Dissolving Sin or Demerit through
the Accumulation of Merit
It is generally understood that once sin or demerit occurs as a result of a misdeed and ill consequences are incurred, that sin or demerit cannot be washed away. This understanding is correct when sin or demerit means the ill consequences of a misdeed. However, according to the knowledge about the Law of Kamma, the emphasis is on the removal of defilements, which are the root cause of sin or demerit.
Although the Lord Buddha taught us to abandon wickedness, to perform good deeds, to keep our mind bright and clear so that we can eventually destroy all of our defilements, however, in the course of our daily life, most of us perform a mixture of good and bad deeds. Therefore, when our misdeeds give their consequences, they will not be able to do so in a continuous manner because they will be interrupted by our good deeds which will also give their consequences. Good and bad deeds will jostle with each other to give their consequences but the pattern is unique to each individual's overall Kamma. Sometimes an individual may have been making real progress in life when his past misdeeds suddenly cause him to meet with obstacles. In the case where an individual performs more bad deeds than good deeds, how can he then go about improving his situation, since the consequences of his misdeeds cannot be washed away?
The Lord Buddha taught us to perform good deeds on a regular and continuous basis. When this is done to the fullest extent and defilements are completely destroyed then the true deed of a human being is done. Therefore, according to the Lord Buddha, to undo one's unwholesome deeds, one must first realize the harm of one's unwholesome deed and admit to one's wrongdoing. One must then be determined not to commit the same misdeed again. Next, one must learn to accumulate more and more good deeds so that one becomes accustomedto doing good deeds. Once one can accumulate more and more merit through one's ever-increasing number of good deeds, it will cause the consequences of sin or misdeeds to be left far behind. Buddhist scholars called this pathway 'the way to dissolve sin or demerit.' It is the way to make sin or demerit more dilute or less potent. Without the merit earned by performing good deeds, sin or demerit can easily give its consequences. Once sin or demerit begins to give its ill consequences, the situation will make it difficult for one to perform good deeds to the fullest extent. This method of dissolving sin or demerit is mentioned in the Lonaka Sutta, as follows:
"Behold, monks, if one puts a lump of salt in a small cup of water, would you suppose the water would be so salty as to be undrinkable?" The monks answered, "Indeed, it would be so, Most Exalted One." The Lord Buddha asked, "Why is that?" The
monks answered, "It's because there's only a small amount of water." The Lord Buddha said, "What if one puts the same lump of salt but this time in the Ganges, would you suppose the water would be so salty as to be undrinkable?" The monks answered, "No, it would not be, Most Enlightened One." The Lord Buddha asked, "And why is that?" The monks answered, "It's because there's so much water in the Ganges that just one lump of salt cannot cause the water in it to become salty." The Lord Buddha said, "In the same manner, monks, some individuals commit a small amount of misdeed yet it can cause
them to have a rebirth in the Hell Realm. For some individuals, the same small amount of misdeed becomes Dittha-dhamma-veda-niya-kamma (Kamma which gives its consequences within the present lifetime) therefore, has a very light effect."
This Sutta teaches that we can dilute the consequences of our misdeed by deliberately accumulating a great amount of merit.
The accumulation of merit has the effect of adding more water whereas the accumulation of demerit has the effect of adding more salt as in the analogy above. Therefore, we must regularly accumulate merit in order to offset our demerit. It is like a lump of salt being dissolved in more and more water until its saltiness cannot be tasted. Yet the salt is still there in the water.
Nonetheless, there are those of us who in spite of knowing what constitutes a good deed, still refuse to perform it because they have succumbed to the force of their defilements. In this case, it is nearly impossible for them to dissolve their sin or demerit. It is best in any case not to commit any misdeed at all or to commit as few misdeeds as possible. We should make it a habit to think and consider everything thoroughly before we say or do anything.
