“Generosity is an activity that loosens us up. By offering whatever we can
– a dollar, a flower, a word of encouragement –
we are training in letting go.”
Generosity has a specific importance in Buddhist practice because it relates directly to the core idea of "letting go" of attachments. In that way cultivating a mind state of "letting go" is the practice of giving, of generosity. The Buddha often began his teachings with a discourse on this virtuous mind state to set the stage for discussions surrounding morality and meditation.
Interestingly, in Buddhist teaching Generosity is also not about the recipient or about the benefit the recipient may gain. It is about the benefit to the giver. Putting that focus on generosity emphasizes the need to cultivate generosity as something we do as a matter of course, rather than something that we go out of our way to do intentionally. The importance of this is that a person who is giving, a person who is inclined to give, is more likely to "let go." And, a person who is looking to let go will naturally be generous and giving, and, so we practice to cultivate this quality of mind. As we delve deeper into generosity, we also begin to see more the need to fully understand our intentions for giving, what we are giving and the recipient of our generosity so that we can support our practice with wisdom.