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Chapter 17
PROGRAMME FOR THE SEEKER
95. Triple Endeavour For This Purpose
8. To enable us to serve in this manner, we have to consume something. That too is a part of yajna. The Gita calls it aahaara (food). Just as an engine needs fuel, body needs food. The food is not yajna in itself, but it is necessary for the successful performance of yajna. That is why we say before starting the meals, ‘उदरभण नोहे जाणिजे यज्ञकर्म-’ (‘This is not for filling the belly; it is an act of yajna.’) Just as offering flowers to the Lord is worship, toiling in the garden to produce the flowers is also worship. Anything done for the performance of yajna is a form of worship. The body can be useful to us only when it is given food. Whatever is done for the sake of yajna is a kind of yajna itself. The Gita calls such actions ‘sacrificial acts’ (actions for the sake of yajna). Whatever is offered to the body to enable it to be ever-ready for service is a kind of sacrificial offering; it is a form of yajna. The food taken for the sake of service is indeed sacred. 9. Again, all these things should have faith at their foundation. One should always have in mind the idea that all service is to be ultimately dedicated to God. This is extremely important. Life cannot be full of service if such a spirit is not there. Dedication to the Lord is the key that must never be overlooked. |
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