Baba says, ‘You should have the happiness of becoming all-round servers. “Baba, I am ever present on service.” ‘

In a worldly school or university, different subjects are weighted differently. For example, I can claim fewer marks in the subject of ‘art & crafts’ than in Math or Science. In fact, truth be told, most schools might not even care how good I am at ‘drawing’ but they do care if I can add my numbers. In Baba’s school, it works differently. There are four subjects – knowledge, remembrance, inculcation and service- and they all carry equal marks. Further, within the subject of service, every kind of service – through the mind, words and actions- also carry equal marks. Therefore, falling behind in any one means I have fallen behind overall.

To be truly serviceable, therefore, means to be an all-round server, explains Baba. That means there are no excuses holding me back. Sometimes, I complain that I don’t have the time or the chance to serve. That’s an excuse, points out Baba. It’s not as if I have to always put aside special time to serve or need a special reason to serve. If I am in remembrance of Baba, my being serves all the time. As I walk and move around, when I prepare my meals, go about my business, I am serving. I might be doing seemingly ordinary or routine tasks but my vision, my face, my attitude are special, they are divine and create an atmosphere of divinity wherever I am. That is service. I am loving and patient in my interactions with others, that is service. In fact, you can serve even when you’re sleeping, says Baba.

Sometimes, it’s preferences that hold me back. I enjoy doing certain types of service – like giving lectures or reading Murli or serving through the mind, but when it comes to physical service, I don’t care much for it. I think that physical service is beneath me, I’d much rather let someone else clean the dishes. They all carry equal marks, Baba reminds me, and so if you ignore even one kind of service, you fall behind overall. In fact, when the children’s bhatthi was created in the beginning, the lesson of serving with actions was made very firm for them, He explains. They were made into gardeners as well as shoemakers. They were made into those who wash the dishes as well as those who give lectures. And so the correct attitude, He teaches, is: ‘Baba, I am ever present on service’. It doesn’t mean I don’t have certain strengths or interests, everyone does. But that doesn’t mean I can’t do anything else. If there is help needed with some cleaning around the house or at the center, if I can’t get myself to lend a hand because ‘I don’t like to clean’, then that’s a problem. I may not feel like it, but I can do it anyway. I don’t go by my feelings, I go by what I know to be the right thing to do.

Sometimes, I have fear of certain tasks because I’ve never done them before or lack any formal training in that area. Maybe I’m comfortable doing the dishes but when it comes to explaining the knowledge to others, I hesitate. Baba says, ‘if you have understood the knowledge, then you can explain to others’. Practice, He recommends, explaining the knowledge to yourself. Pick a point from the Murli and churn about it in your mind. This builds the muscle to explain the knowledge to others while gaining clarity for myself in the process.

Mama was an all-round server, Baba reminisces fondly. She was always present on service, no matter what it was. Many times, it was things she hadn’t ever done before but she never hesitated or got afraid. She knew that God never asks anyone to do something without first equipping them to do it. If He has asked me to do something, it is in fact, already done. All I have to do is be present as His humble instrument and He will get the task done through me. This is trusting God completely and is what leads to victory. ‘It is body consciousness that causes the biggest obstacle‘, says Baba. It is when I forget who I am and Whose I am that I become fearful, make excuses, have preferences, dislikes and all the rest. But when I am soul conscious, I just have that simple child-like faith. I simply say: ‘yes, Baba’ and move forward. In fact, says Baba, serviceable children who do all-round service must especially pay attention to maintaining a constant stage, only then can there be success in service. That means I keep a good attitude, and do whatever I am doing sincerely, to the best of my ability knowing that I am doing this unto God, not for people.

A world emperor is an all round server, Baba teaches. He serves his people, takes care of their needs, protects them, puts himself on the front lines and leads by example. I don’t know what I’m made up of until I serve. It is the mirror that reveals me, as I am to myself. It shows me the attitudes I need to change, the gaps I need to fill, the behaviors I need to mold. It teaches me empathy, builds resilience and a strength of character. It is the training ground where I learn to use my powers. And I don’t learn all of this just by serving through the mind or just through giving lectures, or just through physical actions, I learn different things through all three. And so Baba says, only those who become all-round servers here will become all-round masters of the world in the future. So, check your daily chart to see if you are serving in this way and accumulate in your account with all types of service.