How to Practice Gratitude

When we feel grateful for someone or something, we move tremendous energies. But what exactly is gratitude and why is it an important part of yoga? Let’s look at how to practice gratitude in everyday life.

What is Gratitude

The word gratitude comes from the Latin word gratus, which means joyful, grateful. We experience this positive emotion when we intentionally become aware that life has gifted us with something that is good and useful to us. With this feeling we recognize the goodness of life and it prevents us from taking good things for granted.

The emergence of gratitude as an emotional state is a two-step process: we first perceive and realize positive events and then generate a deep feeling of thankfulness.

According to psychological research, the feeling of gratitude and happiness are closely related, because in choosing to focus on the good things in one’s life, people experience positive emotions. It increases the enjoyment of their experiences and helps them to better value themselves and their health. Gratitude therefore can be the root of self-love, love for one’s own life and love to be spread to others.

How to Practice Gratitude Consciously ?

There are several ways you can bring a sense of gratitude into your life. You can recall an event from the past when you were really happy: it could be a pleasant childhood memory, the day of your marriage, or a trip. 

But the most beneficial way to practice gratitude is to set aside 5 to 10 minutes each evening before you go to bed and to reflect on the good things happening during your day and the things you currently have in your life, that you are grateful for. Turn of all your electronic devices like mobile phone or laptop and make sure that you are not disturbed during this “me-time”. 

Think of at least 3 things you are grateful for on this day. It might be difficult in the beginning but you will see that with practice it will even be hard to limit yourself in the number.Be it your health, the support of your partner, the new dress you found on sale or just the friendly smile of a stranger passing you by – there is always something to be grateful for.

The more you practice being in a state of gratefulness, the more it will affect your whole day, your emotions, the energy you radiate and with that even how people and the world around you react to you. 

It may be a good practice to do your daily gratitude practise during meditation. Or you can keep a gratitude diary, to which you can come back during more difficult times to find inspiration and encouragement.

What Are the Benefits of Gratitude?

• We learn to appreciate and experience the present moment, amplifying positive emotions.
• It blocks negative waves of thought and emotion.
• With regular exercise it can help to reduce depression, as our focus is on good and positive events.
• It reduces stress and anxiety.
• It increases self-esteem and self-love.

A conscious lifestyle is an important part of yoga, therefore practicing gratitude is a perfect addition to your yoga practice. It can help you to get closer to the desired “union” (“yoga” is commonly translated as “union” from Sanskrit). You can easily combine yoga and gratitude with a regular gratitude meditation at the end of each yoga session. If you are still looking for a good yoga teacher who can also help you to learn how to practice gratitude, then the best yoga studios in Budapest offer you plenty of opportunities.

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barbara