Mahatma Gandhi on Wealth Quotes

"He who has made the law of non-possession a part of his life will want for nothing."

"The rich man will be left in possession of his wealth, of which he will use what he reasonably requires... and will be a trustee of the remainder."

"The test of orderliness in a country is not the number of millionaires it owns, but the absence of starvation among its masses."

"Capital as such is not evil; it is its wrong use that is evil. Capital in some form or other will always be needed."

"I am not against business. I am against the fraud and the exploitation that often goes with it."

"I cannot imagine anything more detrimental to the true spirit of a nation than the accumulation of wealth in a few hands."

"Politics without principle, wealth without work, pleasure without conscience, knowledge without character, commerce without morality, science without humanity, and worship without sacrifice — are the seven social sins." Originally published in Young India, 22 October 1925, in The Collected Works of Mahatma Gandhi, Vol. 33, p. 135."

"Every person has a right to have his needs satisfied and no more."

"Wealth without work is one of the seven social sins."

"I suggest that we are thieves in a way. If I take anything that I do not need for my own immediate use, and keep it, I thieve it from somebody else."

"True economics never militates against the highest ethical standard, just as all true ethics to be worth its name must at the same time be also good economics."

"No one has a right to more than he needs while others are in want."

"I would allow a man of intellect to earn more, I would not cramp his talent. But the bulk of his greater earnings must be used for the good of the State."

"It is difficult, but not impossible, to conduct strictly honest business."

"The difference between what we do and what we are capable of doing would suffice to solve most of the world's problems."

"To accumulate wealth which we do not need is a sort of theft."

"God never stores for tomorrow; He never creates more than what is strictly needed for the moment."

"Money is like a river; if it stops flowing, it becomes stagnant and foul."

"A trustee has no heir but the public."

"The use of the spinning wheel is a form of wealth that no one can take away from the poor."

"The dream I want to realize is not of the riches of the world, but of the riches of the soul."

"The secret of happy life lies in renunciation. Renunciation is life."

"Real wealth does not consist in jewelry and money, but in providing for our basic needs through our own labor."

"Seven social sins: politics without principles, wealth without work, pleasure without conscience, knowledge without character, commerce without morality, science without humanity, and worship without sacrifice. A list closing an article in Young India (22 October 1925); Collected Works of Mahatma Gandhi Vol. 33 (PDF) p. 135"

"Working for economic equality means abolishing the eternal conflict between capital and labour."

"A certain degree of physical harmony and comfort is necessary, but above a certain level it becomes a hindrance instead of help."

"Economic equality is the master key to non-violent independence."

"The rich should take the initiative in dispossession with a view to a universal diffusion of the spirit of contentment."

"Man should rest content with what are his real needs and become self-sufficient."

"If all had only what they needed, none would want and all would live in contentment."

"There is enough for everybody's need, but not for anybody's greed."

"Possession implies provision for the future. A seeker after Truth, a follower of the Law of Love, cannot hold anything for tomorrow."

"A man's true wealth hereafter is the good he has done to his fellowmen."