We Work for Money, But What Are We Living For?
By – Dr. Nerella Sameera, Assistant Professor, Department of CSE, SRM University – AP( Amaravati)
Do you know who your real enemies are? Jealousy and greed are like poisonous snakes that cause many problems in life. They can destroy even great and powerful people.
Duryodhana, his hundred brothers and sisters, Dhritarashtra, and Karna, who was well known for his generosity, were all very powerful people. But because of the jealousy they had towards the Pandavas, they finally lost their wealth, their families, and even their lives.
Duryodhana had given Karna a major part of his kingdom, even though Karna’s family background was not known. But even after doing so, Duryodhana could not overcome his jealousy towards the Pandavas. He was not even willing to give them five villages. This jealousy finally led to the Kurukshetra war and resulted in the death of hundreds of thousands of people.
About 800 years ago, there was a powerful and capable king named Pruthviraj. Another king, Jayachandra, was unable to defeat him. Because of his jealousy towards Prithviraj, he helped foreign forces gain entry into India.
In the same way, because of the weakness and lack of unity among some rulers, foreign powers entered India and ruled the country for many years. The French, Dutch, British and others gradually established their control over different parts of the country. Because of the actions and jealousy of some Indian rulers, our country suffered under foreign ruling for nearly 300 years. During this period, our culture, traditions, arts, temples, literature, clothing, languages, and social life were greatly affected.
Jealousy
Jealousy is a natural feeling. It can be used as a step for our own improvement, but it should not grow so much that it becomes harmful to us or to the person whom we are jealous of. If that happens, it can lead to many bad consequences.
There are three ways to overcome jealousy.
- Try to grow beyond the person you are jealous of.
If you feel that someone is ahead of you, work hard and try to reach a higher position through your own efforts.
- If you cannot do that, accept the principle of karma.
The Bhagavad Gita teaches us: “Do the work that you have to do without worrying about the result.” Everyone receives the results according to their actions.
- Invite that person to your home and share a meal with them on a suitable occasion.
Sharing food can reduce small differences, ego, anger, and jealousy between people. It can create a feeling of friendship and closeness.
That is why our elders used to share food with others during different occasions, whether the occasion was happy or difficult. They did not make differences between people based on their wealth, position, age, or background. When people sit together and share food, even a person who was once considered an enemy can gradually become a friend.
Greed
A person may have ambition, but one should not become greedy.
There is nothing wrong with wanting to progress in life. But greed is different. Greed makes a person want more and more, without thinking about how much is actually needed.
What is lacking in our country? We have fertile land, many rivers, the Himalayas, and many talented and intelligent people. We have many resources and many people who have achieved great things in different fields.
Even after having so much, why do we still face so many problems?
One of the reasons is human greed.
There is no end to the desire to become a millionaire or a billionaire. A person may spend their entire life trying to earn more and more money. But what happens to all that money in the end?
When a person dies, they cannot take their wealth with them.
This truth can be understood from the example of Alexander the Great. It is said that, when he realized that he was going to die, he wanted his hands to be kept outside his grave so that people could see that even a person who conquered so much could take nothing with him after death.
So, we should understand that money is necessary for life, but money should not become the only purpose of life.
Similarly, if money earned through wrong or dishonest ways is simply given to children, they may not understand the value of money and hard work. They may also develop bad habits because they get everything easily.
How much should a person earn?
There is no fixed answer to this question. A person can earn according to their intelligence, ability, hard work, and opportunities.
But while earning money, a person should make sure that society and nature are not harmed as much as possible.
For example, suppose a person owns a factory. Properly disposing of the waste from the factory may cost money. That does not mean that the owner can simply dump the waste into a nearby river to avoid that expense.
Rivers and canals are very important for us. They are necessary for the survival of people and other living beings. No one has the right to damage them for personal benefit.
Nature belongs not only to us but also to the generations that come after us. If we protect nature, it will support us. If we destroy it, we will also suffer because of it.
We should remember that we are only one small part of the larger world of living beings. Just because nobody is watching us or questioning us does not mean that we can do whatever we want. We should not destroy nature for our own benefit.
Earning money is important, but earning money alone is not the whole purpose of life.
Just as we give importance to earning money, we should also give importance to spending time with our family.
If a person spends their entire life only thinking about earning and accumulating money and does not give enough time to their family, their children may eventually receive the property and wealth. But the love and affection that should have been shared between the parents and children may be lost.
Money can give children property, but it cannot give them the love and affection that they need from their parents.
A Complete Person
Finally, just becoming a person who earns money is not enough.
A person should also become a good son, a good husband, a good father, a good brother, and finally, a good citizen.
Only when a person fulfills all these responsibilities can they become a complete person.
Life is not only about earning money. It is also about how we live, how we treat other people, how we take care of our family, how we protect nature, and what kind of person we become.
