[Advaita-l] Interest Collection is Wrong according to Dharma?

[Venkatesh Murthy]

Namaste

The Pravrutti Marga and Nivrutti Marga are there but for different people.
Householders have to follow Pravrutti Marga because they have to support
family and society. They have to follow the four Purusharthas like Dharma,
Artha, Kama and Moksha. But there should be perfect balance in the four.
For Dharma purpose only he must earn wealth Artha. His Kama must not be
against Dharma. Moksha should be the aim in later life. Then he can
renounce and accept Nivrutti Marga.

If Perfect Balance of Dharma, Artha and Kama is there it will be
Equilibrium of Supply and Demand. In Economics this Equilibrium is
important. In Equilibrium the Prices of goods will not keep on rising like
in inflation. They will not keep falling like in deflation. There is no
Inflation. There is no deflation. The Prices of Goods is stable.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inflation
Instability with deflationEconomist S.C. Tsaing noted that once substantial
deflation is expected, two important effects will appear; both a result of
money holding substituting for lending as a vehicle for
saving.[48]<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inflation#cite_note-48>The
first was that continually falling prices and the resulting incentive
to hoard money will cause instability resulting from the likely increasing
fear, while money hoards grow in value, that the value of those hoards are
at risk, as people realize that a movement to trade those money hoards for
real goods and assets will quickly drive those prices up. Any movement to
spend those hoards "once started would become a tremendous avalanche, which
could rampage for a long time before it would spend
itself."[49]<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inflation#cite_note-49>Thus,
a regime of long-term deflation is likely to be interrupted by
periodic spikes of rapid inflation and consequent real economic
disruptions. Moderate and stable inflation would avoid such a seesawing of
price movements.

If Dharma is followed there will not be any Hoarding of Money like in
Deflation. In Japan people are keeping Huge cash in homes not banks because
there is negative interest in banks. They are Hoarding money. If there is
Inflation there will be Hoarding of Goods. Why? Because people will think
prices will keep on rising, they will think if they sell the goods after
waiting they will get a big profit.

Hoarding of Money and Hoarding of Goods will not happen if Dharma is
properly followed. People have to give gifts and charity. In ceremonies
they have to give money as Dakshina and many other Dana items like food
grains, clothes, utensils, lands, cows, Gold and Silver. If they follow
Dharma there will be good circulation of money and goods. The King and
Kshatriyas will earn wealth by defeating other kingdoms and taxes. The
Vaishyas will earn by Trade. The Sudras will earn by Services. The
Kshatriyas and Vaishyas and Sudras will give to Brahmins. The Brahmins will
give to other Brahmins in ceremonies. There is no fear of inflation or
deflation.



On Sat, Jul 6, 2013 at 3:18 PM, Ranga Rathnam <sranga1955 at hotmail.com>wrote:

> I presume your ultimate interest in asking this question was whether a
> certain act ( in this case charging interest) is conducive to getting into
> pravritti marga or nivritti marga.
>
> That was a really nice article and thanks for the pointer. The key
> observation in the article is
>
> ".....it causes a rise in the demand for money that the Fed will almost
> certainly accommodate–and rightfully so, for refusing to do so almost
> always serves to punish those already in the weakest position."
>
> So it is the Fed (I will call it Central bank so as not to be
> country-specific) is what actualizes inflation; and it need not be confined
> to the four pre-conditions (not causes really) prevailing. For example how
> about printing money to meet the deficit arising because of loan waiver to
> a section of the society? ... and so on.
>
> Worse still, what if the Central Bank is not strong enough to to ensure
> that it benefits the weakest section, but a powerful lobby?
>
> The point is a person depending upon who his Central Bank is and what is
> his perception on it is obliged to take a position on inflation; which
> means worrying about the morrow and bang goes nivritti marga out of the
> window!
>
> Of course in happy circumstances in which inflation is used to subsidize
> nivritti marga ( can happen in countries with a dominant religion), it
> could be opposite!
>
> Manu Smriti or any other Smriti which does not address the socio-economic
> reality, is to that extent irrelevant in providing a consistent supportive
> model.
>
> So, the bottom line seems to be, "how do I judge whether an action of mine
> pushes me into pravritti marga or nivritti marga?"
>
> Any simple answers??
>
> Regards
> Rangarathnam
>
> > Date: Fri, 5 Jul 2013 21:34:22 +0530
> > From: vmurthy36 at gmail.com
> > To: advaita-l at lists.advaita-vedanta.org
> > Subject: Re: [Advaita-l] Interest Collection is Wrong according to
> Dharma?
> >
> > Namaste
> > How inflation happens is understood. There will be four causes. Market
> > Power like the greedy Middle East oil countries. Demand rising. Suddenly
> if
> > people want to buy more and more gold the gold price will increase. Asset
> > Market Boom. Speculators can make the commodity futures prices to
> increase.
> > The commodity prices will also increase. Sudden Supply cut. If oil
> refinery
> > is damaged by Natural disaster it will make oil prices to increase.
> >
> http://www.forbes.com/sites/johntharvey/2011/05/30/what-actually-causes-inflation/
> >
> > In Manu's time there was no sudden demand and sudden supply cut. People
> > were Dharmic and doing Yajnas and pleasing Gods. They were not greedy to
> > earn more and more wealth. They had good supply of food grains. There was
> > no Monopoly business like oil producing countries. There was no commodity
> > future trading and stock markets. In Manu's period the Inflation was
> ZERO.
> > He has not said anything on Inflation because it was zero.
> >
> > I heard USA also has lot of oil resources but they are waiting till the
> > Middle East oil is over. Then they will sell Oil for huge profit.
> >
> >
> >
> > On Fri, Jul 5, 2013 at 8:48 AM, Ranga Rathnam <sranga1955 at hotmail.com
> >wrote:
> >
> > > I presume this means 5% interest. Is this real rate of interest
> > > http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Real_interest_rate
> > > or something else?
> > > What is Manu Smriti's position on inflation? :-)
> > >
> > > > Date: Thu, 4 Jul 2013 21:56:50 +0530
> > > > From: vmurthy36 at gmail.com
> > > > To: advaita-l at lists.advaita-vedanta.org
> > > > Subject: Re: [Advaita-l] Interest Collection is Wrong according to
> > > Dharma?
> > > >
> > > > Namaste Sri Sriram
> > > >
> > > > In Chapter 10 Manu Smruti -
> > > >  117. Neither a Brahmana, nor a Kshatriya must lend (money at)
> interest;
> > > > but at his pleasure (either of them) may, in times of distress when
> he
> > > > requires money) for sacred purposes, lend to a very sinful man at a
> small
> > > > interest.
> > > >
> > > > The Brahmin must not give loans with interest to anyone except a very
> > > > sinful man. But who is following this rule now. They are charging
> heavy
> > > > interest for every person. The Brahmin must not have desire for
> earning
> > > > huge wealth.
> > > >
> > > >
> > > > In Chapter 8 -
> > > > 151. In money transactions interest paid at one time (not by
> instalments)
> > > > shall never exceed the double (of the principal); on grain, fruit,
> wool
> > > or
> > > > hair, (and) beasts of burden it must not be more than five times (the
> > > > original amount).
> > > >    152. Stipulated interest beyond the legal rate, being against (the
> > > law),
> > > > cannot be recovered; they call that a usurious way (of lending); (the
> > > > lender) is (in no case) entitled to (more than) five  in the hundred.
> > > >
> > > > They are not following this also today.
> > > >
> > > >
> > > > On Thu, Jul 4, 2013 at 11:09 AM, Venkata sriram P
> > > > <venkatasriramp at yahoo.in>wrote:
> > > >
> > > > > Namaste,
> > > > >
> > > > > Pls refer 155th sloka of 8th chapter and 117th sloka of 10th
> chapter
> > > from
> > > > > manu smriti.
> > > > >
> > > > > regs,
> > > > > sriram
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> > > >
> > > >
> > > > --
> > > > Regards
> > > >
> > > > -Venkatesh
> > > > _______________________________________________
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> > --
> > Regards
> >
> > -Venkatesh
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-- 
Regards

-Venkatesh