Yogi: I’m doubtful about making merits; for me, it’s more a belief. Is merit-making true, the belief that if we do good, our next life will be better and if we do bad, we’ll go to hell in the next life?

Sayadaw: You might call merit the result of wholesome actions; they could be mental, verbal, or bodily actions. This phenomenon is not made up by man. What you doubt is the idea that if you do something now, you’ll get the result only in the next life. It is like: How do you know?

The result of actions is in the present moment. If you do something now, the result will come now. For example, if you’re angry, your mind will be agitated. That is immediate; the result of unwholesome mental action. If you send metta to someone or you think of someone in a loving way, immediately your mind will feel loving and peaceful. That is an immediate result of wholesome mental action.

These are real cause and effect – we can call all the results of wholesome actions merits.