The Richest Man In Babylon summary 2nd part

Chapter 5

Here Old Kalabab is asking his group of men what they would choose if there were offered either a large bag of gold or a tablet inscribed with wisdom. All of them choose the gold – but Old Kalabab says that this is what wild dogs would do – feed today without worrying about tomorrow. Old Kalabab tells his men about a man called Nomasir, who is Arkad’s son. Nomasir was given gold and wisdom by his father, to prove that he could be trusted with money. Nomasir returned 10 years later to claim his father’s estate as he had been promised, and told his father how at first he had lost the gold, but then used the wisdom to make his own fortune. Nomasir told Old Kalabab the 5 laws of gold that his father had taught him.

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.

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

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

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 keeping.

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

Nomasir eventually followed these laws and soon had riches beyond expectation. Old Kalabab tells his men this, so that they may learn from it.
Chapter 6

Rodan the spear maker here finds himself with 50 pieces of gold. He seeks advice from Mathon the Gold Lender, as he does not know what he should do with it. Mathon tells Rodan about the types of loans that he can give people. Some of these are based on property, some are based on income and some are based on the guarantees of friends and family. Mathon tells Rodan how he chooses who to lend his money to, and Rodan asks if he should consider lending some of his gold to his brother in law Araman, who wants to borrow some to start himself off as a trader and make his riches. Mathon advises Rodan against this, and says that if he were asked by Araman to borrow gold, he would not consider doing so as he feels the gold would not be safe with Araman– he says to Rodan “Better a little caution than a great regret.”
Chapter 7

Banzar was a warrior who guarded the passageway to Babylon. Banzar was the first person to tell of news when the city was besieged, we find Banzar holding counsel during an attack on Babylon. Many of the villagers are asking Banzar for news, and Banzar consoles each of them in the personal way that they needed to hear. Banzar kept guard day and night and watched the enemies of Babylon try to break into the city. After 3 weeks and 5 days, the defences of the city proved how good they were and the attackers were defeated. Banzar keeps watch over all of this, and when the enemies are defeated he uses this to prove to the citizens who had been asking for counsel from him that he had been proved correct, and that Babylon had been strong enough to withstand the force of all the armies of the enemy. Banzar uses this to illustrate the strength of the city, and also the following message to the citizens – “we cannot afford to be without adequate protection.”

Chapter 8

Here we come across the story of Tarkad. Tarkad owes money to a great number of people and has not eaten for two days. He comes across a friend of his, a camel trader named Dabasir. Dabasir asks for the money he is owed by Tarkad, and takes Tarkad to a place to eat where he orders himself a goat leg and Tarkad a jug of water. Dabasir tells Tarkad of the time he used to be a slave in Syria.Dabasir had many debts, and he told Tarkad that no man who did not repay money could ever respect himself, so in effect, he gave himself the soul of a slave. He told how he had run from Babylon away from his debts after he had made wrong decisions about money, and how eventually he was captured and taken as the slave of a Syrian. The wife of the man who owned him took pity upon him and gave him the opportunity to escape. He took camels and ran out of Syria and into the desert. While he was exiled and in the desert, near to death, he had an epiphany. His debts may have been his enemies but he had true friends in Babylon who he wanted to repay. He returned to Babylon and stood up to the people he owed money to, and begged them to be patient while he worked. The money lender Mathon helped him to find a job tending camels, and he worked hard and repaid all his debts. He tells all this to Tarkad and he can see what a difference his words have made to Tarkad, and knows that Tarkad wants to follow his example and work to get himself out of debt. When he sees this, he orders food for himself and Tarkad. Dabasir claims that ‘where the determination is, the way can be found.’
Chapter 9

Here the five tablets that contain the secret to wealth are discovered in Mesopotamia, five thousand years after they were written. Alfred Shrewsbury, an archaeologist, reported the findings on the tablets to Professor Franklin Caldwell. This chapter deals with the letter that he wrote, and what the tablets contained. The tablets told the story of Dabasir’s return to Babylon and the plan that he followed to repay his debts and start his life over again. Alfred writes to Professor Caldwell and tells him that he and his wife have started to follow the lessons detailed in the tablets, and even though the tables were thousands of years old he found the lessons helped him in life, and he says that “There is more pleasure in running up a surplus than there could be in spending it.”
Chapter 10

Here we meet Sharru Nada, who is travelling with the grandson of his partner, Hadan Galu. Sharru tells Hadan that he was once a slave and that he counted himself as hugely lucky as he was sold to a baker, and he was so happy to be able to learn the trade of a baker. He told Hadan that his grandfather had also been a slave, but who was close to buying his freedom. When Sharru and Arad, Hadan’s grandfather, met next, Arad had been freed and Sharru had been sold to another master. Arad bought Sharru’s freedom, and this story touches Hadan’s heart. Hadan from that moment on decides that work truly is the only key needed to his future successes.