| CATEGORY | GOOD QUALITIES |
| SUB CATEGORY | GRATITUDE |
| Why should I be grateful to others? |
| The dog is treated with neglect and indifference. But the fidelity displayed by a dog is not found in any other creature. Getting a few morsels of food from a man, the dog shows its gratitude to him by following him and wagging its tail out of affection. But such gratitude is lacking among students who have been nourished, educated and placed comfortably in life by their parents. Many do not have even a fraction of the gratitude displayed by dogs. Divine Discourse 13 Feb 1997 |
| What is the body given for? |
| Every one should realise what one owes to the society in which one is born and from which one derives so many benefits. Young people should reflect on the question what gratitude they can show to the society which has given them so much. What service are you doing to society? Every man should show his sense of gratitude to society by rendering selfless service. It was for this purpose that the Seva Organization was started. But even here the Seva Organizations are being used to promote one’s name and fame and not to render service for its own sake. The body is given for rendering service to society. Divine Discourse 16 July 1997 |
| How to be grateful to God? |
| Man has no gratitude to the five elements which confer on him gratis innumerable precious benefits like light, heat, air and water. Man has to pay a price for so many small amenities like electricity and running water. But what price does he pay for the light of the sun who illumines the world? This light is a gift of the Divine. What price do you pay for a soft breeze or a heavy downpour of rain? God is providing freely such precious benefits to man. What gratitude does man show to God for all these? The only way to show one’s gratitude to the five elements is Smarana (to chant the Lord’s name incessantly). For so many trivial services in life we express thanks, but what thanks do we offer to God who is the provider of the most precious benefits in life? Chant the Name from the depth of your heart. In expressing your gratitude to God by chanting His name, you should do the chanting from the depth of your heart and not as a musical performance. Divine Discourse 14 Sep 1997 |