In the Mangala Sutta the Buddha poses and answers the question “what in life can truly be considered a blessing or mangala?” The 38 blessings he names include many fruits of our practice of Dharma such as giving, learned understanding, self-discipline, artful speech, blameless work, humility, and contentment, among others. We can contemplate these blessings as gifts we give to ourselves.

The Buddha frequently began his teaching with giving because that is something everyone can do – a blessing available in every moment. The blessing is the recognition that any act of sharing makes us happy because we contribute to another’s happiness. Giving is the act of opening the heart, letting go. And gifts are not necessarily material. We can always smile at someone, or offer a kind, encouraging or comforting word–we can give in that way. Material abundance is not a sine qua non of our ability to give.

The theologian Howard Thurman said, “Look at the world with quiet eyes.” Isn’t that lovely? Just look at the world with quiet eyes. Usually when we are in the midst of life’s circumstances—whatever they are—we can be very reactive and therefore miss the many gifts for which we can have gratitude and also miss opportunities to give, thus making our very presence a blessing. It reminds me of some cartoon characters with eyeballs on springs that pop out when they see something surprising. But looking upon the world with quiet eyes, we can feel a sense of simply coming back into ourselves and into receptive mode. Ready to give and to receive the blessings of our life.