The Buddha never pressured anybody to give. When he talked on the topic of generosity, it was //after// people had given something, to make them rejoice in the fact that they'd done something good. But he was trying to make the point that we do have freedom of choice, and it's that freedom to give that feels really good. The times when you give because you have to give: they don't feel nearly as good as the times when, simply out of the goodness of your heart, you realize you have something that someone else could use it well, and you're happy to give it to them.
This relates to his teachings on karma, that we do have freedom of choice in the present moment. The people who said that there was no worth in giving either said, “Well, if everybody's predetermined to do whatever they're going to do, then those who give and those who don't give: it's simply a matter of the stars or the creator of the world or past actions force them to do that. So there's no virtue in giving.” And the Buddha's saying, “No, there is virtue in giving.”
He's also saying that the people you give to, there's worth there, it's not that there's nothing there or the people get wiped out at death. They don't. They move on wherever their cravings take them. And so when you help somebody, you give something to someone who's going to be lasting for a long time." ~ Thanissaro Bhikkhu "Spread Goodness Around", 17min mp3 audio,
No comments:
Post a Comment