Ancient wisdom states: “What is destined to come will come, and what is not cannot be forced.” The amount of wealth a person is destined to have is predetermined. Only through earnest effort and the accumulation of virtue can one’s destined wealth increase.
Accumulating goodness for wealth
Often, personal calculations are insignificant in the face of fate. During the Northern Song Dynasty, Li Shiheng, an envoy to Goryeo, received numerous gifts of silk, gold, and silver from the King of Goryeo upon his departure. Li Shiheng, indifferent to the wealth, entrusted it all to his deputy for management. On the return journey, fearing water leakage in the ship’s hold, the deputy placed Li Shiheng’s belongings at the bottom as a waterproof measure, keeping his own on top.
When a storm hit, forcing the crew to lighten the ship by discarding cargo, the storm ceased after half the goods were thrown overboard. It was then discovered that all the items discarded belonged to the deputy, while Li Shiheng’s possessions remained intact in the hold.
In the Ming Dynasty, Yang Rong, a young man whose father had passed away, returned to his hometown to observe filial mourning. The local community was impoverished, and the Yang family provided loans to help out. After completing the funeral arrangements, Yang Rong burnt all the IOUs. He funded weddings and funerals for poor families and adopted street children into his home. When disputes over family property arose, he would give away part of his inheritance to resolve the conflicts.
Three years later, when he returned to the capital for his job, people recommended him for his virtues. Yang Rong enjoyed a successful career, eventually becoming a Grand Scholar, and was posthumously honored as a Grand Preceptor, a testament to his profound virtue and fortune.
Virtue unmatched by wealth invites disaster
During the Later Jin Dynasty, Zhao Zaili, a military governor in Songzhou, was notorious for his oppressive levies, becoming a thorn in the people’s sides. His interest in commerce and his exploitation of power for personal gain quickly amassed him a fortune. As his term neared its end, the people rejoiced at the prospect of his departure.
Hearing rumors, Zhao petitioned the court to extend his term by a year and imposed an additional “nail-pulling tax” on the populace. Under his rule, public discontent boiled over, and Songzhou declined. Eventually, the Khitan conquered the Later Jin, and Zhao Zaili was captured, subjected to humiliation, and driven to suicide in fear.
The story tells of a murderer and arsonist who, upon death, fell into hell. The Buddha, taking pity on him for a moment of compassion in his past life where he spared a spider, sent down a spider’s silk to rescue him. Overjoyed, the criminal began to climb, followed by others. Fearing the silk would break, he kicked the others off, causing the silk to snap, and he could no longer ascend.
The Buddha lamented: “The more one gives to others, the more one receives. Only caring for oneself and not for others is why beings suffer in samsara.” A single thought can lead to Heaven or hell. He could have escaped suffering if the criminal had shared the spider’s silk. Similarly, sharing wealth can lead to more incredible blessings.
Buddhism teaches that life is governed by two forces: karma, the result of past actions, and aspiration, the accumulation of good deeds in this life. The wealth in one’s destiny is predetermined by past karma. Only by continuously accumulating virtue can one break free from the constraints of karma and alter the predetermined destiny, thereby attaining blessings in this life.
Translated by Joseph Wu
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