I believe in seva or selfless service.
Well, sure, who wouldn't. Selfless service is a way we scrub off karma that might negatively affect spiritual progress. It is a path where we balance our actions and traverse the space between the “now” and the “then” without making the path longer or more difficult.
So much for the technical part, what about my personal feelings about this ..., this seva?
How selfish is that? Which intention has more meaning for my spiritual advancement? Should I perform seva with the idea that this will end the endless cycle of reincarnation? Or is my intention to serve with no thought or reward or praise or even “good feelings” within myself because “I” have done this or that. I have heard Yogiji pray, “Oh God, bless me with service no knows of but me and thee.”
To be honest, the seva that I have been involved in on the crews, getting things prepared for winter or summer solstice has been the perfect reward for that seva.
In fact, it was hardly even work! It was a joy ... because of the people I worked with (99% saintly)... the work I did (100% good for everyone) ... the benefits to others like clean bathrooms, working showers, a pristine tantric shelter, well, that goes without saying, everyone benefits.
I remember when Yogiji walked by the bathroom at his cabin at Lake Winona (The old Winter Solstice site near DeLand, Florida) as another plumber and I were trying desperately to solve a “drainage” problem before he arrived. There was not a smile from him, nor word of praise, just a look that connected at my deepest place. There I was working on something so first chakra, and this saint looked at us and saw some saints. How many brownie points was that worth in the akashic records? That has happened a lot, with many people and in many circumstances. I can honestly say I have gotten more out of such seva than I have put into it. So is it really seva if I have benefited more from “my” seva than the people I was serving?
How do I get to the place where my service is actually selfless? How do I get the “self” out of the service. The solution for me was that I had to find a away to make this seva something of an effort. Selfless seva implies sacrifice. I had to make a sacrifice in order to serve. And so, the last few years when I was working on the Summer Solstice crew not only did I do the work but I also paid for the privilege of doing so. The full price of solstice tuition was really nothing compared to the idea that I was gaining much more from the work I did than I was given. I decided to throw the balance upon the universe to find equilibrium. In a small way, the money I paid in order to attend solstice where I would work did that.
The last year that I headed the Summer Solstice grounds crew, Yogiji came up to inspect the site. It was an honor to host him, to make sure he had a comfortable chair to sit in, that food was provided (which he directed his staff to eat) and to introduce him to the crew members who were there. He said only a few words to me that day but I felt more than rewarded. I felt as though my job was done not for my benefit or even for his but for the many people who arrived a few days later. They knew only a very few of the crew and for us, for me, that was fine.
In Love and Seva,
Karta Purkh S Khalsa
Karta Purkh Singh Khalsa,
Thank you very much for your calming and steady words during 2008 winter solstice. I was delighted to run across your writings and timly suggestions on this web page. I am working on my 200 word report to send you. do you have an e mail?
Write on!
Jivan Mukta
Posted by: Jivan Mukta | January 02, 2009 at 09:10 AM