แม้เราจะสั่งสมบุญไว้มากมาย แต่บาปที่ท่วมท้นเช่นกันจะกันไม่ให้บุญได้ช่อง บุญจะส่งผลได้มากน้อยขึ้นอยู่กับว่าใจใสหรือใจดำ ปลื้มในบุญหรือไม่ ระลึกถึงบุญบ่อยแค่ไหน และตัดความตระหนี่ได้เพียงใดAlthough we have accumulated great merit, an equally vast weight of demerit blocks it from bearing fruit. How much merit ripens depends on whether the heart is bright or dark, whether we take joy in our merit, how often we recall it, and how well we have cut through stinginess.
A member asked, through another teacher, for an explanation of the elder monk's teaching that every disciple has abundant merit, yet it has not yet borne fruit because the heart is not bright, because there is no joy taken in the merit, because the merit is not recalled, or because the lord of Mara is holding it back — and that the late acharn once taught that merit ripens only 20% in this life and 80% in the next.
Why merit does not find its opening
In truth, we have done both merit and demerit in equally vast, mountainous amounts. But demerit cannot fully bear fruit because we live within system — the merit side blocks the demerit from ripening, protecting and helping us, unlike ordinary people who face constant obstacles from unwholesome interference. The vast merit we have stored is therefore held back by the mass of demerit, and only what we experience in the present is what has managed to slip through.
An unclear heart, and not recalling merit
The first cause is an unclear heart — meaning the neutral or unwholesome system has seized control as host of the heart, preventing us from fully engaging in wholesome acts. The three natures compete continuously, moment by moment; whichever fills up first sets the program for our activity. When old and new merit converge, the heart is bright and merit ripens quickly. When old and new demerit converge in a dark heart, it likewise ripens heavily — and this is the source of life's many problems. Not taking joy in merit stems from the existing proportion of unwholesomeness, which keeps us from focusing on it; repeated, deliberate focus is needed until joy arises naturally. Failing to recall merit likewise comes from or neutral alternating as host of the heart, leaving no one to prompt the recollection — even though recalling merit is easier than speaking or acting.
Mara holding it back, and cutting through stinginess
Mara holding merit back is a natural condition present from the moment we entered the womb, programmed into our DNA and our field of , releasing its influence at set times to obstruct our assets. It works through , whispering that we will run out, go hungry, become poor — discouraging generosity. But when Mara cannot hold us back, it is because we have managed to cut through that stinginess. When the wholesome voice whispers encouragement to give, listening and acting on it keeps that voice as a lasting companion; refusing it repeatedly causes the voice to fade. Merit arises in two ways: resisting evil, and creating good — both are backed by the Triple Gem and Nibbana.
Habitual giving builds a field of giving
Another factor is having given generously and habitually in the past. Those connected to this field of giving hear an inner voice constantly urging them to give, alert to every chance to help those in need — and this field of giving grows larger, drawing in the stream of merit and its accompanying subtle assets continuously. Those who give a little every single day are different from those who give large amounts only rarely.