“Success requires actions without selfish motives. It’s like bullock cart. You must engage yourself in performing your duty like bullock and then the success will continuously follow you like the cart. Your devotion to selfless service is only ammunition in your hand to free from the bondage of selfish motives. ”
—Bhagavad Gita 3.07Don't ever forget.
These men and women put there lives on the line for us, so that we can go about our days knowing that we’re safe. We spend more time honoring celebrities you do stupid stuff, and not enough for those over seas and in our home land making our country safe. Keep the memory of these men and women alive, and please remember. Don’t ever forget.
“It is not the critic who counts: not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs and comes up short again and again, because there is no effort without error or shortcoming, but who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, who spends himself for a worthy cause; who, at the best, knows, in the end, the triumph of high achievement, and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who knew neither victory nor defeat.”
—
Theodore Roosevelt
“You have the right to work but never to the fruit of work. You should never engagein actions for the sake of reward nor should you long for inaction. When your mind has overcome the confusion of duality, you will obtain the state of holy indifference to things you hear and things you have heard.”
—Bhagavad Gita
“Today is the birthday of Father Damien, born Joseph de Veuster in Tremelo, Belgium (1840). He served the leper colony on the Hawaiian island of Molokai. At that time, victims were dumped off the boat in the shallows because the captains were terrified to go ashore. Doctors left medicine on the beach and fled. Damien, however, dressed the wounds of his patients himself, ate with them, and buried them when they died. He erected six chapels and two orphanages, built beds, made coffins, and dug graves. Eventually, he developed the illness himself, and he died on the island. He said: "I would not be cured if the price of the cure was that I must leave the island and give up my work. I am perfectly resigned to my lot. Do not feel sorry for me.”
—http://writersalmanac.publicradio.org/index.php?date=2013/01/03Untitled No. 897
Leader.
That is what they call me.
Most days I drag myself out of bed,
and pretend I know what I am doing.
I don’t.
Loyalty.
I used to think you knew what that meant.
Now I am not even sure I believed in you,
to give me the shirt of your back.
Please, prove me wrong.
Duty.
Waking up each morning, with a purpose.
I think I have one, take pen to paper.
At the very least, breath in and out.
From point A to B.
Respect.
I try to give it to you.
But I never feel as if it is mutual.
I will continue to show you: you are human.
The Moral High Ground.
Self-less service.
I have needs too.
But sometimes it makes more sense,
to put yours first. They may call it,
Love?
Honor.
I try to fight for what is right.
Your scars are my scars.
But sometimes this cross
is too heavy.
Integrity.
I put so many lies on paper.
I tend to believe my own bull shit.
It is easer to say: You are just a friend.
than submit to truth.
Personal Courage.
Never knowing what to say.
I speak up anyway a stuttering reck.
You make me want to make sense.
Most days I wing it.
Seva - Selfless Service
Seva is one of the most satisfying and humbling moments in one’s life. When you learn to give, you learn to live. Whether it is your time, knowledge, or money – give generously, give whole heartedly, give with love, give without conditions. This is a true seva.
Some seva speaks to you, such as Craig Kielburger’s seva. When he was twelve, a seva appeared to him as he was browsing the newspaper to get to the comic section. Instead, he read an article about the child labour on an incident that took place in South Asia. Craig Kielburger’s soul spoke to him and the rest is history. He founded Free the Children.
Education is a fundamental progression in a person’s life. It gives you freedom from your material life and to your well being. But during this freedom, many times we get driven by money only. A seva to give your time and knowledge will put you in a balanced state. For example; a doctor can visit slums in India or Africa and help mothers understand the importance of hygiene. This can save or improve lives.
There are endless sevas that can be done, even a one time seva such as a blood donor, visiting seniors at a hospice, walking a dog, or donating the food bank.
We see many rich and famous balance their lives with a seva. With money comes ego, which can break you eventually. Therefore, balancing a life with a seva keeps you humble. A great example is a bollywood actor
What is your seva? What is your purpose? Speak to your inner self. Your heart will answer. Find the fine balance between Din & Duniya, Spiritual & Worldly, life. You are destined to find your purpose. Your balance. Do that seva with big heart, love, without ego, without asking anything in return. Just give; whether it is your time, your knowledge, your money or your wisdom.
Seva will bring you a humble balance and it will last with you until your last breath and beyond.
Some of the links that may interest you:
- Craig Kielburger www.freethechildren.com
- Being Human: Salman Khan foundation www.beinghumanonline.com
- Bill & Melinda Gates foundation www.gatesfoundation.org
- Khan Academy www.khanacademy.org
- Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls www.owla.co.za
- Terry Fox foundation www.terryfox.org
- Mother Teresa image source http://schools.pvnccdsb.on.ca/mothe16/mtbio.html
Amma Sri Karunamayi
Over the weekend I had an astral visit from Amma Sri Karunamayi. She wasn’t the only saint to visit me in my dreams this week, but she performed a service that apparently I needed.
I was walking outside (don’t know where). A stranger walks up behind me and taps me on my right shoulder. I turn around and its Karunamayi! She waves hello and I smile. She asks, “What has been blocking your clairvoyance?” I reply, “I don’t know.” Suddenly she touches my third eye and we are whisked away to a different setting. Now we are sitting on a big red silk pillow. She reaches into a bag, and begins to pull out her puja set. “How about a Ganesh puja?” she comments. As she retrieves her tools from the bag they are animated with a life of their own and pop out as if in a cartoon. There where several miniature wooden Ganeshas dancing all around as Karunamayi chanted and prayed over me. I just sat in disbelief. Did I ask for this? I welcome it, but what made her want to do it?
Needless to say, Goddess Lakshmi appeared as well. She was in a miniature form made from metal. There was so much happiness emanating from the Deities and Karunamayi who was acting as pujari. The visit ending by my daughter eating the wooden Ganeshas! She is teething and puts everything in her mouth, lol.
Amma Sri Karunamayi (www.karunamayi.com)
So as usual, my guides and angels will give me a confirmation to quell any doubts that I was imagining the whole thing. Usually whenever I encounter an enlightened or holy being within the inner planes there is an outer manifestation of it. In my case, I usually am put into some sort of service to perform a selfless act.
Today, I was in the basement cuddling Vajra. She kept pointing to the corner behind us. I turned around didn’t see anything, but she insisted that I look again. This time I turned around and saw a figure dressed in white walking towards us. I couldn’t make a face out, and although it was non-threatening I decided that me and the baby should leave the room. She is so pure right now and believes that everyone is as nice as mommy. What she sees she thinks I see. How I behave she may do the same. This instance I chose to ignore the sighting, but maybe once I get more used to using my re-awakened gift of clairvoyance I will be able to teach her the difference betwee 3D reality and the veil between the dimensions. Later in the evening I was made aware that the ‘sighting’ I had in the basement was the Goddess Yemaya. That didn’t exite me, cause I figured it would be a matter of time before the dead started to show up. Now, I have already addressed this and signed up for a Mediumship class. It starts on Wednesday, right after our swim lessons.
Onto the selfless act…. So right after dinner my husband gets a phone call from his sister-in-law. She was talking about his other brother’s ‘baby mama’ and her drama. After he got her the phone with her he asked me if his (about to be 14 year old) nephew could come live with us. Whoa! I enjoy the company of saints, but why am I always asked to act like one? I’ve made my decision and if the boy’s mother agrees to my terms I will be adopting a son.
