Nurturing Creativity and the Gita

Frankly I have been appalled at the feedback I got for some of my doodling done in my free time out of interest. It was news to me that a piece of writing I write, or a picture I draw, or a video I put together out of love for my brother, all as a release of self expression could have an immense effect on the emotions of strangers and people close to me alike. Some of the feedback made me understand to a certain extent what this below quotation meant.

                             "The pen is mightier than the sword" ~  Edward Bulwer-Lytton


Comments like these also made me curious to drill in and research a little deeper to find out what exactly did the word "Creativity" mean.

"Superb vidya,U have a lot of creativity and humor in you" 
" You have got good talent, don't waste it" 
" You need to showcase your talents "
" You think different " or " You are different " ~ from conversations in projects/ social gatherings 
" You are damn good at this " 
 " I did feel a tear trickle down my cheek, but I felt some sort of unexplained positivity in me ". ~ comment from a blog post
" Good one. Had a good laugh. Now your mokai  poem touches a weak nerve somewhere "
" A very good strength of yours is that you think outside the box. You should never loose that ability"! ~ comment from my colleague during a review meeting

These are just some of the comments from friends, family and colleagues I have heard so far. They are all genuine and in a way they aim at motivating me/ driving me in making good use or expressing whatever people see in me as different or as talent. But there is a catch. What exactly does making good use mean. Or what exactly does it mean to "not waste it" . The last comment in particular from my colleague stressing upon to not loose this ability could in-fact put any sane person under pressure if not interpreted wisely.

It is indeed fascinating to read about the different schools of thought that associate creativity to different aspects of human life. A few causes that attribute to creativity are ( click on them if interested to read more )

1. Love
2. Mental Ilness
3. Being Left Handed
4. Forcing Creativity

Above all, it was very disturbing to come across a lot of negative attribution to creative types like writers , poets and artists to be stereo typed as depressed loners or romantics.

I agree that there is a fair chance of getting tired sometimes when so many ideas/ thoughts hit you and in not being able to have the energy or time to put all of it down to paper/fruition. Or even getting frustrated sometimes when a seemingly brilliant thought hits you at an inopportune moment only to loose the flow later when you have time to work on it. I am sure most of us would have felt this way at some point in time. But when this happens it is entirely up to us to either get overwhelmed and negative ....

or to be positive and create a phycological distance with these thoughts and handle them with a different perspective like how Elizabeth Gilbert (author of Eat Pray Love) narrates in this inspiring TED talk on nurturing creativity.

What touched me most about this video was her concluding sentences that goes something like this.

Don't be afraid! Don't be daunted! Just do your job, whatever that might be. If your job is to dance, do your dance. Continue to show up for your piece of it. If the divine cockeyed genius assigned to your case decides to let some sort of wonderment be glimpsed for just one moment through your efforts then Ole. If not, do your dance anyhow. Ole to you nonethless.

I believe it and I feel like we must teach it. Ole to you nonetheless just for the shear human love and stubbornness to keep showing up. 

When I was hearing these sentences all that resonated in my mind was the Bhagavad Gita's concept of Karma Yoga and Lord Krishna's teachings. 

Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 2

You have a right to perform your prescribed duty, but you are not entitled to the fruits of action. Never consider yourself to be the cause of the results of your activities, and never be attached to not doing your duty.

This is what I feel like telling the prolific and inspiring writer Elizabeth

A poor attempt at snow Krishna 

"This age old concept has already been taught in ancient India as well, it just needs to be spread and remembered at all times by all generations to come. And yeah, the divine cockeyed genius as you put it in my case has been and will always be the divine lotus eyed all-attractive, most beautiful Lord Krishna ;) ".