Generosity is a great gift, both for the recipient and the giver. The practice of giving, or dana, brings joy to both parties, and reduces selfishness and greed in the process—a helpful practice to remember amid the rush to buy gifts and cross tasks off your holiday list.

This season, we’re sharing teachings from our archives to help you cultivate an expansive, loving heart during the holidays and beyond.

Generosity Dharma Talk with Gil Fronsdal
Soto Zen priest Gil Fronsdal on the radical choice to give freely without expecting anything in return.

Gifts that Keep Giving
Tricycle contributing editor Joan Duncan Oliver’s Buddhist guide to compassionate gift-giving, complete with a list of charitable organizations open to donations

The Joy of Generosity 
Need help getting your kids to help with the dishes after a holiday feast? Vipassana meditation teacher Beth Roth teaches her son the joy of being generous by involving him in a dish-washing extravaganza.

Hoping for Snow in Dark December: A Balm in Troubled Times by Dick Allen 
And, for a winter pick-me-up during December’s long dark days, Connecticut’s poet laureate emeritus Dick Allen reflects on the hope that snow can bring in a letter to his grandson.

Thank you for subscribing to Tricycle! As a nonprofit, to keep Buddhist teachings and practices widely available.

This article is only for Subscribers!

Subscribe now to read this article and get immediate access to everything else.

Subscribe Now

Already a subscriber? .