Guest column | Saving for a rainy day has stood Indians in good stead
f India has been able to thwart inflation, poverty and hunger in this highly challenging period, the credit goes to our philosophy of valuing money and saving it for a rainy day, instead of indulging in wanton consumerism and spending ostentatiously and extravagantly, even if one has to beg and borrow money
Over the last three years, India has undoubtedly done better than most western countries on the economic front, despite the Covid crisis and the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
If India has been able to thwart inflation, poverty and hunger in this highly challenging period, the credit goes to our philosophy of valuing money and saving it for a rainy day, instead of indulging in wanton consumerism and spending ostentatiously and extravagantly, even if one has to beg and borrow money. This philosophy is built on certain values and principles and finds place in all religions.
The first principle is austere living and frugality. We are taught to spend and invest conscientiously, without falling into the debt trap. Though, in these changing times, finance companies are encouraging us to borrow money, our philosophy advocates managing with our given resources: Tete panv pasariye jeti lambi saur (one should cut one’s court according to one’s cloth).
This spares us the anxiety and agony that is the offshoot of debt. Our physical health stems from our state of mind and they say the best tonic for the healthy mind is frugality and self-restraint.
The second principle is circumspection and pragmatism in the use of the money. Our philosophy of life does not allow us to spend whatever we earn. Today, we have future security instruments such as provident-fund schemes, but if we go back around 70-80 years, our mothers used to keep their savings in hidden places or in the form of gold for the rainy day. Increase in the earnings for any household did not mean a proportional increase in expenditure.
We have the custom of giving ‘shagun’ in the form of silver coins or currency notes to initiate savings.
My wife still has the silver coins given to her as ‘shagun’ at the time of marriage or on important occasions. Larger earnings meant larger savings, which would be invested in property, land and gold for the lean period, as time is dynamic and economic conditions may not always remain the same.
Contentment is the third principle. It is said jab aave santosh dhan, sab dhan dhuri saman (To a content man, wealth is equivalent to dirt), Our philosophy of life puts stress on contentment rather than remaining unhappy and damning ourselves for not being wealthier. If discontentment makes one strive for securing more by ethical means it is good, but, most of the times in the absence of prudence, it drives many to indulge in speculative ways of earning, which can lead to impoverishment and debt that has the capacity to lead one to vices. Many family conflicts stem from this discontentment.
Fourth, Indians believe in earning by the sweat of the brow rather than depending on free doles. Many pursue agriculture, despite holding decent white collar jobs and acquiring university degrees. This all adds to the GDP, and as a result we have enough food-grains to spare for other countries.
These philosophies have made makes Indians better equipped to confront the economic crises.
(The writer is a Chandigarh-based freelance contributor)
