THE POVERTY OF HEART

Pic.: Chetna Shetty

The other day, a middle-aged lady, who is an office-goer – and who commutes by public transport every day - was telling me about two gentlemen in her housing complex.

The first one was in his sixties and drove an old Maruti Zen. The lady told me that this man, whenever drove by, would stop his car and offer a lift to her. “Not only me,” she added, “he does it to every person in our complex.”

The second one was in his late thirties and drove a beautiful high-end car. The lady told me that this man lived right below her flat, knew her better than the the Maruti-owner did, still would simply drive past as if that’s how it should be! “Every time he does that,” the lady said,”it makes my heart burn in pain.” Then, she added, “What a poverty of heart it is!”

I could easily empathize with the lady. I have amply experienced it around the place where I live and where I work, both. I am sure, the lady and I are not alone in going through this experience!

The poverty of the heart – which, every great teacher has described as ‘Poverty of the spirit’ – has plagued the modern man rampantly...

If our most luxurious apartments and the most sophisticated gadgets make our heart hardened and alienate us from our fellowmen, then, certainly, that’s the poverty of heart the lady was talking about...

If we do not value communication,  respect someone’s missed-call by calling back – yes, despite possessing the latest i-phones, in fact  a couple of high-end phones – then, that’s the poverty of heart the lady was talking about...

If we waste our food in restaurants and homes, without thinking about the ones who go to bed hungry, every night... and, if our clothes lie in our wardrobes, for years and years, without any use for us, when thousands live on the streets, there, naked, that’s the poverty of heart which the lady was talking about...

If our top-grade education doesn't make us feel fortunate, be tolerant of those who can not read or write, can not afford even the basic education, it is the poverty of heart which the lady was talking about...

If there is no place for our elderly parents in out massive mansions, but there is ample place to host lavish night-long parties, yes, that’s the poverty of heart the lady was talking about...

Incidentally, I received from my friend, Sundar, a very apt quote by one of my idols – and one of the most sensitive and inspiring legends in human history – Martin Luther King Jr. Here it is:

“When we look at the modern man,

we have to face the fact that modern man suffers

from a kind of poverty of the spirit,

which stands in glaring contrast with

a scientific and technological abundance...

We have learned to fly the air as birds...

We have learned to swim the seas as fish...

Yet, we have not learned to walk the earth

as brothers and sisters.”

Am I that ‘modern man’?

GERALD D’CUNHA