In the Buddha’s time lived a family of six that was wealthy and also happy and harmonious. They shared a magnificent house with the finest furnishings, grand carpets, and utensils carved from silver, gold, and lapis lazuli.
Begging for alms one day, the Buddha and Ananda visited this family’s home. The members were delighted and begged the Buddha and his attendant to accept their offerings. When Ananda saw their splendid affluence, he asked the Buddha, “What were the causes and conditions that led this family to enjoy such wealth?”
The Buddha said, “Long ago, the master of this house was very poor. When a famine hit his village, he and the other villagers resorted to gathering plants by the river. Once, after this man found some plants and made a thin soup for his family, a shramana appeared at his door begging for alms. The man and his wife said, ‘We will give him our portion’ and they did. When the children saw their parents with nothing to eat, they gave up their own portions so their parents would not go hungry. Yet, the two unhesitatingly offered this food to the shramana as well. Thus it was that all the family’s food was given as alms to this practitioner. They regretted only that they had nothing better to give. Because their minds were pure and sincere, the merits of this offering were immense—the family continually enjoys material abundance, peace, and joy in life after life.”
When the family members heard the Buddha’s explanation, they resolved to take and uphold the five precepts. At the end of their lives, they were reborn in a heavenly realm, where they enjoyed incomparable blessings.
REFLECTION
Greed is the root of all misfortune; charitable giving is a Dharma gate to counteract greed. Thus, The Treatise on the Perfection of Great Wisdom says, “Giving away what you treasure brings the utmost merits.” To sincerely make an offering to the Three Jewels is to plant a karmic seed of liberation. When this seed comes to fruition, when the right causes have been planted and their effects fully manifested, we will be able to hear the Dharma, obtain liberation, and realize infinite blessings and wisdom.