Answer by the Law of Kamma :- Making merit for 7 days, 50 days and 100 days

 

Making merit for 7 days,

50 days and 100 days

 

 

Questions from the audience:  

 

When a man had passed away, according to the Buddhist custom his relatives could make merit and dedicated to him for 7 days, 50 days, and 100 days.  What is the reason behind this custom?  How are they different? And how can his relatives do in order that he will get the utmost merit?

 

Answers:

 

When someone passed away, his relatives do not know where he is now.  What his relatives can do is making and dedicating merit to him.  Determine the possible case for the passed away one.

 

1.  If he went to the fortunate realms at once, he got the merit immediately.

 

2.  If he had gone to the major hells suddenly, the merits he received from dedication were waiting for him at the purgatory.

 

3.  If he had not gone the fortunate realms and major hells, he needed merit because of the following reasons.

 

3.1  His spirit was still on the human world for 7 days.            He had more chance to reborn in the fortunate realms without going to the purgatory if he had more merits in total and reminded of his good deeds.

 

3.2  He was brought to the purgatory and waiting for the sentence there during the 8^th – 50^th day after death.  If he got enough merit on this time, he would go to the fortunate realms at once.

 

3.3  He was sentenced and sent to reborn during the 51^st – 100^th day after death.  If he was reborn in any place that he could receive merits, these merits improved his life e.g., he had a more beautiful house or got a higher rank.  If he went to any hell, his merits were waiting for him at the purgatory.  

 

 

By Khunkru Maiyai

 

August 5^th, 2003

 

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