Your Purpose and Destiny
I'm reading a very insightful book by Simon Chokoisky called The 5 Dharma Types: Vedic Wisdom for Discovering Your Purpose and Destiny.
While I've read countless books about personality types and life purpose, this one is particularly helpful and relatable. My work often involves guiding others in clarifying and validating their purpose and their gifts and incorporating a spiritual perspective about their lives.
The 5 Dharma Types beautifully weaves together an understanding of one's purpose and natural way of being in the world with practical advice for how best to integrate your dharma in career, health, relationships, and even financial tendencies and needs. The author also includes a self test to help you determine your type.
Five types related to our purpose:the outsider, merchant, educator, laborer, and warrior are all thoroughly described and interrelated throughout the book.Reading The 5 Dharma Types has given me great insight into myself as well as friends, family and clients.
A salient point he makes is that the United States, a merchant culture, emphasizes economic productivity.As someone who doesn't identify as a merchant dharma type, I easily relate to the many clients I have guided and coached over the years who also do not fit easily into the mainstream culture.
Understanding more about your unique purpose in the world can give valuable insight into career direction as well as relationships and communication style.
I'm continuously compelled to read books that help me better understand other people, as my work is strongly based in guiding others toward their own joy and fulfillment.
This book is an important reminder to live according to your true nature, to follow our strengths, and to be aware of our opportunities for growth. Chokoisky states that "helping people find their purpose was crucial in ancient cultures" and I think it is just as crucial today.
He emphasizes that our search for God, love and prosperity can be filled by living our dharma and realizing our true essence.
In connecting with the Self we are living our purpose.
If we are living however, out of sync with our true self and natural inclinations it may feel difficult to maintain this connection. As someone who spent many years in my twenties searching for my own dharma, I find it very fulfilling to guide others in knowing their own.
We come into this life with innate gifts and talents honed by life experience and maturity. Nothing is ever wasted, even those times of struggle or pain shape who we are and are becoming.