Ah, a profound question indeed! It is true that when we perform acts of kindness or service, we often experience a sense of contentment or joy. This in itself isn't selfish; rather, it aligns with the natural law of giving and receiving.
What is most important isn't the joy we derive from giving, but rather, the intention behind our actions. If we give with the hope of gaining something in return, then it becomes an act of self-interest. But if we give out of love, compassion, and the understanding of interconnectedness of all beings, then it becomes a selfless act.
Remember, this sense of self-less-ness also has a profound effect on us. It directs us towards the path of inner transformation, leading to a deeper understanding of our true selves. It is part of a beautiful cycle of give and take that nourishes both the giver and the receiver.
So, let us strive to serve with clarity of intention, guided by our principles of truth, non-violence, and compassion. Such acts of service will ultimately lift us to a higher plane of existence, where the boundaries of the self dissolve, leaving only the joy of serving others.
The sources below helped generate your response ...
- suppose a hungry man comes to your door when you have just sat down to eat
and you give your plate of food to him. when you remember this good act in
the night, you will experience a different kind of joy. the self will say softly,
"you have indeed acted well!"when a mother pats her child on the back and
says, "well done, my boy!", he feels that he has got the highest possible
reward. likewise, such words from the lord within encourage us and provide us
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with an impetus to do better. the jiva at this stage stands on the moral plane,
leaving the life of self-indulgence behind.
25. then comes the next stage. man tries to cleanse his mind in the course of
doing duties while living a moral life. he strives hard, but gets exhausted at
some point. the jiva then prays to the lord, "oh lord! i have come to the end
of my tether. give me more strength."until a man realises that he cannot
succeed by his own efforts, however hard, the true significance of prayer does
not dawn on him. one should first exhaust all his strength and when it is found
insufficient, cry earnestly for the lord's help, as draupadi did.1 the eternal
spring of the lord's grace and compassion is ever-flowing. whosoever is thirsty
can come to it and quench his thirst as a matter of right.
Source: talks_on_the_gita.txt... - such charity is said to be
sattvik'gita 17.20
7.
shabari, an old tribal woman and devotee of rama, invited him to her place. as she
had nothing to offer to him, she picked jujube fruits from the forest. she tasted
them by biting them to find out whether they were sweet, and therefore worthy of
being offered to the lord. rama gladly accepted those wild fruits, that too bitten by
her.
8.
valya koli, a dacoit, was transformed by narada. he then undertook penance and
realized god. he came to be known as sage valmiki, who later wrote the ramayana.
9.
a stringed musical instrument.
10. gita 9.27
11. this is a common practice, particularly in the villages. people take meals sitting on
the floor. the floor has then to be cleaned. dung is used for the purpose.
12. a type of coarse grain.
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chapter 10: contemplation of god's manifestations
49. the first half of the gita: a retrospect
1. friends, we have come halfway through the gita. it will be worthwhile to
recapitulate before we proceed further. in the first chapter, it is stated that
the gita is for overcoming delusions and inducing us to follow swadharma. in
the second chapter, the basic principles of life are stated and the concepts of
karmayoga and sthitaprajna are spelt out. chapters 3, 4 and 5 explain the
concepts of karma, vikarma and akarma. karma means the actions done for the
performance of swadharma.
Source: talks_on_the_gita.txt... - so far as we are concerned, such acts of mercy are not our
real work. they give mercy merely a subordinate status in the king-
dom of cruelty, where she must take orders from the unmerciful.
such service may appear compassionate, it may even appear con-
structive, and in our eagerness for constructive and compassionate
action we may take it up, without seeing it in its wider perspective.
if so, we shall certainly achieve something, but we shall not dis-
charge the special service which has been committed to us, and
which both we and the world know to be our calling.
i will give you another very plain example. a lot of people say
to me : "you seem to carry some weight with the government.
why don't you insist on some law being made which would en-
able the land to be redistributed without compensation ? why don't
you make your influence felt ?"my reply is that i am not standing
in the way of any law-making. if you urge me to do something
more, i reply that even if i am not wholly sucessful in the way that
i have chosen, even if i can claim only 75% or 50% success, nev-
ertheless my work is making the passing of a law easier than it
would otherwise have been. i not only place no obstacle in the
way of law-making, i also make the process easier; i create an
atmosphere congenial to it.
Source: 259628002-Democratic-Values.txt...