Why Do Seva For Animals?

If man believes in the Fatherhood Of God, then he is bound to follow His precept "All Are One…" fulfilling His dictum, acting upon it, by being "Alike To Everyone…" Quoting Bhagawan's precious gems on service to the co-inhabiting world of creatures, Ms. Mercini Sheratt writes about the supreme significance of doing service to animals and other creatures, bringing in interesting tales of rare instincts of love and gratitude shown by the co-existing world of creatures.

"Foster the tiny seed of Love that clings to 'me' and 'mine', let it sprout into Love for the group around you, and grow into Love for all mankind, and spread out its branches over animals, birds, and those that creep and crawl, and let the Love enfold all things and all beings in all the worlds. Proceed from less Love to more Love, narrow Love to expanded Love." (Sathya Sai Speaks, Vol. 8, ch. 16)
Once, when presented with seva projects for human beings, Bhagawan said: "What about the animals? They need help too. My love embraces the animal kingdom as well as the human kingdom and so should yours……….it should not just be limited to human beings." (source: Dr. Narendranath Reddy,UK medical conference, September 2011). To another devotee, He has said, "Real Seva is animal seva".
Bhagawan tells us that we can learn many good qualities from our animal friends and below, you can see a remarkable act of kindness by one of them:

"Two blind people wanted to drink water at the RagiGudda temple, Bangalore. When they were unable to operate the tap, this mother monkey opened the tap for them, allowed them to drink water, drank some water herself and then closed the tap before leaving the scene." (extract from an Indian newspaper)
Please note well! If a monkey can do this act of kindness for human beings, then can't we humans also do this for our animal brothers and sisters? Many people do feed stray animals and wild creatures and birds, while many more never think of it…………..but hey, what a shining example this monkey is to the human beings who don't ……she is clearly not 'speciest' like many humans or prejudiced against members of other species in need.
No life can be sustained without water or food. This applies to all life forms and while humans suffer terribly when they do not have enough water to drink or food to eat, so do our fellow creatures……..especially in extreme weather conditions such as the intense and simmering summer heat of summer or freezing winter. And the love and care that we give towards those in animal form is never wasted for the same atma flows through us all. As Bhagawan says:
"When you love and look after an animal, you help to lift the whole of creation. If you cannot care for an animal, then at least feed the birds and wild creatures."
While they may not be able to thank us in words, those who have fed and cared for animals, wild or domestic, have often experienced their loving gratitude in other ways. Our love attracts their love and helps us to realise the Oneness behind all forms.
A small example of this occurred at the time of the passing away of Lawrence Anthony, a highly regarded and remarkable conservationist and environmentalist who could communicate heart to heart with elephants. He had been particularly successful in taming and 'normalising' a herd of wild, traumatised and rogue elephants, 'delinquents, every one of them' in Zululand, South Africa. Although he had not seen the elephants for 15 months as he had had to distance them for their own safety, on the day that he died without warning in March 2012, the whole herd appeared out of nowhere and stood silently outside his house as if to pay homage to the human being who had so loved and understood them. We know that elephants mourn their loved ones and to them, he had become a beloved family member. Somehow, on their jungle telegraph, they had intuited that he had passed away.

A kind and loving soul who has kept a small animal sanctuary for years told me the following story: Alerted by her dog's barking one day, she found a wounded baby pigeon beside him which had fallen out of a tree. She rescued and hand reared it while it lived with her and her other pets for about five weeks……………..then one day, it was ready to leave and join others of its kind.
For 4 years it lived freely, often in her garden. She could tell which pigeon it was because it recognised its name and was not afraid of her dog, with whom it had lived before. Then one day, it appeared at her patio door, very sick, walked in, greeted her, the dog and the resident crow in turn and then went into its old cage which was still there.

It settled down and the next day, quietly passed away. It had come home to die where it knew it was loved and safe. A few days before it reappeared, she saw the outline of a pigeon on her window pane………..photo below………..rather like an angel bird……………perhaps an omen of what was to come.

An old neighbour of mine used to feed some badgers every night, as indeed many people do……….and I know, because I saw it with my own eyes, that these badgers would announce their arrival in the dark by banging on his patio door. The food was then served and once they had finished it, they would bang on the patio door again, indicating that they would like a second helping!……..Their visit and their playful antics gave him such delight that it was not a one-way giving……..

"When a devotee seeks with humility and purity to give seva and prema to My creatures who are in need of such selfless service and sublime love; when he considers all creatures as My children, as his beloved brothers and sisters, as the blessed manifestations of My immanence, then in fulfilment of My role as Sathya Sai, I descend to help, accompany and carry that yogi. I am always near such a yogi to guide him and to shower my love upon his life".
When Australia had a horrendous heatweave in 2009, something happened that had never happened before……….Koala bears, dying from thirst, emerged from the bush and approached human beings asking for water, so desperate were they to drink that they overcame any fear of humans . ……..luckily, some humans obliged as can be seen in the pictures below…….

They entered houses to drink and ended up cooling down in baths…………..

Like Sathya Sai Baba and Shirdi Sai Baba, St Francis, the Christian saint, felt great tenderness for the whole of creation. He not only fed poor and vulnerable people but always fed the birds and other creatures around him too. At Christmas, he asked the local government to make sure that all the animals around were really fed well, especially 'my sisters, the larks'………..

Another love-filled soul, Ramana Maharshi, attracted to him through his love, not only human beings but all kinds of animals and birds who also made their home in his ashram. He even allowed the squirrels to make nests for their families behind his pillow. Daily, he used to ask "Have the lads been fed today?" referring to the dogs. At dinner-time, the dogs had to be fed first. ……then, the beggars and then the devotees….Here, he is, feeding a monkey:
Shirdi Sai, in His love, was happy to share the food on His plate with stray dogs ………..We know how many times He scolded His devotees when they behaved harshly towards a hungry animal and how many times He manifested in that animal form to teach them that God dwells in all forms and to have the same love and respect for all of them.

As everyone knows, our own Sathya Sai Baba loved and kept many animals over His lifetime and there are many stories in which His great love for the animal kingdom is clearly demonstrated.
Lastly, Mohammed, in one the Hadiths, tells the story of an adulterous woman about to be horribly punished. However, her sin was forgiven her in Allah's eyes when on seeing a very thirsty dog, she took off her shoe and filled it with water from a well for the dog to drink. This act of kindness more than compensated for any past wrongdoing.

Anyone deciding to feed stray animals should take note of the fact that onions, garlic, coffee, raisins, grapes, beans, chocolate and some other foods (lists are available online) are dangerous for dogs and cats. While dogs are omnivores and can eat anything, cats are carnivores (sorry! – God made them like that!) and although they may eat anything when very hungry, really need their own kind of food……. Birds generally eat seeds and nuts. Water provided should be clean.

Posted in Animal and Nature |

Why Do Animals Matter?

Friday, May 10th, 2013

Imagine a world without greenery around, without the four legged ones, without the flying colours? Such a world would be hollow without the essence. Man is blessed to co-exist in this beautiful world, with plants, animals, birds and all other living 'loving' creatures. If alone man understands his duty, his legacy, to live practising "Love All Serve All, Help Ever Hurt Never", coexisting with his co-creation, he can surely claim that his heart has been touched by God. Why man should co-exist in nature and why do animals, birds matter for him? Read on as Ms. Mercinini Sheratt from the United Kingdom writes about the beauty of animal kingdom, citing Bhagawan's priceless quotes. The writer, an English Teacher by profession, has been a long time devotee and is currently spiritual co-ordinator for Region 6 in the UK. She has also been taking active interest in animal welfare and animal rights.
Why do animals matter? Although Bhagawan often begs us not to lapse back into our animal ancestry because spiritually our task is – with His help – to rise higher and higher up the evolutionary ladder, He nevertheless tells us that:
"Why should you argue that animals, beasts and birds are bad? Each is treading its own dharma. It does not overstep or undermine. They have greater cooperation and mutual love than even men. Each has to be judged from the point of view of the equipment and the opportunity. Man can live better if he learns from the animals. He is degrading himself even lower. When the Lord incarnates, He has as one of His tasks the protection of sadhus, of beings with quiet, innocent natures. Among animals are countless sadhus, remember." (Sathya Sai Baba in a question and answer session – Peggy Mason's Magazine, Summer 1996)

Animals matter because among them are some remarkable and beautiful souls, perhaps old souls of the animal kingdom. For just like the human kingdom, there are young souls and old souls and this can often be seen just by looking into their eyes. Think, for example, about all the patient, loving and selfless dogs, also referred to as Assist/ Service dogs, who look after handicapped human beings. (However, dogs are not the only sadhus in the animal kingdom) Many other such sadhus can also be found in other species of animals.
Below we can see a picture of the Mother Theresa of Dogs, a rescued dog living in an animal sanctuary in Warwickshire, UK. This story has been verified to be true and is as follows:

Mother Theresa of Dogs was a badly abused and neglected greyhound left to die, locked up somewhere. She was finally rescued and taken to an animal sanctuary, emaciated and shivering with fear. However, as time went by, she grew in confidence with the love and care she received and has ended up by becoming the sanctuary's resident surrogate mother. She welcomes all the new incomers to the sanctuary, providing them with the love and care their bruised souls so badly need. The picture below shows the different species living peacefully together under Mother Theresa's tender, loving wing. Her motto must be "Love All, Serve All".

Animals matter because they are sentient beings just like us. Although they can't speak in our human language, this does not mean that they are automatons with no feeling as certain 'scientific' and 'philosophic' thinking has claimed for centuries…..an attitude which has hardened the hearts of many and justified all kinds of cruelty and exploitation of animals, 'legitimate' and illegitimate. This attitude is now thankfully slowly changing and certain scientists of animal behaviour are finally accepting that animals are feeling – and dare I say it – thinking beings with complex emotional lives. They feel joy, love, pain, fear, anxiety, sorrow and demonstrate humour, the range of animal sentience that is now being recognised is astounding – even a bull has been known to grieve at the death of his owner; rats, who chuckle when being tickled and come back for more, have been found to be capable of altruism; the humble chicken is capable of deception and empathy and turkeys are so clever that they have been known to hold up heavy traffic in order to let their babies cross the road. There is no such thing as a bird brain in the bird kingdom, as birds of all kinds have been found to be surprisingly intelligent. Even pigeons have shown mathematical abilities on par with certain primates. As for parrots, they are a whole amazing story in itself; they have the emotional age of a toddler and the intelligence of a five year old. They bond so deeply with either their parrot or human companions that parting and separation cause great suffering to them, so much so that they have been known to stop eating and die as a result of this.

Animals matter because many of them are full of love with a capital 'L'. There is so much evidence which testifies to this. In many cases, their love seems to be unconditional, purer and more intense than the love shown by many human beings. As Bhagawan tells us about His visit to Uganda:
"I was really moved by their love and affection. I could not come out of that place. Such intense love is not to be found even among human beings today. The humans hate one another. I could witness an intense, unparalleled love and equality in those animals"…..Sathya Sai Baba Speaks, Volume 30, chapter. 19, p. 280

And
"Love is present not only in human beings but also in all creatures, birds or beasts; nor is that all. It is in fact all pervasive. Love pervades everything in creation. Man's humanness is vitiated when he fails to recognise this love." – Sathya Sai (SS February 1995, pg 37)

Once I rescued a small bird being chased by a cat. I held the bird in my hands while I sat very still, hoping that this would calm it. As I looked into its little eyes looking up at me, I was overwhelmed by a powerful feeling of LOVE coming to me from this tiny creature. This took me completely by surprise for it was totally unexpected but unmistakable and I could never have imagined or predicted it.
Animals matter because
"There is only one royal road for the spiritual journey – LOVE, love, love for ALL beings as manifestations of the SAME DIVINITY that is the very core of oneself" – Sathya Sai
The same atma which flows through us also flows through every living being. Our treatment of them matters because what we do to them comes back full circle to us, the human kingdom. As long as our abuse and exploitation of animals continues on the grand scale that it does, mankind will never know peace. In common parlance, what goes round comes round for we are all ONE LIFE and Swami has said we are creating an enormous karma in our mistreatment of the animal kingdom.
Long ago, in the times of Ancient Greece, in the sixth century BC, Pythagorus, the mathematician and mystic philosopher stated that:
"As long as men massacre animals, they will kill each other. Indeed he who sows the seed of murder and pain cannot reap joy and love".