Giving and Taking

Wisdom Teachings
Right Living

We have to keep on pondering upon the basic things, since we are liable to forget. With each one of us the universal consciousness is the individual consciousness, the universal mind works as our minds. Everything is universal and at the same time individual. We are not separated from the great being, we only think it. The being has been given to us; we haven’t taken it and can neither hold it. All our energy is a loan, all we have is borrowed – the body from the elements, the food from the earth, the mind from the cosmic mind. The body which has been given to us belongs to the Lord; we live and work with it and have to understand what it is suited for.

The instinct of possession is age-old but from the spiritual standpoint the feeling of “mine” is unreal, an illusion. Today however this illusion has become very powerful. Modern human activity consists mainly in developing ideas how to gain wealth and to acquire the possessions of others in an intelligent way. The strong ones have stolen the land from the natives and claim it for themselves; for this they have created ownership rights. The intelligent rich take knowledge from the less intelligent poor, for example about ancient medical traditions; they patent it and take from the poor nations their production. Even in esoteric circles people take the knowledge revealed by the Masters, add their own language and colour and publish it as their own thing. The Masters of Wisdom give the wisdom for free; they do not claim it for themselves, because it belongs to all. It is very grave if you earn money with conveying wisdom.

From a higher awareness even the feeling that something belongs to us is stealing. Even our clothes don’t belong to us, they were given to us. In our commercial attitude we say: “I have bought them.” How did we get the money? By using our mind. But who gave us the brain, the mind, the energy? We take the given thing for granted and don’t respect it. We only notice what we have not been given and what we would like to have. Seeing has been given to us, only the blind one knows what it means. Hearing has been given to us, tasting, digesting. Also standing upright we only can value when we have to walk on hands and feet. We don’t realize the value of what has been given to us. Master Morya says: “Be grateful for what has been given.”

A spiritual law goes: “As we receive, so we also should give.” We have received a body; we should be grateful for it and at least give a body to another one to discharge our debts. We have to fulfil a duty towards our parents and children. We receive so much from human society; we pay our debt back by rendering a service to humanity. We receive wisdom from the Master, only to pass it on to those who seek. We receive from the animal, plant and mineral kingdom, and we have the duty to give something back to them. We also receive a lot from the deva kingdom, the subtle intelligences of nature working in us as principles. They don’t need anything from us, but when we respect and revere them, we pay back our liability. Also our worship of the Divine is a paying back of our debt for what has been given. If we don’t give, we are bound by our debts.

All that is given to us is meant that we can redistribute it to others – time, money, abilities. When we utilize it for others, the energies can flow, otherwise we get blocked. Knowledge and abilities in every area are meant for others – healing energy is for those who need it, music, to give others pleasure, even a beautiful face is not for us, but for others. We cannot say that we have nothing which we can distribute. Even if we don’t have any money, we can use time and power to help others.

We think that receiving is a great joy but the contrary is true: Giving is real joy. The ignorants are pleased if they get something for free, but all we receive binds us in our personality. By giving we get liberated, by receiving we get restricted in our freedom: We are indebted to the giver. By giving we slowly overcome the conditioning of our personality. The knowers always only give; they don’t take gifts which surpass a modest degree. We shouldn’t take anything from someone to whom we cannot also give something. It is alright to receive, provided that we give. We should always give more than we receive. Receiving without distributing will become dangerous for us with the time.

We should give without having expectations. Expectation is a corruption of giving. You give for giving’s sake and by doing so you receive joy, satisfaction and inner balance. It is important to give with devotion to the one who needs it, not in a disparaging way or out of a sense of duty. A great teacher said: “Don’t give, when you feel that you give.” We should only give so much as it gives us joy and as we can give, and then forget it. We shouldn’t force ourselves to give and suffer by doing so, but at the same time neither be tardy. It is said that you shouldn’t turn away a beggar. Though our gift might not solve the problem of his poverty, it expresses our sense of giving.

Discrimination is needed in giving. We should know whom we give what, at what time and place. A hungry man needs food and not wisdom, a mourning person comfort with the right words. There is also a holiness of place, where you should give. There is a difference in giving a present in a meditation room or on the graveyard.

When we give, easily the feeling grows that we give, and pride is arising. We consider ourselves as someone special and give in order to receive recognition and honour. Perhaps we think that we have helped many people, but in truth we live in glamour and only have paid back our debts towards them. In order to avoid these pits the wisdom teachings recommend seeing the Lord in the person whom you give. Through the outer person you give to the cosmic man. When we see the One, something like giving doesn’t exist anymore, nor are there anymore “others” to whom we give; they are all brothers.

Master CVV says: “Don’t ask and don’t be a beggar. If you have an intense desire, you submit it to Me. If it is good for you, I shall ensure that you get it.” We should use the means entrusted to us in a responsible way, not only amass them. A comfortable life is alright, but not luxury. That which we have too much, we should give away. When we share and distribute, the higher circles show confidence in us: Slowly the treasures of nature open up for us, and we become a channel for the distribution of these means in areas where they are needed.

A distributing hand is a divine hand. It might distribute material things like food or clothes, but also healing energy and blessings. The hands carry the energy of giving and protecting. Each time we have done an act of benefit to the world we should wash the hands, so that we can take in the energies afresh. When we don’t use the hands, it is recommended to keep them together, this being called the locking of the forces. Also in travel and at rest it is strongly recommended to lock hands and feet, so that there is no discharge of energy through the system. When the energies are distributed for giving, we take again the hands apart.

Sources used: K.P. Kumar: Saraswathi – The Word. The World Teacher Trust / Dhanishta, Visakhapatnam, India.