Realistic Gratitude

Sometimes gratitude can feel like a real chore. In the west people often try force us to be grateful 'cause we have lots of material things.
Having things does not by default make for a grateful heart, and it's not gonna happen by shaming anyone.

This is a track that takes this all into consideration.

Transcript

Hello. There's a lot of shaming in our culture around gratitude, And so it can often have an unpleasant taste attached to this practice, Which is understandable. Look at your life, They say. There are starving kids in Ethiopia. You should be grateful that you can have a veggie burger and sleep in a warm house, All the while judging you mercilessly for not feeling grateful. Shaming you into gratitude isn't gonna happen here. I'll just invite you to open to it, See what happens. Other times, Gratitude is difficult for people because it brings a sense of guilt paying attention to your own abundance, While so many people in the world have little. Noticing the suffering of others is a sign of compassionate heart and a lovely quality. I simply ask you to allow yourself to feel good and abundant for this short practice, As keeping yourself from feeling joy is not going to benefit those people who are suffering. In fact, Being joyful will allow you to do the most good in the world. All that said, Let's try and let go of any shitting and just see if we can tune into some things that we're really grateful for, Not what we should be grateful for. And just for the moment, Setting aside the troubles of your life and the very valid reasons to feel ungrateful and see if you can feel some gratitude and maybe maybe it'll be helpful. Let's practice. Find your comfortable seated, Standing or lying down posture. Lie your back to be straight, Your shoulders to be above your hips and your head above your shoulders. Finding a stable yet relaxed posture is supportive of common concentration and also allows energy to flow through you efficiently. Perhaps, Since we're in this gratitude zone, You might already notice some privileges you're carrying as you get still, Potentially in a safe place with a device that has access to free meditations on it. Maybe this already starts to tune you in to gratitude or perhaps the guilt we spoke of. If it is guilt, Just let that be and let it go for now. Now just scan your body and relax as much as you can, Starting with your head, The top of your head, Your face, Your neck and shoulders, Your upper body, Your arms and hands, Stomach, Your hips, Your legs and feet. You won't be able to relax 100% unless you're Maitreya Buddha, But since you aren't, Just relax as much as you can and feel the pleasant sensation of your relaxing body. That's nice, Isn't it? To release some tension in the body. Perhaps some gratitude can be found simply from the opportunity to be able to relax in this moment. Maybe not. Now ask yourself, What does it feel like to be grateful? Notice what arises in your body. Perhaps you can tune into the feeling just by asking yourself to conjure the feeling. Now recall a time when you were really grateful. Choose a time when there was no conflicting things going on that could distract you. Just a time when you felt pure open-hearted gratitude. Now just soak this in for a few moments, Really tuning into what was going on and what caused you to feel that way. Maybe you were with good friends, Having a good experience. Maybe you did some good in the world. Just remember the details and more importantly the feeling in your body. Now that we've inclined the mind towards the feeling of gratitude, Let's tune in further to specific things. So now ask yourself and rather than answering right away, Just let the question sink in and see what may arise. What are you grateful for right now? Notice the feeling, Soak it in. Now letting that thing go. Is there anything else you're grateful for? Letting that thing go. One more time, Drop the question in. What are you grateful for right now? Letting go of that thing. If anything arose, If not, If it was just silent space, That's okay too. And that part can be a good cue to see what naturally brings gratitude to you. Perhaps every example was someone you love and that's good to know about yourself. Next we'll actively bring to mind specific areas of life to see if you can find things you are grateful for. Again, Not things you should be, But things that you really are grateful for. Is there anything about your home life that you're grateful for? Is there anything about your body you're grateful for? Anything about your mind? What about your friends? What about your career or if you're no longer working? Hobbies? What about places you visit in your community or outside of it? What about people who provide services? Art or music? And as we close, Notice how this practice landed for you. Do you now feel like you have much more than you need or did it actually constrict your heart, Making you feel guiltier like you don't have enough? Either way, It's a good practice and useful information. Sometimes the practice can open the heart quickly and sometimes it takes time as we allow ourselves to work through the barriers that keep us from feeling grateful. Thank you for your practice as always.

Reviews

I am blessed & abundant despite 'western poverty' . I appreciate this perspective tho as been grateful is grilled into one yet sometimes, somehow, life can seem alarming w its disparity between'have & have nots' so I'm grateful for this roof over my head, my body, loved ones, my practices, my family despite all our struggles, challenges, feelings of broken ness at times.

So accessible. I needed this before heading into a work week that can dim my gratitude eyes. Thank you 🙏

I thought it was a great idea to begin by spending sometime on one thing I was grateful for. It made me feel good and then it was easier to think about other things. I also appreciated the suggestions like my family, my hobbies. Thank you for offering this meditation.