Audio recorded at Buddha House Adelaide. Transcript auto-generated and AI-corrected; may contain errors.
About this talk. In this 39-minute teaching, Lama Lhundup explores the three types of generosity within the Graduated Path framework. He begins with the generosity of Dharma, emphasizing that any practitioner can engage in this practice simply by sharing teachings with the right motivation—the mind of genuine giving—whether through formal instruction or explaining Buddhist concepts to answer someone’s questions. He then distinguishes the generosity of material gifts and the generosity of protection from fear, offering concrete examples: rescuing an animal from danger, freeing someone wrongly imprisoned, or removing an insect from harm. Throughout, he clarifies what constitutes improper giving—anything that causes harm, such as weapons or feeding a small creature to a larger one. He concludes by contrasting ordinary generosity with transcendent generosity in the Mahāyāna tradition, where practitioners dedicate even the fruits of their giving to all sentient beings’ ultimate happiness, a practice unique to the Bodhisattva path.
File metadata (for organising)
File: 10 GP.mp3
UUID: 6e8538eb-3da5-4391-b8a0-3d4c5c40cebb
Teacher: Lama Lhundup
Collection: The Graduated Path (Lama Lhundup)
Date: 1987 (exact day not recorded)
Recorded at: Buddha House Adelaide
Duration: 38.6 minutes
Words: ~864
This is the training in generosity. So the the generosity of Dharma is giving the teaching teaching Dharma to others. So we just we shouldn’t mix the Dharma with the just the usual types of motivation, any any old type of motivation. It should be a special type of motivation that is the mind. It’s also the mind of giving.
So if we give teachings with the sense of this mind of giving then it’s a very great benefit. So, you know, we we in order to practice this generosity of giving the Dharma, we don’t have to be great lamas. We don’t have to be great teachers. Even all of us can practice this this generosity of giving the Dharma. Simply by with the motivation of mind of giving, talking with someone with in accordance with types of speech which are in accordance with the Dharma, then this is the generosity of Dharma.
No. Just just just to explain the benefits of generosity. That with the mind of giving, just simply explaining the benefits of generosity with the mind of giving is the giving of Dharma. Even the simple practice of, you know, reciting a mantra or the names of a of a Buddha in the ear of an animal is the is the giving of Dharma. So really just having discussions with people when they have questions about the Dharma, explaining eliminating the mistaken ideas is the Dharma.
So amongst the the various types of the three types of generosity, giving the Dharma is the greatest. By giving by giving Dharma to others, one’s own wisdom increases. But that is because by giving Dharma to others, the obstructions of others decrease. And because, therefore, other’s wisdoms increase, the wisdom of others increase. And as a as a effect of that, our own wisdom increases.
So then the third type of giving is the giving of protection from fear. This would be you know, for example, if someone were in prison and helping them to be released from prison. So if someone for example, if someone were about to kill a fish and they save the fish’s life, then this would be the the generosity of being protection from fear. For example, if an insect were to fall in the water and you take you take the insect out of that water, and you do the generosity of protecting it from fear. If the if the insect were about to be burnt in a in a fire, like a flame or like that, and then you you you take the insect and you put it outside again.
So essentially, it is the eliminating the fear of of, you know, whatever type of sentient being, whether it’s an animal. Eliminating their fear is the generosity of giving fearlessness. So, you know, there’s anything which would bring harm to somebody we shouldn’t give for example. Giving giving poison could kill you know, if somebody were were in prison and if this person were to get out of prison, he might if he were, you know, possible that he hurt a lot of people, then it’s better that not to free him from prison. You shouldn’t hurt another to give to give to another.
For example, give give a small fish to a big fish or to feed the big fish. This this type of giving is not allowed. The type of giving which brings harm to to to something that is improper giving for it in this case because if if we give a small fish to a big fish, this this big fish is going to take the life of the small fish. It’s going to be harmed. Mhmm.
Therefore, it’s improper. Also any any type of material anything any type of material which is going to bring harm to others such as guns, atomic bombs, things like that, are not proper giving. In the case of bombs, example, is it giving a bomb, thousands of people would be hurt. So, you know, this is this type of giving is is a general type of giving, giving body, giving away your possessions and your roots of virtue. And the type of giving within the the Mahāyāna, the great vehicle is giving to all sentient beings the ultimate happiness.
And this we not only give them ultimate, seek to give them ultimate happiness but even the fruit of having given, of having, of trying to bring them ultimate happiness that affect that fruit, we also give that away. We dedicate that. So when we when we when we’ve we have brought the the mind of giving to consummation that is we have completely you know, we can give anything of body speaking of body, possessions and virtue that we have completely transcended any miserliness, and this is called the the practice of transcendental generosity transcendent generosity. So when the power of of the mind is giving and brought to completion, and this is transcendent generosity. So even though the the Hearers, the Solitary Realizers, they do not have the mind of giving in the same way.
They have not they do not have transcendental generosity.