"Buddhism, Wealth and Poverty: Buying the Stairway to Nirvana" is the topic of the next Ethics and Religion series forum on Monday, March 31, at 4:30 p.m. in Lackey Chapel on the Coastal Carolina University campus. This event is free and open to the public; no ticket is required.

Chan Ju Mun, teaching associate in the Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies at CCU, will be discussing the role of poverty in Buddhism. The discussion will focus around the question: What then should a good Buddhist do with respect to money and wealth?

According to Mun, even though the Buddha asked monks to preserve the virtue of honorable poverty, they have since been eager to receive donations from laypersons and to make money in order to manage temples and facilitate religious activities. Unlike his admonition to the monks, Buddha suggested that laypersons participate in business and increase their wealth.

Buddhism does not promote poverty that creates dukkha, or "ill-being." Buddhism is about having only the simplest necessities fulfilled. Clothing enough to cover and protect the body and food enough to maintain health is what Buddhism promotes.

Lackey Chapel is located at 105 University Drive the corner of University Boulevard on the CCU campus.

For more information about this event, contact the Jackson Family Center for Ethics and Values at 843-349-4149 or visit coastal.edu/jacksoncenter.