Just a few hours earlier I have finished "Atlas Shrugged", which is called a Bible of Capitalism, but I guess, the proper name is the Bible of Egoism.
Is it good to be one? The society says - no. Religions say - no.
In the book is written the situation, what is going on when people sacrifice themselves for the common good, intersests and needs of other people, especially, when they don't deserve it.
When you give you talents, ideas, time and money to someone else, who says that you MUST give it to them! Even deep in your soul you don't thinks so, you shout " I NEED IT MYSELF!"
And it is quite normal, it is natural. Egoism saves us, we are alive because of it.
You are not obliged to give if you don't want ot they deserve to be given.
For example, you give money to a poor, not because he needs this money, even though he could earn it himself, but because you will feel pleasure of doing smth, that is regarded to be good.
We love our partners not just for their existance, but because of their features of character and worthy relation to us.
You are to be paid back for what you give! By money, materials or emotions.
The main aim of our lifes is OUR HAPPINESS. So why should you give it to strangers, whom you even don't like? HAPPINESS IS YOURS!
Religions сall us to quit "loaves and fishes", riches of the world and friends in order to reach enlightenment and God. Yeah, it's true, but when you are getting older, having achieved happyness and experience of life.
In order to achieve happyness you don't need to become a Shao-Lin yogi or smth like that.
You need to earn money.
I speak not about theft, fraud or threatening. About fair production, selling or making services.
Earning money will help you to concentrate on your aims, because the amount of earned will indicate the achieveing of aims.
For example, you want to write a book and win recognition. The vivid instance is Joahn Roling.
Meditation and austerity wouldn't lead you to happiness.
Earning money is a game, where you should show you talents and ideas, realise youself through your work, when you feel happiness.
By the way, pay your attention to the fact, that all great teachers like Osho or Mahashiri Machesh Jogy were millionaires.
Did like this article and have taken a few thoughts from it. Maybe the author also read Atlas?)
I have read "Atlas Shrugged" and it was nice to see your thoughts on the book. Thanks for sharing them here!
Did you like this book?
Well it had a lot to do with trains, and my family was once in the railroad business, so I identified with it to some degree. I enjoyed the book and took it as a "cautionary tale" of what might happen if we move too far from capitalism into socialism. It's a big book with a lot going on, and it kept me reading to see how it would all end!
Yep. I also enjoyed it and have read some pieces from the diaries of Ayn Rand. She wrote, that in the book her phylosophy is described. And she followed it in her daily life, but I was told she finished her days in a kind of sect made from her followers.
So this book is quite questionable on the other side.
http://www.salon.com/2014/04/29/10_insane_things_i_learned_about_the_world_reading_ayn_rands_atlas_shrugged_partner/
Plagiarism alert!
Parts of this post were translated and blatantly stolen from this russian article: http://www.cluber.com.ua/lifestyle/samorazvitie-lifestyle/2015/04/o-vrede-prosvetleniya-i-polze-deneg/
@darya-zaytseva didn't even try to hide it, hoping that there won't be a person who has read the original article in russian, or that he won't call them out on their bullshit. Well, I just did.
Have written the article in the night after reading altas and forgotten to add the link) Thanks!
Have added the link. I also don't like plagiarism.