Charity

A common view among 'spiritually inclined' people about work is that its a means to satisfy ones 'basic' needs and also donate to charity. This no doubt is a noble way of life though there are many issues. Simplest among them is the oft ignored fact that ones 'basic' needs increases with ones income. Another is that the more ones income is off from the societies average, typically, the more one needs to sell ones soul. It will be highly difficult for someone to part with such money that has been earned after petrifying ones soul. Most importantly, such people are blind to the ugly under belly of the economic / social / political systems that they have to partake in order to have the money / position that they have. More seriously, they have no clue that they refuse to look at them out of fear of losing the benefits they have! Neither do most of them recognize the importance of the work of those who question these systems and step out of (at least some of) them! Not that, everyone should do that. Neither is either act better than the other. Each person can only be truthful to that which is within and ones state of evolution. But, charity does not only mean giving money to the needy. It also necessitates looking at the cause of all violence in our human society. Then, one will be able to see the ugly manifestations of human ignorance in the various economic / political / social institutions. Then, one can situate ones personal sadhana within the economic / political / social context of the world one lives in, as one sees fit!