The Meaning of Wealth

Golden Thread

To understand the human drive to accumulate riches on earth is to discover the root of psychological captivity.

Gospel of Wealth

          All of us in one way or another were raised on the gospel of wealth.  This “holy scripture,” which has become the new religion for millions of people in the United States and beyond, conditioned us to believe that God blesses His “elect” with prosperity, while damning everyone else to poverty. According to this belief system, the accumulation of wealth is a sure indication that those of us who “have” an excess of financial resources are among God’s chosen and, therefore, somehow more worthy than those who “have not.”
          While none of us would freely admit to being subject to this prevailing cultural belief, we have only to study ourselves to see how it has shaped and influenced us.  In fact, much of the stress we experience in our daily lives is a direct byproduct of this false thinking, and until we thoroughly understand and acknowledge the nature of this driving force, we will continue to be its slave.
          If we are among the wealthiest, which in America today is defined as earning an annual income of $250,000 or more, our fear, stress, and anxiety is twofold.  We are burdened with continuing to produce this high level of income and sacrifice our health, happiness, and spiritual equanimity at the high alter of Mammon.  We are also preoccupied with the task of protecting, defending, and otherwise manipulating the conditions of our lives to preserve the status quo. 
          Most of us become identified with our lifestyle to such an extent that many are willing to amass high levels of debt to keep up appearances, even when we experience the nearly inevitable reversal of fortune.  Loss of status and the approval of others becomes our greatest fear, and underlying this fear is the belief that without our wealth, we are losers, nobodies, or, worse, untouchables.  Surely, God did not put us on this earth to slave and toil as a member of the working class!  We’ve all read about or known people who resorted to alcohol, drugs, or taking their own lives when faced with bankruptcy.  Why?  The gospel of wealth had convinced them that life wasn’t worth living, if they were poor.
          On the other side of the fence are the middle and working classes and the poor and destitute.  Their responses vary.  Many within this diverse group choose to work even harder, hoping to prove themselves worthy by breaking through the glass ceiling to the top of the heap.  Most of these individuals experience stress from overwork and frustration associated with their perceived inability to get that long-awaited break. 
          The vast majority of people on this side of the fence identify themselves as victims and blame the rich for their woes.  Our thinking goes something like this:  “I’m as smart as the next person.  I work hard to get ahead and never seem to make ends meet.  The problem is the system.  The rich won’t make room for me.  They’re running the show and trying to keep me down!”  At this point some become politically active and begin to fight for their perceived rights and what’s “owed” them, motivated by insecurity, victimization, and a sense of entitlement.  They are cheered on by a member of God’s elect (he/she who has made it to the top but has remembered to roll up his shirtsleeves), and told that if they will put their trust in him or her, the system will change and they will be given their due. 
          Sadly, nothing ever changes or the changes lead to more problems, and the system just weakens to the point where even fewer are able to “get ahead.”  Like their wealthy brothers and sisters, the underclasses resort to self-destructive behaviors and, even, suicide to deal with the stress brought on by the myth of the gospel of wealth.

Reversing the Trend

          What is interesting to see is that nobody seems to be truly happy, although many pretend to be so.  The constant striving brought on by our individual and collective identification with being among the “haves” or “have nots” is the fundamental cause of our continued suffering.  As spiritual aspirants we have seen the futility of trying to solve problems by tinkering with external conditions.  We realize that the problem has to be addressed from the inside out on the level of the individual in order to reverse the trend and achieve a new level of understanding.
          Distrusting the truth freely available in their own traditions Westerners have looked to Eastern religions and philosophies for an answer.  The late Hindu Upanishads have Krishna offering prayers to Devi, which communicate gratitude for the Divine Mother’s gifts to all Her creation:  “Ma Amba Lalitha Devi/Darga Devi Shankari/Namastyasyai Namastasyai Namastasyai/ Namo Namah” (translation by Julie Redstone: “All beings of the Earth owe their life to her, for she is the Mother of all, the One who bestows all gifts of love.  Her gifts come to the deserving and to the non-deserving alike, for the sun does not choose upon whom to shine.”)
          This scripture clearly offers an entirely different message from the “gospel of wealth.” It teaches that the Creator gives both internal and external gifts to all for the purpose of sustaining life.  Last week we read a section from Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount, which communicated a similar message.  We are told over and over again that we will be given exactly what we need to fulfill our purpose.  The fact that we are alive and breathing here and now seems to prove this truth.

Meaning of Wealth

          If we are to understand the true meaning of wealth and transcend the anxiety, fear, and worry associated with its pursuit, we must; it seems, come to an understanding of why some have more than others.  In other words, what is the purpose of wealth and, by extension, what is its proper use?
          If we study nature, we can readily observe how each organism is endowed with a specific function or purpose.  All life forms to a lesser or greater degree are equipped with everything they need to fulfill their function, otherwise they would cease to exist.  The more complicated the creature, the more resources are required to fulfill its function. 
          If this be true, then we must agree that humans have the greatest needs of all, since we are arguably the most complex life forms on the planet.  (Dolphins and elephants excluded!) Within the human race, however, there exists tremendous diversity and variation, as in other organisms.  People are born with different capacities, tastes, and so forth.  But, we must come to accept, through our observation of nature, that each organism has an equally important purpose or function to fulfill, or it would not be in existence.  Please try to follow here.
          Financial resources are a human construct, which evolved to form a cooperative economy, replacing the simple barter system.  Money is a symbol, used as a means of exchange.  It has no intrinsic value.  It is a tool to enable individuals to fulfill purpose in the world.  Some, therefore, will naturally require more for their purpose than others.  It’s really a very simple proposition, if viewed from a purely rational standpoint. 
          Our problems arise, when we attach psychological meaning to money and the accrual of wealth.  Without these images, we have no issues.  With these images, we have anxiety, fear, stress, conflict, war, and death.  Can you see this?  We begin creating a story in our mind about ourselves relative to what we have or do not have.  This story, which arises from past conditioning, either confirms or denies an image we hold, and we rejoice or suffer accordingly.

Neutralizing the Money Conflict

          Anyone who has ever been wealthy will tell you that money doesn’t make you happy.  Surely, we all remember The Beatles #1 hit song “Can’t Buy Me Love.”  Paul McCartney crooned and we swooned, when we heard these words from their 1964 LP Hard Day’s Night: 

"Say you don’t need no diamond ring and I’ll be satisfied

Tell me that you want the kind of thing that money just can’t buy

I don’t care too much for money, money can’t buy me love.

Can’t buy me love, love

Can’t buy me love, no no no, no"
But, do we really believe it?  That’s the rub.  Deep down in our heart of hearts, can we honestly say we’re not driven by the thought that more money equals more love—Divine or otherwise?
          We’re not here to judge ourselves…only to see the truth.  What we see can be transformed, but what remains hidden will only rot and fester in the dark recesses of our shadow self.  We must make peace with money and images of wealth by dropping our emotionally charged ideas and accepting the truth—as observed in nature—that we will be given exactly what we need (no more and no less) to learn the lessons required to allow us to achieve the purpose for which we were created. 
          This doesn’t mean we become passive, allowing money to be wasted if we have it or neglecting to earn a proper living if we don’t.  We must first and foremost be good householders, doing the next right thing before us to keep our bodies and the bodies of those for whom we are responsible clothed, fed, and protected.  It also doesn’t mean we go into a fantasy world and begin repeating affirmations like “I am abundance” all day long.  This is just another way of expressing the wrong thinking that got us into a deficit in the first place.  If you have to say “I am abundance” or something similar, then there’s always the underlying belief that you’re lacking.
          We must do what is before us to do with as much awareness as we can muster.  We must also become close observers of our thoughts and emotions around the subject of wealth and money, so we may eventually surrender useless thoughts, habitual conditioning, and self-generated desire to the light of awareness.  Finally, we must learn to see and ultimately believe with all our minds and hearts the simple truth framed so elegantly by the Medieval English Mystic, Julian of Norwich: “All shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of thing shall be well.”

Exercise:  Neutralize The Money Charge

For the next week, observe your physical, emotional, and intellectual responses to issues related to wealth and money.  Note any positive or negative reactions and reflect on their origin to gain more self knowledge.  Release and neutralize the “Money Charge” by remembering that everyone and everything on the planet is given exactly what they/it needs to fulfill a unique purpose.  Free your energy to discover your purpose.