Gratitude Meditation
Meditation practices focused on cultivating feelings of appreciation and thankfulness.
Also known as: Thankfulness meditation, Appreciation meditation, Grateful meditation
Category: Techniques
Tags: gratitude, meditation, mindfulness, well-being, practices
Explanation
Gratitude meditation is a meditation practice focused on cultivating feelings of appreciation and thankfulness. Unlike gratitude journaling which uses writing, gratitude meditation uses focused attention and visualization to generate grateful emotions. Practice typically involves: settling into meditation posture, bringing to mind things to be grateful for, feeling the gratitude in the body, and extending appreciation broadly. Variations include: person-focused (appreciating specific individuals), experience-focused (savoring positive moments), and general appreciation (thankfulness for life itself). The practice offers: deeper emotional experience than cognitive listing, physical relaxation combined with positive emotion, and meditation skill development alongside gratitude cultivation. Gratitude meditation can be: guided (following instructions), structured (specific sequence), or free-form (open exploration). Regular practice builds: gratitude as automatic response, deeper appreciation capacity, and meditation skills. For knowledge workers, gratitude meditation provides: a calming practice with mood benefits, a way to process and appreciate experiences, and stress reduction combined with perspective enhancement.
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