Have you ever felt like a piece of the puzzle was missing from your life?

I was missing a piece of the puzzle in my life! I have been feeling this way my whole life until I discovered Hinduism. Now, when I look back and reflect on my life, I am amazed by my journey of self-transformation, and I am tempted to conclude that I have finally discovered the missing piece of my heart and soul that was missing from my life.

My journey began with growing up in a Christian home where fanatical beliefs about religion were taught. I had general anxiousness and several anxiety attacks practically, my entire life, which continued enervate me. I kept on suffering from tremendous anxiety, resulting in heart palpitations and an overall gripping feeling of fear and distress, which seemed to come out of nowhere and lasted for years.

Witnessing my desperation as well as my struggles to feel better, my family, as well as Church Pastors did their best to support me, which mainly came in the form of “religious counsel”, preaching to me about the devil, the devil, the devil. I would hear constantly, "watch what you do and say because you will open the door for the devil”, “you better not do this and do not do that" etc. Although, in good intention, the unending preaching of doom and gloom exaggerated the problem and made my condition worse.

In my case, religious innuendos only exacerbated my situation, causing feelings of guilt, shame, and depression. To ingrain in one's mind that human suffering can be solved via radical Christian philosophies which include everything is the devil, repent of your sins or burn in hell for eternity, are not only enough to cause psychological damage, but on top of it all, they are also illogical.

Desperate to feel better, I strove to become the “perfect Christian” and during this time I made a daily commitment to keep practicing all my fanatical religious chores, but I realized that life perfect from sin is totally impossible and totally unrealistic. I felt pressured and tried to lead a perfectly impossible Christian lifestyle or be condemned in hell forever.

Feeling unrelenting guilt, of what I viewed nonetheless as insane religious fanaticism, I suffered intensified anxiety attacks and heart palpitations and found myself in the office of a heart specialist undergoing all these heart tests and later clipped to an EKG machine. It was at that moment when I told myself that there was nothing wrong with my heart, if so, only metaphorically, as I needed a heart transplant, a change of religious hearts!

The divine encounter that transformed my life forever.

My life took an unexpected 360-degree turn. Something I never thought possible was about to happen, the beginning of my transformation. None of the radical religious remedies were working, but I was desperate for an antidote. I accidentally bumped into an Indian lady who gave me a little pamphlet on Hinduism. As I was reading it, I felt so connected to the wisdom and the logic.

As I was branching out learning and searching about Indian philosophy and Hinduism, I was in awe to discover as to conceive something like this actually existed. Did the gods of the universe direct me to a path where I was supposed to be? What was happening to me? As I was learning something supposedly esoteric to me, but oddly enough, it felt like home to my soul; I started to feel free, free for the first time in my life.

The real me was slowly coming to the surface that was dormant my whole entire life. A new ‘me’ was emerging; a new and improved me, the real me that has been sleeping my entire life. I started learning all about Indian Philosophies and Hinduism. I was intrigued reading about Lord Krishna and Arjun so I purchased the Bhagavad Gita.

My India journey and freedom-

Now, my journey to India begins. I have always been a world traveler and enjoy traveling to different places around the world. Throughout my life, I have always felt a connection with India, her children, and her beautiful cows, but I didn't know why. It would appear that my transformation with this Indian lady, a reincarnation of sorts, has led me to a place that has always been in my heart and soul. It was a feeling of Deja vu in India.

Not surprisingly, I felt immediately connected and in love with India during my very first visit back in January 2009. Now having visited India numerous times, the impact this beautiful country has had on me is no less awe-inspiring. I keep falling more and more in love with this beautiful country. As for religion, my former Christian beliefs have now been replaced by Indian philosophies and Hinduism, which I personally find very logical and the wisdom has completely transformed me. Such literature and teachings are essential for growth and transformation.

My love for India and her culture may seem obsessive to some, but for me, it is a love affair that continues to grow and grow. All these encounters that came about in my life, I believe, were divinely orchestrated. It was this universal orchestration that was the catalyst that catapulted me into this amazing journey and my life has never been the same. There is no looking back now, I have been reincarnated. I am Hindu in my heart and soul and am proud of it.

Now the most crucial question-Why I am a Hindu?

Being a Hindu allows me to think independently and objectively, without conditioning. I remain as a Hindu never by force, but by choice. I am a Hindu because nobody can threaten me to burn in hell for eternity because how is that love if a person is condemned?

Everything is acceptable in Hinduism, because there is no single authority or organization either to accept it or to reject it or to oppose it on behalf of Hinduism. You can believe in one god and you can be a Hindu. You may believe in multiple deities and still, you can be a Hindu. God is a friend and I am not afraid of God. I cannot be brainwashed into thinking I was born a sinner. This is why I am a Hindu.

Loving each and every creation of God is absolute and real. Nothing exists separate from God, because God is present everywhere.

It is based on the practice of Dharma, the code of life. The most important aspect of Hinduism is being truthful to oneself. Hinduism has no monopoly on ideas, it is open to all. Hindus believe in one God, expressed in different forms, as for them, God is a timeless and formless entity.

I am a Hindu because it doesn’t condition my mind with any faith driven system. I am a Hindu primarily because it professes non-violence and non-violence is the highest duty to humanity. I am a proud Hindu and vegetarian and respect every living being and nonliving things as God. That is why I am a Hindu.