We are mortals, and once we leave the temple, we will soon forget that we are practitioners, so we will inevitably have troubles when facing many worldly things. Once there are troubles, greed, anger, ignorance, jealousy, and arrogance will naturally manifest themselves. In order not to let these greed, hatred, ignorance, arrogance, and jealousy burn our merits, we must make dedication.

If you only have a glass of water in your hand right now, and you pour this glass of water into the sea, unless the sea dries up, you can always proudly say to others, "In the sea, there is my cup of water." In the same way, as long as we dedicate the merits we have made to sentient beings, we will not burn them because of our temper and hatred. It doesn't matter if we burn it, because if we burn only a part of ourselves, the merits of the remaining sentient beings will still ripen on us. So, the Buddha said, "Achieve yourself for the benefit of sentient beings." "A person thinks about sentient beings, and he is the one who becomes a Buddha in the end; And sentient beings only think about themselves, so they will fall.

Dedication can truly receive good fortune, so that good fortune can really ripen in us. If you have practiced for a long time, if you don't dedicate your merits well, there is not much difference between cultivating and not cultivating, because you will soon burn all your merits. The only way to preserve merit is to deposit it in the bank of sentient beings, so that it can be inexhaustible. This is the study and benefit of merit.

After dedication, everyone will help themselves make a wish, and the power of the wish is also very important. We want to be happy, we want to be successful in our careers, we want to have a happy family, we hope that we can get out of samsara, we can be reborn in the Pure Land, and so on.

The types, meanings, and merits of dedication are recorded in detail in Buddhist scriptures, but some people still do not understand the role of dedication. I am often asked by devotees, "When I make dedication, can I keep 50 or 20 percent of my merit and give the rest to the sentient beings in the ten directions?" Others say, "What if I dedicate all my merits to me and I don't have them myself?" I feel reluctant, it's a pity! "That's not the case. Because in the process of our practice, we often have many habits, and these habits are thieves in our hearts, accompanied by greed, hatred, ignorance, jealousy, arrogance, and so on, just like thieves will steal the merits and blessings that we have worked so hard to do. We have to keep the good roots and merits of our practice and not let them disappear because of our greed, hatred, ignorance, jealousy, and arrogance. It's like depositing money in a bank (merit and good fortune), once our evil thoughts (greed, hatred, ignorance, etc.) steal the money from our house like a thief, and there is still money in the bank, it will not be gone all at once.

The best way to make the good karma grow upwards more and more and never disappear is to dedicate the merits. Pour a drop of your own water into the sea, and as long as the sea does not dry up, your merit will always remain. So, don't be afraid to dedicate all your merits to sentient beings, and don't worry about how much to keep, if our good roots are burned by our own five poisons, where will the sentient beings in the ten directions still have our good roots? What's more, all sentient beings have been our parents in samsara, and it is not an exaggeration to dedicate all the blessings of good roots to them! Therefore, after completing all the good deeds, remember to give all the joy and merit you have done to all sentient beings in the Ten Directions and the Third World, including our deceased parents, unjust creditors, and so on, in the hope that they will also enjoy this special thing as we do.

It is very important to dedicate merit to sentient beings. When we accumulate merit today because we practice the Dharma or hear about empowerments, a lot of karma is purified. After our good intentions are sent out, we use our bodhichitta to purify our minds and plant a lot of good fortune, and we have already benefited ourselves, but of course we should not be selfish, but we should benefit more sentient beings. Self-interest can achieve the Dharmakaya, and self-interest can achieve retribution and incarnation. Therefore, for the sake of self-interest and altruism, we should dedicate all the merits to the sentient beings in the world, and then the whole merit will be complete!

The Huayan Sutra: Ten Dedications says: "All merits are rewarded. Together with all sentient beings, we dedicate ourselves to the three bodhisattvas of Anuttara. Tomorrow. Bodhisattvas are such dedicators. It is for the Bodhisattva to cultivate less and obtain great results. Do more merit and be rewarded. The Buddha says tomorrow. It is when a bodhisattva achieves immeasurable merit. Holding is merit and dedication to immeasurable wisdom. and all living beings. Dedicate yourself to the three bodhisattvas. There are three kinds of merits. There are three types of dedication. What three. It is said that the past is empty. There is no way to return to it. There is no place to return. The Bodhisattva Mahasattva is regarded as dedication. When you dedicate yourself, you are pure in all three places. In this way, merit is purified. With all living beings. Dedication to the three bodhisattvas. As a dedicator. There is no ordinary man or ordinary man's law. There is no faith, and there is no way. There were no eight. There is no need to go to Sudra. There is no stoha to stoh. and there is no anaham to anaham. There is no arhat to an arhat. There is no Buddha to Buddha. There is no Buddha or Buddha-worshipper. Why. The Dharma nature is uncaused, unborn and imperishable. There is no place to live. Therefore, the Bodhisattva Mahasattva should have three kinds of dedication and three pure merits. with all living beings. Dedication to the three bodhisattvas. It is the bodhisattva who has done it."

It can be seen how special the dedication of all the good dharmas is.