Dana is the quality of giving from the heart, and brings joy through the act of giving.
Buddhist monk Ajahn Suwat was teaching a ten day meditation retreat, which he had taught many times in Thailand but was teaching for the first time to Westerners.
Ajahn Suwat: Why do they seem so unhappy? They’re meditating. They’re here. But they seem so grim and not at all like they’re enjoying themselves.”
Ajahn Geoff: “They know how to meditate, but not how to practice dana.”*
Dana is a fundamental part of Thai culture, but absent in the West. Children are taught dana from an early age when their parents encourage them to place a spoonful of rice in a monk’s bowl as the monks pass by for their daily alms, and reward them with approval afterwards. It is a lesson they will continue to use for the rest of their lives as they openly share and recieve the shared food of others. Through the simple act of sharing they are able both to help others feel good and to feel good themselves.
Dana will make you happier. Try it.
Action: Consider what you have to give. Start with something simple. Give a pen to your colleague. Give a shirt you haven’t worn in a while to a friend who would look good in it. Give an extra cooking pot to your neighbour. Give something you don’t need to someone who deserves it.
Do you have nothing? You still have something to give. Give a flower to your colleague. Give a hug to your sister. Give a compliment to your baker.
Quote of the day:
Share what you love, and you will have more of it.
Did you give something recently? I’d like to hear your stories.
*from Ajahn Pasanno, A Dhamma Compass. 2007: Q Print Management Co. Ltd, sponsored for free distribution by followers of Ajahn Pasanno in Thailand.
fill your day with sunshine 