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Discover the Joy of Giving.

Giving is a joyful experience. Yet, many feel it is burden but all wise men claim that true happiness lies in giving rather than taking. Why then is the joy of giving experienced by some and not by others? Giving is to be understood in the light of the attitudes that we hold.

There are two main attitudes governing our actions- of taking and of giving. Most people in the world are takers. There is rarely a person who has an attitude of giving. Most of the time, we give with an attitude of taking. Thus we are deprived of the true happiness, which comes from giving.

A true giver is one whose motive is to benefit the other person. He is one who identifies with the happiness of others. There is no thought of one-self. This is true giving. Such a person truly enjoys the supreme happiness and satisfaction that springs from this sort of an action.

A woman complained that it was no use doing good to others. All her life she claimed to having served her family and given to charities. But no one really cares, she moaned. She found no satisfaction and happiness in life. Further explanations revealed the fault that lay in her own attitude. Possessive and dominating, she wished to win over others in exchange for her charity. Her giving carried a heavy price tag of others having to forgo their independence. When she faced resistance, she blamed others of ingratitude. Such giving naturally could not yield and joy.

Giving is to be cultivated. It must not be with an eye on the returns but because you want to give. Give with not yourself but the interest of the other person in mind. Giving with motives attached not only cancels one’s own happiness but also burdens the receiver. It makes the other person come under the pressure of an obligation. In social circles, receiving usually adds to the pressure of fulfilling the expectations it carries. It is easy to receive from a saint because his giving is pure and genuine. It is peaceful to be in nature because nature is a silent giver and expects nothing in return.

Motives like name and fame, gifts and honours, contaminate our giving. Consciously try to remove these from the mind. The purer the giving, the greater is the happiness it gives. Once, Swami Vivekananda came to a town. A continuous stream of visitors poured in to meet him. They listened to his discourse. Many had questions to ask, advice to seek. Vivekananda patiently heard everyone and answered their queries. He was engaged most of the day and it was late in the afternoon when all the visitors departed.

A shy person who had sat watching through the morning, came forward. His rags revealed his poverty. But his face was bright and he looked intelligent. He stood before Vivekananda with folded hands and said: “Swamiji, you have been busy since morning. You have talked and talked and not had even a piece of bread or a drop of water. You must be extremely tired. I wish I could offer you some food, but I am an untouchable. Can I offer you a cup of milk or get some flour with which you can make chapatis?”

Vivekananda looked at him intently and tears welled up in his eyes. “This is true love, pure and selfless,” he thought to himself. “ What use is acquiring knowledge from books, what use is scholarship or spiritual aspiration if one does not possess such love as is in the heart of this man?” Needless to say, Vivekananda dined with that man.

It is not so important what or how much one can give; what really counts is the attitude with which one gives. That determines the joy one experiences.