In plain words
Man loves this world for his own sake. He loves every object for his own gain; here is an example. When we love a fruit, we do not love it for the fruit's sake. Man loves the fruit for himself. If we store something away with great care, it is not out of love for that thing. We keep the thing safe for love of ourselves. So all the kinds of love in the world are loves for one's own gain, not true love. So to give up this self-seeking principle and choose the Supreme Principle that is of true benefit, and to think only of selfless service: this is the chief duty of Seva Dal members.
Every thought of a man plays an important part in his life. So a man must keep only sacred feelings in his heart. As the feeling is, so the future takes shape. Man means a harvest of feelings. So, as we gather these selfless feelings into the heart, that itself spurs us on, in some measure, to niṣkāma karma. Niṣkāma karma roots out the animal in man and bestows divinity. Service is holier than mere karmas such as dhyāna, japa and bhajan. Dhyāna, yoga, japa, bhajan: these we practise for our own sake, for peace of mind. We practise them for merit, for the world beyond. All of them have to do with self-interest. This is a mingling of worldly things. But what we should long for is union with the Supreme. The karma to be done for union with the Supreme must be free of self-interest. Niṣkāma karma is the fragrant flower of Prema. We must turn our heart into a flower with so holy a fragrance. What is called niṣkāma karma has a special excellence of its own. In niṣkāma karma we must not think of our own satisfaction, or of the satisfaction of the one we serve; we must do it in the faith, “This is the very worth of my birth.” We must believe that this birth came about for the sake of niṣkāma karma. This niṣkāma karma must enter our nerves, our muscles, our heart. Whatever we do, we must do it as done for the sacred satisfaction of the Paramātma, in the spirit, “All karmas are for the pleasure of the Lord.” “I happen to be a convener of the Sathya Sai Seva Dal. I am a State President. I must keep the rules they lay down”: do not dwell on constraints like these. Without fretting over our rules, regulations, we must try to act for a pure heart, for purity of citta. On the emblem of our Seva Dal is written “Duty is God.” Yet every man, the whole world over, only uses the word Duty, Duty. They do not see the inner meaning in this word Duty. For a man on his own, this word Duty has no value at all. Only when there is a society, a community, two persons, does the use of the word Duty have meaning. Duty is what makes us see the inner truth that we live in a society. We take this Duty to be a personal Duty. Here we must explain two important terms.