To notice people’s deceptions yet not reveal it in words, to bear people’s
insults without showing any change of attitude – there is endless meaning in
this, and also endless function.
(Huanchu Daoren)
Charity
There is more to charity than giving things away or donating money.
Charity represents an attitude of
compassion, of
conscience - a
willingness to take
responsibility for your own conduct and
to act.
You can be charitable in your dealings with people in everyday life. Allow
for their mistakes, their frailty, their humanness.
Our day-to-day treatment of others is what charity is about. Do we
care? Will we care?
Or do we ignore those around us and only look after those who we can profit
by?
Loving and caring for those who love us is not necessarily love at all, it
is reciprocal.
It is mutual gratification.
Love is what
you give without any thought to the
self.
Judgement
Kahlil Gibran asked us
not to judge the needy and the poor.
His argument was simple: who are we to ask the poor to make an account of
themselves?
A good question indeed.
Do not give to somebody because they meet with your approval. It is not
about you.
Give because they ask for it. Give even when they do not ask.
Pare-down
How much do you have that you never wear or use anymore?
Give it away.
There is a tremendous feeling of freedom that comes with paring-down your
belongings.
The burden of
ownership, the
responsibility of goods is lessened.
How much redundancy do you have? Is your life cluttered with the
unnecessary? Are you keeping things for the sake of it?
Invest in yourself
If you cannot see any value in charity, then be selfish.
One day you may get cancer, AIDS or some other disease. Who knows?
The money or goods that you invest now may well benefit you in a decades
time.
Funding medical research now may pay off in the future.
Give to those in need
Huanchu Daoren felt that we
should only give to those who cannot possibly repay us.
For those people are the truly
needy.
If you are honest enough to admit your affluence, your heart will open and
you will give gladly.
Give to those who cannot speak
Consider also those creatures that suffer because humanity is
callous and unfeeling.
Thousands of animals die every day without anyone to
mourn them or champion their cause.
Others are kept in conditions that no human would find acceptable.
Vegetarian animals are fed meat and sometimes members of their own species.
What can you do? There is always something. Have you even tried?
Page created 2 December 2005