Essentially we need to look upon everything as an instrument that may be placed either at the services of the ego to blindly and indulgently satisfy the desire self or at the service of the Divine which means to build beauty and harmony in our outer life and surroundings, to create means and institutions that can serve the Divine Purpose in the forward march of humanity. Of course to take care of one’s needs and use money for that purposes keeping in kind the demands of the Age we live in are quite valid uses of money. But to indulge in fancies and endless waste and needless shopping of expensive items, for show and to amass useless baggage of life and get into a vicious cycle of greed to use money to increase money for its own sake are simply activities that would tie up endlessly to our outer nature and bind us more and more to the desire self. The more we indulge the more difficult it becomes to release ourselves from the grip of the surface forces and formations that move around us. By remaining tied to the surface we are unable to go within and seek higher goals and thereby lose the purpose of life.
It is for this reason that many spiritual disciplines advice one to stay away from money. But that is another error of extremes. To stay away with an ascetic tendency is not much different from a blind indulgence. By staying away our mind cannot get rid of greed and it leaves the money in the hands of dark and asuric forces. That is what has happened in India due to a strong wave of ascetic tendencies. Both extremes are to be avoided. Instead a healthy, balanced attitude of moderation and of using all things, including money for beautiful purposes is the best way to handle it. But to live for earning money or to give one’s energies to earn more and more endlessly is to miss life’s goal.
As to earning, there is a universal law that we receive what we care for and use rightly. On the other hand we tend to lose what we either misuse or turn towards dark purposes. Even if we retain the wealth by force as the Asuras do we are not able to enjoy it as our mind remains haunted by greed and lust and fears and ambitions. Some people try to strike a balance by giving away some bit of their earning for philanthropic purposes. It does help to an extent but one should be careful that it does not end up bloating the ego-self and very often philanthropy leads to an aggrandising of the rajasic ego. If it is given it should be done after due consideration of the usage it would be put to, done silently and with the attitude that it is being offered to the Divine in man and feel grateful that the Divine has given us enough to share.
It needs a certain strength and largeness in the vital nature to attract the power of money. A weak and small vital that shrinks from life is generally unable to attract much wealth. By sharing, more importantly circulating it wisely the force of money tends to draw near us. By caring it through a meticulous accounting and organising of the money force it tends to grow. By avoiding wanton waste also the money force tends to grow.
These are some of the general guidelines with regard to the money force and its usage. Sri Aurobindo has beautifully summarised it for us in one of his letters on money in the short but power-packed book, The Mother, which you may want to refer to.
