Three Levels of Practice > Moral Living and Fundamentals > Dhamma Concepts > Puñña Kamma

Revised March 24, 2016; September 14, 2017; major revision with title change April 27, 2018; edited February 14, 2021; December 21, 2021; May 27, 2022; August 27, 2022; March 7, 2024

1. Here we discuss the ten types of puñña kamma (doing meritorious deeds). These are in three groups: dāna, sīla, and bhāvanā.

▪Those are essential for progress in one’s mundane eightfold path.

▪One must cultivate the mundane path and remove the ten types of micchā diṭṭhi before being able to comprehend the Tilakkhaṇa and start on the Noble Eightfold Path; see “Buddha Dhamma – In a Chart.”

2. A previous post discussed the differences between kusala/akusala kamma and puñña/pāpa kamma : “Kilesa – Relationship to Akusala, Kusala, and Puñña Kamma.”

▪For details on the ten types of akusala kamma, see “Ten Immoral Actions (Dasa Akusala).”

▪The ten types of kusala kamma are just the avoidance of akusala kamma.

3. As discussed in the above two posts, kusala kammā (getting rid of rāga, dosa, and moha) eventually leads to Nibbāna. However, puñña kamma (meritorious actions) help set the background to attain Nibbāna and are thus critically important.

▪One needs to do both. However, the ability to do kusala kammā is vastly improved when one starts comprehending Tilakkhaṇa; see, “Anicca, Dukkha, Anatta.”

▪Puñña kammā lead to rebirths in “good realms.” Furthermore, one will be born with long life, good health, comfort, and wealth (āyu, vaṇṇa, sukha, bala) to be able to comprehend Tilakkhaṇa and pursue Nibbāna with ease. The following Dhammapada verse emphasizes that:

“Abhivādanasīlissa,

niccaṁ vuḍḍhāpacāyino;

Cattāro dhammā vaḍḍhanti,

āyu vaṇṇo sukhaṁ balaṁ.”

▪Āyu, vaṇṇa, sukha, and bala mean the length of life, health, happiness, and strength. [vaṇṇa : [m.] colour; appearance; colour of the skin; sort; caste; a letter; quality.]

These ten meritorious actions (puñña kamma) are divided into three groups: dāna (generosity), sīla (moral behavior), and bhāvanā (meditation).

Puñña Kamma – Dāna, Sīla, Bhāvanā

4. The ten types of puñña kammā are:

1.Dāna (giving)

2.Transfer of merits to others (pattidāna)

3.Rejoicing (accepting or participating) in other’s merits (pattānumodanā)

4.Sīla (morality), i.e., observing 5, 8, or 10 precepts

5.Reverence to elders and holy persons (apacayana)

6.Pay homage to religious places, take care of such places, etc (veyyāvacca)

7.Meditation (bhāvanā)

8.Listening to Dhamma discourses (Dhamma savana)

9.Teaching Dhamma (Dhamma desana)

10.Correcting one’s wrong views, especially on kamma (diṭṭhijukamma)

▪The first three belong to the Dāna (Generosity) group, the following three belong to the Sīla (Morality) group and the last four to the Bhāvanā (Meditation) group.

▪On the last one, see, “What is Kamma? – Is Everything Determined by Kamma?.”

5. Therefore, dāna, sīla, and bhāvanā constitute the “base” of a moral person’ life.

▪“Dāna group” helps one overcome one’s greed (lobha).

▪“Sīla group” helps to remove hate (dosa) from one’s mind.

▪“Bhāvanā group” helps to remove ignorance (moha) from the mind by learning Dhamma and eliminating the wrong views (micchā diṭṭhi).

6. Since Nibbāna means removing greed, hate, and ignorance from one’s mind, it is clear how these ten actions pave the way for Nibbāna. As one engages in these activities more and more, one can experience the “cooling down” or “niveema”; see “How to Taste Nibbāna.”

▪In the sīla group of activities, one starts by observing the five precepts, i.e., abstaining from killing living beings intentionally, stealing, sexual misconduct, lying, and getting intoxicated. This last one usually involves intoxication with alcohol or drugs, but it also includes money, beauty, power, position, etc.

7. It is always a good idea to keep in mind why these are moral actions: Because they help purify one’s mind:

▪To avoid breaking the five precepts, most people abstain from drinking but do not hesitate to show off their wealth, beauty, power, etc.; they are “drunk” too.

▪Others pay a lot of attention not to lying, but do not hesitate to gossip, slander, or verbally abuse others.

▪Also, one should realize that human life has much more weight than animal life; see “How to Evaluate Weights of Different Kamma.”

▪Most of all, the tenth is the most potent one that most people neglect to consider. Establishing wrong views (niyata micchā diṭṭhi) can lead to frequent immoral actions. Thus, one needs to understand this clearly; see “Ten Immoral Actions (Dasa Akusala).”

8. This is why learning Dhamma is prominent in the bhāvanā section. As one keeps learning more profound concepts of Dhamma, wrong views will gradually fade. It is not enough to say, “I will not have these views anymore,” even though making such a determination is good. The mind needs to see evidence to get rid of the wrong views. When one starts on the Path, the feeling of the nirāmisa sukha will make it easier to remove wrong views; see, “Three Kinds of Happiness – What is Nirāmisa Sukha?.”

The High Value of Puñña Kamma Done with Understanding

9. If one performs a wholesome deed with the knowledge of kamma and its effects and anicca, dukkha, and anatta, then the wholesome roots will be associated with understanding. Then one’s actions will be based on all three wholesome roots: non-greed, non-hate, and non-delusion. So three-root (tihetuka or “ti” + “hetu”) wholesome kamma is acquired.

▪On the other hand, performing a wholesome deed without knowing the laws of kammā will dilute its effects on future outcomes (vipāka.) Then one’s intention will not have wisdom or paññā (true non-delusion) but only the two roots of non-greed and non-hate. So two-root (dvihetuka = “dvi” + “hetu”) kamma is acquired. These are less meritorious compared to the three-root (tihetuka) kamma.

10. A detailed discussion can be found in “A Simple Way to Enhance Merits (Kusala) and Avoid Demerits (Akusala).” We will discuss these effects in detail in the Abhidhamma section too.

▪However, it is essential to realize that the strength of the kamma vipāka for a given meritorious act will vary depending on the level of understanding. For example, just writing a check to charity will have some results. However, more substantial results will materialize if done with a good understanding of the laws of kamma.

11. To engage in this superior kamma, one should consider the moral action in advance. After the deed, one should reflect on it and contemplate it. Furthermore, one can gain more merits by doing a puñña anumodana or pattidāna (transfer of merits to others, #2 kusala kamma above) because this amounts to paying off sansāric debts; see, “Kamma, Debt, and Meditation.”

▪On the other hand, if one feels lazy, reluctant, jealous, or stingy before a moral action such as giving charity and regrets doing the moral action afterward, then the moral volition of giving to charity will be surrounded by other unwholesome intentions (cetanā). Consequently, its results will be weaker. The wholesome kamma acquired, in this case, is inferior.

Thus, it is important to learn Dhamma to grasp such details and realize the full benefits of one’s meritorious actions. It is interesting to see how all these details “fit into the big picture”; see “The Importance of Purifying the Mind.”

Next, “The Five Precepts – What the Buddha Meant by Them”, …