Service to Others

Once a group of 50 people, attending a seminar, were each given a balloon and asked to write their name on it. Then all the balloons were collected and put in another room. The delegates were let in that room and asked to find the balloon with their name, within 5 minutes. Everyone was frantically searching and there was utter chaos. No one could find their own balloon. Then each was asked to collect the balloon nearest to him and give it to the person whose name was written on it. Within minutes everyone had their own balloon.

This is what happens in our lives. Everyone is frantically looking for happiness all around. Each person tries to gain happiness by focusing on their own pleasure. In actual fact our happiness lies in the happiness of other people.

Prophet Muhammad peace be upon him highlighted this link between service to others and attaining happiness: “Whoever alleviates the difficulties of a needy person who cannot pay his debt, God will alleviate his difficulties in both this world and the Hereafter.”

He also linked the expectation of God’s help in life with service to others: “God will aid a servant (of His) so long as the servant aids his brother,” and “The best of people are those that bring most benefit to the rest of mankind.”

The current trend to obsessively strive for one’s rights is self-destructive. Expecting others to fulfil ones rights leads to stress and frustration, because one is always in anticipation and people more often than not fall short.

An Arab saying sums it up that: “The best of people are those who are best in fulfilling rights.”

A society based on an ideology of fulfilling other people’s rights has more happiness and less antagonism. At the end, everyone benefits. Prophet Muhammad peace be upon him indicated that the ethos of service should permeate society from the top down: “The leader of the people is their servant.”

Muhammad Badsha