Enriching Lives Through Service

Many years ago, I attended a service at a beautiful Hare Krishna Temple is Lenasia. The first thing that struck me there was the warmth and friendliness with which I was welcomed. No judgement, no questions of why was I there – just warm open-hearted welcome and sharing.

To say that I enjoyed my visit is an understatement. The entire experience was something that I have never experienced before which is probably also why it has remained in my memory for so long. I came away so much more enriched than I was on entering. I felt so incredibly inspired by the love that I had been shown and it was in that moment, that I decided that I would make it my life’s work to ensure that whoever came into my space would leave feeling uplifted in some way. They would leave me feeling like they had received unconditional love and acceptance from me. They would leave me feeling like they had been seen and heard.

I have worked very hard within my practise to ensure that I uphold that oath to myself that I made on that auspicious day. It is also something that I teach all my students – make it a non-negotiable, that you conduct yourself in such a way, that your client leaves you feeling changed, feeling uplifted, feeling loved, feeling understood – feeling everything that they had expected from their encounter with you.

This doesn’t need to only apply to lightworkers though – I truly believe that we should all be living our life in service to each other. On that beautiful day at the Hare Krishna Temple, I was given lunch (at no cost to me) by a group of ladies who live in Lenasia and who take it upon themselves to cook food for the many many people visiting the temple. They ask nothing in return. They serve with smile on their face and are happy just because they have been given the opportunity to serve you a tasty meal. Isn’t that something? For me, it was so humbling. I never expected to be fed, but I loved so much that I was.

When we think about service, our thoughts tend to go to doing something for someone at our expense. But of course, it doesn’t have to be that. It doesn’t need to cost you anything. Being kind to someone, takes a little time out of your day. It takes from you seeing someone else and putting their need before yours. It takes recognising that everyone is going through something difficult and just having a positive encounter with someone can make such a difference in each other’s lives.

I’ve often been asked what it means to live a spiritual life and my answer is always the same. Just be a decent kind and loving human being. Nothing more, nothing less. It really is as simple as that. See your life such that you are in service every day to those who you encounter and change your behaviour accordingly. Then when someone leaves your space feeling better about themselves, take the win, acknowledge that you have done something for someone else without seeking anything in return and consciously weave those behaviours into your daily habits. You’ll be changing yourself, without you even knowing it.