There are 3 kinds of people who act:
- Laborer: They strive only for themself and have no higher goal or ideal. They can be in any profession. They just work for their own selfish desires.
- Worker: They are working to benefit society. More selfless, eager to contribute.
- Person of achievement: They work completely selflessly.
The householder (graharastra) must honor 5 yagnas. These are what we owe:
- Daivayagna: Daiva = God, the unseen guiding hand.
- Pithrayagna: pithra = ancestors. Respecting our ancestors. Can we ever pay them back?
- Buthayagna: Creatures, nature. Nature forgives infinitely no matter what we do.
- Narayagna: Payback to humanity.
- Rishiyagna: payback to our saints and sages. They have preserved this knowledge for our benefit. First orally then in print. This is a lineage of knowledge we cannot pay back.
These 5 principles are our life’s work and dedication. They are the goals and guidances for our actions. It is our dharma, not charity. This is what we are supposed to do, therefore, this is selfless action. People always ask Why should I give? What have they done for me? The world has given us so much. So many things have to exist just to bring us to Bal Vihar today yet not only are we not grateful for this, we are not even aware of these multitude of things.
When we have an ideal, the best of them is going to come out. We need to have that personal vision statement. Malala Yousef was shot going to school. Her simple ideal is girls should go to school and that’s her life’s mission, educating us on this. We need to have our guiding ideal.
Success in vedanta is fulfillment. Even if we have everything but we aren’t fulfilled, then we are not successful. We are half sleeping, half awake.Our lives are a gift and should be dedication to the 5 yagnas. But we miss this and we miss our true potential. In what way can we give our maximum? When we tap into this, that will be our masterpiece., our life’s work, our payback. When we purify our work this way, then we can begin purifying our minds.
We are made to serve the world, not ourselves or our families but others.
OM Work:
- This week, read Swami Vivekanada.
- Think about your vision statement.What is my life’s work? What is my life about? How do benefit the world the most? Gandhi wanted freedom for 400 million Indians. Dr. King wanted racial justice.