In order to lessen life’s struggles, we need to first acknowledge them with compassion and empathy.
Hunger is a killer in our world. The statistics are staggering. Approximately 3.1 million children die from malnutrition each year. A child under the age of five will die of hunger in the next five seconds. One in every nine people suffer from hunger in the world. Over 10 million children live in food-insecure households in one of the richest countries in world — America.
Have you ever wondered what it must feel like to be a hungry child or a starving parent? Can you imagine what it must be like to feel hungry, while simultaneously contending with the agony of not being able to properly feed your family? Most of us will be fortunate to never know this kind of pain firsthand, but we can look within ourselves, appreciate all that we do have, and ask one another what we can do for others. Acting with empathy is something we can all do. We can move from imagining what it is like to be hungry, we can spend some time truly feeling. Often times, empathy leads us to action, wanting to those in need however we can.
Of many, one purpose of Ramadan is to empathize for the hungry. Depriving oneself from eating and drinking from sunrise to sunset, for a month, helps to realize the pain of a child who goes to bed hungry each and every night or an elder starving because they had to choose medicine over food, or those who walk miles, every single day, just to collect clean water. While we may not be able to solve the hunger issue all at once, we can start by:
- Learning to use only what we need. Stop wasting food and water.
- Taking care of our poor relatives, neighbors, community members, and gradually expanding this circle.
- Support authentic charities that fight hunger.
- Standup against the entities using food as a weapon to maintain power and control.
I have been fasting for about two weeks now, with about two more to go. If you are reading this, I invite you to join me in this empathy challenge of fasting for a day. (Please note those with any health issues are always exempt). And if you choose to do so, please invite 3 people in your circle and ask them to do the same. If you except this empathy challenge, let me know (info@worldwithouthate.org) how it went for you. How did you feel? What did you think? How are you compelled to help others?
~ Rais Bhuiyan, Founder & President, World Without Hate