Sacrifice: Reclaiming the Soul
As birds fly
together to summer realms, so souls unite in flight. Passing
through the gate they thus alight before the throne of God.
These inspiring
words belong to an unknown saint struck by the beauty of group
companionship that comes to those who live the life of the soul.
Group life is the nature of things, and as we pass into the Aquarian
Age we are seeing it emerging in the physical world as an increased
sense of responsibility for others. The joy of service is being
realised by many today through a willingness to go beyond conventional
notions of freedom and to make personal sacrifices for the benefit
of the whole. And, in the act of giving themselves up to the
greater good, they are finding in the secret place of the heart
the light and joy of the soul rather than any burden.
Today, the concept
of sacrifice needs lifting out of the “bad press” it
has acquired and brought closer to its original meaning. The
Sanskrit word “yaj” means to sacrifice in the sense
of offering, of giving up to some cause of good.
And to give something “up” brings in the concept of
elevation—a release from that which is pinning
the soul down to earth. While the personal self views sacrifice
in terms of a loss of its own wants and desires, the soul views
it as a re-appropriation of the good, the true and the beautiful.
In the Pranava-Vada we read that “What has been offered
up into the fire, (that is to say, performed without personal
desire), in the light of universal reason, reaches all beings,
and is for the good of all....”
From a macrocosmic
perspective, our failure to live sacrificially has led to disastrous
planetary conditions. On the one hand, the theme of evolution
may seem to be dominated by the survival of the fittest—the
greater overwhelming the lesser; but on the other hand, there
may be noted a certain turning point in human evolution where
the more evolved give of themselves to the less evolved who follow
in their footsteps. This process can be summed up in the word
Love, the epitome of sacrifice. Without such acts
of sacrifice, God’s work would be frustrated; only as one
thing gives way to another can the upward trend of evolution
maintain its momentum.
Fortunately,
there is now a greater general understanding of the need to give,
to share and to take responsibility for our role in the stewardship
of the planet and its life forms. For this to happen we will
have to work creatively with the soul aspect in all forms, for
our work is now with, and in, light. When humanity becomes radioactive,
in a spiritual sense, and forms a magnetic centre upon the planet,
it will be able to invoke all the higher kingdoms on the formless
realms and, at the same time, provide the “area of mind”
from which the subhuman kingdoms will draw their inspiration
for evolutionary progress.
The sacrifice
of a few minutes a day to revitalise the subjective atmosphere
of the planet through our daily triangles leads to a true personal
and group decentralisation. In this selfless direction and visualisation
of energy, we are learning the art of the unseen sacrifice
which works quietly and intently behind the scenes. In so doing
each of us is learning to reflect on a tiny scale, the great
Sacrifice of the Silent Watcher of the planet, Sanat Kumara,
who, having pervaded substance with his life, patiently waits
for each of us to realise the potency of our will
and link it to the great purpose of redemption. Then we will
be following the way of the Buddha and of the Christ, manifesting
the light of the world, and knowing ourselves to
be “Lords of Sacrifice and of loving persistent Devotion”.
There are
innumerable definitions of God because his manifestations are
innumerable. They overwhelm me with wonder and awe and for a
moment stun me. But I worship God as Truth only. I have not found
Him, but I am seeking after Him. I am prepared to sacrifice the
things dearest to me in pursuit of this quest.
Mohandas K.Gandhi
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