Guest guest Posted December 21, 2000 Report Share Posted December 21, 2000 Thank you for your beautifully stated post in response to someone's dilemma as to which career to pursue not knowing where one's best talents lie. The fact that you switched your law career to that of a yoga teacher may seem unusual to some but I have known many to change career directions in their 30s and 40s and 50s when the current work did not seem satisfying anymore. People are usually more successful when they love what they are doing. I will pass the message on to as well. My teacher used to say that sometimes those who seem dull and average at the beginning of the spiritual path turn out to be the most talented in the long run. Their gifts are slowly brought to light through their hard work, attempt at understanding, patience and perseverance and tenacity in the face of failures and setbacks. And some times those who start like rockets on the path and appear to be the stars. fizzle out after some time. One never knows about these things. The True Source is always the Inner Being, The Core of Being, The Heart Within. To become aware of it is the only accomplishment. The only Siddhi worth having is that of Self-Awareness. Everything else is transient. All other powers gained by the body will be lost in due time. That which is born will die. What has come together will again disintegrate. The coming and going is the law of the universe. The nature of Self is Awareness. It does not come and go and remains as it is as other things rise and fall in it. Knowing That, all other accomplishments and works are a matter of course. Love to all Harsha ISueMarcus [iSueMarcus] Thursday, December 21, 2000 2:03 AM Kundaliniyoga Re: right livelihood I just read about your dilemma and although I too have similar self-doubts (I ended an 8 year career as a lawyer to be a yoga teacher - an obviously less lucrative choice and one in which I have far less expertise), that is not what impels me to respond. The first thing I thought of is how lucky you are to have so many things that interest you and from which you draw pleasure. And I am assuming that you are at least good, if not great, at many of these. So the big question is, why do you feel that in order to embark on a path, be it career or whatever, you have to be the best at it? So what if others do it better than you do? Do you think I was the best attorney that ever was? Well, I was pretty talented at what I did, actually, but certainly others are better. That's not why I stopped though. Like you, it didn't feed my soul. And yes, it is hard to know what does, and you have already gotten advice, I see, about tuning in to your truest nature to find out what makes you tick, so to speak. On a less spiritual level, you might try keeping a pad or journal of some sort, and every time you experience something that you love, that really seems to satisfy you, write it down. If its eating chocolate ice cream, write it down. If its walking down a certain street, write it down. Write down the things you imagine in your dreams - awake or asleep - that please you or make you smile. Without the effort of sitting and thinking about it - which will certainly do you no good, as you will disrupt neutrality and thus block insight - you will nonetheless be devoting a good deal of attention to what makes you tick. The process itself may even start training you to become more aware - and thus more appreciative, perhaps - of the joys in your life. It will help the answer to come. And if it doesn't, after a few months, you always have pages and pages of notes to review. What are the trends, the themes? What things repeatedly pop up as candy for your soul? Then you don't have far to go to figure out what you can do that incorporates these things (even if you have to be creative). And something tells me it will be something you're good at. Which brings me back to the real intent of my reply. (This exercise was an unanticipated tangent, actually.) Give up having to be great at what you do, or certainly, the best. Just give it up, ok? There are a lot of people out there who need a lot of things and they can't all get it from the one single person who does it best. Besides, what is best? Not everyone wants the same thing or judges "best" by the same measure, any more than 20 men in a room would agree on who the most beautiful woman is. What you have to offer, whatever you do, is the best at the way you do it, because you are uniquely qualified to offer yourself. Some people will naturally be drawn to what you have to offer, especially if it comes so purely from within and is an expression of your love - for what you're doing, for yourself, and for others. So don't quantify, judge or compare. It would be the equivalent of trying to mimic another's yoga practice in spite of what your body was telling you. It is not authentic and therefore not as beneficial. Just feel it and do it. If it feels right, it will be. Good luck. Sat Nam, S Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 21, 2000 Report Share Posted December 21, 2000 Dear Harsha, thank you for posting this here. it's helpful to me. transitions are never easy, and sometimes, one is tempted to second guess choices. knowing that others are and have been in similar life changes, for the better, is quite helpful. Love, Mark Harsha wrote: > Thank you for your beautifully stated post... <snip> > People are usually more successful when they love what they are doing. <snip> Just feel it and do it. If it feels right, it will be. Good luck. Sat Nam, S Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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