Tuesday, 4 January 2011
DANA IN BUDDHISM
Dāna is generosity or giving. It is also the practice of cultivating generosity. Ultimately, the practice culminates in one of the perfections (pāramitā): the perfection of giving (dāna-pāramitā). This can be characterized by unattached and unconditional generosity, giving and letting go.
Dāna as a formal religious act is directed specifically to a monastic or spiritually-developed person. In Buddhist thought, it has the effect of purifying and transforming the mind of the giver.
Generosity developed through giving leads to being reborn in happy states and the availability of material wealth. Conversely, lack of giving leads to unhappy states and poverty.
Buddhists believe that giving without seeking anything in return leads to greater spiritual wealth. Moreover, it reduces the acquisitive impulses that ultimately lead to further suffering.
Once, when the Buddha was dwelling near Savatthi at the Jeta Grove, the householder Anathapindika visited him and, after greeting him politely, sat down at one side.
The Exalted One addressed Anathapindika, “Are alms given in your house, householder?”
“Yes, Lord, alms are given by my family, but they consist only of broken rice and sour gruel.”
“Householder, whether one gives coarse or choice alms, if one gives with respect, thoughtfully, by one’s own hand, gives things tht are not leftovers, and with belief in the result of actions, then, wherever one is born as a result of having given with respect, the mind will experience pleasantness.”
“Long ago, householder, there lived a brahman named Velama who gave very valuable gifts. He gave thousands of bowls of gold, silver and copper, filled with jewels; thousands of horses with trappings; banners and nets of gold; carriages spread with saffron-colored blankets; thousands of milk-giving cows with fine jute ropes and silver milk pails; beds with covers of fleece, white blankets, embroidered coverlets, and with crimson cushions at the ends; lengths of cloth of the best flax, silk, wool and cotton. And how to describe all the food, sweets and syrups that he gave? They flowed like rivers.”
“Householder, who was the brahman who made those very valuable gifts? It was me.”
“But, when those gifts were given, householder, there were no worthy recipients. Although the brahman Velama gave such valuable gifts, if he had fed just one person of right view, the fruit of the latter deed would have been greater.”
“…and though he fed a hundred people of right view, the fruit of feeding a Once-returner would have been greater.”
“…and though he fed a hundred Sakadagamis, the fruit of feeding one Non-returner would have been greater.”
“…and though he fed a hundred Anagamis, the fruit of feeding one Arahat would have been greater.”
“…and though he fed a hundred Arahats, the fruit of feeding one Non-teaching Buddha would have been greater.”
“…and though he fed a hundred Paccekkabuddhas, the fruit of feeding a Perfect One, a Teaching Buddha, would have been greater.”
“…and though he fed a Sammasambuddha, the fruit of feeding the Order of monks with the Buddha at its head would have been greater.”
“…and though he fed the Sangha with the Buddha at its head, the fruit of building a monastery for the use of the Sangha would have been greater.”
“…and though he built a monastery for the monks, the fruit of sincerely taking refuge in the Buddha, Dhamma and the Sangha would have been greater.”
“…and though he sincerely took refuge in the Buddha, Dhamma and the Sangha, the fruit of sincerely undertaking the Five Moral Precepts would have been greater.”
“…and though he sincerely undertook the Five Precepts, the fruit of developing (concentration on radiating) metta, even for just to the extent of a whiff of scent, would have been greater.”
“…and though he developed universal lovingkindness, the fruit of cultivating the awareness of anicca-even for the moment of a finger snap-would have been greater.”
Anguttara Nikaya, Navakanipata, Sutta 20
Anathapindika — The Feeder of the Poor In the 5th century B.C.E., trade and commerce were already highly developed in India. Caravans travelled from one city to another and financial houses made money available for loan. If a person had skill and was prepared to take risks, it was quite possible to make a lot of money and perhaps even become a millionaire (setthi). One of the Buddha's most famous lay disciples was such a man. His name was Sudatta but because he was always ready to give to the hungry, the homeless or the dispossessed, he was known by everybody as Anathapindika, meaning 'the feeder of the poor'. Anathapindika lived in Savatthi but he travelled a lot on business and one day while in Rajagaha, he went to visit his brother-in-law. The household was so busy with preparations for a feast that Anathapindika failed to get his usual warm welcome. "What is the big occasion?" Anathapindika asked his brother-in-law. "Are you preparing for a great wedding or perhaps a visit from the king?" "No," was the reply. "The Buddha and his monks are coming for a meal tomorrow." Just hearing the word 'Buddha' filled Anathapindika with such joy that he could hardly contain himself. "You mean that a fully enlightened being has arisen in the world? How wonderful! Take me to meet him". Anathapindika wanted to go straight away but he was persuaded that it was too late and that it would be better to do so the next morning. That night Anathapindika was so excited that he could hardly sleep and he got up several times thinking it was already dawn. Eventually, thinking that the sun would be rising soon, Anathapindika set off to meet the Buddha, but as he entered the outskirts of the city and it was still dark, he became frightened and decided to turn back. Suddenly, a friendly spirit appeared illuminating the whole area and urged him to continue. "Walk on, friend. To move forward is better for you than to turn back." Encouraged by these words, Anathapindika continued and soon came across the Buddha walking up and down in the early morning light. The Buddha saw Anathapindika hesitating to come closer and he beckoned him. "Come forward, Sudatta." Astonished that the Buddha would know his real name and awed by the great man's presence, Anathapindika hurried forward and bowed at the Buddha's feet. The two men talked together for a while and as the sun came up; Anathapindika understood the essence of the Dharma and became a Stream-Winner. Anathapindika then asked the Buddha if he could offer him a meal the next day and the Buddha accepted. All during the day he thought how wonderful it would be if the Buddha could come to Savatthi and how many people would benefit from the visit. Consequently, the next day, after the Buddha had finished his meal, Anathapindika asked him if he would come and visit Savatthi. The Buddha thought for a while and then agreed, adding: "Enlightened ones prefer to stay in peaceful places", and Anathapindika responded: "I fully understand, Lord." 74. When Anathapindika finished his business in Rajagaha, he set out for Savatthi, and as soon as he arrived he began to make preparations for the Buddha's arrival. First, he had to find a suitable place for the Buddha and his monks to stay, near the city but not too noisy. The best place proved to be a pleasure park about one kilometre south-west from the walls of Savatthi, owned by Prince Jeta. Anathapindika approached the prince and asked him if he wanted to sell his park. He declined. "Name a price," Anathapindika insisted, but Prince Jeta reiterated that he was not interested in selling. "I will pay you any price you like," Anathapindika said, and in order to put him off, the prince said: "All right! You can have the park for however much it costs to cover the ground with gold coins." To the prince's astonishment, Anathapindika enthusiastically agreed and left straight away to get the money. Soon a wagon, full of gold pieces, arrived at the park and servants began spreading the money on the ground. When Prince Jeta saw this, he realised how determined Anathapindika was to get the park and finally decided to accept a more reasonable price for it. Anathapindika then spent a huge amount of money building living quarters, assembly halls, storerooms and pavilions, laying out gardens and digging ponds while Prince Jeta offered to build an impressive gate house leading into the park and a wall around it for privacy. In recognition of the two men who made all this possible, the monastery was named Jeta's Grove, Anathapindika's Park or just Jeta's Grove (Jetavana) for short. 75. From the age of sixty, the Buddha spent every rainy season except his last at Jetavana and delivered more discourses there than at any other location. The Buddha's favourite places in Jetavana were two small houses, the Kosambakuti and the Gandhakuti. The Gandhakuti (Fragrant Hut) got its name because the flowers that people constantly brought to offer to the Buddha gave the building such a pleasing fragrance. The Gandhakuti had a sitting room, bedroom and bathroom and a staircase leading up to it where the Buddha used to sometimes stand in the evening and address the monks. One of Ananda's duties was to regularly dust and clean the Gandhakuti, remove the faded flowers and put the chair and bed back in their proper place. In 1863, the ruins of Jetavana were discovered and later archaeological investigation identified the Gandhakuti and the Kosambakuti, and showed that the Jetavana was a centre of Buddhism from the Buddha's time right up until the 13th century C.E. Although Anathapindika built the Jetavana, this was certainly not the extent of his generosity. Over the years he spent vast amounts of money providing the five requisites for monks, building and maintaining monasteries, and doing charity in the name of Buddhism. He understood that if wealth is used with generosity and compassion, it can be a real means for spiritual development. But Anathapindika did not just have generosity with his wealth, he had generosity of spirit also. When he was young he had a friend named Kalakanni, which means 'unlucky', and the two boys used to make mud pies together as they played. As they grew up, Anathapindika became rich while Kalakanni seemed to be plagued by one misfortune after another and remained poor. Hoping that his old friend might help him, Kalakanni went one day, hesitant and ashamed, to see Anathapindika to ask if he could give him a job. Happy to help, Anathapindika gave him a job looking after the property in one of his houses. Anathapindika's family were not happy to have Kalakanni in the house. "How can you employ this man? He's nothing but a derelict. We are a respectable family while he is little more than a beggar. And besides, hearing that name Kalakanni being used in the house all day is bound to bring bad luck." Anathapindika replied: "A person is not made by his name. The superstitious judge people by their names but the wise judge them by the goodness of their hearts. I shall not turn Kalakanni out simply because he is poor or because of his name. We have been friends since we were children." Anathapindika's family were silent but they were still not happy. One day Kalakanni had to return to his village for a while and when a group of thieves heard that he would be out of the house, they decided they would break in and rob the house. That night they came to the house not knowing that Kalakanni's departure had been delayed. He awoke, and heard the thieves talking outside the window, and realising that there were several of them and that they were all heavily armed, he immediately jumped up, talking loudly, banging doors, lighting lamps in different rooms and generally made as much noise as he could. The thieves thought that there was a party in the house and they fled. When this became known, Anathapindika called his family, who were now very grateful to Kalakanni, and said to them, "If this house had not been guarded by such a wise and loyal friend, it would have been plundered. If I had taken your advice, we would all be in a very different position today. It is not name or wealth that makes a person, but his heart." Kalakanni was given a raise and came to be accepted by the household. Anathapindika's great wealth and equally great generosity prompted many of the Buddha's discourses, some of them related to the subject of the skilful use of wealth. But sometimes, Anathapindika had to be reminded that it is not the lavishness of a gift that is important and also that there are some things more important than generosity, things like love and understanding, for example. In the Velama Sutta, the Buddha told Anathapindika about a man who had once given lavish gifts, but because no one really benefited, his gift had very little good effect.
Later in life, Anathapindika became quite poor due to his constant giving and also due to some unwise business decisions. Eventually, he became ill but Sariputta and Ananda visited him regularly, comforting him with talk on Dharma. Throughout its history, Buddhism has been assisted in its establishment and spread by the generous support it has received from wealthy merchants and businessmen, but the first and greatest of these was Anathapindika. In Buddhism, alms or almsgiving is the respect given by a lay Buddhist to a Buddhist monk, nun, spiritually-developed person or other sentient being. It is not charity as presumed by Western interpreters. It is closer to a symbolic connection to the spiritual and to show humbleness and respect in the presence of normal society.[note 1] The visible presence of monks and nuns is a stabilizing influence. The act of alms giving assists in connecting the human to the monk or nun and what he/she represents. As the Buddha has stated:
In Theravada Buddhism, monks (Pāli: bhikkhus) and nuns go on a daily almsround (or pindacara) to collect food. This is often perceived as giving the laypeople the opportunity to make merit (Pāli:puñña). Money should not be accepted by a Buddhist monk or nun, although nowadays not many monks and nuns keep to this rule (the exception being the monks and nuns of the Thai Forest Tradition and other Theravada traditions which focus on vinaya and meditation practice). In countries that follow Mahayana Buddhism, it has been impractical for monks to go on a daily almsround. In China, Korea and Japan, monasteries were situated in remote mountain areas where it could take days to reach the nearest town, thus making the daily almsround impossible. In Japan, the practice of a weekly or monthly takuhatsu took its place. In the Himalayan countries, the large number of bikshus would have made an almsround a heavy burden on families. Competition with other religions for support also made daily almsrounds difficult and even dangerous; the first monks in the Shilla dynasty of Korea were said to be beaten due to the Buddhist minority at the time. In Buddhism, both "almsgiving" and, more generally, "giving" are called "dāna" (Pāli).[2] Such giving is one of the three elements of the path of practice as formulated by the Buddha for laypeople. This path of practice for laypeople is: dāna, sīla, bhāvanā. The exquisite paradox in Buddhism is that the more we give - and the more we give without seeking something in return - the wealthier (in the broadest sense of the word) we will become. By giving we destroy those acquisitive impulses that ultimately lead to further suffering. Generosity is also expressed towards other sentient beings as both a cause for merit and to aid the receiver of the gift. In MahayanaTradition it is accepted that although the three jewels of refuge are the basis of the greatest merit, by seeing other sentient beings as having Buddhanature and making offerings towards the aspirational Buddha to be within them is of equal benefit. Generosity towards other sentient beings is greatly emphasised in Mahayana as one of the perfections (paramita) as shown in Lama Tsong Khapa's 'The Abbreviated Points of the Graded Path' (Tibetan: lam-rim bsdus-don):
In Buddhism, giving of alms is the beginning of one's journey to Nirvana (Pali: nibbana). In practice, one can give anything with or without thought for Nibbana. This would lead to faith (Pali: saddha), one key power (Pali: bala) that one should generate within oneself for theBuddha, Dhamma and Sangha. The motives behind giving plays important role in developing spiritual qualities. The suttas record various motives for exercising generosity. The Anguttara Nikaya (A.iv,236) enumerates the following eight motives:
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