Creativity is essentially divinity manifesting through humanity. When we are creative, we become channels for a wisdom far bigger than ours to manifest through us. 

Our creativity may be shaped by various factors, including our past karma, upbringing, association. Still, we all can increase our creativity level. How? By increasing our receptivity to it. 

Suppose we compare creativity to a current flowing through us. Instead of worrying when electric current will come through the wire of our consciousness, we can focus on making our consciousness  as conducive as possible, thereby ensuring maximum usage of whatever current appears. And when greater current manifests, it will transmit through us to produce magic. Thus, our consistent efforts at creative endeavor can make us better channels for inspired creations. 

Once we understand that we are only channels for creative inspiration, not its source, we learn to focus on our effort to make ourselves more conducive channels. And here the pragmatism and potency of the Bhagavad-gita’s directive to work with detachment becomes evident (02.47). As long as we think we are the producers of our result, we cannot but fixate on them and define ourselves in terms of their manifestation or non-manifestation. And that is a recipe for disaster when we work in creative fields where the results are clearly not in our sole control. 

Instead of thinking of creativity in digital terms as being either absent or present, we can think of it in analog terms as being present to various degrees. The Gita states the Divine reciprocates with our degree of surrender (04.11). Therefore, if we make a schedule for creative work and stick to it diligently and prayerfully, we will become better channels for creativity.

One-sentence summary:

Focus not on the quality of our creative output; focus on the consistency of our receptive input.

Think it over:

  • Explain how creativity is divinity manifesting through humanity.
  • How does the Gita’s directive for detached work relate with creative endeavor? 
  • How can we be more creative?

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