Speaking of Giving

We come into this earth empty, naked, with nothing to call our own, except our body, which too is given to us by our parents and by the laws of nature. We are empty, nothing, when we are born. And when we die, we are again empty, naked. We cannot take anything with us, when we go. Not even our own bodies and minds. Even our body, our most prized possession, is left here, to be buried deep inside Mother Earth and to decompose and to return to dust, or cremated and turn into ashes, which again goes back to Mother Earth, as dust. Dust thou art and to dust thou returnest, what is mentioned in the Genesis section of the Holy Bible, is absolutely true. Once this is understood, we realize that the only thing that we can do here on earth, is to enjoy whatever is there, like a person who has rented or leased a property enjoys it, without being its owner. And since no one really owns anything here, there should ideally be no problem in giving freely, sharing freely with others.

Surprisingly, in spite of knowing all the above facts, most of us are loathe giving freely. We would rather accumulate, hoard, store, save, secure, hide, and hold on, under the assumption (and fear) that we will need all this, one day. And the one day, invariably may never come, and after you are gone, someone else will enjoy all that you put away. And you would have lived your life in misery, in fear, in anxiety, in worry, rather than in fun, in joy and in happiness.

An easy way to acquire instant happiness or joy in life is to make someone else happy. And the easiest way to do that is to give someone something. What you give is immaterial; it is the thought and the feelings behind the act of giving that count. It might just be a smile, a kind word, a compassionate look, a word of advice, praise, encouragement, hope, or it might be your time, your presence, your concern etc. Apart from this, you can always give of your material things too. But remember one thing. You are giving to free yourself, to feel good, for your own joy. Please don’t give with the attitude “What is in it for me? That is not giving, that is business. And business will always come with its own set of profits and losses, pain and pleasures, ups and downs. Eschew all expectations, and give freely of whatever you can. And see how existence rewards you, in unimaginable ways. As Marlo Thomas said “There are two kinds of people in the world: the givers and the takers. The takers might eat better, but the givers sleep better.

This book, which is a compilation of 30 very powerful quotes, on the subject of giving, has many great human beings voicing their thoughts on this subject. This book is a short read, but at the end of it, you will surely be a changed human being. And even if one human being changes, the world changes a bit. That is what we are looking for and that is the purpose of my writings and this book.
This is the fourth book in the series titled ‘Speaking of”, the other three being Speaking of Love, Speaking of Happiness and Speaking of Fear.

Enjoy the lovely quotes