Monday, December 21, 2009
By Masami Sato
The secret of attaining what one wants has been revealed. It is just the simple act of giving. The basis of this is explained in the background of the classical dictum "Which comes first, the chicken or the egg?" Chicken and the egg, continuously forming the cycle of life and renewing it, is a profound example of giving and getting what one wants: the circle of joy. This idea is fully analyzed in the resonant voice of Masami Sato, the author of the book ONE.
As humans, many of us have longings for all kinds of things. And of course, theories of economics inform us that while requirements are unlimited, resources remain limited. This provokes us to think, the more the range of resources that we have, the more the longing that we will be able to fulfill. That is why we tend to defend our resources. We feel that dividing it between others or giving the resources away will reduce the amount we can retain to get what we ourselves want. This is the basic game of success and failure that is being acted out.
Then, is it true?
What if the answer turns out to be "no"? What if it in fact contradicts the secret of attaining more? What if the secret of attaining more is in itself simple - by giving more?
A person can get a thing by the simple act of giving. In the same way that he can get eggs by breeding chicks. In the most simple way. Naturally. Spontaneously. And it is a fully satisfying joyful sensation.
First of all, let us begin with some analogy to explain things.
Chicken and Egg: the Cosmic Circle of Life
Philosophers have made this query ever since time dawned, "Which comes first, the chicken or the egg?"
The answer to this endless discussion is simple: It actually doesn't matter because both chickens and eggs are here now. But if we want to have more great outcomes, we can choose to start somewhere.
Giving and Receiving: the Circle of Joy
What happens, if we pose a different question? "Which comes first, giving or receiving?"
Again, for better results, we have to begin somewhere. Giving away things to others is definitely far simpler than attempting to get it first!
What is the outcome, when we try to get it first?
If we hope to have something, surely we would try to acquire it. And once we get it, we would cling on to it. This is surely natural - it makes sense rationally.
But the actual result of 'trying to get' is mostly not ample and actual long term benefits.
For example, wanting to see others being happy is not about getting the joy from them or controlling them to become happy. It is about how much joy we can give them and share with them. Period.
So where do we start to get what we want?
By starting from the other end of the circle- by giving generously!
When we start giving before we even have what we hope to get - that which we dream of - we are sending out a powerful message to ourselves which tells us, 'there is enough, and more will come.' It allows us to sense the joy today - the joy of giving.
All that is required of us is to give out the love in abundance to others. It would somehow come back to us. Giving love is the only way to be completely loved. When we recognize others for the big things they do and great credentials they have, again it would come back to us. Others accept us because we accept them.
In the same way, if we wanted to have enough in our life materially, financially and emotionally, we just need to share the things we want generously with others.
Some would give more physically by giving their time. Some would give more financially by giving money away. The people who give more (time, money, kindness, love, ideas) have more of these things because that's the balance. And balance is the natural law of life.
Just keep in mind the rule of the game
Important rule: never give anything expecting a return.
When we have the anticipation that giving involves 'getting' something back, we become unhappy when we do not see the thing returning to us fast. We may even feel unhappy towards the one who gets the gift. And having a negative feeling for someone is definitely not a right state of affairs! So we can know the real pleasure of giving when we are doing it with the awareness that we are actually doing it for ourselves - we are doing it for our own pleasure!
Losing to win, giving to receive
In the beginning it may look as if we are losing. However, at some stage we recognize that taking things without giving is not an acceptable life pattern. And we have been aware of it all throughout. That is why tithing has been a normal part of the lives of many people who were leaders. And they did not do it with any fanfare so it was not done to gain popularity. It was done because it was a way of life.
Look around yourself. 'Lesser' creatures do it naturally. The bumblebees take the honey of the flowers and in return pollinate the flowers, thereby making them bloom. They do it in accordance with the laws of nature. They do not do it as a part of any law of justice. That is why they create permanence, without even making an attempt to do so.
Giving is just being who we are, it is just like having; not greater or lesser. No difficulty, no conditions attached, just releasing oneself.
The real secret of getting more can be summarised in two steps: Give first, and do not expect anything in return.
When we let go and give wholeheartedly, what we need will be given to us. Automatically.
As humans, many of us have longings for all kinds of things. And of course, theories of economics inform us that while requirements are unlimited, resources remain limited. This provokes us to think, the more the range of resources that we have, the more the longing that we will be able to fulfill. That is why we tend to defend our resources. We feel that dividing it between others or giving the resources away will reduce the amount we can retain to get what we ourselves want. This is the basic game of success and failure that is being acted out.
Then, is it true?
What if the answer turns out to be "no"? What if it in fact contradicts the secret of attaining more? What if the secret of attaining more is in itself simple - by giving more?
A person can get a thing by the simple act of giving. In the same way that he can get eggs by breeding chicks. In the most simple way. Naturally. Spontaneously. And it is a fully satisfying joyful sensation.
First of all, let us begin with some analogy to explain things.
Chicken and Egg: the Cosmic Circle of Life
Philosophers have made this query ever since time dawned, "Which comes first, the chicken or the egg?"
The answer to this endless discussion is simple: It actually doesn't matter because both chickens and eggs are here now. But if we want to have more great outcomes, we can choose to start somewhere.
Giving and Receiving: the Circle of Joy
What happens, if we pose a different question? "Which comes first, giving or receiving?"
Again, for better results, we have to begin somewhere. Giving away things to others is definitely far simpler than attempting to get it first!
What is the outcome, when we try to get it first?
If we hope to have something, surely we would try to acquire it. And once we get it, we would cling on to it. This is surely natural - it makes sense rationally.
But the actual result of 'trying to get' is mostly not ample and actual long term benefits.
For example, wanting to see others being happy is not about getting the joy from them or controlling them to become happy. It is about how much joy we can give them and share with them. Period.
So where do we start to get what we want?
By starting from the other end of the circle- by giving generously!
When we start giving before we even have what we hope to get - that which we dream of - we are sending out a powerful message to ourselves which tells us, 'there is enough, and more will come.' It allows us to sense the joy today - the joy of giving.
All that is required of us is to give out the love in abundance to others. It would somehow come back to us. Giving love is the only way to be completely loved. When we recognize others for the big things they do and great credentials they have, again it would come back to us. Others accept us because we accept them.
In the same way, if we wanted to have enough in our life materially, financially and emotionally, we just need to share the things we want generously with others.
Some would give more physically by giving their time. Some would give more financially by giving money away. The people who give more (time, money, kindness, love, ideas) have more of these things because that's the balance. And balance is the natural law of life.
Just keep in mind the rule of the game
Important rule: never give anything expecting a return.
When we have the anticipation that giving involves 'getting' something back, we become unhappy when we do not see the thing returning to us fast. We may even feel unhappy towards the one who gets the gift. And having a negative feeling for someone is definitely not a right state of affairs! So we can know the real pleasure of giving when we are doing it with the awareness that we are actually doing it for ourselves - we are doing it for our own pleasure!
Losing to win, giving to receive
In the beginning it may look as if we are losing. However, at some stage we recognize that taking things without giving is not an acceptable life pattern. And we have been aware of it all throughout. That is why tithing has been a normal part of the lives of many people who were leaders. And they did not do it with any fanfare so it was not done to gain popularity. It was done because it was a way of life.
Look around yourself. 'Lesser' creatures do it naturally. The bumblebees take the honey of the flowers and in return pollinate the flowers, thereby making them bloom. They do it in accordance with the laws of nature. They do not do it as a part of any law of justice. That is why they create permanence, without even making an attempt to do so.
Giving is just being who we are, it is just like having; not greater or lesser. No difficulty, no conditions attached, just releasing oneself.
The real secret of getting more can be summarised in two steps: Give first, and do not expect anything in return.
When we let go and give wholeheartedly, what we need will be given to us. Automatically.
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