Our material abundance is a threat to our survival if we don't have inner abundance." Torkum Saraydarian
Swami Sivananda - The Parable Of Four Fools And A Cunning Man -
"A man entered a park. All of the cement benches were occupied. He was tired and needed a rest. He didn't want to leave the benches. He considered the best option. He moved to the corner of the park, looking up at the sights and pretending to be astonished. He created a curiosity in the other four people and they sat down on the nearest bench to discover what he had seen. They were drawn by curiosity and walked towards him. He walked towards him and immediately turned his back. He fell asleep and they were unable to find out what he saw. "The four fools debated for quite some time about what he saw but couldn't come to the right conclusion."
It's the economy!
Many believe that Bill Clinton won the Presidency because he was focused on the economy. In fact, it's the economy, not the politics. His campaign managers used this mantra to keep people on message, focused and grounded.
Many people are familiar with the story of the cunning man, four fools and how it is being retold. Every day, an economist or politician is enthralled by the ego need to be famous, power, or position on one hand and fear of losing that fame, power, or position on the other. People gather and praise the new economy theory. They have endless, mind-numbingly strident, and strident dialogues about the merits and faults of the theory. The economist or politician then settles in the comfort of their fame and notoriety.
What about the masses? They're not doing so well.
It's the economy. Let's not be stupid!
"Economy does not plan for construction. It is a plan to destroy. Economics have led to our destruction. It is the heart quality, the spiritual outlook that will change the world. - Sufi expression
Economics basically refers to the way that we share goods or services in order to meet our basic needs. If we don't have enough to meet our basic needs, both spiritually and practical, we can't fully experience who we are. We cannot achieve self-actualization. Preoccupied with survival, whether mentally, emotionally or spiritually, we limit our ability to create and grow, to develop, and to help others. One's humanity is diminished and depleted by poverty.
Economism is both practical and spiritual. It's about taking care our "households" - the people in the world. In modern times, economics is more about satisfying individual wants and needs to the detriment and at the cost of the community. This is a selfish, ego-driven drive for personal wealth and grandeur. It's an unhealthy and distorted view of economics.
There is a big difference between the economics that fulfills needs and the economics that gives pleasure. The economics that are all about the individual creates a society where there is no separation between thinking and doing. vs. you.
The economics that promote pleasure encourages separatism and separative thinking. It supports the idea of using, manipulating, controlling and dominating others in order to gain personal privilege and wealth. This is the economics of today.
The world's governing force has been replaced by economics. Economism has been dominated by the ego and is now a zero-sum game. It is a game where one is obsessed with getting a bigger piece at the expense and depriving others.
Economic interconnectivity
"The whole cosmos is cooperative...when we understand that the world is interdependent and mutually dependent, then we can create a noble environment. We will perish if our lives don't reflect this truth. - Bhikkhu (Thai monk)
Relationship Between Economics And Environment If soul is the foundation of economy and consciousness drives it, then perhaps we will begin to realize the deeper truth of how we can care for each other through our economic decisions, our personal relationships, and our business. Economics today will continue to lead to physical, mental, and psychic starvation. Insatiable greed and ego-driven egoism will continue to cause a deep moral, spiritual, and psychological gap that money and materialism cannot fill.
The removal of soul from an individual's body and the global body at large will lead to deeper malaise, agitation, and eventually incurable sickness (on many different levels).
If we as a community can say "It's not the economy, stupid! A soul-based one!" when we understand the spiritually-or soul-based concept that an economy that fulfills people's needs and empowers other people, then only then will we experience a True, Real economy that contributes towards the well-being of all society and the sustainability of the planet.
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