Financial health is just as important as physical and mental stability. One of the top reason for divorce usually has to do with money – or should I say the lack of financial stability. “Making both ends meet” seems easier to talk about than to do. To actually achieve it, it’s helpful to know that if we cannot make more money on one end, we should certainly spend less money on the other end. Spending less money is not easy to practice either, but it is a habit that can easily be learned with some practice and will power. Here are your 5 zen steps that can aid you in your quest for financial wealth, especially, through practicing Zen meditation and living a Zen lifestyle.

Step 1: Curbing impulse buying

Impulse buying hurts, because it’s mostly unnecessary stuff. But the impulse is hard to tame, because we don’t even know where it came from. Advices such as self-control and being rational may help, but the most fundamental way is by purifying our mind and thoughts through meditation. If you are encountered with an impulse buying situation, you should step away from it immediately. You can always come back for it a a later date, but giving it some time to think about it may change your mind on the purchase.

2. Trimming the craving

Craving is the root of many unnecessary spending, including the impulse buy. But the craving here is referred particularly to addictive habits such as gambling, which is virtually a huge money black hole. This type of craving is very tough to combat — without meditation. Meditation is known to cleanse and purify the body and mind. The life force in meditative state can erase the bad recordings in the brain, including craving. So one day you will find yourself automatically throwing away gambling, instead of throwing away your hard earned dollars.

3. Keeping Up With the Joneses

This is strictly an ego issue. Ego takes its root through comparison with others, such as friends and neighbors. This is particularly devastating to your financial health if your neighbor is a rich one. It’s better to cultivate smaller ego so there is nothing to hurt. This is achievable through meditation because meditation cultivates a feeling of contentment. This awareness renders comparison completely unnecessary.

4. Saving on medication expenditures

Health-related expenditures can be huge, no matter it is physical, mental or psychological health problems. Zen meditation is well-known for its health and mental benefits, and becoming healthier is almost equal to saving money. This slogan is right on, “meditate, not medicate”, or use a natural holistic approach. For example, a year ago, I was diagnosed with high cholesterol and hypothyroidism. My doctor wanted to put me on a regime of meds, but I told him to hold off on it while I investigated a more natural approach. I now take Coconut Oil every day, and my thyroid issues are under control, as well as the high cholesterol.

5. Minimizing accident-related costs

No matter how careful we are, or how frugal we are, there is always one thing that can potentially turn our life upside down — accidents. Accidents almost always cost a lot of money, and are seemingly uncontrollable. But accidents, according to Buddhism, are just the effect of a preceding cause, that is, karma. So instead of randomly, everything happens to people according to their karma. By resolving our karma through meditation, we can minimize the accidents and the cost associated with it. In this sense, meditation is a very good life insurance, and can reserve your emergency funds.

We hope you enjoyed these 5 zen tips on saving money. Please visit our site again soon for more Green Zen Living.