Merit (puṇya/puñña) is an important concept
within Buddhist thought. It is what is
accumulated through good and wholesome
deeds. The production of merit is important
as it can have positive effects on the lives of
individuals, generate desirable rebirths and
also allow one to access higher levels of
spiritual attainment.
• Merit is essentially good karma.
• Karma or kamma can be translated as ‘action’.
• In brahmanical society it was initially understood in terms
of ritual behaviour. If one performed a certain ritual action
it would have a specific result.
• Ideas concerning karma evolved and all actions were
understood to cause an effect. Actions performed by an
individual would cause some sort of effect on the
individual in this life, or even in a later life.
• In Buddhist thought karma has a causative nature. The
actions that are intentionally performed by the individual
will have a particular karmic result. Well-intentioned good
deeds will result in a pleasant and favourable karmic
result whilst malicious and hurtful misdeeds will result in
a poor and unfavourable karmic result.
• Karma does not always have immediate results, but can
take many lifetimes to have an effect.
• Positive actions can take a variety of forms.
• In the Puññakiriyavatthu Sutta (A IV 146) the Buddha
outlines three bases of merit:
1. Generosity- dāna
2. Ethical Conduct- sīla
3. Cultivation/Meditation- bhāvana
• Dāna can refer to any act that is performed with an
unselfish attitude and positive view of giving.
• It is an important aspect of Buddhism as it outlines the
relationship that exists between the laity and the
monastic community (Saṅgha).
• For the laity dāna represents their support of the Saṅgha.
• The laity supports the Saṅgha by providing material
support such as giving monks food on their alms round,
donations of robes and the eight requisites, and money to
support the monastery.
Monks
receiving a
gift of new
robes at a
funeral in
Laos (2007).
• The Saṅgha receive the gifts of the laity. In doing so they
act as a ‘field of merit’. In order to be a field of merit the
monk must live by the monastic rules that are set in the
vinaya.
• The more spiritually advanced the monk is the bigger
their field of merit is. This serves to make the monks work
towards becoming worthy recipients of the gifts of the
laity.
• The amount of merit is relative to spiritual advancement
and not ordination.
• The Saṅgha are also expected to act with generosity.
• In return for material support from the laity, the Saṅgha
must provide spiritual support. This is achieved through
teaching the Dharma/Dhamma to the lay community.
• It also means that when invited to give a blessing, chant
at funeral or attend a housewarming the Saṅgha is
obliged to send a representative.
A monk
receiving a gift
of food from a
member of the
lay community
in Myanmar
(2009).
• Sīla is a way of acting in a considered ethical manner.
• This requires the individual to ensure that they act, think
and speak in ways that are positive and conducive to
positive mental attitudes.
• Sīla is explored within the Eight-fold Path where it is
stated that right speech, right action and right
livelihood are all forms of acting ethically.
Eight Fold Path
Grouping
Right View
Wisdom (prajñā)
Right Intention
Wisdom (prajñā)
Right Speech
Ethical Conduct (sīla)
Right Action
Ethical Conduct (sīla)
Right Livelihood
Ethical Conduct (sīla)
Right Effort
Meditation (samādhi)
Right Mindfulness
Meditation (samādhi)
Right Concentration
Meditation (samādhi)
• Right speech means that one should abstain from gossip,
slander and anything that might be considered hurtful.
• Right action or conduct requires the individual to act in
positive and helpful ways. One should abstain from
sexual misconduct, theft and harming others.
• Right livelihood means that the individual should not be
employed in jobs that cause harm or suffering such as
weapons trading and prostitution. One should also be
ethical in business by not cheating clients or using
underhand methods.
• Futher ethical rules for Buddhists are set out in the Five
Precepts where they are advised to:
1. Refrain from harming living creatures
2. Refrain from taking what is not given
3. Refrain from sexual misconduct
4. Refrain from false speech
5. Refrain from intoxicants that cause heedlessness.
• For those in the laity who want to there are additional
precepts that can be followed. These are usually
undertaken during special occasions such as full moon
festival days:
6. Refrain from eating after midday
7. Refrain from attending entertainments and using
perfume
8. Refrain from sleeping on luxurious beds.
• Novices follow the Ten Precepts which are an extension of the five
or eight precepts that are followed by the laity:
1. Refrain from harming living creatures
2. Refrain from taking what is not given
3. Refrain from sexual activity
4. Refrain from false speech
5. Refrain from intoxicants that cause heedlessness
6. Refrain from eating at the forbidden time
7. Refrain from attending entertainments, singing and dancing
8. Refrain from wearing perfumes, cosmetics and garlands
9. Refrain from sleeping in a high or luxurious bed
10. Refrain from accepting gold or silver
In South East Asia it
is common for men
to ordain as monks
for a short period.
The man dressed in
white is ordaining in
memory of a relative
in Laos (2007).
• For the Saṅgha sīla requires them to live by the
monastic codes found within the vinaya.
• Different schools of Buddhist thought have different rules
in their respective vinayas. Some time after the Buddha
died there was a division within the Saṅgha and differing
schools of thought were developed. With each school
there were differing monastic codes.
1. Prātimokṣa/pāṭimokkha- these are the rules that govern
the lives monks and nuns.
2. Regulations covering acts of the Saṅgha as a whole
such as performances of chants and ceremonies.
• There are, however, four rules that if broken result in the
immediate dismissal of a monk or nun:
1. Engaging in sexual intercourse
2. Taking what is not given
3. Taking human life , or persuading someone else to take
human life
4. False claims of spiritual attainments.
• Bhāvana refers to the cultivation and development of
the individual. This can take a number of forms:
• citta-bhāvanā- development of the mind (D III. 219)
• kāya-bhāvanā- development of the body (D III. 219)
• mettā-bhāvanā- development of loving kindness (J
I.196)
• paññā-bhāvanā- development of wisdom (D III. 219)
• samādhi-bhāvanā- development of concentration (A
I. 44)
For the laity acts of cultivation focus on devotional acts
as these cause religious states of mind. This covers:
• Worship (pūja) can take the form of prostrationns,
circumambulation and the offering of flowers, lamps
or incense.
• Pilgrimage to holy sites such as Bodh Gaya, Sarnath
and Lumbini. Also one can visit any local stūpas and
relics.
• Creation of images of the Buddha.
• Listening to a sermon or Dharma talk.
Buddhists can
visit stūpas
such as the one
pictured which
is Boudhnath in
Nepal.
• For the Saṅgha the practice of bhāvana can take several
forms:
• Devotional practices much like those of the laity including
pūja, pilgrimage and the creation of art and Buddha
images.
• The preservation of texts and scriptures can also fall
under this category.
• Mediation is perhaps the most recognised form of
cultivation employed by the Saṅgha.
• Meditation can take the form of recollections
(anusmṛti/anussati) of the Buddha, Saṅgha and Dharma.
• Recollections can be seen as the basis on ‘calm’
(śamatha/samatha) meditation. This form of meditation stills
the mind, it is understood to be a vital tool in developing
concentration.
• Once one has calmed the mind then they can engage in
insight’ (vipaśyanā/vipassanā) meditation. This form of
meditation allows the individual to gain insight into the true
nature of reality.
• This list only covers some of the ways in which monks can
develop themselves. There are many other methods that can
be found in sources such as the Visuddhimagga.
This statue of a
corpse is used by
monks as a tool for
meditation as it
makes them reflect
on the nature of life
and reality
(Myanmar, 2009).
• The three bases of merit are not the only list of actions
that are conducive to the production of merit.
• In the Abhidhammattha Saṅgaha there is a list of ten
actions that are considered to be meritorious. They are
closely related with the three bases of merit with each of
the ten actions falling under the remit of one of the bases.
•
•
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1. Generosity (dāna)
2. Morality (sīla)
3. Meditation (bhāvana)
4. Reverence (pacāyana)
5. Service (veyyāvacca)
6. Transference of merit (pattidāna)
7. Rejoicing in (other’s) merit (pattanumodāna)
8. Hearing the Doctrine (dhamma-savana)
9. Teaching the Doctrine (dhamma-desanā)
10. Straightening one’s views (diṭṭhijjukammavasa)
A Comprehensive Manual of Abhidhamma: The Abhidhammattha Saṅgaha
of Ācariya Anuruddha, ed. Bhikkhu Bodhi and Mahāthera Nārada
(Buddhist Publication Society: Kandy, 2007), p. 209.
• The giving of merit, often referred to as the ‘transfer’ or
‘transferral’ of merit (pattidāna), is an important part of
Buddhist practice and it forms a major part of modern
Buddhist practice.
• When an individual has generated merit they can decide
to give the merit away. Merit is typically given to a
deceased relative, to gods, or to all sentient beings.
• Merit can only be generated if the individual wants to help
others. Positive acts that are motivated by selfishness
and desire will not produce merit.
• Although it appears that merit can be transferred this is
not the case. Technically nothing is given away, merit is
only ‘given’ when the intended recipient ‘rejoices’ in the
merit generated by the donor. It is through this rejoicing
that the recipient generates their own merit.
• An example of the transferral can be found in the
ritual known as ‘the offering of cloth on behalf of
the dead’ (mataka-vastra-puja) which is performed
at Theravāda funerals.
• Before a funeral monks are offered a white cloth
which is intended to be used to make monastic
robes. During this ceremony, the following verse
which was, according to the Mahaparinibbana
Sutta, spoken by god Sakka after the passing
away of the Buddha, is recited:
Formations truly they are transient,
It is their nature to arise and cease,
Having arisen, then they pass away,
Their calming and cessation—happiness.
Water is then poured into an overflowing cup to represent the transfer of
merit whilst the following is chanted:
Just as water rained on high ground moves [down] to the low land,
even so does what is given here benefit the dead.
Just as the rivers full of water fill the ocean full,
even so does what is given here benefit the dead.
The following verses have been translated for this document, or have been
adapted from ‘The Mirror of the Dhamma’ which can be found at
www.bps.lk/olib/wh/wh054.pdf
Monks in Sri
Lanka (1999)
pouring water
whilst chanting
Pali verses.
• Merit can also be gained through witnessing the
meritorious deeds of others. If an individual witnesses a
good deed and is pleasantly struck by the generosity of
the act they too will receive merit.
• It is customary at the end of Buddhist ceremonies or
donations to see merit transferred to others. This act
allows all present to rejoice in the merit and therefore
become recipients of merit.