Gratitude Is Success
“What is success to you?” I asked.
“A constant journey towards purity,” replied my friend, an eminent filmmaker whose creative honesty and essence I connect most with.
Sometime back, the Anamika's Dance and Arts Academy’s (ADAA) first student, now a popular VJ, had asked me, “What does success mean to you?” She said she had thoroughly enjoyed her growing popularity and journey to stardom but the high was transient. It meant validation but certainly not gratification. I was glad that my beautiful girl was seeking this answer for herself and also helping me become further aware of myself.
Had I been asked this question earlier, I may have answered differently, but this is what I said at that moment: “Closing my eyes every night feeling grateful for the life I’m living, despite its highs or lows, and rewards or challenges, is success to me. Waking up in gratitude for another day I’m blessed to explore the magic and miracles of life, being excited about participating in the story waiting to unfold and embracing the uncertainties with absolute faith in surrender, is success to me. In short, if one is grateful, one is successful.” I continue to breathe the same values.
I was born in a family where I saw my grandfather and father appreciatively living their respective lives, adapting to changes, and not chasing another life, or wanting more. I saw my grandmother and mother celebrating their lives, smilingly braving challenges, big and small without rancour. The concept of contentment thus, was deeply embedded in my soul and further blossomed while I was studying at The Mother’s International School, which nurtured students to grow holistically and develop a spiritual consciousness and reaffirmed the meaning of a true and purposeful life, reflecting success.
In ADAA’s 21-year-long journey, I have willingly embraced all that I have received, incessantly metamorphosing physically, mentally, emotionally, financially and spiritually. Dance has been my medium to awaken and enlighten my being, where the body and mind work in unison to express the soul. The expression itself is the reward. How can awareness be quantified and measured as success?
Over the years, the countless blessings from my gurus, the unwavering support from my family and friends, the limitless love my students continue to shower on me, the mystical experiences I continue to share with people from across the world have been overwhelming, expanding my universe constantly and consistently. For all this and more, I’m abundantly grateful.
This overflowing gratitude, faith, surrender, love and harmony have led to ADAA’s ‘i to I’ wellness mission, empowering holistic healing. Irrespective of what life has to offer, if we are able to grow through the challenges, not feeling impaired or treating them as debilitating ‘i’ssues, and instead see these challenges as opportunities towards building our ‘I’mmunity (physically, mentally and spiritually) − we are successful. If we are able to offer our integrated ‘i’ndividual selves to contribute and share with love and compassion, to the ‘I’nfinite Oneness − we are successful. If we are making this ‘i to I’ journey, flowing in harmony within and without, feeling grateful for becoming a better and purer version of ourselves − we are successful.
Indeed, Gratitude is Success!
