THOSE WHO TRANSFER MERITS FOR THE BENEFIT OF SENTIENT BEINGS WILL GET REWARDED WITH MERITS IN RETURN; MERITS USED FOR SELF-INTEREST WILL BE EXPENDED
Question: There are some Buddhist friends, who, after every dharma propagation effort, will either transfer their entire merits accrued to pray for the smooth-sailing of other propagation activities or to Master Lu, leaving themselves with nothing whatsoever. I’d like to ask if this is appropriate? Would they still have spiritual energy if they were to transfer all of their merits?
Answer: It really depends. If you do so for the benefit of sentient beings, these merits will come back to you. The same cannot be said if you do so with a selfish intention, that is, solely for self-benefits. In the latter case, there will be no more merits left because of this transfer. Do you understand me? Bodhisattva will reward those who transfer their merits for the good of others. On the other hand, your merits will be gone for good the moment you use them to satisfy your self-interests.
Source: Master Jun Hong Lu’s World Buddhist Fellowship Meeting (Q&A Session), Sydney, Australia, 10 January 2020