Maulana Wahiduddin Khan | Speaking Tree Website | November 28, 2016

The Quran refers to a condition of many people in the following words:

Greed for more and more distracted you [from God] till you reached the grave. (102:1-2)

Many people make gathering wealth the aim of their lives. This is what they keep themselves busy with, till at last, one day, death arrives and carries them away. And they leave the world in sadness that they failed to acquire what they had spent their lives chasing.

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The fact is that there is a definite limit to the wealth that we really need. But for those who make accumulating wealth the aim of their lives, there is no such limit. If it is to meet your needs that you seek wealth, when you have earned enough to meet your needs you will be content. But if you have made acquiring wealth for its own sake your life's purpose, you will never be content. You will constantly want more. You will always be discontent, and you will die in that condition.

The well-known American businessman Bill Gates, in economic terms, is the richest man in the world. Finally, however, he realized that his needs were, limited and that the extra wealth that he had accumulated was pointless. He very rightly commented:

Once you get beyond a million dollars, it's the same hamburger.