Monday, February 3, 2014

Gratitude, the balm that soothes the soul

Nature. Beauty. Gratitude.

 This ten-minute talk and video presentation is a feast for the eyes and food for the soul. The images elicit wonder and stir the imagination. Louie Schawrtzberg combines his images with the words of Benedictine monk David Steindl-Rast in this moving and breathtaking piece titled “Happiness Revealed”. 

  “Nature’s beauty can be easily missed -- but not through Louie Schwartzberg’s lens. His stunning time-lapse photography, accompanied by powerful words from Benedictine monk David Steindl-Rast, serves as a meditation on being grateful for every day.” TED

 In the words of Schwartzberg: “Nature is a gift that cultivates appreciation and gratitude. Happiness Revealed gives us a glimpse into that perspective from the point of view of a child and an elderly man.” 

 Excerpts from Happiness Revealed, in the words of Br. David:

 “Today is not like any other day. It is the only day that is given to you…today.” It is a gift. It is the only gift that you have right now and the only appropriate response is gratefulness.”

 “If you learn how to respond (to this unique day) as if it were the first day in your life and the last day, then you will have spent the day very well.”

 “And at the present moment this day all the people you meet, all the lives from generations and from so many places all over the world, flows together and meet you here, like life giving water, if you only open you heart and drink.”

 “Let the gratefulness overflow into blessings all around you. Then it will really be a good day.”

 May this day be your blessing and this moment your miracle. Wishing you Peace, today and everyday. Thank you for visiting.


About Louie Schwartzberg:
http://www.ted.com/speakers/louie_schwartzberg.html
“Louie Schwartzberg is an award-winning cinematographer, director and producer who captures breathtaking images that celebrate life -- revealing connections, universal rhythms, patterns and beauty.” TED
You can follow his work and his latest projects through:
Website: http://movingart.com
Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/louiefilms
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/louiefilms/
Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/user/LouieSchwartzberg

About Benedictine monk David Steindl-Rast:

David Steindl-Rast (born July 12, 1926, Vienna) is a Catholic Benedictine monk, notable for his active participation in interfaith dialogue and his work on the interaction between spirituality and science.
Steindl-Rast was born and raised in Vienna, Austria. He received his MA degree from the Vienna Academy of Fine Arts and his Ph.D. in experimental psychology from the University of Vienna (1952). He emigrated to the United States in the same year and became a Benedictine monk in 1953 at Mt. Saviour Monastery in Pine City, New York, a newly founded primitive Benedictine community. With permission of his abbot, Damasus Winzen, in 1966 he was officially delegated to pursue Buddhist-Christian dialogue and started the study of Zen with masters Haku'un Yasutani, Soen Nakagawa, Shunryu Suzuki and Eido Tai Shimano.

He co-founded the Center for Spiritual Studies with Jewish, Buddhist, Hindu and Sufi teachers and is and is a member of the Lindisfarne Association. His writings include Gratefulness, the Heart of Prayer, The Music of Silence (with Sharon Lebell), Words of Common Sense and Belonging to the Universe (co-authored with Fritjof Capra). He also co-founded A Network for Grateful Living, an organization dedicated to gratefulness as a transformative influence for individuals and society.

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