Discovery of money:

According to anthropological studies, the first discovery that changed man’s life and directed him towards a better civilization was ‘fire’. Then came the discovery of wheels. Fire changed their food system and the wheel greatly improved their transportation. So man discovered hundreds and hundreds of machines to improve his lifestyle. He learned to fly like a bird by inventing airplanes, to swim like a fish by inventing boats, ships and submarines. He invented radio, television and above all the Computer, the miracle of the modern age. But his discovery of money, rather the monetary system is the greatest evil for society because the entire human society is corrupted by the greed for money.

How did the whole system start?

Man is a selfish animal. He wants to keep in his possession everything that he finds in his way. The land he lives on is his, only he has the right to use the water, plants, animals, etc. Thus, the property process began from the earliest stages of evolution itself. If others wanted a legal share of their belongings, they had to part with some of their belongings in return.

As civilization developed, man began to live in societies. Each society had its own leader. The leaders then became kings with enormous powers regarding the area under their rule. People had to pay some charge for what they used, like water, cereals, etc. Initial transactions were only through the exchange of items known as Barter. In due course, bartering proved tedious and cumbersome, and thus a “token” was introduced for the exchange of items. These tokens were modified as leather strips bearing the king’s seal, having universal acceptance within the kingdom. Gradually, the leather strips became metal coins bearing the ‘muhar’ or ‘rupa’ of the king, both signifying a replica of the face. This is the origin of the words Muhar or Rupees to identify money. Today, paper money has replaced all other currencies and each country has its own currency. Gold, the only equivalent to money, is kept as a reserve in several countries. Only in countries like India is gold still powerful and more valuable than cash. But its value is so high that nothing could replace the value that paper money occupies on a day-to-day basis.

This is the history of money, cash or paper money.

The influence of money on the human species:

From the above it will be clear that selfishness is the motivating force behind money. On the one hand civilization develops and there is a tremendous advance in Science and Technology and on the other hand selfishness and greed for money have crossed all borders and today money is everything to man. In the past, money was a means of communication between various business transactions. But now the situation has changed which is the main concern of any action of man.

Citing Indian conditions, starting from the birth of a child, medical facilities are available only to the wealthy. Healthy foods are also available to them. As for admissions to schools and universities, they become pure business. Getting a job, a girlfriend, etc. all revolve around monetary considerations. When a person gets sick, unless he is rich, he will not receive the necessary medical treatment. Even after death, your burial or cremation demands huge leftovers. There is a proverb in Tamil that ‘a living person, if he has no money, is equivalent to a corpse’. But even the corpse requires money for its funeral. Another proverb is ‘if you offer to pay money, even the corpse will wake up and sit up’. Even parents don’t get respect from their children. of the abandoned parents, that also against economic payments. The treatment differs from person to person depending on the amount paid by the wards who admit them.

A funny situation can be quoted here. There is a great pilgrimage center for Hindus in South India, almost like the VATICAN for Christians. People offer their hair by completely shaving their heads, known as Mundan or Mottai. If a good amount is paid, there will be a nice and smooth shave. There are so many poor pilgrims who cannot pay. The government has mandated free shaving for all, but those who can’t pay can have a partial shave only, with some hair and head injuries caused by rough handling of razors. If a person can pay thousands of rupees, he can have Darshan of the Lord quickly, if he cannot offer money, he will be treated very harshly and to have a vision of the Lord, he has to wait for hours. The influence of money has even entered the Sanctum Sanctorum.

We will now see how real values ​​are lost by money considerations:

There is no real affection or attachment between family members. People are not cared for by their children when they reach old age. Sometimes parents and siblings are killed for profit.

It seems that LOVE has also lost its real value. A girl prefers a rich person to a person who cannot afford to spend. This aspect has also led to acid shots and murders.

Getting a good job depends on the money spent as a chunk. To complete any job, one has to give money as a bribe. The author does not know of other countries. In India, corruption is rampant. It is unfortunate that India, which is the religious capital and the largest democracy in the world, is a bad example in corruption and bribery.

Education is expensive. Even for LKG admission, people have to spend in lakhs. For medical admissions you have to part with at least 5 million. The medical graduate, after graduation, tries to bill a lot and people have to sell their properties to pay off the bills, as long as they come back alive from the hospitals.

Candidates spend a lot of money on elections. Once chosen, the winners resort to all kinds of methods of raising money. Even awards and other recognition of true talent are bought by spending money.

Thus one can see that the evil influence of money has spread in all fields thus corrupting all human value. Now, we are at a crucial stage in stopping the further spread of the evil influence and recovering lost values. In fact India who gave four Vedas and Bhagavath Githa to the world will start this exercise.

How to end the influence of money and recover values?

From the above paragraphs, it is clear that selfishness and folly for property is the main reason for money, occupying the main position in the life of man. Money, instead of being a media channel or a reference object, has taken first place, pushing all values ​​behind. One remembers the monkey who claimed to divide the sweet cake between two cats and finally eat the whole cake. Now money has eaten or corrupted all human minds.

The main need to fulfill to reduce the influence of money is to reduce ‘egoism’. The feeling of ‘possessiveness’ must be totally annihilated. Claiming everything one finds as ‘mine’ must be stopped. This can be done by reducing desires. Yes! One cannot totally annihilate desires as Buddha said. But it is possible to reduce desires.

Reduce desires. Practice sacrificing dear things. Try to have empathy. Help others by reducing your own comforts. Try to live a simple life.

These five steps will automatically control the influence of money.

Role of governments: We do not need to expect the government to exercise control over spending. Instead, we should elect such a government that serves as a testament to simple spending. Especially, in a democratic country like India, people should not indulge in pomp and show, but elect simple leaders who show austerity in their daily lives.

It’s happening? Unfortunately, the answer is a firm ‘no’. People get carried away with empty promises and elect leaders who empty the treasury for personal ends.

What is needed today are leaders like Mahatma Gandhi, who traveled the world and had the courage to meet the British queen with a long cloth on his lap. One need not be a replica of Gandhi, but can follow at least some of the principles that he followed in his life. The life and teachings of Mahatma Gandhi are the best emulations of an austere and simple life.

Let me conclude the article with the sayings of a little-known South Indian saint who preaches a middle-of-the-road approach to all aspects of life to his disciples:

Be nice, but don’t be a slave.

Show pity, but don’t be fooled.

Donate generously, but don’t lose it all and become a beggar,

be thrifty, but don’t be stingy.

Be active, but don’t rush.

Be patient, but don’t be silly.

Be chivalrous, but don’t be a rogue.

Be a family man, but don’t be hungry for sex.

Have detachment, but do not become a Saint.

Love good people, but don’t hate bad people.

The above sayings applied mutatis mutandis to monetary considerations will solve most of the world’s ills and bring back lost human values.