The Meaning of being of Service
In this post I am discussing the meaning of being of service. Service is a quality of the 6th ray.
Whether we are on the spiritual path or are just human beings interested in changing the general living conditions of all human beings on this planet, the question of what it means to ‘be of service’ is an important one.
Not because we need a ‘precise definition’, but because we need to consider several factors related to individual rights and the rights of all, individual freedoms and the freedoms of all.
Service is not Imposing a World View to Others
Those on the path to self-mastery know that freedom is an inescapable characteristic of every human being. This means that no one can be forced to change their ideas and behaviour just because we think our ‘vision’ is better for them.
We may think that we are more ‘evolved’ spiritually or rationally and therefore make better decisions than people who we think do not have the same capabilities as us.
However, there is one fundamental point that we must respect: no one has the right or authority to decide what is ‘best’ for a particular person or nation. And if we argue that we know that the choices of that person or nation will only bring suffering, the truth of what I said does not disappear.
We can effectively use our minds to see more possibilities that the other person cannot see. But that doesn’t give us the right to ignore their choices and choose for them.
For some people, the only way to begin to see other possibilities is to experience in their concrete lives that the possibilities they believed in and chose are not actually the best ones for them.
When we recognise this, we are doing a service, and we are faced with the question: “Why haven’t we spared this person suffering by giving them a possibility that would bring them less suffering or even no suffering? The answer is: because the Earth is a learning environment where we live to grow in consciousness.
Many people don’t learn just by being told in theory that a particular solution is not the best. They need to experience the effects of their choices in order to internalise the lesson.
Depriving someone of learning important lessons, from a spiritual point of view, just because we want to prevent the person from suffering, it is a serious transgression of that person’s right to freely choose whatever they want for their life. And it will create heavy karma for us.
Individual Freedom and Freedom of All
But there are not only individual freedoms, there is also freedom for all. Life is not a succession of separate, unconnected individuals. Life in society puts us in relationship with each other, in a complementarity and interdependence that recognises our differences as individuals, but also our interconnectedness as parts of a whole.
We live in an intricate web of relationships, not just within a particular society, but with the whole of humanity. Therefore, we also recognise that the choices of some individuals should not prevail when they deny the freedom of all others; this is not being of service.
The problem that arises here, however, is how do we decide what is best for everyone? Many philosophers have debated this question, without ever coming to an agreement.
Without going into a philosophical dead end, I allow myself to recall some simple judgements made by Master Jesus when he walked the earth, when he defined what we can call ‘basic humanity’: “Do to others as you would have them do to you”, the negative being “Don’t do to others what you wouldn’t want them to do to you”.[1]
This simple maxim of a practical nature can produce excellent results if we all adhere to it: it does not impede individual freedom of expression and acts as a mental ‘brake’ against the possibility of becoming destructive towards others.
One Step Ahed- Human Rights
In recent centuries, humanity has gone further and discovered human rights. I say ‘discovered’ deliberately, because I believe that it is not man who has created these rights, but that they are given to man by the Creator, which is why they cannot be ‘unalienated’, that is, they cannot be taken away from any man, as the philosopher Kant argued, because that would mean depriving him of his ‘humanity’.
It was also this philosopher who argued that human beings have intrinsic value, value in themselves, and should not be treated as ‘things’. In the 18th century and beyond, this idea was extremely important, as it opened the door to considering human slavery unacceptable.[2]
However, history is not linear and there has been much progress in the way people view each other.
However, much remains to be done in this area to ensure that the important recognition of human rights is universally accepted. Once again, we will not achieve this by force, but by demonstrating that life is easier in democratic societies that respect human rights, and that because people work together and respect each other, they are happier and more productive.
Learning to Cooperate for a Better Life in Society
Life is made by choices, so society is something dynamic that can improve if everyone makes their contribution.
According to cosmological cycles, we have entered the Age of Aquarius, in which we will remain for 2000 years. Whether you believe the descriptions of these cycles or not, people generally feel that the reality we live in is oppressive and causes a lot of suffering, and that we need to change.
For many people who are afraid of change, afraid of the unknown – which may be worse than the present they are experiencing – it is frightening to think that life is dynamic and not fixed and controllable as they would like it to be.
However, at this stage in human history it’s necessary to change the paradigm, people are tired of seeing that the way of life in society in general needs improvement and change.
Therefore, at a time when the worldview of societies in general is in deep crisis, the best service we can render is to accept change as a normal process of life and, above all, to accept being creative. But a better life has never come from an attitude of conformity.
We humans were created to be creative. The best service we can give to our human condition and our right to a better life is to begin to embrace our creativity, which is a positive quality of our spiritual being. Being creative is a fantastic way to be of service.
[1] Bible, Matthew 7:12.
[2] «(…)but that which constitutes the condition under which alone something can be an end in itself has not merely a relative value, that is, a price, but an inner value, that is, dignity … Morality, and humanity insofar as it is capable of morality, is that which alone has dignity», Kant, Groundwork to the Metaphysics of Morals
