Doing your Dharma

There is a wonderful "Yoga Wisdom" article in the May issue of Yoga Journal about how yoga can help with job satisfaction. The article, by Sally Kempton, explains how the teachings in the Bhagavad Gita can help you make sense of the ups and downs of the workplace.  Since we have been reading and studying (and trying to make sense of) the Gita during teacher training, I found the article particularly interesting.

As a Middle School science teacher on the cusp of two very busy, full weeks of State Assessments in Math and English, the article was also quite timely.  The main point of the article is how yoga can help you love your job, and it goes beyond figuring out whether you "Live to work, or work to live".  It's more about finding out what your "Dharma" is; your duty - but "duty" in the sense that there is one job that you alone excel at  - and that is the one job that will bring you happiness if you fully engage in it.

This begs the question, "Is my current job in-line with my Dharma?"  Many of us, in this economy, feel lucky to have a job at all, and don't necessarily feel like we are in a position to start questioning whether we are cut out for the job we're doing.  The Bhagavad Gita suggests that if you aren't happy, then you probably aren't cut out for your job, no matter how much material success it brings.  This is a hard pill for people to swallow, Americans, in particular, who build their careers on the promise of hard word equating with great reward and success.  Financial matters are a large part of this puzzle, but not the only piece.

In my line of work, our merit is increasingly determined by "results" - this is not a foreign concept to most people in the work force.  However, the "results" in education are judged by standardized tests - THIS is a foreign concept when for the last 16 years, educational research shows that there is no such thing as a "standarized" student.  Regardless, instead of creating inspiring lessons that help kids to become independent questioners, thinkers, and innovative learners, a good deal of time must be spent on preparing for the standardized tests.

Testing generates a lot of stress among the students.  Each year there are new benchmarks that must be achieved - the bar is raised and educational freedoms are reduced.  The actual testing mode is basically a "lockdown", and teachers turn into warden-like proctors who are allowed to do little else than offer an encouraging pat on the back and make sure all the bubbles are filled on the answer sheets.  In turn, seeing his/her students in such distress creates a lot of stress for a teacher, and here is where the Gita attempts to curb the cortisol (cortisol is a hormone that is abundant in times of high stress).

2.47 says "You have a right to the work alone, not to its fruits".  This is a hard concept to come to terms with...especially when, like most people in the workforce, your performance is evaluated on and connected to the outcome.  However, the Gita encourages you to do your Dharma.  If you were cut out for this job/duty/role, the outcome will be just fine.  If it's not satisfactory, maybe you're doing the wrong Dharma.

This is much, much easier said than done, and few of us have the luxury of approaching outcomes and bottom lines with this sort of non-chalance.  However, in times of stress, at the 9th hour, when you know you've done everything you can, all the i's have been dotted and t's have been crossed, meditating on this verse in the Gita might, just might, let you surrender the stress and let go.  Afterall, isn't that what yoga is all about?

"Live simply, expect little, give much.  Fill your life with love, scatter sunshine.  Forget self.  Think of others and do as you would be done by." - author unknown (to me)