The Dana of Financial Support. It is an enormous gift of Dhammadana to contribute financially to creating and maintaining a meditation center where the pure vibrations of Dhamma will support a meditator. In the 10-day discourses, Goenkaji tells the story of Anathapindika, a multimillionaire in the days of the Buddha. This person was actually named Sudatta but he received the title Anathapindika because he gave dana so generously. The title Anathapindika comes from anatha, meaning those who are very poor and pindika, meaning one who gives food. Because he gave so much food to all the hungry people, this was his title. He lived in Savatthi, which was the most populous city in India in those days. But there were branches of his business throughout the country and even beyond, in different countries. And he had a rule that wherever his office or branch was, nobody should go hungry, people should be given food. But still he didnt know Dhamma. One day he came into contact with Buddha. That means, he came into contact with Dhamma, Vipassana. By practicing, he purified his mind and experienced a dip in the first stage of nibbana. For the first time he experienced the truth beyond mind and matter and became altogether a changed person. The purpose of giving donation is not to build ones ego but rather to deflate it, to dissolve it. He now thought, All this money that has come to me is because of my good karmas from the past that have ripened now. It must be used for the good of others. Of course, as a householder, I must make use of it for my own maintenance, for the maintenance of all those who are depending on me. But the rest of it must go for the good of others, for the good of others. He now understood this. The good of otherswhat is the real good of others? I give food to a hungry person. I should give; this is good. But the next day, this person is hungry again. I give water to a thirsty person, but after some time again he becomes thirsty. I give medicine to a sick person but he may contract another disease, or suffer a recurrence of the same disease. I may give clothes to a naked person but after some time the clothes become worn out, torn, and again he is naked. I am not helping people to come out of all their miseries. If they get Dhamma, if they get this wonderful technique of Vipassanaoh, they can come out of all their misery! They can become totally liberated from misery, misery that they were encountering for life after life, life after life. They can come out of it. Dhamma should go to each and every suffering person. Besides all this giving of material dana, this dana is most important, the dana of Dhamma is the highest dana. This man went to Buddha, who at that time was living in Rajgiri. Anathapindika paid respects to him, and asked, Sir, why not come to Savatthi? A large number of people live there. All are miserablerich or poor. If you have a meditation center there, many people will benefit, sir. Please come. Buddha smiled, so he understood that Buddha had agreed. He came back home to look for a center, a place where Buddha could start teaching Dhamma to the people. A meditation center should not be in the midst of the city, with much noise and disturbance. It should not be so far away that people cannot go there. Looking for a proper place, peaceful and yet not very far from the city, he came across a garden, a park. It was very calm, very quiet, very congenial for meditation. And he inquired: Who is the owner of this park? He came to know that the owner was Prince Jeta. He went to him and said, Sir, I want to buy your park. But the prince became angry, replying, I am not looking to sell my park. It is for my own amusement. I wont sell it. Please, sir, I have to buy it, at any price. Just to get rid of him, the prince said, You know the price of this land? You have to spread gold sovereigns over the entire land. This is the price. The deal is done.! I will spread gold sovereigns. He brought cartloads of sovereigns, and started spreading them. When the prince saw what Anathapindika was doing he said, Have you gone mad? No land can be this valuable. What are you doing? Anathapindika replied, No, I am not mad. This land is going to become so valuable. Buddha is going to come here and teach the wonderful Dhamma. All my wealth is nothing compared to what is gained if one person gets Dhamma, gets Vipassana, and comes out of misery. And I know that not one but thousands upon thousands of persons will benefit. Very well, said the prince, persuaded. Let the rest of the price be my donation.The land is yours. In this place Anathapindika built a meditation center where 10,000 people could livewhere they could stay and meditate, learning Dhamma. His volition was to serve others. He had been giving dana even previously, before he learned Dhamma. Now his dana was to help more and more people get the benefit of Dhamma. He was givingnot to inflate his ego but to dissolve it, just to serve others. Later, because of some karmas of the past, for a short time this multimillionaire lost all his money. When he had been wealthy he would come to the center every morning and evening to meditate. And as a householder, he understood, I should not go to the center empty-handed. I must offer something for the meditators. Every time he came, he brought something for the meditators. Now he was a pauper; he had nothing to bring. Then something came to his mind. Behind his house, he had a small garden. In that garden he had accumulated fertile soil from different parts of India. Now he took two handfuls of that soil. He came to the center and put it at the foot of a tree, saying, May this tree grow, and under its shade may someone get Dhamma, may someone be able to meditate. Whether the gift is a handful of soil or millions of rupees, it makes no difference; it is the volition that counts. After some time, Anathapindika regained his wealth and started giving donations as before. But he understood, Whatever I give, the amount is immaterial. My volition must be a Dhamma-volition: I give for the good of others, for the benefit of others, not expecting anything in return. (Vipassana international newsletter. Nov 03)
Posted on: Sat, 18 Oct 2014 06:23:34 +0000
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