Using Your Energy – Do Not Burn Up Your Own Merit

Have you ever wondered why some people are born healthy, wealthy, and powerful, yet their lives eventually decline? Meanwhile, others who seem ordinary always encounter good fortune and live in peace. The secret lies in how we use our energy, which is the merit we have accumulated from previous lives.

According to Venerable Thich Chan Quang, every person possesses their own merit. Health, money, status, reputation, talent, age, and time are all forms of energy. They are gifts resulting from past merit. However, if used incorrectly, this merit will be exhausted, leading us toward downfall. A true disciple of the Buddha always knows how to create merit and direct it toward practice, enlightenment, liberation, and saving sentient beings. So, how should a Buddhist use merit so that it not only remains but also grows?

Do not waste merit on mere enjoyment. In modern life, when people have some money, many rush into partying, drugs, gambling, and sensual pleasures. They think this is enjoying life, but unknowingly they are using merit to create negative karma. Instead of spending time and health on virtuous deeds, chanting sutras, or reciting the Buddha’s name, they invite others to drink. When the money runs out, what is left for them to enjoy? This is the principle of cause and effect (karmic law). A disciple of the Buddha does not accept the view that life is solely for enjoyment. If one has merit, it must be used for spiritual practice and helping others. Only with merit can one practice effectively, speak so that others listen, and have the conditions to propagate the Dharma.

Avoid superstition, as it easily depletes merit. A common mistake is using wealth derived from merit for superstitious activities. People go to fortune tellers, perform rituals to ward off bad stars, burn paper offerings, or spend tens of millions on feng shui adjustments. These actions do not generate merit; instead, they often result in useless financial loss. The teacher instructs that nothing is more powerful than cause and effect (karmic law). While geography and feng shui may exist, they are not as potent as karmic law. When you focus on creating merit and helping others, what you need will naturally arrive. Do not chase the branches while forgetting the root.

Do not display outward form while neglecting the inner mind. External appearances are necessary to show respect to others, but if one focuses only on the surface while lacking ethics and inner depth, it becomes wasteful. Building grand temples with elaborate decorations without focusing on practice is wrong. In the long run, those with good hearts achieve true success. The teacher emphasizes that conduct and character are decisive, whereas physical appearance is not as important. Invest your effort in qualities, in meditative concentration, and in love. That is where true value lies.

Buddhist activities must nurture the path of awakening. Often, we organize festivals and pilgrimages, but these can become displays of extravagance, costliness, and conflict. The teacher warns that a proper Buddhist activity must help participants grow in their faith and love for the Dharma. If an event leaves people feeling empty or even jealous, it wastes merit. Before acting, ask yourself: Does this help others practice?

Do not compete or seek revenge. Competition and revenge are the fastest ways to burn up merit. Politics spends hundreds of millions on campaigns, and companies waste resources on rivalry. It is even more damaging when temples compete with each other or speak ill of one another. Sometimes, winning a small part causes Buddhism to weaken by three parts. Those who understand the Dharma know how to yield. The teacher says that yielding may mean accepting disadvantage compared to fellow practitioners or other temples, but it benefits Buddhism by five or six times more. Yielding is not losing; it is planting great merit for the future. Revenge is even more misguided, wasting time and energy while creating immeasurable negative karma.

Use your energy wisely. Every day, we possess merit and energy. Do not squander it on trivial matters. Use your health, money, and time for practice, helping others, and living virtuously. This is the only path for merit to accumulate and deepen. May you use your energy with wisdom, so that each passing day becomes a day of accumulating merit, bringing you closer to enlightenment.