We find inspiration in the fiery words of Swami Vivekananda, who proclaimed the Gospel of Service of Man as Worship of God.
Calm and silent and steady work and no newspaper humbug, no name-making, you must always remember this.
Go, all of you, wherever there is an outbreak of plague or famine, or wherever the people are in distress, and mitigate their suffereings. At the most, you may die in the attempt. What of that? How many like you are taking birth and dying like worms, every day? What difference does that make to the world at large? Die you must, but have a great ideal to die for, and it is better to die with a great ideal in life. Preach this ideal from door to door and you will yourselves be benefited and at the same time, be doing good to your country. On you lies the future hope of our country. I feel extreme pain to see your leading a life of inaction. Set yourselves to work - to work! Do not tarry - the time of death is approaching day by day! Do not sit idle, thinking that everything will be done in time, later. Mind—nothing will be done that way.
Even the least work done for others awakens the power within; even thinking of the least good of others gradually instils into the heart the strength of a lion. I love you all ever so much, but I would wish you all to die working for others - I should be rather glad to see you do that!
Work unto death—I am with you, and when I am gone, my spirit will work with you. This life comes and goes - wealth, fame, enjoyments are only for a few days. It is better, far better, to die on the field of duty, preaching the truth, than to die like a worldly worm. Advance!
I bequeath to you, young men, this sympathy, this struggle for the poor, the ignorant, the oppressed. Go now this minute to the temple of Parthasarathi, and before Him who was friend of the poor and lowly cowherds of Gokula, who never shrank to embrace the pariah Guhaka, who accepted the invitation of a prostitute in preference to that of the nobles and saved her in His incarnation as Buddha—yea, down on your faces before Him and make a great sacrifice, the sacrifice of a whole life for them, for whom He comes from time to time, whom He loves above all, the poor, the lowly and the oppressed.
He who wants to serve Siva must serve His children—must serve all creatures in this world first. It is said in the Sastras that those who serve the servants of God are His greatest servants. Unselfishness is the test of religion. He who has more of this unselfishness is more spiritual and nearer to Siva. And if a man is selfish, even though he has visited all the temples, seen all the places of pilgrimage, and painted himself like a leopard, he is still further off from Siva.
This is the gist of all worship—to be pure and to do good to others. He who sees Siva in the poor, in the weak, and in the diseased, really worships Siva; and if he sees Siva only in the image, his worship is but preliminary. He who has served and helped one poor man seeing Siva in him without thinking of his caste, creed or race, or anything, with him Siva is more pleased than with the man who sees Him only in temples.
What good is it, if we acknowledge in our prayers that God is the Father of us all, and in our daily lives do not treat every man as other brother?
