Anything for money
Would lie for you
Would die for you
Even sell my soul to the devil
-
Michael Jackson in “Money” from HIStory: Past
Present & Future
It’s a big bad world out there. And money is a big bad demon you got
to befriend. The so called basic necessities for survival: Food, clothing &
shelter… all need money to obtain.
Whatever means it is accumulated, the colour of money remains the same
– black & white are just notions – both fetch you what you want. Moralities
are just games people play in their minds. It gets side-lined: the bait varies
from person to person; some would give in for millions, some would convince the
mind that “it’s not that big a sin”, others would say “this much is allowed”.
There are those who slaughter, kidnap, hijack for money. And those who
bend the rules, cook up scams, siphon off from development funds. There are
also those who bear the brunt: someone sticking on to a disliking job for the
sake of that much-needed pay packet. God can be a good cover-up. People are
ready to spill out money for something as obscure as God, rather than to help
the needy. It’s all about how one perceives things or manipulates their minds
to accept their deeds as the right way; manipulating the law is just passé.
Speaking of needy, we are always flooded by people in distress:
Traffic signals offer a variety of down trodden – kids selling trinkets for
small change, Moms carrying infants, handicapped people, eunuchs etc… Our
reaction may vary depending upon our moods.
I get struck by myriads of “needy” people. A taxi-operator in
Bangalore, whom I was using regularly, borrowed Rs.24,000/- stating he was
undergoing loses. That was 2 yrs ago, and he doesn’t seem to have recovered. A
drill operator came to me looking for a job, stating reasons that the iron ore
ban had eaten up his job. In the past 3 yrs, I have got him 4 jobs apart from
lending Rs.25,000/- for his family needs. But till date he continues to remain
jobless. Almost every week I get calls from some NGO stating a child is in need
of a urgent surgery & the parents are not able to afford. I donated couple
of times before wondering how do all the NGOs get my contact? There was one
time when I was the needy: I had to shift my vehicles from Karnataka to
Maharashtra and needed a NOC & Life time tax refund. I tried the
straightway with the RTO, but realized it is going to take ages and I didn’t
have time on me. I paid Rs.15,000/- to an agent. That was one year ago. I still
don’t have NOC for my car, no refunds and I’m shelling out to the traffic
police in Maharashtra whenever I get caught. Atleast a dozen times at Bus or
Railway stations, I get approached by people asking, “Hindi maloom hai?” Earlier I used to listen to their dard bhari daastan where they had lost
their money and had to go to a faraway place, but did have the means. Nowadays
I just walk away saying “Hindi nahi
maloom.” Yesterday, a young well-dressed lad came up to me as I was waiting
for a train at Secunderabad railway station, reading Robin Sharma’s Family
Wisdom from the Monk who Sold his Ferrari. “Someone has stolen my purse. I came
to write NTSC exam, I have to return to Patna..” I assessed him top-to-bottom:
Spectacles, branded T-shirt, jeans & Puma shoes, a backpack… and concluded
this should be a genuine case before giving him Rs.400/- (he mentioned the
ticket was Rs.390/-). He invited me to join him. My train was due anytime &
I didn’t accept the invitation. He said he’ll buy the ticket & return to me
in 5 min. My train got delayed I was standing at the same place for the next 75
min. But the young boy never returned!
Sometimes I wonder, am I being too kind? Have I forgotten the value of
money? Have I lost my analytical abilities & become vulnerable? Or is it simply
that I look like an easy target?
