Money, what kind of Money

Money, what kind of Money 

Some people can never spend even after collecting a lot of money 

By Vijay Garg  

People's behaviour regarding money is sometimes surprising. People whose childhood is spent in deprivation remain poor at heart even after being rich at times. Even after buying new utensils, they keep working with the old ones. New clothes are kept for a special occasion for so long that they become out of fashion. Even after installing AC in the house, do not run it for fear of spending more electricity. In many homes, cars are just parked while only a two-wheeler is used for day to day work. 

Many people of the middle class consider it their great achievement to buy something expensive at a low price. They wonder how cheaply they have gotten what other people spend so much money on! Even after collecting a lot of money, some people are never able to spend and eventually leave this world leaving it for the use of their progeny. 

Only three movements of money are possible: to spend it, to give it to someone, or to give it to someone else. There is a beautiful verse in the Is hava syo Upanishad to show the path to the miserly people: 'Ishavasyamidam sarvam yakchincha jagatyam jagat. Ten tyakten bhunjitha ma gridhaah kasyasvidhanam' which means that all the movable and immovable property of this world is the manifestation of God. It can be used only by spending it, by sacrificing it. To believe that this money is mine is a folly in itself, so it is not right to have any kind of greed for it. But the matter of money is so strange that those who give it out of emotion, they give their lives to help their children, many of them have to suffer neglect and humiliation in their old age. 

The feeling of insecurity also sometimes makes older people miserly. It is also seen that those who bargain at ten places to save five rupees in the purchase of vegetables, they spend so much money only on the wedding invitations of their children and daughters that it will help them to survive for the whole year. Vegetables come. While selling newspaper waste, such people have to be weighed heavily all the time.  The fear of leaving keeps haunting. Every porter, labourer or handcart finds them a swindler. 

When one hears of big scams, it seems that there is no connection between his personal need and his earning for the scammer who once bled his face with dishonest money. It takes the form of a pit that can never be filled. The behaviour of people in relation to money nowadays is often dictated by the market. Our lavish receptions, expensive musical evenings have become an essential part of every middle-class wedding. Huh. 

It is the glory of the market that a person who has just started earning money, if there is no TV, fridge or any two-wheeler in his house, then he falls in his own eyes. To get him out of this situation, many banks take his hand and put him in a position to repay the loan instalments for many years to come. As the economic condition becomes a little better, he also finds cars and houses necessary for social prestige. 

For coaching your children, for admission in any reputed institution, parents often send them to certain cities, arrange huge donations or foreign education. People spend a lot of money only for their name and social prestige. 

The most illogical and craziest misuse of money is in wartime. The money which is used for construction and survival in peace time is used for destruction and violence by the warring nations and no one finds anything wrong in it. The attraction of money has increased in our time to such an extent that most of the people have everything for it.  Religion, morality, honesty, self-respect etc. - get ready to sell. But some such rare people can be seen even today who are not ready to deal with these things at any cost. They still believe in the biblical statement that it is not as difficult for a camel to pass through a needle as it is for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God. When we think about such people who give importance to simplicity and non-possession, the picture of Mahatma Gandhi emerges in front of us even today.  

Author is a retired principal