Seva Yoga

"Seva" yoga is usually translated into English as "service". However, the word "service" does not really capture the essence of the word seva. Seva is much more than donating money to a charity, for instance (not that I am discouraging donations to worthwhile charities!).

A guru by the name of Swami Niranjan explains that the word seva is made up of two words: 'saha' and 'eva'. Saha means 'with that' and eva means 'too'. The word "seva" means 'together with' and describes those actions that seek collective upliftment through an understanding of the needs of others, and are based on togetherness and integration. Seva is an expression of compassion, of the desire to uplift and assist people.

Seva is selfless service. But the whole "collective" and "togetherness" bits make some people think you need to live in an Ashram to do it. On the contrary. There are people all over the world practicing seva yoga right now. You can practice with them. Also, if you begin to practice it by yourself, even those around you who are not aware of what you're doing will begin to respond differently. Herein lies the magic. It turns the focus away from the self. One begins to be very present & does not let the Ego-mind wander to past or future.

Seva can be offering a smile. Seva can be holding a compassionate space for a friend during times of trouble. Seva can be saving a worm from a puddle in the rain. Why would you save a worm? Because you understand that you and the worm are connected, on many levels. Just as connected as you are to your human friends. Worms till the soils that grow our food, that same soil where our bodies end up one day. By returning the worm to dry earth, you have just directly uplifted and assisted many people, though they do not know it. And the worm itself has presented you this karmic opportunity to be its rescuer; an opportunity to practice compassionate seva. No act of compassion is too small. So the real question, the one people don't often think about, is: why would you abandon a worm? If your response is anything like "I'd be too busy" or "it's gross" or "who cares?" then you haven't quite grasped how truly interconnected we are in this universe.

We are all made up of the same things; us, the soil, the trees, the worms. Call it carbon or stardust, we are all the same, just passing through different forms at different times. So from that viewpoint, seva becomes very easy. Working to understand and uplift ourselves automatically serves those around us, due to our innate interconnection. From this stance, when we want good for ourselves, it is unselfish. We want good for the world. Seva burns away the Ego. The practice of seva yoga transforms the personality in the same way that the practice of asana can transform the physical body.

Initially with asana, we confront an image of the body that the mind has created. This image persists due to a lack of awareness and understanding about the reality of the physical manifestation that is the body. This image that we have of the components of our bodies and what we can do with them, their mobility, flexibility and strength, is mostly illusory. With seva, we confront the mind itself and our (again, illusory) idea of who we are. We come to understand that the 'self-centered' Ego-mind is not our true nature. Rather, our true nature is to remain in non-judgmental constant connection with everything. This is the state that yogis call Samadhi - Bliss.