Our relationship with money is an indicator of our whole attitude to
life,
says Gerry Thompson.
We all think about money and material well-being quite a bit. Most of
us have
experienced problems with it at one time or another. But what are such
issues
really about? And how can the principles of Buddhism help us deal with
such
worries? Matters of money and material provision are not only
important in themselves;
they also represent a way of connecting with all kinds of other
issues; they
can be indicators of what else we need to look at within ourselves.
Our relationship
to money, like everything else, is a matter of cause and effect. For
every aspect
of our lives is interconnected; every facet integrally reflects and
affects
the rest. The spiritual and the material domains are not separate, as
much of
our cultural conditioning would have us believe.
The key to making positive change in money matters, as in anything
else, lies
in discerning the overall patterns. As Nichiren Daishonin states,
'Your mastery
of the Buddhist teachings will not relieve you of mortal sufferings in
the least
unless you perceive the nature of your own life'
(Major Writings, Vol. 1, p. 4).
The trick, then, is to look at the patterns that manifest in our
relationship
to money, and then seek the corresponding patterns of resonance that
occur in
other departments of our lives. So let's get out the tin-opener, and
start opening
some cans of worms. For instance, let's take a man who uses money as
if it had
no value, squandering it as soon as it is acquired. Does this resonate
with
a personal issue that he has around respect? Does he perhaps need to
develop
more self-respect and self-esteem? Or perhaps, it's about respect for
other
people, or for his environment and surroundings. Any of these could be
relevant.
Or take a woman who, instead of spending money like water, clings on
to it desperately,
as if none will ever appear again. Does this pattern appear in other
departments
of her life? Does she have difficulty with trust - trusting other
people, or
trusting herself?
All kinds of key life issues can give a clue to the factors at stake,
and simultaneously
have a direct bearing on our financial fortunes. Gratitude, for
instance - can
we see that our material good fortune directly reflects our own
ability to be
grateful? This might be perceived at many levels: gratitude for
benefits, for
challenges, for the difficult experiences that enable us to grow and
develop.
Or take commitment: how are we on this? Do we complete undertakings
that we
start? Are there things that we have been meaning to do, but haven't
got around
to for months or years? Are we taking full responsibility for our
lives and
our affairs? Carrying this further, are we living our dream, or at
least moving
towards doing so? Or might we eventually find ourselves on our
deathbed, and
suddenly remember what it was that we really wanted to achieve in
life? These
are all things that very directly influence material matters in the
here and
now.
Money is, in effect, a form of energy - just one of the ways that we
create
a flow between ourselves and our environment. Financial contributions
towards
SGI activities, for instance, is not inherently different from our
energy flowing
outwards in ways such as putting effort into Buddhist meetings or our
Buddhist
practice. It is just one aspect of the whole flow of our particular
individuality
to the universe. This flow outwards is matched with the corresponding
flow of
energies into our lives from our immediate environment and from other
people
- indeed, from the whole cosmos.
So what we are doing with this Buddhist practice is endeavoring to
'expand'
our lives - to increase both sides of this whole equation and flow
pattern.
'More out' means 'more in'; 'more in' means 'more out', and so on, in a
self-enhancing
positive spiral. That's why the spirit of contribution can produce
personal
benefits. If we hold back on the output, however, then the scale of
our energy
system diminishes ('Honey, I've shrunk my life!').
Money, then, isn't distinct, separate or unique in its behavior from
other
types of flowing energy, even though we may think so when we haven't
got any.
It's tempting to think that the operation of money is somehow subject
to a different
set of rules and laws from the rest of life - but it isn't.
As Nichiren Daishonin reminds us: 'No affairs of life or work are in
any way
different from the ultimate reality' (Major Writings, Vol. 3, p. 270).
That's why attempts to address our financial situation must be made
in the
context of all the other life factors operating in our particular
case, including
our personal history. In therapeutic circles, the most commonly
associated issues
include our feelings of self-worth; the way we have been raised by our
parents;
whether we experience love, and whether we feel we deserve love; and
our basic
fears about the ability to survive.
Our attitude to money, in fact, is symptomatic of our whole attitude
to life.
It's tempting to regard whether or not we have enough money as a main
influence
on our lives, but, rather, it is a result of our lives.
The issue of money, therefore, with all its associations of fear and
loathing,
envy, self-hatred or whatever, is actually one of the most powerful
areas in
which we can process our basic world-view and life-condition - our
fundamental
experience of life - and thus work towards revealing our highest
potential and
our Buddhahood. It can help us to work on unresolved issues that have
far more
profound and far-reaching effects than the purely financial.
Money concerns can give important clues as to what really needs
attending to.
All we have to do is discern the underlying patterns, prioritize key
issues,
and then determine relevant action to take - at least identify the
first step,
and then proceed from there. This will start us on a cycle of changing
inherent
karmic patterns that may go far back into our family history.
Ultimately, the answer is to deal with the personal issues we know we
need
to deal with anyway, whether we can see a connection to money issues
or not.
So… get on the phone and talk to your estranged brother / tidy your
bedroom
/ sort out why you can't stand your mother-in-law, or whatever it is.
Just deal
with this stuff. Your financial issues will improve; I guarantee it!
Money stuff, then, is an indicator of our whole attitude to life.
Most fundamentally,
it's about trust - trusting the Gohonzon, trusting the practice,
trusting ourselves,
trusting the process of life. The more we can trust, the more we can
give to
life; and if we do that, we get more from life - and our trust is
reinforced.
Tackling the issue of money can therefore expand our lives. It's also
about
basic gratitude - gratitude for having this life, and for having this
practice
that enables us to become happier, to create value and contribute to
the betterment
of the world.
As Nichiren Daishonin says: '…life itself is the most precious of all
treasures. Even the treasures of the entire universe cannot equal the
value
of a single human life'
(Major Writings, Vol. 1, p. 267).
UKExpress no. 344, february 2000, p. 40 - 41
