Everything for sale !!!

This is an issue I was thinking to write on for a very long time. Something that is bothering me for past many months and at times I feel like having no solution. I wish to talk about the market based mentality that is seeping through our minds.

Since 1990s when Indian markets became open, there is a big trend of free market and free economy that is growing in India. Consumerism is continuously on rise. And this is making some alarming effects on our social system. I wish to make clear that I'm not an economics expert to comment on any such aspects. I am here just to record my observations and feeling about changing social psyche. Immediate effect, as I see because of this economic transform is creation numerous jobs in service industry. In software, in B.P.O. and in many similar fields. All these people started getting salary which was way above the standard salaries people used to get before then. This created a group of neowealthy people who simply had no idea what good can be done with this money. Immediate effect was consumerism and we entered the era of mall-culture where people buy things to maintain their 'standard of living' and 'social prestige'. Shopping was no more need based but was considered as 'Hobby'.

Unfortunately this unethical and immoral expression of wealth created a chain reaction and money earning assumed the central position in life. 'More wealthier is more respectable' became the norm. On the contrary great sages of India have said, "गौरवं प्राप्यते दानात्‌ न तु वित्तस्य संचयात्‌ "

Wealthy person was not considered socially respectable if he does not spend good amount of his money for poor. And those who had given up all material benefits for uplifting of the entire society, the saadhus, sanyasis, gurus and aacharyas where having highest level of respect in the society. It was an unwritten rule that if you wish to climb the ladders of social respect, you should give up the personal benefits. There was a subtle balance achieved in this social structure. The different power centres like knowledge, wealth and military were not allowed to be held at any one institution.

Unfortunately today your income is the sole criterion to determine your social status. This means a highly paid call centre employee who is sometimes not even a graduate is at higher level than a junior college lecturer and far above a primary school teacher or a doctor in some remote village. A groom with corporate job is rated higher in spite having a lot of bad habits like drinking and smoking. A software engineer is more intelligent than an history graduate because he is earning a lot more. His opinion in totally uncorrelated fields is considered very valuable. A city dwelling consultant can give advice to a farmer about cash crops. Media also shows very 'interesting' news about parties of these so called 'celebrities' and other 'innovative' ways they find for extravagant display of their wealth. People are not rated as per the type and quality of the work but simply by money they get, which means how better they can 'sell' themselves.

A very bad social trend that has been establishing due to this. People are turning away from fields which give them joy towards the fields that give them money. Every school child wishes to become an engineer or a doctor or a C.A. Although his real interest may be literature or painting. We can see this by number Ph.D.s we produce in engineering. Its alarmingly low because students don't join this out of passion for the field. People keep hopping jobs not for job satisfaction but simply for more money. This has created a lot of unrest in the society. Obviously among those who are far away from this world of wealth, but unfortunately also in those who are part of it.

The answer, although not very clear, lies in understanding the fact that human beings are not content only material satisfaction. Not all the human activities are money oriented. Imagine a world with great engineers and doctors with uneducated kids because no one in their generation wanted to be a schoolteacher. All facets of human life cannot be valued monetarily. We should seek joy and not just means of joy!