by Dr. Duli Chandra Jain
Andy Rooney, on the TV program '60 Minutes' on Sunday, April 26, 1998, presented a feature on the so-called 'tobacco settlement.' He said, among other things, that cigarettes 'kill' considerably more people in the world than illegal drugs. Mr. Rooney retorted that it is the cigarette manufacturers who are addicted &endash; addicted to money and they do not seem to get enough of it. They are trying to promote the sale of cigarettes in other countries to make up for any reduction in sales here. He also mentioned that the President wants to get tough on people who sell cigarettes to minors in this country. However, Mr. Rooney added that it should be illegal to export cigarettes to any country because selling them to young people at any other place in the world is as immoral as selling them to 16-year olds in this country. Jainism impels us to consider the overall impact of our actions on humanity and the environment. This is real compassion (JEEV DAYA). May be the Jains all over the world will learn from Mr. Rooney's remarks.
by Dr. Duli Chandra Jain
'Profile of hungry Americans includes more working people' is the title of an article which appeared on March 10, 1998 on the Internet on CNN. Among other things, the article states the facts:
"The cost of living has increased but wages haven't kept pace with their needs."
"The majority of those seeking help to get enough to eat live outside big cities, are mostly white overwhelmingly female, and either very old or very young." "And increasingly they have jobs."
"The data runs counter to almost every stereotype we have of who needs help." "It's mainly families that are playing by the rules &endash; working or trying to work."
"These are people who aren't surfing the wave of prosperity we keep hearing about." "It increasingly features working people, whose low-wage jobs don't pay enough to put food on the table."
Similar facts have been presented by Cokie and Steven Roberts in the article, 'Hunger: A Startling Crisis,' published in the USA Weekend of March 27-28, 1998. Further, the article states, "Prosperity has not produced generosity. Often the opposite."
Both articles list the names of various charitable groups helping to deal with the problem. Some of them are nationwide organizations. Their approach is to treat the symptoms and not the root causes of the problem. Treating the symptoms through making appeals for donations of various kinds is commendable. However, is it not necessary to pay attention to the root causes of the problem &endash; widening gap between the rich and poor fueled by rampant greed which, in the name of prosperity, totally disregards the impact of some normal business practices on individuals and families?
Some people, who do not even think about the overall impact of their personal and business activities on other people and on the environment, seem to clear their conscience by indulging in charity by donating money and material themselves, and/or by raising funds for various organizations. According to the Jain theory of karma, we are responsible for our own thoughts, feelings and actions. If we are negligent, and consequently, if our actions result in the suffering of other people who may or may not be directly involved in our endeavors, we accumulate painful karmas. Enterprises like exporting cigarettes to other countries is a fair example of such practices. It is unlikely that karmas that we accumulate through such activities will be wiped out through charity. Moreover, when we indulge in charity for satisfying our ego, and with a desire of name and fame, we accumulate some more bad karmas.