Materialism

Author
Karla Solano

We live in a world where we as a human race are constantly chasing after materialistic dreams. Every step of our growing up has to do with competing and striving to be the best at everything we do, thus increasing our chances to be leaders and “making it” in our society. While there is nothing wrong with working hard and accomplishing our goals, it is important not to give too much value to our material possessions.

I know how great it is to get that promotion we worked so hard for, and getting that raise that enables us to buy our dream house and that car we always wanted; but focusing our attention on living just to acquire more and more material things can one day backfire leaving us empty and making us feel unsatisfied.

We need to be cautious of not to lose sight of what is real, such as cultivating meaningful friendships and relationships, living a humble life, appreciating everything we have, without being condescending towards others no matter what their social status may be, and keeping our integrity and honesty in a corrupt society. All of these attributes are detrimental to living a balanced life; doing otherwise, can make our existence on this planet very shallow and lonely.

I have found out through personal experience, that materialistic things are just that, matter occupying space that clutter our surroundings; after a while, we collect so much that we don’t even know how much we have. We keep buying things and forget about other precious items that we keep hidden in a closet accumulating dust. It becomes an obsession to buy things just to satisfy our ego, or to fill a void in our lives. Unfortunately, we use material things to give us the satisfaction a person or circumstances can’t.

Personal belongings can give us social status, and an instant gratification when we feel down, there is no doubt about that, but they will never replace the essential things that we as human kind need to survive; having the highest paying job can get us all the things we ever dreamt of but it will never buy us love and happiness.

Life can be very lonely if all we have is a huge, beautiful place to live in, with all the comfort and the most expensive things in it that you could ever imagine; but if all of the luxury in the world is contained within walls in a space where there is no one to love and to share it with, then all of the riches in the world can make us feel very poor at heart.

No matter how much money or luxury we have, it means nothing if we are alone. This is why it is important to focus on acquiring heavenly treasures instead of material possessions, because at the end of our existence all we take with us is the essence of our being, the good deeds we did while here on earth, the lessons we learned and how we changed ourselves and the world for the better.

Take time to be grateful for what you have and meditate on how you have lived your life. Has it been a life full of material accomplishments but with many failures on the personal level? Has it been a life lived with integrity and respect for others? Have you loved people for who they are or for what they represent in a dollar amount? Have you stopped and enjoyed the simplest things in life? Or do you always have to have the most extravagant lavish lifestyle in order to be happy? Do you measure your success by how much you have instead of by how much you give back to the community? Do you really feel like money can solve all your problems and give you the happiness you need?

Asking ourselves questions like these can help us analyze our lives and figure out if we are becoming too attached to our belongings. It can help us ground ourselves and realize that there is more to life than just what is tangible. Life is full of wealth, and by this I am referring to the wealth found in the simplest forms surrounding our everyday existence; Such as wealth of wisdom, wealth of love, wealth of beauty, wealth of happiness.

All of this wealth is at our reach, when we decide to find it within our hearts, within our true pure essence. Until we decide to become one with our Divine being, we will always long for this empty and shallow wealth that our material world has to offer; thus, causing us to live a life full of external satisfaction but an incomplete and lonely existence.

Life is an amazing journey so start seeking for the valuable heavenly treasures; the treasures that help the soul flourish into a transformed butterfly full of abundance and beauty. Use your talents and gifts to give back to the world so that your life may be full of love, happiness, satisfaction and gratitude.

Learn to measure your success by the good deeds you have made and not by the salary you earn, and finally give love to everyone you encounter because with love in our lives, our existence is full of joy and motivation to become better people.