Lecture Notes on the Sūtra of the Collection of the Father and Son (Pitāputrasamāgamanasūtra) (223)

Merit Comes from Making Offerings and Giving (Dāna)

A Wheel-Turning King could cultivate this merit only by drawing near to countless Buddhas, yet we cannot accomplish even the smallest thing. Having never cultivated merit, we lack self-mastery (avaśatā) with regard to things like gold, silver, and treasures—no matter how hard we rack our brains, they simply will not appear. Without cultivated merit and virtue, even a university graduate or a PhD who struggles in this world for a whole lifetime will still not succeed; although their abilities are complete, without the blessings of merit they cannot obtain what they need. A person who has cultivated merit, even if illiterate, can still achieve great wealth and high status. In the past, many poets complained in their verses that they had talent but no opportunity—why? Talent alone is useless; one must also have the blessings of merit. Everything we obtain in this life is what we cultivated in past lives. If we wish to have great merit and virtue at our disposal, we must continually cultivate merit. All merit and virtue does not fall from the sky; it comes entirely from the cultivation of merit that benefits others. In particular, we should cultivate much merit within the Mahāyāna Dharma, making abundant offerings and giving generously to the Mahāyāna Three Jewels.