Finding your svadharma: Best workplace (and life) advice, Part 3
In my previous posts referenced at the end of this one, I wrote about two of my favorite principles from the Bhagavad Geeta that helped me rewire myself for a more productive and spiritually oriented work life. Here, I share a third belief from the Vedanta philosophy—one that goes beyond work and encompasses life itself: finding your svadharma. It is an absolute must do for everyone. So, get yourself and even better, your kids, started as early as possible in life to think about their svadharma or the journey inward to match their inside with the outside.
Yes, svadharma is aligning what you bring to the world, including your interests, skills, passion, needs, and aspirations—otherwise called vasanas—with the world outside. By establishing the right match between who you are intrinsically and your work, you feel just right and at ease with life. Therefore, you work seamlessly, bringing out that perfection within you, and moving closer to the divinity that exists within our Self.
Svadharma in the Bhagavad Geeta
The Bhagavad Geeta introduces svadharma in chapter 3, verse 35:
śhreyān swa-dharmo viguṇaḥ para-dharmāt sv-anuṣhṭhitāt
swa-dharme nidhanaṁ śhreyaḥ para-dharmo bhayāvahaḥ
Translation: It is far better to perform one’s natural prescribed duty, though tinged with faults, than to perform another’s prescribed duty, though perfectly. In fact, it is preferable to die in the discharge of one’s duty, than to follow the path of another, which is fraught with danger.
Here, Lord Krishna advises the warrior prince Arjuna in the epic Mahabharata to stick to his svadharma. The Mahabharata is the setting for the Bhagavad Geeta or the song of God narrated in the middle of the epic by Lord Krishna to Arjuna in 108 verses. Arjuna was born a prince and therefore his svadharma or his whole being was geared toward heroism and adventure. However, he descends into a state of paranoia almost, refusing to fight the battle of Kurukshetra, wanting instead to renounce it for a life of an ascetic and meditate in a cave.
By suppressing his own innate nature of action and wanting to live as a recluse would have been para-dharma—the opposite of svadharma—or living a life going against his needs or vasanas. The path of para-dharma would make Arjuna and any of us feel like fish out of water and it is fraught with danger, as the misalignment between the inside and the outside triggers gloom and dejection. Imagine being a receptionist at a hotel or an office when you hate talking or interacting with people—you’d feel wilted!
Swami Chinmayananda, who brought the Vedanta philosophy to the Occidental West, explains how svadharma is intrinsic to life in the book titled Dharma (this slim book by the way, is a great introduction to the concept of dharma in 3 short chapters):
“To act according to one’s own taste, inborn and natural—Svadharma—is the only known method of living in peace and joy, in success and satisfaction.”The dharma in svadharma
Note, svadharma includes the word, dharma, a profound, often misunderstood, and remarkably modern concept. Understanding what dharma means will help us appreciate the subtle beauty of falling in place with our svadharma. Dharma is from the Sanskrit root “dhr”, which means, “to hold” or “to support”.
Swami Chinmayananda explains, “Dharma essentially means the law of being or that because of which a thing continues to be a thing.” For example, there is no fire without heat, so heat is the dharma of fire. Or there is no rain without water, so water is the dharma of rain. So, by extension, svadharma is that which is your essence without which, you are not you. It’s your innate nature or what it is that you are meant to be or do.
For example, I simply can’t not write—that’s my svadharma, my feel good and must do thing. I write for a living, and I write during my leisure time. Incorporating writing as part of my svadharma helps me feel in my element and provides me with an avenue to continuously practice what I love and get closer to that divine perfection in me. How so? When I practice writing, the epiphanies, and experiences that I open myself up to make me a better writer—whether in understanding how to think better or reflect on a word choice or a research source—and make me realize and appreciate what an infinite pool of wisdom my Self is in that place of perfection. When you feel good about your Self, you feel happier overall. Hence the experience is almost spiritual in nature. I could apply similar thinking to teaching and traveling, both of which are part of my svadharma.
So how do we get to our svadharma?
Here are some steps you can take to start your journey of svadharma. It’s ideal to have a spiritual teacher who can guide you on your path.
First, put yourself through the process: If you think you are muddling through life—you are OK with your life, but not sure if this is what you should be doing or this job does not feel right, which is where I was when I turned 40—then, pause. Believe that this process of discovering your Self and what you’d like to do with your time on earth—aligning the internal and external—is worth the time and effort.
Identify your core beliefs and values: What motivates you or makes you happy? For example, I have always believed that the world is a small place and that we are more alike than different. This belief in the connectedness of people on our planet has dictated everything from my choice of friends from different parts of the world to working at an organization that is truly global, multilingual, and diverse. I did not feel at ease at one job that was focused on domestic health policy—don’t get me wrong, it was a great company with great people, but U.S. health policy is not something that excites me and keeps me awake at night. Traveling, meeting people from different cultures, learning a new word or a reality each day is a core part of my svadharma—I feel happier, and it reflects in my overall well-being.
Reflect on your strengths and abilities: What rouses your natural enthusiasm? What are your passions? What do you bring best to this world? And, what is it that you absolutely don’t like to do? I have said this before, workplace politics is the bane of my existence and I thrive in a consulting career where I get to focus more on showcasing my work. The lack of water-cooler interactions, which I miss at times, I make up via a concerted effort to meet with friends and colleagues for walks, coffees, and dinner. And God forbid, don’t be lured or sadly, coerced, into a career path that you are not interested in, because it is a lucrative one. It’s death by boredom and dejection when you realize that the career you chose for misguided reasons, is the wrong one!
Seek out mentors: If you have an inkling that you are interested in a subject or an area of work, don’t hesitate to reach out to experts or even family members who can listen and guide you. I find that people always have time to talk to you and I have personally thrived on connecting with people to pick their brains and get guidance, right through college to more recently when trying to establish a consulting career. I am particularly grateful to Swami Dheeranandaji at my spiritual center for guiding me in my questions about the Geeta and the Vedanta as he continues to help me settle into my svadharma.
Take risks and try something new: If you are a business analyst, but have always been intrigued with teaching art, take an art class to refresh your skills and talk to your art teacher about how s/he got started. Volunteer to teach a few kids at your home to begin with to see if the reality matches what you had in mind. When I decided to switch to being a full-time consultant, I left a full-time job for a few days at an organization I loved and I built up my career from there. Take calculated risks trusting your Self that this choice is worth it to take you down your path of svadharma and fulfillment.
Reflect on the big picture and what’s meaningful for you: I have mentioned this in several posts—meaningfulness was the mantra of my 40s. Be thinking about what kind of mark you want to leave on this earth—whether through your research or inventions or writings or charity or raising good kids. Each one’s appeal is different, but you have to set aside time to think about the 30K-foot view of your life as you muddle through the details of daily life as finding your svadharma is not happenstance.
So, embark on finding your svadharma and start the process of determining your true field of work. It’s never too late to self-reflect and steer your work and your life in the direction that’s most meaningful to you—especially because there’s nothing but divine perfection awaiting to unfold inside you.
What’s your svadharma, what’s your idea life look like? Are you already there? How did you get here? Do leave your thoughts below.
Meaningfully yours,
Anu
So glad you had that epiphany! Did you feel more in your element teaching after that? I am a former teacher myself and like you, I think it was forging connections with students that attracted me as much as sharing my knowledge of French!
The first time I stood in front of a class to teach an MS Office class, it hit me: “Oh, this is what I’m supposed to do!” Twenty years later, I saw that it wasn’t just to teach software, but to communicate!