Go to the truth beyond the mind. Love is the bridge.
Stephen LevineRead
Gratitude is the state of mind of thankfulness. As it is cultivated, we experience an increase in our "sympathetic joy," our happiness at another's happiness. Just as in the cultivation of compassion, we may feel the pain of others, so we may begin to feel their joy as well. And it doesn't stop there.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Gratitude fosters our happiness and allows us to share in the joy of others.
This quote emphasizes the transformative power of gratitude. It suggests that by nurturing a mindset of thankfulness, we not only elevate our own happiness but also enhance our ability to rejoice in the happiness of those around us, creating a shared emotional experience that connects us to others more deeply.
Themes
GratitudeHappinessJoyThankfulnessSympathetic Joy
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech about mental well-being, one could quote this to highlight the benefits of gratitude.
More from Stephen Levine
All quotes →In Chinese, the word for heart and mind is the same -- Hsin. For when the heart is open and the mind is clear they are of one substance, of one essence.
Stephen LevineRead
I have seen many die, surrounded by loved ones, and their last words were ‘I love you.’ There were some who could no longer speak yet with their eyes and soft smile left behind that same healing message. I have been in rooms where those who were dying made it feel like sacred ground. (26)
Stephen LevineRead
Our suffering is caused by holding on to how things might have been, should have been, could have been.
Stephen LevineRead
If there is a single definition of healing it is to enter with mercy and awareness those pains, mental and physical, from which we have withdrawn in judgment and dismay. (48)
Stephen LevineRead
I have seem even those who have long since abjured God die in grace. . . . Atheists don't use their drying to bargain for a better seat at the table; indeed they may not even believe supper is being served. They are not storing up 'merit.'; They just smile because their heart is ripe. They are kind for no particular reason; they just love.
Stephen LevineRead
Similar quotes
But day after day of depression, the kind that doesn’t seem to merit carting me off to a hospital but allows me to sit here on this stoop in summer camp as if I were normal, day after day wearing down everybody who gets near me. My behavior seems, somehow, not acute enough for them to know what to do with me, though I’m just enough of a mess to be driving everyone around me crazy.
Elizabeth WurtzelRead
I have the greatest of all riches: that of not desiring them.
Eleanora DuseRead
Hour of nostalgia, hour of happiness, hour of solitude.
Pablo NerudaRead
Gratitude is born in hearts that take time to count up past mercies. they are the charming gardeners who make our souls blossom.
Charles Edward JeffersonRead
Happiness lies not in the mere possession of money; it lies in the joy of achievement, in the thrill of creative effort. The joy and moral stimulation of work no longer must be forgotten in the mad chase of evanescent profits. These dark days will be worth all they cost us if they teach us that our true destiny is not to be ministered unto but to minister to ourselves and to our fellow men.
Franklin D. RooseveltRead
Love, compassion and concern for others are real sources of happiness. If you have these in abundance, you will not be disturbed even by the most uncomfortable circumstances. If you nurse hatred, however, you will not be happy even in the lap of luxury. Thus, if we really want happiness, we must widen the sphere of love. This is both religious thinking and basic common sense.
Dalai LamaRead