@ Abderrahmane

Very valid point that the Linkage Needs of Work-Family-Friends are more than the materialistic references of richness. Also your point of perish-ability of existence has a special value add.

http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/authors/c/charles_kuralt.html

@ Palani

Being Healthy is by itself a virtue of richness. it is well connected that when health is lost everything is lost.

http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/m/mahatmagan109078.html

Dear Krishnan,

Dear All,

Richness that is possessing material wealth has got a controversial evaluation. Each sober man should admit that wealth cannot be the aim of human existence. However, many even most of the people try to do everything to collect as much money as they can. This is because in this world which is “the best of all possible worlds” richness (= power) matters. Financiers, leaders of corporations, politicians rule and dictate in this earthly paradise as they advertise it for us. Most of scientists are their obedient servants for some money (= crumbs of power and influence = salary, grants and vanity). All the other aspects are but a question of marketing and publicity.

I have not mentioned true scientists who balance desperately in this controversial milieu and try to do their best for creating a better world – in most cases in vain!

@ András

Great valuable remarks on "Power to Crumbs", Money or wealth should be enjoyable.

@ Joachim

Good suggestion.  Do we have the rights to put zeros. Hypothetically, that is a dream come true for alleviating poverty.

How to enable people to add more ZEROS to their income ?, could be one among, the many to come options, towards the process of becoming RICH.

Sadagopan Parthasarathy                                                                          3 minutes ago

Richness has to be measured in terms of Happiness. Economic measurement misleads. Richness can be measured in terms of i) Health ii) Family and Friends

iii) Work and its environment iv) Helping others v) Adequate in terms of money and materials vi) Achievement. Economic scale is an important parameter but not the only one.

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Thanks @Sadagopan

Happiness other than econometrically measured as richness.

Rich or poor can calculated easily as the property, wealth & money all these things are countable. But rich or poor in terms of happiness depends on mind. A person with satisfaction will be always happy it dosen't depends on what he have and don't and person with lot of money wealth and property with out satisfaction still remains poor.

Dear Krishnan, while applying the poverty line of the US to India, we need to see the PPP (purchasing power parity), and not the dollar value. The purchasing power of dollar on an average is four time than what it is in the US. I agree that people are quite happy in India, as it is a very vibrant society. many things contribute to their happiness: Bollywood, cricket, democracy, diversity, food, availability of cheap labour that helps us doing our chores, are some of the reasons for people's happiness.

@ Prabhakar

Rightly said, that contentment leads to happiness in-spite of  'valued' money.

@ Debi

Great points on a wider window - Entertainment, Games, variety of Options to choose and Live, and Volume of Scale are various enabling factors which sublime the need of  "Reach to Richness"

The desire to be rich is part of everyone dream, but does one change when one becomes rich? Can one be happy and wealthy?

There is an Arabic proverb says," Contentment is a treasure that cannot perish".

everybody want to be rich, but while there is disparities in wages and descrimination by gender, cololr, religion.... I don't think possible to be rich. While there is disparities in international trade between rich countries and developing countries.

Yes, I agree. It is not possible that everyone can be rich. It is a zero sum game. When one acquires the riches, someone becomes deprived of those riches. Also, richness is a relative term. So if everyone acquires more wealth, the definition of richness is likely to envisage a higher limit for defining richness. 

@ Mahfuz

Well said that Contentment is a treasure; but the urge or drive for Treasure is contagious.

Richness in monetary terms is never going to provide contentment. It's the happiness due to inner peace which make us rich, wealthy and render us a good health.

Yes, everyone can become rich and everyone possess that richness of inner peace. It depends how people spend it. 

Yes @Gaurav agree that inner peace is also richness. 

The wealthy from the 2007 Fed data:

The wealthiest 1 percent took in about 16 percent of overall income — 8 percent of the money earned from salaries and wages, but 36 percent of the income earned from self-employment.

There are some other factors such as Money may not buy happiness, but the Fed survey suggests it buys good health.

About 90 percent of the 1 percent describe themselves as being in excellent or good health, compared with 75 percent of everybody else. About 85 percent expect to live into their 80s, compared with 68 percent of everybody else.

http://economix.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/01/17/measuring-the-top-1-by-wealth-not-income/?_r=0

Poor people believe they are creatures of circumstance. Because of this, life happens to them. Rich people believe they are creators of circumstance. Because of this, they create opportunities within their lives.

There isn't any more destructive belief in the world than to think that life happens to you. Here are three things that happen to you when you believe that you don't create your own destiny:

1) You play the blame game. You blame anyone and everyone for why you don't have what you want. You blame the government, your family, your boss, the economy, or the people on Wall Street. 

2) You justify your situation to yourself and to those around you. You use sentences that start with "It's because...". For example, "It is because the economy stinks that I'm not where I want to be," or "It is because people are unfair that I don't have what I want," or "It is because money doesn't really matter that I don't have as much as I would like." 

3) You complain, thereby attracting and moving toward a negative reality. When you complain, what do you focus on? All the crap in your life, and if you focus on all the crap, what do you become? .

Poor people believe money doesn't matter. Rich people value money and know it matters. I'm not saying it is the end-all, be-all, but money is a beautiful tool. When you have it you can use it in countless ways: to help others, travel, or take care of your parents. Money allows for the freedom to do the things that you want to do. I am not saying that money creates happiness, but a lack of money is a passport to misery. 

http://vovchiklm.hubpages.com/hub/10-reasons-why-people-are-poor-i-have-no-money-

Dear Krishnan Umachandran

I believe that not everyone can become rich because minds are not the same. I have recently read about this topic and found that there are different methods that might help you to be rich. One of these methods is how to invest in your mind. Following this method require you to do the followings:

1. "Do well in school and get an education".

2. "Learn about basic economics"

3. "Be intuitive"

4. "Develop yourself all your life"

5. "Develop a vision as to why should you become wealthy"

6. "Stay healthy and maintain a healthy weight"

Krishnan,

rich can not be without poor. Quantity is no matter hear. See Karl Marx.

@ Eugene

I agree with you comment.

Please also see a quote of Robert Kiyosaki, financial intelligence -

Rich do not work for money. What the rich work for is acquisition of assets. Assets provide money. So every year I start more and more businesses, buy oil wells, so every year I get richer and richer whereas the poor and the middle class they want their pay check. Pay checks are taxed the highest

http://www.thehindu.com/books/books-authors/writer-of-the-acclaimed-book-rich-dad-poor-dad-robert-kiyosaki-elaborates-on-his-theory-about-money-and-success/article6419053.ece

Money is somebodies labour, Krishnan. Nothing else. To be rich, You have to privatize this labour. At this point Marx is right.

Regards,

Eugene.

Marx was right in many ways

I consider Scientists as Rich people. They have adequate salary for living, guaranteed pension upon retirement, close to their salary. Then, they have Moral Capital, in the form of papers and patents published. Even Marx would honor this kind of Capital, as Honestly earned. 

@ Alexander

MONEY SAVED IS BETTER THAN MONEY EARNED

I would take a lead from your answer that, if common people take some characteristics of "probe-search-solve" from scientists then a lot of savings can happen in the day-to-day living; which would converge to a bigger order savings.

@Krishnan. For me money exist for one reason only, to spend them. The number of $$$ in the Bank Account is just a number. It does not give me any pleasure, so, I spend every $ earned by consulting above my pension. I never heard about a rich man, taking money with him upon the final call from Creator. And so, I spend. 

How the Rich and Poor Spend Money Today—and 30 Years Ago

Since 1984, education spending has nearly doubled as a share of a richer family's budget. And rent has nearly doubled as a share of a poorer family's spending.

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Average people think selfishness is a vice. Rich people think selfishness is a virtue.

“The rich go out there and try to make themselves happy. They don’t try to pretend to save the world,” Siebold told Business Insider. The problem is that middle class people see that as a negative––and it’s keeping them poor, he writes. “If you’re not taking care of you, you’re not in a position to help anyone else. You can’t give what you don’t have.”

http://cdn.theatlantic.com/assets/media/img/posts/Screen%20Shot%202014-04-02%20at%203.10.38%20PM.png

http://www.rsvlts.com/2012/09/06/21-ways-rich-people-think-differently-than-average-people/

Simply having money(richness) is not important, How much you are able to spent for good cause and to fulfill your needs is more important.

To enjoy richness (money) , the so called Luxmi is not everybody task and it is a really tough task. People go on earning money by so many means and keeping in safe custody.. What is the use of such money? In my view, these are simply like storing  waste papers. One should have sufficient money to meet our daily needs and future needs too ( easy going). More important is having a human heart , good human being , rich in human values, loving and caring. I mean , one should be rich in money as well as  human values.

To be rich is a state of mind.

Dear  Krishnan

The rich person is that who  has peace in his life, enjoys his life daily, has good health, and is happy  with his family, friends and job. Having big money does not mean that this person is rich and happy.

Beautiful question...

Quote from Amartya Sen, DEVELOPMENT AS CAPABILITY EXPANSION

A thoroughly deprived person leading a very reduced life, might not appear to be badly off in terms of the mental metric of utility, if the hardship is accepted with non-grumbling resignation. In situations of long-standing deprivation, the victims do not go on weeping all the time, and very often make great efforts to take pleasure in small mercies and to cut down personal desires to modest–”realistic”–proportions. The person’s deprivation, then, may not at all show up in the metrics of pleasure, desire-fulfilment etc., even though he or she may be quite unable to be adequately nourished, decently clothed, minimally educated and so on

http://morgana.unimore.it/Picchio_Antonella/Sviluppo%20umano/svilupp%20umano/Sen%20development.pdf

In continuation of my earlier post, I wish to further add and share that at a certain cycle of our life you require money to meet our daily needs, growing needs of education to our kids, house etc.but after fulfilling these needs one require a healthy life--good health not money or wealth. I mean richness in terms of money( just for keeping in safe custody) is not important. Richness should be in terms of good health, good human values and inclination to serve the society welfare. Yes, any one can be rich.

@ D P S

I agree with you, in one of our researches we found across the "the industrial employees in Automobile sector", the health and well-being factor contributed significantly in in increasing the earning capacity of an individual.

Dear Faiq,

you defined a millionaire.

Rich word for word money is used

There are many people who are rich and the poor or middle income

But I is not rich in money to good ethics is

Hi Krishnan Umachandran 

Very world wide question.

Little money does not automatically imply unhappiness.

Little money is a necessary condition for poverty, not a sufficient condition for the unhappiness. Little money is a relative threshold.

If I wanted to hear me just now poor and unhappy, is sufficient that I decided that from now I can not live without buying a Ferrari or a jet.

An alternative hypothesis:

It may be that the happiness of 90% of India's population depends on the fact that they do not have the problems of conscience related to what they might have to do to earn $ 23.283/year?

Initially it is the need that drives us to seek the money. Then often the money itself creates us other needs, creating a vortex.

@ Girogio

Good inputs, I would say that people has learned to live within its bounds

Allianz Global Wealth Report has split the countries evaluated into three wealth classes, similar to the income classes used by the World Bank: high wealth countries (HWC) with average net per capita financial assets of more than EUR 26,800; middle wealth countries (MWC), net per capita financial assets of between EUR 4,500 and EUR 26,800; and low wealth countries (LWC), net per capita financial assets of less than EUR 4,500. Wealth is distributed very unevenly throughout the world. Even today, around 85% of global net financial assets are still in the hands of private households in HWCs, although these countries are home to less than 20% of the global population. The global prosperity gap is immense from a per capita perspective, too: net per capita financial assets in the HWCs totaled EUR 70,590 at the end of 2011, several times higher than in the LWCs, where the same figure came in at only EUR 2,040 per capita. People in MWCs had average net financial assets worth EUR 10,240

https://www.google.co.in/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=62&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0CCIQFjABODw&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.allianz.com%2Fv_1347875767000%2Fmedia%2Fpress%2Fdocument%2FGlobal-Wealth-Report-2012-englisch.pdf&ei=N1IWVdPaK5SZuQSX44DIDg&usg=AFQjCNHJTlLsNOsq67gQspRg9ZQ2aOefRw

What is meant by RICH 

Owning very good business with annual turnover of billions of dollars -  running behind the time by having 2 or 3 personal secretaries (having illegal affair with one of them in a rush) - unable to spend anytime to family 

Decent monthly salary more than enough to maintain average life - Able to spend with family and kids - surrounded by good friends - always calm in mind 

Is there any calculator or biosensor technology available to measure happiness of  a person instead filling some regular questionnaire  

The definition of riches can be subjective. I want to believe that everybody can be rich if all element of greed is ruled out. In my own opinion, greed is the number one reason why all of us in the world cannot be rich. Ask me why.

Because at some point, a once rich greedy man will invest in an obviously high risk venture just to make more money. The end end result is that he will lose all he has at the end and become poor once again.

Dear Krishnan,

According to the WHO definition, “Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity”. Consequences: the “medicalisation” of society (BMJ 2011; 343:d4163). In other words, the macro level is pleading for ...., while at the micro level we try to follow our own scale of values.

http://www.bmj.com/content/343/bmj.d4163

@ Mihaela

I agree holistically WHO is right, but on practical terms and indicators - disease or infirmity lead to drain the resources in hand and also reduces the opportunity to grow.

Hi

Rich who happy the people heart

I believe how we define rich is where the real answer is. I do a lot of “Financial Literacy Training” and the number one response to being rich is having sufficient money to do what they want to and when they want to. Naturally this is from a very materialistic approach. Everyone wants to buy things and more things. We forget that being rich is based on how we think and discipline ourselves (Dennis Kimbro – Think and Grow Rich) and how much we keep not just how much we earn (Ed Slott – Stay Rich for Life).

Dear Professor,

One may be called rich if that person is rich at heart and he/she is happy.

Best Regards.

If everyone is rich, then there is no need in this word.

This threshold value, when compared in India means that 94% of Indian Population is POOR. Yet, the country and its people are "Happy". Your observation is correct. We all have passed through all these stages. In fact, this life cycle goes on whether one is rich or poor. God has taught us about KARMA,  tolerance and patience. Always Be happy and let the God must be crazy.

I agree with Dr D.P.S. RATHORE, we should always be happy.

Regards.

Dear All,

Yes, everybody can become rich – but not by an honest way.

Dear Professor András Bozsik,

I feel, honesty is still the best policy; and only inner satisfaction can give any body happiness making feel rich.

Best Regards.

Richness is a tool, not goal.

Dear Dr Eugene F Kislyakov,

What a thought.....................Very impressive;

Thank you Sir.

I thank Dr Krishnan Umachandran for asking such a great and meaningful question.

Beat Regards.

Here we mean, becoming rich is a relative term towards affordability and equity on the social utilities.The punch is Fairness - the ultimate Reward Goal, unjust reward exposes greed and inequality.

http://www.employment-studies.co.uk/system/files/resources/files/op16.pdf

Der Sunjay,

Unfortunately, nobody asked the value and efficiency of honesty. Generally, people prefer honesty only in their words but not in their acts.

Dear Professor András Bozsik,

I agree with you, Sir.

Best Regards.

Dear Sir,

Yes, everyone can become rich if he/she is able to fulfill their own basic needs without comparing with anyone else.

But, at comparative level only a few person can be rich.....

I am rich not because of my annual income is more than the U.S. Census Bureau Poverty Thresholds but because of my limited needs which I can fulfill easily with my monthly scholarship which is even less than 500 USD..

Dear Professor,

Richness is a concept that differs from a person to another. Many people may have a lot of money, but they think that they are poor and many of people may have not so, but they think they are rich.

I think a normal life without stress and depression and illness is a rich life!

Yes, anyone/everyone can be rich. Richness is a concept that differs from a person to another. In addition to  money,yes, richness should be in terms of thought, culture, traditions, moral values, ethics, knowledge,creativity, etc to preserve nature.

Richness is not

But in whose heart there is equality could be had, same quantity, satisfy reasonable desires; material things which avoids struggle in life, happiness with neighbors; no worry at any time day or nights, no fear of poverty, sickness and greed for wealth.

I agree with you Dr Palani Shanmugasundaram.

Regards!

An interesting question. To answer this question precisely, one must first give an exact definition of the concept of God contained in this question. First of all, will this definition refer to religious issues or rather to other contexts such as eg the show business god or god in the sense of a universal idvalible absolute that exists somewhere in the infinity of the Universe or in dimensions that our intelligence does not fully still may include. I invite you to the discussion.

A rich person is the person who positively affects humanity, society in general, and especially people around him/her (family, friends, colleagues, neighbors....). e.g. Prophets are rich, Gandhi is rich, Addison is rich......ResearchGate is rich !

I agree with the opinion, on the spiritual, cultural wealth, etc., expressed by the colleagues who have already answered. Therefore, my intervention concerns exclusively the economic wealth in terms of the so-called "vile money ", i.e. financial wealth. The possibility of raising one's state in terms of finances depends on politics. There have country in which the political class and the government work to give everyone the opportunity to become rich mainly by creating opportunities: study, work, doing commercial business, doing farm, doing industry and adopting policies of redistribution of wealth. In these states, if the corruption is very low, it is possible to become rich or very rich starting from scratch. Unfortunately, in many other states, the policies adopted by governments are such that those who are wealthy become everyday richer and those who are poor become increasingly poor. Someone said that: the "communist" governments or of the so-called "real socialism" know how to redistribute wealth very well but not know produce wealth; "capitalist" governments know how produce wealth but not know redistribute the wealth produced. For these reasons we hope in the utopia of a government that know how producing wealth and how redistributing the wealth in order to give everyone the opportunity to significantly improve their socio-economic status.

Many people have a lot of money, but they are poor in their mind and Many people have a little money, but they are rich in their mind.

You can not be rich, if somebody is not poor.