Within Thai Buddhist life, merit (bun) functions as a kind of moral and spiritual currency that links everyday conduct to karmic consequences and future destinies. It is understood as positive karmic energy generated through wholesome actions of body, speech, and mind, and is believed to yield benefits such as improved circumstances in this life, favorable rebirths, and gradual spiritual advancement. The prospect of accumulating merit encourages generosity, non-harm, and observance of ethical precepts, while the fear of demerit (bap) restrains harmful behavior. In this way, merit-making operates as a pervasive incentive system that shapes both personal choices and the broader moral tone of society.

The primary avenues for generating merit are classically expressed as dana, sila, and bhavana. Dana, or giving, includes offering food, robes, and other necessities to monks, sponsoring ordinations, building or repairing temples, and making charitable donations. Sila, moral conduct, centers on following the Five Precepts and cultivating honesty, restraint, and harmlessness. Bhavana, mental cultivation, involves meditation and mindfulness practices that purify and steady the mind. Together, these three dimensions of practice provide a comprehensive framework through which laypeople and monastics alike can accumulate bun in daily life.

Merit is especially bound up with the relationship between laypeople and the sangha. Lay supporters provide material sustenance and institutional backing for the monastic community, and in return monks offer teachings, perform rituals, and serve as focal points for merit-making. This reciprocal exchange not only sustains the religious institution but also weaves individuals into a shared spiritual economy, where acts of giving and receiving are imbued with karmic significance. Temple festivals, ordination ceremonies, and other communal events become occasions for collective merit-making that reinforce social cohesion and Buddhist values.

Another important dimension of bun is its transferability. Merit generated through wholesome actions can be consciously dedicated to others, especially deceased relatives, with the intention that they benefit from the positive karmic force. This practice of sharing or transferring merit underscores the deep sense of interconnectedness that pervades Thai Buddhist devotion, suggesting that spiritual progress is not a purely solitary endeavor. At the same time, the widespread belief that health, prosperity, and social standing may reflect accumulated merit gives religious meaning to the ups and downs of life, and encourages continued engagement in generous, ethical, and contemplative practices as a path toward better conditions and, ultimately, liberation.