In Sikhism, sewa, or service, is a very important element of one’s life. Throughout Sikh history, We obtain many examples of where sewa has lead to success. We also learn, through these sakhis, that obedience is the best servicing can give to another. The follow in are a few examples from our history of when sewa has led to success Guru Nanak Dey Ji had two sons, either of which could have become Guru after their father; however, Guru Nanak chose to pass on the guru ship to Bhai Lehna. The reason for this was Bhai Lehna’s obedience and sewa to the Guru. The first sakhis have to do with the sewa Bhai Lehna, Guru Angad, did for Guru Nanak.
“Bhai Jetha on the other hand felt honored that the Guru would think of him so much as to show him his mistake. He also felt guilty that he had the Guru go to the trouble of having to say it was wrong.”
One day as the Guru was bathing, his bowl from his bath fell and landed in a puddle of mud. The Guru, in need of the bowl, asked his sons if either of them could retrieve it for him, They, however, felt it was below them to reach down in the mud for the cup, as they would then soil their clothes. Bhai Lehna, on the other hand, felt very indebted that he had been given the opportunity for serve his Guru. In all meekness, he recovered the bowl for Guru Nanak.
Another opportunity Bhai Lehna was given to serve Gur Nanak was when help was needed to transport some weeds from the paddy field to the Guru’s house. The weeds were to be used as fodder for the animals. As before, Guru Ji’s sons refused to do this task as it, too, would soil their clothes. Bhai Lehna, nevertheless, was there once again to offer his service. With no regard to his own personal appearance, he lifted the bundles onto his head and carried them to the house.
Here is one final example of Bhai Lehna’s service to the Guru. One night, there came to the village a terrible storm. The storm, comprised of strong rain and winds, caused a part of the house to collapse. The Guru’s sons would not offer any help as they would not get cold and wet; however, Bhai Lehna once again answered the Guru’s call. Even though it was so cold and wet out, he sacrificed his sleep, and his health, to ensure that Guru Nanak was safe and sheltered.
Moreover, the fact that he rebuilt the wall was not what was most important; the important part was the obedience Bhai Lehna showed to the Guru. These sakhis teach us to do sewa as sewa leads to success. Furthermore, they teach us that the best type of service is obedience. Bhai Lehna became Guru Angad asa result of his sewa to Guru Nanak.
The next example of where sewa has led to success is in the case of Baba Amar Das. Baba Amar Das showed noble service towards Angad Dev Ji. The largest amount of his time was spent doing sewa in langar. Though Baba Amar Das was approximately twenty-five years senior to Guru Angad, he still did much sewa for him. Early every morning, he would go to the closest river (which was a long distance away) to get fresh water for Guru Ji’s bath. After this, he would help in langar; he was responsible for the running of it. Firstly, he would go into the forest to chop firewood for the woodstoves. Next, he would either help or supervise the making of the langar and, then, he would serve it to the people without discrimination; Lastly he would then eat himself. In this way, Baba Amar Das served both the Guru and his people; as a result, Baba Amar Das became Guru Amar Das proving, once again, that sewa does lead to success.
One final example, from the many available in Sikh history that sewa leads to success is in the case of Bhai Jetha, Guru Amar Das’ son in law, who did whatever the cum asked him to do.
“Bhai ‘Lehna on the thier hand felt very indebted that he had been given the opportunity to serve his guru. In all meekness, he recovers the bowl for Guru Nanak.”
Guru Amar Das had two soninlaws, Bhai Jetha and Bhai Rama. One day, Guru Amar Das asked both of them to each construct a platform for him. Both of them finished but, Guru Ji wasn’t pleased with their work and asked them to remake the platforms. They agreed to this and began to rebuild them. However, the Guru was again not pleased with their workmanship; therefore, he again asked them to rebuild their platforms. By this time, Bhai Rama had given up as he didn’t feel it was worth his trouble he didn’t see anything wrong with his platforms). Bhai Jetha,, on the other hand, felt honored that the Guru would think of him so much has to show him hismistakes. He also felt guilty that he had made the Guru go to the trouble of having to say it was wrong. He, therefore, rebuilt his platform once again. This proved to Guru Amar Das Ji that Bhai Jetha was the most obedient of any of his Sikhs. Consequently, Bhai Jetha was given the guruship and was renamed Guru Ram Das.
Guru Ram Das was, then, also given the job of building the city of Amritsar. This proved that the building of the platforms was test, not just to prove who was more obedient to the Guru, but to see who had the perseverance to see that the city was built according to the plans. this sakhi of the platforms is another example of how sewa leads to success, for it was through sewa that Bhai Jetha became Guru and took on the task of building what is now the nucleus or heart of the Sikh nation.
These examples are only a very few of the many sakhis which describe the enormous service done by Sikhs in history and how, through this sewa, they have received success.
Article extracted from this publication >> August 11, 1989
