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Jetsunma Tenzin Palmo is a distinguished nun in the Kagyu school of Tibetan Buddhism and the founder of Dongyu Gatsal Ling Nunnery in India

JETSUNMA TENZIN PALMO: In traditional Buddhist countries, the concept of punya has always played an important role. Usually translated as “merit” or even as “goodness,” punya represents the positive karmic results of good intentions and actions. This belief in the power of meritorious actions is perceived as an ethical force that can be directed toward any chosen object. So people set about “making merit” and rejoicing in it; the merit is then dedicated to others and thus shared. This serves as an encouragement to perform acts of goodness such as generosity and kindness. We can also rejoice in and share the goodness we see others perform.

At the start of formal practice, we take refuge in the three jewels and then,