Gratitude Now

Let's start off with a short TED talk by JayaShri Maathaa:

Title: A magical mantra for nurturing a blissful life

During the peak of coronavirus pandemic in Sri Lanka, that is mid 2020, I came up with a surprising way to fill my life with bliss and grace. A magical mantra was nurturing in the garden of my mind. It felt like all good thoughts that I have planted in my mind has begun to blossom into something beautiful. This magical mantra was like a magic pill for all perceived suffering, which not only affected my life but everyone else connected to me.

Thirty-eight years of my life, I went on a self-seeking journey, finding, who am I? I went through a conscious dying process, letting go of everything attached to my name: well-established career as a coach, a charity consultant, hypnotherapist, energy healer, intimate relationships, attachment to family, 12 years of well-established business. So what was this magical mantra that transformed my life for better?

"Thank you" were the two simple words that filled the space between my ears like a music in my head. This was experienced profoundly during the pandemic, as everyone connected to me was filled with fear and doubt and anxiety, and I had to do something different. The first thought came to my mind, first thing in the morning as I woke up, was, "Thank you." And the last thought occupied my mind when I went to sleep at night was, "Thank you." I was thinking, "Thank you" when I ate, when I drank, when I worked, when I walked, sat silently, when I consumed every man-made material. It was like a music in my mind. Sometimes I said the word "thank you" loudly even to inanimate objects like sun and the moon and the stars, birds, butterflies, trees, little creatures in the garden as if I were greeting them.

When you say "thank you," it creates a harmony between you and the external condition under observation. It helps you to bring your attention inwards. It may be initially just a word running in your head without a true feeling of gratitude in your heart. A word is a sound, and a sound is a vibration, and vibration creates energy. So when you keep thinking, "Thank you," after a while, that energy start penetrating into your heart center and the rest of the body.

We cannot do much about troubled times and conditions in life, but we certainly can do something to calm ourselves during troubled times. Human mind is like water. If it gets affected by external conditions, it creates movement and you cannot see the depth. This magical mantra, "thank you," and the true feeling of gratitude in your heart can help you deal with any life situation peacefully, joyfully and blissfully. May all beings be well, happy, free from all suffering and be enlightened.

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

Feeling and expressing gratitude

The seven domains of gratitude

SuperDeal

The habit of methodically expressing gratitude is one of those few fundamental practices that is a SuperDeal.

Too much to be grateful for

You’re going to learn here several different and more fundamental ways of expressing gratitude than you’ve ever heard of or thought of before.

Undoing hedonic habituation

As a special treat, you’ll learn about how to ameliorate and even reverse the unwanted effects of what psychologists call “hedonic habituation,” where what gave us pleasure in the beginning (like the new house or spouse) is taken for granted as time passes.

Installing the gratitude habit

You will also learn a special “habit installation” technique that ensures that your subconscious mind reminds you to regularly express and feel gratitude.

Six other pots of gold to discover

The way we usually think about gratitude is for things that seem to be personally bestowed upon us, like being healthy, the food we’re able to enjoy, or the friends and family in our life. Although these are important, the magnitude of life’s gifts are a universe larger than these.

Consider these seven different domains to choose from in expressing gratitude.

What the universe (God) provides to me that is non-specific to any given human. Examples:
1. “So amazing that oxygen exists all around me to make use of with every breath!”
2. “Oh, my God! Gravity! Every moment I am relying on gravity to keep things stable and usable.”
3. “The sun came up today! What a miracle! Thank you, thank you.”
What the universe (God) provides to me in material riches that are contributed personally to me. Examples:
1. My great health and energy. So so nice to enjoy!
2. My Mac Mini with my 53-inch TV-screen monitor, along with the Internet, is such an integral part of my life. I am so amazingly blessed to be able to make use of this every day!
3. My full-body-vibration machine that I use while working at my desk (right now!). This lazy man’s exercise keeps me in great shape. You warm my heart and stimulate my body, dear machine.
The unknown (by name) others that contribute to my life. Examples:
1. The thousands of people that have made possible the creation and delivery to me of the Radio Shack countdown timer that sits on my desk: the philosophers, the scientists, the inventors, the businessmen, the technicians, the miners, the workers, the traders, the store clerks, and so on. So grateful to you all!
2. The untold number of people (and cats) who made it possible for my cat Princess (an American shorthair) who is sitting on my desk and watching me work right now: all those who took care of her ancestors, the breeders, the veterinarians, the scientists who designed and tested her cat food, the transporters, and the cat lady with her helpers who raised her up until I found her and bought her when she was about six-months old, and so on. Thank you, oh thank you all for my Princess!
3. All those many, many people who designed the ideas and implemented the systems that support the safe, free, and bountiful world that I enjoy: the philosophers, the businessmen, the government employees, the transportation people, the builders, and so on. I love this world you have built for me!
4. I was about to click the wrong button on my computer, but a message popped up and asked me if I really wanted to do that. I am indebted to the programmer who thought of putting this “safety” feature into the software.
Others that are known by name (but not personally) that have contributed to my life. Examples:
1. Hey, Isaac Newton! What a world you have created for me. Without those principles which you discovered where would I be today?! I am inspired and deeply indebted to you.
2. How are you, Dr. Joel Fuhrman and Dr. Michael Greger?! Your books and ideas on nutrition and immunity make me healthier and healthier each day that passes. Can you feel my gratitude?
3. Dr. David Burns, I use your cognitive therapy processes each day to tweak the running of my own mental machinery to better give me the thoughts and feelings that I like. With much appreciation!
People who I know (have known) personally and I express gratitude to without them hearing me. Examples:
1. How did I ever get or deserve my mother?! Who would I be if she hadn’t been my mother? I cannot fathom that. Always, always she is with me. My heart and mind sing together in eternal gratitude that she was my mother.
2. Destiny do I believe? Maybe. By chance I met the the woman who has been my assistant (Heidi Yang) for over eight years now (May, 2018) in October of 2009. How was I so lucky to meet her, my good friend and amazing work partner!?
3. Dr. Cheng Luo: I appreciate his support and trust in arranging for me to give my “loving your life” training to a hundred of his mental health counselors.
4. Nice to visit with you last night (May 3, 2018), Chenxi Xie. Along with the four other former strangers in our group, he made my day!
Expressing gratitude to myself. Examples:
1. I am so inspired and fascinated by your mind, Dwight. I am in awe of how it works...the new ideas it’s always coming up with. Thank you.
2. I love how you’ve changed and grown and developed over your lifetime. You are the same person and you are not the same person. Thank you, Dwight.
3. I cherish your independent thinking. While questioning everything, you’re still able to take action and move ahead in the world. I appreciate the epistemological approaches that you’ve developed and use.
Expressing gratitude to another (which may include God) and I direct to them personally. Examples:
1. “Heidi, I was impressed that you were able to catch that mistake that I just made.”
2. “John, thank you for being in my life.”
3. “God, it’s good to know that you’re always there to talk with...thank you for standing by.”

Life provides us with a bonanza of blessings. Don’t miss the chance to bless those blessings.

Undoing hedonic habituation...What is hedonic habituation?

The happiness of money?

You know how you thought that when you were earning a certain amount of money, you would be so happy. And when you did, then you were so happy. For a bit. But you got used to it. You started taking it for granted.

The joy of being with your true love?

You know how you thought that when you got that special man or woman in your life, you’d be the luckiest person in the world. And when you did, then you were. For a bit. But then you got used to “having” him or her. You started taking them for granted.

The house of your dreams?

You know how you thought that when you got that new house, you would walk through it every day in wonder. And when you did, then you were. For a bit.

It’s called hedonic habituation.

The good news is that it can be undone to a large extent just by creating a regular habit to do so with reawakened gratitude.

Un-taking for granted my vibration machine

In this moment, as I am writing this to you, I am standing on my full-body-vibration machine. I’ve had it for a few years, long enough to get very used to it. But I have not gotten used to it. Every time I turn it on, I take a second to marvel at how enjoyable and easy it is to use and I congratulate myself on indulging in this “lazy man’s exercise.”

Un-taking for granted all around me

Yesterday (May 6, 2018) was my weekly food-splurge day (a break from my six-days-a-week unprocessed vegan program). As I sat at my table eating my lunch, facing outward towards all the others enjoying their food and friends and family in the food court, I began to notice/create the following thoughts:

Un-taking for granted I'm an emperor

“This combination of Chinese and Vietnamese dishes, purchased with the money I receive from the amount that I get paid for a minute or two of my time, is more safe, more delicious, more varied than likely available to the king or emperor of two hundred years ago.”

Un-taking for granted living the exotic life

“Even though I’ve lived in China for almost 18 years now, as I watch my fellow Chinese food-court patrons, I still feel the exoticism of immersing myself within a culture so unlike the American culture I grew up in.”

Un-taking for granted the zip-zip of money

“So unbelievable that a quick scan of the QR code on my mobile phone transferred the payment for this meal to the food stand!”

Un-taking for granted my shoulder bag

“My beautiful shoulder bag (which I’ve had for several years), nestling against me right now, makes carrying around my valuables quite easy.”

Un-taking for granted my ability to read faces

“Even though I’ve been able to do it for several years now, I delight in noticing the nuances of the emotions flowing across the faces of the people who pass nearby (when I was younger I was quite unaware of this).”

Un-taking for granted my facility with chopsticks

“How amazing that I can use chopsticks and it feels downright elegant!”

Installing the gratitude habit

If you’re not already in the habit of regularly expressing gratitude for all of life’s blessings, here’s a habit installation technique. The problem is not so much in being able to think/express gratitude once you’ve remembered to do so. Instead, the problem is routinely remembering to do so.

One more thing for your mobile phone to do

This is where your mobile phone becomes your memory for a while (until your subconscious mind gets the idea and takes over the job). Ensure first you’ve installed a timer app on your mobile. Set up two to five recurring daily alarms. When you hear each alarm, take a short break to express your gratitude for something specific. To learn more about this habit-installation method, go to Kickstarting a mental habit.

Pay attention to the heads up

For this to work, you still must honor the alarm (or honor the reminder that surfaced from your subconscious). Unless it a big inconvenience, stop and create that gratitude every time the alarm goes off.

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

Are you grateful? Click here...

AskDwightHow.org 365/24/7

14m 24s

Feeling and expressing gratitude

The seven domains of gratitude

Feeling and expressing gratitude

The seven domains of gratitude​

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The seven domains of gratitude