“Money is evil and it should never come into the domain of spiritual practice!”
“You’re not a REAL spiritual person if you charge money for your spiritual services!”
“You should never want more money if you’re a spiritual person – show gratitude for what you’ve got!”
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“Everything that you do should be given to others for free – THAT is the only loving way of doing things.”
“Stop being a peddler!”
Through the years, I’ve heard a lot of passionate – and frankly dogmatic – opinions regarding spirituality and money.
These opinions range from extreme views such as money always taints and corrupts spirituality and spiritual services should never have a price tag, all the way to polar views that we should invest as much money as we have in spiritual practice.
Let me be clear: I’m not a person of extremes. I seek and respect balance, so my perspective falls somewhere in the middle.
I don’t believe charging for spiritual services is wrong nor do I believe that you should invest all the money you have in spiritual materials, courses, and teachers. I’ll explain why below.
But before we proceed I want to be clear: money and spirituality can be a heated topic. I respect everyone’s right to have different opinions so long as they don’t shove them into the faces of others.
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Ironically so much unkindness and “unspiritual” behavior can occur when discussing money and spirituality. Let’s keep the comment area civil and mature.
Is Money Evil?
Let’s start off with a super basic question. Is money evil? After all, many of us have been conditioned to believe the religious idea that “money is the root of all evil.”
My simple answer to this question is no, money is not evil.
Why?
Money is paper – literally, it’s paper that WE have given value and meaning. By itself, it means nothing.
Saying money is evil is like saying the spoon you used to gouge that guy’s eyes out is evil. No, the spoon itself is not evil – it was your behavior that was the issue.
Do you see what I mean?
Money is a symbolic item we use to give and exchange items. In and of itself it is not evil – the problems stem from our minds and hearts, not from the flimsy piece of paper that we hold in our hands.
Why it Makes Sense to Be Suspicious of Money and Spirituality
I understand the fear surrounding money because, sometimes, I experience it as well. It sounds something like this:
Is that person really genuine?
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Is that spiritual message a slick marketing campaign or does it carry genuine truth?
Can I rely on that person if they are charging me money?
Does that person care about me or my money?
Are they going to try and scam me?
What motivates that person – greed or love?
And all these concerns are legitimate.
The reality is that yes, there are sharks out there swimming in the water wanting to make a quick buck. There are deceitful and sly people out there who market themselves as spiritual “gurus” and teachers. There are people who dress up as beings of light but are fuelled by dark motives. There are people who will use you for your money – and discard of you when you no longer pay their bills.
It’s not only sensible to feel this way but it is also crucial. Without a little bit of healthy skepticism, we approach the arena of spirituality with wide-eyed naivety and gullibility. Being suspicious and cautious allows us to practice discernment which cuts through the bullshit and protects us from being used and abused.
But there is a big difference between carrying healthy caution and completely rejecting all those who charge money for their services.
I’ll explain why …
Is it Okay to Charge Money For Spiritual Services?
My answer is: it depends.
If you are motivated purely by greed (or the desire to accumulate great wealth and “get rich”), then you need to rethink your motivations. People are not stupid and they can sniff out BS and insincerity ten miles away.
So not only is being motivated by money for money’s sake disrespectful towards those you serve, but it is also a bad idea for your business and damaging to nearly all aspects of your life.
If – on the other hand – you’re motivated by the desire to make a living from doing what you love (which is helping others), then charging for your spiritual services is appropriate and acceptable.
Why?
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Shouldn’t “a genuinely spiritual person offer all of their help free of charge?” – as I’ve heard numerous people proclaim.
My answer is that sure, if you feel called to offer your spiritual services free of charge, that is wonderful. Sol and I do it here on lonerwolf every single week (as do many other people in the spiritual field).
But expecting that a person should offer all their time and energy for free (in the name of “spirituality”) is unrealistic. I can tell you for a start that this entire website would not exist without the financial support from our readers and donators.
And I’ll go on the explain more below. But first, let’s explore some arguments for and against involving money in the spiritual domain.
Arguments For and Against
Here are a few common arguments against money and spirituality, with my response below each:
1. If you’re spiritual you shouldn’t want money – people who want money are greedy and materialistic.
My response: So long as you are motivated by the genuine desire to help others, making money isn’t a problem. It is a gross generalization and misconception to say that those who want money are greedy and materialistic. Perhaps they want money to help support their families? Perhaps they want money to pay the bills? Perhaps they want money to support their sick loved ones? Perhaps they want money to pay for an education that will help them spread knowledge throughout the world?
2. You shouldn’t be charging money for a gift you’ve gained freely from the universe!
My response: You ARE the Universe. Free will and personal sovereignty mean that you can share that gift with the world in whatever way you like. It’s time to stop thinking about your gifts like they’re handouts and start owning them as qualities of your own Soul.
3. Spirituality is about personal sacrifice, it’s not about personal profit!
My response: Spirituality is not solely about personal sacrifice – although that forms a part of it. Spirituality is also about personal fulfillment, helping others, and spreading your message through the world – all of which are supported and furthered by money.
4. As soon as you make a business out of spirituality you’ve stopped being spiritual because you’re motivated by money now.
My response: Just because you have a spiritual business that generates profit doesn’t mean you are driven exclusively by getting rich. Authentic spiritual businesses use money as a way to further their message to help others.
Here are some other reasons why I believe money and spirituality can coexist harmoniously (in the right hands):
- Money helps to spread and propagate a message throughout the world – websites, books, videos, and workshops don’t just materialize out of thin air, they require money to make, edit, product, and spread
- Money allows you to do what you love for a living and feel a sense of self-fulfillment
- Money allows you to pay the bills while also helping others
- Money is an equal exchange of energy – it allows others to give something for receiving something
- Charging money for your services is a sign of self-respect – it signifies that you believe in and trust what you do enough to place value on it
- Money is an investment of time and energy – basic psychology shows that people value what they pay for way more than what they receive for free
Do I think those that all spiritual services should have a price tag? No, of course not. Not everyone has the privilege of being able to afford premium services. Not everyone has money to spare or a wealthy cultural background, and that’s okay. This is where balance is needed. I believe that heart-centered spiritual businesses need to offer both free and paid content.
We don’t have to be self-sacrificing martyrs who give away all of our time and energy, nor do we need to be gluttons who focus on making big bucks. We can walk the middle path, respect what we have to offer, use money to spread our message and pay our bills, while also helping those who can’t afford premium services with free content or products.
As a heart-centered business owner, I can tell you that lonerwolf would have died long ago if it wasn’t for the help of advertisements and products. Furthermore, without generating some kind of profit, I wouldn’t be able to pay the bills and do what I love for a living – instead, I’d be dutifully working in some mediocre job not fulfilling my potential.
I have money to thank for the propagation of this website and its ability to spread the messages here worldwide to millions of people. Thanks to money I’ve been able to make my dream a reality and create a ripple effect of positive change in the world.
What about Money, Spirituality, and Manifesting?
Manifesting is a popular topic that is spoken about a lot in the spiritual community.
Essentially, manifesting is the art of creating what you want. It works on the principles of like attracts like. For example, if you think, feel, and believe that you will receive something, the law of the Universe dictates that eventually, you will receive that thing.
However, there’s a lot of woo-woo BS connected with manifesting. You can read more about that in our Law of Attraction article.
For the purposes of this article we’re talking specifically about manifesting and money. So the question is: Is it okay to try and manifest money?
Let’s face it, money is what makes our capitalist societies turn around – we need it to pay our bills, get healthcare, move from A to B, eat, drink, and support our families. If you are lacking money, there is nothing wrong with asking the Universe (or whatever higher power you believe in) for help.
But there is a difference between asking for help and giving the Universe a shopping list. Trying to “manifest more money” simply for the purposes of being wealthier verges on spiritual materialism. Spiritual materialism is a term coined by Tibetan Buddhist teacher Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche and describes the practice of using spirituality as a justification to pursue empty desires and attachments.
As described in my article about why the law of attraction creates so much suffering:
There is nothing wrong with wanting to have more money, find your true love or achieve your goals. But when you believe all of these things will bring you the happiness you want, you’re stuck on another hamster wheel of suffering. The LOA starts to reinforce enslavement and obsession with desires rather than being a valuable tool to use mindfully. The more you try to chase and “manifest” things, the further you get from the truth that true happiness can be found right here, in the present moment, regardless of what you do or don’t have. Even when you DO get what you so desperately wanted, you start fearing that it will be taken away from you! So you start clinging to, protecting, and fighting to keep what you’ve been given. Does this sound like a recipe for peace or well being to you?
So no, it’s not unhealthy to ask the Universe to help you make more money. This is a perfectly normal and healthy drive, especially because making money is a fundamental survival need.
But when your spiritual practice is driven solely by the desire to accumulate more wealth just for the sake of being rich, you have a problem.
Money and Spirituality – It’s All About the Intention
As we’ve seen, money and spirituality can coexist harmoniously.
When you have money, you have the resources to reach thousands, even millions of people with your message.
Money also helps us all to do what we love (while paying the bills), serves as a respectful exchange of energy, and attracts those who are willing to sincerely invest in our work.
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$3Money itself is not evil, it is our intentions that can be tainted with dark motives. In other words, it’s all about the motives we have and what we carry within our hearts.
In order to maintain a healthy relationship with money in your spiritual practice it’s vital to:
- Be conscious of your motivations
- Live in alignment with your values
- Be ethical and transparent
- Be generous
- Be grateful for what you receive
I hope this article has created a bit more clarity surrounding the complex topic of money and spirituality.
What are your thoughts and perceptions on this topic? Share below and start a conversation!
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The thing I find interesting about this is that if we are all ultimately the same consciousness just having different experiences, then it stands to reason that ultimately we’re all one and thus all equally worth of love.
So if we’re all equally worthy of love, then isn’t fair exchange also important between any two parts of consciousness? So for example, in any relationship between two people, if they’re both equally worth of love then shouldn’t there be both giving and taking? Because if one side just takes, takes, takes and eventually depletes the other side, then is that truly loving to both sides? Is that a fair and loving exchange between two people equally worth of love? In my opinion, in most cases it’s not.
Thus in most cases, if any two parts of consciousness interacting with each other want to be truly loving, then there needs to be both giving and taking so that both sides get to love and be loved.
From what I can see, this is especially important in this materialistic world we live in because in most places money or a similar form of currency is required to survive. If we’re all put here in these bodies to fulfil some purpose, then it is a requirement we feed the body with food and water for it to survive long enough for us to be of service, otherwise it would just die prematurely. In most places, clothes on our back are also important to protect us from the elements and a lot of unwanted attention. And a roof over our head is also helpful because that security allows us to focus on being of service rather than being in survival mode if we’re homeless and unable to look after our self properly let alone anyone else.
Now all of those things generally require you to do something to receive money or a similar form of currency so that you can then give that to others in return for those things or other things you might want or need. Hence for most of us, being of service in some form (whether that’s being a ceo, secretary, spiritual teacher, toilet cleaner, or whatever else) and receiving something in return (money or similar) is what allows us to both contribute to the world and also receive something to survive in it.
From that perspective, it’s all valid service, and filling a need or solving people’s problems and receiving something in return that fills your needs (money for food, etc.) done correctly is all a fair exchange where both parts of consciousness get to give and receive, to love and be loved. And in that context, being a spiritual teacher to help people awaken or similar is just as valid and valuable as the person who cooks your pizza at a pizza shop, and equally deserving of reward in a fair exchange of give and take.
My theory and I would love others opinions on this, is the main issue here is not so much the form of the service (i.e., what we’re doing), but rather who we’re being. Are we being the power hungry ceo who rips people off and fires staff at a whim, or are we being the loving heart-centred ceo who takes care of their staff and customers? Are we being the cranky secretary that barks at everyone or the loving secretary that loves to make people smile? And are we being the genuinely caring spiritual teacher that knows what they’re doing and really wants to be of service in helping others awaken, or are we being the spiritual narcissist who takes advantage of vulnerable people for our own egoic needs? In other words, are we operating from our ego or our true self?
As far as I can tell, if two parts of consciousness are having a genuine interaction with pure intentions, based on each other being equally worth of love, and thus with the intention for there to be a fair exchange of give and take, then ultimately I think almost any service is valid and could be considered spiritual, whether that be the ceo, toilet cleaner, spiritual teacher, or anything else. Since it’s who you’re being that perhaps makes it spiritual, rather than what you’re doing (with the obvious exceptions of doing unloving things like committing crimes on purpose, etc.).
So if that’s valid, then perhaps those that have issues with people charging for spiritual services have either:
(a) encountered too many egoic spiritual service providers and thus had bad experiences, hence their probably valid viewpoint that perhaps those people shouldn’t be charging for what they’re doing (and perhaps shouldn’t be offering spiritual services at all if they’re purely coming from a place of ego…).
or (b) I wonder if for some it’s also a self-love issue? I loved this article’s quote from Jesus: “Love your neighbor as yourself”. I wonder if those people who complain were able to truly love their true self (not their egoic self) and then realize what’s in them is also in others, and thus love the true self in others just as much as they do the true self in them. From that space, assuming the spiritual provider did the same, then as stated before wouldn’t that then be a fair exchange of give and take between two parts of the same consciousness, which if done with unconditional love and pure intentions, could be a spiritual act in itself?
Finally, in regards to making spiritual knowledge, etc. available to those who are poor, I think a lot of the good spiritual teachers also do a lot of that from what I can see. I mean LonerWolf has so many free articles on so many topics that you could spend days trying to read them all and still probably not read everything. More than enough to help someone understand where they currently are on the spiritual path and with enough free information on what they might want to do next, and even how to do it. Then there is the cheap ebooks. And at the higher end some more expensive courses. That caters for all budgets. Eckhart Tolle is the same. His YouTube has so many free Q&A with him with him answering so many different types of spiritual questions – all available for free for anyone with an internet connection. For roughly the price of a cheap dinner, he also offers books and 10+ hour recordings of his retreats for very cheap. And then yes, there is the more expensive live retreats, online courses, etc. for those with the budget. The point is, both of them cater for all budgets and the poor person can go a long way with the free resources they offer (or in some cases, they could also go to their local library for some of the books if they cannot afford them to buy them).
In my opinion, they are both great examples of spiritual service. They give so much, a lot of it for free, and for some things they give in a way that allows them to also receive in return. Which as stated several times before, if we’re all different parts of the same consciousness and equally worthy of being loved, then doesn’t that mean we should all allow ourselves to both love and be loved, which means allowing ourselves to both give and receive? As long as it’s been done from a space of pure love and not ego, with pure intentions and fair exchange for both sides, then what could be more spiritual than that?
I have been struggling with this very topic for the last few years and very much take on the very same approach as described in this article. Very realistically written and relatable to all and any.
What I do strugggle with myself is how to implement this view/approach of “having enough to be/do well” into this materialistic driven society. For example: I don’t really like my day job, but I make a good amount of money, which help me pay my bills, rent and “get by” month to month, even sometimes saving a little bit. But sometimes I’d rather just be paid less/for the actual work I do and have more time to pursue things I can actually influence (=speak: express myslef, do my own thing). But if I then quit this job I know that “my thing” won’t generate “enough”, at least not in the stage it is in at the moment. And then I always get signs from the universe saying “why did you quit”, “why leave something perfectly stable”, “how will you get by” etc… and sometimes those things get to me, but most of the time I still sense it being “worth” more by staying true to myself and my own contribution to myself and society, but I still NEED to live off of something… so yeah, a bit of a dilemma there for me, though firmly believing in “getting anwers you need, when you’re ready/it’s time”, so I guess just focusing on this guiding voice within me onward and react/act on things that resonate strongly. :)
Thanks for the wonderful article and exceptional work you do with Lonerwolf. ❤
Like, I don’t get it. What are people supposed to do if it’s not spiritual to ask for money for your job at all? Become homeless and starve to death? Why are spiritual services expected to do this, but not normal traditional jobs? If all of us are supposed to be spiritual, why do you get to have money for your work but not others? Are you admitting your job doesn’t really help others, or that traditional jobs don’t really help people in any spiritual way at all? I guess a doctor is just a useless job, curing patients from their illness or saving people from dying, and a lawyer fighting for her innocent clients who was abused in horrific ways yet no one believes them is a just a useless unspiritual job? It’s like people only focus on the sentiment of what is “spiritual,” not actually what is effective or efficient in terms of what will help people the most. Look, if you want to help others, you can’t just focus on the emotion of what will “appear most spiritual to others,” but what will actually help others more, despite it not looking spiritual from the outside. That is, you need to understand the practical resources needed to help others, the step by step plans involved, and if they will actually work out or not. I think this is an issue with people seeing poverty as “spiritual,” and wealth as “unspiritual.” Basically, it’s a message to people that everyone should be poor, starving, and barely able to pay the bills, to be considered spiritual. So when people try to get out of poverty, they’re being unspiritual, while “good people,” who fetishize and romanticize poverty are all unable to feed themselves, unable to be healthy, and unable to have a stable set of needs, lololol. It’s poverty consciousness again, and I’m not saying greedy wealth is not bad either, but poverty consciousness only furthers greed, if we think that the lower and middle classes should keep having less money to be considered spiritual, but those who were born rich without having to change are considered spiritual nonetheless. ????? It’s another set of ideas that self-loathing and self-hatred will help others more than self-love and self-acceptance. But I guess people today believe that when you starve others, you feed others, without thinking of the practicality if that really works, hahaha. Yes, let’s just starve ourselves, lololol. That will put food in hungry people’s mouths.
Yes to this and everything else you’ve said 😂 Finally, a free-thinking person! The whole division of “spiritual” and “unspiritual” is very dualistic and limited. Why can’t picking up trash from the side of the road be just as spiritual as being a yoga instructor? Both provide valuable services to humanity. Thanks for the thought-provoking share <3
Correct me if I’m wrong, you are saying your lifestyle is dependent on the gratitude, goodwill and generosity of strangers ? With all due respect, it is not the responsibility of strangers to put a roof over someone else’s head, or pay their bills, I suggest if someone wants their books as well as books or a large collections of tarot cards then they get a proper job, like other mere mortals. Respect to the people who are willing to work that soul sucking, 60 hour a week job, fake smiling at their boss and or colleagues and still find time to run sites like this. Surely the people relying on hand outs, are stuck on that hamster wheel of fakery, unable to truly speak their minds for fear of losing money from the sycophants they have to surround themselves with ? That doesn’t sound to me like people who are using money to enhance or support their spirituality, just the opposite, they’re trading their spirituality for money. Spirituality isn’t about living in an ivory tower, by-passing the ugliness of life and people in general, spending days sitting in tantric yoga poses chanting and practising mindfulness, at other people’s expense.
Can I suggest before you start rattling your charity box, you get house in order first. There’s an MCP strutting round lonerwolf, underhandedly insulting and being rude to certain people, and openly admitting it. As bad as that is, it’s nothing compared to the damage done your reputation by Matteo joining in with that person, whispering, talking in tongues, pointing, laughing, generally having fun at someone else’s expense. When their victim turns on them, and stands up for themselves, who does Admin remove from the group ? not the MCP. Fortunately, I’m not the only one to have noticed this behaviour, other members have witnessed and commented on it too. Like I said Altheia, respect where it’s due, unfortunately for you, when you put yourself and your “gifts” on the market as you have, you give permission for others to judge you too. I was one of your long time supporters, stood up for and defended you, because I believed in you, I thought we shared similar values, turns out I was wrong and that’s ok, because it isn’t my livelihood or lifestyle at risk.
I pay my own bills and at the end of each week, month, year I have money left to save, spend or give away. Trust me, I have no problem giving away money to a reputable source, charity, cause. It’s why I say money and spirituality can blend, in the right hands, money enhances my spirituality not the other way round.
It’s okay. If you don’t want help from the gratitude of strangers, then stop getting money from your boss in the job. It’s not “spiritual” then to get any money for your job, isn’t it? If you’re the boss and you own a business, stop selling all your products or services then with money from the generosity of strangers. You should provide all your products and services for free if you want to be spiritual. Clearly, if we’re homeless and starving on the streets, we could help people even more, hahahaha.
I am so grateful for EVERYONE who contributed to this site ❤️ You didn’t have to give your time, emotions, skills, or knowledge for free! Thank You ☺️ This site has helped me so much on my spiritual journey.
“You didn’t have to give your time, emotions, skills, or knowledge for free!” – no, but it was our calling ♡ Thank you for these lovely words Kayla! It means so much to us to know that what we do has helped you.
I’m a highly authentic and highly introverted individual. Let’s see what I have to say about this. First of all, your thinking is as realistic as the concept of the ultimate, efficient society promoted by the capitalistic ideology. In other words, you’re seeing money as an insider. To see money for what it really is, you have to look at it as an outsider, so that its mask can drop and their essential characteristics are exposed and understood. Your opinion and defense of money come from a place of limited power and freedom, thus limited consciousness, to even try to go against the use of money. In other words, do you really believe you could have any sort of choice or say to refuse money? As long as it remains a collective agreement, you don’t. It is way more than a paper, as you described it. It’s not a paper at all if it has the power it has been given. You could ONLY see it as a simple piece of paper, or numbers on a screen if that was it. But it’s not. Money is a system of complex mechanisms, it is a mental entity on its own and it works outside of human noble values of life, outside of feeling, emotions, thoughts, it has no soul of its own, it’s like a machine, which you are consciously choosing to ignore in your post, as I know you’re a very very intelligent and self-aware person, based on the depth of your writings. I don’t know you, personally, but, in the case you are not aware of this, I say to you that you don’t have to be, but you should be. I understand your thinking, though. But you are only being realistic within the logic of the current monetary system. I respect the fact that this system won’t leave you another choice but to use the money to support your physical and emotional needs. But regarding the morality of capitalism, I must say that for the rich to be rich, someone else has invariably need to be poor, for there is only a limited amount of money in circulation. Besides, no object on the planet, no mountain, no volcano, no ocean, no river, no fire, no rock nor animal has a power akin to the one of money in society
I ask you this: what are the facts of money? Do you really believe such a power should be given to an object as to have the capacity to decide who has the right to live and who doesn’t? Who are the rich to get to be the chosen ones with enough money to be “the saviors” of the poor they themselves abuse and explode? Who are you to be the one who gets to help those needy people more o less affected by the same money? You are not seeing the issue of money from a holistic or global point of view. What are the destructive facts of money? Do you really think you can separate morally from something that has the power to elude it? How do you feel when you give something to others out of the goodness of your heart? Does it feel better than when you do it expecting money in return? Because the truth is, the nature of love is unconditional, not realistic in the sense of capitalistic societies. Would you really give an object such a power, knowing, at the same time, that is has the built-in capacity to create a tremendous amount of social inequality, loss of dreams, separation of marriages, a hierarchy higher than human life itself, misery for some many, unnecessary luxury, wars, death, elitism or vertical thinking, and the list goes on? Beware when writing your post not to consciously ignore these facts out of financial necessity or personal convenience. Yes, you are realistic, not in the essential sense, but in the logic of the Money-God. Why would someone choose to give talents and time for free? Maybe because it feels better inside and aligned with the true nature of love? Maybe because the value of the things you have to offer cannot be counted, like the money? Nor you or I have the choice not to use money, not to like, not to worship. He is an entity with a mind of its own and everyone stepping outside of its “logic” would be eliminated. The only freedom you have is within its borders, thus your thinking is also limited to see beyond that logic. For money to be the GOD, the KING of KINGS it must render all the natural resources scarce. It must have it all at his command, people included and their minds also. With our Will-power conditioned, enslaved, what choice do we have to like or hate money? It is the roman emperor: if you comply, you live (as my slave. of course); if you refuse, you die (as a free man/woman, of course. Too bad this God IS NOT AWARE of your noble purposes.
I would say that as beings that exist within a capitalist system, it only makes sense for our understanding to be influenced by an insider’s view of money as currency. We should not abandon our physical forms and situations in favor of viewing ourselves as purely spiritual beings because we are multifaceted, we are both physical and spiritual beings and our understanding that f the world SHOULD be influenced by both states, because when we cut ourselves up and only view ourselves from one perspective at a time we are being untrue to our real existence. The reality is, there is nothing wrong with an equal exchange of goods. We are physical beings with physical needs, and the social contract of our society dictates that the best way to do that is to decide what we believe our services to be worth and to charge people for our services likewise. There is nothing wrong with honoring social contracts, we are social beings and the rules of society can be arbitrary but they can also be important for creating a no guesswork way for us to get along with each other.
Thank you so much for this article. It’s always a challenge in this line of work (bodywork, energy-work) to set your financial worth and boundaries when it comes to offering your gifts through service. A lot of people, not all, assume this line of work is woo-woo or not really work. This type of “work” is my passion and calling and I would love to offer it for free but as you stated, I need financial stability to offer this service (a room, materials, continuing educations, etc.) and to provide for me family. Thank you again for sharing your wise words.
“Let’s face it, money is what makes our capitalist societies turn around – we need it to pay our bills, get healthcare, move from A to B, eat, drink, and support our families.” – But do we really need money for all of the above activities? No, we do not need any kind of money to run any kind of economy.
You give me money so that I can work for you. I need your money to buy my food and shelter. That is the only need for money. Why not then I work free for you and government gives me everything I need for free? This is called moneyless economy (MLE). See the MLE chapter in the free book on soul theory at the blog site on wordpress dot com. I cannot pursue spirituality, if I have to work for somebody for my food. So money and spirituality are not compatible.
But money is the product of destiny of the universe. So we have to accept it. Central bank (CB) owns the money, and controls its supply. This feature is also a product of destiny. CB is the king and you cannot disobey the king. The king will not allow you to pursue spirituality and discover the truth. The above free book has a chapter on the CB. It also has a chapter on truth.
I think getting paid for a service ..spiritual or non-spiritual …makes both parties serious about what they are doing.
I am a meditation teacher and an astrologer. Initially, I kept my classes free, mothers promised to send their children but none turned up. Next time, I asked for a nominal amount and 15 children turned up for the class and completed it.
My learning: people don’t take you seriously and value your service if you give it for free, however well-meaning your intentions might be. A little pinch and usually a material one are needed to bring people to attend meditation or yoga or pranayama classes and to make them regular. Even though it would benefit them enormously. Else there is a serious lack of commitment. Doing good is then seen with suspicion.
Same was true for my astrological counselling. There were a few people – friends of friends – who would come to me when they were in trouble, ask for advice but never do anything I suggest. They would never be on time for the reading( or would take sessions to just show off why they don’t need astrology). By charging a nominal amount, I could keep these freeloaders who waste my time and theirs – at bay.
When I give anything for free, people usually behave in a manner as though they were doing me a favour by attending my free class or free astrology session. They felt I was not serious and my service lacked quality. Hence having a nominal charge shows we value our time, have respect for ourselves, and value the seeker’s time as well.
In India, the ancients believed that any service should have a price else we never value them. It was considered knowledge is never complete if we do not give Guru Dakshina or fees to the Guru or Master. It becomes a Karma. One who gets it free will have to pay back later or be born again to pay the debt.
A really needy and genuine seeker was always exempted through scholarship, again that never made the boy or girl feel obligated by making it free for him/her. When someone can’t pay, by making it free we make the soul of the person cringe even more. It would feel I am poor. They were made to understand that they earned it through their merit that way the soul feels confident and happy and content.
There is a saying that goes: There is enough in this world for everyone but not enough for greed.
Charging money does not make one greedy it makes one -a professional. Only when the charge becomes the only thing that matters then again quality suffers.
What are you saying ? – how I have struggled with my own extremely rarely encountered personal thorny problem of morality & challenge to my feelings about my integrity ?
It certainly looks like that !
From the high quality content of your other posts this is by far the weakest. You are doing just fine in spreading the the “way”. But hey you live in the modern world ! you can no longer rely on the the begging bowl of an earnest seeker being filled with a handful of rice in the daily alms round.
Perhaps a piece about -” Integrating making a living given the conditions of the world with spiritual growth & integrity” Now THAT IS a topic of wide concern.