Someone asked: could Pra Ajarn expand on Luang Phor's teaching on "wondrous assets" — that a heart willing to give shows that a stream of merit has settled at the body's center, and once conditions align it's like flipping a light switch, darkness gone. The giver receives accordingly: give little, receive little; give much, receive much; give in a way no one else would, and receive wondrously.

Luang Phor's Teaching: A Heart Willing to Give Is the Stream of Merit Settling at the Body's Center

This teaching comes from Luang Phor, dated January 7, 1996 — the year Pra Ajarn was newly ordained, in his first vassa, spending the whole year practicing at the meditation hall. Luang Phor taught that a heart willing to give shows the stream of merit has already settled at the body's center. Once conditions align, it's like flipping a light switch — light appears, darkness disappears. When the current of giving settles at the body's center, the reluctance to give vanishes entirely. Once it's gone, the stream of merit settles in, bringing happiness, success, and a flood of assets pouring in to replace what was given. The giver therefore receives in kind: give little, receive little; give much, receive much; give specially, receive specially; give in a way no one else would, and the results are wondrous — the kind that leave onlookers not quite believing how such wealth came to be, as with the wealthy merchants Chatila, Jotika, and Mendaka from the Buddha's time. But before such wondrous wealth could arise, those men once had to give when giving was hard — until what was hard became easy.

A Heart Willing to Give Doesn't Arise on Its Own — the Wholesome Side Competes for It Behind the Scenes

The willingness to give isn't something we simply think up ourselves. Within us, the wholesome nature is constantly competing, moment to moment, to accumulate merit bit by bit. The unwholesome side competes too, as does the neutral-unwholesome side — all three vying constantly. Without news of an opportunity to give, the wholesome side must gradually accumulate merit little by little until it reaches sufficient measure. Once merit has accumulated enough, it's like flipping a light switch — the wholesome side layers itself into body-within-body, mind-within-mind, and plants a suggestion urging us to give, such as news that monks at a temple are in need. When we willingly agree, it's like flipping that switch — the darkness, meaning the reluctance the unwholesome side had been holding in reserve, disappears. The current of giving settles at the body's center, and the stream of merit pours through continuously — not just a single sphere, but countless uncountable spheres.

Merit Varies According to the Recipient

How many spheres of merit pour through us varies with who receives our giving. Give to a starving animal, and roughly 100 spheres pour through; give to a human being, another hundredfold; give to someone who keeps the precepts, another hundredfold still — someone keeping eight precepts yields more merit than someone keeping five. Give to a monk or novice earnestly practicing the Dhamma, and the merit goes further still, beyond compare.

Each Sphere of Merit Is a Life to Come

Each sphere of merit represents a physical existence, a life, appearing as a completed blueprint that determines what family we're born into, how prosperous, and what our childhood, middle age, and old age will look like. The Buddha taught that merit is another name for happiness, and sin another name for suffering — because the nature of sin brings suffering, while merit is itself a state of happiness. When wholesome dhamma governs the heart, ease and comfort follow, drawing in pure energy along with the abundance of assets pouring through the center of that radiant sphere of merit.

The Giver Receives, Because This Kind of Giving Requires Both Faith and Wisdom

The giver receives accordingly — refined assets flow in: give little, receive little; give much, receive much; give specially, receive specially. Luang Phor called someone capable of giving to this degree a "wondrous person," because this kind of giving is exceptionally hard. First, it requires faith — but faith alone isn't enough; wisdom is needed too.

Three Things Sealed Within a Completed Sphere of Merit

Once an act of giving is complete, a blueprint of success is sealed at the center of that completed sphere of merit, made up of three things: first, the blueprint of success itself; second, the pure element of merit; and third, refined assets. All three are stored at the center of the Dhamma sphere, awaiting placement on the timeline of one's life. Only a small portion — roughly 10 percent — affects the present; everything else is reserved for use on life's timeline in the near and distant future — meaning lives to come.

Merit Travels Through Every Subtler Body, Shaping Everything From Physical Form to Livelihood

Merit that arises travels with us through every subtler body — the celestial body, the refined celestial body, the brahma body, the form-brahma body. Reborn in the celestial realm, refined assets are already there waiting as one's means of living. Reborn as a human, the coarser part of the blueprint of success becomes DNA, while the refined part is stored within the Dhamma sphere — determining everything from a well-proportioned, beautiful body, to adequate food and shelter, a good education in a wholesome environment, and sharp intelligence — all unfolding according to the blueprint already set within the sphere of merit. The residue of sin that clings to us tries to undermine this; the merit works to protect and safeguard it.

Special Moments of Merit on Life's Timeline

Special moments where merit bears fruit include things like studying abroad or being admitted to a world-renowned university — even when one's parents have no money, the "emperor" at the center of the sphere of merit arranges things according to the blueprint, sending out a current that brings everything together. If the strength of merit is great, everything arrives on its own without much effort; if not quite full, the emperor leads us here and there to encounter the right news, whispering guidance on what to do. Pra Ajarn gave the example of the wealthy merchant Chatila, for whom a mountain of gold appeared for him to scoop and sell; others have no mountain of gold, but the wealth of a "universal monarch" pours in on its own, through a livelihood the inner emperor guides them toward — results so wondrous that even the person receiving them can hardly believe it.

Before It Becomes Easy, You Must Grit Your Teeth and Give

Luang Phor taught that before giving becomes this easy, one must first grit one's teeth and give when it's hard — again and again, until what was hard becomes easy, and one comes to taste the wondrous flavor of giving itself, a fullness and joy like winning the jackpot. Pra Ajarn gave the example of Luang Phor Khun, who received so many offerings that he was able to build several hospitals — yet even he taught his students that giving requires practice, because stinginess is a deeply ingrained, sticky karma. The unwholesome side will always whisper to hold something back for later.

Why Some Giving Doesn't Seem to Show Results

When asked why some people give in wondrous ways yet see no results, which shakes their faith, Pra Ajarn compared it to receiving a special seed of great value — one that must wait for its season, for the tree to grow to maturity, before it bears fruit. Giving merit isn't like trading, where results are visible immediately; what we see now is only a small fraction — roughly 10 to 20 percent — while the rest waits to ripen on life's timeline in the future. The exception is special cases, like the kathina offering discussed the day before, a merit specially designated once a year, or giving in the manner of "closing the account" — proving on the spot that this life is entrusted entirely to the Triple Gem and nibbana as one's only refuge — which bears fruit faster than usual.

The Heart of Giving: Cutting Stinginess and Having a Generous Spirit

Pra Ajarn concluded that the heart of giving lies in cutting stinginess and cultivating a generous spirit. Most people give hoping for something in return, which isn't wrong in itself — but when we hold genuine faith and reverence for someone, such as faith in a teacher who transformed our life, we become willing to offer everything we have without hesitation, because the joy that comes from faith is greater even than the joy of material wealth.