Economics of Mahaveera

Author(s): Mahapragna Acharya
Publisher: Adarsh Sahitya Sangh

Page 19

THE CENTRAL Focus: Man or MONEY
Devout Society Mahavira had conceived a new society. That could be styled as a society pledged to basic principles. For that kind of society, he prescribed a code of conduct. From that code emanate many principles of the economic system and economic theories.
Let us visualise the idea of a society dedicated to religion as its driving force. It is based neither on materialism nor on any other similar theory. It is a concept in which materialism and spiritualism are interwoven. Mahavira was a realist. He did not reject materialism or materialistic pleasure. But he did bring out the difference between spiritualism and materialism. One is everlasting and real happiness; the other is monetary and materialistic pleasure.
Mahavira said that materialistic pleasure is momentary, which leads eventually to unhappiness. He propounded this difference but he did not say that a materialistic point of view is totally wrong. After all, it is true that our life is based on matter. We cannot live completely on spiritualism detached from materialism. This is why he laid emphasis on a harmonised point of view. It is not materialism alone, which would be only one-sided point of view. The principle of anekant is a synthesis of both materialism and spiritualism.
Keynesian Theory Modern Economics has evolved on the basis of materialism. Its limitation is that it has a one-track approach. Had this not been the case, the present times would not have been plagued by so many economic offences, so much economic conflict and so enormous inequalities in production and distribution. A leading authority of modern economics. Keynes, says that we have to attain our goal of making everyone wealthy. In attaining that objective, ethics has no value for us. He is very clear: the thought of morality is not only irrelevant, but it is also an impediment in our path to achieve our goal.
Today, the burning question is that of corruption. Several people talk about corruption and say that corruption has increased. When the basic premise of economics is that the issue