Gratitude & Growth

                                                    

My gratitude to everyone, who has contributed in my life in some or the other way and a big thank you to my readers.

Gratitude is one of the few words which I have been taught by my parents early in my childhood. I used to consciously remember ‘Thank You’ word and used at every possible moment of gratitude happened in my life, even if it is saying thank you to house helper every day or saying thanks to postman or milkman or anyone in my family and friends. I feel gratitude and say thank you to everyone who helped me in any way to make my life better. Slowly and gradually this engraved in me as an inseparable habit. 

Many years back while in search of my next book, I got my hands on the book ‘The magic’, after reading few pages I saw this passage written which comes from Gospel of Matthew in the Holy Scriptures.

“Whoever has will be given more, and he will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him.”

I couldn’t understand this passage at first but as the book was coming to an end, I was getting clearer with these lines and unveiling the mystery of it.

And the hidden answer to the passage lies in one word that is “Gratitude”

 “Whoever has gratitude will be given more, and he will have the abundance. Whoever does not have gratitude, even what he has will be taken from him.”

It doesn’t matter what cast, creed or religion you belong to, they all have described and practiced gratitude.

1. “Whatever I am offered in devotion with a pure heart — a leaf, a flower, fruit, or water — I accept with joy.” – Bhagavad Gita

• “Let us rise up and be thankful, for if we didn’t learn a lot today, at least we learned a little, and if we didn’t learn a little, at least we didn’t get sick, and if we got sick, at least we didn’t die; so, let us all be thankful.” – Buddha

• “When eating bamboo sprouts, remember the man who planted them.” – Chinese Proverb

History and science has shown again and again the inherent power of gratitude yet still most people are unknown.

Mahatma Gandhi, Shakespeare, Albert Einstein, Mother Teresa, Plato, the Dalai Lama, Newton and many other great human beings have practised and mentioned about gratitude.

Albert Einstein, one of the greatest scientists of all time said:

“A hundred times every day I remind myself that my inner and outer life depend on the labours of other men, living and dead, and that I must exert myself in order to give in the same measure as I have received and am still receiving.”

He practised gratitude every day which resulted abundance in his life.

Gratitude has a magic formula to bring abundance in your life. Gratitude is a part of universal law that governs our whole life. You might have heard saying that “what goes around comes around” or “like attracts like”.

Newton’s fundamental laws of motion say the same.

Every action always has an opposite and equal reaction. This applies on gratitude as well, if we are grateful to others, we will also receive gratefulness from others. This makes gratitude a very scientific yet magical formula to bring abundance in your life.

Gratitude has strong impact on emotional, physical, psychological, financial, spiritual and social aspect of human’s well-being.

Let’s look into the few of many benefits of having the attitude of gratitude.

1. Gratitude improves physical well-being- When we pay gratitude, we feel happy and joyful internally which results in peace and that leads to healthy body and mind. Its releases the negative energy that generates the positive aura and energy in us. Its helps us in getting better sleep, healthy heart and even stronger immune system.

• Gratitude improves relationship- When we are grateful for every tiny little thing that our family, friends, colleagues have done and start valuing their presence in our lives then automatically it builds the relationship stronger.

• Gratitude releases the negativity– Paying Gratitude kills the ego. The moment ego goes away- selfishness, comparisons, anger, and revenge also go away.

• Gratitude brings abundance and growth– The abundance in the universe is endless. This is up to us if universe opens up its doors for us or not and the only magical way to let the universe responds to us positively is paying gratitude. Law of Universe governs by law of attraction and gratitude is that elixir which brings abundance in our lives.

Pay gratitude and count your blessings.

• Gratitude increases the scope of learning – Gratitude teaches us “we are one” and we can’t lead our lives alone, we need people’s help, support and love to have a happy and glorious life. We start giving importance to every being’s existence and start recognising their contribution is our lives and that is the point when we understand and become more receptive to the world.

• Gratitude teaches us forgiveness– we don’t realise but forgiveness is very important for our overall growth and it is an important part of gratitude. Forgiveness clears our blockage of growth. Practicing gratitude makes us more receptive to the situations and allows ourselves to forgive others, forgive events and situation.

One good feeling which you are grateful for, helps on creating another good feeling and then another good feeling.

That’s all right, but how!!

It’s simple.

It’s simple to understand but difficult to practice but once you master it you will know that gratitude is an elixir of a happy and healthy life.

Let’s understand few easy ways to introduce gratitude in your life.

Make a Gratitude Diary- Every morning after you get up express gratefulness for everything you have. When you think you don’t have anything to be grateful for, go back and look at your hands and legs, your eyes and on top of all is,  you are alive and breathing .. Yes!! You are breathing, isn’t something amazing to be grateful for everyday? There are many people who don’t see their next morning.

Every night before you go to bed find out 5 things you are grateful for, more than 5 is even better and write it down, because when you write something you become more aware and conscious about it and it stays in your heart for longer time.

Be genuine – Just don’t say thank you or don’t write thank note for the sake of doing it. Do it genuinely. Gratitude is a magical potion if it’s done genuinely and happily it transforms your life magically. You must have heard “as you sow, so shall you reap”, so our act of kindness or gesture of gratefulness to someone or something attracts kindness and gratefulness in our lives.

Conscious awareness– it is very easy to remember big events and someone’s big helps in our lives but it takes a genuine and conscious effort to pay attention to tiny little things and helps in our lives which collectively make our life better every day. Pay gratitude to that every smaller and smallest things which we usually ignore like recognising and appreciating our gardener, driver, house helper, colleagues, family, friends, delivery guys, neighbours or anyone for that matter who adds value and contribution in your life.

Now these are simple task to do but the difficulty will be to make it a daily practice. Gradually it will become the part of your life and identity.

Open your eyes more to the world, look around you will find greatness all around you. Get real about your gratitude practice. When we pay gratitude the universe gives us the reward in abundance.

The more you embrace and embody gratitude in your life the more joy, peace, happiness and abundance will come your way.

                                             Gratitude Reciprocates

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        The only prayer needed is Thank you, Thank you & Thank you!