We all know who these people are (nothing against them, they have given a lot to the world), some of us may also remember the entire list and personal wealth of the top 100 "richest". Thousands (if not millions) of dollars are spent each year in counting and tracking their wealth.
Reading these again and again made me feel hollow inside. How many of us know the name of the poorest person in the world? Or for that matter how many of us even remember the number of poor people we have seen in our lifetime? I do not...
Why do poor people never occupy the news? Some say it is "disturbing"... some tend to ignore them... many others take advantage of them... and I just sit and feel bad about it all...
It reminds me of Gandhiji's Talisman which occupied the inside covers of all NCERT books in my school days. Maybe, some day I will be able to use it:
"I will give you a talisman. Whenever you are in doubt, or when the self becomes too much with you, apply the following test. Recall the face of the poorest and the weakest man [woman] whom you may have seen, and ask yourself, if the step you contemplate is going to be of any use to him [her]. Will he [she] gain anything by it? Will it restore him [her] to a control over his [her] own life and destiny? In other words, will it lead to swaraj [freedom] for the hungry and spiritually starving millions? Then you will find your doubts and your self melt away."
- Mahatma Gandhi
