आध्यात्मिक अर्थशास्त्र की प्रस्तावना

Summary

The article "आध्यात्मिक अर्थशास्त्र की प्रस्तावना" (Preface to Spiritual Economics) by Nandkishore Acharya, published in the January-February 2001 issue of Jain Bharati, critiques mainstream economics for viewing economic life as autonomous and opposed to moral values. It argues that the real economic struggle today is between indigenous, universal technology and decentralization versus centralization. The second and final part of the article analyzes Gandhi's experiments with truth and non-violence to propose that a combination of Swadeshi (self-reliance), self-sufficient villages, and economic decentralization creates a technology and economic structure where exploitative centralization of capital is impossible, and equitable distribution of profit is automatic. Gandhi opposed large-scale production, blaming it for the world crisis. He argued that if production and distribution occur locally, regulation is automatic, reducing fraud and speculation. He opposed machines that displace workers, as they destroy both the unemployed and dehumanize the employed. Gandhi advocated for Swadeshi, not as merely domestic production, but as production based on local resources and methods, which he equated with non-violent technology. The spinning wheel (charkha) symbolizes this decentralized technology, which should be produced and repaired locally. Gandhi accepted new inventions only if they adhered to non-violence and served the public good, with heavy machinery owned by the state and used for public benefit. He envisioned village industries as the foundation of the economy, with large industries serving as their auxiliaries. The article argues that localized production and consumption eliminate the greed for unlimited growth, ending the concentration of wealth and poverty. It counters the belief that modern technology is necessary for solving production and employment problems, noting that modern technology employs a fraction of the population for actual production. By redirecting unproductive labor to production, society can eliminate both scarcity and unemployment. The article cites historical evidence of India's pre-colonial decentralized textile industry, which met domestic needs and had a strong export market, as proof of the viability of this model.