Letters from Sri Ramanasramam, by Suri Nagamma

Immediately after that, Bhagavan noticed an old lady
of the Ashram carefully drawing designs with dry lime
powder on the floor below the steps opposite to the hall.

Bhagavan called her by the familiar name, Granny, and
when she came with great expectations, he said, “Look here,
Granny. You are taking so much trouble for decorating the
floor with that powder, but is it rice flour?” When she replied
that it was powdered lime only, Bhagavan said, “What a
pity! It will not be useful even for the ants. The ladies there
are also doing the same thing. It is mere waste of time.

Their work is of no use whatsoever. The paste they are
using is made of rice dough which sticks to the ground and
so the ants cannot eat it. Decorating the floor really means
feeding the ants. If that dharma is given up and powdered
lime is used not only the ants cannot eat it but if, by mistake,
they come anywhere near, they die because of the strong
pungent smell. Why all that? Please add at least some rice
flour to it.”
An Andhra gentleman enquired, “Is it for feeding the
ants that in the dhanurmasa, i.e., in the month of December-
January, that floors are decorated with rice powder?”
“Yes, of course!” said Bhagavan. “Out of their feelings
of happiness and joy at the receipt of the fresh crop of rice,
they decorate the floor with rice powder thus feeding the
ants. Practices laid down by elders are always based on
kindness to living creatures. But who cares for those
traditions now? They do most things just for the sake of
beauty only.”