Sri Sathya Sai International Organization - USA

On January 18, 2025, the Sri Sathya Sai Centers of the Greater Boston Area of Sri Sathya Sai International Organization (SSSIO) hosted an outreach effort to the community. They invited Swami Sarvapriyananda, resident at the Vedanta Society of New York and popular spiritual teacher with a worldwide following, who drew a crowd of nearly 700 people (with over 14,000 online views!) at the Sai Unity Center in Lowell, MA. His lecture, based on Sri Sathya Sai Baba’s well-known maxim 'Love All Serve All' dove deep into the connection between love, service, and spiritual practice.

Swami Sarvapriyananda presented Sri Sathya Sai Baba’s teaching, 'Love All, Serve All,' as the ultimate essence of any spiritual path. It doesn't matter if you focus on knowledge, devotion, service, or meditation (the Four Yogas) — your practice is only truly authentic if it naturally leads to universal love and selfless action.

In short, 'Love All, Serve All' is the living essence of all spiritual practice.

Why Love and Service Are Two Sides of the Same Coin

The Swamiji shared impactful stories from the Himalayas to show that love and service are inseparable:

• Service is Love (The Story of Lakshman Das ji): A monk named Lakshman Das ji spent his days serving his fellow monks—getting them food, medicine, or a warm shawl. When his own teacher urged him to practice more traditional devotion (like chanting), Lakshman Das felt confused. He soon realized a profound truth: the Sanskrit root for "devotion" (bhajan) is "bhaj," which means service. His loving service was his devotion to God, expressed through the people around him.
• Love is Service (The Story of Tapovani Mataji): Tapovani Mataji, who saw the Divine in everyone, was deep in a ritual prayer to her idol of Krishna. When a hungry visitor arrived asking for food, she immediately stopped her prayer and went to the kitchen. When others criticized the visitor for interrupting her worship, Mataji called out: "I am performing my worship right now by cooking!" For her, serving the guest was the highest form of devotion.

The Deeper Meaning: Love ONE, Serve ONE

Swami Sarvapriyananda then gave the ultimate philosophical reason for 'Love All, Serve All,' drawn from the Bhagavad Gita.

We typically see ourselves as separate individuals. However, the ancient wisdom of Vedanta tells us that the consciousness that experiences life in your body is the same universal consciousness that experiences life in every other body.

This means when you serve others, you are actually serving the same Divine Self that dwells within you. 'Love All, Serve All' is therefore the natural, logical expression of this oneness.

It’s truly 'Love ONE, Serve ONE.'

The Engine of Practice

The lecture concluded by stressing that all three paths—knowledge, devotion, and service—rely on a solid foundation: focus, attention, and concentration (meditation). Without this focus, even the best intentions lose their power to truly transform us.