Beggars

This is a thought I had two days ago (18th June). Not very special yet I had to share it because I have found that blogging is one easiest way to feel little productive and less bad about myself. I jotted down the whole thought with some random words so that I do not forget it. But writing everything properly is not so pleasing. I get distracted by anything in the world and postpone the whole thing. Well, the point of writing this paragraph is to tell you that this time I got distracted with something good, I discovered that one of the best sitcoms Mind Your Language is available on YouTube.

Let's move to the actual thought I had.

Again this is just a thought of mine, and I am no expert in here. You can read this article on whether you should help beggars or not, I found in quick Google search.

All it started when I saw a Muslim beggar asking for some food when I was collecting my lunch from the mess, I could not give him as I was not the owner. Though I could give mine I knew it would not necessary, he would surely get food from someone else. I was returning back to my room with the plate of food in my hand without making an eye contact with him.

But the lady, wife of the owner of the PG, heard him and peeped out of her room to see him. He asked for some food like the way which is maybe not very rude, still, I think he should be more humble while begging for something.

The lady is really kind and gentle to me and other people, I appreciate her for that. I saw her anticipating to feed the beggar. I left the place and was approaching towards my room and thinking of the beggar style of begging.

So that is all the writing will be all about if I do not forget everything I thought.

I don't mind people begging if their situation is that miserable but I mind their way of begging. The beggar asked the food such a way that it meant to me something like - he is a Baba (literal meaning 'father', but that means a sort of saint) and he is hungry and it is her (the landlady) responsibility to feed him.

It is our responsibility to feed unfed in our society but they can not demand it like that.

Yes, there are saints who sacrifice all their desires for the welfare of mankind. And they do not live a normal life like us, so we should help them for their basics needs like foods and clothes. But that should be in a very organic way, people themselves should be doing the help spontaneously. They should not demand that or manipulate people anyway. This kind of attitude makes lazy and greedy people fake everything and become Babas. All they care about making money without doing any work. And people even turn it into business.

You help those whom you really see is unable to work or are real saints. There used to be saints who did not beg because they are lazy, they actually worked and helped other humans, and do not have time to earn money for themselves. And they generally did not have savings for the future, when they had extra, they donated that to the needy people. And a lazy beggar will do the complete opposite thing, he will try to find more efficient way to get more people to donate them and in turn, they help no one. We should not entertain them, that encourages the practice of begging.

But it is very difficult to understand who is really in need and who is faking. In that case, you should probably keep the money, you do not wanna risk your money to be used for bad purposes.

There is a kind of beggars I have seen in the villages of Bengal. They do not seat on a busy streets, they rather walk door to door, singing Hare Krishna ( the same chant you can hear in any ISKON temple), Bengali people believes that song to be auspicious for their soul and home, and they donate rice or potatoes.

This tactic is not very efficient neither the effort is very less. They have to walk whole day under the sun, carrying the bag of rice, and the amount of rice they get from each house that they have to visit 5-10 houses at least to have enough rice for one person to have a meal, they have to get much more rice to sell in order to buy other ingredients for cooking on every afternoon. Of course, they do not get the correct price for that and have to buy other things for the living. But other than that their life is not that miserable because most of them have little places of their own to live.

Even there I found are two kinds people, one who will chant the song to each and every door, no matter people are giving them anything or not, they will do it with devotion. If you arrive to give him something before they have completed the song they will not stop there, they will continue to sing till the end. They will not skip any house even if they never get anything from the house, they will chant in front of those houses and wish them good luck. 

 You do not have to believe their devotion is doing any help to the society, but it reasonable, for the people who believes that the chant and their good wishes do good for humanity, to help those beggars (or whatever you call them) back.

And there are some others who will skip all the houses who never give them anything, they will try to finish chanting as quickly as possible and after that, they continue to cry as loud as possible, making you irritated and wanting to give them something just to get rid of them. If you arrive before they have finished chanting, they will stop it right then, collect whatever you are giving and just go away rushing towards the next house.

You clearly see that they are faking their devotion, all for for money. I think this kind of people should not be entertained.

I like the previous kind of beggars. Their song pleases people and makes their minds calm and peaceful. I do not see anything wrong with that sort of begging, in fact, I do not like to call them beggars.

People juggling on the street and at the end the act, asking for money with hats on their hands. We do not call that begging, they entertain you and then ask for money. 

If any of you see that is begging, then think of one thing, what is the difference between those street entertainers and a movie star who is a millionaire like Shah Rukh Khan?

Both earn money by entertaining people.

Basically, what a street performer do is first entertain you and then ask you money if you have enjoyed.

And in contrast to them what Shah Rukh Khan does is - also he entertains, but here you pay before you get entertained. I do not know what do you think I have the same amount of respect for both, even more for the previous kind of entertainer who first entertains you then asks for money. And if you do not like, you just walk away without giving him any money. But if SRK is not able to entertain much, you are not going to get a refund. You lose both your money and your time.

Well, I love Shahrukh Khan and other movie actors and I watch a lot of movies. And SRK makes it sure that the money and time you spent is worth. But what I want to say is that previous kind of entertainers don't get the respect they deserve.

So, the point is I think begging is not bad, but the intention behind begging and the way someone begs can be good or bad.

But some people are taking the act of begging as a business, they are disguising as homeless poor fellows or saints and cheating the people. Even worse, they can't keep the money, they waste it on alcohol and drug or end up financing criminal activities. And because of that, the people who really needs help are being deprived of it. Real saints are disappearing as their lives are getting harder, the fake saints are taking their place and making business.

Here is a great example of begging business, he is certainly making huge money

This is the type of beggars you should be aware of. This greedy man is making money by feeding on people's religious sentiments. Do not fall into the trap of such people, giving him money doesn't prove anything. It will be an inspiration to many people to beg. And even marketeers are taking inspiration from this kind of thing, feeding on people's sentiments to make them spend money.