Top Learnings from Chanakya Neeti on Wealth that You Can Use Right Now

Chanakya Neeti is a treatise on the ideal way of life and shows Chanakya’s deep study of the Indian way of life. Whenever we hear the name Chanakya we think of someone who was way smart for his time and Neetis (strategies) of which are still valid and can be used in making one’s life more meaningful.

In this article, we are mainly going to be talking about his ideologies on wealth. How to acquire it? How to use it? And how not to use it? Let's discuss his point of views on wealth.

Most Useful Chanakya Strategies on Wealth

1

"It's better to live under a tree in a forest, Where tigers and elephants hunt, With leaves, fruit and water for nourishment, A bed of grass to sleep, The tree bark for a dress Than to live without money In midst of kith and kin."

Here, Chanakya is trying to press upon the fact that it is way better to live away from society than to live in one whilst having no money. As money is directly proportional to respect. Even your relatives won't give you respect if you don't have money. And according to him, living with animals would be a better choice than to live in a shallow-minded society.

2

"A man who loses money is deserted by friends, By his wife, well-wishers and dependants On his becoming rich, they hang on to him again In this world money is indeed a true ally of man!"

All Chanakya is trying to explain is that money is one of your best friends. This world is full of people who desire materialistic wealth and who might leave if you don't have enough of it. Your own family including your wife, children and parents won't give you enough importance if you don't accumulate wealth. All of these people will probably come back in your life if you happen to become all of a sudden.

3

"Where fools are not adored Food grains are properly stored Husband and wife do not clash There Lakshmi comes on her own accord."

Lakshmi is known as the goddess of wealth and she comes to the homes where the family is not clashing amongst themselves, where the residents aren’t fools because a fool doesn’t know how to manage money and hence, disrespect Lakshmi.

4

"He who wears unwashed clothes, has dirty teeth, Is a glutton, speaks rudely, Sleeps even after sunrise, Will lose Lakshmi's favour."

After describing what Lakshmi is Chanakya is explaining the sure-shot ways to lose on wealth. The first thing he talks about is one’s appearance and how one carries himself. Also, the ones who speak indecently to others and have an excess of anything be it sleep or eating. If you have a lazy and careless attitude towards life then wealth shall not rain upon you.

5

"Unjustly earned money May stay for ten years In the eleventh year Along with the principal it disappears."

In Chanakya's eyes, any money earned from an illegitimate method will go away one day along with interest. Using illegal ways to earn money is a severe sin.

6

"A straw is light, cotton is lighter than straw, A beggar is the lightest of all; Why doesn't the wind blow him away? Because it fears that he will ask for alms"

According to Chanakya, there are some facts you should be aware of poverty. First is that even nature doesn’t want to have anything with a beggar which shows he barely has any respect. Comparing the stature of straw, cotton and beggar Chanakya is trying to understand how low valued a beggar is perceived in the society.

7

"Distribution of accumulated wealth Provides the safety net Just as incoming freshwater Is saved by letting out stagnant water"

Chanakya tries to explain that not saving money is the biggest mistake you can do. Instead of recklessly spending money on useless things it is better to have savings which will keep on giving you returns on investment making your families future more secure. Everyone should start saving money at a young age.

Conclusion

So here we go, these were some of the most influential pieces of advice by Chanakya on the topic of wealth. Of course, it isn't possible to cover everything in an article but this should have given you a very nice understanding of what Chanakya Neeti is about.

Hope you liked the article. Share it with your friends. If you liked what you read you can tip us, every tip means the world to us.