Dedicating the Merit of our Practice

(Read the original on elephant journal)

The other day, I stood alone in the temple in front of an altar full of a stunningly beautiful and potent mandala of crystals, Tibetan singing bowls, and Buddhas.

As I breathed with my palms together in prayer in front of my heart and wished that the journey my family and I are about to embark upon be safe, peaceful, and joyous, for one brief second my mind was clear and radiant.I realized that this wish for myself and the two beings closest to me (my husband and daughter) was simultaneously a wish for all beings without exception. The pure and simple aspiration, “May the journey of all beings be safe, peaceful, healthy, and happy” welled up from that indescribable source that lies within each of us and is ever surrounding us all.Dedicating the merit is fundamental to all meditation. It is absolutely essential and not to be overlooked. Here is an example of a dedication of merit you can recite at the end of your practice:

May the earth be wholesome everywhere The world blessed with prosperity May the poor and destitute find wealth And the stooping animals be freedMay every being ailing with illness Find relief at once from suffering May all the sickness that afflict the living Be instantly and permanently healedMay those who go in dread, have no more fear, May captives be unchained and set free, And may the weak now become strong, May living beings help each other in kindness.May travelers upon the road, Find happiness no matter where they go, And may they gain, without hardship, The goals on which their hearts are set.From the songs of birds and the sighing of trees, From the shafts of light and from the sky itself, May living beings, each and every one, Perceive the constant sound of Dharma.~ Shantideva