Question 54: TEMPLES OFTEN PROVIDE FREE SERVICES LIKE SPIRITUAL COUNSELINGS, PEACEFULNESS AND RELIEF PRAYERS, EXORCISM, MARTIAL ARTS CLASSES, MUSIC LESSONS, AND EVEN FREE MEALS. HOWEVER, .......

Question 54: TEMPLES OFTEN PROVIDE FREE SERVICES LIKE SPIRITUAL COUNSELINGS, PEACEFULNESS AND RELIEF PRAYERS, EXORCISM, MARTIAL ARTS CLASSES, MUSIC LESSONS, AND EVEN FREE MEALS. HOWEVER, IN THE SECULAR WORLD, EVERYTHING COMES WITH A PRICE. WHY CAN'T WE APPLY THE SAME BUSINESS PRINCIPLES TO TEMPLES?Answer: When a lay practitioner makes a donation to a temple, it's a voluntary act of generosity without any expectation of a specific return. The donor simply wishes for the well-being of the monks and nuns and for the continued flourishing of the Dharma. In response, temples offer most of their services for free, with the exception of items like robes that are sold to generate funds for daily expenses. Temples courageously offer free services to embody the spirit of compassion and selfless giving, without concern for profit or loss. Despite this, these temples are often blessed with sufficient resources to meet their needs.Lay practitioners have family responsibilities and financial obligations that make it difficult to provide everything for free. However, to accumulate merit, lay practitioners can offer free services within their means, such as: starting a free community class (with proper government approval), teaching music or martial arts, cleaning up litter, planting trees, visiting the elderly, providing free vegetarian meals (taking precautions against sabotage), cleaning cemeteries, etc. An ideal society would be one where everything is free and everyone is well-provided for (such a society likely exists only in heavenly realms).