Radhanath Swami on Helping the poor
What is the definition of poor? Those who are poor in heart are really poor; they are really suffering. Those who are poor physically, they do not really suffer as much. 90% of the suicides in this world are not by the poor but by the rich, who have everything, yet who are so frustrated that they can’t even face life.
It’s true that people need food for their body; but they also need food for their minds, and food for their souls. Eating feeds our body. Going to college feeds our mind. We should not stop them. But why starve our souls?
Once I was with Mother Teresa. She was 83 years old then. She had been feeding poor destitute people for the past 50-60 years. She told me, “The real hunger in this world is not amongst the poor but amongst the rich. Because anyone can give bread and fill a man’s stomach. But people’s hearts are starving, they are lonely, they are unfulfilled, their lives are meaningless. And the rich are often worse than poor in spiritual starvation—starvation of heart—and loneliness. To feed them needs love. That is the true and topmost necessity in this world.”
Yes, the poor need food, clothing and shelter, but they also need a feeling of worth in their life, a feeling of dignity for God. And they also need joy and happiness and love, and that will only come through physical, mental and spiritual progress. Who are the people who are really, truly striving to help the poor?—People who love God and love all God’s creation and all living beings as their brothers and sisters.
Such beautiful explanation of the real hunger, where the real satisfaction and wealth lines in is to love God.
Thank you
Thank you very much for sharing this inspiring article. Its always very nice and inspiring to hear from Radhanath Swami Maharaj.
Really very touching article. It tells our real need in life.
Thanks for this enlightening post! Mother Teresa after 60 years of feeding the poor is clearly mentioning that it is actually the rich who are poor at heart, starving due to loneliness.
Very inspiring article !
Thanks for sharing us.
Thank you, wonderful job! Exactly the stuff I had to know.
There is no doubt Radhanath Swami’s endeavours to feed the lives of real poors, ie. big big industrialists and so, is unending and uncompromising. He is real rich man who can convert from poverity of spirituality to the riches of the divine love of Godhead.
Very nice article by Radhanath Swami
So what should we do when we are confronted with a beggar on the road, asking for some money or food? Can we preach to him? Will he listen cause his stomach is the primary sense troubling him?
Those who help only the materially poor and needy and neglect the materially wealthy are biased. Saintly people with equal vision see the starving souls and nourish them. Historically, there were many devotees who were materially poor but blissful. Vipra Sudama is one such example. So satisfaction of the soul is most important and that comes only by loving devotional service.
maharaj has clearly explainde to us in this article what it means to be poor.Thank you so much .
It’s True
Radhanath swami maharaj here nicely explained @ who is poor and who truly loves these poor.
HH RADHANATH MAHARAJ VERY PARTICULAR IN USE EACH WORD
This clearly points out the fact that “A true well-wisher is one who is ready to help physically,mentally & spiritually.” HH Radhanath Swami is exemplary in this regard as he is helping society in all these manners..by opening Hospitals, Schools … feeding to financially poor schoolchildren & others… teaching essence of Vedas through lectures..
Thus, this article makes us understand that ONLY people who love God, His creation & His children are truly helpful to everyone.
A very very inspiring article. Thank you very much for shairng the same.
“90% of the suicides in this world are not by the poor but by the rich, who have everything, yet who are so frustrated that they can’t even face life”. This should sober up those who are madly in the chase for glimmer of the material world.
that’s really true in this world everyone is hankering for love
those who are poor in the heart are really poor, hunger is amongst the rich not in poor maharaj has given a right definition of poor
Such a crystal clear understanding of what is actually ‘Poor’ & how to give a genuine help, given by Radhanath Swami. I am grateful to him for this enlightenment.
Today I understood the real meaning of POOR.
Thank you radhanath maharaj.
such definitions and differentiations can be explained by Maharaj only.
Thank you for sharing the nectar…
Nice article. very inspiring !!!
This is very true that most of the suicides are not done by materially poor people but are done by spiritually poor people . I would surely pray that god blesses them with spirituality and strength to face life as it comes
Education about body and mind is currently prevalent, but education about soul is the highest education. Radhanath swami is giving this top most knowledge about soul (that the best Universities in the world neglected about)
very inspiring !!!
Very nice article, Thank you so much for sharing
Radhanath Swami’s article is so inspiring and makes us really think about the real definition of “poor’.
Very nice article one must read it.
And should take inspiration.
HH Radhanath maharaj’s lectures are so inspiring that , it shows us our relationship with god
This is the Radhanath Swami who buit character of millions of students all over the world. Who have no idea about what life could be
As always, radhanath swami is so touching and inspiring. Thanks for sharing such thoughts.
so true. today most of the suicide cases are of the people from rich background. A uncontrolled empty mind can play havoc in your life. You really need love ,care, affection to survive in this world. otherwise this is anyways the world of frustration.
Hare Krsna. Really nice article, will be an eye-opener for the philanthropists..
We all r starving for love and care. Maharaj is giving this spritual care.
Maharaj is helping millions of people who r spiritually hungry.
Wonderful definition of Poverty……….Very true. Real poverty is poverty of heart.
Wonderful article revealing the true definition of poverty.
Radhanath Swami is genuinely striving hard to feed the poor with Lord’s mahaprasadam. This satisfies the material necessity and also benefits the soul spiritually.
Radhanath Swami Maharaj said in one lecture that Srila Prabhupada went to the west and gave the people there a sense of dignity, of worth. They felt they could do something, that was because he saw them for what they actually were ( not exact words but this is the essence of what he spoke)
Many of the hippies came from affluent families, but they were so frustrated that they gave it all up to come to the streets.
Truly, poverty of the heart is the real problem.
In the rush for achievements we hardly contemplate on these deep facts of life.
Really inspiring …thanks for sharing
indeed, so true is what maharaj has said…it is not the hunger of belly that agitates anyone more than the hunger of heart…all have the propensity to love and be loved.. and this hunger can be satiated only by the reservoir of all love, krsna…thank you.
” Great people badly need help though they don’t, People, who actually need help they think they are great”. – RADHANATH SWAMI
We thank you for your such wonderful and inspirational words.
Radhanath Swami has taken many laudible social initiatives to help the poor, namely, Food For Life, Mid-Day Meal, Barsana Eye Camp etc. Radhanath Swami is doing a great service to the society at large
The statement “rich are often worse than poor in spiritual starvation—starvation of heart—and loneliness. To feed them needs love. That is the true and topmost necessity in this world” struck me like a thunderbolt!! Simply wonderful.
I wish & pray that the ‘rich people’ find out time from their busy schedule (to become richer) & read this article & put some meaning into their life.
Only truly compassionate souls can speak simple truths like this.
Very happy to know about Mother Teresa’s definition of who is actually poor.
Hare Krishna.
Truly wonderful and touching article.
very nice article, to see more posts please visit
Very Nice Atricle. The statement that touched me is “Those who are poor in heart are really poor; they are really suffering. Those who are poor physically, they do not really suffer as much.” Thank you.
thank you for this inspiring messgae
Real compassion is compassion of the soul and not just the outwardly dress of the soul. A person drowning in the ocean needs to be rescued and its foolish to rescue just his dress when he is drowning.
Its very ture………I pray that modern man understands this & pursue path of service to God…………..
Radhanath Swami is sharing his experience of meeting with Mother Teresa. Amazing to see what is real help
Thank you for this post It is so true. We do not realize such concepts of really poor person. But when we try to see it from eyes of such Saintly persons immediately the inner meaning or real meaning comes infront of us.
Thank you once again!!!
Thank you HH Radhanath Swami for this wonderful narration. Your analogy of poor is really true and convincing. It made me to think deeply on the thoughts you have presented.
This is a nice article. It gives us our true inspiration in life.
thank very much
H.H. Radhanath Swami is very compassionate person.
Great personalities feel compassionate for the lamentable condition of society and are always trying to devise ways and means of revealing people from the sufferings of illusion. And great sages are performing a great sacrifice, but the greatest sacrifice, which gives the greatest benefit to oneself and which purifies the whole creation like non other is hearing and chanting the glories of the supreme personality of godhead. HH Radhanath Swami is teaching this principle by his own example. Please visit http://radhanathswamiweekly.com/
truly magnificent. it gives us our true inspiration in life. thank you so much
HH Radhanath Swami Maharaj’s statement “The real hunger in this world is not amongst the poor but amongst the rich” is shocking but true. People at the top are generally lonely & do not have many trustworthy friends.
hare krsna, very nice article. richness in terms of wealth is of no value.
we should increase our spiritual bank balance in hare krsna account by chanting lord’s name daily.
thank u for sharing this article & to inspire me for chanting seriously.
Great article! The definition of poor has been clearly explained. Thank you for the knowledge on the real help we can offer to poor people.
This is a wonderful article.true our the words of mother terresa.
This article is very inspiring for all of us. Thank you for sharing. Hare krsna!!
Radhanath Swami is sharing his experience of meeting with Mother Teresa. Amazing to see what is real help. if someone is drowning we don;t catch persons shirt or trouser to save him we catch the hand. Similarly if someone is suffering one should look at that person on how he could eternally be liberated out of that condition and give him real solution to the problem getting a meal is not a problem but getting real shelter which frees one from all calamities is the real way out. I am sure people sincerely following Radhanath Swamis instruction would certainly be able to find their way out. He is today Messaih who is going from one city to another to awaken everyone
Thank you very much for sharing this inspiring article. Its always very nice and inspiring to hear from Radhanath Swami Maharaj. I particularly like his Book “Journey Home” very much, his life itself is a very great source of inspiration. Please check out http://www.thejourneyhomebook.com/
This you can see practically in the western world. People are so frustrated and lonely. Unfortunately it’s all coming to India now.
So true … Suicide is mostly commited by people who are poor in heart.
Physical problems are easy to tolerate then mental problems.
thanks for such a nice article. it really gives us insight of real meaning of poor. Richness is by heart and not by money. thanks i will really try to follow the same. i also found beautiful quotes on http://radhanathswami.org/.
Really a quote a day makes our day a happy day
HH Radhanath Swami Maharaj not only helps the materially poor, but also the spiritual bereft ones.
To know more about Maharaj, please visit http://radhanathswami.com
Thanks for the post. It’s great to know that mother Teresa considered real starvation as the starvation of the heart. This is little known aspect about her. I wish to follow in her footsteps by genuinely deveoping love for God and all the beings.
This is a nice article. It reminds me of what Radhanath Swami spoke about Kuvera Prabhu. (Kuvera means – demigod’s treasurer. The richest person in the Universe).
http://www.chakra.org/announcements2/persDec14_09.html
He said: “The only real wealth, the wealth of the heart, is gratitude, devotion, compassion and love. If you don’t have that, you are living in miserable poverty, even if you are a millionaire or a billionaire, because money, power, prestige and physical strength can give no fulfilment to the heart and cannot touch the soul. Humility, gratitude, compassion, devotion and love — these qualities bring real fulfilment. They water the tree of bhakti and they please Krishna. That is wealth.”