Midwest Buddhist Meditation Center

Dãna / Thahn means generosity or giving some things to some ones who are in need, giving good suggestion good guidance also was named Dãna, Dãna is one of ten perfections observed by to be the Buddha when he was born as Vesantara Bhodhisatava, he observed this perfection for his whole life. Providing housing, food, medicine, and clothing to those who are in need are named Dãna. We have to be trained in generosity knowing worthy and benefits of Dana or gift, giving without thinking of return and rewards, give for give, five to help, give to support, give to promote.

For example, we give scholarship to students who can not support themselves because of economic poor to help them to be able to pursue their education to get good education get a good job earning better livelihood and being a better citizen. This is giving to help and to support. Giving food to those who need food to eat is giving life to others, giving organs to patients who are in need in hospital, giving labor to help our friends and neighbors in construction and

repairing works, all these are giving. These gifts came out from generous

hearts the heart full of generosity and kindness.

Dana is one of four virtues of householders namely;

To give some things to some ones who are in need (Dãna)

To apply righteous speech (Piyavãcã)

To set oneself in proper position (Samãnattatã)

To practice in the beneficial and worthy ways for oneself and to the public

     (Atthacariyã)

These Virtues were, some times, named as Virtue for harmonious life, harmonious community, and also sources of happiness and peace.

My meditation students in Chicago learned these virtues and applies in her daily life, one day at lunch time she came down to dinning room to has lunch wants to share with her friends food that she brought with her from home, her friends said “no” we have our money we can bay our lunch here, and she said “I know you have but I would like to share with you what I have”. They surprised, then she explained to them about what she learned and practices from Thai Buddhist Temple in Chicago, Wat Dhammaram. This is sharing from our heart.

Generosity makes our mind to be generous mind, with the generous mind gift or sharing appears, when sharing appears happiness occurs when happiness occurs then life exists then world of human being continues. However, this virtue is basic principle in Buddhism. We have to go further to have moral training and meditation to experience highest wisdom in life. Moral principle in Buddhism known as Sila, physical training and verbal training then go for mind training and wisdom training.       

On the other hand, the best gift is gift of Dhamma, a gift of teaching helping learners to know what is proper and what is improper, what should be pursued and what should be avoided, this is gift of wisdom. Finally the best of the best gifts is forgiveness, this is hard to give. 

Buddhism provides the natural way of life by human being, for human being, and for benefits of humankind. The question is why does Buddhism give training in Dana or generosity first? The answer is because we learn how to be selfish from the beginning of our lives, we learn from our families from society especially in the competition societies by this way jealousy or envy has chance to play it’s role in the mind of human being, it causes violence in our society. Selfish is very important we need to understand the danger of this unwholesome thought.  When we understood we can reduce and eliminate from our minds to open the door of generosity and kindness to occur, when generosity occurs charity appears.

Asian Buddhists generally like to offer food to Novices and the Monks in everyday life morning and lunch, when the monks need material support people provide such as residences, robes, food, and medicine. When some ones want labor in building a house in village people help all are volunteers, this is giving labor to our communities, we love each other, and we know each other. World situation today does not allow people to do job or work as volunteer, people are hanging and running with material comfort and they fight for that but they never meet, they never fulfill life is not long world never learn this true. The Buddha taught the common way of life, be happy with our own capability in earning right livelihood. Dana/giving as practice in Buddhism is to give without thinking of return and reward, give to share, give to help, give to support, give to promote and give for give.

According to the ten perfections, Dana can be classified into three levels namely;  

1. Dãna pãramitã: general giving

2. Dãna upapãrmitã: Dhamma giving

3. Dãna paramattha pãramitã: life giving

1. As we discussed above about giving in general we give some things to

    some ones who are in need whatever food, cloths, shelter, medicines.

2. Dhamma giving is always provided by the monks, they give guidance,

    supervision, teaching, suggestion. In general Dhamma Dãna is excelled

    all gift Sabba Dãnang Dhamma Danang Jinãti.

3. Life giving is hart to give, but our parents give us our lives, take care us, and bring us up. They give us education and basic training before they send us to learn more arts and science in schools. They give us both physical and inner lives. We donate organs to those who are in need in hospital that is hart to give, we donate blood to hospital for patients is hart to give, this is life giving, this Dãna paramattha Pãramitã, to bring some ones from the hells of evil thoughts, from bad action, bad deeds and show them the way to haven here and now.  This is also called giving life to others.  This is also rear to give. Whatever we give and help people to survive we named Dãna parmattha pãramitã. Special Dãna is giving food, accommodation or building or housing to the public also is recognized as     

The Buddha said:

 “Sabba Dãnang Dhamma Dãnamg Jinãti”

 Dhamma gift excels all gifts. Why is it so?

Because when people listen to the Dhamma talk they know what should be done and what should not be done, they can choose and what is righteous action.

            We know the way to discipline ourselves because we listen to the Dhamma talk,

            we know the way to observe five Precepts because of listening to Dhamma, we

            know the benefits of generosity and kindness because of listening to the Dhamma,

            we know how to learn and practice meditation to purify our minds from

            impurities because of listening to the Dhamma talk. Therefore, giving Dhamma

            talk as our Monks do or Dhamma Gift is excels all the gifts.

In all Dana/gift observing Sila/Panca Sila or five precepts is Mahãdãna, the greatest of Dãna. When we observe Five Precepts we give all aspect of securities for life, security in family life, security in belongings properties, security in daily life living, security in safety.  This is a great gift, gift of nonviolence gift of caring, gift of construction, gift of warm family life, gift of property, gift of harmonious society, gift of peaceful and happy society. This is the gift of Panca Sila by observing Five Precepts from Buddhist standpoints. Therefore, observing the Five Precepts is to give all things people want, giving loving kindness, compassion, truthfulness, sincerity, mindfulness and wisdom to all humankinds. This is supper gift. 

In my life I saw only The Corporate Body of the Buddha Educational Foundation of Taiwan who printed, has been printed, and being printed Buddhist books to distribute to all Buddhist communities and non-Buddhist communities in all part of the world. This is supper body of Buddhist organization, super Dãna, if Thai Sangha or Thai Government do as this Corporate Body of the Buddha Educational Foundation does, Buddhism may reach our more than 25,00 millions people all over the world, I do appreciate and very please with this Buddhist Organization of Taiwan.

Gates of Dãna

            1. Things to give

            2. Givers

            3. Receivers

Kãla Dãna: OccasionallyDana/gift/offering.

We give some things to some ones who are going to go or who are visiting us at our residence or giving some things to help occasionally such as flooding, fire, earth quake, STunami, offering new crops or newly fruits to religious persons such as Monks, Priests, Nuns, Novices as gift.

Dãna also comes in form of two such as;

1.      Ãmissadãna: material gift

2.      Dhamadãna: wisdom gift

Wisdom gift is excels all gifts.

1.      Sanghadãna: giving things to public such as hospitals, schools, public halls, public wells, Churches, Temples, Religious Centers and organizations, Ashrams or community of the Monks or religious communities.

2.      Pãtipuggalikadãna: giving things to specified Monk or specified person, out of these two, giving number one, Sangha Dãna, is the best of the gift.

The Buddha said that “Oh monks householders, who offer food to the monks, who are righteous, offer five things namely; life, good skin, happiness, energy, knowledge and wisdom”

We find that Dãna comes in many groups of Dhamma given by the Buddha such as one of the Ten Perfections (Dãnapãramitã, Silapãramitã, Nekkhammapãramitã, Panyapãramitã, Viriyapãramitã, Khantipãramitã, Saccapãramitã, Athitthanapãramitã, Mettapãramitã, and Upekkhapãramitã) one of three ways of performing virtues, (Danamaya, Silamaya, Bhãvnamaya,)  one of the three duties of Buddhists (Dãna, Sila, Bhãvnã). One of five gradual Kathãs, (Danakathã, Silakathã, Sagghakathã, Kamadinavakathã, Nekkhammãnisangsakathã.

In two kinds of Dãna, the Buddha said and gave highest credit to Dhamma Dãna namely; Watthu Dãna and Dhamma Dãna, Dhamma Dãna is the best as mentioned above.

However, charity is the key of opening doors in Buddhism not only Buddhists in Asian countries but now Buddhists settled down in all over the world, they bring with them this virtue, the virtue of generosity and charity, in Washington D.C., in New York, in Los Angeles, in Chicago, in Detroit in London, in Sydney, in Barcelona, and so on. Now Buddhist way of generosity has been and being spread out to our non Buddhist friends and they learned from us, it is good to see this. As we all know that people are too much selfish fighting with materialism to gain more and more material comfort but lacking mind development or spiritual development, then unbalancing society prevailing here and there, violence appears, killing occurs, and suffering continues. The word forgiveness, generosity, charity were subdued, we as religious leaders have to get up, get up and run, light candles of wisdom to shine to give light in the darkness of selfishness.

Righteous offering when sow in the fertile field, when rain comes in due time, crops will grow without insects, growing well, and yields well, in the same way righteous offering given to the righteous religious ones who have right understanding, right taught, right livelihood, right action, right speech, right effort, right mindfulness, and right concentration, those who have knowledge and wisdom (vicchãcaranasampanno) perfect in knowledge and perfect in wisdom will perfectly yield if donors are observing five precepts righteously.

The benefits of giving for those who always give, who are generous and kind are as follow:

Being loved by people

Wise people always make friends with them

Their good faces always spread out

They are very well known to the public

They never away from the household’ Dhamma 

After death they would be reborn in the heavenly life

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(Tipitaka Volume #  21 Thai Version, Suttapitaka # 13 page 50-51;