ABSTRACT
During the months I spent in Chilluri, beggars would pass by every other day or so, usually in the morning. Some of those who came were Vaishnava mendicants, who dressed in white or saffron and made their presence known by calling hari bal (say Hari, i.e. Krishna) as they walked into the courtyard. The majority, however, were laywomen and men. Eventually, I started to recognize their faces, but this took time for weeks might pass before they came around again. If Tara and her husband knew the beggar who stopped by, they would offer him or her a glass of water, a bowl of muri (puffed rice) or a meal. If they did not know the beggar, they simply fetched a coin or a handful of grains, handing it to the man or woman waiting at the doorway. Once as Karun placed a coin into a beggar’s hand, I overheard him saying, “I also beg.”
