INTRODUCTION ✨
In this concise teaching, Master Woo Myung explains the root of human greed and the standard that distinguishes greed from non-greed. According to his message, greed springs from the self-centered desire to survive — the drive for comfort and personal gain that arises when a person has a self. From the viewpoint of Truth, actions done for oneself are greed, while actions done for the benefit of others are not. This short lesson clarifies how self and selflessness determine moral measure. 🌱💡
ORIGINAL WRITING BY MASTER WOO MYUNG 🕊️
Where does human greed come from, and what is the standard that decides what is and is not greed?
Human greed comes from the desire to survive. The desire for comfort and personal gain, which comes from having a self, gives rise to a person’s greed. The standard for deciding what is and is not greed is the following: anything done for oneself is greed, whereas what is done for the benefit of others is not. From the position of Truth, anything done selflessly – when one does not have a self – is not greed, but all things done when one has a self is greed.
– Woo Myung
REFLECTION 🌿
Master Woo Myung’s teaching points to a simple ethical test: Who benefits? If an action is done primarily for oneself, it falls into the category of greed; if it is truly for others, it is not. The practice implied here — letting go of the self-centered attachments that drive survival-based desire — is central to the methods taught in Santa Clara Meditation, where practitioners work to discard the false self and live from a more universal perspective.
