SPIRITUALITY & GRATITUDE

in higher realities, one becomes a recipient of divine inspiration. This inspiration of divine light comes to his mind uninterruptedly, igniting his whole existence. The Quran attaches great importance to contemplation, reflection and serious thought. There are a number of verses in the Quran that indicate that innumerable signs of God are extant in the heavens and the earth. The observance of God’s signs is the greatest source of spirituality. According to a Hadith, ‘Worship God as if you are seeing him’, (Sahih-al Bukhari). When man engages himself in true devotion; he is linked with God at a sensory or psychological level. He comes close to God. Through an invisible cord he comes in contact with God; God’s light passes through him. His entire existence comes to be pervaded by this indescribable feeling, which is called spiritual experience. This is called rabbaniat in the Quran (Be devoted servants of the Lord) (3: 79). Rabbani means one whose thinking, and whose actions are Godoriented, who has placed God at the centre of his attention. When an individual attains spirituality, his state becomes like a lamp lit all of a sudden. He undergoes spiritual experiences. His heart becomes an ocean of spiritual waves. He appears to live in this world, but he has found another far superior world for himself. When it comes to interactions with people, he will render service to alleviate the sufferings of humankind. The following incident brings out the concept of service to others in a very profound way. During the British monarchy, one of the British Emperors disguised himself as an ordinary person to inspect his military establishments. During an interaction when one military officer admonished him in a very stern and harsh manner, the disguised king asked, “Do you know who I am?” Taken aback at such a question and doubting himself the officer said, “Are you a military officer just as I am?” The king replied, “I am of a greater position than that”. The officer said, “Then you must be a Captain.” Again to this the king replied, “I am greater than that.” “Are you a colonel?” asked the officer. “No, I am greater than that”, was the The spiritual journey demands a change in lifestyle. The lifestyle for a spiritual traveller may be put briefly in these words: ‘Simple living and high thinking.’