If you ask most people, they would likely agree that “kindness” is a beautiful trait. However, we often tend to underestimate the importance of kindness when it comes to living a spiritually fulfilling life. Kindness is much more than a nice quality for a person to have. It is the single most important aspect of our spiritual lives.
Actions of kindness serve two purposes, in fact. The obvious one is the benefit it gives to the receiver, but in truth, it is the one who bestows kindness who always receives the most. For it is in giving kindness that we can become the most fulfilled version of ourselves.
Here are 3 reasons why being kind will make you a happier person:
- The more we share, the more we receive. One of the great spiritual paradoxes of the universe is that the more we do for others, the more we really do for ourselves. Some might call this karma, or cause and effect. Like a boomerang, the energy we put out into the world always comes back to us. As Karen Berg once said, “When you get busy taking care of others, the universe gets busy taking care of you.”
- When you are kind, you’re being true to who you really are. The wisdom of Kabbalah teaches that our life’s work is to align our thoughts and actions with that of the Creator’s. The Creator has only one characteristic: Kindness. This force is an infinite source of sharing, of kindness, of goodness. And guess what? We all have a spark of the Creator within us. In fact, our soul is made up of the same essence as that of the Creator. That’s why when we are kind, we feel good on a soul level. It fulfills us. It lifts us up. It reminds us of the inherent good that exists within us.
In order for us to be happy or in any way fulfilled in our lives, we have to be in affinity with the force that created all that exists and with ourselves. At our core, we are a kind soul and will only be fulfilled when we are in a state that is bestowing kindness to others.
- Kindness helps us grow. We all have a spiritual journey we must go through in life. We didn’t come into the world to stay in our current state. We are meant to keep developing. Kindness is at the heart of our spiritual work. And just like any skill, kindness requires practice.
In order to live a fulfilling life, we must push ourselves to be kinder and kinder every day, asking ourselves, “What more can I do?” We must be kind even when we don’t want to. Be kind to people who don’t deserve it. That is the only way we can spiritually grow.
There is only one way that we can become a kinder person tomorrow and that is by practicing kindness today. Most of us think of ourselves as good people, but we don’t always practice kindness. There are always excuses not to share or to put it off or to only go so far. It takes dedication, hard work, and practice to become kinder people, but it is work that benefits ourselves more than anyone else. It is the very key to achieving lasting fulfillment.
As Rav Berg, the founder of the Kabbalah Centre, said, “It’s very easy to become religious. It’s very easy to become spiritual. To become kind takes a lifetime.”
