Guiding Light: Contribute, or perish

Give & take is the fulcrum that keeps relationships and businesses in balance. Without flow of ideas, sentiments, money, and materials personal, social, national, and global affairs shall come to halt; it is a condition for evolution and growth. Those reflexively contributing to the divine design of flow from sufficiency to scarcity help maintain both personal and universal rhythm and order.

Offering and accepting are among the primaeval instincts. It takes guts to have generosity and benevolence, which is a divine attribute. Gods are giving type. The giver ever has an upper hand, both literally and morally. The habitual giver liberally contributes where such need arises, and draws satisfaction and strength from this act. On the other extreme are the reflexive takers and usurpers showing Satanic instinct who want, plan and endeavour to grab whatever from anywhere, anyone. In between the two ends lie the vast array of people, who contribute only where normative or as escape to possible humiliation rather than of their own initiative. They reciprocate for virtuosity in equal measure. “He gifted/ lent me Rs. 1,000. At my turn I tendered same amount. The deal stands settled.”

Contribution for a noble cause irrespective of returns is spiritually uplifting and aligns the giver with higher powers. The Karma theory of Gita also urges the seeker to focus on one’s duty whatever the outcome. A service rendered with ulterior interest is not countable, and fetches no divine grace. Only when God is assured that the seeker acts according to his wishes, he stands by the seeker and never lets the seeker fail. Those who give to the poor will lack nothing, tells the book of Psalms.

A non-contributor finds a plethora of reasons to justify his act. Anyone can contribute in family, society, at work place or somewhere in some way, if willing at heart. One who does not, is unwanted and a burden all around. Even Mother Earth does not withstand the non-contributor, and shall exterminate them. A monkey witnessed the petty sparrow bringing water beak by beak to help quench jungle fire, and derided her, “You idiot, what will your minuscule intervention come to”? The little bird quipped, “When history shall be scripted, my name shall appear among those who made an effort to set things right, and not among the apathetic bystanders.”

The writer is a blogger at www.bluntspeaker.com and can be contacted at teenbarthwal@gmail.com

Published on: Friday, January 05, 2024, 06:00 AM IST