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Merit (Sanskrit , Pāli puñña) is a concept in Buddhism/Hinduism. It is that which accumulates as a result of good deeds, acts, or thoughts and which carries over throughout the life or the subsequent incarnations. Such merit contributes to a person's growth towards spiritual liberation. Merit can be gained in a number of ways, one of the sutras that reflect this teaching is the Sutra on the Ten Wholesome Ways of Actions which suggest ten ways in which merit-making can occur in the Buddhist context. In addition, according to the Mahayana ''Sutra of The Great Vows of Ksitigarbha Bodhisattva'', one can "transfer" one-seventh of the merit of an act they have performed to a deceased loved one, such as in the Shitro practice, in order to diminish the deceased's suffering in their new existence. Pariṇāmanā (Sanskrit) may be rendered as 'transfer of merit' or 'dedication' and involves the transfer of merit as a cause to bring about an effect. ==Three bases of merit== The Pali canon identifies three bases of merit (Pali: ''puññakiriyavatthu''). In the ("Meritorious actions discourse," AN 8.36 or A 8.4.6),〔(Upalavanna (n.d.) ), sutta 6.〕 the Buddha identifies these three bases: * giving (') * virtue (') * mental development (') In the "Sangiti Sutta" ("Chanting together discourse," DN 33), verse 38, Ven. Sariputta identifies the same triad: ''dāna, sīla, bhāvanā''.〔Walshe (1995), p. 485.〕 In the Khuddaka Nikaya's Itivuttaka (Iti. 1.22),〔Thanissaro (2001).〕 the three bases are defined as: giving (''dānassa''), self-mastery (''damassa'') and refraining (''saññamassā'').〔The Itivuttaka triad of giving, self-mastery and refraining parallels the Anguttara and Digha Nikaya triads if "self-mastery" is taken as being synonymous with "mental development" (''bhāvanā'') and "refraining" as being synonymous with "virtue" (''sīla'').〕 Later in this same sutta, the triad is restated as: giving (''dāna''), a life of mental calm (''sama-cariya'')〔Thanissaro (2001) translates "sama-cariya" as "a life in tune." However, assuming that there is parallelism between "sama-cariya," "dama" and "bhāvanā," then translating "sama" as "mental calm" (as suggested by Rhys Davids & Stede, 1921–25, p. 681, entry for "sama1") – alluding to concentrative skill – seems preferable.〕 and a mind of good-will (''metta-citta'').〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Merit (Buddhism)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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