How can one be free of “greed”? There are 3 very effective solutions to this…
1) By donating secretly
Dadashri: One should donate to charity willingly. This should always be done in secret. These Marwaris visit temples and donate secretly to God! This donation becomes fruitful as it is not
revealed to others. One should never fear that his money will be used up in just donations. One should utilize his wealth in a righteous way, so that greed will shatter, and time and again one will be able to give money generously.
2) By surrendering to The Gnani
Dadashri: When will you receive that which you are seeking from me? Only when you surrender your most valuable item. When you give away that which is most dear to you in the world, to me, then it is possible for you to come near me. You have already surrendered your mind, speech and body to me. Yet, one thing still remains: (wealth) Lakshmi! If you surrender this, you can come closer to me.
3) If you come across a notorious thug, he may snatch away all your greed!
Dadashri: A greedy person never gets trapped.
Questioner: But once in a while doesn’t he get trapped?
Dadashri: He may get cheated – but that may happen only if he is confronted by notorious thugs or thieves.
In our quest to become good human beings, we have to face a tough enemy called greed.
Greed is nothing but the endless desire to get more and more material things in life. Greed is what dictates our actions and thoughts, if we aren’t cautious enough. It’s greed that tells you to grab that larger piece of pie, or that bigger pack of chips.
Greed cannot be satisfied, but yes it can be controlled.
Imagine that the object of your desire is in front of you. It can be anything choose one that means the most to you. Imagine how it would feel if you had it right now? How would you consume it? How will you feel after consuming it? Now as you’re imagining this, try to observe your mind at the same time How does your mind react when it sees a desirable object? What does your mind think, while imagining you consume those objects? Does your mind send you to a fantasy land away from reality? How does it make you react, when you think you have that particular object? From these observations, can you guess what it is that makes you act greedily?
If not, here is the answer – It’s yourmind that makes you greedy and forces you to perform the actions to fulfil your greed. The purpose of this little experiment is to tell you that it’s not your body that needs those things; it’s your mind that makes you think so.
Your hands are not greedy when they try to grab an object; your tongue is not greedy when it enjoys eating; your eyes are not greedy when they want to see something beautiful. The only thing that makes your body act this way is your mind.
It’s as simple as that. There is no mystery, no external research needed to prove it. You can do this research on your own, and get to know firsthand how your mind tricks you into having those objects. And you can do this simply by observing your mind.
Controlling your mind is the key to controlling your greed.
Suppose you are with a group of friends eating pizza. And one piece is significantly larger than all other pieces. What happens now
Your mind tells you to grab the larger piece, as it knows you like pizza. If you take that larger piece, you can enjoy it for a longer time. So you go ahead and take that piece, eat your pizza, and later even forget about it.
This cycle continues every time you are in this situation. If you were to hang out with your friends for the rest of your life, you would do the same thing again and again. Even if you allow others to have it, you won’t feel happy inside.
But the problem is that greed is not limited to a piece of pizza. It attaches itself to every little thing you desire that is supposed to make you happy; happy for a moment, not any longer than that moment. So to overcome greed, we have to stop ourselves from acting the moment a selfish thought comes to our mind. So as soon as the thought to grab a desirable object comes to your mind, stop right there. Don’t take any action. Just observe your mind for that moment.
Again when greed arises, do the same thing. Stop everything the moment you realize that you are being greedy, understand the greed inside you, let it go, and then choose the option that’s best for everyone.
When you practice this a few times, you’ll realize that you always had the choice to choose between greed and generosity. It’s only that you never thought you had the choice.
Your mind is conditioned to make you act greedily. This conditioning can be caused by several factors – your upbringing, your society, your friends, and can even be self-learned.
Giving up greed is among the best things that happened to me as I grew up. If you’re like me in any way, then it’ll be among the best things that could happen to you.
Your life will become more peaceful, happier, and satisfying when you give up greed in every aspect of your life. Be it friendship, relationships, or even people you’ve never met, you’ll want nothing from anyone.