Have You Ever Asked Yourself: What Good Am I Doing for This Life?

Have you ever seen a frail old woman with dim, aching eyes, selling lottery tickets in the evening rain? Or a homeless person curled up in a street corner, hungry and cold through the night? What has brought them to such suffering (dukkha)? According to Thầy Thích Chân Quang, the answer lies in a single word that few of us think about: merit.

Seeing Others to Reflect on Ourselves

In a dharma talk before the holiday season, Thầy Chân Quang shared with his disciples the concerns that arise in him whenever he sees unfortunate lives. He said that when reading the news or browsing Facebook, seeing a sick, thin elderly person selling lottery tickets, or begging in dilapidated houses, he feels deep sadness. Not only sad for their circumstances, but sad that the country still has poor people. A country is truly rich when no one is poor, not when some are extremely wealthy while others are extremely destitute.

"It is because they lack merit. That is exactly right. We understand cause and effect (karmic law) simply because they lack merit."

Thầy reminds us that when we witness scenes of suffering (dukkha), we should not think it has nothing to do with us. Other people's circumstances, other people's misfortunes, may one day become our own if we do not prepare.

Lacking Merit — The Root of All Suffering

According to Thầy, if we want to change the fate of the poor and destitute, simply giving them a meal or daily necessities for a day is not enough. We must raise their merit. But the sad truth is that those elderly people no longer understand, and no longer wish to hear about, creating merit. Therefore, what matters most is that we look at ourselves.

Thầy gives an example: if we see an elderly person suffering a stroke, we should remember that one day we too will grow old, and may also suffer a stroke. Seeing a diabetic person whose foot must be amputated, that day may also come to us. Seeing an elderly person commit a crime, that too may come to us if we do not know how to cultivate, nurture, and avoid it.

Therefore, raising our merit day by day is the most fundamental practice. Even lofty wisdom, meditative concentration, and liberation are all built upon the foundation of blessings from merit.

Life Is Harsh, and the Truth About Your Value

Thầy shares that when we live in the temple, we eat more than we work, because the temple is home. But when we step out into the world, we must work more than we eat. The outside world measures every bit of effort, asking whether you bring them any benefit. If not, they will fire you immediately. Thầy tells of a foreign film about a man who did his duty faithfully, but because that duty brought no profit to the company, he was let go. Life can be that harsh.

Not only in society, but even within the family, if you bring no benefit, you may be rejected. Thầy tells the story of an American couple who sued their own son, demanding that he leave the house because he did nothing useful and only lived off his parents.

"When we cannot bring benefit to others, naturally we are cast out. That is the harsh law of cause and effect (karmic law)."

The Mantra: "What Good Am I Doing for This Life?"

Thầy distills his teaching: a wise person always keeps this question in mind. The question carries two meanings. First, it helps us cope with the harshness of life, so we are not seen as useless. Second, it helps us increase our blessings from merit, live ethically, and become a person of true value.

"At all times, remember only this one thing. What good am I doing for this life?"

Thầy also says: do not define your life's value by your salary. A high salary does not mean you are capable; it means you bring great benefit to the world. If you only receive without giving, your merit will gradually run out, and life will push you aside.

A Life Ideal — Only for Those with Wisdom and Virtue

Thầy teaches: a person without virtue cannot have a life ideal, and a person without wisdom cannot have one either. An ideal is a great goal that brings benefit to many people, not to oneself alone. If the goal serves only yourself, that is ambition. The two look alike, but one is selfless and the other is selfish.

"A life ideal is formed by two things: by people of virtue and by people of wisdom."

Practicing From Today

So what can we do? Begin with the smallest things. Thầy says: "Bring benefit to one person, to many people, to the community." Never refuse any opportunity to help. Works of merit often begin with benefiting one person, then a second, then a third. If we persist, heaven and the Buddhas will give us the opportunity to benefit countless people.

Let the question "What good am I doing for this life?" become your mantra. Every morning when you wake up, in every action, from work to daily interactions, ask yourself this. Then you will have virtue, you will have merit, and you will become a person of value in this world.

This life has no place for those who live in vain. But if you always keep the intention of benefiting others, you will have a firm footing. And more than that, you will accumulate blessings from merit for yourself and for your future. Begin today, with the smallest things, holding this question in your mind and heart: "What good am I doing for this life?"