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Awareness while doing Seva

More imposing than a mountain is the greatness of a man who,
steadfast in family life, has mastered self-control.
-Tirukkural 13: 123-124

       Having discussed about Seva in detail, we will highlight again  the point that while doing Seva one should be totally be aware of  the expecting nature of the Egoistic mind. At the same time we should pay attention how the Ego behaves under various situations. While doing seva watch the thoughts that arise. Negatives thoughts of the Ego that expresses as anger, pride, Jealousy, hatred, are easily observed when  selfless seva is performed with awareness. Through awareness one gains control over the negative qualities over time.  This mind watching or thoughts watching is the objective  of meditation.

        Awareness of our negative qualities are easy to be watched while practicing  Seva in family. Not only  family members can be more understanding and can also forgive and forget mistakes, but also has in fact remind us to be aware of it. Family life becomes enjoyable when members including children have an outlook of doing seva at home as a means of  transcending the Ego. Whenever confusion comes in taking steps in life, always focus on duties and not likes and dislikes.

       When we perform duties with the attitude of not thinking of any selfish rewards, but as an obligation, as a contribution to life — that spirit will develop an inner detachment. This detachment according to Bhagavad Gita means detaching from the mind, ego state to the awareness state.

        Attachment arises when we only act for our own selfish requirements, our position, and so on. When we think of our duties towards our family, our society, our religious life, we do not become self-centered, but start to think more about others, trying to do things for others; that is what is called seva — selfless service. Through the spirit of selfless service we become detached and our mind becomes purified.

      Thus Seva becomes one of the important means for inner purification. Now let us go to other advanced space therapy techniques.

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    Seva or Selfless Service

Selfless service is the inner expansion of the outer ritualistic worship

       Spiritual traditions emphasize on doing selfless service because it is the inner expansion of the outer ritualistic worship. In ritualistic worship an individual focuses or identifies the un-limited or unconditional Pure Consciousness in the limited conditioned form of an object, like an idol or a symbolic image. This is the basic logic of idol worship.

         Next stage of inner evolution occurs when the individual identifies the same un-limited or unconditional Pure Consciousness in all the  limited conditioned forms that appears as insentient objects,  microbes, plants, animals, birds and fellow human beings. In ritualistic worship an individual expresses "Love" towards one object, which expands to all other objects that he encounters. Without this expansion one's inner growth gets retarded.

         Without Seva or selfless service an individual remains  stuck with the outer ritualistic worship. For example, if some one gives fruits or milk that was meant for a ritualistic worship,  to a hungry person, is a sign of seeing pure Consciousness or God in another individual. Not seeing the same Consciousness in any thing other us is immaturity.

       Vedic culture especially is ingrained with the concept of respecting or identifying equally all sentient and insentient beings. When some one feet accidentally happens to step on or hit a living object or even any non-living being does the gesture of touching the object  and place the hand on head or chest. This act is a symbolic gesture of treating every thing as once own self.

        Core of Selfless service is the sharing attitude because one does not differentiate oneself from other. Seeing oneself in others is the sign of inner growth that is the basic principle of Selfless service. This expansion of seeing oneself with others occurs first at the body level, then at the mind level, the intellect level and finally at the awareness level. This give rises to different types or kinds of selfless service that we see around.

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 Worship Rituals leads to Awareness

       We have understood the purpose of prayer and we shall discuss briefly about the worship rituals and its intention. As we discussed in the earlier sections that seclusion helps a kid to focus in studying the lessons by preventing distracting thoughts in the mind. A spiritual place of worship is also meant for the very same environment that would be less distracting for the mind, so that it will be available for transcending.

       It is an irony that generally people would carry their worried mind to the place of worship and continue in that state in a temple or church. In spite of that, people do find peace and relief because they pour out their grief and transcend to the state of awareness for a fraction of a second. This transcendence for a milli-second gives immense peace of mind for a person whose mind can transcend in a place of worship. The same place of worship may not bring the same effect to another person because the other person may belong to another religious belief system and so his or her mind might have distracting thoughts of the out of place and hence mind does not transcend.

      Not knowing this truth is the cause for all religious wars and fanaticism which we will discuss later. The important point is that rituals or mode of worship should lead to the awareness state. The place or ritual should help in less distraction for the mind. By the way here we do not mean by physical silence. Contrary is true because sounds of bells , prayers, songs, chanting, instrumental music drum beatings etc lead the distracting mind to the state of awareness. (we will discuss this later in more detail).

     One such ritualistic chanting is "Kandhar shashti kavacham",  a very powerful Tamil chanting which is a healing song towards the healing God Lord Muruga. Muruga is the  personification of Wisdom (Gnana). The song evokes positive attitude and helps to witness every parts of the body and relating the body to the image of the powerful weapons of the Lord. This imagery and visualization helps finally transcending to the awareness state. Healing occurs in these instances not because the flow of grace in the form of light comes from any where out, but from within,  the pure state of Awareness.

      In most spiritual traditions including the Vedic culture, the ritualistic worship has to mature into Selfless service or Seva. Without this growth in worship an individual does not progress in healing of the outer body nor  in the inner Spiritual body.

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 Positive Statements 

        The mind out of habits wanders and  sometimes even while doing things with awareness, the mind slips into wandering nature and day dreaming. To prevent that positive statements are used. All spiritual traditions have positive statements which either are short or longer verses. In Vedic traditions the shorter positive statements are called "Mantras" and longer ones, prayers.

        Some of the powerful Mantras or Positive statements that can be chanted throughout the day silently when we fell that the mind is restless, agitated and wanders. While doing any work, if these Mantra or positive statements are chanted silently or loudly (better make sure some one around is not disturbed by your loud chanting) the mind tend to stay in the present and wanders less. In practice we find that chanting the Mantra, makes us to bring back the wandering mind.

Some Mantras from Spiritual Traditions.

Vedic Tradition

Ram....Ram.....Ram ..

Krishna....Krishna .....Krishna...

Sri Rama jeyam

Om Shivaya Namaha

Ammae Naarayana, Devi Narayana Badre Narayana, Lashmi Narayana.

Jewish Tradition

Barauh Atoi adonai

Buddhist Tradition

Om Mani Padme Hum

Christian Tradition

Holy father

Jesus Is love

Islam Tradition

Allahu Akbar

Mantras:
      These positive statements help the mind transcend to Awareness, which then culminate in healing diseases too.  One could pick up any of the above Mantras  according to one's own spiritual tradition. In Vedic Tradition usually a spiritual master (Guru) initiates the Mantra.

   Let us now understand how rituals done along with prayers helps in healing.