Editorial Viewpoint
The gift of giving
The cat sauntered outside the office and soon ingratiated itself with the staff. Food, water, plenty of attention and gentle strokes came her way.
She was pregnant and soon after her delivery, one of the building employees disposed of the kittens. A little later, the feline was carrying again. This time she mysteriously disappeared for a few days and when she reappeared, she was lean.
We should have had her spayed and thereby spared the life of two litters. But that would have meant expending time, money and energy. Plus taking a responsibility. It was easier to befriend, nourish and pat a stray rather than take on an onerous responsibility. At best one has to live with a tinge of guilt.
And yet there are people who go out of their way to help the disadvantaged, the poor, the tired, the huddled masses. Zoroastrian charity is not a closed chapter from the past. It is very much alive today. From tending to injured calves to educating disadvantaged children and from financing students to study abroad to building lasting institutions, community philanthropy never ceases. It is embedded in our collective psyche.
English naturalist Charles Darwin expounded the theory of evolution through natural selection. Survival depended on the level of fitness. Darwin’s contemporary British philosopher and economist John Stuart Mill and the Utilitarians spoke of the greatest good for the greatest number. Today in a more egalitarian, compassionate world, society strives to help the weakest, the disadvantaged and the minorities.
In the days of old when governments did little to alleviate the lot of the common person, charitably minded individuals came forth to assist. The Jejeebhoys, Tatas, Wadias, Petits and others epitomize the largesse that etched Zoroastrian charity in the consciousness of the nation. Their benevolence extended beyond their community to all the needy.
In 1932 when academician, author and member of the British Parliament S. F. Markham prepared his report at the behest of the Sir Ratan Tata Trust on poverty in the community, institutions and individuals rallied to improve health, infant mortality rates, unemployment, education and nutrition levels in the community.
As Zoroastrian associations in the new world struggled to build community centers, the Iranians emerged as their saviors. The Guivs and the Zartoshty Brothers laid the structural foundations for the fledgling communities. They did not distinguish between Parsi and Iranian Zoroastrians even though at that time the predominant settlers in North America were Parsis. They viewed both groups as one. From Hong Kong the Jokhi family built a Parsi colony in Navsari and contributed millions to the B. D. Petit Parsee General Hospital in Bombay. Whether in Jaipur or Jalna, Aden or Australia some institutions remain or are created indicating a Zoroastrian presence at one time or the other.
While many Parsis/Iranis may rue the laws today that ban communal trusts from availing of tax exemptions, numerous individuals are creating trusts with an eye to help those in need regardless of their community, religion, color, caste, age or sex. These benefactors view themselves as privileged individuals who wish to assist the less fortunate. They exemplify the ideals of noblesse oblige.
Often we hear of a person’s magnanimity and are confounded by it. A secretary and her sister donate an ambulance from their earnings and savings. A successful entrepreneur launches a grassroots organization to revitalize the priesthood. A textile consultant heads a trust that builds homes for the aged, an elderly lady oversees disbursement of huge sums of money to deserving causes, a woman fights to protect greenery. A giant steel mill celebrating its 100th anniversary puts aside 100 crores for charitable purposes rather than spend the amount on extravaganzas, advertisements and functions.
She was pregnant and soon after her delivery, one of the building employees disposed of the kittens. A little later, the feline was carrying again. This time she mysteriously disappeared for a few days and when she reappeared, she was lean.
We should have had her spayed and thereby spared the life of two litters. But that would have meant expending time, money and energy. Plus taking a responsibility. It was easier to befriend, nourish and pat a stray rather than take on an onerous responsibility. At best one has to live with a tinge of guilt.
And yet there are people who go out of their way to help the disadvantaged, the poor, the tired, the huddled masses. Zoroastrian charity is not a closed chapter from the past. It is very much alive today. From tending to injured calves to educating disadvantaged children and from financing students to study abroad to building lasting institutions, community philanthropy never ceases. It is embedded in our collective psyche.
English naturalist Charles Darwin expounded the theory of evolution through natural selection. Survival depended on the level of fitness. Darwin’s contemporary British philosopher and economist John Stuart Mill and the Utilitarians spoke of the greatest good for the greatest number. Today in a more egalitarian, compassionate world, society strives to help the weakest, the disadvantaged and the minorities.
In the days of old when governments did little to alleviate the lot of the common person, charitably minded individuals came forth to assist. The Jejeebhoys, Tatas, Wadias, Petits and others epitomize the largesse that etched Zoroastrian charity in the consciousness of the nation. Their benevolence extended beyond their community to all the needy.
In 1932 when academician, author and member of the British Parliament S. F. Markham prepared his report at the behest of the Sir Ratan Tata Trust on poverty in the community, institutions and individuals rallied to improve health, infant mortality rates, unemployment, education and nutrition levels in the community.
As Zoroastrian associations in the new world struggled to build community centers, the Iranians emerged as their saviors. The Guivs and the Zartoshty Brothers laid the structural foundations for the fledgling communities. They did not distinguish between Parsi and Iranian Zoroastrians even though at that time the predominant settlers in North America were Parsis. They viewed both groups as one. From Hong Kong the Jokhi family built a Parsi colony in Navsari and contributed millions to the B. D. Petit Parsee General Hospital in Bombay. Whether in Jaipur or Jalna, Aden or Australia some institutions remain or are created indicating a Zoroastrian presence at one time or the other.
While many Parsis/Iranis may rue the laws today that ban communal trusts from availing of tax exemptions, numerous individuals are creating trusts with an eye to help those in need regardless of their community, religion, color, caste, age or sex. These benefactors view themselves as privileged individuals who wish to assist the less fortunate. They exemplify the ideals of noblesse oblige.
Often we hear of a person’s magnanimity and are confounded by it. A secretary and her sister donate an ambulance from their earnings and savings. A successful entrepreneur launches a grassroots organization to revitalize the priesthood. A textile consultant heads a trust that builds homes for the aged, an elderly lady oversees disbursement of huge sums of money to deserving causes, a woman fights to protect greenery. A giant steel mill celebrating its 100th anniversary puts aside 100 crores for charitable purposes rather than spend the amount on extravaganzas, advertisements and functions.
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From the archive