Who is Doing What?

In a time when we are all encouraged to ‘feel good about ourselves’ and where fame is perceived with such high importance, it is a difficult sell to tell someone that they are not the doer of their actions – that we are the vehicle for actions of Spirit. Even for spiritual seekers who know this to be ‘truth’ it is often hard to remember.

Also, if someone says, “Hey - I like how your hair looks today?” it’s a little much to reply, “Oh, thanks, God styled it!” Or, as my daughter points out on the occasions when I am inspired to vocally give thanks for a meal, “Mommy, YOU made the food, not God!” I might reply that I couldn’t have done anything without having been created; that if the Sun didn’t shine, no vegetables or grass would grow, the animals couldn’t eat, then we could not take in their energy. But, I don’t want to belabor the point and force a situation where we only mimic thanks we are not fully feeling. As a child I remember this feeling false to me. And, as my daughter pointed out - this body did put effort into the meal. I cut the vegetables, prepared the rice, and chanted the mantras to imbue it with healing energy. So, what should our attitude be if attributing everything to God publicly at all times can feel overly humble or inappropriately egoistic (holier than thou)? 

The Bhagavad-Gita (3:30) gives us the proper attitude: “With your mind centered on the Self, dedicating all actions to Me, free of expectation and free of the thought ‘mine,’ fight without the fever of fear and anxiety.” The key here is the mind and heart working in unison– it is with our heart-mind that we sacrifice and dedicate our efforts to the higher Self which is a part of the One. There is no need for ostentatious show if our heart-mind is pointed towards Spirit.

As with all actions, the appropriate one to take is the one which is right for that moment and we know it is right because we have taken time to be still and listen to our hearts.  Karunamayi-Ma says that we need to meditate and raise our vibration before we can perform selfless service because otherwise how do we know whether an action will have a sattvic (pure, truthful) result? 

We see evidence everywhere of good intentions gone terribly wrong when an action was performed without care or consideration of potential outcomes. Our over-use of penicillin is a perfect example of when a noble goal (to relieve human suffering) has resulted in a world-wide health crisis as resistant strains of viruses have developed.  Would things have been better if penicillin was never created? Of course not, but certainly prescribing penicillin for every infection and routinely feeding it to animals whose bodies will be used as meat were probably not the best choices. Instead, allowing the small suffering of the body while healing a non-life threatening infection would build stronger immune systems. Creating situations where animals are not caged in unnaturally filthy conditions requiring antibiotics for ‘health’ would have benefited all creatures. But these responses would have required sacrifice – a sacrifice which is not supported or rewarded by our society.

So, care must be taken with our actions so that our karma-yoga (yoga of action) results in the best possible outcome. After practicing meditation for some time, and clearing our own psyche, we become able to reflect reality as it is and make these distinctions. We may start to build small actions into our lives that expands our ability provide real help when needed. As we slowly integrate knowledge gained in meditation, the sacrifice to Spirit is made at an internal level and eventually, flows externally. We know in our hearts when an action is the right thing to do and we do it immediately.

When you start thinking at a level of the Atman instead of the Body, you see that the most is gained by doing things that are right especially when there are no rewards. As we progress, these situations and opportunities start to present themselves and life becomes a series of exchanges of helpful energies, lifting us all in spirit. 

So, what is the proper response when someone compliments our actions? Perhaps simply saying ‘you are very welcome,’ while acknowledging in your heart-mind the source of all actions;giving thanks for the opportunity to use your hands as the tools of service.