This article has two parts, the first part takes a brief look at the problem of World Hunger, the second part looks at the Guru Nanak’s concept of Langar, or the free and common eating place, and how it can go along way in helping to solve the problem of World Hunger.
1. WORLD HUNGER - THE PROBLEM
"The young Mushar woman wore a tattered sari around her bony shoulders. Her children huddled close to her as she held up a handful of leaves. ‘We have had no food for days except these bitter leaves,’ she said."
The 3 million Mushar, or Rat-Catchers, are low caste Indians living in Bihar. They are also nick-named the "Rat-eaters" and they are typical of the poor in India. They are hungry because of poverty. They are poor because they are uneducated and have low paid jobs. All the money they earn goes into surviving day by day. They cannot save enough money to buy a house or pay for their children’s education. They live hand to mouth and can never break out of the cycle unless they are given opportunites. But being one of 300 million low castes in India, they have accepted the tradition that they will always occupy the lowest rung of the social ladder.
According to the UN, there are 800 Million chronically undernourished people in the world, the majority live in 87 countries which cannot produce enough food to feed their own population and most shocking of all is that 18 million people die due to starvation and related problems every year.
What is the major cause of World Hunger? Is it natural disasters such as floods, drought and pestilence? According to a UN official, natural disasters account for approximately 10% of the World Hunger problem. Due to modern communication and infrastructure, emergency aid reaches people in need and averts major disasters.
So what is the major cause of World Hunger? Is it the possibility that there just isn’t enough food for every one? No, at a recent World Food Summit, Fidel Castro said "The world has more than enough food to feed all its people, why should even one person starve? Why should even one child go hungry?" . Since the 1970’s, science and technology has lead the way to doubling global wheat production, increasing rice production by 56% and 80% for corn production. There is more than enough food for everyone, they’d be even more grain if everyone became vegetarian allowing better use of land, so why do we still have poor people like the Mushar mother and children starving? Approximately 90% of World Hunger is due to Man Made Disasters. The US Department Of Agriculture has identified the following causes : war and civil strife, misguided national policies, trade barriers, technology, poverty, population growth and inequality. For example one news source reported that "People in Iraq are literally starving. Iraqis, once fairly well off, suffer because of international sanctions imposed before the 1991 Persian Gulf War and their government's harsh rule."
Fidel Castro summarised the problem at the World Food Summit "Hunger, the inseparable companion of the poor, is the offspring of the unequal distribution of the wealth and the injustices in this world, "the rich do not know hunger." The Cuban president went on to blame the "offensive opulence and squandering of consumer societies."
2. LANGAR - THE SOLUTION
Almost 500 years earlier Great Guru Nanak Dev Ji walked this Earth to the houses of the rich and the poor, the high castes and the low. Guru Nanak Dev Ji embarked on many great journeys that spanned his incredible lifetime. He felt the suffering of humanity deeply and did everything in his power to overturn the corrupt system of caste, gender and wealth inequality. The same problems of inequality are with us today at International level leading to the World Hunger crisis. By taking a brief look at how Guru Nanak Dev Ji countered the inequality problem, we will gain a valuable insight into a way of tackling the World Hunger problem.
Firstly, Guru Nanak Dev Ji CARED about the poor and hungry. Once his father gave him a huge amount of money to go the market place and "do good business". When Guru Nanak Dev Ji returned empty handed his father was furious, but Guru Nanak Dev ji said that he had done the best business by spending the money feeding the poor, starving saints that sat by the roadside.
Secondly, Guru Nanak Dev Ji challenged authority and upheld EQUALITY. When he reached the SayyadPur, the town of the rich businessman Malik Bhago, he preferred to stay with the poor, low caste carpenter Lalo. Guru Nanak Dev Jee’s food was prepared with humility and Lalo prepared a separate place for the higher Kashatriya caste Guru Nanak Dev Jee to sit and eat. Guru Nanak Dev Jee addressed Lalo as "bhai", or brother, and they sat down together. Guru Nanak Dev Ji completely rejected caste and gender prejudice and saw God in all. Malik Bhago was infuriated by the snub, Guru Nanak Dev Ji went to Malik Bhago’s feast for the Brahmin priests and told him calmly that all his delicacies reeked of blood while Bhai Lalo Ji’s dry bread tasted better than milk and honey. Guru Nanak Dev Ji explained that the person who works honestly, meditates on God’s Name and shares even the little they possess with others is acceptable to God. But, the person who is corrupt and squeezes blood out of others through bribery, tyranny and show of power is unacceptable.
Thirdly, Guru Nanak Dev established COMMUNITY RESPONSIBILITY by creating the Langar, or alms-house. Unequal distribution of wealth meant that the rich stayed fat, while the poor low castes worked day and night for them. After completing his missionary tours, Guru Nanak Dev Ji settled down in KartarPur with his family and beloved Sikhs. He established the Alms-House of Praise, or Shabad-Ka-Langar, where the divine food of God’s sweet ambrosial flavoured Word was distributed day and night. Alongside this was the Alms-House of Donations, or Langar, where rich and poor, male and female, high caste and low caste, Kings and beggars sat, ate and served side by side.
Great importance was given to Langar, it developed an attitude of caring for the hungry, of rejecting social inequalites and the whole community taking care of one and all. Each of the subsequent Guru Ji’s spent many years serving the Langar before they were selected as Guru. The majority were against the breaking of ancient traditions and complained to Emperor Akbar. Guru Amar Das Jee sent the young Bhai Jetha Ji, later becoming Guru Ram Das Ji, to the Royal court where he defended the principles of equality and food for all. Emperor Akbar was impressed and later came to visit Guru Amar Das ji. No exceptions were made for status and the Emperor sat in the "pangat", or line, alongside the poor and low castes to eat with them. Then and only then did Guru Amar Das jee meet with him.
Now, coming back to the issue of World Hunger, there is enough food for all the world but the rich countries are not doing enough to help their poor, needy brothers. Why? Because, they do not CARE enough about 800 Million chronically undernourished people sitting by the roadside. They care more about the prices of companies on the Stock Market. They establish trade agreements which mean that poorer countries cannot export their products without being taxed. Hence their products are more expensive, sell less well meaning the poor country stays poor. Just like the Mushar people being kept in their place by the rich, exploiting Malik Bhago types.
Why do our leaders, politicians and others in positions of power make decisions that keep their own countries richer and poor countries poor? It’s because they do not have the attitude of treating everyone equally, they see their own nationals as more important than people of other nationalities. They do not see God in all as Bhai Kaneya Ji did. They do not serve the world, they squezze the blood out of the poor to line the pockets of their own nationals.
Finally, how can these people be expected to have a sense of Community Responsibility when it is not in their heart to care about others? At the World Food Summit, Fidel Castro spoke emotionally, criticising the leaders for giving the impression they care about World Hunger but then setting such modest targets, he said, "What kind of cosmetic solutions are we going to provide so that in 20 years from now there would be 400 million instead of 800 million starving people? The very modesty of these goals is shameful."
There is enough food in the World today to feed every single man, woman and child. The major reason for World hunger is that people do not have the qualities prescribed by Guru Nanak Dev Jee of Caring, Equality and Community Responsibility. These qualities do not magically appear in a person or a leader, they have to be worked on. If every person in the world spent time doing voluntary service and remembrance of God, or "seva and simran", in the Langar and annihalated their own prejudices, jealousies and selfishness then went out into the world to become leaders just as the Guru’s did then they would make decisions for the benefit of humanity rather than benefit of their own pocket and nation.
Rise to the challenge brothers and sisters, feel the suffering of humanity as Guru Nanak Dev Jee and serve the Creator by serving the created ones.
Posted by Harjit Singh Lakhan, March 1998.