Sometimes I get confused about whether I’m just following family traditions or actually doing something spiritual. Like, we light lamps, celebrate festivals, and do all these rituals, but it can feel like we’re just doing them because “that’s what we always do.”
Now I am learning that what really matters is what’s going on in my heart when I do them, not just the action itself. If I celebrate a festival, perform an art or ritual only so that others will appreciate me or even simply because I like it, I understand that I’m just doing or participating in a cultural act. But when I do the same thing while genuinely thinking of God or my Guru and wanting to make them happy, the same act becomes spiritual. It then also feels different and more meaningful. In fact, I have learned, that for an act to be spiritual, it doesn’t need to be ‘cultural’. Even normal everyday actions—like helping at home or studying—can become spiritual if I do them with the intention of pleasing God or Guru.
By Vedanth Naresh, 13 yrs, Canton, Michigan
Based on Sri Ramanujamji’s youth discussion sessions
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