Money is not Wealth

 As I was growing up in a poor Hindu family, i knew the difference between money and wealth. Every morning, my mother used to chant in Sanskrit in her melodious voice. I loved sitting beside her chanting with her and deeply feeling the peaceful and joyful presence of my mother. The meaning of the chant has stayed in my heart. It means: When you wake up, hold your hand in front of your face and always remember: Laxmi, the Goddess of wealth, resides on on the top of your hand. At the bottom, resides Saraswati,  the Goddess of learning and wisdom and Govinda, Krishna, the incarnation of God, is in the middle. This chant has had a deep impact on me. In order to be happy, one needs to have the wisdom to earn and use the money and resources wisely. We did not have  a lot of money and luxurious things like our neighbors had but we were happy with what we had. We felt deeply connected with each other, cared for each other, were contented with what we had, and related to our neighbors like they were a part of our extended family. We were wealthy but not rich materially.

When we came to the USA, we kept the art of living the same way we were living in India. Living from within in accord with the core values of life has been a guiding light for us. How to relate to the human and natural resources wisely, unselfishly, lovingly, compassionately and gratefully is a challenge for all of us.Money driven life does not create the inner affluence and wealth, the joy of living and sharing our gifts with others and living a fulfilling life. It is my observation that we value achievement more than fulfillment. Achievement is outer directed, fulfillment is inner directed. Achievement is other dependent, fulfillment is inner dependent. I am striking a balance between these two orientations. The two do not need to be opposing each other.  Every morning as I wake up wake up, I hear my mom's loving voice. The voice that has guided me to be  contented, peaceful and joyful-happy. To me, this is an ongoing journey and I am happy to go through it. How wonderful it is to feel the presence of some one who gave birth to me, nourished me and is still lovingly guiding me! I bow to you, my dear mom!
 
Namaste to all.

Jagdish P Dave

 Namaste and HUGS to you, thank you so much for your thoughtful response and how & what your mother spoke of; powerful. Here's to us all finding balance and in realizing the inner fulfillment is deeply important to how we exist in this world. May we all serve each other to the best of our ability. HUG

 How lucky have you been Jagdish ji. I have similar background. My mother and father knew no Sanskrit slokas; they were uneducated simple village farmers in India; they taught me by their living examples the moral, cultural, religious and spiritual values that are still keeping me going in Australia. That is my real wealth; my achievement in society is secondary and temporary.My other wealth is a good health and a circle of friends.

 Beautiful commentary and reflections.  Thank you for sharing your memories.

 very beautifully expressed and so true

Absolutely beautiful. While I was born and raised in the US-I did go to India. On the flight home, I was sitting next to an Indian Gentleman who reminded me of my grandfather. He mentioned that in India, (Hindu particularly), doing things they way they are done in the west, such as earning money are fine, but in Hindu-they are also taught to look inward.