พระอาจารย์อธิบายผ่านโอวาทของหลวงปู่ว่า ทรัพย์เป็นคือความรู้ความสามารถและคุณธรรมในตัวเราเอง ซึ่งพาเราไปหาทรัพย์อื่นได้ไม่มีวันหมด ต่างจากทรัพย์ตายอย่างเงินทองที่ใช้แล้วก็หมดไป และการจะมีทรัพย์เป็นได้ต้องดำรงอยู่กับกุศลเท่านั้นDrawing on a teaching from his own preceptor, the teacher explains that "living wealth" is the knowledge, ability, and virtue within ourselves that can generate more wealth endlessly, unlike "dead wealth" like money, which is spent and gone — and that living wealth can only be cultivated by staying rooted in wholesomeness.
A lay follower asked about the difference between "living wealth" and "dead wealth," and why most people chase only the dead kind.
A Teaching From the Preceptor on Living and Dead Wealth
The teacher began with a teaching from his preceptor: wealth comes in two kinds — wealth endowed with "life" (sinful of knowing) which is "living wealth," and wealth without it, which is "dead wealth." A person of wisdom seeks living wealth, because living wealth is oneself — one's own , ability, and , which means that wherever one goes, in whatever town, people welcome and support you, wanting you to stay. Consider someone whose skill and knowledge become so valuable that the government itself needs them, or a woman whose culinary skill becomes so refined that the king himself wants her cooking — this is living wealth, which travels with a person everywhere and never runs out.
Why Most People Chase Dead Wealth Instead
Most people chase only dead wealth, which is spent and gone, unable to generate further wealth, because they lack the living wealth needed to build on it. The teacher explained that behind this lies the Wheel-Turning Guardian within us, who manages our resources held within the sphere of merit as a refined treasure. This guardian guides us toward seeking living wealth — but if we haven't accumulated living wealth ourselves, say, by not applying ourselves to learning as a child, we become stubborn and miss the chance to build it up.
The law of karma and operate ceaselessly. Whoever has the greater proportion of wholesomeness or unwholesomeness in them becomes the dominant force guiding their life. If we stay rooted in system, wholesomeness sincerely guides us toward seeking living wealth. But if unwholesomeness takes the lead, it pushes us toward dead wealth alone, even without living wealth to support it — and life fails to succeed as a result.
True Living Wealth Lies Within the Refined Treasure
Living wealth consists of physical assets, personal qualities (knowledge and virtue), and a supportive circle of people — all held within the refined treasure at , managed by the Wheel-Turning Guardian. When we remain rooted in wholesomeness, it draws merit in together with this refined treasure. And if what we have isn't yet enough, the guardian guides us to study and understand until we grasp the essence of that knowledge, so we can draw on it for the rest of our life. Everything we learn at each stage of life carries real value and benefit — if we fail to see that value, we cannot make use of it. We must therefore seek living wealth, rather than chasing only dead wealth, which is spent the moment it's used and cannot generate anything further.