Buddhist texts comment on at least 7 reasons why people give gifts:
- personal profit
- it is a good thing to do
- to continue the custom and tradition of one's family
- the people one is giving to are worse off than oneself
- the great sages of the past had given up so much in order to attain spiritual fulfillment
- gift giving makes the mind serene
- giving is a natural expression of the mind (only attainable by beings who are nearly enlightened)
These are the reasons listed in Anguttara Nikaya 7.49. According to this text the first reason, profit, is the lowest intent of giving (though giving even with this intention will produce good effects), with each succeeding form providing a greater karmic result than the proceeding intent. It is interesting that in some ways this list is in line with American cultural values of gift giving. We admire someone who gives because people really need it more than someone who gives simply to make a name for themself. However, the highest forms of gift giving that everyday, ordinary people can make are non-intuitive: giving because it makes the mind serene.
This hierarchy is helpful to understand because it means that practice of giving is not necessarily a good thing unless some intent accompanies the gift. It is also nice to know that the stingiest of persons still have some impetus to give gifts because the fact that they think they will receive something is no bar to whether or not a gift will lead to personal benefit.
On some level this ranking system is troublesome because it makes it really hard to argue for taxes to go to international relief, because it takes away the inherent goodness of giving. This is hard to stomach when you consider exactly how much money governments give to developing countries, and how bad the world would look if that aid were to dry up. Although I am not suggesting that government aid should be decreased, it is interesting to think at least from a karmic standpoint (though probably from a social justice standpoint), not everyone would be better off if the US increased international foreign aid. At least not the people who did not want to give. Although the taxpayers who fought hard to get the aid passed would certainly benefit if their efforts were donated.
Ideally, the government would not have to distribute international aid, every american would give enough to obviate the need for this. But in a world where intent, not results, matter it government aid is just taking money from one person and giving it to another. There are societal benefits that make most aid worthwhile, which is why I am in favor of government aid generally. However, the issue is quite a bit more complex from a karmic standpoint.
One interesting result of this rule, is that it does not seem to bar anything from being provided to another party as potentially being given as a gift. It implies that just by giving with an intent, that some good can be reaped from it. Compare the above list with this list in Anguttara Nikaya 8.33 of reasons for giving:
- out of affection
- in an angry mood
- out of stupidity
- out of fear
- to continue family tradition
- for personal profit
- because giving is joyful
- because it ennobles and adorns the mind.
although AN 8.33 doesn't elaborate on the effects of gifts given with these attached mental states, it does imply that "gifts" can be given that are somewhat against your will: in anger or out of fear. This may mean that even things that have to be paid, or things that there is an obligation to do can still be in a sense be gifts. This may explain why if you relate to obligations as giving gifts, it can free up the heaviness of the obligation. This is probably the reason why some people hate doing court ordered community service, but others love it. (though there are admittedly more complex reasons why a person would not want to do court appointed service) It should also be noted that all the benefit of a gift is reversed when one feels remorse over giving the gift.
