麻豆社

Good morning. Yesterday I received an email from my online supermarket explaining the measures they are taking to ensure adequate supplies and deliveries. It seems, part of the heightened demand is the valid need of those obliged to self-isolate, but some of it is panic-buying, and a small fraction is profiteering with certain items purchased in bulk being sold on the internet.

Mahatma Gandhi claimed there is enough for everyone鈥檚 need, but not enough for everyone鈥檚 greed. However, we seem to be entering a situation in which there may not be enough for everyone鈥檚 need. Does that change the moral equation? Or, does it demand an even greater sense of consideration for other people.

The Hindu text, Isa Upanishad, reminds us that everything for our sustenance is a gift from God; so, we should accept only as much as is our personal quota. But, how much is that? Well, the Upanishad suggests we exceed our quota if our acquirement of something deprives anyone else of obtaining similar resources. That might be an apt principle for our supermarket trolley.

My teacher, Bhaktivedanta Swami, once related the system he had seen in Indian villages for handling milk products without refrigeration. Every day, each farmer would bring milk from their cows to be heated in a pot at the centre of the village and families could draw out whatever milk they needed. In the evening, a culture was added to the remaining milk and by the morning, villagers helped themselves to yoghurt. The following day any remaining yoghurt was churned into butter; then later the excess butter was converted to ghee and all was shared out.

This social arrangement seems to require a degree of neighbourly inter-reliance far beyond anything that I have ever experienced. But, even if it appears to embody an ideal that is unrealistic in a modern setting, I believe it holds the secret of a healthy society 鈥� trust in the consideration of our neighbours.

I suspect that there鈥檚 always good reason to question the thoughtfulness of others. But, Sister Shivani, a contemporary Hindu teacher, warns us against acting on that judgement: 鈥淵our trust helps others overcome their nature,鈥� she says, 鈥渄on鈥檛 trust them because they are trustworthy, but so that they become trustworthy.鈥�

It is clear that, in the current state of emergency measures, acting selfishly ourselves will only compound the problems for all of us. Perhaps, success in getting through this crisis will require us to behave in such a way that builds our trust in one another.

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