Following Dreams

When I think of dreams, purpose, calling, or ambition, I think of Dharma. However, Dharma is more than purpose or following your dreams, and this essay is an attempt to explore its depth. We trek towards understanding through the lens of Ayurveda, the Bhagavad Gītā, the story of a butcher who taught the subtleties of Dharma, and lastly an excerpt from a Buddhist text of Pāḷi origins.

By the end of this blog, my hope is that you follow your dreams, move and act with Dharma in everything you do, and see it in everything that happens around you.

Health and Dharma

Dharma itself is considered one of the 'Four Aims of Life', and, in Ayurveda, there is a beautiful sutra that expands its somewhat intuitive tether to health.

धर्मार्थकाममोक्षाणमारोग्यं मूलमुत्तमम् । रोगास्तस्यापहारश्च श्रेयसो जीवितस्य च ॥ १५ ॥ च. सू. १

dharmārthakāmamokṣāṇamārogyaṁ mūlamuttamam | rogāstasyāpahāraśca śreyaso jīvitasya ca || 15 || c. sū. 1

Health is the best foundation for the Four Aims of Life (Dharma, artha, kāma, and mokṣa). Diseases take this away, as well as the goodness and life itself. ¹

I assume it's not surprising to you that, when riddled with disease, it is difficult to follow through on your calling. You may be bedridden, and the sweetness and joy of life is hindered with coughing, a fever, and a constant shifting between waking and sleeping.

I find another possible meaning in this sutra:

Acting toward the Four Aims of Life is the foundation for health, and not aiming for the Four Aims of Life brings disease and takes away the goodness and life itself.

"My Soul Feels Sick"

This is how I would tell people I felt while working at my previous job, and I don't know a better way to explain it. Physically I was always tired, mentally I was disturbed, emotionally I was a mixture of stuck and frantic.

Spiritually, I felt sick.

It wasn't that the job was difficult, nor that the work lacked meaning. It's just in my heart of hearts, I knew I chose a path out of fear. This fear left me sick of allowing my dreams to drown in the waters of financial pressure or be crushed by the fear of failure.

As time ticked, years passed, and all attempts to find financial security elsewhere were met with rejection, something finally burned inside me, and I had the thought:

I'd rather die having failed my dreams than never have given it my all.

Fulfilling One's Dharma

The mind can be quick to flood one with thoughts and fear of failure all to avoid a sense of dread from becoming failure—I know mine does. Some minds even question if there is a purpose to be had at all, and so they shy away from ever seeking out their Dharma. Others may find it and be so attached to its outcome that it does much more self-harm than good.

So how do we fulfill our Dharma and avoid the dreadful fear?

My favorite answer is that we don't. Well, we don't worry about it being fulfilled or not! It's paralyzing to be so attached to the outcome, and the fear of failure is so strong that it prevents any action from happening at all. If you are frozen, or find yourself giving up, this is where the wisdom of the Bhagavad Gītā shines for you.

Here are two powerful verses that solidify this understanding:

श्रेयान्स्वधर्मो विगुणः परधर्मात्स्वनुष्ठितात् । स्वधर्मे निधनं श्रेयः परधर्मो भयावहः ॥ ३५ ॥

śreyān svadharmo viguṇaḥ paradharmāt svanuṣṭhitāt | svadharme nidhanaṁ śreyaḥ paradharmo bhayāvahaḥ || 3.35 ||

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.²

श्रेयान्स्वधर्मो विगुणः परधर्मात्स्वनुष्ठितात् । स्वभावनियतं कर्म कुर्वन्नाप्नोति किल्बिषम् ॥ ४७ ॥

śreyān svadharmo viguṇaḥ paradharmāt svanuṣṭhitāt | svabhāva-niyataṁ karma kurvan nāpnoti kilbiṣam || 18.47 ||

It is better to do one’s own Dharma, even though imperfectly, than to do another’s Dharma, even though perfectly. By doing one’s innate duties, a person does not incur sin. ³

Scattered across the 18 chapters of the Bhagavad Gītā lie two statements saying the same thing:

Do your Dharma, whether you fail or fulfill it.

Die trying.

The Righteous Butcher

Kauśika is a Brahmin of extraordinary circumstance, with an unparalleled drive to know truth. Thanks to his own yogic prowess, he has gained many spiritual abilities, but still does not know the secrets of Dharma.

One day, while sitting alongside a river, he began to meditate underneath a tree in yet another attempt to know the eternal truth of Dharma beyond cognitive understanding. Then, a bird came along and landed on the tree above him. Distracted by the sound he brought his gaze up only to be met with the bird's droppings landing across his face. He quickly wiped away the mess, and with such a turbulent anger in his veins, he looked up at the bird and it was instantaneously vaporized.

The ashes carried shame as they rained down upon Kauśika. His thoughts, desperate to find resolution, raced between "How dare this bird defecate on a Brahmin?" Yet louder still was "Violence has no place on the spiritual path. You are not worthy to know of Dharma with this action permanently staining your soul."

With his shame layered on top of his body, carrying the weight of a million worlds—he began to walk.

Far from the tree, far from the painful fruits of his actions, he arrived at a peaceful home seeking alms.

A woman answered his call and began to prepare food for him. Time passed, more than he would have liked, and his patience was beginning to waver.

Finally, in his reinvigorated rage, he called out to the woman, only to realize she was not only late, but had instead prepared food for her husband rather than for him.

How dishonorable, he thought.

Just as his eyes were about to pierce into every aspect of their life, she stepped out and said,

"I am not the crane that you killed with your violent gaze, you cannot burn me!"

"How do you know?" he asked, his eyes blinking and mind racing to calculate how she could know.

"I have prepared your food," she said, ignoring his question.

"But you must know," she continued, "it is first my duty to care for my family and so I served my husband first with love. Now that he has eaten I can serve food to you in the same manner." She handed him his alms.

"Great householder," he responded, "how did you come to the knowledge of my actions? I carry a great shame, and fear I am cursed to never know the truth of reality."

"The same love and devotion I give to my family are all that was required to gain clairvoyance. This is how I know. I serve my family because it is my duty to serve."

He paused, the words my duty ringing in his ears.

"A true Brahmin knows this," she went on, "you must go find Dharma-Vyādha of Mithilā. There you will learn the truth and subtleties of Dharma."

A butcher? He wondered, how can someone of such a low caste teach me, a Brahmin, anything?

Still, the words of this woman and her powers were as clear as the sky above. He must put aside his doubts for now, and follow her instruction.

And so he did.

He traveled to the city of Mithilā, capital of King Janaka's kingdom. There he found himself in the presence of the butcher selling venison and buffalo meat.

Dharma-Vyādha approached Kauśika, and then the exposition of Dharma began...

Beyond Purpose & Dreams

What Dharma-Vyādha explains actually describes the qualities of someone who follows Dharma: how they respond to the dualities of life (pleasure & pain), how to move forward when you make mistakes. It shows that Dharma is so much more than your calling, purpose, and dreams.

The Butcher's Song (Vyādha Gītā)

• "This is my hereditary profession, I have inherited it from my father and grandfather. O priest, don't concern yourself about me adhering to the duties that belong to me by birth."
• "I always speak the truth, and never envy others; and I give charity to the best of my ability. I live upon what remains after serving the gods, strangers, and the employees [who] depend on me."
• "I never speak ill of anything, small or great. The actions (karma) of a former life always follow the doer."
• "Even a butcher who slaughters animals for a living may be an exemplary person."
• "I always seek to please with acts of kindness, those that praise me, as also those that speak ill of me."
• "Giving food to the best of one's ability to the hungry, endurance of heat and cold and the other pairs of opposites, steadiness in the practice of Dharma, giving respect and honor to the deserving and compassion for all creatures — these attributes can never be found in a person without an innate desire for renouncing the world."
• "Avoid falsehood in speech, and [one] should do good without being urged to. One should never abandon Dharma from lust, from anger, or from malice."
• "Obtaining an object of desire one should not be elated, nor grieve immoderately at a loss. One should never feel depressed when financially challenged, and never abandon the path of Dharma."
• "If at any time one does what is wrong in error, it should never be repeated. One should always strive mentally to do that which is beneficial to oneself."
• "One should never seek revenge but should always deal honestly to others [friend or foes]. That wretched individual who desires to do what is dishonest, commits spiritual suicide"
• "If one regrets a wrong done, that feeling of remorse effaces the guilt. The firm resolution of never doing it again saves one from future accountability."
• "A serious spiritual aspirant stops taking note of the faults of others and desires only the wellbeing of all creatures."
• "Good works done without selfish motives liberate one from all negative karma."
• "It is the immemorial rule that virtuous actions are those that are founded on social justice."
• "Those who are not swayed by anger, arrogance, self-importance and envy, and those who are tranquil and honest, are virtuous."
• "Meditation is the prime requisite for seekers of Liberation, its roots are equanimity and discipline."

Allow these teachings to pierce into your heart, and make the genuine effort to ask yourself the tough questions:

• How do I act and move in the world?
• Am I governed by my desires and expectations?
• How do I treat my loved ones and my enemies?
• Am I quick to anger? To judgement? To resentment?
• Do you believe your spiritual discipline makes you better than someone else?

The Vyādha Gītā asks you to look at the quality of your life, to measure it by your merit and conduct. From the perspective of Yoga, it says the Yamas and the Niyamas are directly connected to the subtleties and truth of Dharma.

So far we have learned that Dharma is connected to our health and longevity, that it is better to fail at your own Dharma than to succeed in another's, and that true Dharma begins with how we are in the world.

There's one last piece to Dharma that I will share with you now, and this understanding is so powerful that it will transform every action into spiritual opportunity.

It begins with one phrase.

"Dhamma is Duty, Duty is Dhamma"

Dhamma is Duty

When I first moved to Seattle in 2015, my dad and I went to a Thai restaurant between Bothell and Woodinville. While we were waiting for food, there was this pamphlet sitting on top of a counter, and I saw the title "Dhamma is Duty, Duty is Dhamma". We both read it, and loved the message. It quickly captures everything we have talked about up to this point—that Dharma is more than we think, and the image of the monk raking leaves and another sharing a teaching from a text have something in common.

The teachings from this show us that everyday tasks are Dharma.

Doing laundry, washing dishes, taking out the trash, resolving problems with your neighbors, having your car break down, disagreeing with a coworker, pulling weeds from the yard, teaching a yoga class, feeding your child, going to the dentist, walking your dog, visiting a hospital, attending a funeral.

Following your dreams.

Every moment in life becomes a spiritual opportunity for growth, because Dhamma is Duty, and Duty is Dhamma.

Once more, I hope you follow your dreams, move and act with Dharma in everything that you do, and see it in everything that happens around you.

ॐ शान्तिः शान्तिः शान्तिः