Feeding Our Greed
It is usually said that money is the root of all evil. The ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle, once considering the nature of the really happy and fulfilling life for human beings, ruled out money. He did this as a result of he saw that money is simply an instrumental good. That is, it's solely good for the sake of one thing else, namely, what we are able to get with it.
A deeper understanding of greed will facilitate us to ascertain that it's not solely material product that we have a tendency to want money for, however conjointly the safety and independence that wealth will bring. Wealth isn't a bad issue, in and of itself. It will help us meet our basic desires in addition as enjoy luxuries that make life better.
In many ways, greed is foremost a matter of the centre, of our inner lives. Greed is an excessive love or need for money or any possession. Greed isn't just caring regarding money and possessions, however caring an excessive amount regarding them.
Wanting More And More
The greedy person is just too connected to his things and his money, or he wishes his wealth to grown and to be surrounded by items that will make him feel great in an excessive manner. Greed has unpleasant effects on our inner emotional lives.
The anxiety and restlessness we have a tendency to feel after we long for some possession, and also the false assurance that upon gaining it we'll be put at ease and happy places us in a virtually vicious circle. Against this, the virtue of generosity is most current not only when we have a tendency to share, but enjoy doing so.
While greed is an inner condition, it is expressed in many of the choices that the greedy person makes. In fact, greed is expounded to justice within the following manner. If I'm greedy, and am excessive in my acquisition and keeping of possessions, I could be depriving others of their basic needs.
Sacrifice To Counter Greed
Maybe I could make do with last year's winter coat, instead of shopping for a brand new one, or if I do obtain a brand new one, I will give away my old coat to someone in need which may be something like a homeless shelter.
Finally, there are some things that we are able to do to combat greed in our lives. First, a touch of self-assessment is useful. We'd track our spending over a one or two month period, and reason our expenditures. This might shed some light on our priorities, and on ways in which we might cut superfluous spending. Second, we might take a vacation from consumerism.
Throughout this break, try and avoid advertising, journeys to the mall, ransacking through catalogues, looking at home improvement shows, and the like. This can be both countercultural and liberating. Finally, simply offer some money away.
Make some commitments to administer a certain quantity of cash away on an everyday basis to a charitable organisation, local religious group, or a relief agency. It's going to be tough to try and do initially, however over time doing so won't solely be good for you, it'll help meet real needs that others have.
