Man is plagued by financial problems. There are very few people who consider themselves satisfied from a financial standpoint. Money never seems to conform to one’s needs and desires. This universal ‘poverty’ afflicts everyone.
Yet, what is wealth? When human power and intellect is used to accomplish great things, what is earned can be considered wealth. This is the true meaning of money, and economics begins here. Many people receive effortless money in the form of gambling, lotteries, interest, inheritance, etc., but these are not true wealth. People’s perceptions towards this sort of wealth must change, or this dissatisfaction will continue. If not today, then tomorrow—but eventually the spiritual principle behind economics will prevail. Wealth will only be gained as a result of hard work. If one desires more wealth and conveniences, one should simply work harder, increasing the capabilities of his body and mind. The more he puts forth effort in this, the wealthier he will become. It is unfortunate that man shies away from hard work and thinks he can steal wealth with laziness. Disrespect for hard work is a great problem in society. Those who earn money through little work are considered lucky men, and laborers are considered lower-class citizens. This perception must change.
The mind, like the body, is a tool to become wealthy. Through education, craftsmanship, artistic ability, and refined behaviour, its capacities can be enhanced. Many people ignore this and strongly believe that they can become wealthy by inheritance, lotteries, prayers, and other matters of luck. They believe that they can remain lazy and money will shower upon them anyway. This mindset is the opposite of spirituality, and remains the root cause of most financial problems today.
A spiritual outlook shows one the only reliable and reasonable way to wealth. Man must awaken zeal for hard work. He should consider shirking and slacking to be moral crimes. In order to broaden his expertise, he should always remain open to acquiring new skills and knowledge. This increased expertise will certainly enable him to earn more money, and this is the only true method of financial progress. Desiring fast money without complying with this basic principle is the first step to developing unethical tendencies. This is the motivation behind crimes such as cheating, dishonesty, theft, bribery, swindling, tax evasion, and smuggling. The stronger the man is by nature, the worse crimes he will commit. It is the same in the grand-scale thief as it is in the petty swindler; the only difference is in its magnitude. This tendency eventually leads to the destruction of human character. Man’s dignity and status lose their authenticity. Even if he becomes rich through these unethical means, his character keeps on declining. One who has fallen in his own esteem cannot rise in anyone else’s. If one truly evaluates the cost of such earned wealth, he will realize how grave his crime has been and never even work up the courage to commit it. This desire for unearned money spawns countless problems. He who acquires such money will generally waste it in addictions, luxury, and exploitation, and these in turn will give rise to even more problems, both for him, and those around him.
Aside from developing one’s own skills to earn money, he can also improve his financial situation by budgeting the wealth he does have. He should live with simplicity, in the manner that sensible people of his means are also living. If he cannot increase his income, he should restrain his expenses and certainly not take on new ones. Increasing one’s number of children is as bad as increasing one’s financial burden. This places the entire family under the burden of financial uncertainty, and the children are also not able to grow properly. Children also resent parents who were unable to provision for them before their birth and are unable to provide for them after it.
Increasing the active workers in a family can still alleviate its financial problems in accordance with spiritual principles. In most homes, it is traditional that one person earns, and the others reap the fruits of that labour. To avoid this tendency, families can even progress by using their spare time to operate small businesses from home. The habit of taking loans should also be considered a minor crime. However, in some situations it is appropriate to take loans in capital, for business and other ventures. But to raise one’s standard of living and sink deeper into debt is unwise. One will become bankrupt and lose all sense of self-respect.
A person who follows spiritual ideals knows how to keep his needs in check and hates to put himself in debt. He is safe from such problems.
Some traditions in society, such as extravagant weddings and birthday parties, also require one to waste large amounts of money. In such cases, one should not pay attention to what others think, and stand up against such customs! Unwise people always want to earn money through unfair shortcuts, but this cannot go on forever, as these lazy and dishonest people can never progress to their full potential. A person can only be genuine by following the path of honesty. He can only reach his full worth and earn respect by working hard and practicing honesty.
Focus, simplicity, enthusiasm for hard work, frugality, honesty—these qualities are expressions of spirituality in the financial world. Integrating these into one’s life is the only way to attain financial equilibrium. In addition, spending without any judgment and earning money unfairly only exacerbate most financial problems, but a person with a spiritual outlook easily evades both these concerns. Inefficiency and hoarding are also like poison to financial stability. When a great amount of money is earned, an equal amount of money must also be given back to society. This is another tenet of spirituality. Satisfaction is actually harmful when in it, a person loses the will to be productive and work hard. A person should work to advance the fortunes of others as well as his own. As the saying goes, one who earns for himself and eats it all himself is nothing but a thief. This type of spiritual outlook is the only thing that can help the individual and societal financial situation and eventually solve such problems.
Akhand Jyoti Magazine 2009 May-June
