Arthur Ashe, the legendary Wimbledon player was dying of AIDS. From world over, he received letters from his fans, one of which conveyed: “Why does GOD have to select you for such a bad disease?”
To this Arthur Ashe replied: The world over 5 Crore children start playing tennis, 50 Lakh learn to play tennis, 5 Lakh learn professional tennis, 50,000 come to the circuit, 5000 reach the grand slam, 50 reach Wimbledon, 4 to semi final, 2 to the finals, When I was holding a cup I never asked GOD “Why me?” And today in pain I should not be asking GOD “Why me?”
This is so true in our real life situations! Arthur Ashe had the courage to use his intelligence and arrive at the right conclusion but how many of us have the courage to discount blaming God in the face of adversity, rather thank him for every happening in our lives? If we develop an appreciative attitude in life, we can clearly see blessings in every situation of our life, however grave they may externally seem.
In this context, Radhanath Swami says that every situation is an appropriate opportunity to celebrate the glory and mercy of God. Without stopping at that, he further states that gratitude doesn’t means simply saying thank you. Real gratitude means reciprocation. If we are actually grateful to someone, we will reciprocate even if it means great sacrifice. So, in our own life situations we must try to see beyond what the external situation poses but rather develop the divine quality of real gratitude and reciprocate in such gratitude.
26 replies on “Always Thankful to God”
Radhanath Swami often quotes the verse from the Srimad Bhagavatam, which says if a person, even in the worst situations, with folded palms says to the Lord “Thank you! I deserved worst”, then such a person has the rightful claim for liberation. Thank you for the inspiring article!
If we develop an appreciative attitude in life, we can clearly see blessings in every situation of our life
Very true! We are always waiting to blame God for our bad situations but never grateful for our good ones! Indeed we should always reciprocate with the Lord with gratitude.
Appreciation for even the small things in life that the LORD has given us would help us truly appreciate the GIFT of Life
Very nice statement “If we develop an appreciative attitude in life, we can clearly see blessings in every situation of our life, however grave they may externally seem.”.
“every situation is an appropriate opportunity to celebrate the glory and mercy of God” – Wonderful
Instead of asking God ‘Why me’, we should ask God – ‘Try me’.
Gratitude ………so important to lead a happy and content life.
In this difficult propaganda of Greed and Selfishness, ……getting such nice examples is so crucial to keep our faith on gratitude which is the true virtue of devotion to Lord.
Thank you Maharaj
There is a saying that “Everything happens for a reason, although we are not intelligent enough to understand it”.
Rather than blaming God for difficult situations in our life, we should better take His shelter because He is the one who knows the reason behind our misery and also He is the one who can take us out of it.
Thank you for reminding us how to appreciate God and be grateful unto him for every thing he has given us rather than blaming God for difficult situations.
Real gratitude more than saying Thank you…. Thank you Maharaj for giving deeper insite on gratitude.. hope i can also apply this principle in my life as well
One of the most inspiring articles I’ve read on karma!
Amazing article .. I liked especially Maharaj’s Statement — “If we develop an appreciative attitude in life, we can clearly see blessings in every situation of our life, however grave they may externally seem.”
Radhanath Swami Maharaj ki Jai!!
In all situations one should be humble & grateful to God.
Very relevant article. So many times in life, we face situations that bring discomfort to us. This wonderful article by Swami Radhanath teaches us to lead a life of gratitude to GOD.
“Thanking God in every situation irespective of favourable or seemingly unfavourable from superficial view” is the great message that all of us should inculcate.
very nice. we must always be thankful to God, in all circumstances of life.
Very nice reminder on how to be God conscious at all times. Easy said than done, but if we keep reminded we can meditate on the Lord during our difficult moments. Thanks for sharing.
very important factor for building good relations…Thanks for sharing..
HH Radhanath Swami always focuses on essence in everything he does. Here is a nice teachings of his on gratitude- the mother of all the great qualities.
One of the best articles I’ve read!
its the best article ever :).
….gratitude doesn’t means simply saying thank you. Real gratitude means reciprocation. If we are actually grateful to someone, we will reciprocate even if it means great sacrifice. Thank you Radhanath Swami Maharaj.
A wonderful article on the negatives and positives on karma – an angle that is almost neglected. Thank you for sharing this.
This is a beautiful story that illustrates the importance of gratitude and accepting our fate without blaming anyone.
Such a great example on gratitude, Gratitude can bring real positiveness in person, isn’t it great? thank you