--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Our problem mostly in our abuse of each…" description: "\"Our problem mostly in our abuse of each other and the planet is greed. Just the rampant, incredible greed that people have partly because they're empty..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/860/alice-walker-347_abuse_our-problem-mostly-in-our-abuse-of-each_1417014.png" --- # Our problem mostly in our abuse of each other and the… ![“Our problem mostly in our abuse of each other and the planet is greed. Just the rampant, incredible greed that people have partly because they're empty and they can't get enough because they're - you know, it's that Buddhist thing about the hungry ghost with the little mouth and the big belly.” quote by Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/860/alice-walker-347_abuse_our-problem-mostly-in-our-abuse-of-each_1417014.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/860/alice-walker-347_abuse_our-problem-mostly-in-our-abuse-of-each_1417014.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/860/alice-walker-347_abuse_our-problem-mostly-in-our-abuse-of-each_1417014.png) > “Our problem mostly in our abuse of each other and the planet is greed. Just the rampant, incredible greed that people have partly because they're empty and they can't get enough because they're - you know, it's that Buddhist thing about the hungry ghost with the little mouth and the big belly.” [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Greed driven by emptiness fuels exploitation of people and Earth, likened to Buddhist hungry ghost metaphor. **In simple terms:** Greed empties us, causing harm. Key Takeaway Address inner emptiness to curb greed. Themes environment greed human nature spirituality Mood concerned reflective Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - personal reflection - policy making - community activism Key Concepts Buddhist metaphor psychology ecology Questions to Reflect On - How does personal emptiness translate to environmental harm? - What practices can fill the inner void? A Different Perspective Greed is also linked to fear and survival instincts. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Abuse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/abuse/) [Buddhist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/buddhist/) [Ghost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ghost/) [Greed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/greed/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Problem](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/problem/) ## Related quotes > [Greed may not be good, but it’s not so bad either. 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And sexy!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicole-peeler/somewhere-squidgy-your-belly-maybe-i-can-t-believe-you-called-my/) [Nicole Peeler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicole-peeler/) > [I liked the taste of beer, its live, white lather, its brass-bright depths, the sudden world through the wet-brown walls of the glass, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dylan-thomas/i-liked-the-taste-of-beer-its-live-white-lather-its-brass-bright/) [Dylan Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dylan-thomas/) > [That devilish Iron Horse, whose ear-rending neigh is heard throughout the town, has muddied the Boiling Spring with his foot, and he it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/that-devilish-iron-horse-whose-ear-rending-neigh-is-heard-throughout/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [I was the first to win a major with a belly putter, and I've spent hours practicing that way, so I hope they don't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keegan-bradley/i-was-the-first-to-win-a-major-with-a-belly-putter-and-i-ve-spent/) [Keegan Bradley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keegan-bradley/) > [I'm bigger than you! I'm higher on the food chain - get in my belly!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-myers/i-m-bigger-than-you-i-m-higher-on-the-food-chain-get-in-my-belly/) [Mike Myers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-myers/) ## More by Alice Walker > [I gave my archive to Emory University because there's a really dear friend who teaches there, Rudolph Byrd, and he's the editor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/i-gave-my-archive-to-emory-university-because-there-s-a-really-dear/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [Just be what it is that you are, and that is just fine. 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We are considered expendable, basically.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/humans-whatever-billions-we-are-we-don-t-have-the-control-we-are/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) > [All my life I had to fight. I had to fight my daddy. I had to fight my uncles. I had to fight my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-walker/all-my-life-i-had-to-fight-i-had-to-fight-my-daddy-i-had-to-fight-my/) [Alice Walker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) [Explore all 654 Alice Walker quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-walker/) ## More Abuse quotes > [I wrote when I was a young teen, but I didn't put an eye on the available markets until I was seventeen. 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