About the Book
A handbook for unlocking the soul’s purpose and manifesting a fulfilling life
• Reinterprets the traditional Dharma system of ancient India as a map for revealing one’s true purpose
• Provides tests for determining one’s Dharma type
• Explains the benefits, challenges, and social, interpersonal, and health dynamics associated with each of the 5 Dharma types
Have you ever wondered why, despite great obstacles, some people achieve success, while others, though given everything, seem to squander it away? Or why some people, despite having very little, radiate joy, while others appear miserable though surrounded by opulence? The answer is Dharma: knowing your soul’s purpose and living it is the key to creating a fulfilling life.
Built on a deep body of Vedic knowledge, the ancient system of social structure and spiritual duty known as Dharma has modern applications for people seeking their life’s purpose. Author Simon Chokoisky explains the five Dharma archetypes--Warrior, Educator, Merchant, Laborer, and Outsider--and how your life’s purpose goes hand-in-hand with your Dharma type. Providing tests to determine your type, he outlines the benefits, challenges, emotional and learning styles, and social, interpersonal, and health dynamics associated with each type.
Chokoisky reveals how the Dharma types function as an operating system for your identity, helping you map your life and play to your innate strengths, whether in choosing a prosperous career or field of study or in facing health challenges and meeting fitness goals. By accepting and understanding the nature of your type, you begin to align with your true purpose and, regardless of fate, find joy and meaning in life.
Table of Contents:
Preface
Introduction and Self Tests
Part ONE
The Roles of the Dharma Types
1 Merchant Society and the Dharma Types
2 Educator
Enlighten Others
3 Warrior
Protect Others
4 Merchant
Clothe, Connect, and Animate Others
5 Laborer
Nourish and Serve Others
6 Outsider
Innovate, Rebel, and Free Others
7 Summary of Part One
Part TWO
Authentically Living Your Dharma Type
8 Five Paths to Wellness
9 The Social Conscience of the Dharma Types
10 Element, Season, and Taste
11 Intelligence, Secret Fear, and Speech
12 Music, Myth, and Poodles
13 Sport, War, and Warriors
14 Money and Profession
15 The Life Cycles
Notes
Suggested Resources on East/West Wisdom
Index
About the Author :
Simon Chokoisky teaches Sanskrit and Medical Astrology at the Ayurvedic Institute in Albuquerque, New Mexico. He also runs a private consulting business based on his trainings in Vedic life mapping and Vedic astrology. The creator of the Decoding Your Life Map with Vedic Astrology DVD series, he travels widely giving seminars. He lives in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
Review :
“Simon Chokoisky’s The Five Dharma Types is a beautiful book. Reading it carefully will give you insight into your dharma and help you heal your life.”
“This work has opened doors of insight and perception, allowing me to see our species in a fresh and hopeful light. I hope people will read this book more than once, and slowly.”
“[A] comprehensive handbook. . . . Chokoisky’s tone is authoritative, inspirational, and rich with pop culture references from Harry Potter to Spider-Man that make his message accessible to the modern, Western mind. . . . The author demonstrates a deep understanding of his subject. He writes clearly and eloquently, offering a spiritually inspired, and ultimately practical, guidebook for personal fulfillment.”
“Chokoisky (Ayurvedic Inst., Albuquerque, NM) teaches Sanskrit and “medical Âastrology,” and this ambitious volume attempts to map ancient Vedic conceptions of human capacities to the realities of today’s Western world. While we can, according to the author, be divided into five Dharma types: educators, warriors, merchants, laborers, and outsiders, we are all constrained to live in an age most congenial to merchants. Chokoisky’s task, in addition to convincing readers of the types to which they belong, is in part to help them adjust to the times. The success of this book for most readers will depend on their acceptance of the validity of the ancient Indian model, which at times has been seen as a set of confining hierarchies: Chokoisky’s attempts to visualize them as complementary personalities is intriguing. VERDICT The author’s purpose—to allow each of us to find a right profession and way of living—is appealing, but his ideas may be a tough sell in America, where we tend to believe in an infinite ability to choose. Still, this book is enthralling, and should appeal to many students of Vedic tradition and yoga.”
