Chanakya Niti: 5 money lessons to raise hardworking, responsible children

The right use and care of money matters a great deal for a successful life, according to Chanakya Niti. Teaching children about studies and careers alone is not enough. In today's times, it has become important to give children a proper understanding of money, or financial literacy, from the age of 15. If children understand pocket money, savings, spending and debt early on, they will be able to make wiser decisions about money later in life. Here is what Chanakya said children should be taught about financial literacy by the age of 15.

The first lesson concerns pocket money. For most children, pocket money is simply cash that comes into their hands and is spent immediately. But it is important for children to understand that earning money requires hard work and creating value. According to Chanakya, by the age of 15 children should understand that money does not come just by putting a hand in a pocket. So children should be given the chance, from a young age, to take part in activities where they can experience earning money in exchange for their effort, such as completing a small task outside the house, selling vegetables from their own garden, or making and selling a small item themselves. How much money is earned is not the important part; what matters is understanding the direct link between effort and the earnings that result from it.

The second lesson is about saving. Children are often taught that not spending money is the same as saving it. But a better habit is to set aside a portion of the money as soon as it is received, and spend only what is left. For instance, if a child receives 200 rupees, they can decide in advance how much of it to save and how much to spend. There is no need for a fixed rule about the amount, but the habit of saving regularly matters a great deal. If children learn the habit of spending and saving by the age of 15, they will not face money troubles as adults.

The third lesson is about understanding the real value of money. According to Chanakya Niti, children should understand that an item costing 3,000 rupees is not just that amount of money, it also represents someone's effort, time and labour. Before buying something, one should think about how much effort goes into earning the money for it. The aim of this is not to make children feel guilty about spending money, but to make them understand its real value.

The fourth and final lesson concerns borrowed money. Chanakya gave clear advice against taking loans, though he also acknowledged that avoiding debt entirely is not always possible. His emphasis was that children should understand from the start that borrowed money is not free and may have to be repaid with interest. He said that a person who takes a loan hands over control of some of their future decisions to the other party, whether it is a home loan, car EMIs (equated monthly instalments) or credit card dues.