Generosity Meditations
From 16Guidelines
8 minutes reflection on Generosity
Sit comfortably with a straight back, relaxed hands, arms and shoulders. Keep your eyes closed or half open. Relax your mind. Take 3 deep and relaxed breaths. On the exhale you let all thoughts of where you just came from and where you are going to, leave your mind. Be mindful of your breath. Pay full attention to the sensation of the air passing through your nostrils. Sit like this for 2 minutes.
- Think of a situation where you have been generous. Generous with your money, possessions, time, love, wisdom or skills. A situation where you have been sharing something with someone without expectation of getting something in return.
- Remember the situation clearly and try to recall the feeling it created within you. How did you feel, and what did you think. And try to imagine what your generosity meant for the one you were generous towards.
- Realize that the benefits of generosity are infinite. In a bigger perspective it is said that an eye for an eye makes the world blind. In the same way a gift for a gift makes the world rich. In a smaller perspective generosity is benefiting oneself and the other directly. Having a generous state of mind creates happiness and peace for oneself. At the same time you let another experience the joy of receiving. All parts benefit from generosity; oneself, the other and the world.
- Rejoice in having been generous many times in your life. Be aware that you have done much good in both a small and a big perspective.
- Consider that you can extend you ability of being generous. Your awareness of the benefits of generosity can help you to develop a general generous state of mind that will lead to much happiness.
- Make a resolution that you will practice generosity whenever possible. Not only for the sake of others, but also for your own happiness.
--Rasmus 21:02, 6 November 2007 (EST)
