The Economic Crisis Through a Buddhist Lens: Why Does Money Suddenly "Evaporate"?

In the early days of the new year, while many people were worrying about economic hardship, Venerable Thích Chân Quang opened his heart to share a very different perspective on the economic crisis. It is not merely a matter of supply and demand, or of currency, but also a matter of merit and cause and effect (karmic law). His words compel us to pause and look more deeply into the true causes of the upheavals the whole world is enduring.

When Money Suddenly "Evaporates"

The signs of an economic crisis are easy to recognize: those who have goods cannot sell them, and those who want to buy have no money. And so everything stagnates and freezes. But the biggest question is: where does the money go? The Venerable pointed out that the economy runs on money, and when money suddenly disappears, the entire machinery of society falls silent.

"That is the sign of an economic crisis: first, those who have goods cannot sell them, and those who want to buy goods have no money to buy them."

The First Cause: Prosperity While Forgetting to Create Merit

When business goes well, many people only know how to grab and accumulate, pouring all their energy into getting rich while forgetting to do good deeds. They do not share, do not help others, and so their merit gradually fades. When the merit runs out, crisis descends upon the whole of society.

"While business is going well, they refuse to create merit. They keep grabbing and taking, seeing that business is good and pouring all their strength into it. When someone calls them to do something, they say, 'I'm too busy with my business.' And so their merit is lost. They have enjoyed it all to the fullest."

The Second Cause: The Moral Decline of the Wealthy

Those who rise quickly can also fall quickly if they become immersed in personal indulgence, gambling, and debauchery. They believe their success belongs to them alone, but in the eyes of Buddhism, the greater one's wealth, the greater one's responsibility to others. Moral decline depletes merit, dragging down the economy with it.

"When a person enjoys personal pleasures while their business is thriving, we know that this person will go bankrupt. One person's bankruptcy contributes to the general bankruptcy of the whole of society."

The Third Cause: Corruption and Injustice

Corruption allows public funds to be embezzled, laws to be bent, and projects to be hollowed out from within. Those in positions of power, acting for private gain, have pushed society into a state where black and white are confused, draining the economy from its very roots.

"Those in positions of power have secretly taken public money and put it into their own pockets. And then they accept money to shield those who do wrong."

The Fourth Cause: Profitable Investment Without Creating Jobs

Many people pour their money into stocks, real estate, gold, and foreign currencies, seeking only to profit from price differences without hiring workers or creating jobs for society. They care only about their own victory, which depletes their merit and leaves them empty-handed when the market shifts.

"Trading in real estate, trading in stocks, trading in gold, trading in foreign currencies. These kinds of business, where only I profit without creating jobs for society, mean that I gain while others do not benefit, and so my merit is exhausted."

The Lesson of Sin and Merit, and How to Overcome It

The economy is not only the turning wheel of money, but also the turning wheel of cause and effect (karmic law). If we are going through a difficult time, let us look inward: are we living without ethics, without creating merit, without responsibility? For the economy to return to normal, each person must cultivate themselves, create merit, and help others. Only then can society overcome the crisis together, and only then will money not continue to slip away.

"Merit is extremely important. We must place our faith in this matter of sin and merit. Whoever lives in this world and believes deeply in sin and merit, always reflecting on sin and merit, always wary of sin and merit in everything they do—that person will move slowly but surely."

Let us begin each day with a prayer and a good deed. Do not let wealth and ambition obscure the path of practice. When I create merit, I am not only saving myself but also contributing to saving all of society. That is the profound message Venerable Thích Chân Quang conveyed in his dharma talk at the start of the year.