We and them

Eashwaramma (palagutapalle, dalitwada) who means dharmam when she uses the word, and gives to the mendicant one glass of the last two glasses of rice at home. From them we can but learn ...

... what change can we bring about, till we purify ourselves ? But part of the purification happens through greater and greater giving - of 'tan,man,dhan' ... 'body, mind, money'.

the English educated, upper class - our class - is deeply perverted in values. We use all our intelligence to explain why subsidies are wrong, and charity should not be given to the needy. In dalitwada they give the last handful of rice to the person poorer than them who asks. Because that is dharmam.

I think we have to start looking at things very differently. Our educated logic, analysis I feel has failed us - to see through the eyes of the wise and unlettered Indian is what might save us.

Varalu, Kala of Palaguttapalle (and Varalus and Kalas of every village) ... see their children malnourished, want to earn money to get them healthy food, milk.

All of us who have enough to get our children two glasses of milk a day - even if we do not go to hotels or indulge them otherwise - all of us, will have to answer one day before god ...

How we could permit this to happen ... where those who graze our cows and get us milk, do not have milk for their children ... And how we could pretend that we actually are helpless and cannot do anything ...

Sometimes I am certian that it is because of this 'adharma' that cancers and floods are being visited on earth ... it is a collective sin, and we pay a collective price for it. Sometimes I do not know ...