Speaking of ministry...

[sabrinamari]

"...to follow your dharma is to align yourself with the most evolved level of your own consciousness...the inner imperative that aligns our individual actions with the greater Consciousness as it evolves toward its highest possible expression. [It] is linked with the idea of “calling,” or vocation, so to follow your [dharma] is to follow the thread of guidance that “calls” you to express your being in unique ways. Since our calling is the instrument we play in the symphony of life, when we don’t express it, we are actually depriving the universe of the very thing that we were meant to contribute."

"Dharma is alive, and it changes, day by day, year by year, and situation by situation."

Sally Kempton

***

When I talk about this, I use the word "ministry," a word I borrowed from the Christian Protestant friends with whom I grew up. But whether you use the lens of Buddhism, Hinduism, Christianity or anything else---whether you call it dharma, ministry, vocation, calling, your personal mission statement, or whatever---the concept is pretty clear.

So, what is your dharma? How has it evolved over the last year?

I am curious and generally interested.

http://www.ievolve.org/2011/08/what-is-my-dharma-by-sally-kempton/

Comments

[badseed1980.livejournal.com]

Sounds a bit like the Thelemic concept of True Will, too! (At least, so says this admittedly undereducated non-Buddhist, non-Thelemite.)

I think about ministry as being something different from this, or at least, as a subset of this. To me, the idea of "ministry" necessarily involves being in service to other people in some fashion. Not everyone's vocation/callign/dharma falls into that particular category of experience. But if you see ministry as something broader than that category, I can understand that.

I have a hard time boiling my purpose down to a single thing. I feel like I have so many, and they are all important. I suppose I could do some brainstorming and find the common thread, but I'm not sure it's something that's necessary for me, to fulfill it.

[sabrinamari.livejournal.com]

"I have a hard time boiling my purpose down to a single thing. I feel like I have so many, and they are all important. I suppose I could do some brainstorming and find the common thread, but I'm not sure it's something that's necessary for me, to fulfill it."

Probably not...but I am curious. : )

[the-smith-e.livejournal.com]

Hmm, well previously I mostly was tied to honor, philosophy and Heimdall. Rage and helping people deal with it seems a new piece but I have having a bit of spiritual turbulence over it which I am working through.

[sabrinamari.livejournal.com]

I think spiritual turbulence is a good sign, a sign that things are moving forward in a useful direction.

[the-smith-e.livejournal.com]

I am not finding it easy. I am finding it distracting.

[sabrinamari.livejournal.com]

And anxiety-producing, I'm guessing. As awful as it sounds, that kind of discomfort is often a sign that you are being courageous, and reaching out beyond your comfort levels to explore who else you can become next.

That discomfort is a badge of pride, and your ability to move through it and stay the course is a verygood reason to be proud.

[the-smith-e.livejournal.com]

Well, thanks I guess? ;-)

[evcelt.livejournal.com]

Like badseed1980, I think dharma in this meaning sounds like True Will. Or Bliss, in the Joseph Campbell sense.

Also agree on "ministry" definition. I tend to associate that term with what I think of as the "horizontal" religious/spiritual function (helping members of a group with religious/spiritual matters or other matters but in a religious spiritual context). "Vocation" or "calling" seems to fit better.

As to mine... it's hard to put into words. It involves lots of things: being minister to my tribe-of-choice, serving Brigid and other Powers, poetry, my day job...

[wgseligman.livejournal.com]

By that definition of ministry, mine is to "solve the human equation," if you don't mind the geek terminology. I want to learn to be a better person, and to be able to teach what I've learned to others.

[onyxtwilight.livejournal.com]

Third vote for comparing to True Will, and while I'm at it, I'll throw in a nod from the Feri tradition:

Who is this flower above me,
And what is the Work of this god?
I would know myself in all my parts.

[mage-imbroglio.livejournal.com]

My ministry mostly involves getting out of my own way so I might truly be of service. It has definitely evolved. The greatest lesson right now is how to get out of my own way and be of service to universe, while remembering that I am a part of the universe. An it harm NONE, myself included.

In other words, how can I be of service without being a doormat.

"Setting limits is good. The Buddha liked limits." - Pema

[eoma-p.livejournal.com]

I've been gardening for years, but I still struggle with pruning, which is cutting away what doesn't need to be there. Similarly, there's a quote attributed to Michelangelo: Carving is easy, you just go down to the skin and stop. At this moment, my dharma is cutting back to what's essentially me. The key of course is figuring out what to trim.

[showingup.livejournal.com]

Gosh, I wish I knew! I have things to learn:

* Getting out of my own way
* Learning how to interact with my Inner Scaries so they can become my Inner Allies
* Understanding which of my fears are True Fears and which are Maladaptive Fears, so that I can address the issues they raise
* Accepting creativity in my life
* Learning that everything is about diversity - including what I should do with my life (ie. We grow up thinking we should do One Special Thing, when that One Special Thing might actually be Lots Of Special Things With Overarching Themes)
* Being Seen and Heard, and Seeing and Hearing others

I had some instances of clarity, though at the moment I have no idea where I'm going, mainly because the things I was attaching importance to rely so heavily on me Getting Cured and always being well at some point in the future. I need to accept that this may never happen, and find instead a way of living that supports and nourishes me even though I may never be well for more than a few weeks, or even days, at a time. Something that doesn't rely on me having to commit to being somewhere dealing with others on a regular basis. I feel myself being shoved back towards writing, and wonder about using what I'm learning in book or essay form as the mainstay?