part0019

Perhaps no other money manifestation technique has been as controversial as tithing, which is the act of giving money away to a spiritual or worthy cause. Whole books have been written on the act of tithing alone as a money manifestation principle. To add on to the controversy, tithing has been strongly advocated by various prosperity teachers, most notably by Catherine Ponder, who devoted several chapters in her famous prosperity books to talk about the act of tithing.

As a result of this focus on giving money away, I have often been asked -— Does tithing work as a technique to manifest money? Does giving money away really bring more money into our lives? The answer to this, and other related questions is this: It depends on the prosperity consciousness of the giver , and in particular, how the giver feels when he is giving.

Let me explain. Some people, upon reading the teachings of famous prosperity teachers, see tithing as the “magical act” of making more money come to you. It has been commonly taught that tithing will result in ten times more money coming back to you, and hence if you give a hundred dollars, one can expect a thousand dollars or more in return! Therefore, some individuals approach tithing and charity work as some sort of an “investment”. They “invest” in order to get ten times back on their money! They see the Universe as some sort of a giant bank, which automatically brings and gives them a ten time, or 1000% return on their money!

Tithing ==> Inner feelings of richness ==> Prosperity

As with everything else, the Universe is picking up on the totality of all your innermost thoughts and feelings. How do you suppose a person who tithes only to get the potential returns feels like inside? Would the individual be totally free and abundant, or would he be operating from a place of lack consciousness, that of “not enough and wanting more”? I think the answer is clear. An individual who tithes just to get back ten times of his money, and expects to do so, is giving out of a sense of exchange or obligation. He is making demands on the Universe by saying (or thinking), “Well Universe, now that I have given up my $100, I expect $1000 in return!” The last thing prosperity teachers expected when they wrote about the act of tithing is for individuals to turn it into some kind of a monetary or financial exchange, because that is not what tithing is!

Now that we have talked about what tithing is not, let’s talk about why some individual’s fortunes have truly changed once they started tithing. Again, if you have been following my books and the spiritual principles taught within, it would be easy for you to realize this point. I once heard a story told by a prosperity teacher, in which one of her students could never seem to change her financial situation no matter what she did. Finally, the prosperity teacher told this student to make a tithe of ten percent of everything she had. The tithe that the student made eventually led to a changing of her fortunes, which brought in a fresh inflow of money into her life. Similarly, I have heard stories from close friends and business associates about how each time they made a considerable tithe in good faith, the money would always be there for them when they needed it. I have experienced this scenario several times in my own life as well.

Let’s take a closer look at what happened in all of the above instances. Does the magical act of “giving money away” really compel the Universe to return some money to the giver in return? This is an area which I feel traditional prosperity teachings do not devote sufficient explanation to the behind-the-scenes mechanism through which this works. As a result, readers have come away with misguided views on the act of tithing, which has led to all sorts of confusion and misguided beliefs.

The student who could not get money to flow into her life no matter what she did operated from a constant mindset of fear and worry about money. We have read earlier that when you remain strongly fixated on “what is” (on current physical reality), that you make it difficult for an alternative version of reality to manifest in your life. Therefore, the more focused you are on money, the more difficult it gets for money to flow into your life especially if things aren’t really looking that good in your life when it comes to money!

Now the act of giving ten percent of everything a person has is no trivial matter, especially when a person has seemingly little. When an individual has been focused on lack and limitation for so long, the act of giving ten percent of his money away often forces an individual to give up his old ways of thinking, and to surrender to higher powers of the Universe, even if it is just for a little while. When we truly run out of physical options and see the futility in worrying, we give up on worrying and in that moment, the Universe responds to our new levels of consciousness. An individual who has been asking for money for a long time actually has an intense desire, which summons equally intense Universal forces. The only issue is that this same individual is being held apart from what he is asking for because of negative fear thoughts that block whatever good he is asking for from coming into his life. In that moment of surrender and profound trust, all the good that one has asked for since the beginning now has the “opening” needed to rush into his life.

All one needs is to create an “opening” long enough for all the good you have asked for to flow into your life. When you create a short opening by taking your attention away from an undesired reality even for just a moment, the Universe has a chance to work its magic. However, the more you beat yourself up on what reality currently is, your physical and mental self not only take a toil… you continue to work hard at perpetuating current reality. This is why the secret of attracting money (or anything you want in life) is in maintaining an inner sense of balance and flow.

An act of tithing compels the giver to trust and have faith in the Universe, especially when he is giving away a considerable sum of money. He is forced to believe that his needs will be met by the Universe, now that he has given his money away and has no other place to turn. It is in these moments of deep faith and trust that an “opening” is created for the Universe to work its magic through, and an opening is all that is needed. Sometimes tithing leads to quite literally, a good tiding, or a change in direction of the tides. The reason is because once you are able to give up a bit of your resistant thoughts (fears and worries), you gradually allow yourself to give up more and more, while encouraged by the changes happening in outer reality. Therefore, tithing can create a positive and upwards spiral, in which an individual gives up his fears and worries for long enough to create some positive results on the outside. These positive results in turn allow him to give up even more fears and worries, which in turn brings about a greater flow of money into his life and so on. A simple act of tithing can indeed result in a change in prosperity consciousness, and turn the tides.

Before you hurry to give some money away, you’ll have to see whether the act of tithing is right for you at this point in your journey. Don’t count on an external act to change your inner consciousness , for it can really go both ways. I know of individuals who find it so difficult to part with their money, that when they tithe, they do so with a begrudging and cursing attitude! They curse the party which they’re giving to, and see tithing purely as an investment. For these individuals, it is almost certain that tithing is not going to make them feel better, but worse. I would advise against tithing for these individuals, as it would make them feel worse which is counter to our earlier intentions. For other individuals, I would encourage starting with a small tithe. It does not really matter who or what you are giving to, as tithing is an act that allows you to feel the inner richness and wealth within. One cannot give without feeling good and rich inside. It is only when you feel that you have more than enough to the point of over-flowing that you are compelled to give! Therefore, if you decide to tithe, do so with a sense of joy! Do so with a sense of inner richness, and do so in the recognition of your own inner wealth.

Tithing complements all the earlier techniques and inner exercises we have discussed in this book. You can follow up with a tithe or with a donation to a charitable cause after you have done the earlier exercises for defining your own financial independence or standards. For many people, being able to give some money away fits right into their own definitions of financial independence! You can do so after you have engaged in a meditation to feel your own inner richness, as that is when the good feelings will be the most intense for you, and you can compound them through the act of tithing. But remember: If you do decide to give, make sure it is because you genuinely feel so rich that you decide to give to someone else. Do so out of a sense of love and inner richness, and not out of a sense of obligation or investment. Give thanks that you are both in a position to give and to receive!

One more thing about tithing — I always choose to give anonymously. This was taught to me by several spiritual teachers. The reason for giving anonymously is that it does not create any obligations for both the giver or the recipient. If you attach your name to a donation, it may create expectations for future giving, both for the giver and recipient. For example, the giver may be expected to make a same, or even larger gift, on a regular basis. You want to stay clear from situations like this as much as possible because giving is an inner act, driven by your inner sense of wealth and abundance, and not an outer act driven by outer expectations or prestige. Give up any sense of prestige or recognition that comes with giving. Tell no one of your monetary gifts. Just rest in the peaceful knowing and joy that your gift is secretly benefiting others! Did I also mention that the hidden rich secretly give a lot of their money away without making a huge fanfare about it? Why do you think that is so? I think by now, you’ll understand the powerful spiritual principles underlying their actions.

Another reason for giving anonymously is because when the recipient receives the anonymous gift, he or she gives thanks to the entire Universe for the gift. How many times have you received something anonymously and given thanks to the whole world for it! The joy is palpable and something beyond description! On the other hand, if the recipient knows who the gift is from, he or she gives thanks to one individual only, which in my experience has not produced inner feelings of gratitude that are as intense. Giving anonymously also frees up any obligations of repayment on the part of the recipient. Your gift will be truly unconditional. You give out of a genuine sense of inner richness, faith and trust in the Universe, and not to get recognition, to get repaid, or for anything else.

One question therefore remains: Should you make tithing a regular part of your life? Definitely yes! Regular tithing reflects an elevated level of prosperity consciousness and helps develop it, which is also the same reason why many of the wealthiest people on our planet started tithing even before they became “rich” by conventional standards. Almost all of the hidden rich give away money on a regular (and secret) basis as well. Why do you think they do so? That’s because they see life as filled with so much richness, abundance and joy that they feel so good just to share some of it with the world. The only issue therefore is when you should start the act of regular tithing. Again, giving money away is not for everyone, so only you can decide whether this is the right time for you to make a tithe.

The physical amount of the donation does not matter. There are biblical stories and scriptures about how a woman who has given away only a cent has done more good work than those who gave away thousands of dollars, a relatively small proportion of their wealth. If a cent is all you have and you give it away, you would have demonstrated a higher level of prosperity consciousness than individuals who have millions but only give away a few thousands dollars. Once again, do not let external benchmarks dictate how much money you should be giving away. Let your own sense of inner self and richness decide. When you feel rich on the inside, you’ll naturally give away more money on the outside. So start today if it feels right to give money away regularly to good causes which you admire and support. I have chosen a few causes which I regularly give to because it makes me feel so good.

When you give money away, notice how you feel on the inside. Do you have thoughts such as, “I wonder what they’ll be doing with my money…” or “I hope those people don’t pay themselves high salaries with my donation!” These are resistant thoughts that go against the very flow and mindset of giving. They are not conducive to money manifestations. If you want to give, give freely and conditionally. Do not care about how your money will be used because at the end of the day, the only person everyone has to be accountable to is themselves. It is not our job to worry about whether our money will be misused. Give because it is a joy for YOU , and not because it will do something good for the recipient. If how your money is spent is an issue for you, find another cause to give to, otherwise these nagging thoughts and feelings will always interfere and can easily negate the goodwill of giving! But once you have chosen to give, do so freely and unconditionally. Most people think that in giving, they are benefiting the recipient. But that is only a secondary benefit. The greatest benefactor when you give is yourself. You are receiving the gift of elevated prosperity consciousness.

This is a long answer to the question I posed at the beginning of the chapter. Do rich people get rich through tithing? Can tithing make someone rich? No, giving money away has never made anyone rich… but the corresponding increase in prosperity consciousness and the inner state created through a genuine act of giving has. Give because you genuinely want to contribute and make the world a better place. Give because you feel so abundant, and you know that your wealth will not diminish even if you share it generously with others. Give from a place of love and abundance, not because you want something to happen, but because you recognize the inner riches within. Once you are able to give from that inner place of abundance, the money must flow!