नई अर्थशास्त्रीय अवधारणा की तलाश
Summary
The text critiques modern economics through the lens of Acharya Shri Mahapragya's philosophy, arguing that a one-sided approach cannot solve economic problems. It states that violence stems from attachment to possessions (parigraha), which modern economics encourages by promoting desire for wealth, whereas Mahavira advocated detachment from material things. The text emphasizes that society needs both attachment (ragatmik) and detachment (viragatmik) tendencies; only attachment leads to competition and violence, while only detachment fails to meet needs. Balance is essential for a non-violent social order. The document examines two dominant economic systems—capitalism and socialism—both rooted in materialism, where wealth is central and humans peripheral. Keynes is cited as prioritizing wealth accumulation over moral values, while Mahapragya counters that wealth does not save a person obsessed with it. The text argues that modern economics has increased wealth but not happiness, and true fulfillment requires a combination of convenience, peace, and happiness—achievable only through a multifaceted (anekant) perspective. It presents Mahavira's principle of limiting desires (iccha pariman) as a solution to contemporary issues like poverty, population growth, environmental degradation, and unemployment. The proposed relative economics (sapeksha arthashastra) includes criteria such as not threatening world peace, reducing crime, discouraging violence, and fostering detachment. Development must use pure means, maintain values in earning, and limit personal accumulation and selfishness. The text categorizes economic motives into necessity, comfort, and luxury, advocating for relative thinking on each. Its conclusions include: no hunger or lack of basic needs, no luxury; wealth as a means, not an end; ethical earning with awareness; limiting accumulation; developing utility-based views and detachment; accepting contentment; and cultivating the ability to give up. The final section shifts to a personal narrative about a guava tree, where the narrator reflects on family dynamics, superstition, and the mother's fear that the tree brought misfortune, highlighting generational conflict and the need for social change.
Conclusion
The document's implications underscore the urgent need to reorient economic systems toward a balanced, non-absolutist framework that integrates both attachment (ragatmak) and detachment (viragatmak) tendencies. The outcome of adopting this anekantic approach would be an economics that prioritizes human well-being over mere wealth accumulation, addressing root causes of violence like parigraha (possessiveness). This perspective offers concrete solutions to contemporary crises—poverty, population growth, environmental degradation, and unemployment—by advocating for ethical wealth acquisition, limited desires, and voluntary simplicity. Ultimately, the text suggests that only through such a holistic, value-based economic model can society achieve genuine peace, reduce crime and violence, and ensure that basic necessities like food are accessible to all, rather than serving only the wealthy.