I’m not an economist or a business man so I might not be the ideal person to speak to this point but even an outsider can see the instability that comes with a society that builds its foundation solely upon the economy. The primary challenge that I see is that security and stability depend on the continuous growth of the economy. With limited resources on the planet this perpetual growth is impossible. I’m not advocating to take down the free economy and allow anarchy to rule. I’m just questioning if we should automatically evaluate the shrinking of the economy as bad.
When the economy shrinks there are less and lower paying jobs. When success is defined through the quality of ones job obviously these are bad things. There’s also the concern of losing national rank at the global negotiation table. These issues are way bigger and sophisticated to justly address in a few hundred words so I’m not even going to try.
Instead I want to explore how a society that prioritizes spiritual and economic growth equally might have a more stable and healthy future. Individuals with a strong spiritual foundation are able to maintain a more calm rational mind in economic crisis because they find fulfillment from within and have faith in the future. A society with a shared spiritual foundation will come together in hard times and face challenges with a smile while societies that rely solely on continuous economic growth may become depressed and unmotivated.
Communities need strength and a common vision to sustain stability and health. By prioritizing spiritual and economic development equally I think we might find ourselves living in a better and more sustainable quality of life. While keeping track of every dollar and cent is valuable, investing time and energy in our collective spiritual health may be equally important. Meditation is the best way I’ve found to make this investment. Time to meditate.
