The Gift of Generosity

The True Meaning of Generosity

True generosity arises out of unconditional caring and compassion for another. Each of us is dependent upon others for our blessings. We flourish or perish together through interwoven acts of generosity arising from the benevolence and integrity of others, many of whom we shall never meet. This is the power of generosity. When we mindfully practice generosity, we come into contact with its joyful, healing power.

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  Practicing generosity is the intention to find release from attachment to gratifying our ego needs by giving freely of what we have that is of value.
• What we have to give may be material in nature, or it may be our time, energy, or wisdom.
• We practice generosity to eradicate the attachments that come from our feelings of scarcity and separateness.

The practice of generosity allows us to see the world from the point of view of what we have and what we have to give, instead of seeing it from the perspective of what we don’t have and desperately want. 

For your reflection:
During this season of gift giving, reflect on how you might practice generosity throughout the year. There are many ways to cultivate an attitude of generosity in daily life. Here are just a few that I hope will be easy to remember:

• Be generous with your attention when you’re listening to someone.
  
• Be generous in celebrating another person’s happiness.
  
• Be generous with your sympathy toward someone who has experienced loss.
  
• Be generous with your compliments and praise of others.
  
• Be generous with your unconditional respect of others.
  
• Be generous with your willingness to be helpful.

Visit www.dharmawisdom.org for additional articles, talks and meditations

I  wish you and yours a happy and healthy Holiday Season.