! What a great fortune for him! Moreover, his giving hand will be above and the receiving hand will be below! To save his disciple, Sukracharya obstructed the flow of water from Vamama ’s kamandalu-a vessel to pour water! All knowing Vamana, pierced the eye of Sukracharya with a blade of darbha grass! Thus Sukracharya became blind in one eye! The giver is always on a higher level than the receiver!
There are millions of people in need of help! They are homeless and do not have anyone who can look after them. Old age homes are there but one has to pay money to stay there! There are no homes which provide food, clothing and shelter for the orphans and the destitutes in society! It is the bounden duty of the affluent members of society to come to the rescue of such homes! Any charity or alms should be offered with faith! It should never be given casually or recklessly. Whatever is offered should be done with humility, devotion and love. The giver should seek the wellbeing of the receiver and offer according to his mite! This type of offering is called” Satwika Dana” Taittiriya Upanishad declares how a Dana has to be made-- “sraddhayadeyam asraddhayadeyam sriyadeyam hriyadeyam bhiyadeyam samvidadeyam” The giver will never be a loser for what he has given or sacrificed for others. He will be remembered for ever for the little acts of generosity that he has done for the benefit of the poor and the downtrodden in society! Why not we emulate the legendary givers and play our part in society??
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