In my home tradition of Theravāda Buddhism, teachings are traditionally given freely, without a set price or limitation. When this works well, those with more material resources and those with less can both give to support the community, each in a way that is sustainable for them. This free giving is called dāna in the early Buddhist language of Pāli, and traditionally referred primarily to the support of renunciate monastics. While dāna literally means “giving” it is commonly translated as “generosity,” understanding that this beautiful heart quality is what we are cultivating when we give, along with the deep wisdom practice of letting go. 

As Buddhism has entered the global capitalist system, many teachers and organizations have had to modify this ancient practice. Many teachers are no longer monastics, living in renunciate simplicity, yet try to continue the spirit of offering the teachings we’ve been gifted by the Buddhist traditions as freely as we can. This is challenging partly because as non-monastics, our expenses are high, and institutional support minimal. In many places (like my home in California), people who enjoy Buddhist teachings often have no cultural framework for understanding the practice of dāna, even when we teach about it as a Dharma principle.

I often use the term gift economy instead of, or in addition to dāna, partly to differentiate our model from that of renunciate monastics, and also to emphasize its beauty as an economic system that goes beyond Buddhist practice and culture. 

The term “gift economy” is borrowed from academic analyses of indigenous and pre-industrial societies, and refers to a culture or community that sees the movement of resources between people as a means to deepen connection, not as competition or commerce. Here’s a short TED talk on the concept. And here’s some of my writing on its beauty for American convert Buddhist communities. Gifting as a cultural norm has powerful effects on everything from our sense of individuality and isolation to the assumptions we carry around value, work, fairness, and worth. 

In addition to being traditional within Buddhist cultures, an all-donation structure is a gesture toward creating a more radically inclusive community, as all interested practitioners are welcome to receive the teachings, regardless of ability to pay or access to resources.

It is not just the support of those who need to come for free that motivates offering my work in this way, however, but the value I feel in resisting the overwhelming pressure within our neoliberal capitalist system to bring every human activity into the marketplace. These beautiful teachings were given to me in an open-handed, generous way, through a gift economy model based in the practice of dāna, and I hope to honor that tradition by doing the same. Please join me in this resistance if you are so moved, and join our community in offering the gift of the Dhamma as freely and widely as possible.