THE TAO OF GIVING

The Tao applies to giving just as it applies to everything else in life, and the sages also teach that there are better, more skillful ways to give. More specifically, there are two cardinal rules in the Tao of giving.

The first rule is to give only what you can comfortably spare, and never so much that you damage your ability to give down the road. This allows you to be like the mountain stream. The amount of water may seem more like a trickle than a torrent, but the flow is continuous. Over time, what you give adds up to a tremendous amount, and yet the giving never impacts you in a negative way.

The second rule is to give with no expectations, no conditions and no strings attached. Give because it is the right thing to do, not because you are investing in karma and expecting a return on that investment one day. That kind of attachment will actually short-circuit the karmic process. Unattached giving, on the other hand, always comes back as a powerful blessing in your life.

The Tao Today

Give according to the Tao. Give a small amount day after day, and see what happens in your life. Expect nothing; just observe from a detached frame of mind and open your awareness to unseen forces at work. At the very minimum, you will feel great, the world will seem brighter, and everything will have an inexplicable tendency to go your way.

The Tao of Joy Every Day

~ Derek Lin