We live in a noisy, mediocre, technological society, and everyone is glued to their phones or laptops.
Despite its rapid adoption, virtual reality doesn’t hold the promise it seems to hold. I must warn you of this fact, my buddy.
Passion, romance, and religion have been lost in our generation. Our virtual vacations are causing our minds to get scattered, and we are losing our ability to think clearly.
But this isn’t the end of our troubles. Stress is another silent killer that strangles us each day without us ever finding out. What’s worse is that it’s our toxic habits that let us cultivate a culture of stress and toxicity.
But there is an escape. Temples, churches, mosques, shrines have a unique calming effect on our minds.
Believers find it especially helpful to turn to faith and religious wisdom in desperate and stressful times.
Have personally found peace believing that there is a higher power above us. And that as humans, we shouldn’t exactly obsess over the whole who’s on the top of the food chain matter.
I was working a 45-hour shift with an advertising agency and my responsibilities involved handling clients, streamlining content and designs for clients, processing feedback, acquiring clients globally, and closing contracts with commissioned work.
Just imagine the amount of stress I faced! After all, I was accountable to the agency, to clients and had to make sure that the creatives in the agency don’t feel burned out or demotivated with reworks and edits.
Amidst all that, I had put on my best face, the biggest smile, and handled unhappy clients day and night. I always felt this pressure that I had to outperform my clients’ and bosses’ expectations.
It was only 3 years back that I felt strangely unhappy, lost, and anxious even after getting the promotion I wanted. For a week, I couldn’t make up my mind about what was pestering me, but after some friends recommended, I began weekly visits to a Gurudwara. That’s when my journey towards mental healing started.
A lot of the people I worked with turned to religion and visited churches, mosques, and temples to counter their imbalanced feelings. Now they are reformed believers and enthusiastic professionals.
If you are considering the path of temples and religious places, then ask yourself these questions.
- Are you facing a loss of individual and collective identity?
- Are you looking for a meaningful retreat or getaway?
- Do you feel that you have consumed almost all of your favorite pastimes like movies you enjoyed watching, your favorite music, hobbies you liked, the food you enjoyed, but they don’t quite revive your soul and mind like they used to?
- Are you facing a stress challenge?
- Are you pessimistic about therapy and anti-stress routines?
Often there comes a point in life when we all feel exhausted. And this isn’t ordinary exhaustion but a paralyzing moment when you feel at a loss for creativity, energy, and optimism.
Don’t confuse this with depression. Working monotonous routines and shallow consumerist habits typically foster a culture of apathy, which frequently results in self-loathing on realization.
We all are passionate human beings and have larger-than-life aspirations when studying. But as the reality of working and family life sets in, the passion gets lost. But the mind, and soul, can’t thrive on bonuses or filigree jewelry. They demand more and seek depth. We humans need to satiate the curiosities of our minds and strengthen our souls with beliefs.
Gurudwara Satsang and mosque namaz callings are strangely cathartic and fulfilling to the soul.
Famous actor Liam Neeson even said that during the shooting of his blockbuster film Taken 2 in Istanbul, he grew used to the regular namaz sounds. He mentioned how therapeutic he found the calls to be and that during the shoot, he grew accustomed to it.
Many religious believers will tell you that their faith always helped them heal their wounded soul and doubting mind.
It’s not a matter of being religious but rather a matter of finding serenity in a specific environment. Temples often use special incense that calms the senses and helps relax the mind. The melodic namaz sounds from a mosque help you expand your mind and the cleansing routines at Gurudwaras help restore lost confidence and purity of mind.
If you often feel distressed with work or home anxiety, visit a religious worship place nearby and spend some time there listening to the wise teachings. It won’t only soothe your soul, but also open a new peaceful dimension for your mind.
Even if you are not religious, try keeping an open mind and just let the environment grasp you wholly. A great start would be the track Inshallah by the famed word music artist Karunesh. J
just put the track on when you meditate and see how it revives your mind, body, and soul.
Observing proper protocol in a temple
It has been thousands of years since Hindu temples were built so that people might worship a particular form of God, assemble with other devotees, and connect with the Absolute in a sacred environment.
When entering a Hindu temple, it is vital to do so with the knowledge that it is a place of worship. Respecting the sacred space of a temple is easier if one is aware of proper etiquette.
It is customary to wash one’s hands and dress modestly before entering a temple. As a rule of thumb, men and women should avoid shorts and keep their shoulders covered. Although there can be variations in traditions from one temple to the next, Shirtless men and men wearing only unsewn fabric are required to dress more simply in some cultures.
The Gods’ residences are called temples. The moment you step inside, you’re treated like a stranger. It is customary for visitors to remove their shoes upon entering a temple. Depending on the temple, this may take place totally outside the complex or in a specified area within the complex but before entering the temple itself. Just ask if it isn’t evident where to put your shoes away. Removing your soiled shoes not only makes you more presentable, but it also shows the host how much you value his or her property.
Devotees often ring a brass bell at the temple’s entryway before entering. Ringing the bell, like knocking on the door of a person’s house, alerts the deities that you’ve come to request their assistance.
Paying respect is the next step. Bowing and touching one’s head to the ground when in a temple room is a way of demonstrating humility and cultivating respect for one’s surroundings.
When you visit a friend’s house, Hindus bring a small symbolic gift to the God of the temple while they’re there as a way to show their respect for the deity. Even though it is not needed, presenting an offering is an act of service that can increase one’s real love for God.
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