How to Maximize the Karmic Results of Wholesome Deeds?

Question: Person A did a good deed for Person B, and Person B received A's help. A wants to receive B's feedback and repayment. Is it more worthwhile for A to receive B's repayment in this life, or to receive B's repayment in a future life, or to receive the natural repayment of cause and effect?

Answer: With a mind that seeks nothing, waiting for cause and effect to naturally repay, is the most worthwhile. Person A did a good deed but never thought of repayment; this is doing things with a mind of no repayment. Although A does not seek reward, the law of cause and effect will still naturally produce a repayment, and at that time the karmic retribution is greatest. Doing good deeds with a mind of non-action (wu-wei) yields the greatest good retribution; doing evil deeds with a mind of contrived action yields the greatest evil retribution. Doing good deeds with a mind of non-action yields the greatest good retribution; when the mind is great, the retribution is great. No one knows why the tathāgatagarbha has such a rule. Those who wish to maximize the karmic retribution of good deeds can take advantage of this loophole. But if there is a mind that wants to exploit the loophole, there is still a mind; when there is a mind, the mind is small; when there is no mind, the mind is greatest. If one wants repayment and does good deeds with a purpose, there is a mind, and with a mind the mind is small; if one does not want repayment and does good deeds without personal aims, without selfish intent, the mind is great, and when the mind is great, the karmic retribution is great.

Doing good deeds for the Three Jewels yields the greatest karmic retribution. If there is selfish intent within it—for the sake of money, fame, status, power, and so on—the retribution will be greatly discounted. If one does good deeds with strong selfish intent, treating the Three Jewels as a business, scheming for the benefits the Three Jewels bring, it may turn into an evil deed, resulting in evil retribution.

If one's afflictions are too heavy, scheming for the benefits the Three Jewels bring, and when the scheme fails, giving rise to anger and resentment, the result could possibly be retribution in the hells. All sinful karma arises from afflictions, and all afflictions come from that "self"; therefore, only after the eradication of the view of self (satkāya-dṛṣṭi-prahāṇa) can afflictions become slight, and one may even be able to eliminate afflictions, letting afflictions end forever and attaining liberation. Wherever one goes in the world—whether large, between nations; medium, between groups; or small, between individuals—one can see the afflictions of greed, anger, and delusion of sentient beings. It can be said that afflictions are blazing and rampant, and it is very difficult to save and draw them out (of suffering). The Dharma-ending age is, after all, the Dharma-ending age: sentient beings have heavy karma, deep obstructions, and meager merit (alpa-puṇya); their sinful karma far exceeds their good karma, and their evil retribution far exceeds their good retribution. Therefore, in future lives an extremely large number of people will go to the three evil destinies to receive their retribution; this is absolutely unavoidable, and death and the suffering of illness are already minor matters by comparison.