[Continuing our exploration of the paramita of generosity]  •  generosity is like the expanding universe: it just keeps expanding and expanding without limit  •  the practice of generosity challenges us to stretch beyond our fear and territoriality and sense of impoverishment  •  Buddhist teachings recommend working with three dimensions of generosity: material generosity, psychological generosity, and the generosity of offering the dharma or the teachings  •  material generosity refers to giving what is needed, whether it be food or clothing or any other material object  •  psychological generosity refers to giving the gift of confidence or fearlessness; it has a tone of empowering others, supporting others, giving others the strength to face life  •  the generosity of offering the dharma means offering others inner support for their spiritual development  •  in all three cases, we are working in the realm of relationships; we are learning to tune into situations so we can respond with what is most appropriate.