Disponible también en español

“Before giving, glad;
while giving, the heart is bright & clear;
having given, one is gratified:
This is the consummation of offering.”
-the Buddha in “The Discourse on Giving”

The Buddha taught the practice of giving as the first of virtues to be cultivated. Giving is a virtue when it issues from generosity. And generosity is a matter of the heart—an act of freedom. He taught the virtues of giving against the backdrop of a Vedic-Brahmanical society where giving was considered spiritually obligatory. It was one’s duty, one’s dharma to give. Specifically, everyone was bound by duty to give especially to brahmins – to priests, to holy people, to shamans. And in return, givers receive spiritual guidance, ritual assistance, special protection and good luck. Giving also improves one’s chances of being reincarnated into a higher caste in one’s next life. In short, it was a giving-and-receiving “with strings attached.” Giving was obligatory. Giving was transactional.

But the Buddha taught a different kind of giving. He rejected the notion of obligatory giving (except for the obligation that a child owed to one’s parents). The Buddha did however praise the practice of giving but taught that giving should be an act of freedom: we give because we chose freely to give. And in giving freely, we experience the freedom that comes from this kind of giving—giving arising from a generosity of heart. The freedom we experience when we give freely is what’s often called “merit.” Merit gladdens the heart. Merit frees the heart. Merit accomplishes our resolve to be free.

Drikung Dharmakirti operates according to this vision of generosity. The Dharma is given here freely. It is given without any obligations. Here, we follow what the Buddha taught about giving and generosity even if our current capitalist, materialistic societies insist on the “necessity” of monetizing, of profitability. But as Buddhists, we swim upstream. We strive against the stream. Furthermore, the founding-father of the Kagyu Lineage, Marpa once said, “The Dharma is ownerless like a deer in the meadows.” Such a deer wanders freely, without being owned, without owning anything.

When asked when should one give then if one isn’t obligated to give? “When inspired” was the Buddha’s answer. And it is in this spirit of generosity that we invite you to give when you are inspired. Your freely given gift is much appreciated by us and by Dr. Lye. We will continue to freely share with you here at Drikung Dharmakirti. We share these gifts of Dharma, the highest of gifts. Gifts that free us.