Speech by HH Sri Ganapathy Sachchidananda Swamiji on day 3 of the 5th Volunteer camp – September 24 , 2013 – Mathura
Discourse to SDHS Volunteers
I will forget in a second. So I am reminding you right now. Narayana Rao never told me anything in private. In public he has informed me now about all the issues that he just mentioned. When people are given some responsibility directly by Swamiji, still they need to wear volunteer uniforms and render service. I see this attitude only with Guntur and Kadapa volunteers. These two centers are like two eyes for me. They just do their duty diligently, despite extreme seniority and they attend all programs. They conduct all programs with uniform. I want all others also to do in the same way and give a form to me by adding nose, ears, mouth, hands and feet. Right now I only have two eyes of Kadapa and Guntur.
Narayana Rao is not an individual. He is an organization. He is Swamiji’s body. You must inform him of any duties that you are asked to perform. Bala Swamiji is also my volunteer. He may be a leader for the Peetham, but he is my child, born at my command. Even if Swamiji , Bala Swamiji, Vamshi or someone from parivaram assigns any task directly to you, you must inform Narayana Rao about the same. He will not say no. But he should know. Sometimes when a volunteer comes for private darshan, I may give some instruction to the person directly. Even then, you must inform your leaders prior to coming for duty. You must respect the SDHS organization and inform them. All groups must work together. Even Matru Mandali also should work hand in hand with volunteers. You must be very careful. When you are united, Swamiji will immediately come.
Narayana Rao’s service cannot be praised adequately. You accuse that he is always with Swamiji. He also does not attend many functions. He delegates responsibility. The organization will keep only those who come to work willingly. Six police staff members were given in Mysore to serve Swamiji. I am a state guest in Kerala, and Chennai. I do not like such publicity. I refused. If I accept that service offered to me, then volunteers will not get to serve Swamiji. I treat you all as my family members. In spite of all the insults suffered by Narayana Rao from senior devotees, he continues his service. I know everything, but I behave as if I do not know. I am naughty as Lord Krishna. All volunteers must wear the uniform, so that at once you will be recognized as volunteers. Uniform gives you respect. Promise that you will not show disrespect towards Swamiji’s words. Wear the uniforms. There is nothing shameful about it. Those who do not wish to obey these instructions may leave the organization. Only a couple of guests are exempt to this. We will send a memo of terms signed by all authorities. Going forward, Swamiji wants only volunteers to sponsor and perform Annadana during all the upcoming events.
We also have some extraordinary volunteers such as Ramakrishna in Mysore. He feels proud to be called himself as a volunteer. He cleans Swamiji’s bathroom and makes His bed. Because he is so humble, He was blessed with such a great service. One volunteer has the privilege of sending personal clothing for Swamiji. Those who have gone to USA wear volunteer uniforms with pride. They all are reputed computer professionals.
Some senior volunteers are regarding Narayana Rao with negative feelings. Is he wrong in telling you to behave with respect and decorum? I am watching quietly. Because I give special privileges, if you become arrogant, you will certainly suffer a downfall. There should be accountability. You must first go to serve, the senior volunteers before serving Swamiji. Only then, you can learn.
Work towards increasing the funds of the organization. I spend from my personal funds for my expenses, for electricity, for chauffeur, for food and so on. I do not use Trust money. That money belongs to Datta. It should be there for future generations. If you want me to give away all my personal funds, I will give everything to SDHS and I will go away to Haridwar. This will definitely happen if you don’t increase your funds slowly. For a couple of permanent volunteers in Mysore, Narayana Rao sends funds for maintenance.Even if all of you accumulate small amount also, you can meet all expenses of the organization.
In Mysore, RSS organization keeps offering their services. I keep refusing, saying my own volunteer organization is there. Now they request services from our organization. I tell them, sorry, they cannot come at their expense from Hyderabad. From Malaysia comes a priest, who serves without remuneration, and comes in volunteer uniform. Another volunteer is an airline pilot and another one is a police officer. These senior volunteers come running to serve, in spite of ill health also. They all come through Narayana Rao. They consult with him and follow directions. We must recognize and accept mistakes and correct them. No one is indispensable. You may leave if you do not like. It is not a loss for us. You are the one who is going to loose.
Initially, we had 5000 email recipients who registered for receiving Swamiji’s emails. After Nandana MMS contest, the number rose to 25,000. Now with the second phase of MMS it is 36,000. Non registered members add up close to 200,000 worldwide. They read Swamiji’s messages. We have a 20 member team continuously working on this project. You need to have photoshop knowledge to work in this project. Those who know Photoshop can easily figure out how to prepare these video messages. Priyanka will give you training. You may work from your home. You must prepare videos with music and quotes supplied by us. But, you must do it in a legal manner, following strict guidelines. If you are interested to volunteer in this, come forward and register your names for training. It may take a day or two to prepare each video. We have lost a few members because they got married and have left. The 200,000 followers eagerly wait for Swamji’s messages every day. SGS Quotes have become famous. MMS quotes app is also there in Android, I Pad, and others. YouTube is free. Swamiji’s spiritual videos topped on YouTube in ranking. We earned the best reputation. All those who have computer aptitude and knowledge, have a wonderful opportunity now to offer your volunteer services.
Sri Guru Datta !!