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"When the Rajasuya yaga was being performed, Krishna came and asked
Dharmaraja to allot some work for him. Dharmaraja turned to Krishna
and said that there was no work appropriate to Krishna and that if
Krishna can himself indicate what work was suitable to him, that will
surly be allotted to him. Krishna went close to Dharmaraja, patted him
on the back and said that he has a special qualification and that he
would like to do work appropriate for his qualification. Dharmaraja
could not make anything out of this. So Dharmaraja asked Krishna to
tell him what his special was so that he can find suitable work for
Krishna. He said that he was fit for removing leaves in which people
ate their food and which have been once used. Because after people eat
their food in the leaves, they become somewhat unclean, and if those
leaves are not removed they create some dislike in the minds of
people. Krishna therefore took up this work so that He can give
pleasure and good feeling to people." |
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"With a heart bubbling with bliss and a mind saturated with Love do
any bit of selfless Seva. Do Seva wherever you are. Seek chances of
helping others. Never lose an opportunity if using your skills and
enthusiasm for the allevation of sorrow, pain or distress." |
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| "Service done in
Homes for the disabled, the defectives, the feeble minded, the
delinquents, the orphans, the refugees is indeed very beneficial and
a good spiritual discipline. So too, in jails and hospitals. Visit
these places often, give solace and strength; light lamp of devotion
in the inmates. Do Bhajan; help them to write to their homes, give
them books for reading or read books for them, be the kith and kin of
those who have none whom they call their own. Your smile will be a
lighted candle in their darkness." |
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| "I am Love and you
should hold on to Love as your method of Seva. Soft speech reaches the
heart quicker and deeper. Reveal in gentle words the reason why you do
not allow certain things to be done or you require certain other
things to be done. Win the willing cooperation of people, not their
resentful acquiescence. Do not rely on harsh behaviour, or violent
means." |
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| "Spread joy at all
times, carry a smile on your face so that every one who sees you can
catch the exhilaration." |
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| "In seva there can
be no high and low, for Sai is in all. Sai receives your seva, to
whomsoever you may offer it." |
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| "If you are used to a soft life, you are
useless, as a volunteer , or For anything else." |
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| "Whatever you do,
wherever you are, remember that I am with you; that will save you from
conceit and error. That will make you Seva worthy of the people you
serve." |
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| "Some amongst you
have been selected as leaders and guides; carry out their instructions
without demur or dimunition. If you feel any doubt regarding the
propriety or advisability of those instructions, talk to them over
with the leaders alone, in a spirit of friendliness. But do not
disregard or modify those instructions at any cost." |
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"The former
American President Abraham once saved a pig by lifting it out of the
mire in which it was caught, and while doing so his body and clothes
became very dirty. The onlookers asked him why he, the President of
such a vast country, should dirty himself just to save a common pig.
He replied: I got involved in this action not so much to relieve the
suffering of the pig, buy to relieve myself from the suffering I
experienced at the sight of the pig. I did this only for my own piece
of mind! What Lincoln said then is the practical truth of the matter.
It is only this self-satisfaction-ones own happiness which is the
hidden motive behind all kinds of selfless acts! This can in no way be
denied. Abraham Lincoln believed that service done with love to man is
service to God. He was unhappy to see Americans making black Negroes
work as slaves. He therefore fought with his own countrymen to stop
this slavery and, atlast, won freedom for them. The Negroes and even
many Americans, therefore, used to say ,
God in heaven and Abraham Lincoln on earth, we have only these two
to look after us" |
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| "They are among you
both lawyers and doctors. These can go into the slum areas, and meet
the dwellers therein and administer medical and legal help. Or, they
can go into some villages and help them with medical and legal
advise." |
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| "The Lord too, will
provide many tests to ensure that your faith is made firm, and that
your spirit of seva is full and universal. The weaker practitioners of
this seva spiritual discipline will soon be shaken by these tests;
they stray away from the right path, they lose their grip over
themselves, and so, the enemies that lie in wait to foil their
spiritual discipline namely the gang of six: lust, anger, greed,
delusion, pride and hatred." |
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| "Service brings you
nearer to Me; the flower that is your heart gets fragrance by means of
the Service you do, and so it becomes more acceptable to Me. Love is
the essence of that fragrance." |
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| "He who feeds one
hungry man is worthier far than he who discourses on God and Heaven
and Truth and Sin for a hundred years." |
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| "Do not keep
yourself apart, working on your own salvation through meditation. Move
among your sisters looking for opportunities to help, with the Name
(of God) on the tongue and the Form before the eye of the mind." |
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| "Service is
effective only when 'I and mine' are replaced by 'God and God's'." |
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| "Consider service
as the best spiritual discipline (Sadhana), but do not believe that
you can reform or reshape the world." |
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