Doing the Dishes

The first time I gave any serious thought to Hinduism was in Dr. Loving's philosophy class at U.C.. He was reading the Kama Sutra to us, and talking about the Hindu idea that all activities should be done prayerfully. Even doing the dishes. This fucked me up, because there were few things I associated less with the spiritual realm than doing the dishes. I was a full blown alcoholic at the time, and I would get sloppy drunk when I did the dishes. It was the only thing that made the activity bearable...come to think of it, at that point in my life, alcohol was the only thing that made any activity bearable. But that's another story.

I have managed to reclaim both my sobriety and the dishes, and now, indeed, I was them with as much of a prayerful attitude as I can muster. The dishes will get dirty again, but that's not why I clean them. Cleaning the dishes--when I am in my best frame of mind--can be its own reward. So little of life makes sense. Dirty dishes make sense. The problems of the world are vast and complex. Dried spaghetti in a bowl is fairly straightforward.

I am far from a Yogi--my 'ohm' is still more of an 'uhm'--but I can wash the dishes. I can even wash them by hand. In fact, I prefer it.