Hanuman's Devotion - Service as Supreme Love (Seva)

Dadi: "Guddu beta, come sit with me. Tonight I want to tell you about someone whose love was so pure, so complete, that even today people pray to him for strength."

Guddu: "Who, Dadi? Is it a superhero?"

Dadi: "*(smiling)* Better than any superhero, beta. It's Hanuman ji. You know who he is?"

Guddu: "The monkey god! He's really strong, right?"

Dadi: "Yes, but his real power wasn't in his muscles, Guddu. It was in his heart. Let me tell you about the time Rama's army had to cross the ocean to save Sita from Lanka."

Guddu: "How can an army cross an ocean? They don't have boats that big!"

Dadi: "Exactly the problem! They were standing at the shore, looking at the endless water. Hanuman had already flown across once to find Sita. But the whole army couldn't fly."

Guddu: "So what did they do?"

Dadi: "A wise monkey named Nala said something magical. "Write Rama's name on stones and put them in the water. They will float.""

Guddu: "Stones can float? That's impossible!"

Dadi: "*(touching Guddu's cheek)* With love, beta, nothing is impossible. So thousands of monkeys started writing "Ram" on stones and placing them in the sea. And you know who worked the hardest?"

Guddu: "Hanuman ji!"

Dadi: "Yes! He carried the biggest boulders. He wrote Rama's name with so much devotion. He barely ate or slept. Another monkey asked him, "Why work so hard? You've already done so much - you flew across the ocean, found Sita, even burned Lanka! What more do you need to prove?""

Guddu: "What did Hanuman say?"

Dadi: "*(her eyes growing soft)* He said, "Prove? I'm not trying to prove anything. I'm serving Rama. When you love someone, you don't count what you've done. You look for what you can do next.""

Guddu: "*(thinking)* Like how you don't count how many rotis you make for us?"

Dadi: "*(laughing)* Exactly like that, my smart boy! After the war was won and they returned home, Rama gave gifts to everyone who helped. To Hanuman, he said, "Ask for anything.""

Guddu: "Anything? I would ask for a video game!"

Dadi: "Hanuman could have asked for gold, a kingdom, anything! But you know what he said?"

Guddu: "What?"

Dadi: ""I want only to keep serving you. Let me live as long as your name is spoken, so I can always feel close to you.""

Guddu: "He didn't want any treasure?"

Dadi: "Rama asked the same thing! And Hanuman replied, "Service to you IS the treasure. You offer me gifts as if serving you was work that needed payment. But Lord, serving you is my payment - for being alive, for having this body.""

Guddu: "*(quietly)* That's... really beautiful, Dadi."

Dadi: "And then, beta, something magical happened. Someone asked Hanuman if he really kept Rama in his heart. Do you know what Hanuman did?"

Guddu: "What?"

Dadi: "He tore open his chest. And inside, instead of just a heart, there was a vision of Rama and Sita sitting together."

Guddu: "*(wide-eyed)* Inside his heart?!"

Dadi: ""You asked if I keep Rama in my heart," Hanuman said. "See for yourself. There is nothing else in here. My heart is their home.""

Guddu: "Dadi, how can I love like that?"

Dadi: "*(holding his hand)* Start small, beta. Help your mother without being asked. Study hard not for rewards but because learning is a gift. Be kind to others without expecting thanks. The sages say: "Don't wait until your love is perfect. Start serving, and love grows through service.""

Guddu: "So being helpful is like... writing Rama's name on stones?"

Dadi: "*(kissing his forehead)* Perfectly said. Every small act of kindness, done with love, builds a bridge. Hanuman became great not because of his strength, but because he offered that strength to something bigger than himself."

Guddu: "I want to be like Hanuman when I grow up."

Dadi: "Then remember this always: Seva - service - is not separate from love. It IS love. Every time you help someone with your whole heart, you're doing exactly what Hanuman did. Now, shall we do a little seva together and help set the table for dinner?"

Guddu: "*(jumping up)* Yes! I'll carry the biggest plates, just like Hanuman carried the biggest boulders!"

Dadi: "*(laughing)* That's my little Hanuman!"