Debt and Karma

Question: “I have accumulated much debt. I have always had a non-material outlook, but recently it has intensified. I am considering defaulting on some loans, letting my car go back etc. I know I signed a contract. I’m reaping the karma of my actions; I am a slave to debt. If I stop paying my bills, how would this be viewed in buddhist context?”

As humans we’re always going to be a slave to debt, whether it’s to the bank, family, friends, co-workers. We’re even in debt to the people (farmers) who provide us food. Debt is going to follow us until the day we die. You can run away and live in a cave in China and never have to worry about paying any of your debt back. What you will be paying back is your Karma debt. Just because you got away from your debt in this life, doesn’t mean the debt is gone too.

Even in future lives, in some way, shape, or form we still have to owe that debt. This is why monastics are required to be debt-free upon ordaining – and also so the government won’t come after them. The best thing you can do is to just STOP accumulating more debt and work on paying things off. Fortunately and unfortunately for me, most of my debt (80K of it) is student loans and another 25K for the new car I bought. This isn’t helping me rid of my debt to one day ordain, but I was determined to go to grad school and get a better car.

Point is. Unless we win the lottery, there’s really nothing we can do except work on paying it off as much and as comfortable as we can. And of course stop adding on unnecessary debt. Sometimes we have to make sacrifices to do it, like getting a cheaper car, or a smaller house or apartment, and not having all the pretty things we want. Although there are ways to get the car of your dreams, like getting complete auto loans.

Along with monetary debt, paying back a karma debt could also mean paying back a life (usually yours, but could also be several loved ones). There’s a story (and this is roughly how I remember it) of a virtuous monk whom in a past life killed someone. He was a great king’s personal monk (teacher). The monk knew he was on the verge of Enlightenment, but before that he had to pay a debt. One day during a Dharma teaching to the king, a raging man came running towards the monk with a sword tempting to slash at the monk. The king’s guards quickly stopped the man from reaching the monk. But the monk knew why he was there and what he was going to do, so he asked the king to let the man go and continue his mission. So the man was let loose and killed the monk. This was the monk’s final debt to end his cycle in Samsara.

So being debt-free is also required to be freed from Samsara because we still have that attachment. Though this attachment is unwanted, nonetheless, it’s still an attachment that we need to release in order to find liberation. So like I said, as much and as comfortably as you can you should try to pay off your debts. Not only will it be beneficial for your Karma, it’ll also just give you a much more sense of freedom!

Smile and be well!