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Is it better to give than to receive?

We’ve heard that idea so often it can feel almost virtuous to refuse what comes toward us.

But if you never receive, what exactly are you supposed to give from?

Episode Nine is about generosity, and the part of generosity we rarely talk about: allowing ourselves to receive. Why giving feels so good in the brain. What Buddhism, Hinduism, Christianity, Islam, Judaism, and secular ethics have in common when they talk about generosity. And why true giving has very little to do with keeping score.

There’s also another side to giving. The chronic giver who says yes when the body is already saying no. The person who gives from guilt, duty, or fear of seeming selfish. And the difference between generosity that comes from fullness and generosity that slowly empties you out.

Because giving is not supposed to require your disappearance.

If giving is the exhale, receiving is the inhale. You need both to complete the breath.

This week’s practice begins with one hand over your heart, one over your belly, and one person you can bless today.

Join me next time for Episode Ten, What If You Stopped Asking How?

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Reading Your Own Life With Swami Larry is written and hosted by Larry Lee. Season One is based on a manuscript written by Swami Larry with Faith Bleasdale.

New episodes every Monday and Thursday.

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