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From Him unto Him-The true definition of Charity


                                                                         
Om Namo Bhagavate Shri Ramanaya





On 9th December, I happened to visit the Ramana Maharshi shrine to attend the Poornima puja. In Bhagavan’s physical presence with swarming fellow devotees, how could one describe the bliss and glory? The puja came to an end with devotees going around the shrine chanting ‘Aksharamanamalai’ We then stood engaged in a little Satsang in a small group listening to Ms. Sarada Natarajan (President of Ramana Maharshi Centre for Learning) about Bhagavan and Arunachala and the Karthigai Deepam festival, when the others had taken leave.

A person from the group handed some money as a donation for the centre’s activities to Ms Sarada Natarajan requesting her to use it for the Poornima celebrations or for any other related activity.  The person humbly added, when I am HIS, what could remain as ‘mine’ to donate?

Ms. Sarada Natarajan narrated an incident in response to the donor’s words. Shri Nochur Venkatramanji’s child of five or six, standing near the Ganges, cupped his little hands to fill it with water and then emptied it into the river again saying, “This is true worship!”  A lesson from a little child indeed!

Ms Sarada Natarajan looked at the donor and said, “Your words remind me of that little child who could impart a great teaching in the course of his little play of worship"

While charity in the normal sense can be an exercise to purify the mind, the true definition of charity is something greater.

With the dissolution of identity, as Bhagavan always says, “There is no 'other,” (where there is no giver and the taker, but the SELF) true charity is that which is given even without the slightest notion of giving, where everything is the‘SELF’ Here there is no expectation from the taker in return and exploitation of the taker by the giver.

In the mighty ocean of Ramana, when the waves are of its (His) very nature-water, is there anything apart from Him?

Om Namo Bhagavate Shri Ramanaya!

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