THE RIGHT TO BE RICH

The Right To Be Rich

WHATEVER may be said in praise of poverty, the fact

remains that it is not possible to live a really complete or

successful life unless one is rich. No man can rise to his greatest

possible height in talent or soul development unless he has

plenty of money; for to unfold the soul and to develop talent he

must have many things to use, and he cannot have these things

unless he has money to buy them with.

A man develops in mind, soul, and body by making use of

things, and society is so organized that man must have money in

order to become the possessor of things; therefore, the basis of

all advancement for man must be the science of getting rich.

The object of all life is development; and everything that

lives has an inalienable right to all the development it is capable

of attaining.

 

Man's right to life means his right to have the free and

unrestricted use of all the things which may be necessary to his

fullest mental, spiritual, and physical unfoldment; or, in other

words, his right to be rich.

In this book, I shall not speak of riches in a figurative way; to

be really rich does not mean to be satisfied or contented with a

little. No man ought to be satisfied with a little if he is capable of

using and enjoying more. The purpose of Nature is the

advancement and unfoldment of life; and every man should have

all that can contribute to the power, elegance, beauty, and

richness of life; to be content with less is sinful.

The man who owns all he wants for the living of all the life

he is capable of living is rich; and no man who has not plenty of

money can have all he wants. Life has advanced so far, and

become so complex, that even the most ordinary man or woman

requires a great amount of wealth in order to live in a manner

that even approaches completeness. Every person naturally wants to become all that they are capable of becoming; this

desire to realize innate possibilities is inherent in human nature;

we cannot help wanting to be all that we can be. Success in life is

becoming what you want to be; you can become what you want to

be only by making use of things, and you can have the free use of

things only as you become rich enough to buy them. To

understand the science of getting rich is therefore the most

essential of all knowledge.

There is nothing wrong in wanting to get rich. The desire for

riches is really the desire for a richer, fuller, and more abundant

life; and that desire is praise worthy. The man who does not desire

to live more abundantly is abnormal, and so the man who does

not desire to have money enough to buy all he wants is abnormal.

There are three motives for which we live; we live for the

body, we live for the mind, we live for the soul. No one of these is

better or holier than the other; all are alike desirable, and no one

of the three--body, mind, or soul--can live fully if either of the

others is cut short of full life and expression. It is not right or

noble to live only for the soul and deny mind or body; and it is

wrong to live for the intellect and deny body or soul.

We are all acquainted with the loathsome consequences of

living for the body and denying both mind and soul; and we see

that real life means the complete expression of all that man can

give forth through body, mind, and soul. Whatever he can say, no

man can be really happy or satisfied unless his body is living fully

in every function, and unless the same is true of his mind and his

soul. Wherever there is unexpressed possibility, or function not

performed, there is unsatisfied desire. Desire is possibility

seeking expression, or function seeking performance.

Man cannot live fully in body without good food,

comfortable clothing, and warm shelter; and without freedom

from excessive toil. Rest and recreation are also necessary to his

physical life.

 

He cannot live fully in mind without books and time to study

them, without opportunity for travel and observation, or without

intellectual companionship.

To live fully in mind he must have intellectual recreations,

and must surround himself with all the objects of art and beauty

he is capable of using and appreciating.

To live fully in soul, man must have love; and love is denied

expression by poverty.

A man's highest happiness is found in the bestowal of

benefits on those he loves; love finds its most natural and

spontaneous expression in giving. The man who has nothing to

give cannot fill his place as a husband or father, as a citizen, or as

a man. It is in the use of material things that a man finds full life

for his body, develops his mind, and unfolds his soul. It is

therefore of supreme importance to him that he should be rich.

It is perfectly right that you should desire to be rich; if you

are a normal man or woman you cannot help doing so. It is

perfectly right that you should give your best attention to the

Science of Getting Rich, for it is the noblest and most necessary

of all studies. If you neglect this study, you are derelict in your

duty to yourself, to God and humanity; for you can render to God

and humanity no greater service than to make the most of

yourself.

[SOURCE: THE SCIENCE OF GETTING RICH]