Finding your Dharma (Purpose)

Do we all have some special purpose here on this planet? Is there such a thing that can light up our life, give us meaning and make our work something that we love and cherish? If we assume that this purpose is in some way predestined, it can be hotly debated. I however believe that certain gifts, skills, abilities, personality traits are predestined, in a sense it is something we have inherited, while others must be worked on and developed for us to realise its potential. However, purpose is not something that can be known or discovered in its entirety. Rather it is something that has to be developed. You can discover the seed of your purpose but to achieve the potential of a grand tree, it must be developed. To develop, it undergoes a process that utilises skills and talents that we have from birth as well as skills and talents that we have worked hard to hone as our age matures. In this sense as we go from experience to experience, learning to learning, our purpose changes, evolves and builds on itself. Our purpose thus transforms and evolves at the rate we do. However, many people are not in tune with either their innate skills and abilities or with what brings them joy and passion. Many a times, different factors influence or cloud our understanding of this. Fear, distraction, lack of access, lack of information, lack of vision are just a few examples. Thus, a purpose can only evolve if it has first been “discovered”, in a sense that one has to formulate a vague concept where they try to link what they would find fulfilling with what they are capable of. In this article i attempt to outline the two aspects of purpose and how we go about finding it and thus eventually nurturing and growing its potential.

The first aspect of Dharma, is what i call the Lunar Purpose. This aspect is critical to both realising and developing our purpose. It is the search for what it is that fulfills us, that keeps us motivated; the things that we are passionate about, and look forward to doing. It is also about tuning into our emotions, feelings, bodies and thoughts to ascertain what it is that holds us back. What is it in our current circumstance that is causing us anguish. There are numerous tools and techniques that can help us do this. By reconnecting with our selves and understanding our own needs, desires and ideals we are leaps and bounds closer to identifying our purpose. This process is best undertaken by taking time off from our schedules, disconnecting from others and our distraction devices. Once we are in tune with our motivations, passions and also the things we desire to let go from our lives, we become ready for the next aspect of Dharma.

The second aspect of Dharma, is what i call the Solar Purpose. This is about identifying our skills, talents and strengths. What are things we are good at, and what are things we struggle to do. Oftentimes, our passion might coincide with our skills. If yes, also try to find skills and strengths that you are not so passionate about. The next step is about identifying what jobs and careers could make use of these skills, while also fulfilling your personal needs and desires for fulfillment. As we move into that space, we give more energy to our life because we enjoy what we do. As time passes, experiences happen, and teachings assimilate, we become more in tune with how to progress and evolve our purpose. The last aspect of the solar purpose that follows is the hardest. We now enjoy and are passionate about what we do, we have a grander vision about where we need to be and how we need to evolve. However, having a vision is not a fraction as hard as manifesting a vision. We need to be simultaneously aware of our limitations as well as our potential. We need to work hard at creating and developing the purpose while maintaining our current duties and obligations. Nobody else can do it for us. We have to brave immense distraction, lethargy and inertia to wrest the time from ourselves to become the best versions of ourself that we possibly can,