Book Title: Way of Life Part 2
Author(s): Bhadraguptasuri
Publisher: Vishvakalyan Prakashan Trust Mehsana

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Page 308
________________ 296 THE WAY OF LIFE He said, “I will think over and meet you to morrow”. He rose to his feet and went away and has not come to me till today. Now you tell me whether financial assistance can be given to a man who does not care for these principles. Even if you extend financial assistance to such a man, what is the use ? Even if you give such a man one or two hundred rupees what would he do with it? Would he spend it on his family? No. He would first buy a bottle of wine. He would gamble; he would go to a hotel and eat to his fill and then he would go to a brothel seeking the company of a prostitute. Therefore, before we extend financial help to such people, we should first free them from their addictions. We should bring about such a condition in their life that they do not waste money. Man should first realise this point, "I am wasting money. I should not do so". Only if they come to that realisation can they admire noble people, saying, “This great man does not waste even a single paisa". THE RIGHT WAY TO LIVE PEACEFULLY Spending money wastefully has become a fashion. It has become a matter of fashion in society. "Don't you go to movies? Don't you go to a canteen to have a cup of tea ? Do not you wear such and such garments? Do not you have a fridge in your house ? Is there no radio or T.V. in your house ? Have you not yet got a set of a dining table and chairs? Do not you have servants? Do you do all household work yourself ?” Those people who believe that extravagance is a fashion, flutter about saying such things. They look down upon those who do not spend money extravagantly. How can such people praise noble men ? They will only make fun of a noble man thus, "He is a miser still living in the eighteenth century. He is a very orthodox type of fellow etc. etc." Noble people care for the welfare of their souls. They care for mental cheerfulness and physical sanctity. The noble people who live with such an aim manage to get on with the minimum of necessaries. They do not imitate others. They follow the path shown by the enlightened people. They despise blind imitation and snobbery. Jain Education International For Private & Personal Use Only www.jainelibrary.org

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