 |
|
My yoga practice was the main thing that prepared me for becoming a father.
Lucas Ram is barely three months old as I write this. Every time I see
or envision him, I better understand the divine light that flows through
all of us. That light is especially potent when experienced through a newborn's
direct connection to spirit and unconditional love. Whenever my spiritual
guru, Swami Satchidananda, was asked which persons in history he would
most like to meet, Swamiji would invariably answer, "I want to meet
babies. Look at the face of a baby. How happy. There's a Divine charm in
the face. A smile from a baby is worth millions. When you were a baby you
had nothing but fun. Now you are grownup. You have become very serious.
But, look at the face of a baby. How smiling, what an angelic face. Everybody
loves to see the face. Where does the kingdom lie? Among the children,
among the babies."
I spent years searching for the key to happiness in the form of someone
or something that would give me something I lacked and that perhaps would
make me feel whole. During a period of intense difficulties, I visited
Swamiji's ashram and heard his very direct message, "You were made
to serve." It felt as though someone slapped me hard yet lovingly
in the chest. I realized there was nothing that I lacked but there was
quite a lot that I hadn't been sharing. While the message is simple, powerful,
and true, it is not always easy to apply.
My spiritual name from Swamiji is Tyagan, which I was told at the time
I received it means "dedication." That's appropriate, I thought,
as I am generally very dedicated and committed to whatever I decide to
do. After digging deeper, however, I soon understood that tyaga means dedication
to one's work but renunciation of its fruits. Of course, the fruits (ie.
the results) were precisely what I was dedicated to not the service or
work! I thus realized that the name was aspirational and not very descriptive
after all. Giving and serving without expecting anything in return is the
essence of unconditional love, and is how I have come to understand the
meaning of Tyagan.
This understanding has helped me to realize that my career as an attorney
is not something to be renounced as I cultivate more tyaga, and neither
is it an obstacle to doing so. Instead it presents myriad and wonderful
opportunities to deepen my practice in the midst of many challenges, and
it is also very fulfilling to be able to help people. A recent pro bono
project was to form a U.S. nonprofit to raise funds for Ramana's Garden
Home for Destitute Children in India, see www.ramanasgarden.blogspot.com.
In the legal profession I am charged with serving my clients zealously
and ethically. I have found that I can do a much more effective job in
that role when I have total dedication to the work and release any personal
attachment to the result. That way, I can maintain my equanimity in the
face of adversity and select the right action, thereby doing my absolute
best and with clear vision.
I thank all of my teachers, and the teachers of my teachers, for the blessings
I have received. Most of all, I thank my wonderful wife, Cara, who is the
best partner to me and the best mom to Lucas Ram that I could ever imagine. |
|
|
|
