Are You Fulfilling Your Dharma?
Written by: Mona AlHebsi, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
Dharma is a key concept that originates from the Hindu culture and means “the right way of living”. This includes duties, rights, laws, conducts and virtues.
Dharma also implies that one lives his/her real-life purpose and calling that he/she was originally ascended to this Earth for, by adopting the right virtues, customs, religion, vocation and all behaviors and thinking patterns considered appropriate, correct or morally upright in order to develop one’s personality, strengthen one’s character to eventually become the best possible version of oneself.
If you research, you will conclude that dharma or an equivalent term has been a core principle of most human pursuits in many religions and philosophies across centuries till our current time, even though there may be some or little variations in how this has been expressed, but all roads lead to Rome as they say.
In Islam for instance, dharma has been emphasized a great deal in many verses throughout the Holy Quran and can be attained through peace, piety, righteous deeds, and appropriate moral conduct. Even though there is no direct single-word translation for dharma in the Western culture; it’s commonly translated as righteousness, merit, or religious and moral duties governing individual conduct. You will also see dharma greatly expressed in Buddha’s teachings and there it means “the cosmic law and order”.
So, put it simply, your dharma is your purpose in life. But the main question now is: are you fulfilling your dharma and why that’s important to live a meaningful and rewarding life?
To answer this question, we first need to understand, what actually happens when someone doesn’t fulfill the intended dharma; the person simply will have to face his/her karma! Now, what’s karma? Karma is all what a person has done, is doing, and will do. In other words, it’s the results of your actions and the correlation between what you do and what you get. Karma means that you are the maker or breaker of your life and that as you sow, so shall you reap.
A lot of times, life throws us in challenging scenarios and painful circumstances. We then immediately react to these events instead of pausing and asking ourselves: “how did we contribute to this”? We can only change our circumstances by changing our attitude towards what’s happening to us and being more informed about the Great Universal Laws.
I will list down here, the 12 Laws of Karma, that if you learn and apply, you can be well on the way to fulfilling your dharma:
1. The Great Law
Whatever we put in the universe will come back to us.
2. The Law of Creation
Life does not happen by itself; we need to make it happen.
3. The Law of Humility
One must first accept something in order to change it.
4. The Law of Growth
When we change ourselves, our lives follow suit and change too.
5. The Law of Responsibility
We must take responsibility for what is in our lives.
6. The Law of Connection
The past, present, and future are all connected.
7. The Law of Focus
We cannot think of two different things at the same time.
8. The Law of Giving and Hospitality
Our thoughts and beliefs determine how life will treat us.
9. The Law of Here and Now
We cannot be fully present if we are constantly thinking about the past or worrying about the future.
10. The Law of Change
History repeats itself until we learn from it and change our path.
11. The Law of Patience and Reward
The most valuable rewards require persistence.
12. The Law of Significance and Inspiration
Rewards are a result of the energy and effort we put into it.
Reading through these 12 laws, you may be thinking how simple and fair life is. Yes, it’s, but these are easier said than done, till one really gets into real focus and consistent practice. This definitely requires a shift of mindset, adoption of new habits and the commitment to constantly follow through and self-evaluate during your journey in life.
One of the clearest indications that you are not fulfilling your dharma or living your true purpose in life is the deep feeling of emptiness, loss of meaning and dissatisfaction in the broader context of life. You might be having all the “good life” stuff but still, you feel something is missing big time.
You might as well feel stuck in a certain aspect of your life regardless of your hard efforts, this will be a great starting point for you. Pain usually is a great messenger to help us discover our true purpose and we are meant to experience it for this very reason (if only people understand this)!
Try to dive deeply to your soul level and understand what mission this soul has agreed to fulfill part of this earthly embodiment. This is because all souls are commissioned to fulfill a certain task, duty, or cause that no other soul can replicate ever, and that’s really why we are here as souls living a physical earthly experience. Our main task is to find that “very purpose” and express it in the various shapes and forms possible to feel complete and contended at the soul level. Here only, we can say that a soul has fulfilled its dharma or purpose.
It’s totally up to you what kind of person you become during the pursuit of your dharma, which beliefs you adopt, which lifestyle you choose and which moral conducts or virtues you embrace. Just realize that there are certain things that will increase the likelihood of your success in this matter. Make sure to choose the simple and less complicated routes even if no one else is using them for whatever reason as life is meant to be an exciting adventure and not a complicated ramble!
So, to sum up, all of us are here seeking something for some reason, however, the ultimate aim behind all our efforts is to find meaning out of our life here and fulfill a more sacred purpose. These are all the deeply rooted longing and thirst of our soul that invites us to be curious and explore this life by using all the tools available to us and exploiting all the talents and privileges that we have been gifted with as God’s successor on this planet.
Further, it’s important to always stay connected to God during this earthly pursuit of purpose, ask him for help, support and guidance then understand his different shades of love for us. God’s no is not always a rejection, it’s a redirection. So, be wise, sense things in a deeper way and understand them, then take the “right” call of action aligned with your life dharma to start experiencing heaven on this earth.
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Mona AlHebsi, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine
Mona AlHebsi, is an Award-Winning Hotelier, HR Practitioner, Success Coach, Renowned Author, and Speaker. She has recently been named “Most Influential Woman in Hospitality Human Capital” and "Inspirational Female Leader" due to her eminent contributions to the hospitality industry and Human Resources profession. Through her book “Beat The Odds,” Mona aims to provide a roadmap to all hoteliers and working professionals on how to make their work a vehicle to delivering excellence and achieving astounding success. She instinctively knows how to ignite the courage in others to stay true to their values and capitalize on their strengths, which will ultimately steer them towards success and fulfillment. Mona's life mantra is "The more odds you beat, the greater will be your feat"!
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