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Author Topic: Donation - Who needs your money. A must read?  (Read 12918 times)

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Donation - Who needs your money. A must read?
« on: March 01, 2009, 12:33:19 PM »
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  • It was a Thursday on the first day of this year. I knew how it feels for a Sai devotee. New Year always brings lots of new hopes and since the first day was a Thursday, I was very excited and happy and felt that this is definitely going to be a good year. In the evening I went to Sai temple, did pooja and offered some money in the hundi of the temple.

    The next day, I heard about an old friend whose father died 5 years back. I haven’t heard about her since then. I didn’t know that she had to abandon her study due to the financial crisis. She joined a beauty parlor to support her family. She has a younger sister who was physically challenged. I was shocked to learn about her story. She was a very bright and ambitious student and she had lots of dreams about her higher education. I really felt bad. I tried to help her and offered her financial help so she can resume her study. But it was too late. She couldn’t accept my offer as she had discontinued her studies long back as she had to support her family.

    Later in the day I remembered an article about Shirdi Sai Sansthan becoming the second richest temple in the country just behind the temple of Tirupati. There were talks of enormous amounts of money collected by the temple as donation or offerings by people. I wondered how much of that money is actually utilized and how much of that money remains idle not serving any purpose. People donate hundreds of crores of rupees every year to various temples and spiritual organizations without even caring how much of that money would be utilized.

    This incident made me realize that there are definitely better and even more practical ways of utilizing the money which we want to donate. And this can be achieved if we look around the place we live and identify the needs of the people. Because India is a land of contrasts, we can always find people who are in greater need of goods and financial assistance than us. For example we can support the education of a kid of a poor family, pay for the medical bills of the person who cannot afford it, feed poor people or donate our money to an organization which is actively involved in social work and not just sit on piles of money. Most of the famous Temples are already very rich and practically they do not need any money at least for a couple of years.

    There is no better sight in the world than seeing the face of a small child who cannot afford education and who has just been given a notebook and other accessories by you. If you think you have very little money to help, you can save that little money and add onto it till it becomes significant enough to bring a change in a needy person’s life. You can even save a fixed amount of money per month and use it later when you see someone really needs it. If you look around carefully, you will find lots of opportunity where the money can be utilized.

    Donation is not a formality to please our lords but it’s a way to support and appreciate a noble cause. The responsibility lies on us to plan well and donate the money very carefully as it belongs to our Sai. We give full attention to our SAI who is sitting inside a temple but we often ignore SAI who lives in each and every human soul in this world. Let us make judicious use of our assets to spread happiness in the lives of people who need it most.

    PS: Article published in Samarpan Jan 2009 Edition.

    « Last Edit: March 02, 2009, 04:40:10 AM by -=≡{RAVI}≡=- »

    Offline SS91

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    Re: Donation - Who needs your money. A must read?
    « Reply #1 on: March 01, 2009, 12:53:47 PM »
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  • SaiRam Ravi,

    Wonderful message and post. Even I use to share the same kind of feeling with my husband always.
    But never came fwd to put my thoughts. Thanks for sharing such good message.
    Will definitely make use of it in action.
    Sai bless me to do such nice gesture atleast to a very little extent.

    Thanks again.

    Jaisairam
    A Person, who has controlled his mind, can achieve any success in his life. How far you are trying to control your mind?
    The mind that judges not others ever remains tension-free.
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    Re: Donation - Who needs your money. A must read?
    « Reply #2 on: March 13, 2009, 02:21:27 PM »
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    From: CHAMPA MARAJ <*****@hotmail.com>
    Subject: RE: Donation - Who needs your money. A must read?
    To: ******@yahoo.com
    Date: Friday, March 13, 2009, 3:02 AM

     Sai Ram,
     
    I have long shared your views on donations. I visited india in November - January and was amazed at the amount, size and archtecture of the Temples Iskon, Birla, Akshardam etc. Also in my country, Trinidad West Indies there are many temples. I feel these structures are all ego oriented and does nothing for the upliftment of the poor and suffering. I have now become more selective as to where and to whom I give charity.

    Offline rr_sai_bhakt

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    Re: Donation - Who needs your money. A must read?
    « Reply #3 on: March 13, 2009, 07:55:29 PM »
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  • Sai Ram Ravi ji,

    Wonderful thoughts .... a very nice article ...

    I think a lot of us think similarly many times .... but then many of us never go ahead and do something because we do not know where to start, how to start etc ... We begin to feel overwhelmed at the task ...

    However, I think if we all look around us we will surely find a number of avenues for us to start contributing to people who really need it ..

    Please try to find out -
    Is there an orphanage near your house? An old age home? Any social service organization? A school for the blind or other challenged people?

    Please try to find out ...

    And then you can talk to these people about their needs and how they are managing to meet there needs.

    Once you have spoken to these people and met the occupants of these places, say orphaned children or physically challenged people for eg., you yourself will begin to have that feeling inside you that you need to contribute back to the society ... When the difference is so apparent in front of your eyes and you begin to understand how much more privileged we are, you automatically begin to thank god for everything you have and then you begin to understand that there are lesser privileged people out there who need help.

    So please find out if such institutions are there near house .. please pay a visit ...
    I would suggest that instead of contributing only by money, sometimes please try to contribute things like Rice, Wheat, Dal, Cooking Oil etc. It will give you more satisfaction.
    I have seen people who contribute monthly provisions like Soaps, Washing Powders etc so that these children also get to use good quality products like other children ...

    Please think about this ...

    Om Sai ...

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    Re: Donation - Who needs your money. A must read?
    « Reply #4 on: March 14, 2009, 03:27:04 AM »
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  • Sai Ram. I came to this forum, thanks to the article about donations, that I read in another mail. I commend the author for a well written article. I submit that the giver, the act of giving and the given money, every thing is pervaded by Sai (Isa Upanishad). I give as per His inspiration and I know that He chooses His instruments of help with His infinite wisdome and compassion. Sai Ram.

    Swamy aka here as Seeker
    « Last Edit: March 14, 2009, 03:30:53 AM by Seeker »

    Offline v2birit

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    Re: Donation - Who needs your money. A must read?
    « Reply #5 on: March 14, 2009, 05:47:21 AM »
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  • Dear Sai Bhaktas,

    In my opinion,
        Charity made to the poor & needy certainly pleases Lord Hari, since only a person with noble & pure qualities will engage in this, out of sheer compassion & imagining himself in the place of the needy.

        However charity to temples, is also befitting, since it also falls under dharma (religion). Sai baba said "Wealth should be the means to work out religion".

        Imagine a case of a society, where nobody gives charity to temples & only gives charity to the poor & needy. In this case society will still suffer, because the well-being of the society is entirely decided by the principles of religion & temples are the pillars of religion, since they are dierctly engaged in the service of the Lord.   

        Lord Krishna has said, that there are people who engage in all sorts of yagyas(sacrifices), but by not offering the sacrifices unto him, they waste thier efforts. In other words, all virtuous acts, like charity, must be for the satisfaction of the Lord.  Then the welfare of all the people (including the poor & needy) is automatically attained, without any seperate effort. This is true because the Lord is the doer.

    Om Sai Ram

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    Re: Donation - Who needs your money. A must read?
    « Reply #6 on: March 14, 2009, 06:27:47 AM »
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  • Sai Ram

    Quote
        Imagine a case of a society, where nobody gives charity to temples & only gives charity to the poor & needy. In this case society will still suffer, because the well-being of the society is entirely decided by the principles of religion & temples are the pillars of religion, since they are dierctly engaged in the service of the Lord.


    Unfortunately thats not the case today. Sai Baba Sansthan has hundreds of corers of rupees at this moment. Baba never kept the money. He used to distribute to people who needed it most. I dont see much changes in terms of fatalities in Shirdi. Not sure how Sansthan uses that money.  When Sansthan is already rich and doing nothing why there is a need of donating to Sansthan or any other temple. When hundreds of people sleep with empty stomach everyday, I clearly see no point in donating the same to a temple.

    Also, SAI BABA is not SAI BABA SANSTHAN.  in my opinion charity to poor and needed is most important and practicle.

    Sai Ram

    « Last Edit: March 14, 2009, 02:33:46 PM by -=≡{RAVI}≡=- »

    Offline v2birit

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    Re: Donation - Who needs your money. A must read?
    « Reply #7 on: March 14, 2009, 06:46:27 AM »
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  • By all means, we should be giving charity to the people who are really in utter need. No doubts about that...

    Om Sai Ram

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    Re: Donation - Who needs your money. A must read?
    « Reply #8 on: March 15, 2009, 07:54:09 PM »
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  • Sai Ram. I have no argument with giving to the poor and needy or to temples. My submission is simple: let your heart guide you in such matters. Let Sai guide you. Sai Ram.

    Swamy also known here as Seeker

    Offline Phanishayi

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    Re: Donation - Who needs your money. A must read?
    « Reply #9 on: March 16, 2009, 01:10:21 AM »
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  • Sairam,

    Thanks for the article. As all have mentioned, we don't know where can we start our Dharma. However, request you to check with the company you are working if they have any tie ups with social welfare orgnaization. For ex, the company i work for has a tie up with an orphanage and i have devoted some amount to that. Other than that, if you look around the area you stay, you can see orphanage or old age home etc, where you can spend time with them for some time as well provde them with something you can afford to. Believe me this will bring you happiness. I learnt this through one of my friends who told me a story about a person. It goes like this - Once a Man wanted to buy a car as it was need of the hour but he din't have enough money for the same, so he managed with the bike he had. He kept praying God to provide him an opportunity to buy a car, however it never happened for 6 months. Then he thought to himself that God has never helped him and he wont believe Him any more. On the same day, while coming back from office he met his friend, who still using a cycle as he was not in the position to buy a bike. But he was happy as he was Fit enough ride the cycle unlike someone who didn't have leg to even walk around. Believe me this changed his whole life style and now he started saving money for those people who really require it and finds Solace in the same. We need to help others and find SAI in the donations we do.

    SAIRAM

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    Re: Donation - Who needs your money. A must read?
    « Reply #10 on: March 16, 2009, 03:59:24 PM »
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  • आदरणीय बंधुओ, मैं यहाँ पर रवि भैया के कथन से पूर्णत सहमत हूँ | मेरा स्वयं विश्वास है कि हरि मंदिर की मूर्ति में नहीं बल्कि हर मनुष्य में बसते हैं | श्री साईनाथ का भी यही उपदेश था कि जरूरतमंद की सेवा करो, वही उनकी सेवा है | यहाँ पर कई लोगो के सुझाव पढे कि किस प्रकार हम सेवा का अनुचरण अपने जीवन में कर सकते है | सभी अच्छे है, जरूरत है तो मन में लगन की, एक धुन की | मैं मंदिर मैं दान का विरोधी नहीं हूँ, पर एक विचार है मन में, मंदिर का भी पैसा आपने ईश्वर को ही अर्पण किया है ...पर वह कुछ अप्रत्यक्ष हो जाता है, किन्तु विश्वास रखिये की जरूरतमंद को दिया हुआ प्रत्यक्ष रूप से ईश्वर को पहुँच रहा है |

    ॐ साईंराम
    गुरुर्ब्रम्हा गुरुर्विष्णु गुरुर्देवो महेश्वराः |
    गुरुः साक्षात्परब्रम्ह तस्मै श्रीगुरवे नमः ||

    Offline ritumondal149

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    Re: Donation - Who needs your money. A must read?
    « Reply #11 on: March 18, 2009, 07:56:34 PM »
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  • OM SAI RAM!

    I have gone through the posts regardng Donations. We all constitue a society. We are the soul of a society. We have got the moral right to help the needy of our society.
    There is proverb, "Charity Start at Home"-Yes, if we wish to help some one, we can do it ourselves without eyeing the wealth of other person. We are all hardworking for earnings and how many of us share a small amount of our earnings for the welfare of the society? Though we may not be having hefty bank balances( may have also), from whatever little we have, are we willing to help the needy ?
    How many of us have donated for education of poor children? How many of us have helped in hospitalization of  poor people? A blood donation camp has been orgamnized and people are not even willing to donate blood, then how can one think of helping the poor?
    We should analyse ourselves  before commenting about Sai Sansthan and other organizations. We are all capsulized in the cocoon of selfishness and we have no time to think about the society or poor.

    It is like a person with elephentia on both legs blaming the other person having elephentia on one leg.
    As a society, we are not able to help a handful of poor people, we are thinking of an organization having crores of rupees in their treasury.

    Once a person had asked, Sardar Vallabhai Patel that "If socialism is introduced in India then every one will be equal and there will not be any discrimination between poor and rich. What would happen a person like me?"
    Sardar Patel had immediately taken a four anna coin from his pocket and given to him and replied, "Then this will be your share."
    It is exactly the same case only.

    t

    Offline debu7366

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    A good way to start Sai seva-Lets follow the Guru Mantra
    « Reply #12 on: March 22, 2009, 05:43:00 PM »
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  • A good way to start Sai seva-Lets follow the Guru Mantra
    Guru Mantra!!

    *Service to Humanity is Service to God*
    Give food to the hungry,water to the thirsty,and clothes to the naked.Then God will be pleased.
    The giver gives, but really he is sowing the seed for later:
    the gift of a rich harvest.
                                      - Shirdi Saibaba 
    This Guru Mantra truly reminds me about one of my friends, Mrs.Dimple -- who is working along with 50+ women to  make a difference in some one's life. 'They are a group of women from a small town in the State of Andhra Pradesh, South India whose goal is to
    do something for the development of women and children in the areas where our help is much needed and appreciated.
    Hence they have started a small mandali to reach out and help the poor and needy..
    Indira Mahila Mandali
    of the Women :: for the Women :: by the Women


    I salute to all those 50 plus women  who not only beleive in the teachings of Baba but are also trying their level best to follow them and live by those morals to the best of their ability ..

    In near by villages and surrounding areas where women do  not have any economic independence since neither did they attend any school  and neither are they able to send their children to school because of their limited income. Infact they use them as child labourers or baby sitters.And some families who are able to send  their kids to school would rather send their male child to school and prefer leaving the female child illiterate. And on top of that to add to the already ongoing problem, child marriages still do exist even though it is illegal , giving rise to teen pregnacy's and  rise in death rate of women.The health awarness for such women are rarely given any importance.
    And this is where the Indira Mahila Mandali which consists of a little over 50 women have joined hands together to follow the teachings of Shri Sadguru Sainath and are actively following the Guru Mantra of Service to Humanity is service to God.
    All of us reading this mail are sitting in the comfort of our homes with a hope and wish that one day they will be able to do some Sai seva. Well, I guess now is the time..If we can not go to these villages to reach out to women and the needy children --We can surely help Indira Mahila Mandali financially. Our financial assistance will help them acquire land and building which will provide housing  and the school for girls, it will have a Handi Crafts training center  which will help women to earn their living and be confident,  it will have Home for Aged ,It will have an overhead projector and other equipment to promote health and aids awareness in the slums and villages ,medical supplies and medical van to reach out to people who cant afford to go to a doctor and much more.
    Dont you think we all Sai devotees should help Indira Mahila Mandali in this humble and noble deed.
    I dont know about you, but I am surely going to be a part of this great deed by helping them financialy to help others who are in need.
    I am sharing their bank info so that u can also help them succeed in their goal along with me..
    You can contribute money by check/DD/in favor of Indira Mahila Mandali

    State Bank of India -Vinukonda  - 522 647  Guntur Dt. A.P. S. India
     
    If you are sending donationfrom outside India  please send the same to

    Please email the details to srisaidham@gmail.com 
    All gifts will be acknowledged.
     Mailing Address:
    Smt  G. Dimple
    I MM (India)
    C/o Sri. T. Hanumantha Rao, Advocate
    Lane Behind Ramalayam
    Vinukonda -522 647
    Andhra Pradesh
    Email : srisaidham@gmail.com

    FOR MORE DETAILS VISIT

    Plz forward this mail to everyone whom you think wishes to do some Sai Seva






    "Gurur Brahma Gurur Vishnu

    Gurur Devoh Maheshwar;

    Gurur Shakshat Parambramha

    Tashmai Shri Gurur Veh Namah"

    May the Merciful Sri Sai Baba always shower His grace on us and our families and remove our problems and anxieties by giving us all - strength , goodluck, success and happiness with peace of mind.
    Sai bhakt,
    Deepa H



     
    « Last Edit: March 25, 2009, 05:59:26 AM by -=≡{RAVI}≡=- »

    Offline Phanishayi

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    Re: Donation - Who needs your money. A must read?
    « Reply #13 on: March 25, 2009, 03:51:11 AM »
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  • Sairam

    Can we together make a difference? Is people on the Blog ready to serve the needy? If yes we can come together and do it.

    Offline ritumondal149

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    Re: Donation - Who needs your money. A must read?
    « Reply #14 on: March 25, 2009, 06:58:22 PM »
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  • OM SAIRAM JAI SAIRAM!

    It is nice to see that atleast one person has come out with the desire to help. Money is not the matter, it is the will, it is the intention, it is the inspiration which needs and which leads us. In India there are a lot of trusts and organizations which keeps on collecting money in the name of helping poor and the said money is being used for their own welfare.

    One has to formulate the area and ways to help others. Proper accounting procedures should be followed. Simply collecting money in personal bank account and spending the same according to one's will is not going to help.

    I have got an Old Age Home in Kolkata (Gobindapur) which is running with the help of my friend. We have got around twenty inmates there. We are running it with the help of some locals there and monetory help is being done by us only. Stll there is a proper accounting system in place and any one has the access to check it.

    I welcome your desire to help the poor.

    One thing I want to stress here is that if one want to help, please do not look at the fund available with organizations like Sai Sansthan or other trusts. One can do it himself.

    ritu..
    « Last Edit: March 25, 2009, 07:33:11 PM by ritumondal149 »

     


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