Ancient mystical philosophies speak of the manifestation of the Universe as an act of sacrifice. The incarnated existence of a human being is also said to be an act of sacrifice. But the word yajna or sacrifice is now miscontrued. Originally, sacrifice was a joyous, creative act, and its performance was undertaken by all when the throb of the heart was pure and spiritual. Divine Wisdom, Theo-Sophia, was known to and practised by large numbers of people in ancient times, when Deva-Rishis, Divine Sages, walked the earth and all followed the Religion of Life. The great sacrifices were acts of pure magic and there was no loss of life, no spilling of blood, in those ancient days. Later, when knowledge weakened and passion obscured the spiritual vision, and the "third eye" which was once in function disappeared, the rites of sacrifice became outer rites of religion instead of inner creative processes.

Time was when people sacrificed the animals within themselves—the bull of passion, the lamb of ignorance, etc. Later, when knowledge was disappearing, dramas of sacrifice were instituted by the Sages, but in them too there was no blood-spilling. These dramas were symbolic representations. In the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad, for instance, the drama of horse-sacrifice, Ashva-medha, is given as a story of Creation; but we shall not get the real meaning, nor the spiritual atmosphere, from the unimpressive translations of Western Orientalists. Still later, priests took advantage of the credulity of the people and symbolic dramas and poetic personifications were taken as concrete, material facts, and animal, and even human, sacrifices came to be practised. Lord Krishna tried to restore the purity of sacrifice; in the Gita, he speaks of yajna, tapas and dana—sacrifice, austerity and charity; there is no mention of animal-killing. What sacrifices does Krishna advocate?—a leaf, a flower, a fruit, or water to be given with a pure heart.

Again, the great Buddha fought the ghastly religious rite of animal sacrifice. Since his day, however, India continues to be disfigured and polluted by animal-sacrifices. Human sacrifice prevailed when Muhammed, the Prophet of Arabia, was preaching, and it was one of the glorious acts of his life that he succeeded in abolishing it.

The word sacrifice was thus degraded and came to mean making an offering to propitiate cruel, angry and unrighteous gods or god. Our civilization has inherited the implications of that word. Even today, when we use the word "sacrifice" we mean giving up something for the sake of someone, and it always implies a loss to the sacrificer. There is both self-righteousness and regret implied when a person says, "I had to make that sacrifice." Theosophy holds forth the old concept and endeavours to revive the real significance of the words "sacrifice" and "service," which made the ancient civilizations both spiritual and glorious.

Theosophy regards the life of sacrifice and service as of supreme importance. Through its practical moral philosophy we learn the real meaning of what sacrifice and service imply. Sacrifice means, according to Theosophy, an acknowledgement, and therefore an observance, of the great law of interdependence in Nature. The whole of Nature is bound together; the distant stars are bound to our tiny earth by rays of light; the infinitesimal particles of matter, protons, electrons, etc., are bound together by the action of the centripetal and centrifugal forces. Likewise, human beings are bound together by blood, by patiotism, by philanthropy. Again, the human kingdom is dependent on the other kingdoms; and in turn animals, vegetables, minerals need humans and are bound to them. Still further, the visible universe is linked up to the invisible universe. This interdependence which binds the atom to the cosmos makes the great rhythm of life. In this harmony or rhythm, man plays a very important role. What is sacrifice, then? It is that expression of the law of interdependence by which one unit, one atom, one cell, one man, maintains the harmony by serving all other atoms and cells and men. Expression of sacrifice is everywhere visible. The vegetable kingdom offers itself as a sacrifice to the human. Everywhere in Nature one form of life sustains and maintains other forms of life. When we contemplate on this stupendous giving and receiving that is taking place everywhere, our hearts are awakened, though our heads fail to comprehend and to understand. Often when the reasoning mind of the philosopher fails, the intuitive heart of the poet succeeds and perceives.

Theosophy teaches that while the whole universe is sustained by sacrifices, this action is mechanical and automatic till we come to the human stage. This is a living universe; there is no dead matter and Spirit is present everywhere. Divine Mind, called in the Upanishads Mahat, works in all the kingdoms of Nature; consciousness and intelligence are everywhere, but in the human kingdom that consciousness is aware of itself, is self-conscious. The human intelligence has a power which other intelligences in Nature do not possess. Therefore the aspect of sacrifice belonging to the great law of interdependence that functions in the human kingdom is different; it may be called a superior aspect, inasmuch as man wielding the law of sacrifice can create in innumerable ways, and help Nature also in innumerable ways.

On the other hand, because man is a self-conscious intelligence he possesses free-will; his will is free to move in whatever direction he himself determines. This is a terrific and terrifying power, because it is through this power of free-will that man can and does go wrong, make mistakes and commit sins. Man can and does disturb the great rhythm of life. He violates the law of interdependence in two ways: first, by his acts of commission, by his separative, egotistic and selfish ways; second, by his acts of omission, by not performing acts of sacrifice, by being inactive in upholding the purity and integrity of the rhythm of life. When a person is selfish, proud, angry, lustful, greedy, he spoils the rhythm of life and we say he has blundered, he has sinned. Also, when he is not actively engaged in creative love and compassion, charity for the poor, help for the dependent, reverence for those on whom he depends, he is omitting to perform his duties. He who does not perform sacrifices so that through the law of interdependence the rhythm and harmony of life is maintained, is called a "thief" in the Gita, because he robs the universe of many things without due acknowledgement. And because he will not recognize his own debts to Mother Nature, he goes down further and, developing evil tendencies, commits offences.

This is an important doctrine: The Voice of the Silence says: "Inaction in a deed of mercy becomes an action in a deadly sin." If we do not show mercy, we are apt to become unmerciful. If we are not actively good, we shall move, very soon, in the direction of evil. As Ruskin said: "He who is not actively kind is cruel." It is not sufficient to desist from cruelty; not to be cruel is a negative state; Nature ever demands for her success a positive state. One must be actively kind—do kindness, speak kindness, and above all think kindness. Man cannot remain a passive creature; when he does not proceed towards good, he recedes and goes towards evil. Therefore we are taught to be ever active in good. The sacrifices we make are duties to be performed. We are not obliging anyone in sacrificing our wealth or offering our knowledge. Sacrifice is a duty. Acts of sacrifice are acts of duty.

The Gita names many kinds of sacrifices, but it regards the sacrifice of knowledge, i.e., knowledge offered as sacrifice, as the highest. Krishna says: "O harasser of thy foes, the sacrifice through spiritual knowledge (Jnana-Yagna) is superior to sacrifice made with material things" (IV, 33). All wealth, and all that wealth can buy, offered as sacrifice is recognized, but sacrifice of spiritual knowledge is regarded as superior. In the seventh chapter Krishna says that the afflicted, the searchers for truth, those who desire possessions, and the wise worship him, but the one who possesses spiritual knowledge is especially dear to him. This is why Theosophy, recognizing and understanding the real meaning of sacrifice, prefers the spreading of spiritual ideas and ideals, the dissemination of soul-science, and the promulgation of thoughts which point out the right way of life. We shall understand better why sacrifice of knowledge is the highest of sacrifices when we see that without spiritual knowledge people go wrong; even good men and women commit errors.

The Theosophical interpretation of the law of sacrifice as an important aspect of the law of interdependence gives us an intelligent basis for the ritual of life. Life is a sacred rite, a holy ritual. From birth to death, human existence is a drama full of meaning, and every act and every scene of that drama is a sacramental rite. This conception no longer exists. Today, men and women influenced by materialistic science look upon the universe as devoid of spirit and are inclined to live a sense-existence which makes a human lower than a beast. And how can we blame them? Nowadays religion means ceremonies performed at the temple or the church by the priests! But in the remnants of old religions—in scripture texts as in ceremonial fragments—there are profound messages for all of us. Because Theosophy recognizes that in spite of corruption and superstitions there is enough wisdom in the old Aryan philosophies and religions to set the men and women of today thinking, it promotes a comparative study of all of them. Some of these religious rites are fragmentary remnants from days of old when true knowledge was prevalent—not thousands but millions of years ago. To take an example, such a fragment is the Yasna of the Zoroastrians. It was once a ritual or a drama of the law of sacrifice operating in Nature; today it is overlaid with false notions, yet its study reveals that it contains numerous important facts. To understand it, however, one requires thorough knowledge about Nature and the laws of Nature, and this knowledge Theosophy makes available.

Let us turn now to the practical application of the propositions outlined above and see what Theosophy teaches about beginning to live a life of sacrifice, through which alone real service of our fellows can be rendered.

The very first principle which Theosophy lays down is that Nature is living and that everything in Nature is imbued with the presence of Spirit. There are powers, shaktis, forces of different kinds. Man too has a variety of powers or shaktis belonging to the spiritual soul in him. He has the thinking power (Jnana Shakti), he has will-power (Ichcha Shakti), he has creative power (Kriya Shakti) and so on. Man, the spiritual soul, is the performer of sacrifices and his powers of hands, of head, of heart, are the weapons and instruments by which his acts of sacrifice are performed.

The second principle which Theosophy puts forward is that as man himself is the performer of sacrifices, he must regard himself as a priest. He needs no other person to act as priest. This principle is important because the institution of salaried priests makes us forget the spiritual truth that each one of us is a priest and should act as one. Therefore ceremonies and sacrifices ordered to be performed by hired or salaried priests are no sacrifices and produce no beneficent results.

The third principle which Theosophy advances is that every act of ours must be looked upon as a sacrifice. Constituted as we are, our environment being what it is in this Kali Yuga, we have to learn to make sacrifices with our deeds and our words. We need the Religion of Life, not of mere belief, and there is this method by which we can live religion day by day. This third principle implies that we must not make a division and look upon certain special acts as deeds of sacrifice or of service, and the rest as ordinary non-sacrificial deeds. Even when thoughtful people give up orthodox priest-ridden religious practices, they substitute social service or some other kind of work as their religion, and so the division continues. All our deeds and words, our every thought and every feeling, affect others, nay, affect the whole of Nature, and so we have to learn to remember that we have to perform sacrifices not through some special acts only but through our waking and sleeping, walking and resting, thinking and speaking.

These three principles reveal to us the highest meaning of service. When a person lives hour by hour in purity and in peace, thinking high thoughts, feeling noble feelings, speaking inspiring words, doing kindly acts, he is serving the whole of humanity, nay, the whole of Nature. It is this attitude of mind and heart, this habit of action in the daily round and the common task, which Theosophy teaches us to cultivate. Of course, it is difficult to create and to sustain this attitude and habit; but an attempt has to be made. How to make it?

Each of us is a soul and possesses shaktis or powers which show themselves as our capacities and faculties. With these we labour to earn our livelihood and to enjoy the fruits of labour. Next, we use something more. Just as to maintain the vital strength of our body we take food, so to sustain our mental and moral faculties we take outside help. Each one has two kinds of help—one's own faculties, and the tools of one's trade. Thus a schoolboy has his books, a farmer his plough, a cook his pots and pans, an office worker his desk and computer, and so on. The science of sacrifice lays down the principle that each one should look upon his own faculties and the particular implements of his own profession as channels for sacrifice. To use these two for sustaining the rhythm of life is to render beneficent service to all. Thus a worker in any field performs sacrifices day by day if he uses his hands and brain, his heart and aspirations, properly, in the company of the implements of his profession. If he has the right attitude and the right habit, he is serving not only his employers who give him his pay, but also his city and country, humanity and the whole of Nature. He is helping Nature by keeping his mind alert, his heart pure, his finger mobile, his tools clean, his work tidy. Such worker is a philanthropist, a right performer of the duties of his calling.

The root of light is sacrifice, and sacrifice alone can produce service. Real service is the silent performance of duties, but those duties must be transformed into sacrifices. Our duties look irksome to us, but when we have changed our attitude and recognize ourselves as priests of the Religion of Life, when we have cultivated the habit of looking upon every thought and every feeling of ours, every word we speak and every deed we do, as acts of sacrifice, then comes joy and peace and strength that nothing can shake. The light of sacrifice lights up the whole universe for us, and in that light we see the glorious figures of the Lords of Sacrifice, those Great Servants of Humanity who labour hour by hour for Yugas and Kalpas so that we may learn the art of Divine Magic and at long last learn to say: "Adhiyajna [the Great Sacrifice] is myself in this body." Beginning with small sacrifices, performed day by day, we shall learn the art of performing great magical sacrifices from those Divine Magicians who throw the Light of Wisdom on our path and teach us to pass on that Light to others.

We should not lose sight of the fact that despite all the seemingly miraculous advances of modern medicine, the study of the patient is still more important than the study of his disease. And this is true not only of better known psychosomatic disorders, but of all conditions, from the common cold to the fell disease cancer. For, the human being is not only the human body—his temporary tabernacle—but also the human mind, and the spirit that dwells within....

Since health is not just absence of disease, but a state of harmony among all the facets of our being, we must learn something about the plane of our being—the triumverate being—which is variously named the spirit, the soul, or the true self. In reality, this true self of ours is the one most neglected by us, though success in fathoming it, is the only way to lasting peace in times of strife, stress and strain.

Just as, at the bottom of the ocean there is always total calm, though violent storms may be raging on the surface, so also this centre within us is always tranquil, however much the body or mind be in agony or turmoil. A sage has compared this centre to a room within us, which, he suggests, we should make practice of entering from time to time. It may also be called the inner space. Man has made great advances exploring the outer space; it is high time he explored the inner space.

—Dr. M. M. Bhamgara