Abundance and Greed

A life of abundance would seem to be our birthright as human beings.

Spend a little time reflecting on the make up of the universe and, closer to home, the natural environment offered by our planet. It doesn\’t take a great deal of observation and reflection to conclude that abundance is part and parcel of the natural order.

And yet abundance is hardly a word that most humans would include when describing their experience of life on earth.

[box type=\”shadow\”]“Earth provides enough to satisfy every man\’s needs, but not every man\’s greed.”

― Mahatma Gandhi
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Stark facts

Here are a few stark facts:

• More than 80% of humanity lives on less that US$10 a day.

• More than 80% of the population lives in areas where income differentials are widening.

• 75% of the total income is in the hands of just 20% of the world\’s population.

Fear at the root of it

Strange though it may sound, I believe that fear is at the root of the problem of this inequity.

Fear is a natural human emotion that is part of the inbuilt protection mechanism that allowed our species to survive and evolve through more archaic and dangerous eras to where we are today.

Because of this inherent association with our very survival, fear is the most powerful emotion we possess.

We may have evolved as a species, but have experienced very little evolution in our ability to contain and minimise the influence that fear has on on our day to day lives even though what we fear and how we experience it has changed markedly over the years.

A material world

Modern society places great emphasis on the outward manifestation of the product of our labours. In other words our success is judged by what and how much we are seen to have in the eyes of others.

Just as we aspire to the modern definition of success, so we fear the consequences of lack of success. This fear drives irrational acts.

Some go to extraordinary lengths to acquire and accumulate to prove their success. They go well beyond what they require to lead a comfortable and enjoyable life and, in the process, they begin to upset the natural order of abundance.

A scarcity mentality

This in turn feeds a \’scarcity mentality\’ – a deep rooted belief  that there is not enough for all; an intense FOMO or \’fear of missing out\’, if you like.

Imagine being one of eight children. Your mother, with limited resources, dishes up a pie for dinner but it is clear to you that there\’s only enough pie to feed four of you comfortably.

Do you wait, in the hope that order will prevail and that you will, at least, receive just half the amount that you need to satisfy your hunger? Do you launch a preemptive strike on a quarter of the pie before the others pile in? Or do you grab the whole pie and make a run for it in the knowledge that you won\’t go hungry for the next four days?

The onset of greed

The scarcity mentality breeds greed – an intense craving to protect one\’s interests through acquiring far more of something than one realistically needs.

… And corruption

This craving simply cannot be satisfied through legal or morally acceptable means, so reverting to corrupt ways is \’justified\’.

Corruption represents an abuse of the rules and various checks and balances that society has put in place to promote a fair and orderly existence for all.

Ironically, corruption often involves exploiting people through the use of that most powerful weapon – fear! Because this is so uniquely effective, it becomes self perpetuating.

The vicious cycle becomes ever more vicious!

A gross manipulation of the natural order

Left unchecked, greed and corruption engineer a gross manipulation of the natural system of abundance. A vast barren landscape characterised by lack and insufficiency is pockmarked by small, jealously guarded oases of gross – and often obscene – excess.

Of our own making

If you\’ve ever taken in the scale of the social and economic imbalances that exist on this planet you may well have been tempted to believe that this is simply the natural order at work.

It\’s not. It\’s a disaster that is firmly of our own making.

The solution is in our hands

And, in the same way there is a solution that lies in our own hands.

The solution requires that we do two fundamental things:

Educate our children about the natural order of abundance, and the consequences of manipulating it; teaching them how to develop and promote a healthy abundance mentality.

Becoming shining examples of a corruption free society by self regulating against corruption and by practising and encouraging a zero tolerance approach towards those who would dare to upset the natural order.