“Serve, love, give, purify, meditate, realise;

Be good, do good, be kind, be compassionate;

Enquire 'who am I' know the Self and be free.

Love all, serve all, serve the Lord in all.

Speak the truth, be pure, be humble,

Concentrate, meditate, attain Self-realisation.

These are the essentials of all religions.

Customs, conventions, ceremonies are non-essentials.

Do not fight over petty non-essentials.

Be tolerant, be catholic, have a broad outlook.

Respect all Prophets, all Saints, all Messengers.

All Saints speak the same language.”

                                                --Swami Sivananda Saraswati

 

“I received three instructions from my Guru, Swami Sivananda, ‘Serve, Love, and Give’. These precepts became the sadhana to be perfected in my life and took a definite form when I came to Rikhia. To help others grow and become better in all respects, external and internal, social and personal, is my sankalpa. The Rikhia ashram will now be known as Rikhiapeeth. Peeth means ‘seat’ and apt term for Rikhia as the instructions given to me by Swami Sivananda have culminated and fructified here. Rikhia; is an ashram in the original sense of the word. Swami Satyasangananda is the first Peethadhishwari or acharya of Rikhiapeeth and has been given the sankalpa that the three cardinal teachings of Swami Sivananda will be practiced and lived here. This is the future vision of Rikhiapeeth.”

                                                          ---Swami Satyananda Saraswati

 

 

Serve

“Become a Karma Yogi and work for the well-being of the world. You must do universal service in order to attain the state of being one with the universal consciousness.

It is only through selfless activities, unattached work and loving service that one can acquire the precious gem of purity, patience and humility.

Wherever there is distress share what you have and alleviate human suffering wherever it is possible. Thus you will be able to achieve the goal for which God has given this human body.

While doing selfless service, an insidious feeling of self approbation may creep in unnoticed. This may later manifest itself in the form of a sort of indulgent attitude and a lofty contempt for those who are not following, a similar life. A constant humility kept alive by a ceaseless exercise of it in service is the sure armour against this foe.

Spiritualise all activities. Feel you are an instrument in the Lord's hands and that all the Indriyas (senses) belong to Him. Repeat the formula 'I am Thine; all is Thine; Thy Will be done.'

Feel that the whole world is a manifestation of the Lord and you are serving the Lord in all names and forms. Whatever you do-your actions and the results thereof-consecrate them all to the Lord at the end of each day. Do not identify yourself with actions. Then your heart will be purified and you will be ready to receive the divine light and grace.

Rest not with being good. Do good also. Be kind. Be compassionate.

Let not virtue wither for want of exercise.”

                                                                   --Swami Sivananda Saraswati

 

“After coming to Rikhia my cataracted vision was corrected. I have lived a spiritual life for more than sixty years. I have practiced every form of yoga, but ultimately I found that when I began to think about others, God began to think about me. On my Guru’s instructions I lit the flame of yoga in Munger and the light of seva in Rikhia. This is the requirement of humanity today.”                                            

--Swami Satyananda Saraswati

 

Love

“God is love. Love is God. Selfishness, greed, egoism, vanity, pride, hatred contract the heart and stand in the way of developing universal love. Feel that the whole world is your body, your own home. Melt and destroy all barriers that separate man from man. Idea of superiority is ignorance. Develop Visvaprema-all-embracing love. Unite with all. Separateness is death. Unity is eternal life.

God is love. The only true religion is the religion of love or the religion of heart. Feel for others as you feel for yourself.

Love expects no reward. Love knows no fear. Love Divine gives-does not demand. Love thinks no evil; imputes no motive. To love is to share and serve.”

                                                                   --Swami Sivananda Saraswati

 

Give

“Do charity-amounting to at least one tenth of your income or six Paise per Rupee.

Happiness comes to him who gives happiness to others.

Give, Give. Give in plenty, in humility and with joy. Thus in the very process of giving enrich yourself too.

If a man, who has not removed jealousy, backbiting, hatred, pride, selfishness says, "I am meditating for six hours daily," it is all nonsense. Excel. There is no hope of getting into a meditative mood even after a year unless a man removes all these Vrittis and purifies his mind first by selfless service at least for six months.

Excel in Service,

Expand in Love,

Advance in Knowledge.

Service is Love in expression,

Love is concentrated Knowledge,

Knowledge is diffused love.”

                                                                   --Swami Sivananda Saraswati

 

 

Ananda Yoga Centre practices the Sadhana of Serve Love & Give and volunteers are welcome to join us.