Developing an Attitude of Gratitude

Four steps,

1) Gratitude journal – every day ideally sometime during the day, ideal time is in the night before you rest, but anytime, best is if its fixed,  sometime during the day you step back enter  this mode of goodness space.instead of I have got so many things to do when the mind is distracted, you go in mode of goodness space and you reflect – what is in my life that I have received that is meaningful to me and you write it down.To write things down it has to be clear, it’s not just a thought because when you write you do a little editing as you write so it’s clear. And then in that gratitude journal exercise then you reflect again.What do I feel about that thing that I received that has been of benefit to me, its a feeling, one is cognitive and the other is an affective of gratitude journal exercise.

2) Something that you do everyday, you don’t have to like add another something to your daily life, you do that something in the consciousness that this is an offering of my gratitude to that source that I received this thing from.When you are cooking let me make this offering as an expression of gratitude for the person that I have received this beneficial thing from or whatever, when you are driving your car, when you are walking from point A to B.Something that you do everyday, you just connect that mindfulness of that feeling of gratitude to the source of that which you received that thing from.

3) Think of something that you can do that will be an expression, an appropriate expression of that gratitude to that person, could be even someone that is now deceased, but something that is an appropriate expression – verbal, written something. You say to that person or even say about that person to another person, I feel very grateful to that person, that gave this wonderful thing as gift.

4)  That person who you feel some gratitude for do something that will assit them in their mission. What did their life represent and do something that helps establish that in this world. and then do that for sometime. I know a devotee that heard this 4 years ago and to this day they are continuing it, everyday, I don’t have to wind them up, it went in and this devotee is feeling something. I mean gratitude that is the seed of love and their life is blossoming, their devotional life and their family life and their social interaction with the devotee community because that love for Krsna is awakening because HE is the source of everything, whatever we are feeling grateful to, for having received something HE is the source. That consciousness is awakening instead of just like check the box in a bhakti sastri exam, they are feeling that.