Should we be indifferent to fame and fortune and live a comfortable life?

　
    Temporarily ignore that spiritual practitioners should put aside their pursuit of fame and fortune in order to achieve relief from birth-and-death, even ordinary people should be indifferent to fame and fortune in the chaotic world we live in in order to protect themselves.
　
    As the saying goes: "The big tree will attract the wind." When the person who pursues fame and whose fame expands to a certain extent, disasters will follow; first, it will attract jealousy. Those who are jealous of him will secretly use small means to hinder him, and even openly oppose him or mock him; although some other people didn't show their jealousy, they just wait and see that he will fail. After he becomes more famous, his privacy will begin to be threatened, the private affairs of daily life will be widely spread, and the paparazzi will begin to be interested in him. When he walks on the street, he should be aware of not being recognized at any time in order not to spoil his own image; flattering people begin to appear by his side and make him lose his right judgment, overly proud of his own achievements, and be confused by other people's praise; if he is not suitable for that fame, he will be afraid that others will find out that he is not so good. Because of his reputation, many things needed to be judged will happen in his daily life; some people will try to use his reputation to achieve their own interests, so his daily life will be full of various situations that must be endured, and the happy and comfortable daily life will also become more and more far away. He will gradually lose the ability to arrange the daily life he ​​likes.
　
    On the other hand, what about the pursuit of money? Many people envy the rich, so they regard making money as the only goal in life. In order to get rich quickly, they will begin to go around the corner and use methods that violate their conscience or the law to make money; in order to make money, they sacrifice the time of being with their families and, as a result, the relationship between they and their children, wife (husband), and parents will become alienated; the friends around them interact with them only for benefits, and they cannot obtain sincere interpersonal relationships, nor can they get the sincere treatment of others. Work occupies all of their life; they don't have time to eat normally and they will lose their health through long-term work and socializing. Sometimes bad friends come to seduce them and encourage them to invest, but they often fail in the end; some people get into the habit of drinking, smoking or drugs, and some people are brought to gamble and lose all their money, which is earned by hard work, during one night, even become indebted. Due to the long-term competition in the market, they become material; everything is measured by money, and they get to be without human touch. Sometimes impermanence comes, such as wars, financial turmoil or other various unknown factors, and their accumulated wealth will be exhausted in a short time. Because they are used to live a luxurious life, after suffering such a blow, some people become melancholy and unable to cheer up, and some take the risk, resort to methods that violate laws and ethics, or make a last desperate move —— spending all their remaining assets to risky investment or investment that can earn money fast.
　
    Look at that, the level of the suffering caused by fame and fortune is not different from the level of the suffering caused by being unfamous or poor, so we should know that the happiness of life is not established by being famous or unfamous, rich or poor, then, by what? In fact, it is established by our attitudes and concepts towards daily life —— contentment —— appropriately controlling our desires, cherishing the things we have, and not coveting too much fame and money, because the price of pursuing them often exceeds our expectations. If we can find an appropriate choice and a balance among these things, I think our lives can become comfortable without burden.
　

 

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