Repetition as a Route to Excellence

My diary tells me that I have been lighting lamps for Durga since March 2008 every Tue. It has been 8 months since I started this Tue morning rituals and my how profoundly has this ritual changed me. On the superficial level the act of lighting lamps has become incredibly effortless. When I first started in March I was super irritated with the ghee melting while I lit the tray. The heat generated from a tray full of lighted lamps and the awkwardness in lighting the lamps from a single big Annapachi Lamp and carefully navigating the throng of devotees while ensuring that I don't set fire to my clothes, to myself or to my fellow worshippers. It took me extreme concentration and careful navigation to finish 9 rounds around durga while focussing on my prayer and spiritual goals. Today the situation has remarkably changed. The entire process is seamless and effortless. And I did not even aim for this state of affairs. My goal was not to be the most elegant lamp carrier in the temple. No I had more modest goals - that I can wake up early every morning and get to the temple on time before rushing off to work. But through a consistent practice I reaped so many other rewards including a great friendship with the priests as well as the friend who accompanied me to the temple every morning. Without their support my motivation would have tanked tremendously and I am not sure if I would have continued this ritual. The consistent Tue morning visits to the temple have now become the spiritual highlight of my week. They have also taught me in a very subtle and powerful ways the power of repetition. And repetition as the route to excellence. Just like dance the body, mind and spirit come together harmoniously without any concerted effort to pay homage to a higher power. And to remind you of the power of faith, practice and consistency inevitably leads you to elegant results way beyond your expectations.