An alternative choice of living based on wisdom - Higher Consciousness, Truth and Joy!
OUR WEALTH CREATION MODEL
Serves the dual purposes of life - emancipation of the soul and welfare of the world
Creates holistic well-being at various levels – spiritual, emotional, intellectual and physical
Enables us to create wealth for our family and others so that we can generously contribute to the causes we deeply care about, without any second thought
Gives us an opportunity to redefine and restore our spiritual relation with money and wealth
We are conducting an experiential, research-based approach on how we, in different sections of society, relate to money, wealth, and wisdom. Accordingly, our fees will be based on the economic capacity (household income) of the individual's family. We want to reach out to as many aspiring learners as possible through this program.
Experimental Model for Fees
We want to serve those who not only understand the importance but also strive to embody and practice the values like truthfulness, authenticity, thoughtfulness, well-being, trust in all aspects of life – as an individual, family, community, economy, society, world and Universe at large.
We believe in building a trustworthy relation with money and wealth through our honest work and service. We are creating the world we want to live in.
Some characteristics:
Since we serve all sections of the society irrespective of social, economic status, we want to ensure those who are on the higher brackets of total household income participate and pay their fair share so that those who cannot afford they can get the service as well. In this way, we create wealth - social equity and economic capital. This would address SDG of Income Inequality.
A part of our earnings would be reinvested back in the community and society by creating opportunities for students and individuals from low-income families to take various initiatives such as special courses and internship opportunities, and by supporting various other social initiatives such as self-help groups and various NGOs to do their work.
For individuals: Each course is very reasonably priced however the course fees would vary based on the geographic region and country. The intent is to make the courses available to as many individuals as possible to cultivate social capital and to contribute towards nation building and life-generative economy. However, it is also the responsibility of the individuals that due respect is paid to knowledge cultivation, honesty and integrity of the practitioners.
Individuals can also opt for ‘gift vouchers’ to gift courses to their friends, families and others or can sponsor courses to students, underprivileged people and others in the value-chain.
For organizations: Fees can be mutually agreed based on the economic capacity of the organization. The intent is to build trustworthy and meaningful relationships based on solid values such as integrity, credibility, transparency, mutual respect and well-being for all.
Quantum Holistic Wealth Creation Model
According to Vedic wisdom, the word, ‘Lakshya’ means ‘goal.’ The word is also understood as ‘to perceive, observe, know, understand.”
It is said Lakshmi is the Vedic art and science of achieving meaningful wealth. Artha is the meaningful wealth as per the Vedic system. Vyartha is wealth without meaning or higher purpose. Anartha is that wealth that is earned by causing destruction. So, we have to accept the truth that the way we are earning money is basically caused by a degenerative economic system which is leading to Vyartha or Anartha. Very few of us are creating meaningful wealth – Artha.
According to Kautilya’s Arthasastra, six detrimental qualities lead to anartha. These are kama (lust), krodha (anger), lobha (greed), matsarya (envy), and mada (ego). It is said the foundation of creating meaningful wealth or Lakshmi is Manas or the Mind [14].
Goddess Lakshmi symbolizes one who represents elevated (higher) Lakshan (traits) to achieve higher Lakshya (goals/purpose) in life. She is the goddess of prosperity, wealth, purity, generosity, and embodiment of grace, beauty and charm. She sits on Lotus which stands for purity, beauty and fertility.
The four hands represent the four aims of human life – 1) dharma or righteousness, 2) artha or meaningful wealth, 3) kama or wordly desires, 4) moksha or liberation from the cycle of birth and death. The owl is her vehicle. The owl symbolizes fearlessness and the ability to see in darkness. The underlying meaning of the mythology is focused efforts in accordance with righteous principles governed by wisdom and purity, lead to both material and spiritual abundance.
Money has three primary properties –
· store of value – individual, social, national
· medium of exchange - interpersonal
· unit of account
What creates economic wealth is not a big labor base or an abundance of raw materials (though these can help) but a population with a spirit of enterprise and a political system that allows that spirit to blossom [16]. Hence, the ecosystem and a trust-based culture are important to cultivate. In addition to that I would say two other functions are important – one is population control and the second is skill-based education.
I have created the ‘Holistic Wealth Creation’ model based on “Astha Lakshmi.’ The reason is this model includes all three dimensions – the metaphysics of wealth creation, economic functions of material wealth and the social-cultural context.
Spiritual Wealth – Spiritual wealth is cultivated when we understand the purpose of life. The guiding principles, values combined with character traits (virtues) form our inner power. Over a period of time, this inner power becomes our spiritual wealth. Truth, honesty, trust, faith, goodness, fortitude, benevolence, authenticity, courage, forgiveness become one’s spiritual wealth.
Economic Wealth – Economic wealth is the material possessions such as house, car, bank balance which give a materially comfortable life. Money represents one type of economic wealth.
Intellectual Wealth – Intellectual wealth is our wisdom, intellect, insights, skill-sets. Our academic degrees, work experience, continued education and lifelong learning are examples of intellectual wealth.
Health as Wealth – Proper food and nutrition for good health and well-being form health as wealth. In macro terms, good harvest and green surrounding would be wealth for the nation.
Courage as Wealth – It takes courage and faith over fear to take any initiative and to follow-through till its completion.
Family as Wealth – Family strength and closeness bring emotional security, stability and well-being. We know in our heart that someone is there at home to care for us.
Success as Wealth – When we accomplish our goals, this builds our inner power and conviction. This in turn becomes inner wealth.
Social capital as Wealth – Good work with the right intent when it makes a difference in lives of people, brings goodwill, respect and prestige to us.
This social capital in turn becomes our intangible wealth. Our friends and well-wishers are also our wealth representing social capital.
As we see, the narrow definition of wealth only in terms of economic possession has created insurmountable miseries in our society and world at large. It has resulted in class discrimination, income inequality, homelessness, hunger, ruthless competition, and ecological disaster, emotional and mental trauma.
As we see, our holistic wealth creation model has several benefits such as:
It recognizes that every single person has some wealth. No one can ever be poor. Hence, there will be a shift in mental model of how we perceive wealth. From a collective perspective, we will see a family, community, and nation differently also.
There will be greater economic equality. This will in turn reduce the income inequality. Income inequality comes from the perception of how important the occupation of each individual is. It is a social construct based on the demand and supply of a set of skills in a given period.
It will reinforce to cultivate spiritual capital which in turn would help in preserving our culture, heritage, planet, people and society.
It will reinforce to cultivate emotional capital by keeping our families together and communities together.
It will reinforce to cultivate intellectual capital and cognitive development.
It will reinforce us to live a life of significance so that we can also earn goodwill, respect, love through our work and life.
Most importantly, it will serve dual purposes of life - emancipation of the soul and welfare of the world [17]
In order to implement this model, a fundamental paradigm shift in definition of economic model is required universally at an individual and global level. While we measure the Gross Domestic Product, we would also need to start measuring the Gross Happiness Index. GDP would be the measure of the external economic prosperity and GHP would be the measure of internal emotional and spiritual well-being. Both are equally important. They are two sides of the same coin.
You can read the full article along with citations on LinkedIn .