Life is a gift, but very few people recognize it because God goes on giving life without making any fuss about it. It is given so silently that we never become aware that something precious has been given to us. And God does not wait to be thanked. He does not make a show of it. He does not even whisper, “I am giving you the most precious thing in existence: life, consciousness, love.” He really knows how to give. That is the art of giving: the person to whom the gift is given should not know about it; otherwise it will be a little humiliating, he may feel embarrassed.
Hence God gives anonymously, in such a way that the people who are receivers never become aware of the gift, unless they make a deliberate effort to wake themselves up. Sannyas is a deliberate effort to be conscious of what has been given to you. And if you become conscious of it, you become capable of receiving more. If you become grateful for it, you become worthy of receiving more.
The person who thanks God for all that is happening to him goes on receiving more and more, because a thankful heart becomes more and more open, a thankful heart becomes more and more receptive. Remind yourself that everything is a gift. Everything that has happened to you is a great gift — all the pains and all the pleasures, all the agonies and all the ecstasies, all the ups and all the downs. Everything is beautiful because everything is contributing toward your growth, toward your ultimate flowering.
