Thirukkural on Accumulation and Distribution of Wealth

Thirukkural on Accumulation and Distribution of Wealth

Dr. R. Prabhakaran

 Maryland, USA

Introduction

Thiruvalluvar (or Valluvar for short) deals with virtue, wealth and love in his magnum opus Thirukkural.  In Thirukkural, he insists that virtue and righteousness should be the basis for all human endeavors, including accumulation of wealth. Generally, the word “wealth” implies an abundance of valuable material possessions or resources. But in the context of Thirukkural, the term “wealth” simply means valuable material possessions or resources and abundance is not explicitly implied.  According to Valluvar, wealth is absolutely essential both for an individual as well as for a nation. He is also of the opinion that the accumulated wealth should be used to help those who are in need.

The Importance of Wealth for an Individual

The ultimate goal of many religions is to prepare their followers to lead a life of virtue so that they will go to heaven after their death and have a better life in their next birth if they have one. The eastern religions posit that it is possible for those who pursue an ascetic’s life of penance and devoid of attachments to be free from future births. Valluvar considers the ascetic lifestyle as an option for those who are deeply interested in salvation.  In reality, the vast majority of the people always tend to follow the domestic lifestyle where they live with their families and are more concerned with their day-to-day lives rather than salvation.  Valluvar believes that the lifestyle of a virtuous householder is superior to that of the ascetic’s lifestyle, which is aimed at his own salvation.

If one leads a virtuous family life, then what else can one gain by following other

ways of life?                                                                                                   (kural - 46)

                                   

He who leads his family life the right way is superior to the ascetics who aspire for a better life in the next world.                                                                                         (kural – 47)                               

In fact, Valluvar claims that a man who leads an ideal life in this world will be ranked amongst the gods in heaven (kural – 50).

According to him, a householder who is leading a family life has an obligation to provide support to his wife, children, parents, the ascetics, the needy, the desolate, the ancestors, gods, guests, relatives, and self.

A man leading domestic life is he who supports his parents, wife, and children.

                                                                                                                                    (kural – 41)

A man leading domestic life is the one who supports the ascetics,

the needy, and the desolate.                                                                                   (kural – 42)                                     

It is the primary duty of the family man to support his ancestors, gods,

            guests, relatives, and self.                                                                               (kural – 43)                                     

If a householder is expected to support the long list of dependents mentioned above, it is absolutely essential that he has the financial means to do so.  Therefore, it is necessary for the householder to earn and accumulate wealth so that he can support others who depend on him. Valluvar is very emphatic about the need for wealth in this world. According to him, even a worthless man is considered worthy if he has wealth (kural – 751).  He says that the indigents are despised by all, but the wealthy are praised by all (kural – 752). In view of the importance of wealth, Valluvar says, “Acquire wealth, for there is no sharper sword than that to destroy the pride and confidence of your enemy (kural -759).”

The Importance of Wealth for a Nation

Monarchy was the form of government during Valluvar’s period. In a monarchy, there is no real difference between the nation’s wealth and the king’s wealth. The wealth of a nation includes its natural resources, the taxes collected from people, the revenue from the customs and the wealth of the defeated enemies (kural – 756). It should be noted that Valluvar never advocates war in order to annex another nation or to take over the wealth of another nation. However, Valluvar is not against defending one’s nation when it is attacked. So, when a king emerges victorious in a war by defending his nation, the wealth of the defeated nation rightfully belongs to him. 

Valluvar’s statements regarding the king and his wealth are equally applicable to any form of government. In the case of democracies, though the wealth of a nation theoretically belongs to its citizens, it is the government of the nation that makes the decisions and manages the wealth, and it has the same responsibilities as the king in a monarchy. Just like an individual who has the responsibility to support his family and others in need, the king or the government also has social responsibilities to take care of the citizens who need help. Therefore, a government should also accumulate wealth so that it can arrange for proper distribution of its wealth to the needy people. 

Need for Righteousness in Accumulating Wealth

In addition to emphasizing the importance of wealth, Valluvar also elaborates on how one should accumulate one’s wealth. According to Valluvar, righteousness should be the means for all human endeavors, and accumulation of wealth is no exception. He says, “The wealth acquired in the right way is a source of virtue and pleasure (kural - 754).”  He insists that one should turn away from unjust gains the same day it accrues, even if it can be put to good use (kural – 113).

The concept of accumulating wealth by righteous means is also equally applicable to a nation. Although Valluvar emphasizes the importance for a king to generate and accumulate wealth, he also cautions the king against excessive taxation, which might cause hardship to his citizens. He says, “Extracting excessive amounts of money from the citizens by way of heavy taxation is like armed robbery (kural – 552)”. Also, he warns that there is no weapon more powerful to destroy the riches of a king than the tears of the oppressed citizens who are unable to bear their sufferings (kural – 555). The French Revolution and the Russian Revolution are examples of people protesting against the tyrannical rule of the despotic monarchs. Even in democracies, it is not unusual for people to rise against and overthrow their governments when they are subjected to oppressive and unjust taxation. Valluvar considers excessive taxation as a form of tyranny. According to him, just and a reasonable amount of taxes collected in a righteous manner is the right way for the government to accumulate wealth. Just like the individual citizens, governments are also expected to follow the path of righteousness in accumulating wealth.

Distribution of Individual’s Wealth to Those Who Are in Need

The wealth acquired by an individual will undoubtedly be useful to support his family.  But according to Valluvar, the wealth gained through hard work is also for the purpose of helping the deserving people (kural – 212). In other words, the purpose of acquiring wealth is not only to support one’s family, but it should also be used for charitable and philanthropic pursuits to help the deserving people. To him, helping the poor without any expectation of return is a real charity (kural – 221). Valluvar considers that not being able to practice charity is more miserable than death itself (kural -230).

In addition to helping and feeding the poor, he also suggests philanthropic ways in which one should use one’s wealth to help the deserving people. He suggests three models of philanthropy. The first model is the “Fresh Water Lake Model”. Here, “The wealth of a man of eminent knowledge who loves the world and wants to exercise benevolence is like a lake with fresh drinking water (kural – 215).”  In other words, his wealth will provide a perennial supply of benefits to needy people like a lake with drinking water, which supplies water to all the people all the time. This type of philanthropy offers maximum benefit to a large number of people for a very long time. For example, the modern philanthropic foundations like the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, McArthur Foundation, Ford Foundation, and other such large foundations have vast sums of money in the bank, and the interest obtained from the capital is used to benefit those who seek assistance. Since the capital is never used, this type of foundations can provide help to a large number of people for a very long time.

Next is the “Fruit Tree Model”.  In this case, “The wealth of a very benevolent philanthropist is like a fruit tree in the middle of a town (kural – 216).”  The fruit tree supplies fruits to a fairly large number of people for a specific period of time.  When the fruit season is over, those who need the fruit from the tree will have to wait till the next season. Practitioners of this type of philanthropy provide help when there is money, and when there is no money, they wait until more funds are available. Examples of this type of philanthropy would include the modern philanthropic organizations like the United Way, Red Cross, and other organizations which depend upon donations from the donors and provide benefit as long as funds are available and wait until more funds are available to provide additional services.

The last model suggested by Valluvar is the “Medicinal Tree Model”. “The wealth of a philanthropist who is a truly magnanimous person is like a medicinal tree (kural – 217).” In the case of a medicinal tree in which every part of the tree including its roots, bark, flowers, fruits, seeds, and leaves are all useful for medicinal purposes, people would harvest all parts of the tree, and the tree would not survive for a long time. Similarly, the truly magnanimous philanthropist would distribute all his wealth until there is nothing left to give. This type of philanthropy is like the “Spend Down Foundations” in the USA.  In a Spend Down Foundation, all the assets are spent for the intended purposes, and once the assets are depleted, then there is nothing to give.

Although the three models described above deal with the philanthropic patterns of the rich, Valluvar does not limit philanthropy to the rich. In fact, he is of the opinion that it is everyone’s duty to be aware of their social responsibility and should feel the need for sharing whatever they have with the deserving people who are in need.  To be specific, he says,

Even if benevolence would result in one’s ruin, it is worth securing that ruin by selling oneself, if necessary.                                                                                         (kural – 220)

According to Valluvar, there is nothing better than philanthropy either in this world or in heaven (kural – 213). Valluvar mentions charity and philanthropy as possible ways of helping those who are in need. According to him, relieving people of their devastating hunger is the real investment of one’s wealth (kural – 226). It is clear that Valluvar is of the opinion that the purpose of accumulating wealth is to distribute it to the deserving people. One can see the similarity between Valluvar’s idea of accumulation and distribution of wealth with that of the concept of Trusteeship propounded by Mahatma Gandhi. Mahatma Gandhi stated that wealthy people should consider their wealth as a trust intended to alleviate the poverty and sufferings in the community and seek ways to help others with their wealth.

Distribution of Government’s Wealth from the Standpoint of a Nation

Valluvar states, “A king should be able to generate wealth, develop and guard it and distribute the wealth to various projects (kural – 385).  As seen from the following kurals, according to Valluvar, helping the poor and rewarding the scholars and artists for their accomplishments are among the projects for which a king should spend his wealth.

   

Unfailing courage, charity, wisdom, and zeal are the required qualities for a king.                                         

(kural – 385)

He is the beacon among kings who has these four qualities: beneficence, benevolence, rectitude, and concern for the citizens.                                                           (kural - 390)

Whatever Valluvar says about a king is equally applicable to the governments of modern democracies.  The governments are responsible for the welfare of the people and allocating and using those funds for their welfare should be a high priority for them.

Importance of Distribution of Wealth for Social Harmony

In summary, in this world, wealth is essential both for individuals and for the governments.  However, it must be acquired by the right means, and it should be used for helping those who need help. If individuals share their resources with deserving others through charity and philanthropy, there will be harmony in the community. Also, if a government is mindful of the poor people’s sufferings and helps them through welfare programs, it will reduce poverty and improve the quality of life for the people in the nation. This is exactly why, Valluvar emphasizes the importance of charity, philanthropy and compassion towards people who need help.

Bibliography

Diaz, S.M.  (2000) Thirukkural. Volumes 1 &2.  Chennai, India:  Ramanandha Adigalar Foundation. Kelekar, Ravindra. Trusteeship, April 1960, Printed and Published by: Jitendra T. Desai Navajivan

Mudralaya, Ahemadabad-380014 India.

Prabhakaran, R Dr. (2019) The Ageless Wisdom (As Embodied in Thirukkural).  Chennai, India: Emerald

Publishers.