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What does “Being Rich” Really Mean? Now that being rich is one of the goals of
life for far too many people, it's worth talking about attitudes to riches.
The attitude toward wealth is a mirror of a man's virtues and values..This
means that being rich is a process of building one's virtues and values..Why do
I say this??I mean that as external things, riches and the happiness which
riches bring with them, are only indicators of things internal..Schopenhauer put it this way:The ordinary man places his life’s
happiness in things external to him, in property, rank, wife and children,
friends, and the like, so that when he loses them or finds them disappointing,
the foundation of his happiness is destroyed.We can interpret Schopenhauer in that those
who value too much of external things will not find the true happiness of life.
They can’t realize the real importance of being rich, so even though they have
possessed so much fortune in their hands, they feel empty in their hearts.
That’s because they have not built a good attitude to being rich. So when they
are poor, they long to be rich; when they are rich, they rush to show their
fortune, but they don’t comprehend the real goal of being rich. A man is given
a lot of fortune in order that he can do a lot of good to the people around
him. But few can have a good understanding of it. That is the cause of so many
tragedies in this society.In fact, a man who seeks to be rich is
usually a man who seeks his pleasure in things outside him. Thus, he is more
often than not a man who easily becomes unhappy as the things outside him can
be easily deprived of. So fortune should be considered as unexpected rewards
which should be made good use of to do good for others. The reason for that is
simple: His happiness lies in things inside him. For him, undisturbed
occupation with himself, his own thoughts and works, is a matter of urgent
necessity to such a man; solitude is welcome, leisure is the highest good, and
everything else is unnecessary, nay, even burdensome. So he is generous with
his money and ready to help others without hesitation.This viewpoint is not a new one. Aristotle
believed that wealth is necessary for living a good life, but it should be
acquired in moderation and used for virtuous purposes. In his Apology, Socrates
presented his views vehemently: Still I have a favor to ask of them. When my
sons are grown up, I would have you trouble them, as I have troubled you, if
they seem to care about riches, or anything, more than about virtue. Then he
was put in prison and drank hemlock. I was shocked by his speech in court for
his noble and lofty thoughts and feelings. Epicurus, the philosopher who is
often misunderstood for his advocating seizing every chance for pleasure,
believed that wealth is not necessary for happiness, and that living a simple
life is preferable to pursuing wealth, which reminds us of figures in the
history of China like Tao Yuanming. Until I read the book The Console of
Philosophy, I didn’t understand Epicurus and changed my mind on him and his
philosophy. Reading more, we will feel it necessary to redraw the picture of
the world. The first sentence of Francis Bacon of his Of Riches is: I can’t
call Riches better than the baggage of virtue. And such a sentence comes near
to it: As the baggage is to an army, so is riches to virtue. And accidentally,
he believed that of great riches there is no real use, except it be in the
distribution.The principle of being rich is best
elaborated in the Bible: No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the
one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other.
You cannot serve both God and Money. God is love.
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