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'This page has been approved by the United Grand Lodge of England’
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MESSAGE FOR MAY FEELINGS The recent Tsunami mirrored an extensive swell of generosity which set me thinking on how these and other feelings are generated, and indeed how they come to be expressed in various redeeming acts. In normal times such positive empathy is rarely visible in human conduct, indeed even in the courtesies of day-to-day social contact. It is as if while invisible on the surface they always exist, like ground water resources, or underground aquifers, which get tapped on occasions of natural disasters. Continuing with the analogy these subterranean resources whether of water or of generosity do get polluted if drawn on too greedily. Without feelings, our provenance as Human beings would be suspect. Humanity pre-supposes feelings, and indeed also that they should be positive. Negative feelings such as fear, envy, vengeance, violence are obviously to be eschewed, despite their ubiquitous presence in us all. A conscious effort is required to block these negative feelings and indeed turn them into positive ones. Fear, for instance, can in many circumstances be fought by intellectually following it to its source – which is very often one of the imagination. Similarly envy can only arise from feelings of inadequacy on the part of the one so afflicted – to understand the source is to conquer it, and to divert the emotion to more positive uses. Getting back to the generous impulses which drive our charitable actions, it is important to curb the accompanying impulse to achieve a public ‘do-gooder’ status. The satisfaction that comes from giving practical effect to our charitable well-spring needs necessarily to be privately enjoyed not publicly flaunted. Hence my belief over the years of my membership of our fraternity that Charity is to be regarded as the dominant secret, if ever there was one. One does not deny that there are reasons to afford some publicity to what one has done with our fraternity’s generous donations, so as to let it be known to them as to how they were applied, but no more, in the public domain. The distinguishing characteristic of a Freemasons’ heart should lie safely there – invisibly locked up in a safe and sacred repository, the benevolence to be tapped judiciously for relief that needs no elaboration. Humanity it may be noted, is alive and well! |
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Designed and maintained by
H. L. Ratan for
the DGL - Madras |
