Absolutely amazing universal truths!

The richest man in Babylon

Absolutely remarkable!
The book not only immerses the reader into the great times of Babylon, but also truly shares universal wisdom, which many have applied on their way to acquiring abundance.
The one-liner that convinced me to devour the book was the quote:

“The sun that shines today is the sun that shone when thy father was born, and
will still be shining when thy last grandchild shall pass into the darkness.”
“The thoughts of youth,’ he continued, ‘are bright lights that shine forth like the meteors that oft make brilliant the sky, but the wisdom of age is like the fixed stars that shine so unchanged that the sailor may depend upon them to steer his course.”

All you need to succeed is a great desire! Nothing to start with and only taking the opportunities available to all!

If one does not have gold, it is either because he does not know the laws of gold or cannot observe them.

The book teaches its lessons through
1. Arkad’s journey to wealth through asking a wealthy man for advice -> The five laws of gold
2. Arkad’s test of manhood to his son Nomasir -> Knowledge is more than gold
3. The tale of the ox and the ass (I was surprised to find that this word actually means a horse-like animal :D ) -> If you desire to help thy
friend, do so in a way that will not bring thy friend's burdens upon thyself."
4. The story of Dabasir from slave to free merchant -> all you need is desire and where the determination is, the way can be found
5. Sharru Nada and Hadan Gula -> you create your own luck

THE SIMPLE RULES OF GOLD ACQUISITION

1 . Start thy purse to fattening

2. Control thy expenditures

3. Make thy gold multiply

4. Guard thy treasures from loss

5. Make of thy dwelling a profitable investment

6. Insure a future income

7. Increase thy ability to earn





Two kinds of learning:
1) things we learn and knew.
2) the training that thought us how to find the ones that we don’t know

The magic of willpower:
For now, I had made a habit and it was not difficult.

Lessons from the richest man in Babylon

1. Life on less than you can Earn!!! Not below your means!!! Very important!!!
This means to partition your earnings and to save at least 10%.
As reported by many examples in the book, this is easily doable.

2. Take advice and seek from those who were complemented from their own experiences
3. Learned to make gold work for you
4. Opportunity wastes no time with the unprepared
5. Willpower is not the answer:
1. The answer is to have a very strong desire/vision/why! This is the reason why so many self-help books focus on starting with the vision (having the end in mind)
2. The unflinching purpose to carry a path you have set for yourself to fulfill
3. When set a task for yourself, no matter what, you complete it!!!! For example, if you determine to throw a stone every day into the river, if one day you forget, return and throw the stone. Neither do you give up on the 20th day!
4. Because you have the determination to complete all tasks, be careful not to start difficult and impractical tasks
6. Wealth grows where man exerts energy. Therefore, when a prince creates a palace, the place brings wealth to everyone working on the project, but also enriches the area around it!! Hence, wealth creates wealth.


How to become rich according to Arcad, the richest man in Babylon:
1. 10% of what you earn is yours to keep! Including 10% of the earnings of your earnings%
1. Do not each the children of your efforts
2. Arrange other expenditures
3. Rich feeling to have your own treasure - a new joy of life will thrill you!
2. Learn to make your treasure work for you!! Make it your slave! Make it’s children and it children’s children work for you
3. Ensure an income for thy future
1. Invest treasure with greatest caution so that it is not lost!!
4. Council with wise man!! Seek the advice of man’s whose daily work is handling money
1. Small return and a save one is far more desirable than risk
5. Enjoy life while you are here!! Do not try to strain or save too much!
1. Don’t get afraid to spend! Life is good and life is rich! Just make sure to live according to your income!
2. There are things worth-while and things to enjoy

The seven lesson to fatten your purse:
No man can climb firmly, unless they step firmly on the first step.
1. For each 10 coins I earn, spend 9
1. Gold comes more easily to the person that keeps their gold and does not spend it
2. Control thy expenditure
1. What one calls the necessary expenses will always grow in proportion to your income (other authors refer to this as Parkinson’s law)


The Five Laws of Gold
Arkad did not let his son inherit his fortune, instead he gave him a choice to prove he is worthy:
"A bag heavy with gold or a clay tablet carved with words of wisdom; if thou hadst thy choice,
which wouldst thou choose?"

THE FIVE LAWS OF GOLD

I. Gold cometh gladly and in increasing quantity to any man who will put by not less than
one-tenth of his earnings to create an estate for his future and that of his family.

II. Gold laboreth diligently and contentedly for the wise owner who finds for it profitable employment, multiplying even as the flocks of the field.

III. Gold clingeth to the protection of the cautious owner who invests it under the advice of men wise in its handling.

IV. Gold slippeth away from the man who invests it in businesses or purposes with which he is not familiar or which are not approved by those skilled in its keep.

V. Gold flees the man who would force it to impossible earnings or who followeth the alluring advice of tricksters and schemers or who trusts it to his own inexperience and romantic desires in investment.

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92 people found this helpful

fantastic read!! great hidden messages.

This book really does make you think and you definitely realise the bad habits we make every day. The way it describes the keys to success are very powerful.

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2 people found this helpful

Great book. Very thought provoking

shows the foundation of saving and investing has changed in all these years. no point trying to reinvent the wheel.

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Very educational and engaging

Better listen than other financial education audiobooks such as think and grow rich by Napoleon Hill, though not quite as detailed.

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Great Read!

I really enjoyed the stories through which the book teaches how to build lasting wealth, still relevant in 2019

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Great life learnings and lessons!

Names & concepts could me modernised but v.good nonetheless and some great learnings to be had.

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excellent

great way to success by use of a story. This book gives the basics of money management that can help anyone in any environment.

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One of the best books iv come across.

An excellent book. Iv started to implement what's suggested and I feel so much better in myself.. I would highly recommend this book if your struggling with managing your finances..

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Proving books the cheapest way to better a life

schools should include this book in curriculum.
the world maybe wouldnt be so finacially harsh for so many.

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A book to help change direction.

I listened to this book on a recommendation from a friend. Having decided to really reflect on my personal spending habits this has proven to be a fantastic book. The messages are repeated several times but in my view that doesn't detract from a life changing lesson.

Simple to understand and a theory which is still relevant to the current day. I have listened to it 4 times already and have taken note of each lesson.

Worth a listen/read!

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