..續本文上一頁e their present life as well as their future life!” We should develop such feelings of love and compassion.
All those who come to learn Dhamma should develop such feelings. It is even more essential for all those who teach Dhamma, those who manage the centres, and those who serve Dhamma to develop such wholesome feelings. If one does not have love, compassion, and goodwill, how can one teach Dhamma
One will merely inflate the ego, “I have given Vipassana to so many people. I have built so many rooms. I have given so much donation.”
What are you doing
The purpose of Dhamma service is not to inflate the ego. If you are free from ego, then the work you do will be Dhamma work, Dhamma service. Whoever works here—whether one is a teacher or a trustee—all are Dhamma servers. Whoever works in a Vipassana centre must work with the volition to serve, not for the sake of financial remuneration or livelihood. Each person who works in a Vipassana centre is a Dhamma server. They come here with this volition of service, the volition that their service may benefit others. They serve with this wholesome volition full of love and compassion.
All are Dhamma servers. Dhamma service means to serve those who come to meditate. You should serve them with love and humility, not like a paid employee. It is possible that the Vipassana trust may give an honorarium to some Dhamma servers who are serving fulltime. This should not be considered as salary. There are no salaried employees in a Vipassana centre. Everyone is a Dhamma server. The volition is to get an opportunity to gain the merits of service. The merit of service is invaluable.
When we give food to the hungry, their hunger is appeased. It is a meritorious act. When we give water to the thirsty, their thirst is quenched. It is a meritorious act. Similarly, when we give medicine to the sick, they are cured. This is a meritorious act.
All these meritorious acts are good but they cannot be compared to the merit gained by giving Dhamma. Certainly we should give food to the hungry but they will be hungry again. We should give water to the thirsty but they will become thirsty again. We should give medicine to the sick but they will fall sick again. They do not gain lasting benefit.
But anyone who gets Dhamma and starts walking on the path of Dhamma gets eternal benefit. One is able to face all the ups and downs of life, all the pleasant and unpleasant situations. One will never be miserable and will remain peaceful and happy within because the mind will remain balanced, equanimous. One will be able to fulfil all responsibilities properly.
Sabba dānaṃ dhammadānaṃ jināti—the gift of Dhamma excels all other gifts. The gift of Dhamma is superior to all other gifts because when one gets the gift of Dhamma, both the present and the future get better.
One who teaches Dhamma is certainly giving the gift of Dhamma (dhammadāna). But all the Dhamma servers are also giving the gift of Dhamma. How can a Dhamma teacher teach Dhamma without the help of Dhamma servers
How can courses be organised without the help of Dhamma servers
At so many places, I see how the cooks prepare food with so much love, so much mindfulness. They work with so much dedication. The food for so many persons has to be prepared in time. How can they be so devoted if they are working only for a salary
Likewise, the others also perform their duties with love, goodwill and compassion. If the Dhamma servers serve selflessly, then the Dhamma land will be a true Dhamma land. Otherwise, it will become the industry of an industrialist; it will become the business of a businessman.
This is a Dhamma centre. It is not a commercial or business centre. Nobody is master or servant; all are servers. Someone may be given the res…
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