This past weekend I had much to contemplate about the role of monetary wealth in spirituality. I pondered whether it is an issue to be concerned about, if seekers are receiving a lot in return. It is interesting to me that in one week, three different incidents have come to my attention, making me think deeply about this. I have been concerned about a friend spending an outrageous sum of money to be with a guru in India, close to ten thousand dollars. Last week I wrote about the spiritual warrior event in Sedona, to which sixty four people paid almost ten thousand dollars to attend. On Saturday night I watched a documentary about a day in the life of a spiritual leader. He is a very charismatic man with a huge congregation and an opulent church. He seems to be wealthy, dressed in very expensive looking clothes, drives a luxury car and owns a home in an upscale area. After the movie we all had various comments, some people were in awe of what they saw, a man who has a beautiful message of hope for humanity. Some people were immediately put off by the affluence and were not open to him and his message.
The contemplation for me this week is, “What does money have to do with it?” Am I being biased against some spiritual teachers because they ask for a lot of money in return for their teachings, or that they are interested in empire building? Many of us have an idea of spirituality that it should be given freely. The scene in the bible where Jesus drives the business men out of the temple comes to mind, or the barefooted holy men wandering the length and breath of India. On the other hand, some of us believe in giving wholeheartedly for the gift of spiritual knowledge, through the exchange of energy that money represents.
I liked the comment that was made by one person in the group that watched the movie, that when we enter a forest and see many types of trees, we do not judge the oak tree for being less or more than the fir. They both appear in different forms, some of us prefer oaks, some of us like firs better. Nevertheless, they both serve some purpose, expressing the varieties of nature. One is not bad because we do not like how it looks.
Perhaps there are different types of teachers for the different personalities of the spiritual seekers. One who is an ascetic would hardly be drawn to that opulent church with the flashy looking teacher. And the seeker who does not want to give up his luxuries to live the life of a hermit may not be attracted to a zen type of spiritual teacher.
If seekers get what they need from the teachers who ask to be compensated abundantly and they can afford to, is there any harm in that? Fortunately, there are also a lot of the other variety of teachers for those who are able to pony up a modest exchange. Maybe the lesson for me here is that everything is perfect as it is, that there is enough for everyone, that no one is being unjustly deprived. We all have the freedom to choose. If a seeker goes into debt to be with a teacher, they are learning about money issues and discrimination. No harm done except to my egoistic beliefs that teachers should all live modestly and walk lightly on the earth.
As my contemplation continues, I remember the practice of tithing where we make offerings, usually a monetary one out of gratitude for our spiritual teacher and our community. We consciously give what we can afford to support the community we belong to, out of love for what we have received, wanting to give back in return. It is a beautiful practice that engenders love for the spiritual path, expressing honor to our teachers and our community. It is a practice that is metaphoric, we can choose to engage in it as a way of perpetuating the cycle of giving and receiving. That said, if we look upon the fees for an event as tithing, it is a gift. If we cannot afford this gift, there are endless other ways to participate.
For now, I relinquish my judgement, my bias, and I bless all who want to participate in spirituality, paying however much they wish to, monetarily or otherwise. It is all good!
{ 26 comments… read them below or add one }
Miruh, you always get me thinking …
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Is there a modest way to provide a service to those in need? Tithing, as you call it, involves a good dose of faith in the human race I think. Faith on the teacher’s part, and faith on the student’s part. Take, for instance, your blog: You are offering help on the spiritual healing journey, yet you’ve asked for nothing in return. But I’m pretty sure that you are receiving something that is of value to you, whether it’s further insight, or other.
In my personal opinion, the measure of an honest teacher is one who doesn’t charge huge sums of money for the lessons! For a teacher to charge only what is necessary, well, this to me is a good demonstration of the type of lessons I will learn from them.
We are each responsible for our own realizations, and no amount of money can magically enlighten a person.
Hi Miruh,
I have missed you my friend. (but you are in my heart)
I have always found it curious that people are willing to pay gurus, god men, etc. to gain their knowledge when the spiritual path is nontransferable in as much as we can’t buy someone else’s spirituality. It must be organic to us. It really is a path that we must march often times by ourselves. We are own our guru. God is man clothed in rags. The outer trappings are based in the ego, not to mention massive marketing.
Stay blessed my dear and walk in light and love.
The topic of money and spirituality is close to my heart. I even wrote an eBook (coming very soon) about spiritual entrepreneurship, and of course, we cannot avoid the issue of money in business.
The way I see it is that spirituality and money are on different domain and they don’t influence each other. It’s like spirituality and language. Do you think a spiritual teacher who speak English is superior to that one who speaks Spanish? Of course not. Likewise, is a spiritual teacher who demands big bucks better or worse than the one who teaches for free? No relations.
The relation is on the students’ side. Let’s say you can afford ten thousand dollar seminar. There are two teachers you are interested in, one demands ten thousand and another free. Which one do you choose and why?
Don’t let the price tag make your decisions. If you see yourself influenced by the price tag, ask yourself why. It may be you who has problem with abundance / money consciousness, not the teacher (of either).
Hello Nicole,
You bring up an interesting point about faith and tithing. In some cultures in the East it is a tradition to give to holy men. A monk will not go hungry in countries like India or Thailand. A monk standing on the corner of Main St. North America may need to have a lot of faith..lol.
Thanks for your input. I am interested in the views of readers, this a edgy topic for a lot of seekers.
Love and blessings!
Hello Alexys,
I have missed you too. Glad to see you are taking a break, and doing me the honor of stopping by!
There are many who would say that we need a teacher to show us the pitfalls along the path. In a time when there were realized masters with a few students around that seems likely but questionable when there are thousands of disciples. As you say, “It must be organic to us.”
I like this, “God is man clothed in rags.” Don’t we need a teacher to teach us this though?
Thanks for your thought provoking comment.
Deep peace to you!
Hello Akemi,
Welcome!
You bring up some good points. I like the example you gave of the student choosing between a free seminar and an expensive one. I agree, it is not the price tag that should influence our choice if we can afford to pay.
The difference between teachers is not related to how much they charge. Yet you wonder why a good teacher makes it exclusive for some.
Thanks for sharing your insights.
Love and blessings!
I have a few comments on this subject. First, voluntary poverty is a valid spiritual path that has been recommended by the great teachers of every major spiritual tradition. I believe it is particularly important today. As a compassionate person, who cares about the well being of this planet and its occupants, one must recognize that we are consuming at an unsustainable rate. Personally, when I have plenty of money, I find it hard not to buy stuff I don’t really need: a new home theatre system, a new car, etc.
As people advance, spiritually, they naturally become less interested in the pleasures of the world, and looking good in the eyes of others. This makes me wonder why a spiritual teacher is charging excessive amounts for their programs. I have no problem with people living well, but driving the most expensive cars and wearing the most expensive clothes, bought with their students’ money, seems excessive to me.
That said, I do agree with Akemi, that one should not judge a teacher by how much they charge. It is one red flag issue, though, when I am looking into a teacher’s integrity and value on my spiritual path.
I can see that their is a direct relationship of how much someone is willing to pay for spiritual information and how lost someone is in the material world. Their minds are in the physical so they are willing to pay with dollars for what they desparately feel they are missing in life. Its a ritual in its self.
I have seen people giving lots of money to churches because they felt especially guilty for something they did in their lives. It is a type of penance. If it exists, for which it is a huge industry, then it has a purpose.
But ultimately, what we learn is that Spirit has no price. It is priceless, and is in itself Free filled with the Liberty to express its vibrations fluently.
Hello Ed,
I agree with you on all the points you brought up. “..one should not judge a teacher by how much they charge. It is one red flag issue, though, when I am looking into a teacher’s integrity and value on my spiritual path.”
Thank for your eloquent comment.
Love and blessings!
Hello Bern,
Interesting perspective that I have not thought of, “Their minds are in the physical so they are willing to pay with dollars for what they desparately feel they are missing in life.” And, “…It is a type of penance. If it exists, for which it is a huge industry, then it has a purpose. ”
Everything in life serves a purpose, so it may be said that this too is perfect.
As you say, Spirit has no price. The business transaction is not about spirituality but about lessons to be learned by teacher and student.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
Deep peace to you!
Well, here is my thought.
I charge a fair amount for my “spiritual” service. Not close to ten thousand dollars, but several hundred. Over the course of my business,however, I have also offered discounts (including free). What I see is, generally speaking, those clients who got discount don’t value the service fully and therefore get less value from it. I feel I did disservice to them by offering discount.
Those high price teachers are probably not being exclusive. They are being selective. What I mean is, your friend didn’t have ten thousand dollars sitting on the table. They made the money because they value the service / seminar and want it. If you value the service, you make money for it. It may take some time, but that’s fine. You will be ready both financially and spiritually when the time is right. If you don’t value it, then you don’t need to take the seminar.
Blessings,
Akemi
Hello Akemi,
While I agree, in general with the first paragraph, I find the sentence, “You will be ready both financially and spiritually when the time is right”, to be misleading. It tells people if they cannot afford something, then they must not be spiritually advanced enough to take it. It can also tell people that making enough money to be able to take a seminar is important. It gives moral value to one’s ability to earn money. Although price is one of the main ways our society determines value, a higher price tag does not necessarily mean a higher value. And perhaps one of the downfalls of our society is the central role we give to money in determining value.
That said, we can get into the area of belief systems. Your view-point represents a particular belief about abundance and spirituality that translates into material wealth. Then, there are those whose beliefs relate spirituality to austerity that translates into simplicity and walking lightly on the earth.
I think both beliefs are valid and a person would choose his teachers accordingly, except I would be wary of the messages that both beliefs convey to the unevolved.
Thanks for returning and continuing the conversation. I value your input.
Love and blessings!
There is a lot of history for me in what you wrote. My father was a Baptist minister and never felt comfortable with the “prosperity gospel” – the teaching that God would want you to prosper and be well off and never sick. It’s a tough topic though.
I agree with your conclusion, that we shouldn’t judge. But I also agree that there is a mixed message when a spiritual teacher flaunts wealth and charges exorbitant amounts.
Thank you so much for visiting and putting my blog in your lineup on your sidebar. It’s nice to meet you.
Hello Ruth,
Welcome!
I too believe that God would want the best for us. Our well being has nothing to do with how much money we do or do not have and to have spiritual leaders telling people that it is their God given right, may be one reason why people are irresponsible with spending and running up credit.
I agree with Ed’s comment, “As a compassionate person, who cares about the well being of this planet and its occupants, one must recognize that we are consuming at an unsustainable rate.”
Perhaps our planet in crisis is a spiritual crisis and we are being shown in a very dramatic way how we create our reality.
Thanks for joining in on this engaging topic.
Love and blessings!
We exchange energy freely with each moment. When we apply stipulations for giving information to someone else, such as the need to gain financially, it is a block to energy. It is a karmic act and an agreement made that defines rules of engagement. But rules are created to channel energy to tell a specific story. Human beings are now stuck in these narrowly defining paramaters. Release the need to gain from an exchange, and the world suddenly opens up. The mind then becomes less contorted and the soul has more room to breath and to take in Life. Abundance is acheived beyond the realm of dollars.
If a person is presenting himself as a kind of God on a pedestal, as if he knows more than you, then this is not a spiritual model. This is someone who is trapped in the illusions of ego and false superiority.
A true spiritual model empowers others to reclaim their own inner power. He does not ask for compensation. This is a dependable model in India as well. Many people go to India as part of a spiritual quest. Hoards of people may approach you and claim to be gurus. Those who do not appraoch you and do not ask for money are more likely genuine than those who are driven by ambition and monetary gain.
Liara’s comment…”A true spiritual model empowers others to reclaim their own inner power. He does not ask for compensation.” This is exactly how I feel.
Compensation will return to the giver, at any rate. If I were a spiritual advisor or guru, I would find it difficult, if not impossible, to take huge sums of money in order to make my own lifestyle more opulent. Where is the example in that? And I could not trust someone who charged a huge sum…and trust from your students would be a large part of being a guru or teacher.
Super post, Miruh…I could go on and on…
Hello Bernie,
I love your thoughts, a refreshing perspective…”But rules are created to channel energy to tell a specific story. Human beings are now stuck in these narrowly defining paramaters.”
How often we get stuck in following rules that no longer make sense, just because it was always done this way. It seems lessons are being learned about an attitude of abundance that does not mean anything about the material.
Thanks for returning, I appreciate your views.
Love and blessings!
Hello Liara,
I agree in general with what you say. It is disheartening to see people being deceived and then become wary of all gurus. There are many genuine teachers in India who give free programs, but do charge for room and board. Then there are paid programs at a reasonable fee. I have no qualms about these, because an ashram has to have some means for upkeep, to support the teacher, and helpers who run these institutions.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
Love and blessings!
Hello Marion,
I agree, “trust from your students would be a large part of being a guru or teacher.”
There is something wrong in that spiritual picture when a teacher indulges in flaunting wealth. It is a bit obscene when there is such a disparity between the greater part of the world’s population, living on less than a dollar a day in some places, and the excesses of the West.
I am with you there, this is an engaging topic that can have us talking on and on.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
Happy Autumn, deep peace to you!
This is a great question that you raise. I enjoyed your thought process as you contemplated this question. I believe that many see spirituality and material abundance as separate things, that is one can not have great wealth and be a spiritual teacher or that it is improper for one to collect a fee for sharing their wisdom. I say this, abundance comes in many forms. The abundance of money in this case may enable the teacher to bring their message to a wider audience, it may help them to help more people. I do agree that there exists a thin line between material abundance and feeding the ego. I also agree that there are many teachers, the ones who command money could be as spiritual as the man who wanders the desert, each has his/her purpose and we must be open to all purposes.
Hello Mark,
I agree with you that material wealth does help to spread a spiritual message to many people which is an act of compassion. And many people give in tithing back to the teacher in gratitude. This has always been a beautiful practice that reciprocates the gift of giving and receiving.
As you say, we must be open to all purposes, for everything has meaning, and fulfills its unique reason for being.
I appreciate your wise sharing.
Love and blessings to you!
I understand it, that healers/spiritual/energy workers/gurus need to live on this planet too. The thing for me is that I wonder if valuing the work is enough that the money will come to buy the work. I am just hoping that abundance or something opens the channels making the work more affordable.
Hello Sandra,
Welcome!
“The thing for me is that I wonder if valuing the work is enough that the money will come to buy the work.”
Many teachers who charge large sums of money for their services often express this sentiment.
When the money does not come, does it indicate that the change that the aspirant is seeking through the service is not valued enough? That is a guilt trip that one can get into, especially if unworthiness issues are already involved.
Fortunately there are also many good affordable resources available.
Thanks for stopping by.
Deep peace to you!
“Fortunately there are also many good affordable resources available.”
oh?
I would say the most affordable resource would be one’s own self. All the answers are contained within us, and are manifested in the world around us. It is a matter of spending enough time alone in silence asking the questions … and waiting very patiently for the answers to be revealed.
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