Let us 'speak' about greed

ANCIENT philosopher Seneca said about greed: "It is not the man who has little, but he who desires more, that is poor." Mahatma Gandhi was more specific. He said: "Earth provides enough to satisfy every man's need, but not every man's greed." Lord Buddha is known for his wisdom. He said about greed: "There is no fire like passion, there is no shark like hatred, there is no snare like folly, there is no torrent like greed." And the ultimate has been written down in Bhagavat Gita. It reads: "Hell has three gates: lust, anger, and greed."
With those quotes to warm us up, we are now all set to talk about this folly called greed that only humans have. It's a shame for us when we notice that greed is not present in the animal world. Lions and tigers, even lowly hyenas, do not kill more than what they need to satiate hunger. This way they help maintain the balance in nature in their greedless world. But with humans it is totally different, of course, except for some saintly men and women who could defy the pull of this strong urge. The rest of us are caught in the "greedlock" of greed.
Greed and lust go hand in hand, thus making a formidable pair, to earn ill repute wherever they tread. It has proliferated with the advancement of civilisation, thereby contributing immensely to human misery. And it has been instrumental in the collapse of many big empires in the bygone era. The fall of the Roman Empire could be taken as one example. Many historic figures disgraced themselves to shame and perfidy when they fell victim to greed and lust. Greed has made many small men even smaller. Today, we shall talk about such a small man and his uncontrollable greed.
This man used to sit in an edifice, a symbol of supreme moral authority. It is a place where laws are created for the betterment of life of the people of the republic. But, did this man live up to the reputation of the edifice where he has been sitting for many years? Everyday, we come to hear about his greedy escapades with public money, and we feel small ourselves.
His greed is proving to be uncontrollable, unsatiable, and all-pervasive. His unabashed greed his higher education could not tame; rustic greed his three-piece suit and a tie could not civilise. He had seen harmful laws being ratified before his eyes but never challenged the government of the day. He had seen many innocent people imprisoned for not supporting the activities of the government of the day, but raised no voice against.
This man has been scooping up state money in terms of millions every month -- that again taking resort to unlawful means! Imagine him being a lawyer himself! How much money did he need to run his family? Why did he have to take home ill-gotten money through abusing his power, and then give all sorts of dubious answers in support of his shameful activities? Shall we exceed our limit if we say that he is greed personified? What else can justify his shameful actions while holding a very prestigious post?
The kind of money he took for the care of his garden could buy books for hundreds of school students. The kind of money he took in the name of entertainment of guests at his office could build low-cost houses for many poor people of this country. The kind of money he took in the name of his treatment could buy irrigation pumps for hundreds of poor farmers.
This man comes from a very humble background where he has seen poverty and has also seen how people learn the amazing trick of overpowering poverty to live a life of peace and tranquility. Poverty can never break the back of an honest man. And this man has surely seen many such great people in his lifetime but did not care to follow their trail. Along the way, he took a very wrong turn and eventually has come to where he is today -- facing charges of illegal gratification. What an ignoble end of a foreign educated lawyer.
So, Sir, you could have become a respected man in our country. But you chose to shrink before your overwhelming greed. Respect was the lowest priority in your life. You wanted to be rich and powerful at any cost. And yes, you have become rich and powerful at a huge cost. Sir, some day you will have no need for all the money you amassed. Some day you will not be able to wear those hundreds of three-piece suits kept in your wardrobe. Someday you will crave for a word of respect from the people you "ruled." You will want to a give a million for one such word. Some day you will question -- what went wrong? You will surely find the answer, but perhaps that will be too late.

Shahnoor Wahid is a Senior Assistant Editor of The Daily Star. He can be contacted at shahnoorwahid @yahoo.co.uk