Page 64 - 2019octnov

Cultivate the Healing Power of Gratitude

The Chopra Center
ratitude is an immensely powerful force that we can use deeply at all the little things that enhance your life and give you
to expand our happiness, create loving relationships, and joy ... waking in a warm bed; your favorite song; a phone call from
Geven improve our health. a friend; the ability to touch, see, or hear; electricity; the beating
Many scientific studies, including research by renowned of your heart; a hug.
psychologists Robert Emmons and Michael McCullough, have You can write in your journal just before bed, when you wake
found that people who consciously focus on gratitude experience up in the morning, or just before you meditate. The time of day
greater emotional well-being and physical health than those who isn’t important; what is important is that you consistently take a
don’t. In comparison with control groups, those who cultivated a few moments to consciously focus your mind on your blessings.
grateful outlook: Commit to keeping a journal for a month. What we put our
· Felt better about their lives as a whole attention on expands in our life. By offering gratitude for all the
goodness we experience, we’re inviting the universe to give us
· Experienced greater levels of joy and happiness more and more of what we want.
· Felt optimistic about the future 1. Who or what inspired me today?
· Got sick less often 2. What brought me happiness today?
· Exercised more regularly 3. What brought me comfort and deep peace today?
· Had more energy, enthusiasm, determination, and focus 2. Write a Thank You Letter
· Made greater progress toward achieving important personal goals Make a list of at least five people who have had a profound impact
· Slept better and awoke feeling refreshed on your life. Choose one and write a thank you letter expressing
· Felt stronger during trying times gratitude for all the gifts you’ve received from that person. If
possible, deliver your gratitude letter in person.
· Enjoyed closer family ties In studies of people who have practiced this form of gratitude, the
· Were more likely to help others and offer emotional support results have been amazing. Often the recipient of the letter had no
· Experienced fewer symptoms of stress idea what an impact he or she had had on another person and were
deeply touched by the expression of such authentic gratitude.
If you want more happiness, joy, and energy, gratitude is clearly
a crucial quality to cultivate. It While we may often thank
is a fullness of heart that moves people verbally, the written word
us from limitation and fear to can often be even more powerful
expansion and love. When we’re because someone has taken the
appreciating something, our ego time to write their appreciation.
moves out of the way and we A letter can also be re-read and
connect with our soul. Gratitude treasured, creating joy and love
brings our attention into the that will continue to ripple out
present, which is the only place into the universe.
where miracles can unfold. The 3. Take a Gratitude Walk
deeper our appreciation, the This is a particularly useful
more we see with the eyes of the practice when you’re feeling
soul and the more our life flows down or filled with stress and
in harmony with the creative worry. Set aside 20 minutes (or
power of the universe. longer if you can) and walk in
Here are a few powerful gratitude your neighborhood, through
practices for you to try: a park, around your office, or
1. Keep a Gratitude Journal somewhere in nature.
Since ancient times, philosophers and sages from every As you walk, consider the many things for which you are grateful
spiritual tradition have taught that cultivating gratitude is a key ... nurturing relationships, material comforts, the body that allows
to experiencing deeper levels of happiness, fulfillment, and you to experience the world, the mind that allows you to really
wellbeing. understand yourself, and your essential spiritual nature. Breathe,
pause, and be grateful for the air that is filling your lungs and
One of the earliest advocates of a daily gratitude practice was making your life possible.
Dutch philosopher Rabbi Baruch Spinoza. In the seventeenth
century, he suggested that each day for a month, we ask ourselves Pay attention to your senses—everything you’re seeing, hearing,
the following three questions: feeling, smelling, and maybe even tasting—and see how many
things you can find to feel grateful for. This is a powerful way to
This practice, wrote Spinoza, would help us find more meaning and shift your mood and open to the flow of abundance that always
joy in our lives and would lead to profound inner transformation. surrounds you. •
As you write in your journal, challenge yourself by not repeating
items from the previous days— this will make you look more

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