👉 Praise be only unto those making meritorious use of money

These days money is commonly reckoned to be the loftiest blessing, gift or glory among all. However, it doesn’t deserve the honour of being the jewel in the crown of divine gifts which should actually belong to pre-eminent feelings like empathy, kindness, generosity, etc. Anyone endowed with such pre-eminent feelings becomes a divine being in person. Great people, sages, those having a simple-living-high-thinking way of austere life, and people who renounced their happiness or sacrificed their everything for others belong to this class of sublime people, i.e. the divine beings. They burn like a candle to impart the light of bliss everywhere. Whatever goodness, blessedness or bliss we experience everywhere are in reality the manifestations of pre-eminent feelings.

The second place among divine gifts goes to vidyā or wisdom. (This is a manifestation of brāhmaṇatva, i.e. a mental faculty of sublime thinking.) The third gift is that of the talents. (This can be classed as kshatriyatwa i.e. the physical expression of brave deeds.) Money comes next at the fourth place. Money basking the undeserving top praise has become a great misfortune for the human race. One of its offshoot is that people have become more inclined to amass as much money as possible so as to become more praiseworthy or respectable in society. On the contrary, such money should have been well utilised all the time to facilitate noble causes.

Money is indeed a divine gift. Wealth is a sign of a glimpse of divine grace. This is one of the reasons why we offer prayers to Mother Lakshmi—the Goddess of wealth and properity during Deepawali, the festival of light. However, any money that is wrongly used to provide luxuries to or to satisfy ego of just a few rather than aptly being used for the good of the masses isn’t at all worth of accolade. Such riches have been and should be disapproved of.

✍🏻 Pt. Shriram Sharma Acharya
📖 Yug Nirman Yojana: Darsana, swarupa va karyakrama 66:1.38