Making merit often but life still not improving? Here are tips from Wat Tha Mai and the right ways to resolve karma, starting by asking forgiveness from parents, practicing forgiveness, and stopping new negative actions to unlock your destiny and prosper again.
Many people have probably asked themselves, "Why do I make so much merit and donate frequently, yet my life still feels stuck and unsuccessful?" Sometimes this leads to losing motivation to do good. However, according to Buddhist beliefs and many revered teachers, the reason merit has not yet borne fruit may be due to "leaks in karma" or making merit that does not match the karmic consequences one is currently facing.
Therefore, what should be done is not to stop making merit but to "make merit correctly" and "stop repeating negative karma," which is a key approach recommended by Wat Tha Mai in Samut Sakhon province to guide unlocking life.
Based on statistics and popularity in Thai society, Wat Tha Mai is a spiritual center for both the general public and celebrities who seek advice on destiny. In Buddhism, karma resolution does not erase past wrongs, because past actions inevitably bring results according to karmic law. Instead, it means creating stronger new merit and stopping behaviors that risk creating more negative karma, so life can run more smoothly.
If you feel your life has not improved, try changing how you make merit and follow these four guidelines:
According to ancient beliefs and emphasized tips, asking forgiveness from parents or benefactors is the most important because parents are like arahants to their children. If you have ever wronged them physically, verbally, or mentally, it can block the flow of merit.
What you should do Prepare a tray of flowers to sincerely ask forgiveness, wash their feet, and receive blessings from your parents. This pure and powerful merit energy is the strongest aid in reopening a blocked life path to prosperity.
The cycle of birth and death may have caused enemies or karmic debts. Holding onto anger or resentment prolongs this cycle. Forgiving those who have harmed us is not to let them win, but to free ourselves from karmic chains and elevate our hearts.
If you face particular problems, belief holds that you should choose merit activities that support resolving those issues to match the karmic consequences, such as:
The most important tip Wat Tha Mai often emphasizes is "stop repeating karma." Many make merit in the morning but let anger dominate later, speaking ill, gossiping, or hurting others' feelings—wasting merit. Controlling body, speech, and mind with mindfulness prevents new karma from worsening old karma.
However, the reason life does not improve despite making merit is not that goodness has no effect, but is like a leaking water vessel that never fills no matter how much water is poured in. Turning inward to ask forgiveness from benefactors, practicing forgiveness, making merit correctly, and controlling words and emotions to avoid new karma are the proper ways to heal the mind and sustainably welcome good things into life.