Ahimsa 7 - Asteya Or Non-Stealing

‘Asteya' is never to steal Be it a thing of small value, Be it a substance of high price, Be it a property or a house, Be it a name or a credit, Be it a work of high merit, Be it anything under the sun, Blessed and content! ‘Steya' is covetousness A sly thought, A dishonest action, A mind that stoops very low, A thought that manipulates, A hand that stretches And picks up unashamedly Another's belongings! Whether small or petty, Whether careless or a mistake, To steal means To harm a person! Many dismiss or forget Minor thefts but, Even a minor act of thieving Echoes a definite vice! Various kinds of thefts, Some subtle and indirect, Some bold and direct, Some planned manoeuvres, Some shady transactions, Some daylight robbery, Each one of them, without exception, Verily, is ‘Himsa' or injurious act! A person who practises ‘Ahimsa' Never grasps, Never misappropriates, Never deprives Another of the rightful ownership! A constant vigil is on, An awareness programming Never to offend anyone, anytime, anywhere! Much of the happenings In the civilized society, Like subtle shades of grey, Is taken for granted as guiltless! But conscious and deliberate acts Is a cause for mental trauma - A scar that cannot be erased, A deep depression! More than any material grabbing Is the deprivation of the fruits of labour! A work that was never attempted, The brows that did not sweat, The hands that did not toil, The pen that never wrote the thesis, Earns a name and Enjoys the recognition! But the one that burnt The midnight candle, To think and write, To create and discover, Is pushed aside, Cleverly camouflaged By an intellectual bandit, A game plan of the conniving class! The scriptures and the sutras have Clarified and discriminated, The act of ‘Steya' and The concept of ‘Asteya', Steya as the doer who misappropriates Asteya as the non-doer who abstains The doer adds to the list of ‘karmas' and Pays the price for his crimes! Governed by the laws of nature, Enforced by the scriptures, Upheld by all the religions, The Yoga philosophy validates That all effects are preceded By a cause While the facts of science Confirm that every action has a reaction!