In Hindu mythology, Bhasmasura was a demon who, after praying to Lord Shiva, received a boon that anyone whose head he touched with his hand would immediately turn into ashes (bhasma). Shiva granted this request, but Bhasmasura , the ungrateful demon that he was, attempted to touch the head of Shiva with his hand. Shiva fled and somehow managed to reach Lord Vishnu for help.
Lord Vishnu took up the disguise of Mohini, a beautiful dancer, and appeared in front of Bhasmasura. Mohini was so exceedingly beautiful that Bhasmasura immediately fell in love with her. Bhasmasura asked Mohini to marry him. She told him that she was very fond of dancing, and would marry him only if he could match her moves identically. Bhasmasura agreed and they started dancing.
Bhasmasura matched the disguised Vishnu's move for move. Smartly then, Mohini struck a pose where her hand was placed on top of her own head. As Bhasmasura imitated her, he was tricked into touching his own head, and immediately turned into ashes.
So, how is a mythological story connected to a common man like you and me?
Inflation eats away a major part of the returns that your investment generates. So, if your fixed deposit (FD) gives a return of 8% and the rate of inflation is 8%, you are actually earning nothing on your investment. Then, how can we defeat this Bhasmasura named Inflation? Shiva turned to Vishnu for help, whom do we turn to for safety?
Vishnu in our case is equity /stocks of the same companies that make these goods that we are buying. Let us see how. Say, you love the soaps manufactured by a particular company and so does everyone else you know. The more people buy that soap, the higher the profits for that company.
These profits the company shares with its shareholders in the form of dividend. By buying even a single share of that company, you can take home a part of this profit. Look at a bank, if it is offering good rates for lending and deposits and more and more people are flocking to it, chances are that it might generate handsome profits. Buying shares of this bank will ensure a share in profits for you by means of dividend.
Inflation currently stands at around 8% (March 2011 inflation forecast as per RBI is 8%), whereas equities have typically given 18-20 % returns in the long term. Even if you take inflation at 6%, 20 years from now something that costs .Rs 10,000 today will cost Rs 32,071! If you invest the same Rs 10,000 in a fixed deposit at 8%, 20 years from now it will be Rs 46,610.
Wait, before you run to the bank, just hold on for a minute while we deduct taxes from those returns. If you fall in the highest tax bracket of 30%, the figure of Rs 46,610 shrinks to Rs 29,736 - less than what inflation did to prices.
So while you thought you will beat inflation, in reality, you lose your capital. Now, if you choose to invest this Rs 10,000 in equities today, 20 years from now that money could turn to Rs 1.63 lakh, even at a conservative 15% return! Very few investment options have the capacity to generate such inflation-crushing returns . And this is the Mohini avatar that will help you kill the Bhasmasura of inflation.
Story Source: Economic Times
Invest in good Mutual Funds i.e. Equity Linked Savings Schemes (ELSS) if you are not aware of Equities for both Tax benefit and also good returns…check their past performance and also the fund managers record….
** This is only an article and suggestion, Risk lies with the Investor…..
