One spiritual master purported that man has the propensity to love, for it is his full nature, as he was created by God, who is love Himself.

Almost all known spiritual traditions have put forward both the concept and reality of the power of love as part of cultivating genuine spirituality. A spiritual practice devoid of love is nothing but an empty shell, a practice that will never bear real fruits.

In Christianity, for example, one of the apostles of Christ, St. Paul, has written the following words for the faithful in Corinth:

If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing. (1 Corinthians 13: 1 – 3)

St. Paul here does not refer to romantic love but to a type of love that is of higher quality: Agape.

Agape is divine love that pervades from the very heart of God, which also emanates from the heart of those who truly love and serve him. It is the type of love that “covers a multitude of sins” (1 Peter 4:8). It is the kind of love that sets no boundaries and eases the wounds of those who have been hurt by the cruelty and injustice of this illusory world.

Seva: The outward manifestation of Agape

One of the greatest spiritual masters that had ever lived, Master Jesus (also known as the Christ), has taught that loving God and our neighbor as we love ourselves summarizes all the teachings of the prophets that God has sent (Cf Matthew 22:36 – 40).

Out of that love, Jesus performed miracles for the benefit of those who heard His teachings—the healing of the sick, the resurrection of the dead, and the feeding of the hungry. All of these are the outward manifestations of God’s love that dwells in Him as the “Son of Man.” It is through love, especially for the poor and the neglected, that he began His teaching and healing ministries.

In Hinduism, there is seva—selfless service. Seva is a means to uplift the suffering of those who suffer. It is a form of puja, worshipping God through compassionate service to the poor and the needy.

During Seva, we are not seeing the poor, the homeless, the sick, or the hungry. We see God who shares the suffering of those who suffer from physical or mental afflictions caused by the imbalance of the spirit of the material world. We do not do Seva because of the merit that we will receive— “heavenly points” as some people call it. We do it because we are devotees of God, and God is living within us. It is for His glory, not ours.

As the Bhavagad Gīta said:

labhante brahma-nirvāṇam

ṛṣayaḥ kṣīṇa-kalmaṣāḥ

chinna-dvaidhā yatātmānaḥ

sarva-bhūta-hite ratāḥ

Those who are beyond the dualities that arise from doubts, whose minds are engaged within, who are always busy working for the welfare of all living beings and who are free from all sins achieve liberation in the Supreme. (5.25)

Seva without attachment is the true Seva; it is the performance of our divine duty to the Divine and the Self, the latter being the same image and substance of the Divine living within and without.

Moreover, Seva is also the way that we can help others feel the love of God. It is through us that the Love of God is manifested, bringing forth the fountain, or more aptly, the ocean, of His Mercy and Love.

Seva is one of the strong pillars of Sangkamalayan and the proof of true religion

Sangkamalayan Circle was established on the spirit of Seva.

As a spiritual and social organization, Sangkamalayan desires to embody the teachings of the spiritual teachers (Gurus) who emphasized the criticality of Seva as part of spiritual work.

One of those bona fide spiritual teachers is Guru Matha Annai Shree Kriyalakshmi Deviyar, who recently said:

True knowledge comes through Guru guidance, Karma Yoga (compassionate action), and Satsang (spiritual discourses). These are the fires that purify ignorance, revealing the Eternal Light of Truth.

The mind, gifted [to us] by the Divine Mother, can either be tainted with greed or purified with love.

Aligning [it] with God transforms it into a divine instrument, bringing fulfilment and liberation.

Seva is not a mere concept but a concretization of the reality that Divine Love operates and permeates all parts of creation, seen and unseen.

Seva is what makes religion a true union with God.

As the Judeo-Christian scripture puts it:

Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world. (James 1:27, KJV)

He has shown you, O man, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you but to act justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God? (Micah 6:8)

[Photos of Sangkamalayan Seva in Manila, courtesy of Wee-Wee Lucas Conlu, the interim president of Sangkamalayan Circle; article written by Dadaji (NSB)]