Some people are so in love with money that they have an almost physical craving for it.
The miser who will not use his money derives immense satisfaction just from knowing that he has it.
In that case, the money becomes an abstract ideal.
One might say that the miser's love is a very delicate kind of love.
He does not need anything from his beloved, he does not use his beloved; he is just happy that it is there for him.
I once heard about a miserly old man who had a young girl living with him.
Everybody told him that it was not he she loved, but his money.
To this the miser retorted, "I spent my whole life making money, thinking about money; that was the only thing that really interested me. What am I? I am my money. If she loves the money, she loves me dearly."
He identified so with his money that it was no longer just something that he possessed.
It was his very self.
–Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz
From Simple Words by Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz