Wealth and Happiness

Some taking from an article from Gary Hayden in MIND Your Body, Jan 1, 2009

Learning from one of history's great teacher on wealth and happiness - St Thomas Aquinas (125-1274), a Dominican monk blessed with an extra ordinary brilliant mind and remembered everything he had read, so that his mind was like a huge library.

He believed that happiness is man's ultimate goal, the one thing we seek entirely for its own sake. Happiness is about more than just feeling good. It is about living a good and meaningful life. We all seek happiness. However, Aquinas warned us that we need to be clear about this involves for we may otherwise seek in vain. Everyday, we are presented with conflicting goods from which we must choose. However, which lead to happiness and which lead to frustration and disappointment. Some people pursue what Aquinas termed "external goods" like wealth, power or fame. (ho ho, create wealth, this is what I pursue)

Whether man's happiness consists in wealth?

It is impossible for man's happiness to consist in wealth. For wealth is twofold, as the Philosopher says (Polit. i, 3), viz. natural and artificial.

Natural wealth is that which serves man as a remedy for his natural wants: such as food, drink, clothing, cars, dwellings, and such like, while artificial wealth is that which is not a direct help to nature, as money, but is invented by the art of man, for the convenience of exchange, and as a measure of things salable.

Now it is evident that man's happiness cannot consist in natural wealth. For wealth of this kind is sought for the sake of something else, viz. as a support of human nature: consequently it cannot be man's last end, rather is it ordained to man as to its end. Wherefore in the order of nature, all such things are below man, and made for him, according to Psalm 8:8: "Thou hast subjected all things under his feet."

And as to artificial wealth, it is not sought save for the sake of natural wealth; since man would not seek it except because, by its means, he procures for himself the necessaries of life. Consequently much less can it be considered in the light of the last end. Therefore it is impossible for happiness, which is the last end of man, to consist in wealth.

In addition, those hinger after riches are never satisfied. They quickly come to despise what they posses and yearn instead for other things. So happiness cannot consist in wealth.

The problem, as Aquinas saw it, is desire. We humans can never be truly happy until all our appetities are fulfilled. So long as there is something left for us to desire, we will never be completely satisfied.

Aquinas concluded that no created goods can satisfy our desire since all created goods are necessarily imperfect. Therefore, perfect happiness is unattainable in this life.

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Adding my thoughts...

To reduce the level of desires by living as simply as possible, and bringing us nearer to lesser imperfect happiness. Sometime, we do see some people causing themselves unhappiness by seeking perfection in man created goods e.g. music, wines, food, houses, car, woman, etc. Never seems to be satisfy with the finest wine, the best music, the most tasty food, house and car are never big enough, and woman never prettier and more sexy. Look at newspaper's ads everyday, they are shouting at some ladies and even men, never seem to be satisfy and happy with your natural head, face, hair, body and parts.

So be happy and won't worry. Cheers!