“Gold is a treasure, and he who possesses it does all he wishes to in this world, and succeeds in helping souls into paradise.”
- August 25th to October 31st, 1451 – May 20th, 1506
- Born in the Republic of Genoa (now Italy)
- Explorer and navigator
- He reached the Americas on his voyage in 1492 and is known as the discoverer of the “New World.”
Quote
“Gold is a treasure, and he who possesses it does all he wishes to in this world, and succeeds in helping souls into paradise.”
Explanation
This quote from Christopher Columbus reflects a mindset deeply rooted in the materialism and spiritual justification that accompanied European exploration and colonialism. Columbus presents gold as not just a physical treasure, but as a means to power, both in earthly and spiritual terms. “He who possesses it does all he wishes to in this world” suggests that gold grants the possessor immense control over their earthly endeavors, including political power, economic influence, and personal success. In the context of Columbus’s time, gold was the ultimate symbol of wealth, and its possession was linked to the ability to fund missions, wage wars, and expand empires.
The second part of the quote, “and succeeds in helping souls into paradise,” is more revealing of the colonial mindset that justified exploration through religious motives. Columbus, like many explorers and colonizers of the time, believed that acquiring wealth—especially gold—was not just a worldly pursuit, but also a spiritual mission. Gold was seen as a means to fund the spread of Christianity and bring salvation to the indigenous populations. By “helping souls into paradise,” Columbus suggests that his actions, motivated by the search for gold, were ultimately in service of a higher, divine purpose: the Christianization of the people he encountered, which was often framed as an essential part of the colonial project. This mindset reflects the intersection of material and religious goals in European exploration, where the acquisition of resources was often intertwined with the perceived moral obligation to “save” indigenous souls.
In modern terms, this quote serves as a reminder of how the pursuit of wealth—especially when viewed through the lens of power and religion—can be used to justify actions that might otherwise be considered exploitative or harmful. Columbus’s belief that gold could bring both earthly success and spiritual salvation reflects a worldview where materialism and religion were deeply intertwined. Today, similar justifications continue to arise in debates over economic exploitation and moral responsibility, especially in the context of global wealth inequality, resource extraction, and the ethical implications of modern corporate practices that claim to bring benefits to society while sometimes causing harm to local or indigenous communities.
