Hinduism and Micro Finance

8/6/2019 Hinduism and Micro Finance

1/21Electronic copy available at: http://ssrn.com/abstract=1728384

Hinduism and Microfinance

Arvind Ashta

1

Burgundy School of Business

[email protected]

Dec 19, 2010

Dec 27, 2010

ABSTRACT

Religion is a major institution impacting microfinance. Very little work has been done on

Hinduism and microfinance. This work has become imperative in the wake of the triple

explosion of microfinance in India: explosion in the sense of growth rates, explosion in the

sense of legislative interest, explosion in the sense of indebtedness and suicides. The

questions is what are the local customs and what place does religion and history accord to

debt and interest rates. This paper shares the limited information available with the author

on Hinduism and provides an offbeat Hindu perspective to the case of SKDRDP.

INTRODUCTION: RELIGION AND MICROFINANCE

There is significant work being done on religion and economics, although results are

disputed. It is suggested that religions influence public and private institutions and that

these institutions are then related to economic activity. Some suggest that religions which

espouse free market institutions, notably Judaism seem to foster economic growth, while

1My thanks to M.K. Ashta, Rajan Kapoor and N.V. Krishna for reading through initial drafts of the

paper and their useful comments.


2/21Electronic copy available at: http://ssrn.com/abstract=1728384

those that are morally conservative lead to negative relationship with economic growth,

notably fundamentalist Protestantism and to a small extent Catholicism (Heath, Waters et al.

1995). This study compared State-wise religious data with economic performance for Jewish,

Roma-Catholics, Fundamental Protestants and other (liberal) Protestants. This negative

relationship for Catholics and mainline protestants was also found more recently by

Rupasingh & Chilton (Rupasingha and Chilton 2009), but they found it to be more so for

Catholics than for mainline protestants. One cross-country study found that in general

Christian religions were good for attitudes towards economic growth but that Islam was not

(Guiso, Sapienza et al. 2003), while another cross-country study finds that Islam is conducive

to economic performance (Noland 2005). Yet another study finds that religious diversity

reduces happiness because of conflicts (Mookerjee and Beron 2005).

Some studies find a negative bicausal relationship between church attendance and income

(Lipford and Tollison 2003; Rupasingha and Chilton 2009). It is argued that church

attendance takes away time and stimulation for economic activity since the hereafter is

more important and that for the rich there is a huge opportunity cost which keeps them

from attending church.

As opposed to this, others argue that there is a bicausal positive relationship between

religious intensity and economic income, where religious intensity has been measured by

frequency of attending a church (Arano and Blair 2008). Their study found that households in

lower income groups in Mississipi were less likely to attend church and those in higher

income groups were more likely to attend. Higher income influences church attendance and

higher church attendance influences income. Thus, there is some evidence that church

attendance is a normal good. Perhaps, at low levels of income, the time lost in church


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attendance is less important than earning income. However, higher level of church

participation may allow building social capital necessary for higher income (Arano and Blair

2008). Overall, religious practices usually allow for better attitudes towards economic

success, although they may prevent women from participating in society (Guiso, Sapienza et

al. 2003).

In summary, the positive relationship is because religious people are more ethical,

trustworthy, etc, leading to lower monitoring costs and transaction costs and higher income,

as well as due to social capital from church attendance. The lower relationship is argued

from the deterrent to materialism from religious authorities and from the time taken in

going to church. The debate does not provide a clear result, but it would be good if the

positive explanations (trust, honesty, social capital) can be developed in a society, especially

to aid the poor.

Although there is some literature on religion and microfinance (Ashta and De Selva 2010),

very little work has been done on Hinduism and Microfinance. Although a first step has been

taken in a study of one Microfinance institution having religious roots (Harper, Rao et al.

2008), this study does not go into details of Hinduism and what it prescribes for finance. We

will therefore briefly review some of the ancient Hindu and Indian scripts to see the

treatment of finance in those texts. We will then use the Harper et al (2008) case study of

SKDRDP to see possible religious connotations. Wherever we can, we contextualise the

discussion.

BACKGROUND TO HINDUISM


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Hinduism is a pantheistic religion, one of the oldest religions. Pantheism is the belief that

God is everything and everything is God. Hinduism is not the only pantheistic religion. In

India, three offshoots of Hinduism that are now considered separate religions are Buddhism,

Jainism and Sikhism. The former two date to the sixth century BC, while the latter is fairly

recent.

Hinduism is pantheistic as well as polytheistic. Polytheism is the belief in many Gods. Very

briefly, there is a Central God (Brahaman) who is then divided into a trinity of creation,

preservation and destruction (played respectively by Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva). Each of the

last two went down to Earth in reincarnations to defeat evil. Other than that, for each

quality, there is one God. Everyone can then turn to a god that suits him. God has infinite

qualities and each infinite in quantity. If we take any quality and follow through, we arrive at

the infinity that is God. To understand abstract god, the central God, is not easy even for the

intellectual. So for most of humanity, we need symbols. This role is provided by the

multitude of Gods. Even atheism, a belief in the absence of God, is accepted in Hinduism.

The scriptures of Hinduism consist of what God said (the shrutis, like the Vedas and the

Puranas) and what Man remembered (the Smritis). The latter is what Manu recalled

following the deluge, about 3000 years before Christ. So there was something before the

flood. The Vedas are considered to have always been there, and could be regarded as the

divine authorisation of laws and customs, a constitution, put in writing between 2000 and

1400 BC, that binds people (or the willingness of people together is the will of God). One

major treatise on Hinduism is called the Bhagavad Gita which is found in one of the two


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great epics of Hinduism, the Mahabharat (the other one is Ramayana). It is considered that

the Bhagwad Gita summarizes the essence of Hindu philosophy found in the Vedas.

The Vedas are distinct from what Manu remembered, and which is called the Manusmriti,

that is written/transcribed later and is more like laws that respect their epoch. Manusmriti

codes were probably written between 1400 and 200 BC, though some experts may provide a

later date (Bhattacharyya 1996). Although there are other codes or laws of other law givers,

that of Manu is the most well-know. In Ancient India, there was another major treatise

which is not religious per se, but is also an import work in Political Economy called the

Arthashastra, written by Chanakya Kautilya, the Prime Minister of Chandra Gupta Maurya,

sometime between 150 BC and 150 AD (Rangarajan 1992). However, in India, religion is

intertwined with everything. All is God and God is all.

In this paper, unless otherwise stated, when we refer to Manusmriti, we are referring to

information on this work contained in the translation by Bhler (Bhler (translated 1886))

2

,

when we refer to Arthashastra, we are referring to Rangarajan (1992).

MONEY AND WEALTH

According to the Arthashastra, there are four qualities that predominate. These are Moksh

(Salvation), Dharma (Ethics,) Artha (Money) and Kama (Pleasure). These four qualities are

also enshrined in Vedic tradition (Sharma 2005). So money is one of the four most important

qualities. Plus, it is embodied by the goddess Lakshmi. The importance of money in Hinduism

2The translated work is available online athttp://www.sacred-texts.com/hin/manu.htm
http://www.sacred-texts.com/hin/manu.htmhttp://www.sacred-texts.com/hin/manu.htmhttp://www.sacred-texts.com/hin/manu.htmhttp://www.sacred-texts.com/hin/manu.htm


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is reinforced by the place assigned to Lakshmi, who is the wife of Vishnu, the God of

Preservation. So it is money that makes the world go round!

Lakshmi is worshiped mostly by traders. And girls, who are a source of concern for the

dowry, are considered Lakshmi for the family that will welcome them with their dowry.

Divali, one of the greatest festivals of Hinduism, reveres Ram, an incarnation of Vishnu. But

on this day prayers are offered to Lakshmi. Hindu traders begin their new year at Diwali,

after offering prayers to Lakshimi.

Perhaps no other religion in the world venerates money.

DEBT

Two pages of the Manusmriti provide details of interest rates and recovery. However, a

whole section 8.7 of the Arthashastra treats loans, depostis, pledges, mortages etc.

(Rangarajan 1992, pp 422-430), of which the last two pages are for pubishments. Loans are

treated on pages 425-426, but the general provisions are also applicable to them. The

general provisions indicate who can sue for recovery, the obligations of debtors and

creditors and their heirs and successors, sureties, limitations and the case of multiple

creditors.

INTEREST RATES

The three great monotheistic religions (Judaism, Islam and Christianity) all have, or have had

at some point in their history, a prohibition of interest rates (Mews and Abraham 2007). As


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opposed to this, Hinduism allows interest rates: even rates considered excessive today. The

rates seem to depend on the epoch.

Chapter VIII of The Manu Smriti (Bhler (translated 1886))interests us

140. A money-lender may stipulate as an increase of his capital, for the interest, allowed by Vasishtha,

and take monthly the eightieth part of a hundred.

141. Or, remembering the duty of good men, he may take two in the hundred (by the month), for he

who takes two in the hundred becomes not a sinner for gain.

142. Just two in the hundred, three, four, and five (and not more), he may take as monthly interest

according to the order of the castes (varna).

Thus, article 140 would indicate that a normal interest rate of 1.25% per month is allowed or

15% per year. However, article 141 seems to allow even 2% per month or 24% per year.

Finally, article 142 permits monthly interest on debt at the rate of two, three, four or five per

cent according to the order of the castes" (Bhattacharyya 1996, p. 181). That makes 24, 36,

48 and 60% a year, long before Jesus Christ.

Some centuries later, Kautalya's Arthashastra, considers "the lawful rates of interest for

different purposes shall be: normal transaction 1.25% per month (15% per year)3; normal

commercial transaction 5% per month (60% per year); commercial travel with risky travel

through forests 10% per month (120% p.a.); commercial transactions with risky travel by sea

20% per month (240% p.a.)" (Rangarajan 1992, p. 426). Even higher rates were possible in

regions where the King could not afford protection: "No one shall charge or cause to be

charged a rate higher than the above, except in regions where the Kind is unable to

guarantee security; in such a case, the judges wshall take intoaccount the customary

practices among debtors and creditors" (Rangarajan 1992, p. 426).

3Note the similarity with VIII,140 of Manu cited above


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Thus, we see that the notion of risk and return were present in India as early as Kautalya, at

the latest by 150 A.D. Obviously, what was tolerated at the time is not necessarily what is

tolerated today because religion has evolved, the economy has been transformed, the

nature of risk has changed.

So the Mexican MFI, Compartamos, which has been highlighted in the Microfinance press for

its high interest rates of 86% without VAT and 99% with VAT (Ashta and Bush 2009), is within

Hindu norms. And if we look at Manu (Chapter VIII), further

151. In money transactions interest paid at one time (not by instalments) shall never exceed the double

(of the principal); on grain, fruit, wool or hair, (and) beasts of burden it must not be more than five

times (the original amount).

Thus if interest is paid in one installment, two hundred percent seems to be allowed. Five

hundred percent is also allowed for advances on certain items.

The rates allowed in the Arthashastra seem to be much lower: For grains and for commodity

stocks, the interest is limited to 50%. For grains is is 50% for the crop season. For commodity

stocks it is 50% per year (Rangarajan 1992, p. 426).

However, the usurious ceiling in the Manusmriti seems to remain at 60% per year because itis asserted that anything higer is not recoverable.

152. Stipulated interest beyond the legal rate, being against (the law), cannot be recovered; they call that

a usurious way (of lending); (the lender) is (in no case) entitled to (more than) five in the hundred.

In the Manusmriti, article 143 above

143. But if a beneficial pledge (i.e. one from which profit accrues, has been given), he shall receive no

interest on the loan; nor can he, after keeping (such) a pledge for a very long time, give or sell it.


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This indicates that in a pledge in which profit accrues no extra interest is taken. Note here

the similarity with Islamic finance which allows profit-sharing but not interest.

Interest on interest was not allowed. This is indicated in both the Manusmriti and in the

Arthashastra. Chapter VIII of the Manusmriti indcates

153. Let him not take interest beyond the year, nor such as is unapproved, nor compound interest,

periodical interest, stipulated interest, and corporal interest.

154. He who, unable to pay a debt (at the fixed time), wishes to make a new contract, may renew the

agreement, after paying the interest which is due.

155. If he cannot pay the money (due as interest), he may insert it in the renewed (agreement); he must

pay as much interest as may be due.

In the Arthashastra too, interest on unpaid interest was not recoverable: " no one shall claim

as principal the original loan with the accumulated interest added to it" (Rangarajan 1992, p.

425). Moreover, Interest rate has to be determined at the time of making a loan. Once

interest rate is fixed for a loan, it cannot be changed (Rangarajan 1992, p. 425).

We see that the moneylenders who demand 30% to 240% per year (more where there is no

protection from the king) could be tolerated because they provide special services,

emergencies, lend small amounts, with no formality. So in the Hindu world, there is a place

for the usurer, for MFIs and banks. The recent ordinance passed by the Andhra Pradesh

governor (October 2010) restricting interest to the amount of the principal (ie. 100%)

therefore finds some kind of religious context.

RECOVERY OF DEBT


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The essential problem in Microfinance is to ensure that the borrower pays back. If he does

not do so, enforcement is a problem. The question that is being debated in the wake of

suicides by debtors, is how to recover debt.

Chapter VIII of the Manusmriti (Bhler (translated 1886)) indicates:

47. When a creditor sues (before the king) for the recovery of money from a debtor, let him make the

debtor pay the sum which the creditor proves (to be due).

48. By whatever means a creditor may be able to obtain possession of his property, even by those means

may he force the debtor and make him pay.

49. By moral suasion, by suit of law, by artful management, or by the customary proceeding, a creditor

may recover property lent; and fifthly, by force.

50. A creditor who himself recovers his property from his debtor, must not be blamed by the king for

retaking what is his own.

51. But him who denies a debt which is proved by good evidence, he shall order to pay that debt to the

creditor and a small fine according to his circumstances.

Thus, article 47 requires that the king has to make the debtor repay his debt. Article 47 is

clearly in favour of creditors: the creditor is allowed to use all means to recover his debt.

Article 49 indicates that there are five means of recovery. These are translated slightly

different ly y Bhattacharya: "dharma (persuasion), vyavahara (legal proceeding), cala or

upadhi (trick), carita (sitting down at his door) and bala (compulsion to do the work or

confinnement)."(Bhattacharyya 1996, p. 181). Moreover, article 50 indicates that the king is

on the side of the creditor who takes back what was rightfully his due.

If liability is not admitted by the debtor, then the only method is to file suit for the recovery

of the debt. In view of the above, the Andhra Pradesh ordinance, which does not allow

harassment, or following a person to his house, or any other harassment seems to go against

recognised wisdom of the Ancient texts which even allows trickery to get back the money.


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Manu (Chpater VIII)also states that if a debtor is unable to pay his debts, then he should be

made to do work suitable for his caste in the house of his creditor in order to gradually

liquidate his debt.

177. Even by (personal) labour shall the debtor make good (what he owes) to his creditor, if he be of thesame caste or of a lower one; but a (debtor) of a higher caste shall pay it gradually (when he earns

something).

Thus bonded labour in return for paying his debt, is authorised from the ancient Indian texts.

The moneylender was an accepted institution. Once again, higher castes were privileged.

HINDUISM AND BUSINESS

In Hinduism, business is part of religion. There is a separate caste devoted to trade. There is

a special ceremony to start the projects, where a priest comes to bless the project. There is a

ceremony to close the accounts of a project, and a priest comes to do so. There is a

ceremony for commercial matters and civil matters. So religion and trade are closely linked.

The notion of profit has also been treated in Hinduism. There is a concept of 'Shubh Labh' or

Auspicious Profit. The idea of profit under Hinduism seems to suggest that if it brings mutual

benefit to both parties, then it is 'shubh' or auspicious. According to Sharma (Sharma 2005),

it is profit based on an ethical approach to business.

A related concept from Sikhism propounded by Guru Nanak enjoins on followers 'Kirat karo,

vand chhako, naam japo', roughly translating to 'work hard through remembrance of God,


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share your honestly earned good fortune with those less fortunate, and meditate on God

(Ahluwalia undated). This is similar to the Yoga of action where we do our work but leave the

results to God.

All castes are allowed to trade, but some activities were reserved for the merchant class in

Manu's epoch. As an example, only merchants had the exclusivity to trade in slaves.

Today of course, all castes work together in professional life, especially in cities. But positive

discrimination vis--vis the lower castes and outcasts, did resurface the concept of caste.

A HINDU PERSPECTIVE ON DEVELOPMENT, DIVINITY AND DHARMA

The book on Development, Divinity and Dharma (Harper, Rao et al. 2008) is enjoyable and

informative. It is written in a simple descriptive style, avoiding value judgments and limiting

theoretical conceptualization. I would recommend it for reading to students, consultants in

microfinance as well as practitioners, for the large number of case studies presented,

whether anecdotal or covering multiple chapters. However, in this paper, I look more at it

more as a basis for introducing Hinduism in context.

The authors examine a number of faith based institutions, including a number of other

Christian and Hindu institutions in South Asia and elsewhere. Nevertheless, the central

theme of the book remains a long case study (chapters 3 to 10) on SKDRDP. SKDRDP is a

rural development program started by a Hindu Temple administered by a Jain trustee, Dr.

Heggade. The program offers an integrated rural development perspective, including

microfinance, to help solve the poverty problem. The other chapters are benchmarking


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chapters to better appreciate the SKDRDP model. The large number of chapters on SKDRDP

may justify the use of "Dharma" in the title since Hinduism is, according to the authors, one

of the three Dharmaic faiths (p 1), the others being Jainism and Buddhism (they also include

Sikhism on p. 118).

The first chapter on religion and development summarizes in one place many different

academic questions relating to the role of religion, religious institutions and religious

practices to development through the dissemination of not only spiritual capital but also

social capital and human capital. This could be a useful start for academic research.

Chapter 2 looks at financing and operating costs of faith based institutions as compared to

secular institutions and provides a refreshingly original background to the importance of

discussing the role of a Hindu secular organization for the next eight chapters.

Chapters 3 to 9 provide the role of religion in development and microfinance institutions

(MFIs) through a case study of SKDRDP. SKDRDP is one of ten major microfinance institutions

in India with 200,000 customers. Among the ten large Indian MFIs, eight are for-profit, but

SKDRDP is one of the two non-profit MFIs. The normal rate in microcredit in India is about

24% per year, but SKDRDP charges interest of only 12.5% per year.

The leader of Hindu worship in a certain area of Karnataka State, for the last six centuries,

comes from a family of Jain priests. The current leader decided to do more than help his

flock through religion and is dedicated to improving their material life. So on the hill where

the temple is located, he began to provide loans and at the same time advised his people on

how to improve the productivity of their land. Because they had faith in him and the temple,

people took loans, heeded his advice and paid off their loans. Because they pay back,


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interest rates are reasonable. Gradually, the temple's economic influence has gone to

villages further away. So trust and faith could help microfinance.

Chapters 11 and 12 discuss Islamic institutions and Christian institutions respectively.

Although each of them includes two case studies, these are not detailed to the extent of the

eight chapters devoted to SKDRDP. Since there is a lot of previous work on Christianity and

microfinance and Islamic finance, and very little on Hinduism and Microfinance, the authors

chose to focus on the latter as the Unique Selling Proposition of the book and this is

understandable.

When the reading is being complicated by such use of Sanskrit based words such as

sevanirithans, instead of calling them field agents or development officers, perhaps other

means could be used to ease the reader's understanding. A few graphs of flow charts could

have helped. The formulation of such charts could have also confronted the authors and

readers with different perspectives on the role of SKDRDP within Hindusim. We will illustrate

this using the information contained in this book to offer insights into Hinduism.

For example, a supply and value chain chart could show that the SKDRDP is the both the

supplier and the distributor with the local entrepreneur in between as the central figure.

Moreover, SKDRDP also provides financing and technical services to the entrepreneur. A

larger background figure to all this could show that the temple creates the trust which

obliges the microentrepreneur to repay and also which allows him to trust the NGO to give

him the right advice.


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Thanks to this figure, the omnipresent role of SKDRDP in the supply chain and value chain

makes one think of a few lines in the Bhagavad Gita.

"Brahman is the ritual,

Brahman in the offering,

Brahman is he who offers

To the fire that is Brahman.

If a man sees Brahman

In every action,

He will find Brahman"


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This can be compared with the following

SKDRDP organizes the entrepreneur

SKDRDP organizes the financing

SKDRDP provides the material

SKDRDP does the marketing

If the entrepreneur needs SKDRDP

In every action

He is dependent on SKDRDP

Therefore, this observation could then be manipulated to the flowing perspective with

SKDRDP in the centre, as illustrated in figure 2. In this perspective SKDRDP is a business

venture like any other, except that it is formulated as an NGO. Instead of using salaried staff

to transform the material, it uses outside processing (and hence variable costs) which can

then shift the business risk. To its outside processors, it supplies the material as well as

financing so that they can buy appropriate tools. It also provides them loans for social and

consumption purposes in times of need, just as a paternalist businessman would do for his

employees, rather than giving them a salary raise.


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Thus, instead of promoting the independence of the microentrepreneur who is at the centre

of Figure 1, an alternate perspective would indicate that the faith based institution is at the

center (Figure 2) and is making the microentrpreneur dependent on itself and is indeed

playing God. Of course, if such dependence improves the welfare of the individual, it could

be considered a rational dependence.

Hinduism is not only pantheist; it also is subject to diverse interpretations. According to the

authors (Harper, Rao et al. 2008), perfection is achieved in Hinduism by passive withdrawal,

not by active intervention (p.118). They go on to say that a more positive interpretation is


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possible based on the notion of 'karma' and reincarnation is that one attains virtue by

generosity and sacrifice.

This view that passivity is preferred to activity goes against the views expressed in the

Bhagavad Gita (Prabhavananda and Isherwood 1958). First, it must be mentioned that the

Bhagavad Gita mentions various paths to the ultimate: the Yoga of Knowledge, the Yoga of

Action, the Yoga of Devotion, the Yoga of Renunciation, the Yoga of meditation, the Yoga of

Mysticism and the Yoga of Devotion. All of these lead to Brahman.

Within the Yoga of action, Lord Krishna states

"Action rightly performed brings freedom

Action rightly renounced brings freedom

Freedom from action is not brought by merely refraining from action."

Therefore, Hinduism cannot be considered passive. If Hindus in India work less, it may be

due to heat or dust or other reasons, but not because of religion. Hindus in the US seem to

be doing as well as people from other religions.

In fact, what would happen if everyone stops working? What would happen if God were to

stop working? What should motivate action: In fact , according to the Bhagavad Gita, the

wise have to work to "show by example, how work is holy when the heart of the worker is

fixed on the Highest". Then again, the yoga of renunciation states that for Seers, "their every

action is wed to the welfare of fellow-creatures".


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Judging by the preceding, Mr. Heggade is merely carrying out the spiritual injunctions of the

Gita, which is his duty as the religious head of a Hindu temple. Therefore, he and his wife are

continuously working in order to 'point man's feet to the path of his duty". In such a case,

since "the ignorant work for the fruit of their action", it is necessary for SKDRDP to create

the institutions (central purchase, common marketing), to ensure that the

microentrepreneurs get some fruits from their action so that they can continue their duty of

feeding their own families through their action rather than squandering their efforts on

alcohol. This perspective then brings us back to Figure 1, except that the entire figure is

being used by Mr. Heggade to stimulate the poor people to work and gain a living, even at

the expense of dependency on SKDRDP.

We conclude through the use of this book example, that a case study can be intertwined

more deeply with Hindu religion than a reference to Dharma in the title.

CONCLUSION

Monotheistic religions have one God and do not worship the material. Hinduism, a pantheist

and polytheist religion, reveres money as it does any other quality, but notably in the same

league as salvation, ethics and pleasure.

Moreover, unlike the monotheist religions, it permits interest rates which take into account

the risk factor. Therefore, few studies comparing religions in microfinance should ignore the

diversity allowed in Hinduism.

NOTE ON LIMITATIONS


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In such a polytheist religion, everything is acceptable. The problem is that it is possible to

select specific aspects of Hinduism to support specific arguments, since there is no

universally accepted set of beliefs which actually constitute Hinduism.

This is an initial draft of this paper: Both the Manusmriti and the Arthashastra have many

other relationships with lending practices, and of course there are many other texts. However,

till we develop this further, researchers can go directly to the cited references.


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Documents

Hinduism and Micro Finance