 True compassion is not about giving or taking. True compassion is just doing what's needed. You have no preferences of your own, simply doing what's needed is compassion. You revving yourself up into a huge amount of emotion and reaching out to somebody is not compassion. This is just self-satisfaction, devious ways to fulfill yourself. Compassion is possible. Genuine compassion is possible. When there is nothing to fulfill in you, you're just doing what's needed. But always if you get into a deep emotion and do something, you think that was a very compassionate moment. No, you're seeking self-fulfillment. I'm not saying anything right or wrong, it is still coming from a certain inadequacy. So one overly compassionate sage who was indiscriminately disposing of people's needs because of his austerities, he had attained to a certain capability and he was giving it away. So one day Shiva called him and tried to advise him. See, this is not good. The way you're dispensing gifts and boons to other people, this will not bring well-being to you or to the people whom you give. It may bring you much trouble, it may bring him much trouble or both of you much trouble. So stop giving these boons. People come and ask, it's okay, you don't have to give. Parvati, Shiva's wife who was sitting there, she said, oh my lord, how is this possible? As it is, there are very few givers in the world. As it is, there are very few people who are willing to give anything in the world. And a few men who are giving, you are trying to restrain them also. What is the point? At least a few men who are willing to give, let them give. You must explain this to me. This is not fair. There are very few givers. That also you want to discount and make it much smaller. Then Shiva said, see, this is not about depriving people of something. This is not about depriving the world of receiving something, nor is it an effort to deprive the person to have the pleasure of giving something. It is just that instead of helping people to evolve where they will naturally receive the bounty of life, an uninvolved person, if you give something, you will only overburden him. You will only destroy his life. You of your concern about somebody's ultimate well-being, you must put him through the painstaking process of evolving him to a higher possibility where he will receive higher dimensions of life. Where receiving just happens to him because it deserves it. If you gift a ton of gold to an ant, it will only crush the ant. It will not make the ant rich, it will only crush the ant. So what you give, how you give is very important. You don't just give because somebody is asking.