THIRST FOR MONEY

“Bharatah panchamo Vedha”--Apart from the four Vedas, Rig, Yajus, Sama and Atharva the Mahabharatha is considered as the fifth Veda! Everything pertaining to life, knowledge, morality, ethics, wisdom, and philosophy is present in the form of stories and small anecdotes. There are also situations indicating close friendship, political strategy, treachery, pathos and compassion! In  short there is nothing which is not connected with human life and achievement!  It is a treasure house of  knowledge and the way in which a person has to conduct himself to make his life peaceful and successful!  The later part of the Mahabharatha, especially the Santhi Parva, is purely dedicated to Dharma and the various duties he has to perform in order to rule his subjects properly and treat them as his own children! In this Parva,  Dharmaraja, the eldest of the Pandavas, has innumerable doubts for which he seeks clarifications and answers from the Grand oldman of the Kuru clan Bhishma!

“We are cruel and evil minded. For the sake of money and material we have killed our own brothers, parents, grandchildren, friends and sons” said Dharmaraja. He wanted to know how to control this obsession for money and property. “It is because of this lust for money and property that we have committed many evil deeds.”He requested Bhishma to tell him how to suppress this inordinate thirst and obsession for money! Bhishma was always kind and compassionate to the Pandavas because they were strict followers of Dharma. Infact there was nothing cruel or evil in the actions of the Pandavas! It was only Duryodhana and his train that tried various means to destroy the Pandavas by hook or crook!  Their methods were devious and treacherous! Despite this, Dharmaraja felt that he had been cruel and killed many of his own kith and kin in his thirst and passion for money and material! Bhisma listened to Dharmaraja’s question and  recollected an interesting conversation between the king of Videha, Janaka and a brahmin by name Mandavya on this subject!

king Janaka told Mandavya that that he has nothing in the world! In spite of this he leads a very happy life. He said that he loses nothing even if his kingdom of Mithila is set on fire! However rich a person might be, the wise shall find it as the root cause of sorrow. It is only the stupid and the foolish that are the victims of the lure of money. The real and great happiness one enjoys in losing the thirst for money is sixteen times greater than the pleasure of having money! It is very difficult to curb the desire for money!  Like the horns that grow as the cow grows, the more money you have, the greater is the desire for more money! Man is afflicted with severe sorrow  when he loses what he considers as his own. Hence desires or thirst for money should be avoided! Desire, that cannot be satisfied is the root cause for sorrow! The best use of money is for Dharma or charity! One who is a Jnani will treat all creatures like himself. Purifying his Atma, he attains fulfilment or siddhi by detaching himself from all mundane things in life!

Thirst or desire can never be curbed or controlled by the evil minded! The body may be destroyed but the desire remains! Jnanis consider this 'thrishna’-- thirst or desire as a terminal disease! He is happy who has got rid of this desire! One who is the follower of Dharma shall be pure, free from evil and renowned and happy in this and the other world! King Janaka’s words impressed Mandavya and he felt very happy! He later tried to follow the path indicated by king Janaka in curbing his desires as far as possible!

Desires are unquenchable! One desire leads to another! There is no escape for man from desire until he kills it by severe detachment which is also very difficult! Too much of money is extremely dangerous! One may lose his life also! Why do you aspire for money which is the root cause of sorrow and danger? ‘ kimartham duhka bhajanam?’ You strain hard to earn money. It is more difficult to protect the money you have earned and saved! When you spend it or lose it your sorrow is indescribable! Why go after money that brings in sorrow in its train? It is said that Money has four heirs. The first is Dharma. Money spent for righteous causes is the best use for money. When it is misused the second heir, Fire destroys it! Otherwise the king  takes it over! In the present case it is the Income Tax Department taking it over! The last heir is the robber or thief who escapes with all your savings in one stretch! Therefore, earn and save what is required for a happy life, not more, not less! Be wise in using it. Develop slowly but surely non attachment that will help you in making your life peaceful and happy in the real sense of the word!