Eyes and Escapes

You would be wondering how a Hindu text would help someone to blog! Here’s how 🙂

Karmanye vadhikaraste , ma phaleshu kadachana,
Ma karmaphalaheturbu Ma te Sangostvakarmani

Sri Krishna Bhagvad Gita chapter 2 verse 47

As i pen this quote down i feel extremely fortunate to have come across this life saving scripture. Though it’s famously known as religious book of Hindus, it has nothing to do with hindu rituals. It’s a road map of life given by Krishna to his friend Arjuna, 5000 years back.

Coming back to the topic.
In one of my previous blogs I explained how I began my jobless journey – binge on food, TV shows , unhealthy habits. It was itching for me to be productive. Do something meaningful. Also I wanted to earn some money as i was jobless so that could help me buy some stuff so that I don’t have to ask my dad for money every other time.

So I sat down and tried to list all my skills. To my surpise i was stalled after just writing down 2 skills. One – diagnosis and treatment of eye diseases, operating oculoplasty cases. Second – cooking. So I tried banking upon the former skill – did some freelancing surgeries – operated a few oculoplasty cases ( they did turn out extremely well – grateful and happy) but it wasn’t enough. I wanted to do something more. ( I couldn’t set up my own clinic as i needed large investments and also my marriage was due in a few months, not a right time to set up my own clinic)

Then i watched videos on YouTube. I watched Ali Abdaals —
9 passive income ideas. This led me to another video of his — How writing online made me a millionaire.
(The video name is alluring but that should really not be a motive to start blogging)
Then i came to know about the book ” show your work!” By Austin kleon which inspired me to blog.

Even before beginning the blog i got thoughts like

• Am i creative
• am i capable of putting out content regularly
• will i be consistent
• what will people think and say
• will i earn by a blog
• first of all i donot exactly know what my hobbies are, so then what will I blog about
  Etc, etc

After reading this: i went on to think like :
“I think a about a lot of stuff, like Ophthalmology, spirituality , self help, psychology, food, cooking. Why don’t i document my thoughts in my journal” so that one fine day later in life i could look back. Why don’t i write the same in the blog. I can be an amateur. Learn new stuff, get out of comfort zone, and do more meaningful stuff.

At this point , i was somewhere near the verse 47 of chapter 2 of Bhagavad Gita ( i read at least one verse of Bhagavad Gita everyday) – the one which i quoted in the beginning. I re learnt the verse and tried applying it to my situation. Though I had heard this verse before, i didn’t actually know how to apply it.

Applying the quote to this situation it sounded something like this – ” OK! , you have right to start the blog, you have the choice. Right to choose whether to blog or not. You do not have the right to the fruits of your actions – you shouldnt really care if your blog becomes successful or not. Dont be attached to the idea of being successful , or earning lots of money by Blog (if that doesn’t happen you would lose hope and confidence), neither be attached to the idea of inaction – that is idea of not blogging ( you would later regret that you didn’t start).

And Thats how these 2 books helped me start.

At the end i would like to quote another verse from Bhagavad Gita

““Yoga is evenness of mind”: detachment from the dualities of pain and pleasure, success and failure. Therefore “yoga is skill in action,” because this kind of detachment is required if one is to act in freedom, rather than merely react to events compelled by conditioning.”

― from “The Bhagavad Gita (Easwaran’s Classics of Indian Spirituality Book 1)”

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