== VAMPIRE'S CHARITY ==
Namaskar,
Recently a few US capitalists began calling for charitable donations of
millions or even billions by their fellow industrialists. In the general
society, people are discussing and blogging about this, sharing their
view. Most are praising this act while some are more critical about the
exploitation perpetrated by such capitalists. This has become an issue
of debate. Mostly however, people are confused.
This is a very good topic for margiis to raise because Baba talks a lot
about capitalism and communism in His teachings on Prout. Communism has
almost died out but capitalism is still spreading.
As Proutists, we should investigate whether the charity of these
capitalists is something noble worthy of praise, or some type of scam
that should be pointed out. Or should it just be ignored and left alone.
We should review Baba's guidelines about this. Then, based on His
teachings, we can can arrive at a conclusion about their approach.
ALL PROPERTY BELONGS TO PARAMA PURUSA
This world is full of riches. Let's see who is real owner as well as who
has the right to this property. No doubt, the capitalists are telling
that they are giving away their wealth but who is the real owner.
One thing we have to remember is that the ultra-rich have merely
gathered all the wealth of this universe - they did not create it and it
is not theirs per se. Rather they have hoarded it by cheating and
exploiting others.
Our Proutistic perspective is that all the wealth of the universe is
the collective property of one and all because ultimately everything
belongs to Parama Purusa. Human beings cannot create anything. Parama
Purusa has created everything that is why it belongs to Him.
Baba says, "We must not forget, even for a single moment, that the
entire animate world is a vast joint family. Nature has not assigned any
portion of this property to any particular individual. Private ownership
has been created by selfish opportunists, as the loopholes in this
system provide them with ample scope for self-aggrandizement through
exploitation. When the entire wealth of the universe is the common
patrimony of all living beings, can the system in which some roll in
luxury, while others, deprived of a morsel of food, shrivel up and
starve to death bit by bit, be said to have the support of dharma?"
(POD, Point #1)
Baba says, "These capitalists are the unworthy sons and daughters of the
Cosmic Father because they go against the principle of cosmic
inheritance." (PNS-15)
Thus when the rich have created all kinds of rules and regulations in
the form of tax codes, trade rules, and so much more that enhance their
ability to exploit others and gather all the wealth, then they are
cheating others out of their due. Because when everything is the
property of the Supreme Father and all are His children, it goes against
human dharma for some to hoard all the resources and wealth. That is a
fundamental point of our Prout philosophy.
Hence, each and every billionaire who has wealth to donate got that
wealth by their anti-social ways and greedy mentality. In that case who
can even think that such people are so generous.
LIMITED RESOURCES
A related point to this discussion is that this crude world is limited -
and the money of this world is also limited. So if in their voracious
thirst such capitalist accumulate all the wealth and property, then
others will not have any. There is limited amount of money, not everyone
can become a millionaire - what to say of a billionaire.
If even one person becomes a billionaire then that means they have
created a few million homeless people living under bridges, and in
slums, ghettos, and shanty towns. All billionaires create this social
problem because the money and resources of this world are limited.
When we think about these billionaires we should analyse with this
critical view in mind.
TRYING TO COOL DOWN THE PEOPLE
Right now in the west - especially in the US - there is a heightened
awareness about the extreme greed of Wall Street, top CEO's, and big
capitalists. The recession, the rise in unemployment, the homeless
issue, and so many other social ills have created a growing sense of
frustration. The people are becoming keen to the woes of capitalism and
they have begun to express their angst. In some cases, the public has
gone so far as to protest and petition outside the mansions and gated
communities of such tycoons. That's why these executives have begun
hiring security teams to protect their property. In the recent past,
this was never needed.
Considering all of the above, is it any wonder then some of the wealthy
are devising ways to quell the masses by calling press conferences about
their plans of great charity. How far these vaeshyas fall in this
category, we have to think - but certainly this is the motivation for
some capitalists.
Here Baba has outlined a case from history that neatly parallels the
present scene unfolding in the US.
After Indian Independence, many of the people demanded economic justice.
Thus in 1951, land reform movement was started by Acharya Vinoba Bhave -
a disciple of Gandhi's. This movement became known as the Bhudan land
movement.
In collusion with other leaders, the aim of this movement was to calm
the people's anger and quell the frustrations of poor people. Indeed,
propaganda set forth in advance of the Bhudan land movement, the public
became convinced that they would get their fair share & their economic
problems would be solved. But in reality they were duped as the whole
plan just a hoax - a sham.
The rich people donated useless, barren, dry, rocky land to the landless
laborers. In due course the whole plan was exposed and ultimately fell
apart. So the poor people got nothing and their call for revolution was
smothered.
Baba says, "The contemporary Bhu'da'n movement [in India where the rich
divided up and gave land to the poor]...As a result of this kind of
movement, efforts to fight the exploitation of the vaeshyas decline
because people think, "Why fight against rich people when they
voluntarily distribute their land and wealth to the poor?" This aversion
to fighting will somewhat lengthen the vaeshya age; because as the
vaeshyas know full well, most of their donations are not genuine, but
exist on paper only – and whenever they make genuine donations, they
realize double the amount as profits in some other way. In the vaeshya
age this type of rotten philosophy gets widely trumpeted in the
newspapers." (HS-2)
Today it is well known that the Bhudan land movement gave nothing to the
poor - only they were duped. All were promised land, but 99.9% of the
people received nothing and the few who did get something just got
useless land.
The Bhudan land movement proved to be nothing but a show of giving away
useless land which the poor could never keep or harvest in order to
diffuse their call for economic justice in India decades ago.
Now, the same tactic is being employed in the US and other western
nations. The common people who were outraged the the wealth and
arrogance on Wall Street have become satisfied by seeing the apparent
generosity of the rich. Most have gotten duped just like in the Bhudan
land movement.
Because as Baba points out, those donations by the wealthy are just part
of one greater money-making scheme and along the way those vaeshyas
gather name and fame and are heralded in the papers. Is that not what
some of these top business tycoons are doing today.
Here again Baba points out the key point of their strategy: Subsiding
the frustration of the people and putting out their fire of revolution
and demands for economic justice.
Baba says, "These movements [like the Bhudan land movement] very
carefully avoid an anti-exploitation campaign. They will only be
advantageous to the capitalists because the fighting spirit of the
people is tactfully suppressed." (TTP)
So here Baba is showing that the ultra-rich make a show of giving away
land, property and money in order to cool down the masses and avoid an
uprising. This is their favoured strategy.
For this reason alone then we should not stand back and say, "Oh these
capitalists are giving away billions - what a great idea - that is so
wonderful!". Getting dazzled by their display of so-called giving only
diverts the minds of the people away from the day to day injustices that
are going on. That is Baba's key warning and teaching about the Bhudan
land movement analogy.
We must carefully evaluate how far the same technique is being employed
today.
THEY SUFFER FROM A PSYCHIC DISEASE
One question that has to be asked is this: Why is it that the ultra-rich
desire more? How is it those multi-millionaires became
multi-billionaires. Here is the answer.
In His below teaching, Baba points out how such capitalists suffer from
a mental illness which expresses itself in the over-accumulation of wealth.
Baba says, "In capitalism the psychology of the acquisition of material
wealth, be it land, money, metal or other property, strongly
predominates. Such crude psychic urges and psychic pabula remain
unchecked and unbridled in capitalism and turn into a hungry profit
motive in the market system. As a result, traders, industrialists and
business people suffer from the psychic disease of accumulating more and
more wealth by any means, even to the point of depriving other human
beings of their basic requirements." (AFPS-8)
Thus according to Prout, such wealthy moguls have gotten their wealth
due to their misguided outlook and unseemly ways.
THEIR GIVING IS NOT WORTH MUCH
Since certain billionaires a making such an expose of their proposed
giving. We should see if the rich are really doing any sacrifice and
service by their giving or not.
Here Baba points out how the value in giving lies not in how much you
give, but under what conditions the gift is given. By this way, a few
pennies donated by a blue-collar worker is worth far more than tens of
millions given by billionaires.
Baba says, "If a poor man thinks that he cannot render vaeshyocita type
of service because he is devoid of money he is wrong. The charity of a
few paise of the poor has the same value as a thousand rupees from a
millionaire. Indeed the charity of these few paise is greater. Lord
Krs'n'a attached greater importance to a handfuls of grains from Vidura
than to the sumptuous royal dishes of Duryodhana." (SS-1)
Baba says, "The measure of sacrifice is not its quantity or its
grandeur. A sacrifice should always be measured in terms of the
circumstances in which it has been rendered." (AV-31)
CHANAKYA'S VIEW ON THE WEALTHY
A very related view on this is that of Chanakya. Baba cites the early
philosopher / economist Chanakya of 2400 years ago. Chanakya warned
about the dangers of allowing business people to accumulate too much
wealth.
Baba says, "Chanakya said that a business person who becomes extremely
rich is harmful to the state. If a king finds that somebody has become
extremely wealthy, he should reduce the person’s wealth and property by
imposing direct and indirect taxes on them. If he does not do this, the
vaeshyas may destroy the structure of the government unless they can
make it the tool of their exploitation. Chanakya also said that if the
imposition of taxes fails to stop or control extremely wealthy vaeshyas,
the king should poison them to death through a secret agent. These are
indeed strong recommendations, but in that age of social darkness there
was no alternative. Vaeshyas received the good advice that their
responsibility was to earn money and undertake charity, not to hoard
wealth." (HS-1)
Thus Chanakya's guideline was to reduce the wealth of rich by either
taxing them or by inspiring them to do charitable works - or even by
harsher methods. But, with regards to his last suggestion, in our
present era we can resort to other measures as there is no need to kill
such capitalists. But as Baba Himself says, it was needed in those olden
times.
One thing note: Keeping billions for oneself and donating millions does
not comply with Chanakya's teaching. Still the problem persists wherein
some have huge wealth in which case they use their influence to
interfere with the running of the state and harm society.
For more about Chanakya please read:
TRUE HUMANS OR JUST SCARECROWS
Baba Himself has given even more explicit guidelines about what the
wealthy should do.
Baba says, "In order to be sadvipras they will have to come down to the
level of the middle class (viks'ubdha shu'dras ), because they cannot
live in indolent luxury on capital acquired by sinful means. In order to
follow the principles of Prout, they will have to fight against sin and
injustice, and in order to conduct such a fight properly, they will not
be able to keep their wealth – they will have to become middle-class
(viks'ubdha shu'dras )." (HS-2)
Here, Baba's main point is that righteous persons cannot live far above
the standard of the common people and still work for the welfare of
humanity. It is not possible. They will have to give up their wealth.
In our AM, there are rich people. We have to measure them by Baba's
above guideline. That is the scale by which to measure whether they are
true margiis or just scarecrows.
Those who over-accumulate wealth cannot be considered as dharmikas or
sadvipras. Such persons must not be placed on a pedestal.
ROLE OF BUSINESSMEN
In Carycarya, Baba gives fundamental guidelines about the various
professions. Here is what He has said about those involved in business.
Baba says, "Remember, for you the greatest opportunity lies in
vaeshyocita seva' [i.e. financial service]. Specially ensure that the
stores of the disaster relief section of the Marga remain full." (CC-2)
Here the point is that the dharma of businessmen and industrialists is
to use their wealth for the welfare of others - not hoard it for their
personal luxuries and show. Specifically they are to actively engage in
social service by ensuring the supply shelves of our relief teams are
full. That means the dharma of capitalists is to finance all aspects of
social relief programs. That is their social duty as given by Baba.
MORE ABOUT THEIR PHILANTHROPY
Here is another aspect to this discussion. Various business executives
give to charity for their own gain. For instance, BP (British Petroleum)
gave 1 billion dollars to various environmental watch-dog groups, and by
this way BP took control of the boards of those non-profit agencies. The
point is that when such capitalists give donations, they gain their
favour and people develop sympathy for them. And ultimately they get
more exploited. This happens everywhere.
Baba says, "Among these vicious vaeshyas there are some who project
themselves as philanthropic politicians. They also devour the people,
but they shed a few false tears. They too have not discovered any real
meaning in life. Their only aim is to fool the public in order to
prosper in business." (HS-1)
There is a classic example in India about this as well. In India, the
Birla family has billions and billions of dollars and controls huge
enterprises. For their so-called service work, the family builds
extravagant temples and calls them Birla temples. They do not name the
temples after certain gods or goddesses. Rather the temples are given
the name Birla temple or Birla mandir. Such is their audacity.
But the ignorant masses think that the the Birla family is quite
generous. Now here comes the key point. The Birla family does not give
hardly any money for these elaborate temples. Rather they collect the
funs from their employees' paychecks. They get the money from their
workers' wages. Such as fee or tax is called dharmada'.
By this way they befool the public, gain their trust, and earn more
money. Can we then claim that they are donating money - rather they are
earning money.
OVERALL OUTLOOK
All in all, the idea of such capitalists giving money is nothing but
vampire's charity. They are greedy blood-suckers who are giving money
away which that got by turning others into helpless beggars. That is
all. And by this way the common people continue to be ensnared in their
trap - economically destitute and unable to advance beyond the struggle
for their basic existence.
Baba says, "Capitalists create hindrances on the path of human beings to
prevent them from becoming one with the cosmos – to prevent them from
becoming great. So capitalism is anti-dharma and the actions of
capitalists are also anti-dharma." (PNS-15)
BABA'S BLESSING
By Baba's grace, He gives us the key way to solve this matter - proper
force is needed to change the ways of such capitalists.
Baba says, "Capitalists are immoral and are fighting a fratricidal war.
Their internal urge is meagre and does not function properly. We have to
apply external force to rectify their conduct. Nicely worded advice will
not do the job." (PNS-15)
Our Proutistic perspective is not about permanently condemning anyone -
not even rapacious capitalists - rather our aim is to apply pressure
and give them scope to become proper human beings.
Baba says, "Each and every individual, whether they are a criminal or
not, can claim a chance to rectify their conduct from the society. So in
PROUT’s legal structure everybody should get ample scope for rectifying
their character and conduct." (PNS-15)
Namaskar,
Mukunda
Note 1: MUST AVOID OVER-SIMPLIFICATION
Perhaps the greatest pitfall in this for Ananda Margiis is to rush to
judgment and label Gates and Buffet as conniving capitalists who have no
true feeling for humanity - just a crooked deceitful agenda in mind.
Because we all know that Baba has not an iota of good things to say
about these capitalists.
Baba says, "The capitalists of this modern world are anti-dharma, or
antisocial, creatures. To accumulate massive wealth, they reduce others
to skin and bones gnawed by hunger and force them to die of starvation;
to dazzle people with the glamour of their garments, they compel others
to wear rags; and to increase their own vital strength, they suck dry
the vital juice of others." (POD, Point #1)
Thus, as Ananda Margiis, we do not hold capitalists in high regard -
rather we know what effect they have on society.
However, our analysis must not end there because after all Gates and
Buffet are choosing to give away lots of money to help others. They
themselves may not be willing to sacrifice their own way of life and
luxuries, but let's for a moment assume that such capitalists do have
some decent feeling for humanity and are donating money to bring relief
to the suffering. In that case, their giving may not come within the
realm of tapah (sacrificing for others) but it does come within the
scope of shaoca, or mental purity.
Baba says, "A donation of ten rupees brings no physical discomfort for
millionaires. It is, therefore, not tapah for them but this gift helps
them in practising mental shaoca." (GHC)
Here the "ten rupees" is just symbolic of any amount of money or
donation wherein those capitalists need not undergo any sacrifice or
hardship. So these big capitalists are not doing tapah.
Baba says, "There must be one and only one purpose behind the practice
of penance (tapah) and that is to shoulder sorrows and miseries of
others to make them happy, to free them from grief and to give them
comforts. " (GHC)
However, Baba does acknowledge that so long as their giving is not
motivated by business interest or greed, and they are giving selflessly
out of a true concern for others, then they are practicing shaoca, i.e.
mental purity.
Baba says, "This gift helps them in practising mental shaoca." (GHC)
So to be fair, we must at least keep this point in mind.
THESE PEOPLE ARE THE BAD AMONG THE WORST
Should we now stand back and honor Gates and Buffet as being great
adherents of mental shaoca - probably not. Nor however should we vilify
them up to the bone. At least they are giving something and trying to
champion certain causes. Not all do like this.
But the situation does have many angles to it. What we can say is moguls
like Gates and Buffet are merely the bad amongst the worst. They are not
good vaeshyas but nor are they as bad as those rapacious capitalists who
never give one penny.
Note 2: VERY PERTINENT TEACHING
The below teaching is highly related with the entire theme of this letter.
Baba says, "The aspiration to become rich by exploiting others is a sort
of mental malady. In fact, if the eternal hunger of the human soul does
not find the real path leading to mental and spiritual wealth, it
becomes engaged in the work of depriving other of their rights; it robs
them of their material resources. If any member of a family seizes food
from a store by application of mental or physical force, he certainly
becomes the cause of misery to others. Similar is the case when a
capitalist says, “We have seized wealth by intelligence and labour. If
others have mental and physical potentialities they may also do it. Who
objects to it?” They do not want to realize that the volume of
commodities is limited whereas requirements are common to all. In most
spheres, abundance for one individual takes the bread out of the mouths
of others. It is a mental ailment not to understand this common
necessity." (POD #7)
Note 3: MORE ABOUT THIS LETTER
In other words, this week, two of the richest men - Bill Gates & Warren
Buffet - held a press conference and called upon billionaires to give
away half of their wealth to charity.
There has been a mixed reaction by the general public. Many are clapping
their hands and hailing this as a great show of generosity and
humanitarianism; some are giving moderate praise and nodding their
heads; and others are expressing their doubts, wondering if this is but
an act of self-glorification, prestige, and personal benefit in the form
of tax breaks etc. For the common person, it is not easy to know what
exactly is going on.
And indeed the situation is not so simple and straightforward as it may
seem; one should not err by just taking it at its superficial face value.
As Ananda Margiis, we can best understand this weighty issue by applying
our knowledge of Proutistic principles. In His teachings, Baba has
talked a lot about such acts by the wealthy. We should understand each
and every point of His Proutistic guidelines so we can generate a fair
analysis and teach the general populace.
Because, when someone says, "What's wrong, I think it is great, let them
give away their money - that's a fine solution", and when another says,
"These greedy capitalists have no good will at all - they should just be
annihilated", then we need to be able to rationally reply to these
radically divergent claims, as well as all points in between.
However, without a very clear, pointed understanding of Baba's
teachings, it is not so easy. We will not be able to to convince people
of our Proutistic stand.
So we should all take to study and be vigilantly ready on this important
point. Not knowing the right answer means being unable to propagate the
ideals of Prout, extending the vaeshyan era, and being confused
ourselves about what is what and who is who.
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