Yet we must do good; the desire to do good is the highest motive power we
have, if we know all the time that it is a privilege to help others. Do not stand
on a high pedestal and take five cents in your hand and say, "Here, my poor
man," but be grateful that the poor man is there, so that by making a gift to him
you are able to help yourself. It is not the receiver that is blessed, but it is the
giver. Be thankful that you are allowed to exercise your power of benevolence
and mercy in the world, and thus become pure and perfect. All good acts tend
to make us pure and perfect. What can we do at best? Build a hospital, make
roads, or erect charity asylums. We may organise a charity and collect two or
three millions of dollars, build a hospital with one million, with the second give
balls and drink champagne, and of the third let the officers steal half, and leave
the rest finally to reach the poor; but what are all these? One mighty wind in
five minutes can break all your buildings up. What shall we do then? One
volcanic eruption may sweep away all our roads and hospitals and cities and
buildings. Let us give up all this foolish talk of doing good to the world. It is
not waiting for your or my help; yet we must work and constantly do good,
because it is a blessing to ourselves. That is the only way we can become
perfect. No beggar whom we have helped has ever owed a single cent to us; we
owe everything to him, because he has allowed us to exercise our charity on
him. It is entirely wrong to think that we have done, or can do, good to the
world, or to think that we have helped such and such people. It is a foolish
thought, and all foolish thoughts bring misery. We think that we have helped
some man and expect him to thank us, and because he does not, unhappiness
comes to us. Why should we expect anything in return for what we do? Be
grateful to the man you help, think of him as God. Is it not a great privilege to
be allowed to worship God by helping our fellow men? If we were really
unattached, we should escape all this pain of vain expectation, and could
cheerfully do good work in the world. Never will unhappiness or misery come
through work done without attachment. The world will go on with its happiness
and misery through eternity.
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