The Magic Of Gratitude

FRIDAY, 06 DECEMBER 2019 / PUBLISHED IN ARTICLES / 5,996 VIEWS

By Sacinandana Swami
The sanksrit word for gratitude is krtajna – which translates literally as “knowing what has
been done.”
Krishna’s gratefulness
Krishna is aware of any service done for Him – whether it is recognized as important like
constructing a big temple, which is visited by millions, or whether it goes unnoticed like the
chanting of His Names in the secrecy of the early morning hours. He knows it all and He
feels obliged to those who are mindful of Him.
For example, Krishna was grateful to Draupadi because she once cried: “He Govinda!” in a
helpless condition. Krishna remarked, “Draupadi’s call for Me has made Me indebted to her,
and this feeling is gradually increasing in My heart.”
Srila Prabhupada comments: “So to anyone who is constantly engaged in addressing the
Lord and His energy, we can imagine how much the Supreme Lord is obliged. It is
impossible for the Lord to ever forget such a devotee. It is clearly stated here that anyone
who addresses the Lord immediately attracts the attention of the Lord, who always remains
obliged to him.” (NOD, ch. 21)
Last February I visited the Pandava Senas to facilite a Tree of Life Seminar for them. The
Saturday evening program was reserved for some sketches. One was about Krishna’s
gratitude and it caught my immediate attention. It showed a depressed girl with a strong
rope around her neck, ready to hang herself. But before she could kick the chair away, her
neighbour , a devotee, rushed in and asked her for some milk which he needed to complete
his last minute offering.
The girl showed him to her fridge and encouraged him to take everything, since she would
not have further use for anything. The devotee gratefully accepted a carton of milk and
promised to return it after his offering to talk with this distressed person and help her out.
When the devotee left, the poor girl returned to her suicide attempt, but when she fell, she
surprisingly fell into the arms of Lord Krishna who had suddenly appeared on the scene.
Krishna sweetly addressed the girl: “Because you have served me with your offering of milk,
I feel so grateful that I shall take you back with Me to my kingdom of bliss.”
I was deeply moved, as simultaneously a few incidents in my life came to mind whereby I
had witnessed the Lord’s unreserved mercy upon me.
Thinking about Krishna’s extraordinary gratitude endears Him to our hearts and evokes
feelings of gratefulness, and this attitude is most beneficial.
“Gratitude is the condition of the heart that enables spiritual growth to take place” writes
Srila Prabhupada.
Devotees of Krishna meditate about things they can be grateful for. They avoid thinking
about all those things that they do not have, nor all those arrangements that have not
worked out. Instead they focus on what has been given to them – all the opportunities that
arrive each day upon their doorsteps, all the relationships that have encouraged them and
last but not least, the human form of life, which offers them a unique opportunity for self-
realization. Thus, they cover themselves each new morning in the warming mantle of
gratitude and feel empowered.
Expressing your gratitude
Expressing our gratitude has two benefits:
* You become more conscious of what you have
* You connect with the person (human or divine) you feel grateful to
My suggestion to you is to compile a mental list each day with items you can be grateful for.
To give an example:
“I am grateful for this day so full of opportunities to serve and grow. I am grateful to
Krishna for giving me the Holy Names. I am grateful to have such and such people in my
life . . . .”
You will immediately feel how your heart and vision widens.
 All too often we do not see the tremendous opportunities we are given. We see but we do
not recognize them as such. We are “opportunity-blind”. That is dangerous!
Gratefulness makes us look again into our lives and maybe discover it for the first time.
Srila Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura explained the extent of a devotee’s gratitude as
follows:
“Even if a devotee serves Krishna for one thousand universal creations, he cannot repay the
debt he feels towards Krishna for having received the opportunity to serve the Lord’s lotus
feet.”

The Man in the Machine

Sri Krishna and the Original Sporting Propensity

2 Responses to “The Magic Of Gratitude”

1. PUSTA KRISHNA DAS SAYS : LOG IN TO REPLY

Glass of water…half empty or half full. The volume of water in the glass is the same. The
perspective is 180 degrees apart. We need to contemplate that Krishna is the reservoir of
the all attractive opulences of beauty, fame, wealth, knowledge, strength, and renunciation.
When we might take our attention away from those facts, we might exhibit the material
quality of envy, desiring to be as wealthy as…or as beautiful as…or as such and such as this
one or that one. Envy is the quality of desiring to covet or possess what someone else might
have. Gratitude is appreciating what gifts I have and trying to use those gifts in the service
of the Lord. Sudama Brahmana, when instigated by his poor wife, simply wanted to see his
dear friend Krishna again. His gratitude is exemplary. Uddhava, when appreciating the
supremely wonderful manner that the gopis had in worshiping Krishna, did not himself
desire to become a gopi, but rather to become a mere blade of grass in Vrindaban, such
that those gopis might walk on him as a blade of grass, and he could be blessed by the dust
of their feet. This is the take-home message. Do not lust “materially” to become positioned
spiritually for maximal ecstasy or gratification. It is Krishna Who we want to be pleased. All
for Krishna. If His love or ecstasy should come to me, I must re-deposit it in Krishna’s
service for His pleasure. Will we be left empty-handed? Doubtful. For IT IS KRISHNA WHO
IS THE MOST GRATEFUL OF ALL! How was Sudama rewarded for offering broken chips of
rice to Krishna! Krishna is the reservoir of gratitude. Remember, Arjuna chose Krishna as an
Advisor rather than Krishna’s hugh army, when offered on the battlefield. Such thinking is
non-material and demonstrates that Arjuna was not materially calculating. Gratitude and
appreciation may represent in some capacity a godly quality, while envy is the quality that
has placed us in this material prison in the first place. Definitely, half full! Pusta Krishna das

2. PUSKARAKSA DAS SAYS : LOG IN TO REPLY

Very nice thoughts Maharaja and thoughtful comments Pusta Krishna Prabhu.
However, the attitude of the devotee borrowing some milk from his neighbor seemed to be
somewhat callous, as portrayed in the play, to say the least….: “I’ll come back later to
rescue you, if you haven’t committed suicide in the meantime…!”

This is certainly questionable and it is doubtful that the public we try and preach to, would
apprecciate this type of “live in your own bubble” attitude…!

On the other hand, is agyata-sukriti sufficient to go straight back to Krishna ?

Can one go from no awareness of God directly into Krishna’s own arms ?

Are there any such documented stories in our Sastras ?

Gratefully yours

Thank you

http://www.dandavats.com/?p=12638

How to remain determined in Krishna

consciousness

THURSDAY, 05 DECEMBER 2019 / PUBLISHED IN RECENT MEDIA / 631 VIEWS

How to remain determined in Krishna consciousness.

BB Govinda Swami: If there’s ever a question to do something conservative or to do
something liberal, it’s always better to do something on the conservative side of Krishna
consciousness. You know, being more conservative in our frame of mind may not be as
expedient in terms of gratifying our senses. But if we have that focus to keep us closer to
Srila Prabhupada, and His mood and His instructions, then you’ll be able to remain in your
determination more. And then among yourselves, you should be consciously trying to
advance in Krishna consciousness. And you should develop sangas among yourselves,
serious devotees, who really want to advance in Krsna consciousness. You know, we can
always associate with people who are less serious, who are just more interested how to
fulfill their material motivations, or you can associate with those who are more serious in
Krishna consciousness.

http://www.dandavats.com/?p=69886