Doing Something Well: A Hindu Value

One of the ways that Hinduism is flexible and suitable for a wide range of people is in the value it places on dedicating one’s self to something. Pursuing a passion with full dedication is highly valued. Hinduism recognizes that you can find God in almost any space in the world.

If you are a potter, then you find communion with God in the pride of creating a beautiful object.

If you are a dancer, then you find God in the language of movement and music.

If you are an engineer, then you find God in the satisfying way that math structures the world.

Whatever your passion is, your dedication to it becomes a spiritual exercise. 

I was thinking about this when I read this article about a dancer and her guru. For me, Bharat Natyam has always been a spiritual experience. I love dance and I particularly love dance when each movement is expressing a story about the Gods.

One of the many things I love about Hinduism is the way that it connects our every day lives to the divine. Divinity isn’t something far removed, up in the sky, or a person that we can never be like or understand. It is with us at every moment.

In everything that we love, God is there. When we dedicate ourselves to a profession, we are dedicating ourselves to seeing God in the world.