The Wondrous Power of Faith in the Earth God

In an old house in the countryside, Mrs. Lan stood in the living room, her face frantic, rummaging through her brown leather handbag. "Oh no! Where is the gold necklace my mother-in-law left me?" she cried out, her voice trembling. The whole house was in a stir. Her husband, Mr. Tu, also hurriedly searched everywhere, but to no avail.

Mrs. Lan recalled a neighbor's advice: "Whenever you lose something precious, pray to the Earth God. Offer a bunch of ripe bananas, pray clearly, and he will help you find it." Half believing, half doubting, but in her panic, she rushed to a corner of the kitchen where a tiny altar for the Earth God sat low on the ground. She lit an incense stick, placed a bright bunch of bananas upon it, and clasped her hands in prayer: "I ask the Earth God to bless me, to help me find the necklace. I will make a generous offering in gratitude."

Strangely, about ten minutes later, as Mrs. Lan returned to tidy the pile of clothes on the sofa, her fingers touched something cool and metallic. The necklace was nestled in the crevice between two cushions, a spot she had previously searched thoroughly without success. She cried out in joy, tears rolling down her cheeks: "The Earth God is so efficacious!"

The news spread quickly through the neighborhood. People began to believe that the Earth God possessed supernatural power, able to hear prayers and intervene in the physical world. From then on, whenever they faced a dead end, they would seek out that small altar. Some whispered prayers to win the lottery, some prayed for their children to pass exams, and some even prayed to... help a contestant win a beauty pageant.

However, a venerable elder monk passing by witnessed this scene and shook his head sadly. The elder monk explained to Mrs. Lan: "Finding the necklace was likely not due to the Earth God's 'magic.' Perhaps your mind became calmer after praying, so you looked more carefully. Or perhaps unseen spirits within the house assisted you. The Earth God is real, a deity governing the land, but people's worship and expectations often mix right and wrong."

The elder monk pointed out that faith in deities has a wondrous power. It helps people overcome fear and creates motivation to act. For example, believing that "heaven punishes the wicked" encourages more virtuous living. This is the positive side. But when faith turns into superstition—like slaughtering a buffalo for sacrifice, or drowning a girl for the River God to take as a wife—it becomes wrong view and cruelty. The line between healthy faith and superstition is very thin, depending on whether people understand the true nature of the metaphysical world correctly.

Meaning of the Story:

Venerable Thích Chân Quang uses the example of the Earth God to analyze the essence of faith. Deities are real, and faith in them has tremendous psychological power, helping people overcome difficulties and aspire to goodness (for instance, fearing divine punishment leads to better living). However, due to a lack of accurate understanding, people easily fall into superstition and erroneous interpretations (such as believing deities can solve all worldly problems like beauty contests, or performing cruel rituals). The lesson is this: We must respect freedom of faith and acknowledge the existence of the metaphysical world, but this must be founded upon right view (chánh kiến), steering clear of wrong views and superstition. Science has not fully explained that world, but that does not give us permission to believe blindly.

Compiled from a dharma talk by Venerable Thích Chân Quang.