sharmin, I understand, and that’s why I suggested that possibly the child misunderstood what either the book or the teacher said, or that the teacher may have been confused about Church history and doctrine.
Buying indulgences was not buying salvation for either the buyer or the departed loved one, but the promise of deliverance from purgatory.
Strictly speaking, of course, it is not even possible to buy or sell indulgences; since indulgences are assigned by the Church to certain prayers which may be said in place of public penance.
The abuse of this practice in order to raise money for the Church was one factor which led to the so-called Protestant Reformation, and it is certainly possible that a world history book would include this, but it is unlikely that it would be presented in terms of ‘paying for salvation’, nor has any contributor to this thread given any citation in support of that assertion.