“The Gift of Appreciation” with Rajinder Singh Ji Maharaj
As we approach the holiday season, Sant Rajinder Singh Ji spoke at the International Meditation Center in Lisle, Illinois on the importance of appreciating the people in our lives. During this season, he said, we adopt the prevailing spirit of sharing and caring, and of being appreciative of each other and what they do for us. Doing so brings joy to those around us, while also making us feel happy and fulfilled. If we adopted this attitude of appreciation beyond just the holiday season, we could experience this feeling of joy and happiness throughout the year.
In our various interactions, we tend to have expectations and take others for granted. It is important that we learn to appreciate what we receive through each of our relationships. When we appreciate someone for something they have done, it has a tremendously positive effect on them. In addition to bringing them joy, appreciation also helps strengthen our relationship with them, fortifying our faith and trust in each other.
Irrespective of who we are, said the spiritual Master, we are all connected and intertwined as members of one family of God. We all need support, and also need to feel appreciated by those around us. As we go within through meditation, we experience our interconnectedness at the level of the soul, and it is then that we take steps to strengthen our connections with each other, embracing them not as “others” but as extensions of ourselves.
As we appreciate each other more, we begin to focus on the positive aspects of our relationships, which in turn helps us become calmer, happier and more fulfilled. This helps us focus better in our meditations. In this way, learning to appreciate the people around us can have a positive impact on our spiritual progress.
