(1) Meritorious Deeds

“Monks, do not fear meritorious deeds. This is an expression denoting happiness, what is desirable, wished for, dear, and agreeable, that is, meritorious deeds. For I know full well, monks, that for a long time I experienced desirable, wished for, dear, and agreeable results from often performing meritorious deeds.

 “Having cultivated for seven years a mind of lovingkindness, for seven eons of contraction and expansion I did not return to this world. Whenever the eon contracted I reached the plane of streaming radiance, and when the eon expanded I arose in an empty divine mansion. And there I was Brahmā, the great Brahmā, the unvanquished victor, the all-seeing, the all-powerful. Thirty-six times I was Sakka, ruler of the devas. And many hundreds of times I was a wheel-turning monarch, righteous, a king of righteousness, conqueror of the four regions of the earth, maintaining stability in the land, in possession of the seven treasures. What need is there to speak of mere local kingship?

 “It occurred to me, monks, to wonder: ‘Of what kind of deed of mine is this the fruit? Of what deed’s ripening am I now of such great accomplishment and power?’ And then it occurred to me: ‘It is the fruit of three kinds of deeds of mine, the ripening of three kinds of deeds that I am now of such great accomplishment and power: deeds of giving, of self-mastery, and of refraining.’”

(2) Three Bases of Merit

“There are, O monks, three ways of making merit. What three? There are ways of making merit by giving, by moral discipline, and by the development of meditation.

“There is a person who has practiced the making of merit by giving only to a limited degree; and, likewise to a limited degree, he has practiced the making of merit by moral discipline; but he has not undertaken the making of merit by meditation. With the breakup of the body, after death, he will be reborn among humans in an unfavorable condition.

 “Another person has practiced the making of merit by giving as well as by moral discipline to a high degree; but he has not undertaken the making of merit by meditation. With the breakup of the body, after death, he will be reborn among humans in a favorable condition.

 “Or he will be reborn in the company of the devas of the Four Great Kings. And there, the Four Great Kings, who had practiced to a very high degree the making of merit by giving and by moral discipline, surpass the devas of their realm in ten respects: in divine lifespan, divine beauty, divine happiness, divine fame, divine power; and in divine sights, sounds, smells, tastes, and touches.

 “Or he will be reborn in the company of the Tāvatiṃsa devas. And there, Sakka, ruler of the devas, who had practiced the making of merit by giving and by moral discipline to a very high degree, surpasses the devas of their realm in ten respects: in divine lifespan, divine beauty, divine happiness, divine fame, divine power; and in divine sights, sounds, smells, tastes, and touches.

  [Similar statements are made for rebirth among the Yāma devas, Tusita devas, the devas who delight in creating, the devas who wield power over others’ creations, and for the respective rulers of these realms.]

  “These, monks, are the three ways of making merit.”

(3)  The Best Kinds of Confidence 

“Monks, there are these four best kinds of confidence. What four?

 “To whatever extent there are beings, whether footless or with two feet, four feet, or many feet, whether having form or formless, whether percipient, non-percipient, or neither percipient nor non-percipient, the Tathāgata, the Arahant, the Perfectly Enlightened One is declared the best among them. Those who have confidence in the Buddha have confidence in the best, and for those who have confidence in the best, the result is best.

 “To whatever extent there are things that are conditioned, the Noble Eightfold Path is declared the best among them. Those who have confidence in the Noble Eightfold Path have confidence in the best, and for those who have confidence in the best, the result is best.

“To whatever extent there are things whether conditioned or unconditioned, dispassion is declared the best among them, that is, the crushing of pride, the removal of thirst, the uprooting of attachment, the termination of the round, the destruction of craving, dispassion, cessation, Nibbāna. Those who have confidence in the Dhamma have confidence in the best, and for those who have confidence in the best, the result is best

“To whatever extent there are communities or groups, the Tathāgata’s Saṅgha of disciples is declared the best among them, that is, the four pairs of persons, the eight types of individuals—this Saṅgha of the Blessed One’s disciples is worthy of gifts, worthy of hospitality, worthy of offerings, worthy of reverential salutation, the unsurpassed field of merit for the world. Those who have confidence in the Saṅgha have confidence in the best, and for those who have confidence in the best, the result is best.”

For those who have confidence as the best, For those who understand the best Dhamma, For those who have confidence in the Buddha, The unsurpassed one worthy of offerings;

 For those who have confidence in the Dhamma, In blissful dispassion, perfect peace; For those who have confidence in the Saṅgha, The field of merit unsurpassed;

For those giving gifts to the best, The best kind of merit increases: The best lifespan, beauty, and fame, Good reputation, happiness, and strength.

Whether he becomes a deva or a human being, The wise one who gives of the best, Concentrated upon the best Dhamma, Rejoices when he has attained to the best.