Dharma Essay, Research Paper
Dharma is the moral law that Hindus follow throughout life. Through the
teachings of Gita, one can find the right way of living and the correct attitude
for every situation. Dharma can be applied to every walk of life; this paper
will discuss the application of the Dharma in a student’s life. According to
Gita, the path of devotion is the easiest path to finding God. With worship and
meditation people can find God. Along with worship action is required. Action is
the way of surviving but it should not bind the person, instead this action must
free the person. Therefore action and work must be treated like worship and must
be done in the most perfect way and to the best of one’s ability. Yet, one must
work and offer the fruits of this work to God. The Gita teaches that we should
live a detached life, whatever we do is only God’s work done through us. This
detachment does not mean we run away from the responsibility, instead it means
that we do our best and be free from our objects of desire. We should reject all
worldly things in order to achieve spirituality. Therefore, our work should not
contain selfish interest, as it should be offered as a service to others and its
fruits to God. This is the main theme of the teachings of Gita that apply to
every aspect of life. According to this view, a student should look for
knowledge and perform the academic tasks not to earn grades or a degree hoping
for a better life or a good salary. A student doing that is acting with selfish
interest for the purpose of a reward. Instead, a student should be detached from
such benefit when performi
with God in mind and to be useful in life through action, also they are
performed to benefit the society and humanity. Following the Dharma of a student
will make that student detached from worldly desires in addition it will
eliminate stress from a student’s life. This attitude will help students
overcome anxiety before tests and eliminate the pressure of academic work. The
general attitude will be that a student does the work because of "wanting
to do it" rather than "having to do it." This will make students
attend classes with enthusiasm and homework will not be a burden anymore. This
should not be interpreted as laziness. A person must still perform the work and
to his/her best ability, only the fruit is rejected but the work itself is
welcomed. We find some of these teachings applied already in classes such as the
group-assignments that promote cooperation and the rejection of selfishness.
Students cooperate and perform the assignment together as they share the
knowledge and help each other. This student dharma will also promote growth of
the group rather than the selfish individual. Envy and tension between peers
will be replaced by cooperation and harmony. The teachings of Gita and the use
of the Dharma in the academic life will enhance the academic experience. In
addition, it will enhance each student’s abilities, as it will give more freedom
to pursue the knowledge instead of worrying about the grades. I think that
students will have a better academic experience if they follow the Dharma and
apply it to their student life.