Swami’s address to three ‘Guidance Camps’ organised for the State Level office bearers of the Organisations in India at Prasanthi Nilayam between 1988 and 1990

1. Seva refines and perfects a human being and unfolds the faculties of his mind and intellect.Seva, which provides opportunities to express one’s human qualities, ultimately leads one to the experience of the Divine. It is the highest form of Sadhana to cross the ocean of samsara and is superior to pilgrimage or penance or study of scriptures. The world does not need your seva and it does not come to an end without it. You have to render seva for your own emancipation. Further, if you say that you are serving the society, then the feeling arises that you are separate from the society leading to the attendant problems of ego that you are benefiting the society with your services. Therefore, it is absolutely essential to understand that you are not separate from the society, and that whatever you do to the society, you are doing it to yourselves. You are doing seva only for ‘Atmatripti’ or the satisfaction of the self.

1. Practise in all your activities the five Ds – Dedication,Devotion,Discipline, Discrimination and Determination – which constitute the five pranas, the five live forces, of seva to mankind.

1. What needs to be dedicated in doing any work is the ‘ego’, since it comes in the way of the proper use of one’s intellect. There are eight types of pride – the ashta madas – which nourish and sustain the ego. They are related to one’s education, caste,religion, wealth, power and position, physical beauty, youth and scholarship.

1. True devotion is propitiation of the all – pervasive Divinity through seva. Devotion does not mean merely worship, chanting and meditation. Devotion should lead to effacement of the ego.

1. Discipline should be an integral part of your lives. It is impossible to do any work without adherence to discipline. The entire nature is bound by discipline. In your spiritual practices and in the organization, rules and regulations should be observed uniformly with discipline in all the States. Your disciplined behaviour should attract people to our organizations.

1. Your discrimination between good and bad, or right and wrong, or beneficial and harmful, should be based on your conscience and not on your mind. Conscience comes from consciousness which is all pervasive. When your discrimination is based on your conscience, it will provide you right answers when you are in doubt. All work is done through the body-senses-mind-intellect complex, which is known as the ‘conscious’. It is essential to make the ‘conscience’ direct the ‘conscious’ in the performance of all the activities.

1. Discrimination based on your conscience will grant you self-confidence, which in turn leads you to self –satisfaction. But if one has to cultivate self-sacrifice, determination is a must. Only self – sacrifice can take you to the goal of self – realization. The five D’s are interrelated and complementary to one another; their practice can transform the human to the Divine.

1. Unity and harmonious effort are basic requirements of seva. Every Sevak should have three virtues – determination to achieve the objective, unconditional love and freedom from the ego.

1. Spirituality should be the basis of all your activities. You have to note that it is spirituality and not religion. Spirituality is the common core of all religions. When you practise spirituality, you derive divine strength. Love for God is the foundation of spirituality.

1. You should consider Sai Organisation as your own. The work of the organization should become as important as your personal work. The opportunity to serve in these organizations has been secured by you by merit earned in several lives. It is your birthright to serve through this organization and become ideals for others in the society.

1. There should be mutual respect among the members of the organization. The office – bearers should not consider themselves superior to others. In fact, all are active workers. Everyone must work according to one’s ability, expertise and suitability. You must continue to love the organization, whether you remain an office – bearer or not. Do not aspire to become a leader, but become a true servant. Only service will confer on you the authority to lead.

1. Lakhs of devotees come to Prasanthi Nilayam but they feel that they are separate from the organization. All the office – bearers and members of the organizations should strive to make it possible for all the devotees to join the organizations and participate in their activities. Our organization is a worldwide family. Everyone has the right to partake of the bliss that is being showered by God. Welcome everyone into the fold of the organization.

1. It is not necessary to do service on a large scale; what is more important is the purity of though and heart in all that we do. Service should be undertaken keeping in mind the circumstances and availability of resources.

1. Peace is not a gift fromGod; it depends on your thoughts and actions. When your heart is filled with love for all, you enjoy peace. Therefore, love all and serve all.

1. The individual transformation is the key to the transformation of the world. If man becomes good and ideal, the world will become happy and prosperous. Mere economic and social change without spiritual transformation will not bring happiness to society. Therefore, the Sai organizations should have spiritual transformation as their ultimate goal and they should strive for changing the hearts of the people.

1. Sacrifice is absolutely essential to bring about the change of heart. Such sacrifice will confer on you happiness and bliss. What should be sacrificed are not property, belongings and money, but desire, anger and greed; because desire destroys devotion, anger destroys wisdom and greed destroys one’s work.

1. What is needed is not prachar (propaganda), but achar (practice) of values. Only when we do what we say will there be the desired impact on the society. Devotion to God should be firmly established inside before one tries to progate it outside. Otherwise, it will lead to al kinds of perverted results. The world is watching the activities of the organization very keenly. Hence it is absolutely essential for the members of the organization to behave properly both in their public and private lives.

1. There should be clear and proper communication among all the wings and all the members of the organization from the top to the bottom. There should be continual mutual consultations for improving the quality of service. Service is the summum bonum of the organizations. You can experience divine bliss through selfless and loving service.

1. The service that you render through the organizations will secure for you the love of the Divine which will confer on you three benefits – fearlessness, selflessness and pure love for one and all.

1. Sai does not need any service from you. His mission will go on whether you do any service or not. I will not gain anything by your service or I will not lose anything if you do not do any service. The loss and gain are only for you. What you gain by your participation in the mission is divine grace, joy and delight. Do not lose the great opportunity that has come your way. Sanctify your lives through your dedicated service. (SSSm Vol.6, pp. 326-331)