Breaking the Bread / Anna Daan

Couple of years ago, I saw a huge signboard asking all to donate money for ‘Nitya Anna Daan’ (daily food donation) program at Thirupathi…lord Balaji’s abode. India is not only the land of snakes and tigers but also of temples. Go to any temple in India – free food program is common to all. Besides temples offering free food, there are many philanthropists who offer free food for all. All we are expected is stand in line with a plate or planting leaf. Nice tasty food. You have chapati, rice, sambar etc. In the Hindu sacred texts, it is mentioned that greatest donation that we can ever give is food. There is a religious injunction – give water to thirsty, food to hungry or you will rot in hell. It is a known fact that no beggar will return from any home without receiving the alms. No household in India can turn away the beggar who says, standing in front of the main door ‘Bhavati Bhiksham Dehi’. Either the master of the house or the mistress of the house has to give food. There are innumerable recorded stories explaining how Mr. XYZ went to heaven or how he went to hell because he refused to donate food. An excellent piece of philosophy to be followed throughout the life.

I was also reading bible about Breaking the bread: Jesus said to disciples, ‘Come, let us break the bread together’. Jesus gave bread to all the hungry. Even Christianity also enjoins on devout Christians to give bread to the hungry. Kingdom of God will await you for this noble deed. In every religion therefore we find this concept. Islam, Christianity, Hinduism – in all we find food donation programs.

The question I may be allowed to ask – is the concept of food donation applicable in the modern-day world? In the earlier days, we had famine, early death, ill-health, robbers, disasters, earthquakes and many more calamities. In the great Indian famine millions perished. In Bengal famine, millions perished. There was no food to give. Food donation therefore was considered a desirable thing, an honest, august and a religious duty. Heavenly rewards like the company of beautiful damsels in heaven – if you donate food. Disease and disaster were ever present in those days. Post famine era – modern era – there is no single recorded famine excluding those photographs taken to elicit pity from readers – the ones which are found in UN website, a small boy with protruding rib bones and with a morsel of rice sticking to his mouth looking desperately at the camera. Whether those people really exist or they are staged God alone knows! But in todays world, there is no famine, there is no disease, there is no disaster. I do not mean to say that people are not dying of huger or disease, people are dying of these. But more people are dying of obesity than of hunger. Hunger was the main disease then. Diabetes is the disease today. Diseases like diabetes and blood pressure were unheard of during famine days. Today, these are the most common diseases affecting people irrespective of age. The percentage of the people dying of hunger vis-à-vis dying of diabetes – the percentage of people dying of diabetes is staggering. According to a survey, over 90% of Indians are obese. Generally, a person becomes obese when he has too much of food. We have too much to eat today. Few years ago, one of the American presidents stated that India is consuming too much food. Well, what he stated is right or whether Americans are not consuming is out of our present context. Yes, Indians are consuming far more than necessary. Health of India is affected.

Under these circumstances, i.e. the circumstances as described above, Nitya Anna Daan or daily food donation camps, which are validated by religion – are these programs essential today? Is it religious to donate food to make them obese? Is it religious to make people die younger and faster? I disagree with the mass food donation concept of today. Everyone wants to give food. Every nook and corner of every street, we have food donation camps. Over and above this, the government jumps into the band-wagon with its free lunch and other schemes. A debatable issue. I am not saying giving food is bad or not giving is good. All I am trying to say is that we are making people die younger and faster by giving food. For every occasion, a festival or marriage, we give food. Indians have so many festivals that they themselves do not have a count. For every festival, every sad occasion, we give food.

I, personally believe that god is testing us by giving too much food. He is asking each of us, do you have the ability to stay hungry? It is a test. Staying hungry is no more a curse, it is a blessing, it is a pleasure. Not everybody can afford to stay hungry. They want food, more food. For that they can do any heinous crime. In my opinion, in today’s world what is required both by religion or humanity is the power to stay hungry. I hope every Indian gets it.

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