Cultivating Merit to Become Blessed

Everyone wants to have karmic blessings. However, in addition to recognizing and cherishing our blessings, it is necessary to take necessary action to cultivate blessings. We should make good use of the karmic reward of human birth to accumulate provisions for spiritual cultivation by practicing the bodhisattva path to move towards liberation.


Photo credit: Li Cheng-feng (李澄鋒)

Original Chinese text / Qiu Huimin (邱惠敏)


Buddhists often use the term "karmic blessings" when describing and praising people's good fortune, but what exactly does karmic blessing mean?


We are already blessed

"A person's luck reflects their karmic blessings, under the right circumstances and timing as the cause and condition, thanks to the karmic affinities or karmic rewards brought about from past lives. When one's karmic affinities are ripe, things go well with them; when one's karmic retribution is due, everything goes against them." In his book Chan Gate, Master Sheng Yen pointed out how ordinary people consider karmic blessings as enjoyable things in the world, such as good health, successful career, smooth romantic relationship, and having many descendents.

However, what is the true sense of karmic blessing? In his book entitled Straightforward Mind in the Gate of Chan (禪門直心), Ven. Chi Chern (繼程法師) points out the seven levels of karmic blessings as follows:
We all have attained human birth in this life, so we are already blessed. "Knowing that we are still breathing indicates that have unlimited hope, and this means blessing." As Master Sheng Yen pointed out, anyone who is alive can create happiness and even engage in spiritual cultivation to attain Buddhahood. Therefore, everyone is blessed. For this reason the Master put forward the concept of "Four Ways to Cultivate Blessings," the first thing being recognizing the blessing, being aware that we are actually blessed. Furthermore, we should cherish, nurture, and sow the seeds of blessings.


Giving is the starting point for cultivating meritorious blessings

Recognizing and cherishing one's blessings is prevalent in Chinese culture, but the act of consuming the karmic blessing by enjoying the pleasures brought by social status, power, and wealth is certainly what many people envy and seek. Therefore, Master Sheng Yen likened karmic blessings to bank deposits: the more you use it, the less you are left with; and one day it will be used up! Even the Buddha cherished the opportunity to cultivate merits. As recounted in the Ekottara Agama, Ven. Anuruddha once asked who would like to cultivate merits by helping him thread a needle. To his surprise, it was the Buddha who came forward to help, because "Of all the powers in the world, among the heavenly and human realms, the power of merit (puññabala) is most superior, and it is through merits (puñña ) that Buddhahood can be attained."

In Buddhist teachings, giving (dāna), the foremost of the Six Perfections, can be the starting point for cultivating merits. As Dr. Teng Wei-jen (鄧偉仁), Dean of Department of Buddhist Studies of Dharma Drum Institute of Liberal Arts (DILA) points out, the Buddha, completely perfect in both merit and wisdom, taught giving (dāna), morality (sīla), and mental development (bhāvanā) as the sequence of practice for spiritual cultivation. Giving is not only primary in cultivating merits, but also, according to Buddhist teachings, the first step to purifying the mind, as it is conducive to eliminating greed, the foremost of the three poisons that Buddhist practitioners ought to be aware of. However, according to the Buddha's progressive instruction (ānupubbī-kathā), cultivating meritorious blessings by giving is not an end in itself, but rather, is a process of accumulating provisions in preparation for attaining liberation. With the strength gained from upholding precepts and practicing dhyana, we can further develop the insight to see through the essence of phenomena, thereby shattering ignorance and achieving the ultimate goal of liberation.

Cultivating merits by giving is not only the preparation for moving toward liberation, but also the foundation for practicing the Bodhisattva path. As Master Sheng Yen pointed out in the Great Dharma Drum TV program series, "While practicing in solitude, we cultivate wisdom. When we interact with others, benefiting them, we are cultivating meritorious blessings." In cultivating meritorious blessings, the most important thing is to interact and cultivate good relationships with others, by acting for their benefit. This is giving in its broader sense. As stated in the Treatise on the Great Prajñāpāramitā, the "three merit-fields (puṇya-kṣētra)" are: (1) the field of veneration, cultivated by showing respect to the Buddha, the Dharma and the Sangha; (2) the field of gratitude, cultivated by repaying the kindness of our parents and teachers; (3) the field of compassion, cultivated by sympathizing with the ill and impoverished. Nowadays, as the Earth is a global village, we have diverse ways and boundless fields for us to cultivate merits. For example, Ven. Hui Li (慧禮法師), known as the "African monk," has been to 54 African countries, propagating Buddhism, donating goods, building orphanages, and establishing Buddhist institutions in Africa.

 
Benefiting others with altruistic intentions is nurturing merits
 
After reading the book Zero Waste Home, Jessica Shang (尚潔, Shang Jie), not only practices zero-waste herself to fulfill the responsibility as a consumer, but also translated the book into Chinese, in the hope of promoting the idea, thereby inspiring more people to safeguard our planet. There are also more and more local smallholders practicing eco-friendly farming: the Happy Farm (幸福農莊) in New Taipei City supplies chemical-free rice and farm produce to consumers; Chang Hao-yen (張顥嚴), a smallholder in Nantou, focuses on soil balance, which is crucial to the overall ecosystem. This is also a farming method friendly to land and living beings.
 
In addition, with social progress and the resulting material abundance, food waste has become a thorny issue. Instead of being sent to those in need, edible food is being dumped into bins. In light of this phenomenon, the world's first food bank alliance was founded in America in 1967. In 2015, the first Solidarity Fridge was installed in Spain, for the food to be distributed to those in need. In Japan, offerings from the devotees are given to children in need. In Taiwan, food banks and community-based charitable organizations have been established in recent years, serving numerous families facing financial challenges, children in remote areas, and the homeless.
 
As the key player to sustainability, human beings play pivotal roles in cultivating merits for the sake of the Earth. Therefore, empowering people is also a great way to cultivate merits. Chen Meng-kai (陳孟凱), founder of Hope Farmers Market (合樸農學市集), indicated that now in Taiwan there are many people practicing eco-farming, but few people specialize in its marketing and promotion. Therefore, his main focus now is to cultivate talent. Claire Lin (林念慈, Lin Nien-tzu), nominated as one of the BBC 100 Women 2017 for her inspiring and innovative initiatives, has changed the lives of local women in Nepal by helping them find employment and promoting menstrual hygiene education. These local women in turn became a force safeguarding the Earth's environment.
 
"Those who give are blessed, and those who do good deeds are happy." The karmic rewards that come from cultivating meritorious blessings are inconceivable. As we cultivate blessings, we can see changes in body and mind, as well as our lifestyle. More importantly, by taking part in environmentally friendly actions, we can sow the seeds of blessing for our future lives.



Related articles:

Happiness Comes as We Cultivate Blessings

Cultivating Merit to Become Blessed

Concepts for Cultivating Meritorious Blessings
The Buddhist Approach to Nurturing Merit and Spirituality

Fu-yan Monastery, founded on the basis of merit cultivation

Reflections and Habits to Cultivate Blessings
Debunk the Myths about Sustainability



Resource: Issue 437 of Humanity Magazine (January 2020), Dharma Drum Publishing Corporation
Translation: Li Siang-ling
Editing: Keith Brown, Chang Chia-cheng (張家誠)