Hariḥ Om. Thank you everyone, for the warm wishes- which have started pouring into my inbox. I would like to rehash the same note of gratitude I penned earlier. In addition to that I would like to make a special request to all my well wishers here, but first a special thanks to my beautiful wife Unnati- who lights up my world by being all that she is, to my incredible friends Shilpa didi and Smita ji, for painstakingly co-ordinating this overwhelming compendium and for being such great, kindred jivas, and to everyone else present here that continue to make my life meaningful through their sustained friendship- though I realize I have much to learn about the art of keeping in touch. My request: For those who arent privy, AIM for Seva is a Movement started by Pūjya Swāmi Dayānanda Saraswati ji in 2000. It strives to ensure that value based education reaches every home of the less privileged sections of Indian society, in a wholesome, nurturing environment. A majority of these form orphaned children hail from tribal areas, which are disconnected not only from urban centers, but even rural regions, thus isolating them from mainstream society. The student homes provide education from Grade School upto Masters level, vocational training, nourishing home-cooked meals, The goal of our AIM for Seva family is care after the maximum number of these children that we possibly can, but we cannot possibly do it without your help. I could copy-paste the logistics from the website on how many student homes weve built (98, thus far), or the number of beneficiaries of this program (millions, and growing), but I will bore you no further with numbers. Instead, let me share some personal accounts. The AIM for Seva Committee here in Georgia has been tirelessly pursuing the aforementioned Dhārmic goals. We had two brilliant fundraiser last two consecutive years (Nayani and Spanda). The programs went splendidly well, but more importantly we gained 100+ new child sponsors and many partial donors in each one of them. Needless to say it was a massive achievement. This year too, we will be witnessing Meghadhootam in various cities across India and USA. We witnessed the inspirational account of Sheetal Pundir, one such beneficiary of this Movement. Sheetal lost her father at the young age of six, and with three children to look after, her mother had to labor hard to meet their needs. For days together, they would not have enough money to bring food on the table, so naturally what suffered the most was her education. She would sporadically go to school, and would be asked to leave on account of not being able to pay her tuition fees. Cold, hungry and thoroughly exhausted- both physically and mentally, Sheetal could not pursue what she valued the most- education. She had heard the story of Premchand ji, one of Indias great Hindi Literature writers from the last century who was in dire straits- much like herself- and ended up finding himself at the receiving end of someones benediction. So too, she was hopeful that a miracle would come her way; that her life would change. It did. One day, she was roaming the streets of Rishikesh in hopes of finding help, and as her karma would have it, she stumbled across Swāmi Dayānanda jis Āshram. The Gurukulam authorities inquired about her well being, whence she explained her situation. She was immediately enrolled as a student in one of the AIM for Sevā Chhātrālayas, and from thereon, there was no looking back. Sheetal went on to excel scholastically, gaining admission in the Northwestern Ontario Cancer Research Center to do her PhD. She was the recipient of an academic Gold Medal, a National Award, and several other scholarships as well. Needless to say this was a moving revelation for all of us. To witness such desire for knowledge is inspiration, to enable it to bear fruit is a blessing. The slight bit of help she received was enough to turn her life around for the best, transforming her from a consumer into the contributor that she now is. What she has gained, she now gives to others, and a positive chain reaction of goodwill is duly created. Last year after the concert, I went to visit Swāmini Svātmavidyānanda ji at her hotel room to seek her blessings and learn from her. She told us that Pūjya Swāmiji calls AIM for Seva a movement, not an organization. An organization is static, its walls begin and end with the infrastructure. A movement has no boundaries, it can spread far and wide, and like a contagion, transforms each person it touches, who in turn spreads that goodwill elsewhere. A movement thrives on able shoulders that carry it; it is fed by inspiration, and it in turn inspires others. In His words, a movement MOVES you. Pūjya Swāmiji also states: Giving is twice blessed; it blesses the giver AND the receiver. When one receives, the benefit is obvious and up for everyones empirical observation. The benefit of giving, however, is more subtle, and is replete with Vedāntic significance. Giving purifies the mind, it brings compassion to the heart, and since one can only give what one has in excess, it enables one to sever our identification with the objects of possession. It allows us to possess without being owned by the possession, to consume without being consumed. Giving with an attitude of arpanna buddhi (dedicating the results to Īśvara) is one of the main tenets of karma yoga. Through this, chitta śuddhi is gained. Over time even the doer-ship is lost, and one identifies with their essential nature, Brahman/Ātmā, which is the topic of every Upanishad and the ultimate (and the only real) goal. There are 4 Puruśārthas. Artha- basic necessities (food, shelter, health, education) is a requirement for all. Kāma- pleasures and luxuries that go beyond the basic amenities. Now I have a place to stay, suddenly I want something bigger. Now that I have clothes to wear, I want expensive designer wear. Bhagavān has blessed me with food on the table, suddenly I want gourmet meals. I have a basic vehicle I need to drive to work, now I want something expensive- this is all kāma. The whole Western notion of luxury is flawed: I saw a video a good friend shared on Facebook yesterday, showing poor African children reciting problems of people living in economically prosperous nations (I refuse to use terms like first-world/third-world countries), It went to show how ridiculous our problems sound, when juxtaposed with the dire straits they actually live in. A human being is born, and it instinctively wants to drink milk. As it grows up to be a child, it now wants a balloon. The child is now a teenager and the desire for the balloon has evolved into one for a fast car. Then as he grows into a young man, he now desires stability- a healthy marriage, family. As more growth occurs, he has what he needs to live a content life, he sees the greater good is inevitably in his best interest as well as everyone elses- uttama karmāni. As you can see, a desire is not destroyed, it is foolish to destroy it. The only thing that needs to change is its flavor- into something more mature. From Artha and Kāma, toward Dharma and Moksha. Truly, a persons maturity can only be measured by their commitment to dharma. Dharma is often symbolized as a chariot wheel that is ever turning. The biggest hurdle is to get something started, but once the wheels start turning, all it needs is a bit of lubrication and the occasional push. Walking this path will assuredly take one to jīvanmukti. While there might be other charitable institutions doing seemingly similar work, AIM for Seva goes above and beyond providing basic amenities. It instills a strong sense of cultural values, self-confidence, and is crafted after a dhārmic model which is- as everyone knows- the most conducive to growth. It is a holistic model that transforms lives, one child at a time, one Sheetal at a time, bettering the life of the individual through this movement, and bettering society through these individuals. I can think of nothing more sustainable. Now my appeal to you: if you find yourself in a position to contribute, please do. If you find yourself splurging in a direction that could be avoided (which believe me, for the most part CAN be avoided), then please consider sparing a little more than just pocket change for the needy. Though it should never be seen as a compromise, even if you wish to see it that way, please be big enough to compromise some of your luxuries to serve the imminent needs of others. Give them an opportunity to grow, one they will never have without your help. What may be a slight inconvenience to you will prove to be a new lease to life for these children. In Economic terms, your opportunity cost is far lesser than theirs. And even better, be the bigger person and gain joy from doing seva. Giving can be done in many ways. You may make monetary contributions, volunteer with AIM for Seva, talk about these ideas with others, or even something small as forwarding this message to your family/friends and sharing it on your social networking profiles. In closing, I will share one final anecdote from our shāstras: At the beginning of this śr̥śṭi, the devās (celestials), dānavas (hellish beings) and manushyas (intelligent beings from earth and other earth-like realms) went to Brahmā ji to receive an upadeśa (statement in the form of an advice) from him. Brahmāji simply said the syllable da and asked them to infer what they like from it. The devās on their way to svarga (heaven) contemplated over da, and reflected on their lives which are filled with sense-objects, and on how inundated they constantly are with these sense pleasures, hence they decided to take it to mean damanam- control of the senses, and lead more disciplined lives. The dānavas, on their way to hell realized that they were always torturing other creatures in the course of their survival, and so they took da to mean dayā- compassion, and be kinder to others. The manushyas realized that people here had some qualities of devas, some qualities of dānavas, and were somewhere in between the two. They saw some among us had more means than others, while others were suffering more than some, and hence they took da to mean dānam- which is giving, and made that their motto. If what is said above you inspires you, please consider doing some dānam here as well: aimforseva.org/donation If there is any difficulty, do contact me. Id be happy to walk you through. Please AIM for Seva through AIM for Seva Hariḥ Ōm, and thank you all.
Posted on: Fri, 01 Aug 2014 03:31:58 +0000