Mata bhiksham dehi... Community vs Socialism
So, like many of my other friends back home, I also went through the process of "Upnayan Sanskar" when I was in college (yes that late, for I could never agree to it, felt weird... but anyways). The ceremony has started being considered as a step into adulthood, but alas it wasn't really. The ancients divided life into phases, one of which was the "Brahmacharya Ashram", when the purpose of a man was to learn whilst not being bothered by the temptations of life. An important part of that ritual involved shaved-head-dhoti-clad boy requesting alms from the elder women around, requesting "Mata! Bhiksham dehi." (Mother, please provide alms). It is a ritualistic tradition, to be followed since things are done like this here, now. But I wondered what it meant in the day of old. Then, young boys, prince or paupers alike, would go about their days of learning, requesting alms from the community. Did that make the time socialist ? At first I thought