Had a couple of experiences before Covid stopped my travels that left me thinking.
Went to Dhanbad in Summer 2019 to meet some friends. On my way there:
There was this old lady seeking alms at New Delhi Railway Station whose upper body was bare. She was visibly poor and quite clearly not up to any mischief or part of any group. So I gave her some money and asked a bit hesitatingly if she wanted some cloth to cover herself. Hesitatingly simply because I wasn't sure if she didn't belong to some tribal community that prefers to stay that way. She emphatically nodded her head - so I gave her a t-shirt from my bag and helped her put it on. Sad though the overall situation was, there was an element of sweetness in the moment as she darted her skinny hands this way and that till she found the t-shirt arms and pushed them through. She was now covered and had a bit of money to get some food, so I moved on to catch my train. Wish I could do more in such situations, but this is the best I can do right now.
On the way back:
Another old lady at Dhanbad railway station. Very frail and very weak. One eye damaged. Hunched over her begging bowl.
I went and spoke to her. She hadn't eaten for four days! Four days! Her stomach was hurting because of the hunger. She complained that she had a plastic bag with some medicines near her that someone stole.
I bought her some food and a cup of tea and gave her a bit of money to buy more food over the next few days. And my absolutely awesome friend Dr. Somnath Yadav, Professor of Chemistry at IIT (ISM) Dahanbad, who had come to see me off at the station went off to get her some medicines.
Just can't get this thought out of my head:
We are a country that prides itself on its "Sanskriti". There is no shortage of people going to temples and "teerth yatras". Masses and masses of people go to earn "Punnya" by taking dips in holy rivers such as the Ganga. People deliberate endlessly over the "inner meaning" of Draupadi's humiliation in the Mahabharat when her clothes were being taken off in a full court.
What good is all of this if we can't even take care of needy people around us. Such a large flux of people go through these railways stations, a substantial number of whom are clearly well off enough to lend a helping hand. Yet, we have old women who are semi naked and haven't had food for days begging for just that little bit that would take them to the next day.
Makes no sense whatsoever! Start with serving the needy around you! If you can't see the divine in another human being, what divinity will you ever find in temples? If you can't earn the punnya of feeding a hungry person, clothing someone naked, and healing someone sick, what punnya is yours for the taking at Ganga?
Be clear about this: Ignoring someone in distress is as much paap as putting someone in distress.
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