The Book of Joy

raisin ice cream. Gratitude is the elevation of enjoyment, the ennobling of
enjoyment. Gratitude is one of the key dimensions that Ekman lists in his
definition of joy.
Gratitude is the recognition of all that holds us in the web of life and
all that has made it possible to have the life that we have and the moment
that we are experiencing. Thanksgiving is a natural response to life and
may be the only way to savor it. Both Christian and Buddhist traditions,
perhaps all spiritual traditions, recognize the importance of gratefulness.
It allows us to shift our perspective, as the Dalai Lama and the
Archbishop counseled, toward all we have been given and all that we
have. It moves us away from the narrow-minded focus on fault and lack
and to the wider perspective of benefit and abundance.
Brother David Steindl-Rast, a Catholic Benedictine monk and scholar
who spent a great deal of time in Christian–Buddhist interfaith dialogue,
has explained, “It is not happiness that makes us grateful. It is
gratefulness that makes us happy. Every moment is a gift. There is no
certainty that you will have another moment, with all the opportunity that
it contains. The gift within every gift is the opportunity it offers us. Most
often it is the opportunity to enjoy it, but sometimes a difficult gift is
given to us and that can be an opportunity to rise to the challenge.”
The Dalai Lama’s ability to be grateful for the opportunities that exist
even in exile was a profound shift in perspective, allowing him not only
to accept the reality of his circumstances but also to see the opportunity
in every experience. Acceptance means not fighting reality. Gratitude
means embracing reality. It means moving from counting your burdens to
counting your blessings, as the Archbishop had recommended, both as an
antidote to envy and a recipe for appreciating our own lives.
“I have been able to meet many spiritual leaders like you,” the Dalai
Lama said, when the Archbishop had been awed by his ability to find
gratitude even in fifty years of loss for himself and his people. “It is
much more enriching, much more useful. Even suffering helps you to
develop empathy and compassion for others.
“Exile really has brought me closer to reality. When you are in
difficult situations, there is no room for pretense. In adversity or tragedy,