Dhamma

This was said by the Lord, said by the Arahant, so I heard:

“Bhikkhus, there are these two kinds of giving: the giving of material things and the giving of the Dhamma. Of these two kinds of giving, this is the foremost, namely, the giving of the Dhamma. There are these two kinds of sharing: the sharing of material things and the sharing of the Dhamma. Of these two kinds of sharing, this is the foremost, namely, the sharing of the Dhamma. There are these two kinds of help: help with material things and help with the Dhamma. Of these two kinds of help, this is the foremost, namely, help with the Dhamma.”

This is the meaning of what the Lord said. So in regard to this it was said:

When they say that giving
Is supreme and unsurpassed,
And the Lord himself has extolled sharing,
Who, wise and knowing,
Confident in that foremost field of merit,
Would not give at the appropriate time?

Both for those who proclaim it
And for those who listen to it,
Confident in the Sublime One’s teaching,
The supreme good is fully purified
As they live diligently in the teaching.

This too is the meaning of what was said by the Lord, so I heard.

---

Read this translation of Itivuttaka 98 Dānasutta: Giving by John D. Ireland on SuttaCentral.net. Or read a different translation on SuttaCentral.net, SuttaFriends.org or DhammaTalks.org. Or listen on Voice.SuttaCentral.net. Or explore the Pali on DigitalPaliReader.online.