The Three Factors of a Gift, from the Giver
Externally, gifts are viewed as joyful events for the recipient and giver. I must admit, some of my offerings, whether financial resources, time, or material goods are at times entangled with a hint of obligation, social pressure, guilt, or a mixture. Rarely do I give, just to give and wholeheartedly. On that rare occasion I feel full and complete. Recently I came upon the practice of The Three Factors of a Gift from the giver’s internal state, these three are part of a larger teaching called The Six Factors of a Gift. Here I will only focus on the first three which presents the practice for the gift giver. While studying the topic of Dāna, the practice of self-less giving, I found the teaching in the Anguttara Nikāya 6.37, Dāna Sutta:
Thus, I have heard,
Before giving, glad;
while giving, the mind is bright & clear;
having given, one is gratified:
This is the consummation of the sacrifice.
Free of passion, free of aversion,
free of delusion, without fermentation:
the consummation of the field of the sacrifice,
one restrained, leading the holy life.[2]
Having rinsed oneself,
having given with one's own hands,
then — because of oneself,
because of the other — [3]
that is a sacrifice yielding great fruit.
Having given thus
— intelligent —
a person of conviction,
with awareness released,
reappears
— wise —
in a world of bliss
unalloyed.
The following is my current understanding and distillation of the sutta.
Before Giving
Contemplate why you are giving, the intention behind it. Is the gift about you or the recipient? What karmic seed are you planting by giving? Plant that seed with a glad heart, giving from a place of abundance and not scarcity.
While Giving
In the moment of giving maintain a bright and clear mind, freeing one from hesitation, doubt, or attachment. Give with your own hands. In many Asian cultures, such as the Hmong, Thai, and Japanese ctulures, it is customary to use both hand while making an offering. This is a physical practice marking the moment. This physical letting go is the brightness which causes a mental expansion. Greed and stinginess create a contraction in the mind.
After Giving
To seal the practice, take a moment to reflect. Recognizing that you have done something which aligns with your highest values. This results in a gratified mind, a gratified mind helps us settle into a deep state of calm.
Having read the sutta, I suspect those moments when I give a gift and feel full and complete may be due to this gratified mind. As LeVar Burton’s famous catchphrase towards the ending of the Reading Rainbow show, he would say “But you don’t have to take my word for it.” I now invite you to further investigate and practice this teaching with me.
May these words and this practice alleviate suffering for all beings and non-beings. Written from the ancestral land of the Utes, Arapaho, and Cheyenne here in Boulder, Colorado.
-Sōkyo Jido Chee Xiong
