The Great Work of Your Life: A Guide for the Journey to Your True Calling. Author: Stephen Cope; Publication: 2012; Genre: Self-Help.
Have you ever wondered if you are doing the right thing for you? Have you ever wondered if you have a set of talents and interests that were meant for a specific purpose? This book helps to answer those questions.
The author, Stephen Cope, is a yoga teacher, writer, and scholar who shares insights about the ancient Hindu scriptures of yoga and mindfulness meditation. The book begins in Part I with reference to the two-thousand-year-old spiritual classic, the Bhagavad Gita. Beginning on page 10, Cope applies the perhaps unfamiliar scripture to real life characters the author knows. The application is so universal it fits into Christian faith practices as well. In Part II Cope introduces familiar historical characters and the reader is able to see the application of the Bhagavad Gita in many lives, and eventually, perhaps the reader’s.
Cope opens with a dilemma of an ancient student in a life-threatening situation wondering which path he should choose. The book proceeds with ideas to consider as we, too, consider our paths. Highlighting biographies of poets, composers, artists, and activists such as Henry David Thoreau, Walt Whitman, Ludwig van Beethoven, Jane Goodall, Susan B. Anthony, Mahatma Gandhi, and Harriet Tubman, as well as ordinary folks like us, the author illustrates each of their specific challenges that eventually resulted in their discovering and fulfilling their “dharma,” or personal mission, sometimes overcoming incredible obstacles.
Cope also explains that finding your dharma is not a one-and-done. We all experience different phases of our lives. Our purpose and passion as a thriving business person may well change after retirement. As we get in tune with our core desires, we become more aware of opportunities and significant people in our path who can help us align with those desires.
One character was so immersed in her lifestyle as a caregiver, she didn’t recognize it as her dharma because it was not dramatic like her brother’s was as a film director. Cope explains that if someone wants to be a stamp collector, sequestered away in a dark study, and it fills them with joy, they should pursue that. If they want to stand in the public eye and promote a controversial issue, that may be their purpose if it brings them fulfillment and joy. As Shakespeare said, “To thine own self be true.”
What is your passion? Are you doing what you want? If you want some direction on how to discover your journey to your true calling you may enjoy reading The Great Work of Your Life.
– by K. Munson
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Karen M. Munson – Escalante
Karen is an associate editor at The Byway. She is fascinated and fulfilled by all things involved with writing. After graduating from BYU, she taught English at Escalante High School for three years. She pursues opportunities to write and support others in their writing. Karen has published three books with four more scheduled to be released in 2024. She and Reed are the parents of ten children and the grandparents of 35 grandchildren.
Karen is the author of two columns in The Byway, A New Twist on Healthy Mental Habits and Lyle’s Corner.