Rich
Generosity
Master Sheng Yen on transferring merit
When a candle is lit in a dark room, it illuminates the room to some extent,
but its power is limited. But if you use the same candle to light
another candle, the total brightness increases. If you continue to
do this, you can fill the room with brilliant illumination. The
idea of transferring merit to others is like this. If we keep our
own light selfishly hidden, it will only provide a limited amount
of illumination. But when we share our light with others, we do not
diminish our own light. Rather, we increase the amount of light
available to all. Therefore, when others light our candle, we issue
forth light. When out of gratitude we use our candle to light other
people’s candles, the whole room gets brighter. This is why we
transfer merit to others. This kind of light is continuous and
inexhaustible.
When we achieve a mind of gratitude and dedicate
ourselves to helping others, we can practice generosity. We can be
generous with our wealth, with ourselves, and with the Dharma. In
some ways, giving wealth is the easiest. If we consume less and
live more frugally, we can give away what we save.
It is also useful to remember that the nature of
giving is not necessarily dependent on the size or the value of the
gift. Once, the Buddha was about to teach the Dharma to a
congregation in the forest, but it got dark. Several people offered
their lamps, but there was a homeless woman whose only possession
was an alms bowl, which she offered to serve as an oil lamp. On
realizing this, the Buddha exclaimed to his congregation that the
old lady’s virtue was the most excellent, as she had offered her
total wealth, the begging bowl. By making her offering, do you
think she lost anything?
So when out of gratitude we dedicate ourselves to
benefit others, this is practicing generosity or giving. This is
something we can learn. Some people think by giving everything
away, you end up with nothing. But the Dharma is an inexhaustible
well. However much you give of it, you can always go back for more,
because in this well the more you take from it, the higher the
water will rise. As long as you give the Dharma to nourish others,
it will be there. As long as you are alive and are able to
practice, this will be true. Being alive, you can learn more and
more, and give more and more. Being alive, you can also take time
to rest and recover, then go back to the source. This is how giving
the Dharma works.