To each according to his ability: even sufferings
To each according to his ability is adapted from a Marxist axiom
the full version of the original brings out the utopia in it. The original goes
thus; ‘from each according to his
ability and to each according to his needs’.
Of course one cannot say ‘to each according to his needs’ when talking about suffering for no one would
crave suffering. To this my maternal grandmother’s stepmother was an exception.
She would in her eighties pray ‘Lord give me more sufferings.’ So says my relatives
of her time. That was an exception and
has to be treated as such. One need not know about the epicurean philosophy
that people are epicurean. Increase of comforts if not pleasure and avoidance
of pain are fundamental to psychology text books.
When suffering is inevitable one asks more for it? One tends
to think that a certain fulfillment of basic needs is necessary on the lines of
Maslow, before one asks for sufferings for I tend to believe to enjoy suffering
one needs some comfortable surroundings.
When suffering is prolonged and seems to be never ending
even in the twilight of one’s life, one may intellectualize. So did my paternal
aunt, Elikkutty in her seventies. There was in vazhakkulam market of those days
a very healthy man named Kochukunju. Kochukunju made a living carrying heavy loads on his inordinately broad
back. Not infrequently we would see him
carry a full sack of paddy or rice on his back when we used to walk to the
church or to the market.
Elikkutty aunt would draw a parallel. Wouldn’t we rather
call Kochukunju when we have a heavy load to be transported? So does Jesus (karthavu).
When he wants suffering to be handled he would invite the strongest and the one
who can pass the endurance test. So went her argument of having had to endure sufferings
herself. She lost her husband at a young age and had to bring up the six
children from meager earnings.
