Seva
You must not let your life run in the ordinary way; do something that nobody else has done, something that will dazzle the world – Paramhansa Yogananda

WHAT IS SEVA?
We live in a complex world laden with inner conflict and outer divergences. More often than not, our balance is lost. Our Guru, Paramhansa Yogananda, gives great emphasis on balancing our lives as an important tenet for realizing our highest Self: On one hand, with the practice of meditation and deepining our inner life; and on the other hand, by doing service and spiritualizing our outward life. While there are many spiritual teachings on how to develop our inner life, but there is lesser clarity on what does service or ‘Seva’ mean?
Paramhansa Yogananda professed Seva as a path to Self-Realization. It is a means of uplifting consciousness by dissolving the ego and integrating our lower self with the Higher Self. Seva is to balance giving and receiving. Whatever we give to God, is what we receive. It is a realization that everything we have comes from God, so we should practice appropriate form of giving back to the Divine. In all, Seva is a way to establish our personal relationship with God.
Seva is to infuse our daily lives with an attitude of selfless service, or to practice, in the words of Sri Krishna in Bhagavad Gita, “Niskam Karma” and to practically apply that attitude in whatever we do. It means to serve in a manner that deepens our attunement with God. We want to act in such a way as to feel the God’s presence and being instruments for him. We act with the awareness of representing God through our service.
The following points can help you deepen your understanding and practice of Seva. Read them carefully and, more importantly, implement them in your daily life so that you may experiment with them and experience how it effects you and those around you.
Practice Seva
- Practice the presence of God
- With God as your companion, try to see God in all.
- Serve God through Yogananda trust
- Try to engage in “God reminding activities”
- Try every day to do every action with an attitude of service
- Other suggestions

PRACTICE THE PRESENCE OF GOD
Feel God to be within you and around you in all that you do, in every moment. Include Him in your minute-by-minute activities: washing dishes, cooking a meal, hanging the clothes, or taking a walk.
Direct your ongoing, inner, mental conversation toward God; by knowing he is listening, your thoughts will slowly start to change. Make it a point to also listen to His response; you’re having a conversation with God.
Make God your companion; share all of your thoughts and impressions with Him.
Ask God to guide your every thought and action.
Pay attention and take time to listen to God’s response to your prayers
Remember the saying, “God doesn’t mind your faults, only your indifference.”
WITH GOD AS YOUR COMPANION, TRY TO SEE GOD IN ALL
“The guest is God.” See that everyone is your guest. Try to see that “The Divine Mother is in all.”
Try to see God as standing before you, in others.
See all according to their highest potential. Everybody is, in truth, a part of the Divine. By looking through their veil of ignorance, we can feel God’s presence within them and help them attune with their own higher Self.
Think, “How would I treat God if he was standing here?”
SERVE GOD THROUGH YOGANANDA TRUST BECAUSE
By serving together, we generate greater magnetism to accomplish goals. Remember the story about the sticks: you can easily break one stick, but many sticks put together can’t be broken.
By serving with others, we gain strength in our spiritual practices.
By serving with others, we learn to cooperate and get along with others.
Serving with others increases our own will, magnetism and energy.
Serving with others increases enthusiasm and is joyful
TRY TO ENGAGE IN “GOD REMINDING ACTIVITIES”
Form a habit of thinking of God and/or meditating at regular intervals during the day.
Practice Japa and inner prayer
Thank God for everything that comes to you. “Thank you God. It comes from you.”
Dedicate every action as an offering to God. “This is for you, Lord.” Then, do it well.
Start activities with a prayer. Work, meetings, meals, bedtime, awakening, etc.
TRY EVERY DAY TO DO EVERY ACTION WITH AN ATTITUDE OF SERVICE
Begin your day with meditation and a self-offering to God.
Carry peace forward into you activities an recall peace as often as possible.
Check your attitude now. Are you thinking of yourself or of others? You can keep reminders such as post-its or an alarm on your phone to keep track of your attitudes.
By thinking of God, we can change a routine action into an act of service.
Act as much as possible from a position of conscious awareness. Be mindful.
Keep your attention at the point between the eyebrows.
Mental positivity and calmness strengthens others and is also a form of service. The vibrations you share are just as important as a service as your outward activities.
Serve mentally with kind thoughts and words of encouragement.
Include others in your meditation and prayers.
Be an instrument of blessings. Consciously bring peace to others.
Realize that the instrument is blessed by that which flows through it.
OTHER SUGGESTIONS
Try a walking meditation. This practice of combining an outward and inward activity will help you to be mindful in action.
Service is not simply busyness. We mustn’t lose our inner peace.
Cultivate an impulse to think first of the welfare of others over your own.
True leadership is service. A true leader is aware, thinks first of the needs of others, and acts appropriately.
Seva in Hospitals

Lend a hand in giving bedside care and solace to the mothers admitted in the hospital.
Assist the hospital staff employed by the Yogananda Trust in helping the mothers during their routine check-ups.
Help out the hospital staff in coordinating and interacting with the doctors and the nurses.
Seva Volunteering Opportunities
- Provide emotional care and support to the mothers
- Help with the operations of the Ashram
- Assist in Active Aging Program
- Help the hospital staff in medical care
- Celebrate festivals together
- Provide need-based care

Visit a mother: Share her experiences, love, wisdom, and much more by spending time with her.
Help with the daily operations of the Ashrams: Do the daily chores for the mothers – cooking, cleaning, massaging, etc.
Teach the mothers: Enjoy painting,performing, craft work, gardening, yoga, reading, writing, singing, dancing, etc., with the mothers.
Be part of the Active Aging Program: Assist, participate, and contribute to the program.
Celebrate a festival: Bring joy to the mothers by celebrating together.
Community Seva Opportunities
Visit the mothers in the community with the Field Sevaks and help with need-based service, bedsides providing assistance to frail mothers.
Assist in distributing milk and vegetables at the Trust’s centers.
Conduct community-wide classes to teach the mothers something new.
Celebrate community festivals with them.
Seva in Hospitals
Lend a hand in giving bedside care and solace to the mothers admitted in the hospital.
Assist the hospital staff employed by the Yogananda Trust in helping the mothers during their routine check-ups.
Help out the hospital staff in coordinating and interacting with the doctors and the nurses.
Circle of Love
Experience the joy and love and personally speaking with the mothers.

‘Circle of Love’, an online volunteering program, through which anyone from across India can connect with one of mothers of Vrindavan, once a week, over a 15-minute informal whatsapp video call, and share with her a bond of divine friendship rooted in love and respect. These calls are informal. You could ask our mothers about their day and their hobbies, sing bhajans or read to them and them about their spiritual practices. They would love to share devotional stories of their Beloved Krishna, or any recipes they love. Our seva volunteers will guide you with how you could connect and converse with the mothers.
What may just be 15 minutes for you, maybe the highlight of their week!
What is the Purpose of 'Circle of Love'?
To transform the consciousness of all those who are serving and being served. It serves a two-fold purpose; to restore dignity and respect for the mothers and to promote ‘seva’ as a path of spiritual upliftment for all volunteers.
What is the Goal of 'Circle of Love'?
Most of our mothers have faced disrespect, abuse and abandonment. Our goal is that each of our 4500 mothers feel happy, loved and supported through deep, meaningful connections rooted in love and respect between them and our global family of volunteers.
How could you participate?
To know more about the program, how it works and how you could participate, kindly get in touch with Divisha at 9967970630.
We already have a small group of volunteers who express their joy every week in connecting with the mothers. We look forward for you to experience and be part of our Circle of Love too!