Karma Yoga

Hanuman serves Rama not for recognition but because service IS the reward. From building the bridge to Lanka to carrying a mountain for healing herbs, his every action is pure offering. Asked for any boon, he requests only to continue serving forever. Seva is devotion made physical.

Poor Sudama brings only beaten rice to his divine friend Krishna. Ashamed of his gift, he tries to hide it, but Krishna eats it joyfully. Sudama returns home to find his poverty transformed to wealth. Seva is not about the value of what is offered but the love with which it is given.

To save his eighty thousand monkeys from human hunters, the monkey king stretches his body across a river as a bridge, letting them run across his back to safety. His broken body is his gift. True kingship means being used up in service—a bridge, not a destination.

When Krishna and Arjuna needed dry wood during rain, Karna cut the legs of his own bed to provide it, saying things can be remade but sending someone empty-handed is the greatest grief.

During battle, Bhai Kanhaiya gave water to wounded enemies as well as allies. When accused of treason, he explained: 'I see the Guru's face in everyone.' Guru Gobind Singh gave him medicine to also dress enemy wounds. Seva at its most radical: serving all without discrimination, regardless of return.

When Mughal Emperor Akbar came to meet Guru Amar Das, the Guru insisted he must first eat in the langar with everyone else, sitting on the floor with the poorest people. Akbar was so impressed by the equality demonstrated that he offered a large estate, which the Guru declined.

The tender conversation between Varaha and Bhudevi as He lifts Her from cosmic waters, revealing how divine strength and gentleness work together to sustain creation.

After slaying Tarakasura, Kartikeya faced his brother Surapadma who transformed into a mango tree. Kartikeya split the tree with his vel (spear), transforming each half into a peacock and rooster. The peacock became his vahana (mount) and the rooster his battle pennant, symbolizing the transformation of evil into divine service.

Lord Vishnu as Vamana, the dwarf brahmin, asks King Bali for three paces of land and expands to cover the universe, while Bali's surrender earns him the Lord's eternal presence.

During the Kurukshetra war, Balarama chose to support neither side due to conflicting loyalties, going on pilgrimage instead - a profound statement on dharma's complexities.

The significance of Devadatta, the divine white horse given to Kalki by Lord Shiva - symbolizing the swift, unstoppable restoration of dharma when divine purpose is mounted.

When Mughals desecrated Harmandir Sahib in 1757, 75-year-old Baba Deep Singh vowed to liberate it. In battle, his head was severed, but he held it on his palm while continuing to fight, reaching the temple to fulfill his vow of service unto death.

Two prized horses meant for the Guru were confiscated by Mughal authorities. Bhai Bidhi Chand, a former thief turned devoted Sikh warrior, used clever disguises - first as a grass-cutter, then as an astrologer - to infiltrate Lahore Fort stables and rescue both horses in daring night escapes.

Emperor Jahangir imprisoned Guru Hargobind at Gwalior Fort along with 52 Hindu Rajput princes. When offered release, the Guru refused to leave unless all prisoners were freed. He had a special chola made with 52 panels, allowing each prince to hold on as they walked to freedom together.

A visitor watched Chanakya switch lamps after finishing official work. Chanakya explained the first lamp contained kingdoms oil for official duties, now he must use personal oil for private conversation. Public resources must never be misused.

After years of fighting Mughal tyranny, Banda Singh Bahadur was captured with 700 Sikhs. Tortured for months in Delhi, his four-year-old son was killed before his eyes, his heart placed in his hands. When offered conversion to save his life, Banda refused. He was tortured to death with red-hot pincers, his eyes gouged out, maintaining his faith until the end. His steadfastness inspired generations.

Chitrangada was King Chitravahanas only daughter, raised as a son and trained in warfare due to Manipurs matrilineal tradition. When Arjuna fell in love with her during exile, her father agreed to marriage on condition their son would remain as heir. She bore Babhruvahana and raised him alone, later reuniting with Arjuna during the Ashvamedha Yagna.

After fasting for 48 days, King Rantideva gives away his only meal piece by piece to visitors who reveal themselves as gods. He asks only for the ability to take on others' suffering—demonstrating the highest karma yoga.

Ravana was cursed that touching a woman without consent would burst his head. This protected Sita during captivity. Past karma shapes future protection.

During a journey to Varanasi, Madhvacharya noticed his fifteen disciples becoming arrogant about their physical strength. He challenged them all to attack him simultaneously. When all fifteen rushed at him together, he felled them all with effortless ease, reminding them that true strength comes from divine grace, not mere physical prowess.