Sunday, December 28, 2008
Monday, December 22, 2008
The Essence of Gratitude
Gratitude is a word that has been used a lot lately from those who are offering the "spiritual" path to others and from those looking to manifest more in their lives. The standard line is something of the order of "You just need to be grateful for everything in your life". Now, while it is true that a shift in perspective from an ungrateful state of mind to a more grateful state of mind helps one to temporarily feel more at peace, it is also true that a concept offered without the root understanding of the concept is likely to be misunderstood, be misused and lead to eventual frustration.
Gratitude is NOT a practice, it is an understanding. As a practice it is forced, as an understanding it flows. Therefore it is always the deeper nature of self-discovery and self-inquiry that leads to a deeper and more expansive self-love that results in gratitude.
This is a love that comes from the understanding that right now You are the perfection of all your past perfect choices, thoughts and actions. That if you hadn't made all those past choices you wouldn't be on the path you're on now coming to the amazing understanding that you are leading yourself towards each and every day. You would be delaying your evolution rather than expanding and evolving, asking questions, receiving answers and transforming into more of a peaceful conscious creator of your life and true master of your reality.
True gratitude comes from the realization that every situation in every moment as much as it can seem against you, is always and forever FOR YOU. For example, in this moment, who else could these words be for? How you choose to respond, react and feel, based on what you desire to create and experience in this lifetime is your "free will". You are the infinite and priceless observer and creator of life, and everything you can see, feel, touch, smell and hear is here to SUPPORT you in your creative effort. If that's not something to be infinitely grateful for right now, then maybe as you contemplate this in the days or weeks to come it will be.
When you see all persons, places and things in your daily walk as the tangible matter that gives your life its meaning and growth, your judgments will disappear and your gratitude and love for all of it will know no boundaries. This is the gratitude that sees all as perfection, feels itself as part of the perfection and manifests from the unlimited and unrestricted nature of this perfection. From this state of grace the great mirror that is the Universe has no choice but to respond in kind....
With endless love & gratitude,
Howard
Gratitude is NOT a practice, it is an understanding. As a practice it is forced, as an understanding it flows. Therefore it is always the deeper nature of self-discovery and self-inquiry that leads to a deeper and more expansive self-love that results in gratitude.
This is a love that comes from the understanding that right now You are the perfection of all your past perfect choices, thoughts and actions. That if you hadn't made all those past choices you wouldn't be on the path you're on now coming to the amazing understanding that you are leading yourself towards each and every day. You would be delaying your evolution rather than expanding and evolving, asking questions, receiving answers and transforming into more of a peaceful conscious creator of your life and true master of your reality.
True gratitude comes from the realization that every situation in every moment as much as it can seem against you, is always and forever FOR YOU. For example, in this moment, who else could these words be for? How you choose to respond, react and feel, based on what you desire to create and experience in this lifetime is your "free will". You are the infinite and priceless observer and creator of life, and everything you can see, feel, touch, smell and hear is here to SUPPORT you in your creative effort. If that's not something to be infinitely grateful for right now, then maybe as you contemplate this in the days or weeks to come it will be.
When you see all persons, places and things in your daily walk as the tangible matter that gives your life its meaning and growth, your judgments will disappear and your gratitude and love for all of it will know no boundaries. This is the gratitude that sees all as perfection, feels itself as part of the perfection and manifests from the unlimited and unrestricted nature of this perfection. From this state of grace the great mirror that is the Universe has no choice but to respond in kind....
With endless love & gratitude,
Howard
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