Tibetan Buddhism: The most sublime chapter on the Practices and Vows of Bodhisattva Samantabhadra

Within both exoteric and esoteric Buddhism, merit dedication verses are more or less similar: their purpose is to wish sentient beings to generate bodhicitta, and, ultimately, attain Buddhahood. Tibetan Buddhism places a strong emphasis on merit transfer. Before a practice session, Tibetan Buddhists will recite the Seven Branch Prayer*, which includes merit transfer.
 
* The Seven Branch Prayer includes: 1) prostration, 2) offering, 3) confession, 4) rejoicing, 5) requesting the Buddha to turn the wheel of Dharma, 6) requesting the Buddha not to pass into parinirvana, and 7) transfer of merit.

In terms of merit transfer, different lineages of Tibetan Buddhism have their own respective verses for dedicating merit, such as those written by panditas from Nalanda University of India, the eighty four great adepts (mahasiddha, in Sanskrit) and the ancestral patriarchs and masters from Tibet. There is also the renowned dedication verse of "Engaging in the Bodhisattva Deeds", composed by Shantideva. Normally, in their deity practices, the easiest and most commonly recited dedication verse is: "May this merit swiftly enable me to achieve the realization of (insert deity name), so that all sentient beings can swiftly establish fruition stage of realization, with no one left behind." Instead, when Tibetan Buddhists are not performing deity practice, the dedication verse they often use is: "May I, with meritorious virtue, realize and attain the all-knowing (sarvajna), defeat the enemy of all wrongdoing, and free all sentient beings from the ocean of birth, aging, sickness, and death, thereby leading them to liberation."

The Chapter on the Practices and Vows of Bodhisattva Samantabhadra is the text for merit dedication commonly shared by all lineages and sects of Tibetan Buddhism. Considered the most extraordinary one, it is thus  dubbed as the king of merit dedication texts. "When dedicating merit, it is best to recite The Chapter on the Practices and Vows of Bodhisattva Samantabhadra, for it contains all the benevolent wishes of various buddhas and bodhisattvas," H.E. Phula Rinpoche from Sakya School of Tibetan Buddhism emphasized. Therefore, for large-scale Dharma assemblies or regular morning and evening chanting at monasteries, as well as any practice sessions outside a monastery, the concluding merit transfer will require recitation of the the Chapter on the Practices and Vows of Bodhisattva Samantabhadra. Even if there isn't enough time, the two most important verses in the Chapter will still be recited as the performance of merit transfer:

Manjusri has courageous, fierce wisdom;
Samantabhadra's acts of wisdom are also like this.
Now I transfer the merit for all virtuous karmic roots,
following them to constantly engage in cultivation and study.
All Buddhas of the Three Periods praise such most excellent great vows.
Now I transfer the merit for all virtuous karmic roots,
aspiring to attain Samantabhadra's most excellent practice.

These two verses especially stress protecting the virtuous karmic roots of learning Buddhism through the act of transferring merit. The importance of merit transfer is indicated in the Great Treatise on Amitabha PureLand Aspiration Prayer:  Even after accumulating virtuous karmic roots, one can eradicate one's virtuous karmic roots if one performs "inverted dedication of merit"*, does not transfer merit, boasts of one's own good deeds, or regrets one's own virtuous actions. This means that, if we dedicate merit after accumulating virtuous karmic roots with a malicious purpose or simply do not transfer the merit at all, then the virtuous karmic roots we have previously accumulated will be destroyed completely by these four causes. Therefore, Tibetan Buddhist practitioners have the habit of transferring merit. Not performing merit transfer after having done some good deeds will cause them to feel uneasy, so they will make sure to immediately recite merit-transfer text to dedicate the merit.
 
* "Inverted dedication of merit" means that, after completing a virtuous action, one dedicates merit for malicious purpose, such as hoping someone gets sick, experiences suffering or encounters obstacles, etc.   

In addition, after a practice session, we first perform merit transfer and then make a vow. This is the reason why some people mistakenly think that making vows is equivalent to merit transfer. In fact, transferring merit is different from making a vow. For example, in terms of the ultimate purpose of "attaining Buddhahood as a commonly shared goal," transferring merit and vow-taking may be similar, but to some extent they are still different. Khenpo Sonam Gyurme from the Great Compassion Buddhist Center used an example to explain this idea: "Transferring merit is like buying a shirt for a friend; making a vow is like wishing to have enough money to buy a shirt for a friend. The meaning is different." Similarly, when we observe the precepts, recite a sutra, and perform an act of giving, we transfer the merit to all sentient beings upon completion of a meritorious action. We should first complete our practices before transferring merit. Vow-making, on the other hand, can be performed at any time.


Extended reading:

Transfer of Merit –The Practice of Generating a Great Mind

The Transfer of Merit: the Giving of Dharma that could be Practiced at any Time

What Buddhist Scriptures Reveal about the Evolution of Merit Transfer

Dedicating the merit for attainment of nirvana is superior to praying for karmic blessing in the human and heavenly realms

To practice the Buddhist teaching is to transfer merit in its true sense

Compassionately delivering sentient beings, dedicating the merit for supreme Bodhi

Dedication verses commonly seen in the Chinese Buddhist tradition

Tibetan Buddhism: The most sublime chapter on the Practices and Vows of Bodhisattva Samantabhadra

Q1: How is merit transfer different from the blessings we give to others in our everyday life?

Q2: Must we first accumulate merit before we can transfer it to others?

Q3: Would it matter if I don't transfer merits after chanting?

Q4: When we transfer the merit generated from self-cultivation to our family, friends, and deceased loved ones, can they really receive it?

Q5: Should we still transfer merit to specific people after we have already transferred it to all sentient beings in the Dharma realm?

Q6: The terms "making vows" and "transfer of merit" are often used alongside each other in Mahayana Buddhist scriptures. What are the differences between them?

Q7: Are there corresponding dedication verses for different Dharma methods? Can these dedication verses be used interchangeably?



Resource: Humanity Magazine Issue #413
Translation: Ariel Shen
Editing: Keith Brown, Chiacheng Chang