Travel + Leisure - India & South Asia
THE GIFT OF WISDOM
An ardent advocate of kindness, Om Swami has founded a digital platform that seeks to help millions find peace and purpose, one click at a time.
ONCE IN A WHILE, right before you slip into slumber, an existential question crops up—is there more to life than the daily grind? You take to social media to escape that nagging feeling. By the time you pull yourself out of the rabbit hole, it’s way past bedtime and you are filled with guilt. And maybe hurt by the comments of online trolls.
According to a 2019 PEW report, millennials are drifting away from religion but are embracing spirituality. But where do you go for spiritual growth in the digital age?
This question led Om Swami, an Indian spiritual leader, to develop OS.ME.
“It is a digital start-up that offers to help people grow materially and spiritually,” says Swami, who renounced all things worldly about a decade and a half ago.
Back then, all of 25, he gave up his multi-million-dollar IT business, headquartered in Australia, in pursuit of answers to the big questions of life. “I was looking for a more wholesome life. Something that went beyond just making more money and fulfilling ever-increasing desires.
Doing something for others, I realised, is what truly made me happy, and I thought it’d be worthwhile to dedicate myself to that cause on a full-time basis,” says the spiritual leader who has written 15 books.
His start-up combines the power of technology and writing to drive people towards their truth step-bystep. “OS.ME is a safe space where people come and share their spiritual journey and get to learn from the masters,” he shares.
Until 2020, OS.ME was a platform where only Swami shared his thoughts and wisdom. Today, his company is making waves with a write and earn programme. So, what motivated him to open up the platform for members? “Many took to the online world during the lockdown, and I wanted to give them a positive and productive reason to be there,” says Swami, who continues to write on the platform twice a month.
Amid the doom and gloom of a pandemic, how does one practise a positive mindset? “Invest your energy in something creative; care about something; find what matters to you; meditate on impermanence. You are the only constant in your life, and seeking external approval is a perilous road; practise compassion and gratitude; have a routine,” says Swami, adding that doing a random act of kindness is a road to “near-constant bliss”. He is an ardent advocate of kindness in daily life. “Whatever you give, grows. You share what you have, and you grow as a person. Kindness helps you evolve like no other spiritual practice does.”
While kindness is one way to stay healthy, he has other sound habits to recommend: “Ideally, have your last meal of the day no later than sunset. Avoid dairy, simple carbohydrates, and processed foods. Listen to your body and eat accordingly. Always eat less than your appetite. Exercise is something you make time for. Build your day around this most important activity. Meditate and empty your mind routinely to shed emotional baggage.”
As we work remotely to continue our pursuit of material goals, Swami’s words are a good reminder to also work towards holistic wellbeing and peace of mind.