Creating Wealth Through Purity of Heart
I once heard a story about an Indian spiritual teacher who told his disciples that their ashram needed a certain amount of money. When the disciples asked where the money would come from, he responded, “From wherever it is now!”
Wealth does not come from “somewhere else.” It doesn’t come from outside us, but rather manifests according to our thoughts. Money created righteously doesn’t come from other people; it comes through them.
Looking to other people as the source of our money is an idolatrous notion, because it sees those people as the source of our good. It can also lead us to exploitative or manipulative thoughts or behavior. When we realize that the universe itself is the source of our good, we simply allow it to fill our needs in whatever way it chooses. And the universe would never exploit anyone. We do whatever it is we feel we’re supposed to do, and the universe pays us in whatever way it deems right.
Purity of heart, then, is the miracle-worker’s greatest engine of wealth creation.
Some things we’ll do for free, because that feels like the right thing to do. Some things we’ll charge money for, because—in different circumstances—asking for a righteous exchange of money feels like the right thing to do. But money itself should not be the reason we do anything. The universe knows what we need and is inherently programmed to bring it forth. It knows how to transform anything at all into everything that’s necessary.
While reading Cinderella to my daughter when she was growing up, I was always struck by the deep wisdom that’s in the story. The Fairy Godmother didn’t order a new dress out of a catalog; she transformed Cinderella’s rags into a ball gown. The Fairy Godmother didn’t order a limo; she turned a pumpkin into a coach and mice into horsemen. Whatever Cinderella needed, the universe took care of it. Cinderella’s purity of heart called forth the Fairy Godmother—that is, the spirit within—and the Fairy Godmother called forth everything she needed.
The Fairy Godmother’s wand? True, loving thought. The light her wand casts onto things? True understanding. The magic she works? The miracles that result.
The Fairy Godmother didn’t have to order a dress or call out for a car because the universe miraculously transformed existing material. That’s how the universe operates: whatever already is, is the platform for what could be. Cinderella, despite her circumstances as a servant, had the mind-set of the miraculous. And so miracles came to her.
In one video of the story, Cinderella becomes upset after her stepmother and stepsisters have gone to the ball. She’s on the driveway crying, when the Fairy Godmother finally appears. Cinderella exclaims, “Oh, Fairy Godmother, I thought you’d never get here!” to which the Fairy Godmother responds, “Oh, that’s not true, or I couldn’t have come.” How metaphysical is that!
Our souls are Cinderella, the ego is the wicked stepmother, and the Holy Spirit is our Fairy Godmother. Each of us has a “wicked stepmother,” i.e., ego mind, seeking to obstruct our good. And each of us has a “Fairy Godmother,” i.e., Holy Spirit, working miracles to fulfill out heart’s desire whenever our attitudes are pure.
According to A Course in Miracles, “Miracles are everyone’s right, but purification is necessary first.” There is only one category of impurity that keeps miracles at bay, and that is lovelessness. The Fairy Godmother didn’t appear to the stepmother or the ugly stepsisters, because their thoughts were mean. They had plenty of material resources, but they did not have love in their hearts. Thus all their plans came to naught.
PURITY OF HEART, then, is the miracle-worker’s greatest engine of wealth creation. There are three spiritual steps involved in the metaphysical transformation of lack into abundance: (1) be grateful for what you already have, (2) clean up whatever you need to clean up, and (3) allow yourself to want what you want.
The three together are a powerful brew.
1. Be grateful for what you already have.
It might be a platitude to say, “Be grateful for what you have,” but it’s wisdom nonetheless. It’s one of those sayings we give credence to, but only casually. Most of us are grateful for many things, but in a shallow way. And shallow thoughts have only shallow power.
Given that one billion people on this planet live on less than $1.25 a day, most of us live a fabulously abundant life in comparison. Yet when was the last time we stopped to give thanks for the fact that we have a home at all? When was the last time we focused on something in our lives and really, truly gave thanks for it? When was the last time we made a mental list of our blessings rather than our grievances?
Giving thanks is not just a “nice thing to do”: it’s a metaphysical power, or “magic wand.” By throwing the light of gratitude on what you have now, you literally increase its value in your mind. The universe then reflects that, turning your rags into a gown and taking you to the ball.
If your thought is, “All I have is junk,” then you will feel that way. If you’re grateful for what you have, thinking, “I have so much,” then you will feel the plenty that surrounds you. And those around you will respond accordingly.
Lack attracts lack and abundance attracts abundance. If your core belief is, “I don’t have enough,” then you will never seem to. If your core belief is, “I have so much,” then more will be given.
Could it be so simple? Yes. For such is the power of every thought we think.
2. Clean up whatever you need to clean up.
Most of us have had at least one unpleasant or even painful experience tied up with money. Someone may have stolen from you, or exploited you financially. Perhaps you blew a financial opportunity that came your way in the past. You may have bills you can’t pay. You may not have a job, perhaps not even a prospect of one.
So what have we learned so far? We’ve learned that money doesn’t come from the material world; it’s a material thing with a nonmaterial source. When we have a money problem, therefore, it’s a material problem with a nonmaterial solution, and the nonmaterial solution is in the mind.
I suggest that you make a list of all places where money is a problem for you. Write the problem(s) on the left side of the page, leaving several lines blank beneath each one.
Now do some serious introspection. For each money problem you recorded, write an honest appraisal of the situation in the space you left blank. Approach this task with an attitude of brutal honesty and commitment to truth. Taking responsibility for our own part in our disasters is critical to transforming them.
What was my part in creating the problem?
Whom do I need to forgive?
What remains to be cleaned up?
I’ve found this process revealing in my own life. While others have wronged me in the area of money over the years, a deeper look at the situations made me aware of how easy I made it for them to do so. Yes, they were perpetrators, but I wasn’t a victim so much as a subconscious participant in some ugly dramas.
An agent stole my royalties; but, on the other hand, I hadn’t read my own royalty statements for eight years. A lawyer failed to protect me; but, on the other hand, I didn’t listen to my own gut, take responsibility for my own business, and speak my own truth. I learned how my own irresponsibility and unconsciousness helped create my financial disasters.
All of it was a lesson in becoming a mature and responsible adult, and I came to realize this. A Course in Miracles says that we pay a high price for not taking 100 percent responsibility for our experience: the price is thinking that we can’t change it. Yet it was difficult to forgive those who transgressed against me without being willing to forgive myself.
To help with the process of taking responsibility and forgiving yourself, consider writing a letter to God about each of the problems you wrote down. Come clean about where you yourself made a mistake, didn’t act in integrity, called forth fear-based responses by your own fear-based actions, and so forth. Allow your hand to keep writing, as He responds.
Be willing to hear Him, and make things right according to your internal guidance wherever you can.If you owe a bill, get on a payment plan. Even if each monthly installment is only five dollars, remember that the universe responds fully to that old-fashioned concept called “doing the right thing.”
Once you recognize the Law of Cause and Effect as the basic building block of the universe, you begin to act righteously for your own sake. You realize that integrity is in your own self-interest. You seek to live a more impeccable life not just because you feel you should, but because you want to. You realize that the darkness in your life was called forth by fear, and you wish to be rid of your fear. The moment you enter the light of your spiritual reality, you rise above your ego and the darkness disappears.
3. Allow yourself to want what you want.
Many people have a hard time allowing themselves to really want what they want. They think, at least subconsciously, that asking for total happiness is asking for too much. They don’t bother, therefore, to truly listen to their heart’s desire.
But when your mind is attuned through prayer, meditation, and forgiveness; when your body is attuned through healthy nutrition and exercise; and when your behavior is attuned through a sincere effort at healthy living, then you’ve earned the right to trust yourself. For when you’re aligned with truth, your desires are trustworthy. When you’re praying and meditating, you don’t want to judge and attack; when you’re eating well and exercising, you don’t want to sit in front of the TV and eat hot-fudge sundaes every night; and when you’re seeking to live a life of integrity, you don’t want to make money at the expense of others.
Desire is righteous when it flows through a righteous vessel. The righteous manifestation of money means manifestation brought forth by the right use of the mind. Righteously earned money is a reflection of the abundance you bring forth through the giving of your gifts to the universe. It is not in any way a bleeding of the resources of the world, or of anyone else’s pockets. It is an expression of the Infinite introduced into the finite world.
In looking at nature, we clearly see its abundance. From the extraordinary design of a flower to the amazing colors on the feathers of a bird, from the magnificence of a mountain range to the sparkling light of stars at night, the universe keeps it simple in function, but not in presentation. That is how we should live our lives: keeping the function simple—serving the purposes of love—but expressing ourselves with whatever aesthetic or artistic sensibility gives us joy. The idea that only simple sackcloth expresses holiness doesn’t jive with the natural expressions of a living, loving universe. Our outer circumstances do not determine the holiness of our thoughts.
Many people equate the love of money with greed, but no socioeconomic group has a monopoly on love. The love of money isn’t of itself greedy, any more than love of anything else is greedy. Greed is when you have a desire that blinds you to the needs or wants of others. My love of art doesn’t make me greedy; it doesn’t make me plot ways to steal art from the walls of someone else’s house. My love of literature doesn’t make me greedy; if I read a book by Thomas Hardy, there isn’t any less Thomas Hardy for you. Similarly, my love of money doesn’t make me greedy, unless I’m thinking of my money as something I’m taking from you, rather than creating with you.
If I equate a love of money with greed, I’m subconsciously limiting my ability to attract it. For if I do attract it, I must be greedy; therefore I’m bad; therefore I must feel guilty; therefore I must keep money at bay in order to avoid feeling guilty.
And then we wonder why we have no money!
Now let’s imagine another scenario altogether.
You generate righteous effort and receive financial reward in exchange. Remembering that all abundance comes from God, you realize that you are only the steward of your money. You realize that there is more than enough prosperity where that came from, because God is a realm of infinite abundance. You receive whatever is meant to come to you with gracious receptivity and gratitude, as well as a sober sense of responsibility to manage and use your money well.
Like everything else, money is a reflection of love. It is to be used as God directs, as a way to care for all living things. We are meant to use the money that comes our way to take care of ourselves and those close to us, as well as for charity and for nonprofit and righteous profit-making ventures. All those things, when done with love, further God’s work in the world.
Money is meant to give increase, not only to yourself but also to others. You invest in a way that does good; you work in a way that creates good; you live in a way that feels good. And because of that, people whom you do not even know will experience increase in their lives that they would not have otherwise experienced. Someone’s store is more likely to thrive because you shop there; someone’s restaurant is more likely to expand because you and your friends eat there; someone’s valid request for financial assistance is more likely to be met because you have money to be generous with.
You are empowered not because you have money, but because with that money you can help empower others. You’re not coming from a “get” mentality; you’re simply allowing the flow of universal energy to move through you and use you in a way that serves a greater good. Bless every dollar, and every dollar will then bless you.