Money and Happiness

Money never made a man happy yet, nor will it. There is nothing in its nature to produce happiness. The more a man has, the more he wants. Instead of its filling a vacuum, it makes one. If it satisfies one want, it doubles and trebles that want another way. That was a true proverb of the wise man, rely upon it; “Better is little with the fear of the Lord, than great treasure, and trouble therewith.”

-Benjamin Franklin

Most people ask the question, can money make us happy? I think we can all agree that the answer has to be a resounding no. There is a more provocative question for us to ask ourselves. Can we be happy and have money? Or are these two things diametrically opposed?

The interesting thing about that question is that it is most clearly answered when it is broken up into two parts. First, we must ask ourselves, can we be happy? We can all be happy. Happiness tends to occur when we experience situations or circumstances that we perceive as beneficial. People with an optimistic orientation to the world have a tendency to be happy. But happiness has the tendency to be fleeting.

There is no doubt that some of the residual effects of money could possibly make us happy. We can be happy, if we have the money to take a vacation to spend time with our family. Or if we have enough money to help us feel financially stable or socially important. But it is not the money directly that makes us happy. It is always the things, tangible and intangible, that give us the emotional lift not the actual money. But the thing about this type of contentment is that it is always fleeting. People that have lots of things tend to never be content with what they have. Instead, they seem to develop desires for more and different things.

As spiritual seekers we know another word: joy. Both joy and happiness are emotions where we have feelings of contentment or satisfaction. But these feelings differ from one another other based on the reasons causing the feeling and the nature of the feeling. Joy, as opposed to happiness, is typically used to describe feelings of contentment that stem from our inner life.

Joy comes from deep within. It is a knowing that despite appearances the world is a place that is immersed in the Divine. God is with us, although we have to see it with “right eyes.” Joy is an orientation to the Divine that changes how we see God, ourselves and the world.

Money has little impact on joy.  We can have money and still feel content. From a place of joy, we can be in possession of money without money possessing us. It is a posture authentic authority from which we have the ability to do great works in the world. Because joy is in our being, every thing that we experience is enlivened by that feeling.

The fact is always obvious much too late, but the most singular difference between happiness and joy is that happiness is a solid and joy a liquid.

- J. D. Salinger

Read more: Happiness vs Joy - Difference and Comparison | Diffen http://www.diffen.com/difference/Happiness_vs_Joy#ixzz1GC2SBjkF

Related articles

• Data Says Money Might Buy Happiness, But Happiness Might Not Be What You Want (techdirt.com)
• "What's THE Key to Happiness?" "What's the Biggest Happiness Myth?" and Other Questions About Happiness. (happiness-project.com)

The "Winter"

As I sit home-bound during the third significant snowstorm this winter, the stillness has provided me with a wonderful opportunity to reflect upon the gifts of the season.  For many of us, the doldrums of winter are a trying time. Daylight is limited and we are generally less active. Our energy is lackluster and we very often experience the uncomfortable feelings that we avoid in our busyness. Animals cope with this season by hibernating, but the human animal resists the cyclical nature of life and growth. The medical profession even has a diagnosis for extreme symptoms, Seasonal Affective Disorder. We may try to overcome it but in the end, we cannot help but experience these ebbs and flows.

Loving Work

Work is love made visible. And if you cannot work with love but only with distaste, it is better that you should leave your work and sit at the gate of the temple and take alms of those who work with joy.

Kahlil Gibran, The Prophet

Why do you do the work that you do? Is it for the money? Do you love what you do? Please give this question some serious consideration and answer honestly, because you must understand that the answer is critically important to your experience of wealth. Love is not something that comes to us from outside ourselves. Love is an internal orientation to the world, a posture from which we have gratitude and appreciation for the details of our life.

Divine Ideas

Money never starts an idea; it is the idea that starts the money. W. J. Cameron

Have you noticed that when you get inspired by an idea, get a clear picture of the process and results, and pour your heart and soul into working toward that picture; that all sorts of people and resources suddenly appear to support you? From out of nowhere the right people, places and things are drawn to you. Somehow the money needed to move the idea forward seems to appear at exactly the right time? It is almost as if someone knows what your intentions are!

Response Ability

How do you feel when you sit down to pay your bills each month? Most of the people I know think of money as a burden. For many of us, finances cause us extreme stress and consternation. Consequently, often we are in a hurry to hand over responsibility for our money to someone else: the bank, our spouse, or our financial advisor. While there is nothing wrong with seeking advice from others, at the end of the day we must take complete ownership for how we use our resources.

Intention Attention

Money is the visible sign of a universal force, and this force in its manifestation on earth works on the vital and physical planes and is indispensable to the fullness of the outer life. In its origin and its true action it belongs to the Divine.
-Sri Aurobindo

This statement certainly gives us the opportunity to pause and reflect. “Money is ... indispensable to the fullness of the outer life.” What exactly does this mean?