Question: If I have two options, viz.
1) Serve someone in need i.e. help others through community service -OR-
2) Chant the name of the God.
Which should I choose? It is said chanting the name of the God will give me “Mukti”. But if I spend my time in chanting, I may miss out an opportunity to serve/save the fellow human beings. So is it not worth to dedicate my current life to do service to the others and not worry about what my next body will be? If I am fortunate/unfortunate enough to be born again as a human being I will worry about gaining “Mukti” in that life.
What is real service to humanity and God?
Answer by Romapada Swami:
In order to decide between humanitarian service and devotional service, it is important to have a clear idea of what constitutes real service to humanity and what is real service to God.
We discussed in a previous digest (Digest 00122) the idea of service — specifically in terms of service to one’s parents — but the same ideas can be extended to our service responsibility towards fellow human beings. In summary, we concluded that true service to others must take into account spiritual well-being, and that service is truly effective only when rendered under scriptural guidance. Material well-being automatically follows spiritual well-being, whereas our independent attempts directed only towards the body and neglecting the soul are comparable to saving the dress of a drowning man. Secondly, devotional service to Lord Krishna does not neglect but is inclusive of service to all living entities (the example of watering the roots of a tree), but the converse is not true.
Devotional service and chanting is not intended for personal salvation
Regarding service to God, and specifically the process of chanting the Hare Krishna maha mantra — such practices are *NOT* intended to be selfish programs for personal salvation. The statement “chanting will give mukti” gives an seriously incomplete understanding of the nature and scope of devotional service; personal salvation is neither the focus nor even the explicit goal of chanting, according to the teachings of the vaishnava school. Rather, the disease of our own soul’s contamination with matter and it’s binding modes (gunas) must be cured, before the long-term fundamental position of suffering of others can be addressed.
We need to be properly trained and purified to help others
A drowning man cannot save another drowning man, nor can a blind man lead others safely along a path; we have to recognize that as long as we are ourselves influenced by the material modes of nature, and are ourselves disconnected from God, it is impossible to render meaningful and enlightening service to others. Rather, because of our ignorance of reality, we are sure to plunge ourselves deeper and drag others deeper into the complexities of material nature. It is the Vaisnava’s choice, by properly educating and purifying ourselves, to placing ourselves as an instrument in the Lord’s hand *factually* and in full consciousness of Him, thus we can become most useful in any undertaking.
That is the purpose of chanting, and choosing the path of devotional service to God, NOT salvation.
Devotees are interested in everyone’s ultimate welfare
Vaishnavas are para-duhkha-duhkhi, i.e. they do not care very much for their personal comforts but are distressed to see others suffering. Because of transcendental knowledge, they are equally not interested in stop-gap measures of material adjustments for bring short-term relief only to distress; while contemplating how to address our concerns for the immediate distresses and sufferings of worldly life, vaisnavas are not forgetting for a single moment the soul’s ultimate and permanent well-being, as well. Vaisnavas know very well that root cause behind the immediate distress of life in this world is the soul’s disconnection with God. To address THIS problem is the ultimate welfare work.
This is graphically illustrated in the prayers of Prahlada – the ideal hero of all aspiring vaishnavas.
When Lord Narasimhadev personally offered him any benediction he desires, this is what Prahlada prays: “O best of the great personalities, I am not at all afraid of material existence, for wherever I stay I am fully absorbed in thoughts of Your glories and activities. My concern is only for the fools and rascals who are making elaborate plans for material happiness and maintaining their families, societies and countries. I am simply concerned with love for them… I do not wish to be liberated alone, leaving aside all these poor fools and rascals. I know that without Krishna consciousness, without taking shelter of Your lotus feet, one cannot be happy. Therefore I wish to bring them back to shelter at Your lotus feet.” (Cf. SB 7.9.43–44)
This, of course, is the consciousness of an advanced, pure devotee and is difficult to replicate. But even supposing that a beginning practitioner of devotional life is chanting Krishna’s names for his/her own purification, it is still not considered a merely selfish act, since by its very nature devotional service brings all-auspiciousness upon even the onlookers, and anyone who the vaisnava’s life comes in contact with.
Despite humanitarian effort people are suffering
Please consider: there has been no shortage of humanitarian relief efforts in the history of mankind but people are continuing to suffer, in certain ways even more than ever before.
Shortage of education in God consciousness
The only shortage in this material world and the real panacea for all troubles is God-consciousness. The real need of humanity, especially in today’s society, is spiritual education in the principles of Bhagavad-gita and Srimad Bhagavatam; those who participate in this effort to whatever capacity are rendering the most valuable service!
