Faith and a righteous path are taken very literally in the idea of living life a certain way for fear that the alternative will lead to condemnation. Quite honestly in our Western world faith is seen as dangerous and wrong and associated with a person who has lost sense of reality. This is not how I have come to understand faith. Faith to me is to remind oneself of time on this planet. I have been born with a great deal of financial and social privilege and I have struggled to find reasons to wake up in the morning. I’ve struggled to find dignity and strength in my daily life and interactions with people. Moments where I am able to reflect on this time on earth and humanity are the moments that I can remember what is and is not worth fighting for in a world that does deliver so much pain and suffering upon us. I have had the fortune of being born into a household that honors all faith. I know that when I put on my sari and bindi and recite Sanskrit shlokas this may be perceived as Hindu nationalist. Quite rightly our symbols of faith can be used to further political interests. They can also be a symbol of our harmful political and social beliefs. The problem is that I have struggled to connect with my roots and I have also struggled to connect with my internal sense of righteous actions. While one can accuse Hindu culture and beliefs as casteist and problematic, I think like the Bible or Qu’ran it would be unfair to say there is no wisdom in these texts that could provide guidance to a person in need of direction and hope. In my practice of Odissi and other South Asian art forms I have found solace and an ability to connect with a sense of self that is true. It’s as Erykah Badu said “if we were made in His image then call us by our name. Most intellects do not believe in God but they fear us just the same.”