Dhamma Principles › The Chapters on Gifts and Welcome: Giving Things and Giving Dhamma
The Chapters on Gifts and Welcome: Giving Things and Giving Dhamma
Everyday life

The Chapters on Gifts and Welcome: Giving Things and Giving Dhamma

Āmisadānañca dhammadānañca

Giving, offering, sharing, helping, welcoming, seeking, and even growth and treasures, all come in two kinds: of material things (āmisa) and of the Dhamma. In every pair, the Dhamma is foremost.

7 points

In the Chapter on Gifts and the Chapter on Welcome of the Book of Twos, Aṅguttara Nikāya, the Buddha gives a string of short discourses. Each takes one theme and divides it into two kinds, one of material things (āmisa) and one of the Dhamma, then says: "Of these two, the one of the Dhamma is foremost."

The Chapter on Gifts covers giving, offering, relinquishing, donating, using, sharing in use, distributing, supporting, helping and kindness. The Chapter on Welcome covers welcome, hospitality, searching, seeking, the highest seeking, veneration, hospitality to guests, success, growth, treasures, accumulation and abundance.

The discourses name only the pairs and say that the Dhamma side is foremost, without further explanation, so this page groups related pairs together.

  1. 1

    Two kinds of gift Āmisadānañca dhammadānañca

    There are two gifts: a gift of material things and a gift of the Dhamma. Of these two, the gift of the Dhamma is foremost. In the same chapter he speaks in the same way of two kinds of relinquishing and two kinds of donating.

    Applying it in daily life

    When helping someone, try giving both: for example, a scholarship together with your time as a mentor.

  2. 2

    Two kinds of veneration Āmisapūjā ca dhammapūjā ca

    Veneration is of two kinds, with material things and with the Dhamma; veneration with the Dhamma is foremost. This pair appears in both the Chapter on Gifts and the Chapter on Welcome.

    Applying it in daily life

    Besides flowers, incense and candles, honour the Buddha by keeping one precept perfectly for a whole week.

  3. 3

    Sharing and using together Āmisasaṃvibhāgo ca dhammasaṃvibhāgo ca

    Distributing is of two kinds, distributing material things and distributing the Dhamma. Using and sharing in use are likewise of both kinds. In every pair, the Dhamma side is foremost.

    Applying it in daily life

    When you read a good book or find an insight that genuinely helps, share it briefly with someone close to you, not at lecture length.

  4. 4

    Supporting and helping Āmisānuggaho ca dhammānuggaho ca

    Supporting, helping and kindness are all of two kinds, with material things and with the Dhamma. In every pair, the one done with the Dhamma is foremost.

    Applying it in daily life

    When looking after your child or a junior colleague, besides giving what they ask for, help them learn to think and solve problems themselves.

  5. 5

    Two kinds of welcome Āmisapaṭisanthāro ca dhammapaṭisanthāro ca

    Welcome, hospitality and what is offered to guests are of both kinds, material and Dhamma, and the Dhamma is foremost: receiving one another with goodwill and beneficial words is worth more than food and drink alone.

    Applying it in daily life

    When guests visit, besides preparing snacks, listen attentively and talk about things that leave both sides with something worthwhile.

  6. 6

    Two kinds of seeking Āmisapariyesanā ca dhammapariyesanā ca

    Searching, seeking and the highest seeking are each of two kinds, seeking material things and seeking the Dhamma. Of these two, seeking the Dhamma is foremost.

    Applying it in daily life

    Look back over a week at how much time went to earning money and getting things, and how much to learning that makes your mind better, then increase the second a little.

  7. 7

    Success, growth and treasures Āmisavuḍḍhi ca dhammavuḍḍhi ca

    Success, growth, treasures, accumulation and abundance each come in a material kind and a Dhamma kind. In every pair, the Dhamma kind is foremost.

    Applying it in daily life

    When measuring your progress each year, besides income and assets, ask whether you've become calmer, more honest and more forgiving.

Try it in daily life

These discourses do not say that giving material things is bad. Material giving is still giving; the hungry still need rice and the sick still need medicine. But what lasts longer and helps more deeply is helping people gain understanding and a foundation of mind.

In daily life, "Dhamma" needn't mean preaching. It can be teaching a skill that lets someone stand on their own, sharing what helped you through hard times, or setting a good example.

Give the Dhamma with respect for the listener and at the right time and place, not by pressing teachings on people who aren't ready to hear them.

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