The River of Cause and Effect

On a late afternoon at the end of the year, the river of my homeland flows quietly, its waters murky with silt. The river bends in a curve; on one side, the bank erodes away, while on the other, new land gradually extends outward. Someone stands on the shore, gazing at the water, reflecting on life and the ups and downs of human existence.

In nature, there is a strange physical phenomenon: when a river winds, the outer bank is constantly carved deeper by the current, while the inner bank accumulates more and more fertile soil. Thus, the eroding side continues to lose ground, and the accumulating side grows larger. One day, the river abandons this cycle of erosion and accumulation, cutting a straight path forward. It leaves behind a curved oxbow lake and continues flowing straight as before. This phenomenon exists not only in rivers but also in human life and society.

In our lives, some people possess advantages, wealth, and power because of blessings from merit accumulated in previous lives. They are like the accumulating bank. Others, lacking such blessings, face poverty and hardship, resembling the eroding bank. Those with money and status have the conditions to study, do business, invest, and grow even richer. The poor lack capital, must work for hire, and sometimes suffer exploitation or forced overtime without daring to speak up. Like the river, the rich get richer, and the poor get poorer. Injustice steadily increases.

Yet, one day, the river will flow straight. That is the day justice appears, when cause and effect (karmic law) takes hold. Those who use their advantage to oppress and exploit others, greedy tyrants who plunder the people, eventually fall, go into exile, or face imprisonment. Illicit assets hidden in foreign banks are frozen and returned to the public. This is the law of cause and effect (karmic law); no one can escape it.

However, there is a deeper truth to contemplate. Even if someone becomes wealthy honestly, pays full taxes, treats workers well, and exploits no one, they still gradually accumulate more wealth. Money slowly flows into their pockets. This also creates a dynamic of accumulation and erosion, albeit more slowly. Because calmly enjoying one's own blessings while others live in poverty is itself a form of injustice. A small seed of unwholesomeness falls into the mind/heart and begins to grow. Therefore, the law of cause and effect (karmic law) is not as simple as people often think.

If cause and effect were merely about planting seeds and harvesting fruits, then making merit to enjoy blessings would be sufficient, and liberation would not be necessary. But that is not the case. When we make merit and enjoy the results, the very act of enjoyment gives rise to seeds of injustice and harm. Merit and demerit intertwine and alternate. For this reason, the ultimate ideal of the Buddha remains enlightenment and liberation. No matter how much compassion a bodhisattva has for sentient beings, one day they must enter nirvana, passing the mission of teaching to those who follow.

But speaking of liberation too early can lead to misunderstanding, selfishness, and passivity. If we lack sufficient merit and moral integrity, and still have many duties to fulfill, talking only about liberation makes Buddhism seem negative and unhelpful to sentient beings. Therefore, we must know that liberation is the final goal, but on the path toward it, we must live altruistically, sacrificing for others, and generating vast amounts of merit.

We exist in this world for two reasons: first, to exhaust karma, and second, to learn wisdom from life. If these two tasks are incomplete, we remain trapped in samsara (cycle of rebirth). Encountering poverty is an opportunity to exhaust karma. Those who understand this maintain purity, diligence, and patience despite hardship. Those who refuse to accept this resort to theft or deception to escape poverty. Such people cannot leave samsara (cycle of rebirth).

Beyond exhausting karma, we must learn lessons from life. Seeing someone in distress teaches us compassion. Seeing someone successful teaches us rejoicing in others' achievements. Seeing someone disabled teaches us empathy and reflection on cause and effect (karmic law). Everything presented before our eyes is a lesson. We must not live indifferently or carelessly. We must live with wisdom, mindfulness, peace, and discernment.

Life is a tragicomedy of fairness and unfairness. There is never permanent fairness, nor permanent unfairness. As soon as a log drifts onto the riverbank and silt accumulates, the cycle of erosion and deposition begins again. Eventually, the river flows straight, wiping away injustices. Then, new ripples appear, and the cycle continues. This is the law of life, and it is why we must live responsibly, building this world into a paradise rather than merely paying off debts.

The Meaning of the Story

The lesson Venerable Thich Chan Quang wishes to convey is that the law of cause and effect (karmic law) is complex and subtle, not simple as