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Seva, a two way street January 15, 2013: “Seva” is a selfless service for the betterment of the community and with the intent to aid those in need. We wake up every morning, thinking about what we should wear, eat, and do… though we don’t necessarily have malicious intentions, we might not exactly set out every day to do good for the world. On a regular day, it’s not likely that we spend much time reflecting. I mean, how many times do we think back and just step in the shoes of our Shaheeds (Sikh Martyrs) and think about the Seva they did… for their faith, for their Panth, for us? Let’s take a minute to just think about those sacrifices they made. If their sacrifices were not made, we would not be the Sikhs we are today. In fact, we might not even exist. When we think about Seva these days, we might picture ourselves helping out at Gurudwara, volunteering at a local hospital, tutoring kids, or something of that sort. Most of these actions, though, tend to benefit us in some way as well.
But how many times do we actually do real Seva? That is, truly selfless service, from the heart without thinking of what we might receive in return? It seems to me that 9 out of 10 times we do not think in that aspect. Now let’s think back to our Shaheeds. What was it that they got out of their Seva? Did they know that their deeds and sacrifices would be remembered by the entire Sikh Panth in Ardaas? Did they seek that fame? Power? Credit? Waheguru. They sought Waheguru in return. They sought to unite themselves with their Creator – they sought something greater than themselves; they sought something for their soul, not for their ego. Our Shaheeds lived their life in a certain detachment. Away from the world, yet so passionately within it. You might ask, if they were so detached, why did they care so much about justice, faith, religion…? Well, our Shaheeds were attached to one thing: Waheguru. And when that love for him was manifested inside themselves, they could feel that presence of Waheguru within everyone surrouding them. Once that love for Waheguru can be established, one is able to conduct true Seva – that which is in service to the One Himself. By serving humanity, and by serving the Sikh Panth, with their lives, our Shaheeds exemplified selfless service. They taught us not only how to die, but how to live! So, how can this love be established? Guru Sahib tells us: establish the relationship with Waheguru through Bani from the Guru Granth Sahib Ji. As we read, we come to understand what our Guru has told us to follow. No one is perfect; no one can establish that love in a day and in fact, some may never develop it. But the choice is ours to try. The choice is ours, which direction will we walk in? To go on the path that Guru Sahib laid out for us is difficult, sharper than a sword & thinner than a strand of hair… it will require patience and dedication. But then we may look at the alternative; other paths may lead us no where at all. Slowly understanding what our Gurus are really trying to tell us is the first step… perhaps by developing a relationship with Guru Sahib, we can try to catch just a glimpse of what our Shaheeds felt. Maybe we can catch just a glimpse of their love, their faith, their strength. Just maybe. -theweakWILLrise Harmeet Kaur and Baneet Singh |
Sometimes the volunteer work looks good on our resume…sometimes we hope to have our sins washed away by serving Langar in Guru Ghar. I think it’s safe to say that pretty much all of us have been through this and we’ve sought some sort of good or benefit in return for our “Seva”.