A question I have never answered satisfactorily to myself is
“how to help beggars?” Setting aside the ugly side of begging where it is
conducted as an organized racket, there are many beggars who feel genuinely
helpless and incapable to seek gainful employment. Just like many situations in
life, this too presents a conundrum, for, the compassionate response in such a
situation is to gift a 10 or 20 rupee note. A truly satisfying response is to
take steps towards rehabilitating them in a more lasting manner. On the other
hand, there are arguments against helping begging too, with the most popular
one I have heard being that aiding beggars aids begging as a form of living
which is against helping them truly get back to their feet via employing
themselves. Over time, I have tended to believe the latter approach is for the
better, though there has been the odd circumstance when I have needed the
charity-induced happiness.
A less clear question I am confronted with every now and
then is “how to help people less fortunate and well-to-do than us?” In this
category, everybody from the housemaid to the ball boy to the
relatively-better-paid car driver features. Here, the need to justify one’s
stance is greater since otherwise we are left either feeling guilty that we are
not doing enough or left feeling cheated by more than commensurate salaries in
return for lesser work as per our judgement. Again, the compassionate approach
to take asks that we receive the labour for which we pay without double-guessing
intent or reading reasons as excuses. Part of the problem stems from the fact
that we have set our maids and servants the same high standards of professional
behaviour that we hold ourselves to in our work places. This is neither fair
nor called for, since the unorganized sector has not learnt in any formal way
the broader moral principles of education; often faces many more
survival-related questions that might seem mundane to our eyes; and has as it’s
biggest advantage the looseness with which roles and daily tasks are defined –
for example, a car driver is also expected to keep the car clean and even play
the mechanic role every now and then; while a maid servant who normally sweeps
the rooms and cleans the utensils is called in once in a while to also do the
windows, dust the curtains and water the plants.
A third related question is “how justified are we in
demanding to know the cause to which our money is put to use?” Put in another
way, when workers earn salaries via their role, we don’t ask questions on how
they spend their money. But, when the same workers ask for extra money to help
them tide over spikes in expenses – like educational or household ones – do we
need more justification and information than what is given to us? Are we asked
for reasons when we demand bonuses from our bosses? Charity starts from a clean
heart with the knowledge that we are helping someone whose need is stated
because we have the means to do so. Charity ends when the mind starts doubting
the stated need. At that point, it becomes an unstated barter transaction in
which we expect to have bought the
worker’s loyalty as opposed to earning it ourselves. Of course, commensurate
pay for work is not the question here – anything more would be devaluing others
of the same profile and denying ourselves a fair transaction and anything
lesser would be dehumanizing the workman.
There is more than one question that needs clear answers.
