Tweet
A beggar , who had been begging outside a temple for over thirty years , gave away the amount she had saved over those thirty years of begging to that same temple . Is this an expression of faith , or of faith leading to exploitation ?
Link
Aged beggar's `rich' service to Lord
M.V. Subramanyam
Donates 30 years of earnings of Rs. 3.50 lakhs to Venkateswara temple at Devunikadapa
HEART OF GOLD: Beggar-turned philanthropist Lakshmamma.
KADAPA: The frail septuagenarian woman seeks alms for a living, but is a philanthropist in her own right. She has already contributed her three-decade earnings of Rs. 3.50 lakhs to Lord Venkateswara.
Lakshmamma (75) has been seeking alms at the entrance of Sri Lakshmi Venkateswara temple at Devunikadapa for the last three decades since her estrangement with her husband. She has contributed Rs. 3.50 lakhs she earned to the temple for improving amenities for devotees thronging the temple!
She has donated the money for constructing a polished stone platform near the `gali gopuram,' erecting door frames at the main entrance, south and north entrance, laying pipes for queue complex and fencing for a well on the temple premises. She was a housewife in Kadiri of Anantapur district until her husband deserted her 30 years ago. Left to fend for herself, she took to begging near theSri Lakshmi Narasimha Swamy temple in Kadiri. She donated all her earnings to the temple and organised discourses on `Ramayanam' for three months. She later moved to Kadapa and began begging near the Venkateswara Swamy temple.
Lakshmamma recalls that she went without food for a fortnight on coming to Kadapa. A devotee, Rajanna, offered her work as a maidservant in their house at Yerramukkapalle here. She worked in their house for some time but went back to the temple seeking alms. She used to sleep near the temple and the prasadam of the temple was her food.
Felicitated by people
She sweeps the temple premises daily before the priests and devotees turn up. But now, she is bed-ridden with a recent leg fracture and stays in the temple choultry. On coming to know about Lakshmamma's contribution, people of Yerramukkapalle felicitated her by presenting her a shawl and garlanding her. Women presented her saris.
There is layer upon layer of complexity in this .
Had the temple not existed , she could not have begged in front of it and gotten that money which she donated . She also depended on the temple for food - the article states that the temple's ritual offering ( prasadam ) was her food . And by donating that money , she has effectively immortalised herself ( by constructing that platform , which remains as long as the temple does ) .
So is this an act of the greatest faith and brotherhood , or is it falth leading to exploitation ?
Link
Aged beggar's `rich' service to Lord
M.V. Subramanyam
Donates 30 years of earnings of Rs. 3.50 lakhs to Venkateswara temple at Devunikadapa
HEART OF GOLD: Beggar-turned philanthropist Lakshmamma.
KADAPA: The frail septuagenarian woman seeks alms for a living, but is a philanthropist in her own right. She has already contributed her three-decade earnings of Rs. 3.50 lakhs to Lord Venkateswara.
Lakshmamma (75) has been seeking alms at the entrance of Sri Lakshmi Venkateswara temple at Devunikadapa for the last three decades since her estrangement with her husband. She has contributed Rs. 3.50 lakhs she earned to the temple for improving amenities for devotees thronging the temple!
She has donated the money for constructing a polished stone platform near the `gali gopuram,' erecting door frames at the main entrance, south and north entrance, laying pipes for queue complex and fencing for a well on the temple premises. She was a housewife in Kadiri of Anantapur district until her husband deserted her 30 years ago. Left to fend for herself, she took to begging near theSri Lakshmi Narasimha Swamy temple in Kadiri. She donated all her earnings to the temple and organised discourses on `Ramayanam' for three months. She later moved to Kadapa and began begging near the Venkateswara Swamy temple.
Lakshmamma recalls that she went without food for a fortnight on coming to Kadapa. A devotee, Rajanna, offered her work as a maidservant in their house at Yerramukkapalle here. She worked in their house for some time but went back to the temple seeking alms. She used to sleep near the temple and the prasadam of the temple was her food.
Felicitated by people
She sweeps the temple premises daily before the priests and devotees turn up. But now, she is bed-ridden with a recent leg fracture and stays in the temple choultry. On coming to know about Lakshmamma's contribution, people of Yerramukkapalle felicitated her by presenting her a shawl and garlanding her. Women presented her saris.
Had the temple not existed , she could not have begged in front of it and gotten that money which she donated . She also depended on the temple for food - the article states that the temple's ritual offering ( prasadam ) was her food . And by donating that money , she has effectively immortalised herself ( by constructing that platform , which remains as long as the temple does ) .
So is this an act of the greatest faith and brotherhood , or is it falth leading to exploitation ?
Comment