The importance of money flows from it being a link between the

“The importance of money flows from it being a link between the present and the future.” Thus spoke John Maynard Keynes, the great architect of modern economics, whose words carry both the weight of intellect and the pulse of human destiny. In this statement lies a truth that transcends the counting house and the marketplace: that money is not merely metal or paper, nor merely the symbol of wealth, but the bridge between time itself—a force binding today’s labor to tomorrow’s hope. Keynes saw what many failed to see: that in the movement of currency lies the movement of civilization, the flow of ambition, security, and trust across the river of the unknown.

The origin of this quote springs from Keynes’s reflections during the turbulent years of the early 20th century, a time when empires crumbled and economies fell to ruin. The world had seen how fragile wealth could be when the future seemed uncertain. In his monumental work, The General Theory of Employment, Interest, and Money, Keynes sought not merely to explain finance, but to reveal its human essence. To him, the value of money lay not in gold or authority, but in faith—faith that what we earn and save today will carry meaning tomorrow. In this way, money became the thread connecting generations, weaving the efforts of the present into the tapestry of the future.

To understand this, we must remember that money is promise. It is the language through which one generation speaks to the next: “I have worked; I have built; I have left this for you.” When a craftsman saves his wages, he is not hoarding metal but storing potential—resources that will one day feed his children, build their homes, or educate their minds. When a nation invests, it sows the seeds of tomorrow’s harvest. But when money loses its value—when trust collapses—the bridge between the present and future breaks, and civilization trembles. Thus did Keynes warn against chaos, for without that link, men live only for the moment, and the soul of progress withers.

History offers us a grave reminder of this truth in the tale of Weimar Germany. After the First World War, the nation was burdened with debt and despair. The printing presses roared day and night, flooding the land with paper notes that soon became worthless. Once, a loaf of bread could be bought for a single mark; later, it required wheelbarrows full of them. The people, robbed of faith in their currency, lost faith in tomorrow. Money, once a bridge, became dust in their hands. The economy crumbled, and with it, the moral fabric of the nation—opening the gates to tyranny and war. In that tragedy, Keynes’s wisdom stands illuminated: when money ceases to link the present and the future, both are lost.

Yet Keynes’s insight is not merely cautionary—it is also hopeful. He reminds us that money, rightly used, can be the servant of vision, not its master. It is a tool of creation, allowing dreams to take form and ideas to endure beyond their makers. The farmer who invests in better seed, the scientist who secures funding for discovery, the artist who saves enough to create freely—all are bound by this same principle. Through prudent use of money, the future becomes a continuation of purpose, not a chaos of chance. The wise do not worship money, but neither do they scorn it; they understand its sacred role as the vessel through which intention travels through time.

Keynes spoke not to the greedy, but to the responsible, to those who would see wealth as stewardship rather than possession. He saw that every decision made with money—how we earn it, spend it, save it—shapes the destiny of others yet unborn. Money, then, is not the root of evil, as some have claimed, but the root of connection, a means by which humanity builds continuity across the ages. It can either enslave the present to fear or liberate it through foresight.

And so, my listener, let this be your lesson: handle money not with hunger, but with reverence. Let it be your servant, not your master. Use it to sustain your life, to nurture your dreams, and to bless those who come after you. Do not hoard it in fear, nor scatter it in folly; let it flow, as the river flows from source to sea—linking your work today to the world of tomorrow. For in that flow lies both power and peace.

Thus, as John Maynard Keynes taught, the true importance of money lies not in its glitter, but in its continuity—its power to bind human effort to the promise of progress. Guard that link well, for it is the golden chain that connects your fleeting moment to eternity.