Connect to the universe by just doing your part

Mar 8, 2010, 12.00am IST
Janina Gomes.

Whatever we do, we must do the best we can. We could excel in our chosen profession or the work we do at home by using our full potential. There is something about a good book, play, article, or home that puts us in touch with the most creative paths of life that lead to the divine.
To strive to excel does not mean doing things perfectly. What we achieve in life could be full of imperfections but still be excellent. Excellence comes from exercising responsibility and being accountable.


Take a closer look at the plants in your garden or in your balcony. They are excellent just by being the way they are. We may not make it to the celebrity charts and be recognised as being among those who have made it to the popularity charts; that definition of success is too narrow. But, there is something about what we do with full effort that brings us closer to the origins of our life.


There must be some reason why God made us imperfect. If not, we would never have made the effort to be better human beings. We would not have been expected to be kind and compassionate. We would never have tried to empathise with others. We would not have developed the depth and the understanding that makes us good human beings.


We see the potter at the wheel, creating a world of harmony and balance, the weaver creating patterns and designs that are beautiful. We invent the machines, technologies that help us make useful products for daily living. We marvel at the strong structures built by the mason, the attractiveness and compelling quality of places of worship that bring us closer to the divine.

We grow in sync with the unfolding universe. On the larger canvas of life we are all part of the composite picture. Like the strings of an instrument that create music, we play in unison, creating the many divine melodies that resonate throughout the universe. We have been given tools with which to work so we can co-create with God.


We need not be ever discouraged that we do not make it to the popularity charts or become among the richest or most famous. Many are those silent and dedicated souls who work behind the scenes. They create all around them worlds of excellence out of a sense of responsibility and solidarity with the rest of the human family.


We must give of ourselves and the world will open its arms to us. To work with purpose and spirit is to connect with the divine. Sometimes the work someone else does may be left incomplete for us to complete. At other times there is a sense of work being finished, by someone who has seen through something to its very end.


There is no hierarchy in work. The manual and the intellectual are both equally important; dignity of labour is important. Be sure that in the divine plan, the bricklayer and the carpenter are as important as the academic and the professional.


Listen to the call of the spirit within you. What you do in life is all a part of the divine symphony being created by your work. Make full use of all the opportunities that unfold before you. Work then as if you are part of a divine orchestra. Your work is connected with the universe and all forms of life around. Sing the song of creation and do your part.