QnA with Sri Sri

Q: There is so much inflation happening today. Many people do not have food to eat or run their own homes. How can one live in such difficult times? What can we do for the poor and downtrodden today?

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: Yes, it is true that inflation is very high nowadays. India is on fire. It is getting torn because of the widespread corruption, injustice and bad governance. India is struggling in all spheres.
We all need to rise against this together, and do something for the country. It is not necessary that you do a lot, or too many things. Every one of you should do a little bit for the country, in whatever way possible. Do not sit idle and think, 'Oh, what can I do in such a poor situation?' Every person can do something to overcome this situation. If vegetable prices are rising, then make a small vegetable garden in your own homes. Plant some herbs, plant tomatoes, coriander, etc. At least do something. You can do so much with just a little piece of land. Everyone’s house will have a little space for a garden like this, isn’t it? But just see! We are not doing anything at all to change the situation or overcome it. Then we end up saying, 'We can’t do anything to stop the prices from rising'.

Five to ten people can come together and start a small garden and grow vegetables. When I was on a tour of Sri Lanka, I had gone to a camp of the Tamil refugees. You would be surprised to see the condition in which they were living. They were all living in tents. And they started growing fruits and vegetables around and nearby their tents. Someone had planted banana trees, someone else had planted pumpkins, and someone else had planted tomatoes and potato plants. And all this was in a refugee camp. I was really surprised to see all this. I thought to myself, 'They are very strong people'.

They were living like this in the times of battle and strife. In fact, where there was stagnant water or mud, these people had started using it as natural fertilizer for growing plants. This was very surprising. It shows that we all can definitely do something good in every situation. We are not helpless – this is the kind of firm determination we all should have. I tell you, when refugees of a battle can do such a thing, why can’t normal people do the same also? We all can do it, and we all should do whatever we can without thinking too much.