Pay thyself first. Before rent, before food, before the offering at the altar — set aside the tithe. Ten percent is the floor; twenty is the rite of the Brother who is serious; fifty is the rite of the one who will be free in seven years.
Automate it. The will is weak. The wire transfer scheduled at 12:01 AM on payday cannot be argued with. What thou dost not see, thou dost not spend. This is the oldest trick in the book of wealth, and it works because the modern brain is no different from the ancient one.
Where doth the tithe go? Into a brokerage account, into low-cost broad-market index funds. Not into the bank, where it loses to inflation. Not into the mattress, where it loses to inflation AND theft. Into ownership of the productive engine of the world.
After ten years of this rite, thou shalt look at thy account and weep — not from regret, but from gratitude that thy younger self had the discipline to honor the tithe.
Sacred Tool · Tithe
The Tithe of Self
Annual Tithe
$12,000
Estimated 30-Year Vault @ 7%
$993,251
The Seal of the Chamber
The tithe to thyself is the only tribute the gods cannot tax.