Julia Roberts' search for inner peace

Julia Roberts' statements to Elle Magazine (see David Gibson's recent article) that she and her family are practicing Hindus are noteworthy, but not because her actions appear to add a celebrity to the religion.. Instead, they suggest that she has taken the spiritual life of her and her family serious by adopting a regular religious practice, rather than simply a belief as most Americans seem content with doing. I hope for her and her family's sake that this was not
done for some publicity purpose or an emotional reaction to her experiences making her recent film, Eat Pray Love.

People in the film industry seem to have a hard time with long term relationships. There has been a long history of Hollywood celebs "committing" to a cause, a religious group, or a person as the consequence of an emotional involvement surrounding a film. Often, these "relationships" tend to be rather short lived, and end up being more of a publicity opportunity than anything of real depth.

Religion should be about finding inner peace and joy, not about outward benefits, forms, or labels. We live in a world in which celebrity seems to be on the wish list of so many in the U.S., while externally stimulated sensual pleasure is believed to be the primary source of happiness. As a consequence, celebrity, fame, and power are far more important to most people than are inner peace, contentment, and goodness.

That said, Ms. Roberts seems to be a more serious minded and stable person than many in her industry, and hopefully her actions are the result of a genuine desire to find inner peace. Her comments regarding plastic surgery and reincarnation actually suggest this to be the case, and she should be respected for taking her spiritual life serious. When we become focused on finding meaning in the present moment, we can be more accepting of the future and whatever it brings, including old age.

There is an important concept in Hinduism that most people in the West could benefit from called nishkama karma. This can be translated as "selfless action" or as "action without interest in the result." It refers to those actions that are done for the benefit of others or for the benefit of humankind as a whole rather than simply for the benefit the individual or the ego. Here, the focus is put on the process and quality of one's actions rather than on what will be gained by doing them. It is the main reason for the inner joy of people whose lives are punctuated by helping others. This approach to our daily lives also gives us the opportunity to reflect on the degree to which our everyday actions are in accord with the values we claim to hold.

It will be interesting to see if Ms. Roberts' new approach to her spiritual life affects the films with which she chooses to be involved. One would expect this to be the case. Because of the influence she has gained as a celebrity, she is in a position to inspire others to find a deeper meaning to their lives as well. If she continues in this way, I am confident that the she and her entire family will be enriched in ways that her monetary wealth could never provide.

Gibson's article also mentions several of Rev. Franklin Graham's predictably derogatory remarks about Hinduism, which actually reveal much more about the reverend's own ignorance of the tradition and of the diversity of approaches to the divine than anything else. They are also typical of the ranting of a fundamentalist of any religion, who never actually attempts to grow beyond his or her limited view of reality. While I am sure that Rev. Graham's views will not change anytime soon, as a Hindu I am also confident he will eventually gain a broader understanding of God and goodness. No one can live in such a dark corner forever, although for him it will likely take several more lifetimes to get there.

By Ramdas Lamb  |  August 9, 2010; 3:13 PM ET Save & Share:                 
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