On Practicing Gratitude

Tags

gratitude, radiance, spiritchat, spirituality

The final Thursday of November in the USA is a celebration of family that is observed in the form of the National Holiday called “ThanksGiving”. As the name suggests, it uses two beautiful words ~ Thanks, and Giving ~ and fuses them together, as if two hands are joining together in the traditional Indian greeting of Namaste. As a new international student in the USA, it was the first holiday that I was fortunate enough to experience. My college roommates “host family” welcomed us ~ their “adopted sons” ~ into their home for Thanksgiving Dinner, where we were fortunate enough to enjoy food, laughter and joy in a warm loving environment.

Thank you, Ms Shirley, of Blacksburg, Virginia, for that wonderful experience. You taught us that a warm heart is a beautiful bridge that establishes connections across faiths, across color, across cultures and across countries. It also taught us that a giving of thanks with our hands is a powerful expression of our faith and our beliefs. It brings out the best in those who choose to give, and those who choose to receive. And I am glad that I chose to receive that day, almost thirty years ago.

My first response to that invitation, arising from my introvert nature and newness to the country, was to let my roommate go to the Thanksgiving dinner by himself. It was his “host family”, not mine, was my excuse. But, Ms Shirley insisted to him that she wouldn’t take no for an answer. All the three roommates had to come to dinner. They would come pick us up at the appointed hour. And so it was that three Indian students, barely ten weeks in the USA, ended up sitting around the dinner table with a bunch of Southern Virginia folks whose hearts were as big as the New River valley.

Yes, we often do not know the blessings that we miss out on, when we choose not to receive. One thing that we perhaps miss out on, is the opportunity to say thanks, to express gratitude for receiving. The other thing that we miss out on is to experience the joy that those who give, get in their acts of giving. Imagine, if we had all this abundance that we wanted to share, but there was nobody to share it with! Would we not be denied the joy of giving? What would our communities look and feel like, if we did not or could not share our joy with our neighbors?

For some folks, expressing gratitude to others does not come naturally. In response, they shy away, figuratively and literally, from receiving. They feel that if they are recipients, they may have to reciprocate, even if it is by simply saying thank you. Very often, the giver transfers this expectation of reciprocity, or expectation of gratitude, during their act(s) of giving. However, it is may be useful to remember that the practice of gratitude is as much an attitude of the heart and spirit, as it is an action. This is well summarized as:

Gratitude bestows reverence, allowing us to encounter everyday epiphanies, those transcendent moments of awe that change forever how we experience life and the world. ~ Sarah Ban Breathnach

The purpose of gratitude is to connect us to the power of abundance and the radiance of the infinite power that is at our spiritual fingertips. Perhaps, in simply expressing thanks, through our thoughts, in our actions, in our meditations, we renew the connection to these abundant powers. And, in renewal lies the spirit of all holidays, doesn’t it? A beautiful reminder of the practice of gratitude follows:

We are to be radiant, grateful, buoyant people basking in our blessings and striving cheerfully toward our dreams under the bright and loving sunshine of the Divine. It takes only will and conditioning to enjoy such a life. Let us make the choice to reexamine our attitude and orientation to life, to cultivate a more positive and present pulse. Let us declare: We Shall Practice Joy and Gratitude. ~ Brendon Burchard in The Motivation Manifesto

I invite you to celebrate the “Practice of Gratitude”, and to join us online in our weekly twitter chat, Sunday November 22nd at 9amET / 2pmUTC / 7:30pm India in #SpiritChat. We will talk about the first part of ThanksGiving this Sunday. Next week, we will talk about Giving and Service.

Namaste!

Kumud @AjmaniK

P.S. Our scheduled chat for this week with guest @AAPremlall is rescheduled to a later date. Grateful for Anandi, sending her healing energy, and I look forward to hosting her to talk about “Spiritual Food and Nutrition” 🙂

Beyond Gratitude – Practical Spirituality

Tags

gratitude, thanks, thanksgiving

The topics in #SpiritChat for the first two weeks of November have been “Renewal with Community Spirit” and “Healing from the Inside Out”. All the experts seem to agree that a key component of renewal, and healing, is perhaps developing a sense of gratitude or contentment. One definition of gratitude is

the quality of being thankful; readiness to show appreciation for and to return kindness

The quality of being thankful. Readiness to show appreciation. To return kindness. I may add – a return to kindness to these three phrases. Whatever your definition of gratitude, these phrases have so much power in them, when we employ them in a practical way – with our heart and beyond – from the core of our spirit.

My good friend Simon Harvey (@simon_gb on twitter ) had said in reference to gratitude…

Without gratitude the quality of a life, any life, is devalued. – Simon Harvey

What a beautiful statement!

As we step into the third week of November, a lot of those in the USA look forward to the very family-centric holiday of Thanksgiving. It is an opportunity for families to get together, share a meal, take some time to be together, to be thankful for the journey of the past year, and look forward to the journey ahead. Our #SpiritChat discussion last November had asked some questions about gratitude.

How does adopting a sense of gratitude affect our spiritual growth? Are those who are more inclined to towards spirituality, necessarily more aware than others of their sense of gratitude? How can we actually increase our sense of gratitude over time? How does an attitude of gratitude (or the lack of it) affect our physical, emotional and spiritual well-being?

I believe these questions are equally (if not more) relevant today, as they were last year. We can perhaps add another question. How do we go beyond simply expressing gratitude – towards practical spirituality in our lives?

I close with a big thank you. I am grateful to all those who have shared in #SpiritChat in the past, and continue to do so every week. Your presence inspires me to continue the weekly chats. And now, an invitation.

Please join us in a SpiritChat discussion this Sunday, November 18th at 9am ET as we explore the subject of how we can use the power of gratitude to practically affect our own lives and those around us.

Kumud

Update: Here is the html Transcript for the chat. Here is the pdf version for download. Also see the questions asked during the live chat on our topic of Gratitude. Thank you – grateful to all who shared!

Q1. Gratitude. A single word with great power. What does this power mean to you? #SpiritChat 

Q2. Why is it important to express gratitude? What are some good ways of expressing it? #SpiritChat 

Q3. Does it bother you when others do NOT express gratitude to you? Why or why not? #SpiritChat 

Q4. How does an attitude of gratitude (or the lack of it) affect our physical, emotional and spiritual well-being? #SpiritChat 

Q5. Can our daily spiritual practice(s) create a constant attitude of gratitude within us? How? #SpiritChat  

Q6. If you could go back and express gratitude to one, who would it be? What would you say? #SpiritChat 

Q7. Look ahead. How can families and communities be strengthened by our practice of gratitude? #SpiritChat

Final Q8. I will practice REAL gratitude by... ? #SpiritChat 

The Spirit of Gratitude

Tags

gratitude, spirit, spiritchat, thankfulness

As November gathers steam, the thoughts of people in the USA move towards the last week of November, and the holiday that celebrates Thanksgiving. It is perhaps the one holiday which remains true to its spirit of celebrating family, with family. The one holiday which hasn’t been overly commercialized, perhaps because the one principal gift that is exchanged on this occasion is ~ Thanks, or gratitude.

In our busy lives, as we rush around trying to accomplish our tasks on any given day, some of us (like me) sometimes forget to stop, pause, and say thanks. The opportunities to show gratitude abound in every act of kindness that is done toward us ~ by friends, family, co-workers, service people, and perhaps even strangers.

We just have to be mindful, be aware of that moment in time when the other person abandons their own need and focuses on our need. When the other person acknowledges that we may need a small helping hand, and reaches out, sometimes, even without our asking for it. How can we acknowledges these simple, selfless acts of kindness towards us? Perhaps, with a smile, and with a spirit of gratitude.

The great philosopher, Cicero said:

“Gratitude is not only the greatest of the virtues but the parent of all others.”

Can gratitude really affect our spiritual growth? Many different faiths and religious traditions are said to promote ‘a sense of gratitude’ as the cornerstone of their practice.

But are those who are more inclined to towards spirituality, necessarily more advanced than others in their sense of gratitude?

Can we actually increase our sense of gratitude over time? How does an attitude of gratitude (or the lack of it) affect our physical, emotional and spiritual well-being?

Please join us in a special SpiritChat discussion this Sunday, November 13th at 9am ET. Your host this week will be Joanne Cipressi (@JoanneCipressi), who is a professional ‘Life Coach’. She will be joined by Martina McGowan (@MartinaMcGowan), a physician and ‘seeker of knowledge’. Thank you, Joanne and Martina!

Kumud

P.S. I am very grateful to Joanne and Martina for taking up the mantle of continuing #SpiritChat while I travel abroad. Thank you to both ladies ~ I know that they are much loved and appreciated by the entire community.

Please leave a comment about gratitude and how it affects your life. Thank you!