A poverty of spirit

Krishna Dharma dasa

Recently Nelson Mandela spoke in Trafalgar Square in support of the 'Make Poverty History' campaign. Addressing a crowd of thousands, Mr Mandela said, "In this new century, millions of people in the world's poorest countries remain imprisoned, enslaved and in chains. They are trapped in the prison of poverty. " He went on to say that the huge problem of world poverty is "man made and can be overcome and eradicated by the actions of human beings."

Surely this is true, but what are those actions? Mahatma Gandhi famously said the world has enough for man's need, but not his greed. Invariably at the root of socalled scarcity and need is exploitation of one nation by another, driven by rampant consumerism. The average US citizen, for example, consumes thirty times more resources than his Indian or African counterpart. We in the UK are not far behind. It seems we are insatiable for more and more technological marvels, for gas-guzzling cars, exotic foods, the latest in fashion, and yet another pair of shoes. But do we really need all this? Can it ever make us truly happy?

"the world has enough for man's need, but not his greed"

The motto of the Krishna consciousness movement is "simple living, high thinking." In other words human life is seen as having a higher purpose than simply satisfying our senses and minds. By minimising our material needs we simplify our lives and free up time for spiritual practise. And by such practise we reduce our desires and become peaceful. It is the endless stream of material desires and our vain attempts to satisfy them that destroy our peace of mind, impelling us to excessively exploit the earth for her precious resources. Thus we create an imbalance and its consequential poverty for so many. And if we continue to show little or no restraint it will be a problem that will eventually reach us all.

Although initiatives such as 'Feed the World' and 'Drop the Debt' may offer some immediate relief to afflicted areas, these are only external solutions. We need to look for the deeper causes of the problem, causes that may well lie in our own hearts. Ultimately it is a poverty of spirit in both practise and understanding that leads to world poverty. The Vedas say that God has provided us with everything, but we should take only what we require, always knowing well to whom it actually belongs. The world and its wealth belongs to God not us. If we take more than we need we become thieves. Ultimately we are punished by the material energy, suffering shortages and many other problems.

Therefore the best way to address world poverty is to simply abide by the Lord's instructions, depending on him for all our needs while engaging in regular spiritual practise to keep our desires and demands in check. That alone will make us peaceful and happy.