...Danaparamita

I read more of The Six Perfections by Dale S. Wright, and decided that a good understanding of the six characteristics of an awakened mind are pretty important to the overall forward movement of my spiritual path. So, I'm going to work my way through the book and share with you what I learn. Today I want to focus specifically on the first perfection-the perfection of generosity, or danaparamita.

What exactly is generosity? Most of the time we like to think of it as an act of giving, and this is very true. However, not every act of giving is considered a perfection of generosity. True generosity, according to Buddhist dharma, lies in giving without self-satisfaction in the act. If a person gives something to another person and feels good about the fact that they gave something, then the motivation for the giving was impure and therefore not really generous. How many times have I given without feeling some self satisfaction in return? Hmmm....I can count the number of times on one hand. I can recall that in those few times when I felt no self-satisfaction, the generous act felt like a sacrifice against my own well being rather than a helpful gift. I talked to a friend about what she thinks of generosity before I read the chapter, and she felt the same way I did. She said her main motivation for giving, no matter how bad it might sound, always has some kind of basis in how good it will make her feel, and if she doesn't feel good about it she feels like she's losing something in order for the other person to gain. There is always some emotion attached to the giving process, whether positive or negative, and according to Buddhism neither feeling is pure generosity.

How does one give without feeling some self-satisfaction or some other emotion? It appears to lie within that one word I wrote in the last sentence of the last paragraph..."attachment." A very important aspect of Mahayana (or Middle Way) Buddhist philosophy is emptiness, sunyata in Sanskrit. Sunyata relates to what I wrote in my last post about dependence. According to Mahayana Buddhists, we are nothing without everything else. We can not give to someone without everything else in our life making that possible-for example parents giving birth to and teaching us about generosity in the first place, or our employers giving us financial capability to give. We can't give without the environmental factors which make it possible, and we can't give without someone needing the gift. We have to realize that giving is not something which comes from us as individuals, but from everything around us that allows for it to happen. When we realize that what we give has nothing to do with our individuality and everything to do with what made it possible for us to give, then we can detach from the idea that the satisfaction in  giving is ours for the taking. The gift, the giver, and the recipient all depend on one another and are all part of one another. One cannot exist without the other. Giving then, is not taking something of mine and making it yours-congratulations-but rather, it is mine and yours and everyone's all at the same time. When a person thinks of giving in this sense, one can grasp that generosity is nothing more than giving because someone is in need.

We have to be careful in our generosity, however, as we do run the risk of turning the generous act into one of self sacrifice. We also run the risk of harming someone else with our generosity. We can not just say "what is mine is yours." For example, we can not just give someone all our money because they need it and ask for it. We have to think, will this really benefit the other person in the long run? Will they learn that they can't spend all their money on designer clothes and golf gear and still pay their bills, or will they learn that they can spend all their money on luxury and then just ask you for the money to pay their bills? Will you be able to pay your bills? Will you end up having to ask someone else for help as a result of your gift? We have to be smart about it, and think long and hard before we give. Giving can sometimes have the exact opposite effect of the one we want it to have. Sometimes the most generous thing we can do for someone else is not give. If we don't give all our cash to the person who asks for it, they might learn that they can't spend all of theirs on unnecessary luxuries and then expect to pay their bills-and who knows, maybe next time that person will not buy designer clothes and golf clubs until they have paid their bills. Then, they will have the security of knowing their bills are paid for another month, we will have the security of knowing our bills are paid, and our friends and family will have the security of knowing their bills are paid and no one had to ask anyone else to perform self sacrifice in the process.

The most important step in cultivating the perfection of generosity is practicing it. If we don't practice it, we won't ever learn it. I can sit here and write all I want about it, but if I'm not working on it every single day of my life, then I will never live it. I can't simply rid myself of all the ideas I've had about generosity over night. Finding danaparamita takes time, active pursuit, and meditation. I promise to myself and to you that every time I meditate, and every time I wake up I will think of this, imagine it in every possible way, and live it to the fullest. If you want to pursue this perfection with me, it does not mean you have to go around giving to everyone in need-especially if you don't have the resources to do so.  Imagination is a powerful thing, and when you meditate, just imagine that everything is part of everything else, and think of giving-you can imagine yourself giving to someone you know who is in need. The great thing about imagination is that we can often do things beyond our physical limitations. So, when I meditate, I will use my imagination and I will give whatever is needed...simply because it is needed. When I go about my life, I will practice wise generosity.