At the end of Mahabharata, Dharmaraja, his brothers, Draupadi & a dog begin their ascent to heaven. One by one the brothers & Draupadi drop off, leaving only the dog with Dharmaraja at the gate of heaven. The dog being refused entry, Dharmaraja also refuses to enter, leaving the dog behind. Then the dog identifies itself as Dharma or righteousness, which was dearer to Dharmaraja than even his brothers & wife, & is allowed to enter heaven.
In a savage parody of this, Indians may have other cultural interests like literature, music & sports, which they may assidiouly cultivate during their younger days, but all these gradually fall by the wayside in the frenetic rat race of life, leaving only avarice & status as the only goals persued by them at the end of their life. A popular film actor reportedly said "All friendships have an expiry date." Likewise all other interests, except avarice & status, seem to be time-bound & liable to lose attraction.
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