Once upon a time, a rich lady named Radha lost her balance of savings and expenses because she was not worldly-wise. She had inherited a lot of wealth in the form of cash and kind from her father. She started living a lavish life spending more than it was required. She gave expensive gifts to her friends and expected the same in return. She was usually disappointed, when it was her turn to receive gifts. She gave a tongue-lashing to her friends, criticising their choice of inferior gifts. Her friends could not afford costly gifts and felt hurt. They started moving away from her gradually and she was left alone. She now wanted the company of her friends to enjoy.

Unfortunately, her children had no time for her. She never gave them company when they were infants. They loitered in parks and clubs at the mercy of the servants. She was never present when her children were sick and made no efforts to solve their problems, when they needed her the most. They loved to squander money and just expected their mother to bear their lavish expenses. This egoistic lady did not realise her mistake and called her children selfish. However, she had to live in loneliness because no amount of cajoling the behaviour of her children. They were not ready to work hard. She was now in a disturbed state of mind, and usually gave in to the tantrums of her sons. She kept on squandering money for them. The children instead of developing any virtues, kept on adopting vices. She led a miserable life, but had no choice because her children were not ready to mend their ways.

Shyama, another lady had an absolute different way of living. She helped her children grow. She woke up in the morning with a cheerful disposition. She taught her children to pray and thank God for their achievements. She advised them to take care of the pennies they spent. She acted with wisdom in her daily struggle. She maintained a healthy way of living. She was extra vigilant, as she wanted her children to work hard. She taught them the benefits of a united family.

She accompanied them to parks and in a playful mood, taught them for benefits of green plants and nature. Her basic aim was to teach them that every living being has to work hard to sustain life. She distributed gifts in the orphanage on her children’s birthdays. She wanted to inculcate the quality of charity in them.

“Honesty is the best policy”, was her teaching. Her children never told lies. They refrained from cheating, which helped them lead a peaceful life. She taught them to live within their means when funds were low. She advised them to handle pitfalls of life carefully with a positive attitude of winning.

They were told to be polite and courteous to everyone. If they could develop a sense of humour instead of complaining about their problems, when in company, it will be easier for them to increase their friends in number. Her children grew up into strong, hardworking human beings, ready to face the challenges of life.

Thus, we can observe that knowledge is more precious than wealth and a knowledge person is able to make the best use of his abilities.