Sarah and I went over the weekend to a beautiful temple up in Chino Hills for Diwali.
As we were immersed in the celebration, we had the opportunity to speak with one of the devotees.
And he was so passionate and so full of light talking about his love of God and his philosophy. He truly embodied the celebration.
After talking for about ten or fifteen minutes, we went our separate ways.
On parting, he said, “We always say Jay Swaminarayan. It expresses our devotion to the light of God.”
Having heard that phrase before, I offered it back to him.
As Sarah and I were talking about our experience with this gentleman, she said she hadn’t quite understood all of his words at the end.
And I was reminded of a phrase from a movie I recently watched by Wes Anderson called The Phoenician Scheme.
In the movie, a businessman reconnects with his estranged daughter, who has become a nun.
This guy’s highest understanding of the world is his business savvy and financial acumen.
It’s the art of the deal that he is devoted to.
And there’s a situation where a whole lot is on the line. One action could make or break it.
Which, incidentally, is a very unlikely basketball shot.
His daughter says a prayer. Hands pressed together, lips moving.
And the shot goes in.
Swish.
Later, he asks her what words she said that made that shot go in.
She says she doesn’t remember the phrasing.
And then comes what stuck with me.
“What matters is the sincerity of your devotion.”
🛕 🛕 🛕
Let that sink in a little bit.
There have been many times when I’ve done the words and even done the actions, but the sincerity wasn’t there.
It was more of a hope. If I do something, something good will come of it.
If I say and do all of the right things, shouldn’t I be successful?
Well, it’s funny, because rarely were any of my “prayers” ever answered when I approached devotion like that.
And that phrase really stuck with me.
Do I really want what’s best for myself today, or am I trying to negotiate a day that I want?
Do I really want what’s best for my family, or am I trying to make a deal that they show up how I want them to show up?
Anyway, sometimes when we’re in the presence of so much light—which is one of the aspects of Diwali, taking us from darkness into light, from ignorance into understanding—we take on some of those qualities.
As Sarah and I left the temple that evening, we both felt full of light.
And we were both practicing “Jay Swaminarayan” on the way home.
It wasn’t so much the words as the sincerity of our devotion.
Our devotion to understand ourselves.
Our devotion to understand our kids.
Our devotion to understand viewpoints other than ours.
Our devotion to devotion.
Jay Swaminarayan.
🛕 🛕 🛕
ROAR with Love,
Danny
The Emotional Driver
“Emotion Is the Note. You Are the Song.”
