Those who work in the cities lost their jobs and returned to thrir hometowns.
They have managed to live in a simple way and have not lost their faith and hope to have a better life economically again. They will certainly go back to work again if the economic conditions are favorable. Buddhism, therefore, is not a hindrance though not a direct stimulation for economic development. It teaches people to live in a simple life and be satisfied with all they have got. Anyway, I am not saying that village people are all happy. What I am trying to say is that the rural economic niche helps to lessen the hardship of the life of people. In the village, people do have “ social capital“, to use the term coined by the world bank, to maintain at least a minimum level of living standard. That is they can, at least, survive during the period of economic downturn.