When a beggar comes to your house and says, ‘please give me food’, you should not turn him away as a mere beggar, but regard him as a messenger of God. When he is begging for food he is indirectly conveying a message: ‘I am today begging for food because in my previous birth I did not offer food to those who begged for it. Please see that by turning me away without food, a similar fate does not overtake you in your next life.’ You must go to the help of others to the extent of your means. (SSS Vol.20, p. 28)