Buddhism and the challenges of secularisation: Buddhist attitudes to wealth

 

·        Western attitudes to wealth: capitalism - privately owned businesses should allow individuals to amass as much wealth as possible. Materialism is the belief where material possessions are more important than spiritual beliefs. Status is measured by wealth: those who are rich are successful. In the West, successful business people become celebrities. However, it is also important to remember that in the West charity is also widely promoted and philanthropists are respected if they use their wealth for good - examples such as Bono and Bob Geldoff who used their 1980s success to channel their fame and wealth into charitable giving come to mind. 

       Buddhist beliefs: of non-attachment, and practising letting go of material ties in order to freely pursue the goal of nirvana. In countries with strong Buddhist traditions, monks and nuns are venerated for their lives that are lived without attachment to material possessions. The Buddha himself gave up the luxury life of a prince in order to pursue religious truth, reflecting that prior to his renunciation he had lived a life of ignorance, suggesting that great wealth prevented him from understanding the reality of the universe. 

    Monks and nuns therefore live a life of total non-attachment to the world as part of their spiritual goals.  They are not even permitted to handle money. Lay people, on the other hand, are recommended to practice "Right Consumption": Ven. Payutto is a monk who has expounded this idea. Right consumption is a contemporary idea that applies Buddhist principles to the consuming of wealth in society. Focuses on balance of magga ("the middle way"). Right consumption refers to using goods/services for wellbeing; wrong consumption refers to using goods and services for craving.

 

Buddhism and Wealth
Reasons why Buddhism supports/isn't totally against wealth	Reasons why Buddhism seems to reject the Western view of wealth
·         Wealth is not intrinsically evil, and the wealthy will not find it more difficult to attain nirvana. ·        Rich people are in a privileged position to practice generosity. ·        Wealth is not the problem, as long as it is attained honestly and for the benefit of wider society. ·        Mahayana Buddhism encourages charity to the monastic community in particular, in order to accumulate spiritual merit.	·        Excessive wealth and an extravagant way of life can become a source of attachment and create tanha and dukkha (because of fear of loss). ·        There were materialistic sects at the time of the Buddha and he rejected them.