Should we seek satisfaction by serving according to our nature of sacrifice by doing whatever we are told to do?

Transcript

This is an AI-generated transcript and may contain some errors.
thank you on one side we should try to find our nature and serve accordingly on other side then we should be the servant of servant and do whatever we are told to do so what is more important self-satisfaction or sacrifice it’s not necessary that these two have to be contradictory rather than putting them as one as self-satisfaction and other as sacrifice actually for a devotee even when a devotee is serving according to one’s nature there is still sacrifice because when we serve according to our nature we could very well be doing that activity in material life for our own satisfaction the fact that we are doing it for Krishna means there is element of sacrifice already there so the ideal situation is that the devotee is ready to do whatever service one is told to do but the leadership the leaders of the community should be such that they should be farsighted enough to think that how can this devotee be engaged so that he or she will be inspired to practice bhakti lifelong so it may be that at certain times in the growth of a particular community certain services are urgently required and at that time the authorities may tell please do this service, this is what we need to do right now and we should do that at that time at the same time if when the leaders are farsighted they also understand that yes projects will come and go but we want devotees to be engaged lifelong and devotees can be engaged lifelong when they are inspired to serve and we are inspired when we have some service according to our nature so that’s why rather than saying it as this or that we should see this as a cooperative endeavour where we do follow whatever instructions we are given and we try to do whatever service we are told to do but while doing whatever service we are told to do we also keep observing this is a service which I like to do this is a service which I get great taste in doing this is a service which I can do very well and then as we observe ourselves we learn about ourselves and sometimes senior devotees may also see us wow you can do this service you can do this more and that’s how by a process of mutual cooperation we can learn over a period of time to serve according to our nature so in general devotees should be engaged according to their nature but at the time of emergencies or special necessity the devotees should also be ready to serve according to according to the situation see there are both ways for example we see in the Bhagavatam there is so much description of how an old person should not be attached to household life, should renounce the world Vidura says to Dhritarashtra you are just in your life you are doing nothing now except producing cow why do you want to live like this, renounce the world so there are very strong statements given in scripture about old people not staying attached to life to materialistic life but at the same time this is for the individual to develop a mood of renunciation but the same scripture also says that one of the duties of a responsible society is to take care of the elderly people in society that means now the people who are there around the elderly person they should not think this person is so attached we should try to serve this elderly person whatever needs are there I am trying to provide that so there is a cooperation between the both sides the individual should think how can I become more dedicated, how can I become more renounced in the community the community should be oriented in such a way that the devotees spiritual growth is facilitated and the contribution is also made to that person