When I consider how my light is spent...

As I thought about how best I might appeal to my friends and colleagues to support me in fund-raising towards a service project I shall be working on this holiday season, I was reminded of a beautiful poem. (Just to place things in context, I shall mention briefly about the project here: it involves working with a non-profit organization Unite for Sight to screen rural populations in developing countries for eye diseases, thereby helping eradicate blindness that is entirely preventable. And the funds raised help provide health services, completely free of charge to the poor). And so, I quote John Milton's sonnet 'On His Blindness' today for two reasons.

The first, a direct allusion to blindness in the octave, in this case the poet's own blindness. The second, a more profound meaning, as I see it, contained in the sestet, beyond the physical blindness; specifically its implications for our relationship with God, our role in society, and the doer-ship of actions and the beneficiary of those deeds.

Let's start with the first part. The poet laments for the lost time in which he had not used the talents he possessed towards service to God. Embedded in this thought is the idea that we are all somewhat spiritually blind, until we realize the true purpose of our God-given talents and gifts- namely devotion and service.

That neatly leads into the second portion. And I must mention that I am always reminded of this poem when I consider the question people often have for the need for prayer, an act of devotion and supplication to God. For if God is omniscient, then He does not need our prayer to know of His glory. If He is indeed most exalted, then surely He does not need our songs of praise to make Him ever more supreme and happier still. If He be omnipotent, then what need must He have for our service? Specifically, in the light of a series of thought-provoking discussions on prayer, and devotion devoid of action versus submitting all actions as a prayer in itself on a friend's blog I found the following lines most relevant.

"'God doth not need
Either man's work or his own gifts. Who best
Bear his mild yoke, they serve him best. His state
Is kingly: thousands at his bidding speed,
And post o'er land and ocean without rest;
They also serve who only stand and wait.'"

Yes, it is true, it is not God who needs our prayers. It is we who do. It is through prayer that we can align our minds and hence our actions along the plane He intended for us. It is by quietening the many worldly impulses that drag us that we can focus our energy on the Supreme, and understand the true nature of our inner selves and its purpose.

And what of service? An unknowable entity of infinite majesty we cannot even begin to perceive, how then do we serve Him? Ah! It is here that the verses reveal their beauty. It is often a little puzzling to people when asked to serve God. How can one serve God? And why serve Him? This requires an understanding of the following. While we cannot 'see' God, we can see His creations- the beings He loves and protects, His imprint on this earthly plane, His manifestation in truth and virtue. It is through this knowledge that we can approach His kingdom. It is only when we place Him at the center of our consciousness that we can submit all our actions as a prayer to Him.

So, what does it mean to submit our actions? It is recognizing that we are only instruments of His peace. Our gifts are not 'ours' truly, they are reflections of His qualities in us. Our knowledge, not 'ours' really, it is an act of His grace. And hence this life too not ours to fritter away at will, but a tool for service. And whom do we serve? All the beings that are connected through the common thread of His life force. So it is by serving them, that we can serve Him.

Having understood that it is not we who execute, nor do we accrue of the fruits of those actions which we submit to Him, it remains unclear what the purpose of all that action is, and what kind of action constitutes service. Yet, that is indeed the simplest part of it all. Every one of us has been placed in a specific station in life, with a special set of gifts and talents, a vocation unique and a capacity individual. Simply by bearing our 'mild yoke', we serve Him best. In other words, by doing what we do best but with a sense of supplication and detachment, a motive of offering it as prayer, we can truly serve best.

And what does Milton mean when he says 'They also serve who only stand and wait'? It is not to be taken literally for standing by without doing anything. Rather, it means that there is no task too menial, no act too trivial, no part insignificant, when viewed from a hundred thousand feet above, if you will. And so, we do need teachers to teach and illumine the minds of impressionable children as much as we need the sweepers to sweep and keep our roads and cities clean, just as much as we need the firefighters and police, the doctors and engineers, the laborers and plumbers, and every one of them out there to do their part. And so, it is not the task itself, but the attitude with which it is executed- that of sincerity and love, humility and devotion, and above all with the intention of helping our companions on this journey to reach that glorious abode in every way we can.

To tie it all back to where it began, it is only fitting that I should quote this poem, for how else could I have responded to a friend's hesitation that his contribution may be too little to speak of and therefore better not made at all. After all it is not the amount, but the gesture itself that matters; because it is the tiny drops that make the mighty ocean.