Serving the Master
I have been very fortunate in accompanying Master on some of his travels. Wherever I have gone, I have noticed the eagerness which abhyasis have shown in serving the Master. The eagerness is generally so overpowering that a scramble frequently ensues among the abhyasis, each one striving his best to be the one to serve the Master. It is a common sight to see one abhyasi trying to help Master get out of his chair, while another abhyasi anxiously looks for his slippers. A third one is ready with Master's walking stick, while a fourth may be holding out a towel or napkin. All are eager and anxious that Master should accept the personal service so proffered. And surrounding the few happy ones who have managed to grab something with which to serve him, are the disappointed many who could not take timely action. This I have seen repeated again and again, wherever I have gone with Master.
Is Master happy with the services of the abhyasis so eagerly and anxiously offered? Some times yes, but often no. I have no doubt that Master is happy to see the idea of service developing in the minds of abhyasis. Nevertheless, one reason why he may not be happy is that few abhyasis, if any, take the trouble of finding out what exactly he wants. The wrong sort of service is offered. This generally comes about because we are anxious to serve the Master not for his own sake but for the sake of the pleasure it affords us. In thus trying to serve him, we generally hinder him or obstruct him. So the first thing that one wishing to serve him sincerely must do is to try to ascertain his needs and wishes, and then act appropriately. It is the rare abhyasi who seems to be able to sense the need of the Master and to offer him a glass of water, or a pillow to rest upon, without being asked for it. When this is accepted, all the others look on unhappy that they did not think of doing so. What is the secret in such cases? The secret is not to 'think' of what Master needs, but to intuitively feel it and act to fulfil that need. Love for the Master, a totally absorbing love for him alone seems to make this sort of intuition possible. Thus, only an abhyasi who loves the Master can really serve him. The others can only try to guess what he wants or needs and generally end up by obstructing him, and causing annoyance and displeasure to all.
It is easier to get from the Master through service than through devotion, love. Who knows what is devotion? Who knows what is love? I have said again and again, love is not so easy as we think. It is something which we have to achieve. So, it is easier through service. My Master was able to love his Master, and he never looked at another person, that is what he has written. But I don't have that ability, so I got through service. So what is the difference? Service is easier than loving, loving is a very difficult thing. Service is very easy. Put your heart and serve somebody, you automatically get his love and his obligation to you, and he has to give you whatever he has to give you. But we should not serve with the idea of getting something, that is one important thing. Then we become servants and we get only what a servant gets.
Master too serves, but only his Master: When we are devoted we must serve, and if we serve, it must be with devotion. I think this can be seen from my Master's life. I think he was at the summit of devotion to his Master, but that did not prevent him from becoming totally service-oriented towards humanity. So in him, we find that fusion of devotion, total devotion with total dedication to service. The only difference I can find is that both Martha and Mary are towards Christ. But when eventually, we are able to fuse the two attitudes into one, the devotion is towards the higher and the service pointed down towards those who need it. But it is not really a difference, because even though he serves humanity, it is his Master that he serves.
So when this fusion happens, the devotion for the Master makes us serve the Master by serving his devotees. To serve the Master is all right, but if the Master prefers that you serve his devotees, our devotion must permit that, because it is too easy to say, "I will serve only the Master and nobody else." That is what every dog does, but we have to be a little bit more than that. That is why one who is devoted to the Master, a Mary for instance, must be willing to become a Martha and leave the Master, and even go far away to serve the Master by serving those whom he wants us to serve. Otherwise, we should be like Mary sitting at the Master's feet, or like Martha, sitting in the kitchen. Here, we have to be mentally with the Master, and perhaps physically very very far away, and yet bring about a fusion of the two attitudes. That is, by constant remembrance I am permanently with him, and because of my Master's instructions I am able to serve him by serving those whom he wants to serve, though in time and distance we may be far separated from him.
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