THE HEALING POWER OF THANKFULNESS



V N Mittal



A Chinese proverb says, "When eating bamboo sprouts, remember the man who planted them.".



Gratitude is the acknowledgement of all the abundance that has been provided or is yet to be provided to us in life. The attitude of gratitude is so powerful that it can not only heal you spiritually-- but also transform your life -- physically, mentally and emotionally. However, the attitude can be acquired with practice. What one needs to do is to make a few behavioural changes and simply cultivate it as a way of living. Sometimes, a small incident in life can humble you to trigger a positive change in your attitude.



My fast recovery from a crippling hip injury as a result of an accidental fall, some ten years ago, came as a blessing in disguise .The incident amazingly changed my attitude from thanklessness to thankfulness. I found myself stepping on to my healing journey. It provided me enough inspiration to search for deeper meanings of the word 'GRATITUDE' for advancing on my chosen path. A closer look at each letter of the word, intuitively, led me to the following road map for practice as a way of living.



G-ratefulness for all the abundance in life

R-eleasing all anger and worry

A-lways acknowledging the Divine presence

T-ranscending all barriers of hate, jealousy and ego.

I-nviting happiness through thanks giving

T-aming the mind to cultivate mutual trust

U-nconditionally loving all

D-eriving pleasure in forgiving others

E-stablishing connectivity to all life.



Interestingly, each of these nine fold commandments of gratitude in the above acronym, point to the well treaded ideals on the path of spiritual healing. As you make a conscious effort to pursue these, you would notice that each one of them is so thoroughly interwoven and intertwined with the other that it is difficult to dispense with one without your compromising on the other. You cannot have an attitude of gratitude unless you shed anger; anger unless you control your ego and unconditional love without shedding hate and jealousy. You tend to invite happiness through thanks giving. According to a Latin quote, "A thankful heart is not only the greatest virtue but the parent of all other virtues." Practicing forgiveness and expression of gratitude leads us to connectivity to all life. It works as a catalytic agent to establish mutual love, mutual trust. and connects us to every living being--putting an end to our perpetual fear of being isolated



Incidentally, attitude of gratitude also forms as one of the five precepts of Reiki—the art of tapping universal life force energy-- for healing. Mikao Usui, the founder of Reiki called it as ''the spiritual medicine of all illness" and exhorted his disciples to meditate on the principle and adopt it in their day- to- day life.



Gradually, you may cultivate a habit to offer thanks to all creatures whenever and as often as it is warranted but make sure that you do not have a secret desire of receiving greater benefits in return. Of course, doing your daily prayer is the key to offer your gratitude to God for all the abundance in your life. A regular chanting of a few of your favorite mantras just while retiring to bed and on rising is another way to show your gratitude. A conscious recognition of the Divine presence all the time puts the control of life back in your own hands. You would feel perpetually connected to every living being and the fear of being isolated would no more haunt you. With the positive change in your attitude towards all beings, and the practice of attitude of gratitude in life, new doors would start opening up for you and your heart would be filled with love, compassion and mutual trust.





Living gratitude is the key to inviting Heavenly blessings. Acknowledging divine presence and expressing gratefulness for all the small and big things in life can gradually ferry you to the amazing world of spiritual awakening and healing.



The writer is a Reiki Master Teacher based in Dehradun.