From Barter to Blockchain: How Money Rules and Ruins Modern Life
By Rupasri Pattanayak
Money comes in various sizes, shapes, and materials across different countries around the world. In recent times, we’ve seen the rise of electronic money, UPI, Bitcoin, crypto currency, and more.
Yet, no matter the form, money functions the same way everywhere, for transactions, purchases, spending, even for basic needs and desires. Simply put, from your first breath to your last, if you’re part of human society, you need to earn and spend money to survive. 
As time passes, humanity grows increasingly dependent on money, widely seen as the measure of affluence. But to understand its roots, we must return to a time when no one could produce all they needed alone.
This led to the barter system, where goods were exchanged directly. Over time, its inefficiencies gave rise to standardized mediums of exchange: currency.
Anthropologists have documented many early forms of money, including cacao beans in ancient Mexico, cowrie shells in China and India, iron tools and brass rods in Africa, woodpecker scalps in California, dog teeth in Papua New Guinea, whale teeth in Fiji, and even massive stone discs on the island of Yap.
These primitive currencies laid the foundation for today’s complex monetary systems.
An important aspect to consider about the barter system era is that human needs were limited. People primarily focused on basic necessities and simple comforts. They had ample time to spend with their families and in nature.
Humans lived according to the natural purpose of life; much like other animals on Earth: eating, sleeping, reproducing, and doing only what was necessary to survive.
Around 1200 BCE, societies began using metals like copper, silver, and gold as money due to their durability, divisibility, and portability, marking a shift from barter systems.
By 600 BCE, the first standardized coins appeared in Lydia (modern-day Turkey), minted by King Alyattes from electrum, a gold-silver alloy. These coins often bore rulers’ symbols, boosting trust and laying the groundwork for modern currency.
Paper money later emerged in 7th century China during the Tang Dynasty, when merchants used promissory notes for large transactions. Its portability made it ideal for trade, and by the 13th century, Marco Polo famously described its widespread use, introducing the idea to the Western world.
During the Medieval to Renaissance period in Europe, the development of banking and credit systems marked a major transformation in how economies operated. Cities like Florence and Venice became financial hubs, where institutions introduced innovations such as banks, bills of exchange, and credit mechanisms.
These systems allowed merchants to engage in long distance trade without carrying large amounts of physical currency. In ancient India, temples were not only centres of spiritual life but also played a vital role in the economic and financial systems of society.
They functioned as early forms of banks, especially during periods such as the Chola, Pandya, Gupta, and Vijayanagar empires. Temples received substantial donations in the form of gold, silver, coins, and land from kings, nobles, merchants, and devotees.
These offerings were stored securely within the temple premises, making temples significant repositories of wealth.
In the 20th century, much of the world adopted fiat money, currency without intrinsic value, backed solely by government authority. A pivotal moment came in 1971 when the U.S. ended the Gold Standard, severing the link between paper money and gold and solidifying global reliance on fiat currency.
The 21st century brought further transformation with digital and cryptocurrencies. Credit cards, online banking, and mobile wallets became the norm, while Bitcoin’s 2009 debut marked the rise of decentralized currencies, reshaping economies and financial interactions. Yet, alongside these shifts, humanity has traded peace of mind, health, and deep relationships for money, luxury, and an insatiable appetite for more.
Over the past three decades, many once-luxurious items have become everyday household goods. Cameras, for instance, were once reserved for studios or the wealthy, but by 2025, they are ubiquitous, thanks to smartphones.
From cities to remote villages, access to such technology has become widespread driven by democracy and greater financial access. Similar transformations have occurred with items like mobile phones, drones, laptops, internet access, TVs, cars, air travel, and home appliances.
However, this growing purchasing power comes at a cost: the wealthier we become, the more we extract from the Earth. One fears a future where the Earth is drilled from pole to pole in pursuit of more.
When a person commits murder, the law delivers punishment to preserve societal order. But what about the slow, ongoing harm we inflict on Mother Earth, what consequences await us for breaking nature’s laws? We toil for months, only to receive intangible electronic money, which disappears with a swipe on a screen.
Unlike the past, when physical coins and notes gave a sense of real earning, today’s wealth is just numbers, abstract and fleeting.
The Earth gives us all we need to thrive, yet we rarely act to protect it. Perhaps humans are the only species capable of orchestrating their own extinction driven by a greed fiercer than fire. Every invention we create comes with hidden costs, much like the tale of Bhasmasura,
who burned himself with his own power. In many ways, each of us in 2025 reflects Bhasmasura blindly speeding toward self-destruction. Today, the world we’ve built feels more like an industrial cage than a home or an office. And looming over us is Mayasura, not just a myth, but a living force.
Mayasura is our salary, our illusion of wealth and success, keeping us trapped in a cycle of consumption and disconnection. Worst of all, we pass this illusion to our children taking pride when they avoid soil & dirt, forgetting that true life begins on the earth.
Real legacy is not in money or status, but in leaving behind clean air, pure water, and healthy food. If we can escape the grip of Mayasura and return to what is real, we may yet leave our children something of true value.
