MONEY

Money in itself is not harmful to individuals. Undoubtedly, it is about having a structured management, which helps us to understand the notion of a job well done and to achieve some of the things that really matter in life. However, the ambition to have so much more just for the sake of it, and to meet and associate with people of high economic standards rather than spiritual ones, is a major problem. This results in excessive thinking about life’s pleasures at all times, leading the individual to gradually lose spirituality. For example, a person who does not know what material wealth is for and squanders it makes a big mistake. On the other hand, if a human being accumulates more and more money obsessively, he (she) becomes miser and enslaved by this tool of exchange.

There are people who are tempted to gamble in casinos… At first, they do very well; adrenaline and dopamine increase. After a few days, a process of capital loss begins and players want to recover their investment, and deliriously believe that they will become economically privileged again. So, why does a normal person have to suffer a material setback and ruin? Is it bad luck? Perhaps, he (she) has not been very persevering and spiritual in the past. I believe that whoever lives in this deteriorated mental state learns many lessons from life. For the minority of them, these are non-material gains from previous mistakes and “rusty” conceptions, so to speak. As a well-known saying (a proverb) in the Spanish language goes, “No hay mal que dure cien años y cuerpo que lo resista.” (There is no evil that lasts a hundred years and the body that endures it).  In other words, the disease of pathological gambling, someday has to end, because the financial aspect is shattered. Of course, the bonds between close family members deteriorate progressively. There are a few cases in the world that sick people come out of the abyss and become special and wise beings. However, the affected person must break free and escape from bad companies and toxic relationships. Certainly, you

(the readers) may argue that the gambler is toxic per se, but anyone aiming to achieve the seemingly impossible can rise again like the Phoenix, emerging “from the ashes.”

In other cases, there are highly ambitious people who want more and more assets. Accumulation becomes their lifestyle. As a result of it, they become very attached. These sick people will always accumulate more material objects; however, the Australian Boomerang will return where it hurts the most and when they are unprepared. That is why, they will have “tons” of money but little health. Yet worse, they may end up alone. The torment of losing even a penny invades and corrodes them. These characters resemble Uncle Scrooge from children’s comics and cartoons. The downside of being an accumulator is extreme attachment. Meanwhile, detachment means that one day, the material aspect of people disappears when we die. For instance, individuals like Alexander the Great understand that we don’t take anything to the spiritual realm, not even a grain of rice or a speck of the Earth’s natural satellite called the Moon. Buddhism makes it clear that possessing things, just for the sake of having them, and showing off to others, is dangerous for the present time and the uncertainty it causes in the future. In other words, attachment brings negative consequences, such as worrying about losing even a penny, stress, vices, sadness, bitterness, melancholy, discomfort, loneliness, depression, gaining unnecessary enemies… In order to achieve a state of balance (spiritual tranquility), symbolized by the number eight (according to many ancient civilizations), one must live moderately, between abundance and austerity. Knowing that money must be managed, spent without extravagance, but also allowing oneself to indulge, is essential. Saving is also crucial for capitalization and the pleasure of, for example, going to Dubai in November with the whole family.

It’s worthwhile remembering the famous saying: “Es tan pobre, tan pobre, que lo único que tiene es plata” (He’s so poor, so poor, that the only thing he has is money). This shows the dark side of the economic aspect, a privileged person complaining that a packet of tomatoes costs 50 cents and thinking they will go bankrupt at any moment. However, spending $1000 on a prostitute is perfectly normal because “I love the wild and unrestrained life.” There are stories of individuals with a lot of cash buried in containers underground. Later, when the less privileged ask for crumbs, the accumulators don’t feel sorry for the former and refuse to share their belongings, claiming they don’t have a single penny. The paradoxical and fair part is that when these “rich” people need more money, they find the wet and deteriorated cash. The bills are now worthless. Furthermore, there are even cases in which people leave their inheritance to a cat or another pet, while other human beings are dying of hunger.

As Sir Winston Churchill once said, the best-known political and economic system is liberal democracy (representative, with a separation of powers and impartial justice). Besides, there must be freedom of speech, and free press (the fourth power). Nonetheless, in the opinion of this Champion of Democracy, this system was acceptable. Dictatorships and totalitarian systems are undesirable. The curious thing is that nowadays, everyone talks about democracy, and in reality, we don’t clearly understand what it entails. At the end of the day, people are the ones who suffer. In a just society, individuals should not go to bed with only one meal a day. Secondly, we should not waste talent and human capital. Thirdly, communism does not work. Fourthly, extremists on the political spectrum should move towards the center, or if not, retire. At this precise moment, instead of thinking about the people, they are thinking about their pockets, their own interests, and are quite egocentric. Some human beings should leave mediocrity behind and seek a sense of well-being. That is, the plurality of both logical and analogical knowledge should be fostered so that people achieve excellence and stop thinking that ancestral knowledge should be eliminated because it is associated with the obsolete. Children should study the history of different religions, emphasizing the teachings of mystical thinkers.

Visitas: 12004