I heard someone say, 'There's nothing unspiritual about nice things, or wanting them.' (The individual referenced something called Maseratis, which, I'm told, are a type of motor car.)
These are two different propositions. Things are obviously neither spiritual or unspiritual. They might be sacred or profane, but that's a different question again.
But what about wanting them?
'I want nice things.'
Who is the I? Spirit? The ego?
What does want mean?
When the nice thing is received, is the wanting satisfied?
Does the thing continue to be wanted?
When I want something, what significance does that have?
Does wanting something mean I should seek it or have it?
If I want something, does that mean it is good for me?
If I want something, does that mean it will make me happy?
What does nice mean?
Who is to judge whether something is nice?
Is the nice thing universally considered so?
Is the thing itself nice, or is nice a label applied by the individual?
If the latter, what does the label denote?
Is it merely a label applied to something that I want?
Does the word really add anything?
Or is it simply a way of projecting out my wanting onto the thing wanted?
As though the niceness is inducing the wanting in me, making me a victim of the wanting?
So, fine, I 'want' 'nice things':
Why?
What would change in my actual life?
What would change inside?
What meaning do I give the 'nice thing'?
A friend of mine once remarked, 'I have 35 chairs and I only have one behind.'
Here's a quotation:
‘I shall never own anything of value,’ she said. ‘Things of value are death to peace of mind.’
Unexplained Laughter, Alice Thomas Ellis
Buddhism's eight worldly concerns, and Buddhist writers' warnings about them, certainly caution against wanting.
My own experience of wanting is that it creates want.
Wanting creates the void that the wanted thing fills.
Although it fills it only inadequately and temporarily.
But if there were no wanting in the first place, the void would not have arisen.
So why make the effort to acquire the thing?
Why not eliminate the wanting?
And what else could I do with my time, which is limited, and my energy, which is limited, and my attention, which is limited, and my resources, which are limited?
There are a lot of questions, here, and, whilst I'm answering them myself, I'm further developing an existing aversion to wanting, and to things. More and more, I'm keeping things simple and not giving a damn about most things. Particularly things. And especially nice things.