A few days ago, Buddhists around the globe celebrated Wesak Day. One of the fundamental precepts of this faith is to develop compassion towards every living being.

The Buddha told his believers, “…we are what we think. All that we are, arises with our thoughts. With our thoughts, we make the world”. And, he also said, “…give, even if you only have a little.”

His clarion call was for humanity to follow the path of righteousness called “dhamma” or “dharma”. This concept of righteousness is simply for you to understand that whatever you do, do it practically, skilfully, and for the benefit of all beings.

Regardless of your faith, and I am not a Buddhist; doesn’t being useful to our community and society at large sound like what we should be doing, right now?

The evidence is that the virus is coming back with a vengeance. The scourge of this dastardly pandemic is leaving a trail of dead bodies, both literally and figuratively.

It is only natural to feel apprehension and frustration at the moment.

However, to spend time on futile online arguments that fan the flames of frenzy, or join chat groups that are a hotbed of gossip to circulate unsubstantiated claims of miracle cures, and pandemic horror stories, doesn’t really help anyone.

To perhaps assuage their own insecurities, many take to ranting on every platform available. And for them, this seems to offer some emotional calming balm during these testing times.

But maybe, we need to change the narrative in our mind and ask ourselves if we can do something for the benefit of all beings at this period. This could possibly change our outlook from just being anxious about things, to feeling like we can be of use in this crisis.

As we witness the pandemic play out around the world, it can make us feel helpless. But no matter who you are or what your situation is, isn’t it so much better to do something to make a difference?

The health authorities tell us that by simply staying home, you will be helping.

Yes, do that, and there’s no doubt that restricting your movement will break the chain of infections.

But you can go beyond this, and do many tangible things that are beneficial. Even if you are quarantined at home, there are ways to be involved positively, and to give back to your community.

For example, donating money, supplies, food or perhaps volunteering virtually in your locality to check-in on people who might need support.

The easiest way to give back is by reaching out to people, especially to those who might feel vulnerable right now, like an elderly neighbour who is cut off.

Being a point of compassion for someone in need is one of the best ways to be of service.

If you are relatively healthy, you could possibly run errands for those who are at a higher risk of serious illness. Use social media groups proactively to help put you in touch with people in need in your area.

I was doing a grocery run a few days ago buying supplies for the Covid-19 Meals Initiative I run together with my restaurant team. It is an out-reach programme to supply 1,000 to 1,200 hot-meals a month to the hardest hit in our community.

At the store, a young lady randomly and enthusiastically greeted me. She had seen the work my restaurant, The Fire Grill, was doing on social media and recognised me.

She shared with me that she was doing her part to contribute by sorting out the weekly grocery shopping for a few households in her neighbourhood with elderly and high-risk people.

She had taken time off from her “work-from-home” schedule, and was doing this as a community service.

It was so reassuring to see this young woman do this because there are compassionate people like her, who become beacons of light in such dark times.

Use your skills to bring benefit for others because there are many things that people need at present.

Countless small shops and businesses have had to switch to an online model to stay afloat.

Business owners need people who can create appealing websites or user-friendly online platforms, write copy, or even take good photographs. If you have this skill, offer your services to your community.

If you have a legal background, you can help the many people and businesses in need of legal advice. They may need to know how to access government funding, or write to their landlords for temporary rent relief, or come up with judicious explanations to assuage creditors.

Thousands have lost their jobs during this pandemic.

If you are financially savvy, get on to social media and use your local community page to offer financial advice on how families can preserve their savings while managing the fallout from the pandemic.

If you are a human resource specialist, counsel those who have lost jobs, help them re-train, or find them temporary jobs. People need jobs and help in the interim.

When you do all this and more, you will find very little time left to add to the confusion, stir the rumour mill, pass around uncorroborated news, and pick arguments with others.

Be useful. Malaysia needs useful people now, more than ever.

The views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect those of FMT.