Work That Nourishes Mind, Body & Soul

Why do you work? The obvious answer is: To sustain myself and my family, of course! Some may say they love their profession or occupation, it is their passion, and so on, but they will rarely do it gratis. Monetary returns is a given in one's work-life, especially if you have no other source of income.
What if the work that you do, day in and day out, throughout your productive years - starting from the first bloom of adult youth right up to the verge of your senior years towards retirement - had been feeding only your body and maybe some bit of your mind but leaves your soul quite famished and emaciated?
Letting work get the better of you to the extent of neglecting your soul, can be pretty tragic. It may even kill you, not just metaphorically, but physically, too. You are probably saying, 'My work crushes my soul but I have no other alternative.'
There is a way to have your cake and eat it too. At least, a little, now and then. Find a creative outlet; something you can do with your hands. Something that relaxes you, makes you feel joy, and which does not stress you with deadlines and projections, expectations and targets. Something that lets you be. It could be playing a musical instrument like the piano or veena; it could be origami, doll-making, embroidery, carpentry, gardening, sewing, or basket weaving, painting, sculpture - anything that feeds your soul.

Once you begin to do this, you will find that your 'real' work gets transformed, too. At office you find yourself being more efficient, germinating ideas, looking at problems with new eyes, with better time management and interpersonal skills - the possibilities are vast and exciting. You are now transforming your working hours and your personal time; you are no longer vegging-out in front of the television or scrolling aimlessly, watching reels and jokes that don't really register. You save valuable time and energy.
You are able to converse and interact in constructive ways. You find time to look around you, and notice things you never 'saw' before. Your mind, body and soul are now partying together, giving you highs you never before thought were possible. You are a bundle of syncretic and positive energy, and you begin to radiate the joy you experience within, to all around you.
You have all the conditions that propel you on the spiritual path. You are becoming more compassionate, less narcissistic, more loving and caring and appreciative of all the good things around you. You complain less. You are overcoming the monotony of work, work, work that was starving your soul. You now see even rote work as an opportunity to improvise and reimagine the way you do things. You begin to nourish your soul and reclaim your true nature.
An off-shoot of the fast food explosion was the slow-food movement that exalted traditional, artisanal food consumed unhurriedly. Audio-visual dominance saw the return of book clubs and considered reading. Nine-to-five workers can turn their sights on creative pursuit, letting it permeate their work ethic as well. The highest reward for a man's toil is not what he gets for it but what he becomes by it, wrote John Ruskin. Let's reap that reward.
Authored by: Narayani Ganesh
[email protected]