Sweet or Salty

From the Tarot of the Sidhe, Maker Six (Six of Pentacles); from the Green Man Tree Oracle, Blackthorn:

 The spirit of generosity

Brings fruitful reciprocity

And mouths need never hunger more

When those with plenty help the poor.

          Western culture has convinced many of us that no matter what we have, it is never enough. You might have a nice car or smartphone, but advertisers insist we won't be happy without the newest car or phone. Our idea of generosity has become twisted as Gelek Rinpoche describes: "If you give away your old, worn-out coat that you wouldn’t be caught dead wearing, that is not generosity. There is no pinch. You are doing nothing to overcome your stinginess; you’re just cleaning out your closet and calling it something else." We've forgotten to practice gratitude for what we have, which is generosity's foundation.

          Blackthorn is well-named due to its blackish bark and dense, stiff, spiny branches. It suggests boundaries and protection, but these can be taken to an extreme when assertiveness turns into aggression. Those of us with material comforts can fall into this trap of aggressive 'protection' when we are asked to be generous, especially if gratitude has been replaced by entitlement or greed. In this case, those thorns that are supposed to protect us end up piercing us instead.

Greed is the salty water consumed by those who thirst for self-centered gratification. This kind of thirst can never be quenched and becomes the source of increasing torment.

—Matthieu Ricard