The Wisdom of Generosity

From Lama Yeshe Zopa

...at the time of practicing generosity, it is necessary for the discriminating wisdom to check what should be practiced and what should be abandoned, lest the practice be made incorrectly, with corrupt actions. But especially, generosity should be made with the wisdom concentrating on the circle of the three—subject, object and action—in shunyata, otherwise the practice will not become a pure, bodhisattva's action.

You should also practice generosity with the six holy objects. They are:

• the holy subject, which is the bodhicitta motivation;


• the holy possession, which is holding that bodhicitta motivation, not only when being generous with normal possessions but with special objects as well;


• the holy purpose, which is the wish to give temporary happiness to sentient beings in order to lead them to the ultimate goal;


• the holy skill, which is wisdom realizing emptiness;


• the holy dedication, which is always dedicating the merits of generosity for the achievement of enlightenment; and


• the holy purity, which is the purification of delusions and mental defilements.

Furthermore, each perfection should be practiced with the four actions. They are:

• dedicating, which is dedicating our body to all sentient beings from the heart.


• protecting—having dedicated our body to sentient beings, we should protect it from being wasted in meaningless actions.


• purifying: making generosity of the body a pure practice by concentrating on the circle of the three in shunyata.


• increasing: dedicating the merits of it to all sentient beings, equal to the sky, for their achievement of enlightenment. We must not be dismayed, thinking that if all is dedicated to sentient beings there is nothing left for me—it is a mental dedication, so there is nothing wrong with it. On the other hand, we cannot think that there is no point in dedicating mentally since there is nothing to receive.

The way to complete the perfection of generosity is to complete the training in the thought of giving even the merits of virtuous actions, let alone abolishing miserliness in our possessions. Completing the practice of the perfection of generosity means neither completely eradicating starvation and thirst, nor satisfying the last beggar. If it did, then all the past buddhas such as Guru Shakyamuni would have yet to complete the practice of generosity, having reached enlightenment by mistake.

http://www.bodhicitta.net/Six%20Perfections.htm