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The art and science of living while supporting life
How
does Dharma equate Capital and prosperity? Dr Naila Shirazi continues: Free Capital is not what you write. It is a form intellectual wisdom and this capital is invested by entrepreneurs into sustaining life and not hoarded. In reality capital hoarders in many cases just sleep on their assets or reinvest only to gain which is often anti life. Sri Laksmi represents all the devic sativus energies that create good thoughts and if we have those these seek bright future, good life, peace, love and removal of worries, and sufficient income to live a decent life. What's wrong there? Stupid dumb people who do not understand malign Hindu dharma for ignorance but they also seek prosperity and lots of money but mostly by not working and for free. There are Lakshmi Mantras for success and abundance. Just by a chant does not mean one will become rich but it is a coded message to our subsconcious that propels us to self discipline, work very hard and request incoming energy from all sources. Dharma supports the accumulation of wealth, for the grhastha [Family], but not for the brahmcharya (celibate) or sanyasi (an ascetic). The brahmcharya means the conduct of a person with wholeness,brahmcharya is for study of the vedic wisdom and learning to be detached from material things, the sanyasi practices, meditates upon the Vedic teachings and renounces all material things, wealth and objects (artha) accumulated during the growth of family and home. In my view that does not mean a student or ascetic are to live on alms or Bhiksha as was propagated by Buddhist follower. Hindu Vedic Dharma followers always maintained themselves by hard work and creating own sources of legitimate income to sustain their lives. Material wealth, however, must not be accumulated in excess and must not be accumulated by the incorrect means. Manav Dharma Shastra says: “Except during a time of adversity, a Brahmin ought to sustain himself but following a livelihood that causes little or no harm to creatures. He should gather wealth just sufficient for his subsistence though irreproachable activities that are specific to him, without fatiguing his body.” (Manav Dharma Shastra 4.2—4.3) (all translations of passages from Manu are from Patrick Olivelle’s The Law Code of Manu, Oxford University Press, 2004) The restriction concerning sufficiency is, in part, linked to attachment. That is, there should be no clinging or attachment to material objects that is they may not be accumulated or hoarded only for that as that will be passive. “He must never seek to obtain wealth (artha) with excessive passion, through forbidden activities, when he already has sufficient wealth from just anyone even in time of adversity; nor shall he be passionately attached to any of the sensory objects (artha) out of lust, but using his mind he should stamp out excessive attachment to them.” ( 4.15-4.16) He should forsake all pursuits (artha) that interfere with his Vedic recitation, eking out a living some way or other, for that recitation constituted the fulfillment of all his obligations.” (4.17) How much Is enough? “Let him be a man who stores grain sufficient to fill a granary, a man who stores grain sufficient to fill a jar, a man who has sufficient grain to last three days, or a man who keeps nothing for the next day. Among all these four types of twice-born householders, each should be recognized as superior to the ones preceding it and better at winning the heavenly world, according to the Law.” (4.7-4.8) By Dr Naila Shirazi |
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